Spell Robbers by Matthew J. Kirby

sounded good. But it still felt all wrong.
    Mr. Weathersky turned to Agent Taggart. “I understand these two are quite advanced for their age.”
    Agent Taggart smiled. “They are, sir.”
    “Excellent.” He turned back to them. “How are you both settling in?”
    Ben swallowed. Should he tell the truth?
    But Peter spoke for both of them. “We’re doing great, sir.”
    “Just wait.” Mr. Weathersky leaned back in his chair, his hands before him, fingertips to fingertips. “As you deepen your understanding of the quantum realm, you press your ear to creation’s door. The universe, as Sir James Jeans put it, will begin to look more like a great thought than a great machine.”
    The room went quiet after that.
    Ben cleared his throat. “Agent Spear, you mentioned intel on Dr. Hughes?”
    “Yes.” He blinked. “Our sources have confirmed that the Dread Cloaks have taken her to one of their headquarters, along with the augmenter gun. Not only that, but there’s some kind of rift between factions taking place within the gang.”
    “She’s alive?” Mr. Weathersky asked.
    “Yes.” Agent Taggart spoke up. “Apparently, Poole believes the augmenter is not yet fully functional. He has kept her alive to make it so.”
    “I was told that it worked,” Mr. Weathersky said.
    “Ben assured us it was functional,” Agent Taggart said.
    Mr. Weathersky turned to him. “Is it?”
    “I used it. It worked. It just didn’t work the way Dr. Hughes thought it should.”
    Mr. Weathersky drummed his fingers on the table. “Tell me exactly what you did with it, and what happened.”
    Ben explained the range experiment that Dr. Hughes had set up, his actuating thoughts, and the ice missile they had produced. “Dr. Hughes stopped the tests at that point.”
    “I can see why,” Mr. Weathersky said. “Now, tell me about the day of the attack on the lab.”
    So Ben, this time with Peter’s input, told everything that had happened from the moment the Dread Cloaks entered the lab to when he and Peter lost consciousness.
    “I’m impressed, Ben,” Mr. Weathersky said. “You had the presence of mind in that situation to actuate a lightning bolt? Not many could have done that without much more extensive training.”
    “I had augmentation.” Ben wasn’t going to allow this man’s flattery to get inside him.
    “Even so,” Mr. Weathersky said. “Is there anything else you can tell me? Anything about that day that stands out to you?”
    Peter shrugged. “Dr. Hughes was late.”
    “Did she say why?” Mr. Weathersky asked.
    “She said she’d been making contact with other researchers on the subject of portable augmentation.”
    That’s right . Ben remembered that now. And there was one man, in particular. Someone she thought would be an ally. But what was his name?
    “That must be how they found her,” Agent Taggart said. “That’s how she came to Poole’s attention.”
    “Agreed,” Mr. Weathersky said.
    But Ben felt there had to be more to it than that. They were missing something, and it had to do with that other man. His name. What was it?
    “What are your orders, sir?” Agent Spear asked.
    “Before we proceed,” Agent Taggart said, “should we dismiss Ben and Peter?”
    “No.” Mr. Weathersky stared at the table. “I believe they are an essential part of this operation. They both know Dr. Hughes. Ben knows the device, which is clearly too dangerous to remain in Dread Cloak hands.”
    Ben doubted Quantum League hands were any safer.
    “A rescue mission?” Agent Taggart asked.
    Mr. Weathersky shook his head. “Yes, but not a strike mission. Dr. Hughes will be too heavily guarded. This will have to be an inside job.”
    Agent Spear rubbed his chin. “We don’t have any undercovers or assets in play that could get close enough.”
    “Is there anyone we could turn?” Mr. Weathersky asked. “Recruit a double agent.”
    “None of our current candidates are close enough to Poole,” Agent Taggart