Page 13 of Black and Brown

“Don’t be fooled by Grace’s calm exterior. He operates with lethal ferocity. Even before his enhancements, his abilities far surpassed that of any soldier.”

Mirage liked what he was hearing as he stared at his new partner’s strong back.

“During his field training, his fluidity and precision were mesmerizing…graceful.”

It took a moment, but Grace inched his hood back and slowly turned around, as if he lived for dramatic effect, and leveled his penetrating gaze on him.

Mirage almost choked on his next breath.

He’d never seen such rich brown eyes on a man. They appeared to shimmer with hints of amber and gold from the natural light shining through the window.

Mirage felt the same stimulation he’d had when he’d passed the silent room.

The electrifying energy made him gravitate closer.

He hadn’t expected that man to look like this.

Grace was a couple of inches taller than Mirage, with broad shoulders that made his trench appear specifically designed for his physique.

The thick ivory ribbed turtleneck did nothing to conceal the definition of Grace’s chiseled pecs.

Mirage should’ve never altered his serum dosages.

It was dangerous and forbidden to have such strong reactions that he now had to work harder to conceal.

Grace didn’t scan his body like Mirage had done him. Instead, he looked him right in his eyes with that intoxicating gaze and acknowledged him with a single nod.

Graceful indeed.

Grace

“Grace, meet your partner…code name: Mirage.”

Grace had known he’d come face-to-face with the man from the hall sooner or later.

He’d thought of the mysterious stranger several times since then because it’d been his first feeling of stimulation in months.

When Grace had left the silent suite, Mirage had left an air of mischievousness lingering in the blackness that seeped into his chest.

Mr. Slick-Dressed Director was reading from the paper as if it were a prepared script.

“Named Mirage because of his previous life, background, and strict discipline that never seemed real. As if his self-control was ingrained and unshakable…but not.”

Grace stared down Mirage.

He focused his gaze on the tilt of his new partner’s glacial blue-grayish eyes, fascinated by the way they gleamed with calculated menace.

Grace watched him with detached curiosity, the same way he’d watch a rare tiger at the National Zoo.

“Mirage left his world without a trace, as if he was never there. He has a brilliant mind and more degrees in science and medicine than I thought one person could obtain. That’s all now coupled with lightning-quick reflexes from his enhancements.”

Now, I’m a bit more intrigued.

“To his enemies, he’ll disappear and reappear in the blink of an eye.”

The director scanned his paper and then flipped it over.

“His incomparable knife skills are probably a lingering talent from his profession as a surgeon.”