variance (protocol book 2)

august 21

After a successful escape from Baker and Pryor, Cassie and Elias finally have the life they fought so hard for. They try to enjoy the quiet moments together, basking in the fragile peace they've carefully constructed.

On a Friday night in May, a call takes it all away.

Cassie has been given her first foreign assignment, and Elias is contractually bound to accompany her as her bodyguard. Their destination is a remote Russian Outpost with a major pathogen problem, and Cassie has been requested specifically.

Cassie and Elias are suspicious of the Russians. The Russians are suspicious of them. One of the doctors is friendly, the off-putting smile just won't leave his face. The other scientists avert their eyes when Cassie and Elias pass by, never wanting to be near them for too long.

Something isn’t right.

Fueled by jet lag and bland rations, Cassie and Elias can’t help but argue more than they talk. Secrets are revealed, doubts are planted, and the tension between them only tightens as they are forced into close quarters.

But the virus refuses to stay in the lab, and they have to navigate yet another dangerous terrain. Each moment of chaos threatens to push them further apart, or bring them closer, and it’s up to the two of them to decide what they’re willing to risk.