The greatest weapon against a serial killer? A girl with no fear. There's been a murder. And it isn't part of some FBI training exercise. Late one night, in the middle of a rainstorm, Gaia and her roommate stumbled upon an actual killing. Since they were the only ones to glimpse the perp, headquarters has granted Gaia and Catherine temporary FBI badges to solve the case. Way to hit the ground running. But the investigation is not like a TV show. It's gruesome. It's frustrating. It's real. When the killer strikes again, they realize this isn't a one-shot deal either. Gaia tries to piece together some clues, but there's no real lead to go on. And without a profile, the next victim could be anyone. Anyone at all. Grade 9 Up–In this second entry in the series, Gaia is dismissed for not following procedures, but is then given a second chance by her supervisor: to solve the murder of a local woman. Gaia interrupted the crime and caught a glimpse of the killer, but she doesnt remember much and has to learn the ropes of investigation with her partner, Catherine. The rookie has also been flirting with another student, Will, whom she is attracted to but he feels threatened by her. Their competition has made it difficult for them to talk to one another. As the partners investigate the case, Gaia struggles with her own flaws. The intrigue intensifies when Catherine disappears and the FBI believes her to be dead. Modern phrases and references will soon date the story, and the contrived conversations detract from the action. The book leaves a lot of loose ends, thus setting the stage for the next installment. –Karen Hoth, Marathon Middle/High School, FL Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Francine Pascal is the creator of several bestselling series, including Fearless and Sweet Valley High, which was also made into a television series. She has written several novels, including My First Love and Other Disasters , My Mother Was Never a Kid , and Love & Betrayal & Hold the Mayo . She is also the author of Sweet Valley Confidential: Ten Years Later . She lives in New York and the South of France. Live Bait By Francine Pascal Simon Pulse Copyright © 2005 Francine Pascal All right reserved. ISBN: 0689878222 Chapter One: Gaia Have you ever noticed how the big decisions come to you in an instant? How when the serious questions roll around, the answers are right there at your fingertips? In the moment, you just know. And in that one moment, everything changes. Don't believe me? Let's use an example that's close to home: my decision to move to California after high school graduation. It would be the understatement of the year to say that I did not overthink that choice. In fact, it was a pretty spur-of-the-moment thing. After all that had happened, I needed to start fresh. I stopped off to visit my brother in Ohio, and from there I just kept heading west. See? Split-second decision. I hopped on a Greyhound, and everything changed. Now I have a choice again. And it's not something I get to ponder extensively. A few days ago I was dismissed from the FBI on the grounds of an inability to...well, there's some technical gobbledygook that I'm sure you could read if you pulled my file, but the gist was that I wasn't so much a "team player." I wasn't big on the rules. Nope, my weird, combative, superhero delusions that had essentially kept me alive for my entire high school career were in fact a huge detriment here at Quantico. Here there are procedures, policies, protocol -- and I've never been much for protocol. Agent Malloy knew I'd have problems with the rules and regulations. He doubted my suitability for the program right from the get-go. But he gave me a chance anyway. And then, even when I proved him wrong, against the odds he gave me yet another opportunity at Quantico. I thanked him, obviously, but there's no way that he knew how much this second chance meant to me. Actually, it was much more than a second chance. It was probably a third chance, to be honest. Anyway, when the FBI asked me to apply for their training program, to officially become a lunatic-terrorist stopper, I accepted immediately. I made the decision in a heartbeat and my whole existence turned on a dime. Agent Malloy is offering me another show of faith. He's telling me he's willing -- no, maybe even eager -- to have me investigate Ann's murder case. Because I was there, because I was in the room with the killer, because I adhered to procedure the moment I realized something, anything, was going down. It's not going to be easy, working her case while also training with the rest of the new agents in training -- the NATs. But I've got to do it. There's no question about that. Quantico is the closest thing I've got to a home. All of my skills, strengths, and talents -- for once I don't have to downplay them or be embarrassed about them. For once they're an asset