Tears sprung up in Rebecca’s eyes, but she blinked them back, then lifted her chin and straightened her shoulders, replying, “I do understand. But I can’t brush off the possibility that he was one of the ones who survived. Especially because his symptoms were not as bad as what most people get. He never hallucinated, for one, and for another, he also was able to talk to me and give me information right before he died.”

  “You’re right, Rebecca, that does seem hopeful. I only want you to be prepared. I’d hate for you to have to grieve a second time because you think he is alive now.”

  “I get it. Thanks, but you don’t have to worry. I do understand. I’m just not going to sit by and wonder, though. I have to find out.”

  “I don’t suppose the document said anything about how big the army is already or how big they want it to be?” asked Remy.

  “Nope. Very general.”

  “So, we might be able to save Jonathan, if he’s one of them, and a lot of others as well. If we can find them,” said Bendi.

  “If we can find them,” Bryn agreed. “And figure out how to disable the microchips.”

  “That’s Troy and Destin’s territory. I’m sure those two can handle it, right, Destin?” Selby said.

  “Yeah, well, we could if I knew where Troy was.”

  “Didn’t you just say you two were working on all this together?” asked Cassidi.

  “We were,” Destin looked to Bryn, who nodded at her to continue. “But we did find something else out. Troy’s dad works for Manglebee, and when Troy found out by seein’ his name on that document, he took off. Now he won’t respond to messages or anything. I’ve tried and so has Bendi.”

  Cassidi, Rebecca, and Selby all exchanged looks.

  “What?” asked Destin when she saw what passed between the three friends at hearing the news that Troy’s dad was involved and Troy had disappeared. They weren’t surprised. She thought they would have been devastated.

  “We were afraid of that,” Rebecca responded. “Cassidi thought she saw someone that looked just like an older version of Troy when she first snuck into BRO, but we weren’t sure. We didn’t want to tell Troy or anyone else because we didn’t know if our suspicions were true. But we definitely didn’t want Troy to find out like this.”

  “Do any of you know where he might have gone?” asked Bryn.

  “No. He isn’t exactly an outdoorsy type. Mostly just hung out at home or with us when he wasn’t at school. Computers are his life. I can’t imagine where he would have run. Did anyone try his home?” Rebecca asked.

  “We haven’t been able to do anything besides message him. We picked up Destin after she messaged me that she had to talk to me, but we had to head out immediately to get Remy, Lucash, and Juniper.”

  They all seemed to suddenly remember that there were two extra people in the room, one of whom had just heard this entire conversation and had not said a word. Bryn walked back over to Juniper to see if there were any changes. Lucash watched her move, still silent, but eyes now turning questioning.

  “She doesn’t seem to be getting worse, so that’s a good sign. You want to come see her?” Bryn asked.

  Lucash needed no other encouragement. He was by Juniper’s side instantly, holding her hand in his, raising it to his cheek for a moment before returning it to her side. She wasn’t worse, that’s true, but she didn’t seem to be better, either.

  “Will you give her more medicine?” he asked.

  “Yes, I’m going to try a bit more of this same one. I only gave her a small dose the first time, in case she had a bad reaction. She didn’t, and it seems to be helping, or I’d expect her condition to deteriorate. So, I’ll up the dose. I can do that now, if you’re ready for me to?”

  “Yes.” Lucash stepped aside, allowing Bryn to move in, and shifted to the top of the table, so he could still be close enough to touch Juniper.

  “What’ll you guys do now? Now that you know what Manglebee is up to.” Lucash directed his question to Bryn, but only because she was closest.

  Bryn didn’t respond immediately. Her concentration was on extracting the liquid from the vial into the syringe. The others in the room hadn’t heard. They were talking amongst themselves, caught up in the details of the information they’d just been given and what it might mean for them going forward.

  “I don’t really know, Lucash,” she finally said, as she swiveled towards Juniper and lifted her arm, seeking the vein at the elbow that would allow an easy insertion of the needle. Lucash looked away just before Bryn poked the needle through Juniper’s skin. Lucash wasn’t one to get squeamish. It was just that Juniper seemed so vulnerable right now, and he felt so helpless to do anything about it.

  “I want to help. Whatever you guys decide. And I know Juniper will, too. If—” he didn’t allow himself to finish.

  “We’ll do the best we can, Lucash. I’m hopeful now.”

  “She has to be okay. I know she would really want to help. This girl…once she sets her mind to something, she’s unstoppable.”

  Bryn chuckled at that. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

  “She’s amazing.”

  “Bryn?” Remy asked from the other side of the room, a note of panic in his voice.

  “Yes?”

  “They got Mel.”

  CHAPTER 36

  T

  roy did not really know where he was. He had run blindly from Destin’s house and had kept on running until his chest burned, his breath so constricted his gasping did little to provide oxygen to lungs or muscles, and he could no longer feel his legs. He could not see through his tears and had crashed into more than one person during his flight from the horror he’d seen on the computer screen.

  His behavior would have inevitably led to a report or two being sent to DAD of suspicious activity in his own Quadrant. But he was in Quadrant 4, and the citizens there hardly noticed, other than those he barreled over, most of whom grumbled or barked a harsh word before they went their own way, lost in their own heads.

  He was squatting in a dirty alleyway, propping himself up with his back against a brick wall. This looked to be a sector where multiple people lived in the same dwelling, stacked one on top of the other. Part of his brain wondered what it was like to live in a place like this. He couldn’t imagine it. The living quarters couldn’t be big. Not like a house. If whole families lived there, how did they do it? He found himself thinking that he was glad Destin at least had a house.

  And then it all came crashing in on him again. Destin’s house. The place where he found out that his dad was a villain. He felt tainted, somehow. Poisoned because he shared half his genes with his dad. Another wave of nausea hit him at the thought, and he doubled over, rocking forward onto his hands and knees and losing nothing but stomach acid onto the pavement in front of him. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and then again with his sleeve. Troy moved to a seated position, not even bothering to slide down away from the small puddle in front of him.

  He could not reconcile the dad he knew with a person who would willingly participate in Manglebee’s plot to wage war a second time on the citizens of Anecor. Worse than that, he was turning people into robots. People who first had to endure a painful illness only to lose their ability to control their own mind. Death was the better outcome.

  For the first time in Troy’s life, he felt like he had been doing something that mattered. His skills were being put to work for more than just a school assignment or a personal challenge. He was helping Becs and the rest of Colossus to bring down a government that had been responsible for the death and disorder he was witnessing on the streets of Montrose. Worse yet was the pain he brought to Becs and her family when Jonathan became a target. And his dad was a part of it all. His dad, Trevor Sullivan, was working against his own son.

  It made sense of course. At least, in a way it did. His dad’s talent for AI meant that he would be the perfect person to design human robots. It didn’t just stop there, though. His dad was in charge. His name was right there, on the list of people responsible for turning the ideas in that document into a reality. Right alongside Manglebee’s name and the 12 Councilors.

  Troy heard the sound of voices. An argument somewhere. He noticed for the first time that it had grown dark. He didn’t move when the voices grew nearer. Looking down the length of the alley towards the direction of the voices, he saw two silhouetted forms pass by in the space at the entrance to the alley. It was almost time for the New Moon, and street lighting was non-existent in the Quadrant. He could see no details about the two shadowy forms. They passed by without a pause in their argument and without a glance down the alley. Even if they had, they would have been unlikely to have been able to make out the form of the crumpled individual seated on the ground about halfway down the length of the building.

  As soon as the momentary distraction passed, Troy’s thoughts returned to his family. Something occurred to him; he wondered if his dad’s involvement in Council’s…activities…was what was causing the new tension between his parents. He hadn’t been able to figure it out before. They had never been ones to argue. They’d always seemed so at ease in one another’s presence. Their family had always been so close. But something had changed. At the time, Troy just thought it was normal work stuff because of all the new rules in place and his dad’s increased workload.

  Troy laughed a hollow laugh. Increased workload is one way to put it.

  Troy had been confused about the change in his parents’ relationship, but he’d also been kind of glad for it. It gave him a freedom he would have never had before. His dad was always gone, and his mom was never there. Never there, even though she was physically present. His parents hardly looked at one another and talked even less. He could relate to Becs. His parents hadn’t noticed him for months now, just as hers rarely noticed her, but for entirely different reasons.

  Does Mom know?

  Surely not. That seemed impossible. Troy thought that if she knew, it would be more than just tension between his parents. Maybe not. Maybe both of them aren’t who I thought they were. But what about me? What’s that mean for me? How am I supposed to go home now? And how am I supposed to keep working with Colossus when it means I’m also going against my own father?

  The questions continued to swirl and spin around in his head until he no longer knew what was real in his life. He questioned everything he thought he understood about his family. He stood up, feeling a need to move and hoping movement would settle his mind. Except he had no idea where to go. Troy wanted nothing more than to go home and collapse in his bed and sleep for days. Let oblivion overtake him. Maybe he’d wake up and realize this was all a dream.

  He couldn’t go home, though. That was not possible. Even if it were just his mom there, he wouldn’t know what to do. Confront her? And if she didn’t know, he’d have to be the one to deal with her reaction to the news. He wasn’t ready for that. He couldn’t even cope with his own new understanding, let alone someone else’s. Seeing his dad? That would be so much worse. He wouldn’t trust himself right now. No telling what he’d do if he saw his dad tonight. Was it still tonight? Or was it morning?

  Troy just started walking. He headed in the direction he thought would lead him to the outskirts of town, knowing no one would find him if he were out in the Borderlands. He wondered what was out there going in this direction. He’d only been to the Colossus headquarters. One thing was for certain. His dad would not be there, and that was good enough for Troy. He needed some time. Time to wrap his head around this new reality. Time to figure out what to do next.

  And time to avoid the worries and fears that he knew were already registering in the hearts and minds of his friends, for there was no way Destin hadn’t already revealed what they’d discovered. Facing his friends right now was almost as bad as facing his parents. And facing Becs was probably the worst of all.

  So, he walked, passing into the Borderlands an hour before sunrise, and then, he kept going.

  CHAPTER 37

  “

  T

  hey have Mel?” Bryn wasn’t sure she heard Remy’s words correctly.

  “Yes. Davi just messaged. They took her back to BRO, he’s on his way there now…said he just got a signal,” Remy responded.

  Everything seemed to be rapidly spiraling out of control. For a split second, Bryn wished for the days when progress was almost at a standstill, longed for them, actually. That moment passed away quickly as her mind grabbed ahold of this most recent crisis. When none of the others had been resolved yet.

  “What happened? Did he say?”

  “He just said they were spotted by one of the guards who chased them for a while. Mel couldn’t move fast enough. She told him to keep going and get help. They had no way to defend themselves. He knew it was either just one of them, or both. So, he chose to get away, knowing that he would be able to contact us.”

  “Tell him where we are and have him come here. I think it’s past time for us to figure out exactly what it is we are going to do next.”

  “Already sent off that message. He said he’d get here as fast as he could.”

  By this time, everyone had gathered together again, including Lucash. The events of the past 24 hours were taking their toll. No one had slept nor eaten, though the excitement—if it could be called that—fueled their adrenaline and squashed their hunger. As exhausted as they all were, sleep would likely be elusive, even if they had the time for it.

  “What are we going to do?” Daniel asked the question on everyone’s mind.

  “I think we first need to ask whether we tell Melody and involve the rest of Colossus,” Bryn responded.

  “Um, there’s another thing too, guys,” Selby interjected. He hadn’t known when to bring up his parents, but he’d just received another message from them. He couldn’t wait any longer.

  “What is that, Selby?” asked Bryn.

  “My folks. They’re wantin’ to be a part of all this, and I think they could be useful. They’ve been waitin’ for me to talk to you guys. They’re wantin’ to meet us here. I held ’em off, but they’re gettin’ antsy.”

  “Right. Your parents. I had forgotten about them.” Bryn sighed. “I agree that your parents would be a help with their skills. If we bring them on now, we are going to have one more thing to explain to Melody. She will see it as another challenge to her authority.”

  “Can we bring them here now and not tell Melody yet? I mean, if we tell Melody and the rest of Colossus, they don’t have to be around for that. I’m sure they’d understand…wouldn’t they, Selby?” Now that the shock of finding out Selby’s parents had been told about Colossus had worn off, Rebecca was able to see that the Myers could be a real help. And now that there was a possibility, however small, that Jonathan might still be alive, she wanted all the help they could get. Rebecca didn’t know exactly what to think about telling everyone from Colossus, especially Melody, but she had no doubts now about including Selby’s parents.

  “Yeah, I’m sure they’d be all good with that. They’re used to being secretive. Might even like it better if no one else but us knew they were helpin’.”

  Bryn looked to Remy to see what he thought. It was an unspoken agreement between the two of them. They generally didn’t make any moves without reaching consensus, so they were in the habit of checking in with one another before making decisions. Remy nodded in encouragement.

  “If you’re sure they won’t mind, Selby, go ahead and have them meet us here. We will have to catch them up to speed. Hopefully, they won’t be too far behind Davi in getting here.”

  “I’ll tell ’em to hurry,” Selby said, already punching in the message, providing directions for the quickest route from their house and reminding them to disable their trackers.

  Lucash had gone back to Juniper’s side to check on her. She seemed to be sleeping peacefully now, no longer twitching and restless with fever.

  “Bryn, Remy, I think maybe Juniper is getting a little better,” he called over to them.

  Both went to see for themselves, along with Bendi and Rebecca.

  “She does look better,” Bendi said, breathing a small sigh of relief. “This is hopeful.”

  Bryn and Remy both smiled, and Bryn responded, “Yes, she sure does.”

  Bendi checked Juniper’s pulse, while Remy took her temperature and Bryn checked her pupils.

  “Pulse is down. 92…still a little high, but it is going in the right direction,” Bendi said with excitement.

  “Fever is down, too. 100.8°. It hasn’t broken, yet, so she isn’t out of the water, but these are good signs,” Remy added.

  Lucash’s face lost its tension, as he bent over Juniper and kissed her forehead. “Did you hear that, Juniper? You’re getting there…keep fighting, my girl, keep fighting,” he said quietly in her ear.

  “Can we give her more medicine?” Lucash asked, face still close to Juniper, but eyes lifted to meet Bryn’s gaze.

  “Not yet. I don’t want her system to become toxic because she has too much medicine. This seems to be working. If she takes a turn for the worse, then we’ll give her more. Or maybe a variation of the formula we gave her this time. It might mean that what we gave her wasn’t quite the right thing,” Bryn said.

  A little of the tension returned, as could be seen by a tightening of the muscles along his jaw and slight strain around his eyes. Bryn noticed.

  “Lucash, I am now more certain than not that Juniper will recover. She’s obviously a very strong woman, so she is doing some of this herself. The medicine is just giving her immune system a fighting chance. It’s acting faster than I would have expected. We just have to be a little patient. I know it’s hard.”

 

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