on my poor mother’s hand. “What do you think, Officer Dorey?”
There’s a slight softening in his posture. “Anything is possible. In my experience, nothing is entirely secure.”
“Then you and Junior Officer Lawrence will make that a priority,” Radcliff says to Beau. “Do you need a higher clearance terminal?”
“That would help,” Beau says.
“There’s the one in the Control Center, but it’s staffed around the clock,” my dad says.
“We could clear the room for a few hours,” Mom says.
“No,” I say. “Nothing can change or that will alert Jarren.”
“I thought he couldn’t access the camera feeds in the base,” Gage says alarmed.
“Right now the feeds are secure and are showing live footage. However, like Dorey said, nothing is entirely secure. There’s no reason to take a chance. The terminals in Dorey’s office will be fine.”
Once again I’m the center of attention. Go me. Suppressing a sigh, I explain about reaching the interstellar navigator through Beau’s terminal in his unit, which has less access than the ones in his office. And that was before I died. But I keep that tidbit to myself to avoid upsetting my parents.
“What we need is more time in the Q-net,” I say.
“We can shift your schedule to report to Dorey at twelve-thirty and you can go until seventeen hundred. Is that enough?” Radcliff asks.
“Yes.”
“Good.” Radcliff meets my gaze.
“Hold on just a minute,” Jefferies says, slapping the table with his fingers. “If Ara’s actions in the Q-net alert Jarren that we’re aware of his blockade, then he’ll come to Yulin sooner and kill us all.” He glances at everyone. Two red splotches bloom on his cheeks. “It’s insane to have the fate of the entire base in the hands of a teenager.”
“Officer Dorey—” Morgan starts.
“No offense to Officer Dorey,” Jefferies says. “But you call Jarren a super wormer because he’s been manipulating us from the very beginning with none of us the wiser.”
He has a point. Radcliff gives the man a long cold look. Unaffected, Jefferies glares back.
“I agree with Milo. It’s suicide,” Gage chimes in. “We can wait for—”
“Waiting is suicide,” Dad says. “We need to contact DES.”
“Junior Officer Lawrence is especially cognizant of the danger,” Radcliff says to Jefferies. His tone turns the blood in my veins to ice and I’m not even the one he’s aiming it at! Then he looks to me. “Tread with the ultimate care.”
“Of course she will,” Mom snaps.
Way to go, Mom.
Jefferies stands up. “I want it noted in the record that I do not approve this endeavor.”
“The record that Jarren will read?” Mom counters.
“You know what I mean.”
“When we contact DES, I’ll ensure your disapproval is noted, Dr. Jefferies.”
When? No pressure there. Thanks, Mom.
“Mine, too.” Gage stands.
“All right. You’re both dismissed,” Mom orders, reminding them she is in charge.
With stiff shoulders and stern expressions, they leave. There’s a moment when we all just take a breath. Radcliff glances at the time—it’s eighteen hundred. My stomach growls. Sensing the meeting is over, I let go of my mom’s hand.
She places both arms on the table, leans forward and says, “Since we’re all together, I want to discuss opening another Warrior pit. Wait.” Mom holds up a hand. “Not one adjacent to the infected pits, but one further away. One that hasn’t collapsed.”
Infected. That fits.
“For what purpose?” Radcliff asks Mom in a tight, almost annoyed tone.
“So we can keep doing our job. And to further our knowledge about the significance of those alien symbols on the Warriors.”
“And to test Ara’s theory,” Dad says. “The field team has been analyzing the data and identified Pit 21 as one that has all fourteen hundred and forty-eight Warriors intact. It’s twenty kilometers east of the base. We can dig from the surface, letting in sunlight just in case there are HoLFs. Also we have big floodlights that run on batteries for night time.”
“My security force is already spread thin,” Radcliff says.
“The techs have been training. Surely they can fill in for a couple days,” Mom says. “If we don’t encounter HoLFs, then the security can return to base.”
Mom’s reasonable tones fail to placate Radcliff’s inner guardian lion. The danger signs are there—posture ramrod straight, neck muscles straining, hand clutching the handle of his pulse gun. Wow, I really need to find a hobby.
“We haven’t confirmed Jarren’s physical location. He could still be on the planet.”
“The satellite—”
“Can be compromised and isn’t infallible. There are plenty of places to hide from a life scan. You’d be risking your team and my officers’ lives.”
A good point.
Mom turns to