The Final Six (The Final Six #1) - Alexandra Monir Page 0,88

the balcony railing, thinking. “If there’s more to it, maybe we’ll find out when—if—Dot comes through. Provided I don’t get arrested for treason first.”

I stare at her, marveling at how she can speak so matter-of-factly about that possibility. “So you’re really not afraid of getting caught? Is there anything that scares you?”

Naomi gives me a half smile before glancing away. “The thought of losing the people I love. Especially my little brother.” She takes a breath. “I’m not just scared of that, I’m terrified. So, I’m not fearless. And whatever I do that may seem that way . . . it’s all for them.”

I nod, realizing as I gaze at her that Naomi’s words make her even more beautiful to me.

“What about you?” she asks. “You don’t seem at all scared of the mission, even with the laundry list of risks.”

“Yeah. Well . . . I used to have the exact same fear as you. But then my worst fear came true. And for a while, that made me unafraid of anything—including, and especially, death.” I swallow hard. “But now I know what it’s like to be afraid of losing something again. I’ve known that feeling since I found you.”

Naomi’s eyes well up. She pulls me close, answering my words with a kiss. Our kisses start out soft and tender, and then her fingers move beneath my shirt, running down my back, and suddenly we’re sliding down to the tower floor together—kissing like it’s our last night in this world.

Twenty-Two

NAOMI

I’M IN THE MIDDLE OF A PERFECT DREAM WHEN I HEAR THE sound. I’m back home, sitting at the old dining table that still has Sam’s and my initials carved into the wood, and my loved ones are seated around me: my brother, our parents, and Leo, too. But then a rhythmic series of beeps seeps into my consciousness, interrupting the golden moment.

“What’s that noise?” I ask, glancing around the table.

“What noise, azizam?” Mom gives me a funny look.

“You know what it is,” Sam says. “It’s Morse code, saying you have to wake up.” He leans over and shakes my shoulders. “Wake up!”

I sit bolt upright, my eyes snapping open at the beeping in my room. Dot is in front of me, shuffling her way across the floor toward my bed. I cover my mouth to keep from crying out in amazement. The plan actually worked!

Dot stops dead center, facing my bed. That’s when I see that the AIOS screen in her chest chassis is all lit up and flashing with . . . symbols. But it’s more than just images. There’s also a sound coming from the screen—a vibrational humming, only the pitch and tone are all wrong. It’s a foreign sound that turns my body cold, that sends pins and needles prickling through my skin.

The robot beeps again, urging me in Morse to copy down what I see on the screen. I know why Dot isn’t speaking verbally—in case anyone on either side of these walls happens to be up at this hour. I’ve made the AI believe this is a secret, crucial task from one of the mission leaders, and I feel a stab of guilt at the way I’ve misled Dot. But this is too important for me to hesitate. I switch on the light and run to my desk, grabbing a notepad and pen.

My pen flies across the paper as I copy down one chemical symbol and physics formula after another, not stopping to register what I’m notating—until an image fills the screen, and I almost fall out of my chair.

It’s a sketch of what appears to be a cell, its insides punctured with three nuclei. Just like the RRB.

I’m shaking as I finish copying the figures on the screen. And then, finally, it turns dark. Dot shuffles back to the door, and as I watch her retreating form, I whisper, “Thank you.”

The cell image is a revelation enough, but I still have numerical data to decipher. I spend the next two hours studying it and unscrambling the formulas—until I finally solve the main riddle with a heart-stopping flick of my pen.

C55H72O5N4Mg-CH4-

Chlorophyll-Methane-Europa

Chlorophyll and methane found on Europa.

The room sways as I stare at my notes, and for a split second I am outside of my own body, looking down at the surreal scene of my discovery. Because where there is chlorophyll and methane, there is life. These are the biosignatures I was looking for. And with the RRB cells matching the idiosyncratic image of the cell