The Final Six (The Final Six #1) - Alexandra Monir Page 0,89

in this data . . . that proves my hypothesis.

We are being injected with bacteria from Europa’s alien life.

And it’s making some of us more like them—as proven by Leo in the diving pool.

It’s making some of us see them . . . as evidenced by Suki’s cries, and Callum’s breakdown.

As for the rest of us, we may never know how deep its effects go until we land.

I jump out of my seat, too overcome to sit still. This goes beyond any secret I thought Dr. Takumi was keeping; it’s on another level from the Space Conspirator’s theories. But how could NASA and all the reputable space agencies allow this? And why?

Unless . . . Could it be that the space agencies, as a whole, don’t know? Dr. Takumi and General Sokolov have jurisdiction over the robots, which certainly makes it possible for them to keep the data secret. Did they? And what is their endgame?

One thing is for sure: I can’t wait till morning to share this news with Leo. I’m pretty sure I’ll explode if I have to keep it inside a minute longer. I know we agreed to resist the temptation of sneaking into each other’s rooms, but compared to everything else I’ve been up to here at ISTC, stealing into the boys’ dorm seems practically quaint.

I slide my feet into slippers and grab the flashlight under my bed. I can feel my heart palpitating as I make my way down the corridor to the fork that separates the girls’ side from the boys’, imagining what Leo will say to my discovery . . . what the world will say when I release the data. Maybe I can find a way to get it to someone like Dr. Wagner, to shield my family from the fallout of my hacking—

My flashlight hits against another yellow beam. I jump back, fear rising in my throat. I’m not alone. Someone is standing across from me in the dorm corridor, shining a flashlight of his own. Beckett Wolfe.

He tilts his beam of light straight into my face, catching me red-handed.

“Sneaking out of your room after curfew—I could report for you this,” he says with a sly smile.

He looks all wrong, leaning against the wall like he’s been here for hours . . . like he’s been waiting for something.

“I could say the same about you,” I retort, but Beckett just shrugs.

“I’m just getting some air. I’m not the one trying to sneak into my secret boyfriend’s room.”

The breath returns to my lungs. Could he only know about Leo . . . and not about Dot?

I raise myself to my full height, giving Beckett my best scornful expression.

“Don’t be stupid. I couldn’t sleep and just thought I’d take a walk. It’s not any more scandalous than that.”

I turn on my heel and as I walk away, I hear Beckett singing something familiar under his breath.

“When I am king, you will be first against the wall

With your opinion, which is of no consequence at all.”

The haunting melody continues in my mind as I hurry back to my room. I know that song, it’s a classic. So why do I have a creeping feeling of dread?

And then the title flashes in my mind, making me wonder if Beckett saw more than he let on.

He was singing a Radiohead song—called “Paranoid Android.”

Twenty-Three

LEO

INSTEAD OF THE MIRROR SCREEN ALARM, I WAKE UP TO THE sound of someone flinging open my bedroom door. I scramble upright, covering my bare chest as Lark steps in.

“No breakfast in the cafeteria today,” she says by way of greeting. “Dr. Takumi called a press conference in the media room. Get dressed and meet your fellow finalists there right away.”

“Is everything oka—”

But she’s already on to the next room before I can get my question out. I climb out of bed, an onset of nerves kicking in. Something tells me that whatever this is . . . it’s going to be bad.

I throw on my uniform and hurry out the door, catching up with Henri and the other Russian finalist, Evgeni, at the end of the boys’ corridor.

“Do you guys know what’s going on?” I ask as we rush down the stairs.

“No clue,” Henri answers, and Evgeni shakes his head. But they both look almost as worried as I feel.

We arrive in the media room to find a grim-faced Dr. Takumi and General Sokolov standing at the foot of the stage before a half-dozen news cameras. The sight of outsiders infiltrating our training-camp