that on my own.”
“Wait, what?”
“What are you planning?” Warner asks.
“I’m going to trick the systems into thinking that your family and Ella’s are linked,” she says to Warner. “There’s protocol for this sort of thing already in place within The Reestablishment, so if I can create the necessary profiles and authorizations, the database will recognize you as a member of the Sommers family. You’ll be granted easy access to most of the high-security rooms throughout the compound. But it’s not foolproof. The system does a self-scan for anomalies every hour. If it’s able to see through my bullshit, you’ll be locked out and reported. But until then—you’ll be able to more easily search the buildings for Ella.”
“Nazeera,” Warner says, sounding unusually impressed. “That’s . . . great.”
“Better than great,” I add. “That’s amazing.”
“Thanks,” she says. “But I should get going. The sooner I start flying, the sooner I can get started, which hopefully means that by the time you reach base, I’ll have made something happen.”
“But what if you get caught?” I ask. “What if you can’t do it? How will we find you?”
“You won’t.”
“But— Nazeera—”
“We’re at war, Kishimoto,” she says, a slight smile in her voice. “We don’t have time to be sentimental.”
“That’s not funny. I hate that joke. I hate it so much.”
“Nazeera is going to be fine,” Warner says. “You obviously don’t know her well if you think she’s easily captured.”
“She literally just woke up! After being shot! In the chest! She nearly died!”
“That was a fluke,” Warner and Nazeera say at the same time.
“But—”
“Hey,” Nazeera says, her voice suddenly close. “I have a feeling I’m about four months away from falling madly in love with you, so please don’t get yourself killed, okay?”
I’m about to respond when I feel a sudden rush of air. I hear her launching up, into the sky, and even though I know I won’t see her, I crane my neck as if to watch her go.
And just like that—
She’s gone.
My heart is pounding in my chest, blood rushing to my head. I feel confused: terrified, excited, hopeful, horrified. All the best and worst things always seem to happen to me at the same time.
It’s not fair.
“Fucking hell,” I say out loud.
“Come on,” Warner says. “Let’s move out.”
ELLA
JULIETTE
Max is staring at me like I’m an alien.
He hasn’t moved since Anderson left; he just stands there, stiff and strange, rooted to the floor. I remember the look he gave me the first time we met—the unguarded hostility in his eyes—and I blink at him from my bed, wondering why he hates me so much.
After an uncomfortable stretch of silence, I clear my throat. It’s obvious that Anderson respects Max—likes him, even—so I decide I should address him with a similar level of respect.
“Sir,” I say. “I’d really like to get dressed.”
Max startles at the sound of my voice. His body language is entirely different now that Anderson isn’t here, and I’m still struggling to figure him out. He seems skittish. I wonder if I should feel threatened by him. His affection for Anderson is no indication that he might treat me as anything but a nameless soldier.
A subordinate.
Max sighs. It’s a loud, rough sound that seems to shake him from his stupor. He shoots me a last look before he disappears into the adjoining room, from where I hear indiscernible, shuffling sounds. When he reappears, his arms are empty.
He stares blankly at me, looking more rattled than he did a moment ago. He shoves a hand through his hair. It sticks up in places.
“Anderson doesn’t have anything that would fit you,” he says.
“No, sir,” I say carefully. Still confused. “I was hoping I might be given a replacement uniform.”
Max turns away, stares at nothing. “A replacement uniform,” he says to himself. “Right.” But when he takes in a long, shuddering breath, it becomes clear to me that he’s trying to stay calm.
Trying to stay calm.
I realize, suddenly, that Max might be afraid of me. Maybe he saw what I did to Darius. Maybe he’s the doctor who patched him up.
Still—
I don’t see what reason he’d have to think I’d hurt him. After all, my orders come from Anderson, and as far as I’m aware, Max is an ally. I watch him closely as he lifts his wrist to his mouth, quietly requesting that someone deliver a fresh set of clothes for me.
And then he backs away from me until he’s flush with the wall. There’s a single, sharp thud as the heels of