The guards stick us in a supply closet, which we share with a mop, a bucket, and a lot of toilet paper. They bind my body’s wrists with a plastic zip tie and force it into a chair. They do the same to ADA’s body, only in addition to the zip tie they use metal handcuffs and half a roll of duct tape. They know how strong she is.

They leave Proto’s and Trashbot’s bodies unbound but tell us to stand against the back wall and to stay there. They don’t consider a janitorial robot and a small mechanical dog a threat.

“This will do until Nathan flies in,” a guard says before locking us in.

I wait until their footfalls grow distant. “Rarf,” I say.

Which nobody understands, so I’m not sure why I bother saying anything.

Fortunately, ADA takes charge.

“We have completed Phase Two of the plan, infiltrating the enemy’s stronghold. Now we begin Phase Three: Locating Gina.” Even coming through Trashbot’s voice box, I recognize ADA’s take-charge approach. “Two children would be noticed moving through the tower,” ADA says, “but a janitorial robot and a dog have a better chance of successful sneaking. So Cog and I will use your bodies to find Gina and free her.”

Leaving our bodies behind with Car’s and Trashbot’s brains, ADA and I begin our search for Gina.

We roll and clatter along windowless passages. When a worker opens a door to enter an office we catch a glimpse of a desk and a computer inside. ADA rolls in before the door shuts, and I follow.

The worker turns to look at us, wrinkling his eyebrows.

“I don’t have any waste to dispose of,” he says. “One of you disposed of my waste ten minutes ago.”

ADA sprays cleaning fluid on the worker’s shirt. “Here is some fresh waste.”

The worker jumps back and uses a word that is from the category of language called profanity, which Gina said she would teach me when I am older, and when I asked her every five minutes if I was old enough yet, she got a headache.

“I am sorry,” says ADA. “I was aiming for the floor.”

She sprays more cleaning fluid on the floor and on the worker’s shoes and on his chair. He uses more words that I suspect are profanity.

A stinging scent expands in the room.

The worker’s face turns the color of a radish, and his forehead displays veins I have never seen before except in pictures.

“I will have this cleaned up in three minutes.” ADA extends Trashbot’s mop attachment.

“How about a towel? For my shoes?”

“I am not equipped with a towel, but I will attend to your footwear.” She spins Trashbot’s mop and advances toward the worker.