Samm stared at the photo intently, his dark eyes flicking back and forth across the image. Heron seemed more interested in the various Trust-related documents scattered across the table. “So your father created you at ParaGen,” said Samm. “He knew you were a Partial. And so did your guardian on Long Island.”

“But she never told me about it,” said Kira. “She raised me like a human—I think my dad did, too. At least I don’t remember any reason to think that he didn’t. But why?”

“He wanted a daughter,” said Samm.

“You were part of their plan,” said Heron, shaking her head. “All of us are. We just don’t know what it is, and what each member’s part was in creating it.” She held up another email, one Kira had been looking at the night before. “This says Dr. Morgan was assigned to ‘performance and specifications.’”

“I think that means she programmed your super-soldier attributes,” said Kira. “Each member of the Trust had a part in the creation of the Partials, and her part was all the extra gizmos that make you what you are—enhanced reflexes, enhanced vision, accelerated healing, stronger muscles, and so on and so on. The rest of the team tried to make you as human as possible; it was Dr. Morgan who made you . . . more.”

“And she’s still doing it,” said Samm. He set the photo down and looked at Kira somberly. “I’ve overheard some reports about Morgan messing with the Partial genome, and Heron says she’s seen it in person.”

Heron raised an eyebrow, still sifting through the pages on the table. “Apparently she can’t stop tinkering.”

“Is she trying to just work around the expiration date?” asked Kira. “Maybe she can’t find the genes that kill you after twenty years, so she’s adding in new mods to try to dampen them.”

“Maybe,” said Samm, “if something like that is even possible. But she’s mostly doing more . . . well, like you said: augmentation. Making certain Partials stronger or faster. They say she has a whole squad that can breathe underwater. She’s drifting further way from the human template.”

“Sounds like she’s turned her back on humanity across the board,” said Kira. “Or maybe just given up on it.”

“She had help at ParaGen,” said Heron, picking up another sheet of paper. “Look. Jerry Ryssdal was assigned to the same project, or another part of it.”

Kira nodded, marveling at Heron’s ability to sort through the information scattered across the table. It had taken Kira days to find these connections, but Heron was putting it all together in a matter of minutes. “I don’t know exactly what Ryssdal’s contribution was,” Kira said, “but I think you’re right. Some of them worked in pairs.”

“But not all?” Samm prompted.