I peek at the ring. It starts to turn black. “Don’t ruin this for me.” Pivoting so my back is to him, I focus on the ceiling, imagining wandering through the Vault’s version of the Louvre, trying to contain the emotions swirling inside me. Forget the kiss. Forget how he makes you feel. Send out calm, and you receive calm… I picture myself standing on a mountaintop above a green valley, the sun warm on my back. Nobody can hurt me. Everything goes silent, and, overwhelmed with peace, with oneness, I relax. The ring turns blue. Slipping it off my finger, I turn around, insert it into the lock, and twist to the right. I pray it hasn’t changed color. “Please work.”

The box clicks open. Inside, nestled among red velvet folds, is an old-fashioned memory stick.

“Wait!” My instinct is we should take the whole box, but Garrett grabs the memory stick before I can stop him. The second he does, a deafening alarm sounds. Screaming, undulating waves pulsate in my ears. My calm evaporates, and I can’t think straight. Slamming my hands over my ears, I freeze.

“Run!” Garrett yanks me to my feet, his wits somehow intact.

“Hold on.” Picking up the jewelry box, I have the sense to shove it into his pack.

“No time for souvenirs, Ellie.” He drags me into the bedroom, and I don’t argue.

“We can’t go out the way we came…the shotgun wall!” I yell. “And Simon definitely knows now—who knows what other traps he’s activating.” I’m positive bullets will ravage my body any second.

“This way.” Garrett pushes me toward the balcony, where he feels around for a latch to open the sliding glass wall.

Knowing we probably need a command to gesture the doors open—or to be recognized as Simon himself—I do the first thing I think of. Taking my tactical pen from the pocket on my thigh, I hurl myself in front of Garrett and slam the tip into the center of the door. It explodes in a shower of glass. Shielding our eyes with our arms, we escape to the balcony through the debris.

A police helicopter appears overhead, spotlighting us, and in the distance, Simon and a parade of cops sprint toward the house with guns drawn. Wasting zero time, we clip our carabiners to the balcony railing. Garrett grabs my hand. “Do you trust me?”

I nod.

“Then jump.”

But I’m one step ahead of him. Hurling myself off the balcony, I drag him down with me.

Chapter Forty-Six

Chapter Forty-Six

March 20X6, Menlo Park

We land on our feet. The second I’m on the ground, adrenaline (finally!) takes over. A current vibrates through me, and I’m invincible. Garrett keeps my fingers wound in his. The helicopter spotlights us as we bolt into the woods, and I’m a star.