“Please believe me when I say we took it to keep you safe. I hope you can forgive me.” She reaches out and squeezes my hand. “At first we wanted the information the book contained on your parents’ Corporate friends, but once we realized your abilities, that the book might reveal your capabilities to the wrong people if it fell into the wrong hands, we knew we had to go to extra lengths to keep it—and you—safe.”

“Why would anybody be interested in my abilities?”

She sighs. “Because the Simulation isn’t functional yet. It requires quantum processing that nobody has figured out. Quantum cognition is imperative to making the Super Brain work, and experimenting on your brain patterns could lead to the discovery they’re missing. You could be the keystone of the Simulation.”

Fear creeping up my neck, I shudder. “Where is my book now?”

“Crystal has it. She’s using it to help Nash know who he can trust, but as soon as she’s done with it, she’ll bring it back here and you can hide it in the Vault. Put it anywhere you’d like—you can be the only person who knows its location if you want.”

“You know what Nash is doing with Nicki?” I raise my eyebrows.

“Yes. He’s our person on the inside. He’s using her to get close to Simon. He’s the one who told us the Quinn update was about to launch today.”

I let that digest. Maybe Nash wasn’t lying to me…

“Why didn’t you warn us Nash would be there? That he was on our side?” I ask.

“Sometimes we keep pieces of the puzzle separate. It’s safer when nobody knows too much. If one person gets caught, they won’t have all the information to implicate anyone else… But we don’t have to worry about that.” She smiles. “Because you didn’t get caught. You did it. You, Garrett, Nash, Rayelle—all of you together. You won the battle for us. I’m so proud.”

Staring at my shimmery pink skirt, I let everything sink in. All of us together…

Two boys. Two pockets. Which code do I crack?

The answer instantly inserts itself in my brain, and I smile.

Epilogue

Epilogue

June 25, 20X6, Keystone