“You could’ve sold me out as soon as I arrived, but you didn’t and you won’t.” Eva had said to trust my heart and all my instincts said that Quanta wasn’t malicious. Now how to convince her we’re on the same side? Surrendering, I lifted my hands. “My words might not convince you, but I hope my actions will. I believe in you.”

Quanta froze. Her eyes widened in… Realization? Horror? Whatever emotion gripped her, truths I couldn’t begin to imagine swirled in her gray eyes. “That’s why you can’t be here.”

No. “That’s why I can’t leave.”

And I wouldn’t abandon her.

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

QUANTA

I tried not to panic as the future flickered, but if it kept strobing like this, I was going to give up and curl into a ball on the stupid forest floor.

Altair trusted me.

He wanted to help me.

He wasn’t going to leave me.

All wrong. All the worst possible decisions he could make.

Unless he wanted to get himself killed. In which case, fantastic job, Tair. Keep doing what you’re doing.

I whirled. “Are you suicidal?”

“Exactly the opposite.” Tair leaned back on his log.

Like it was that easy. He had no idea what he’d gotten himself into.

Trying to ignore him, I paced the VR space. Not even being in a fake reality made the timeghosts go away. If anything, more of them popped in and out, chittering in my ears and whispering secrets. They flashed so fast I couldn’t pick anything out—just the odd image of Tair and me together. I wasn’t going to see anything as long as he was nearby.

I shook my head, trying to clear them off.

If I believed what Tair was saying—and I hadn’t seen any reason not to—the news he’d brought was deadly.

A list of Reds. I’d never give up names unless it was to save one of them. And fricking Cipher. How many times had I pulled her butt from the flames? Ten? Fifteen? She would’ve been one toasted little marshmallow if she’d stayed on that island and I’d done what I had to just to keep the girl alive and hacking.

If not from me, then where had Nagi gotten the names?

I had to find out. Even when I could see clearly, glimpses through time only got me so far, and right now the layers of time were clear as fudge. If I wanted to get to the bottom of it, I was going to have to work with Tair.

Bringing me back to my other problem.