Zoe gave him a shocked look. “What? You didn’t—you couldn’t have—”

“The proof is there,” I said. “The laptop we recovered has records of meetings and orders you made with some of the Warriors. Now, if you’re lucky, the Alchemists who were already busted won’t turn you in to try to save themselves. And if you’re cooperative, I won’t turn you in either.”

“Cooperative,” he scoffed. “What does that mean to someone like you? Someone who’s thrown away all the moral lessons you were raised with—”

“It means,” I interrupted, “that you’re going to support Stanton in revising re-education and holding to this deal with me. And it also means you’re going to restructure the custody arrangement so that Zoe gets to see Mom.”

My dad clenched his hands into fists. “You’ve no right to dictate any of this! I won’t go along with this blackmail.”

“Fine,” I said. “Then I’ll go tell Stanton there’s one more person she needs brought in. And don’t forget, even if they get rid of re-education, she did say they’d still need disciplinary measures in place for instances like this.”

“Dad, how could you?” exclaimed Zoe. “You know how many people those tattoos hurt!”

“You don’t understand,” he said. “It’s the Warriors who’d be getting them. It doesn’t matter what happens to them.”

I nodded with mock solemnity. “I’m sure that hypocritical argument will hold up well with Stanton. The Alchemists love gray areas. They certainly prefer that to black and white.”

“Sydney?” I heard Adrian call. I turned and gave him a quick wave before turning back to my dad and Zoe.

“Those are my terms. Comply, and I’ll make sure there’s no mention of your name when I turn the info over to Stanton. And if not . . .” I left it hanging, letting my father’s imagination do the work for him. As he stood there in shock, I gave Zoe a fast hug. “Good seeing you. Get a message to me if he doesn’t let you see Mom—though I’ll probably find out before then.”

Leaving them, I went back over to where my friends were. Only Dimitri and Neil were missing. Adrian intercepted me, sweeping me into his arms. “Sydney,” he breathed into my ear. “I’m so sorry I lost it down there.”

“You didn’t lose anything,” I said fiercely, wrapping my arms around his neck. “You held it together. You brought yourself back and did the right thing.”