They’d been on their way to Eden’s house, to regroup, but then they’d gotten Eli’s cryptic text: It’s starting over. Meet us across the street from school.

“What’s starting over?” Marwan had said. “Who’s ‘us’?”

Now they knew.

“I wasn’t expecting you to be here,” Eden said to Ilanka.

“Well, I wasn’t expecting it either,” Ilanka said.

“So why are we here?” Eden asked. “What’s starting over? What does that mean?”

She looked to Eli for an answer, but it was Ilanka who started talking. “My father’s company collects and analyzes data, and it sold our names to a company called Aizel Incorporated. There were some location parameters and personality markers the company wanted met, and that’s somehow how we got picked.”

“Your father sold your data?” Marwan asked.

“It’s a big company. Most of it overseas. He probably didn’t know.”

Eli said, “The device texted me her father’s company address right before you smashed it.”

Eden wasn’t sure if she sensed negative judgment in the statement or not. Eli looked … off … but not mad, per se.

“You okay?” she asked, reaching out and touching his arm. “You look a bit … rough.”

“My grandfather died yesterday,” he said. “I didn’t get much sleep.”

“I’m so sorry,” Eden said. “What happened?”

“Yeah, really sorry to hear that,” Marwan said.

“Aizel messed with his pacemaker yesterday.” Eli shook his head. “Anyway, I’m okay. I just need to figure out what’s happening, you know?”

Eden nodded. She’d ask about arrangements and all that later. “So what did you mean it’s starting over?”

“Aizel bought four more names last night,” Ilanka said.

“And you think there’s another device that’s going to do the same thing? Urgent matter? Music room?”

“It’s a theory,” Eli said. “There were proximity requirements, like Ilanka said. Like maybe ours is the only school in range?”

Marwan looked toward the main entrance. “They’re not going to let us in. We’ve all been marked absent, and the day’s almost over.”

“We don’t have to get in,” Eden said, looking around. “We just have to be here when they get out.”

“But we don’t know who they are,” Marwan said.

Eden thought back to the music room, to the day when they barely knew each other and had no idea what was about to happen … to the way Ilanka’s water bottle had slid across the floor … the woman in sunglasses passing twice on the train. She said, “We could watch from the train platform.”

“We could,” Eli said, looking up. “But someone might see us. Lambert’s office is on that side of the building. I have another idea. Follow me.”