Max made a face. “That girl is bad news,” he said.

“Right,” Nemo said. “So let’s try to stay away from her and do something useful, like find Sam.”

“We don’t have any idea where he is,” Max reminded her. “He might not even be here.”

“I think he is,” said Nemo. “All of this is happening here for a reason. I think Sam is here, too.”

“Okay,” Max said. “But there are like two thousand rooms in this place. He could be anywhere. And I’m guessing he’s not by himself.”

“Probably not,” Nemo admitted.

“And right now Seamus and Boomer are probably warning whoever is with him that—”

“I get it,” Nemo interrupted. “We’re still going to go look for him.” She patted her pocket, where she had stored two syringes containing the parasite antiserum. Nine had two as well, and whichever of them found Sam or Six first was supposed to administer it to them.

“I’m not saying your plan is bad,” Max said. “But like I said, there are more than two thousand rooms here and only two of us.”

“Housekeeping,” Nemo said.

“You mean like maids?” said Max.

“I hate that word,” Nemo said. “It sounds like they’re servants or something. But yeah, them.”

“How are they going to help us find Sam?”

“The housekeeping staff know everything,” Nemo said. “They’re in and out of these rooms all day long. And trust me, if they see anything weird, they remember it. My cousin Ha worked in a hotel last summer, and she had some crazy stories about what went on there.”

The elevator stopped and the doors opened. Nemo stepped out. They were on the sixty-third floor. It was deserted. But at one end she could see a room door propped open with a housekeeping cart.

“I’m surprised anyone is still working,” Max remarked as they walked towards the room.

“News probably hasn’t reached up here yet,” said Nemo. “This place is huge, and it’s not like the hotel is on fire—yet—so anyone who hasn’t been downstairs might not have any clue about what’s going on.”

They reached the room. From inside the sound of water running spilled out into the hall. Nemo stepped in and peered into the bathroom. A young woman knelt next to the tub, scrubbing it and humming along to a popular song that was just audible. She wore headphones. Max, looking around Nemo, said, “No wonder she has no clue the place is under attack.”

Nemo wasn’t sure how to get the girl’s attention without startling her, so she knocked on the bathroom door. The girl turned around and frowned.

“Hi,” Nemo said, trying to sound as friendly as possible. “I was wondering if you could help us find our friend. He—”

“What?” the girl said, removing the earphones.

“We’re looking for someone,” Max said impatiently. “Our friend Sam.”

“If he’s a guest here, you can ask at the front desk,” the girl said. “They’ll connect you.”

“Yeah, that might be a problem,” Max said. “See, there are these things attack—”