A bicycle sped past, nearly clipping her arm.

“Watch it!” she yelled.

The rider flipped her off without turning around, like him almost hitting her had been her fault. There was one of the stupid assholes right there.

She looked left for more bikes, and then right, but there were only people on foot crowding the sidewalks and street. Out beyond the wall, people spent most of their time in cars, but not in the Q. No gasoline inside the walls. There were a few solar-electric cars and buses around, but they were mostly for Lopez business. Everyone else traveled by foot or bike and stuck to their own neighborhoods.

Maisie slipped into the tall building on River Street. It was cool inside, thanks to the low temperatures today. She took the elevator to the tenth floor. It smelled like popcorn as she stepped into the hallway, and beer as she approached the door.

The studio was an even bigger disaster than it had been yesterday. A long desk took up one whole wall, covered in laptops and radio equipment. A trash can in the corner was overflowing with beer bottles and chip bags. A song that was released before her parents were born played softly from the speakers.

Hadley Lopez sat in a chair in the middle of the mess, black boots propped up on the desk. Her long dark hair was pulled into a ponytail, and she wore a pair of ripped jeans and a neon-green shirt. A bowl of popcorn sat in her lap.

She tilted her head back, her upside-down face breaking into a grin. “Hey, Maisie. Welcome back.”

Maisie flopped down in the chair in the corner.

Hadley spun around in her seat and held out the popcorn. “Want some?”

“I’m good, thanks.”

“Lopez liked your broadcast, by the way.”

Maisie lifted a skeptical eyebrow.

“He did!” Hadley exclaimed. “He said you were relatable.”

Maisie leaned her head back and made an annoyed noise.

“Only you would think that being relatable is a bad thing,” Hadley said with a laugh. “It’s why he picked you to do it.”

“I should have been…” Serious. Slightly scary. Like her dad, basically. Instead, she got nervous and just blurted everything out as it came to her.

“We sent them the recording anyway,” Hadley said. “But Lopez won’t blame you if they don’t use any of it. You know how they are over there.”

“Yeah.”

“Did the medical shipment come?”

Maisie shook her head.

“Shit.”

“Yeah.”

“What’d Declan say?”

Maisie pulled her phone out of her pocket and checked. “He hasn’t replied yet.”

“He’s probably pounding someone’s face in.”

“That does sound like him.”

“Are you guys broken up for real this time?” Hadley looked hopeful.

“Yes.”

“For real, for real?”

“Yes!”

“Thank god. Don’t tell him I said that.”

“I try not to talk about anything but work with Declan these days.” Maisie preferred not to dwell on her relationship with Declan. Mistakes were made.

“You know that the Reapers are getting restless,” Hadley said. “Talking about how it might be time for a leadership change.”