I exchange a look with Zora, and then across the way, I see Carter, his eyes wide with happy surprise. Kai and Ashley grin at me, and I see River’s head poking up behind. Jake catches my eye and winks. I scan the crowd, looking desperately for one more face.

But he’s not there.

I feel a wave of disappointment, but then I turn back to Monica. Please be all right, please be all right, I whisper.

I hear Jinx’s voice in my head.

>>Do you doubt me?

Never, I think, fiercely.

Silence descends on the courtyard as she steps forward.

“In light of recent events, including an unauthorized update pushed through to certain level one and two bakus in Toronto, Moncha Corp have agreed to submit to a full and open government investigation.

“As CEO of Moncha, I take full responsibility for the update and the resulting problems, and want to apologize unreservedly for the actions of certain members of my company. A reversal—developed by a group of dedicated and brilliant young coders and companioneers—is being issued as we speak, for all people and bakus affected.

“Although I have always tried to operate under a culture of openness, it is clear there were members of my corporation that felt differently. While glaring security leaks have obviously been revealed, please rest assured that we are working hard to make sure nothing like this ever occurs again. We are cooperating with other creators of personal assistant tech to create global regulations for our industry. But, if the recommendation is that we shut down production of the bakus, then we are prepared to take that step.

“In the spirit of cooperation, Moncha will now work with the city of Toronto and BRIGHTSPRK on ways to make baku technology even safer.

“We are confident that together, we will come up with a solution and keep bakus safe for everyone to own. After all, I know I couldn’t possibly live without my baku.

“Could you?”

A world without bakus? It seems unthinkable now. They are so integrated within our society. People want to use the technology, now that we know it exists. We can’t go backward.

We can only learn how to use it responsibly.

There’s a flurry of questions as Monica finishes speaking, but to me, it’s as if the universe has condensed into this tiny moment.

“You did it!” I squeeze Zora’s arm. “Your code worked! Everyone is going to be back to normal.”

“We did it. We did it, Lace,” Zora replies, her bright white teeth shining with the biggest grin I’ve seen in a long time.

Yet my jaw drops before I can reply. Because Monica is looking directly at us. She’s waving away all the questions, telling reporters she’ll have another press conference in a week, announcing all the changes in the regulation of bakus. Then she walks straight toward Zora and me.