“I need to warn you about something. I don’t trust very easily. If you’re going to kiss me, if we’re going to do this . . .” Her small fist tightened on his tunic. “Tom, don’t burn me. I’ll hurt you.”

Petite as she was, fragile as she seemed, Tom knew Medusa was infinitely more fearsome than the strongest man in the world, and she meant every word she said.

“I won’t,” he vowed.

And then he kissed her.

WHEN THE TIME came, Tom saved two notes in his system files. One was for his father, one for Medusa—though he addressed it to “Murgatroid.” He didn’t write one for his mom. He considered it, but then decided she wouldn’t want it anyway.

It wasn’t that Tom thought anything would happen. He, Vik, and Wyatt had worked out their plan so carefully to make sure they returned . . . but Tom had this strange superstition that if he didn’t write them notes, he might end up meeting some terrible fate at Obsidian Corp. that would cause him to regret not having at least put his last sentiments on record somewhere.

He’d almost died there once, after all. It scared him a bit, willingly returning, but he had to. After he saved the notes, he donned his optical camouflage and headed to the vactrain to wait. While Wyatt hacked into the Interstice to arrange an anonymous, undocumented pickup time, Vik was visiting Yuri in the infirmary. He was going to place a pair of earbuds in Yuri’s ears to play a beeping sound.

If all went to plan, the transmitter in Yuri’s brain would record the audio input in Yuri’s ears, and the other transmitter in Obsidian Corp.’s system would receive it. That would give them a specific, active data imprint to search for when they tried to find that transmitter. Tom’s job was to carry the search program in his processor. He’d interface with Obsidian Corp.’s systems and use it to locate the transmitter.

Now his heart fluttered with a mixture of excitement and anxiety as he walked through the heavy iron doors to the Interstice and approached the rows of fake trees. Then he encountered the first snare in their plan.

From her reading of schematics, Wyatt explained that the optical camouflage would conceal them from the retina scanners, but the scanners must’ve been cued to activate as soon as someone strolled in the door. Green lights lashed out from the fake trees and began dancing across the wall, searching for a retina to scan.

Tom’s heart pounded as he tried to evade them, realizing he’d feel like an utter idiot, boldly announcing his plans to march right into Obsidian Corp. and free Yuri, and having some stupid retina scanners give him away before he got on the Interstice.