“Not everything is about you, Smith,” Cami replies, crossing her arms.

“Smith?” I repeat, nudging Cami so I can wedge my way in beside her. “I know that name.”

He pushes his glasses up his nose, and something about the casual gesture has me frowning, as if I’ve seen it before. The sense of déjà vu dissolves when he turns to glare at me and says, “It’s not easy to project into dreams, you know. I slept for two days straight afterward.” His eyes narrow even more as he finishes, “You can thank me by keeping your friend away from me. As if I don’t have better things to do than pander to her wishes.”

Project into dreams … Smith is the Speaker responsible for Kael visiting me in Lengard. Or a projection of him, at least, both in my room before I went to investigate Vanik’s lab, and when I was unconscious and needed to be awoken. But why would he and Cami …

I told you I’d let you know if I found him.

As Smith’s words repeat in my mind, understanding hits me, and I say, “You’ve been projecting to Ward, haven’t you?” My heart rate kicks up a notch. “Is he all right? Are the others? What’s happening at Lengard?”

Smith’s lips tighten into a thin line. To Cami, he says, “You want to bring her up to speed? You’ve already wasted enough of my time this week.”

With that, he pushes past us.

I reach out to stop him, but Cami shakes her head.

“Don’t bother,” she tells me, moving forward again. “He won’t answer any of your questions.”

I trail after her. “Okay, but will you? What was all that about?”

The only sound for a moment is our feet crunching on the dirt path, as if Cami is weighing her response.

“I wasn’t in a good place when we arrived here. Those first three days were … rough,” she finally says. “As you know, no one would tell me what was happening, not even Kael. Any time he checked on you, he all but ran out of the room to avoid my questions. But then on the third day, a few hours before you finally woke up, Smith came to our room.”

She glances at me and I’m startled to see a smile dancing around her mouth. Given the interaction I just witnessed, I would have expected a scowl.

“I’m pretty sure he was there under duress, probably because by that stage I was screaming at everyone I crossed paths with for some answers. I’m honestly surprised they didn’t try to sedate me.”

She says it lightly, but I have to clench my jaw to resist commenting.

“He told me who he was and what he could do, and then he offered—reluctantly—to try to help me reach Landon.”

Cami doesn’t meet my eyes as she continues, “We’ve tried every day since then—a few times each day, actually—but I can’t find my brother anywhere. And every time we try, I get a little more … upset. And Smith gets a little more frustrated.”