“What?” he said. “What’s wrong with you? I mean, I guess it’s a little surprising that such a small woman could have fought off so many men, but she could have training in all sorts of disciplines. I would expect that you two would know that women can take care of themselves.”

“That’s not it,” Jaime said.

“What then?”

“I know her. Sort of.”

“You mean you recognize her?”

“I should,” Jaime said. “I’ve been drawing her for months.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

Jaime searched his pockets, found a drawing. He unfolded it for Theo, held it up with both hands so Theo could see. In the drawing, a pretty woman, small and brown-skinned, stood in a long gray coat that seemed to swirl around her.

“Where have you seen her before?” Theo said.

“I haven’t. I made her up.”

“What?”

“I made her up,” Jaime said. Jaime’s own skin had gone slightly grayish, and Theo wondered if Jaime would faint and tumble into the water. Theo didn’t want Jaime to faint, and he definitely didn’t want Jaime to tumble into the water. He’d seen the dark shapes moving under the surface; he’d witnessed the lurch of the guards’ boat. Something terrible lived in the water.

And this woman had called to it.

But . . .

“You must have seen her somewhere,” Theo said, feeling desperate. “In the newspaper, or online. Somewhere.”

“No,” Tess said. “I’ve looked at his drawings. He’s done a ton of them. He’s been developing her.”

“I don’t know what that means!” Theo heard the whine in his own voice but couldn’t help it. He was starting to feel as if he were going mad.

“I was trying to create a superhero. A character for a comic,” Jaime explained. “I’ve put her in a million different outfits and poses, but none of them worked. Until Ada Lovelace’s dress gave me an idea. It was so plain. So I made a sort of coat-dress for my character. This is how I’ve been drawing her.”

“A . . . superhero? Why?” Theo knew it was a stupid question; or rather, it was a bigger question than Jaime or anyone could answer. Why a superhero? Why would she show up now? Why the animals hidden on this island? Why would anyone create them? Why the Cipher in the first place? Why why why?

“I think the question is ‘how,’” said Jaime.

“We’d get some answers if we went back to that island and questioned your superhero!” Theo shouted, his voice carrying over the splash of the water against the hull. Now he was starting to feel mad in the angry sense of the word.