I woke up in a cold sweat, my heart thudding away in my chest while my brain tried to come to terms with what was going on. It was dark, I had just woken up, and the clock on my nightstand showed that it was just after four in the morning. I looked over and saw Nelson sleeping soundly, a cascade of moonlight flowing over her face and blanket, and then began taking stock of our surroundings. No intruders. No noises. No reason to be panicking.

So what had happened?

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and tiptoed into the bathroom, careful not to wake Nelson from her sleep. In the bathroom, I shut the door and then flipped on the light. I turned the cold water on full blast and drank directly out of the faucet. Once I had my fill, I looked up and studied my reflection in the mirror.

Dark blonde hair, tousled from sleep. Hazel-brown eyes. Small, slight features. The skin under my eyes was darker and puffier than usual, a sure sign of my fitful sleep over the last several nights… but for the most part everything looked normal.

Just anxiety, I told myself. Nothing to fear. You’re just antsy to get started looking for Hope. And, I thought uncomfortably, you’re probably a little worried that we’ll have to save the whole world before finding Hope is even an option.

I splashed some cold water on my face, but then realized my mistake. I needed to get back to sleep, not wake myself up. It wasn’t even five in the morning yet.

I briefly considered strolling to Nathan’s office and just taking a seat, waiting for him to show up. But then I remembered Piper’s warning. Nathan was busy with other things, and most of them were probably dangerous, or important, or both. What right did I have to put myself above all of Edgewood?

But then I pictured Hope’s newborn face again. I remembered the physical tearing I had felt in my heart when they pulled her out of my arms. I had to speak to Nathan, no matter what. After the celebration, I’d be in his office and waiting to speak with him.

Or maybe, the little voice in my head countered, we just wait until the sun comes up. Then we can catch him before the parade starts. Surely the planning will be done by then.

I had another long drink of water, turned the lights off, and then got back into bed. Then, through either exhaustion or sheer will, I managed to fall back asleep.

A couple of hours later, I awoke to find Nelson hovering over me.

“You going to sleep all day?” she asked thickly, a toothbrush hanging haphazardly out of her mouth. She was already showered and dressed and ready to go. “Or do you want to try to catch Nathan as much as I do?”

I shot out of bed like a bullet. I had my hair and teeth brushed and clean clothes on in record time, my heart beating wildly as I tried to perform mundane morning tasks. I had only one thought in my mind the entire time: Maybe with Nelson’s help I’ll finally be able to speak to Nathan.

When I was ready, Nelson threw a backpack over her shoulder and we headed out. We passed the dining hall without even discussing the possibility of stopping for breakfast. A full day had passed since we had discovered our daughters’ locations. We had given Nathan time to plan a parade, for goodness’ sake. It was time to start discussing our next mission. It helped to have Nelson beside me, as eager and anxious to speak to Nathan as I was. It made me feel less selfish for putting our mission front and center. We were here to make a big change, obviously, but that didn’t mean we had to ignore our own needs. It was time to find our families.

Just as we rounded the corner and began heading toward the main street, a voice sounded out from behind us.

“Not without me!”

It was Jace. He bounded toward us in long, graceful strides, a smile beaming at us.

“I knew you guys would be headed to see Nathan. I’ve been waiting in the dining hall for you,” he said. “I want to come.”

I grinned. For every step of the way so far, Jace had been right there. And that had only intensified after we found out more about Hope. I knew it was important for him to be there to help—both logistically and emotionally. Hope wasn’t his, and he didn’t have to care.

But he did. And I knew it was because he cared about me.

I thought back to Henry’s reaction in the dining hall, remembering how quick he’d been to become angry and assign blame. And I knew that was partly because he was bonded to Hope, like I was. But Jace showed me what that reaction could’ve been: understanding, patience, and support.

Maybe Jace could be there for Hope someday as well.

“Let’s go, then,” Nelson said.

We walked together to Nathan’s office, an electric excitement surrounding us. But we mostly stayed quiet, each of us awash in our thoughts. The peaceful scenes we passed in Edgewood made it easy to stay quiet and thoughtful. We could hear children chatting and playing in the schoolyard. People were contentedly strolling along the streets on their way to their assignments. And the beautiful sound of birdsong filled the sky above us. And then, before I knew it, we were walking through the doors of the hall leading to the tech room and Nathan.

Nathan’s office door was cracked, a sliver of light and sound streaming into the hallway from inside. Nelson and I looked at each other for support, our glances indicating that we were of one mind, here. We were getting in there, no matter what.

“Nathan is always busy,” Nelson said. “If we don’t ambush him, we won’t be able to speak to him at all until he has our next mission already planned.”

“And,” I added, “at the very least, we’ll be able to ask him when we can come back.” We couldn’t leave this meeting up to fate any longer.

Jace nodded solemnly. He respected Nathan a great deal, and I knew he would be uncomfortable barging in on him. But he was there to support us.

I approached the door and steadied myself for what we were about to do. It had obviously been mostly shut for a reason, and I did feel self-conscious for intruding. But even if we got shooed out again, this time I’d at least make him tell me when I could come back. I promised myself that much.

I curled my fist to knock, but the sound from within the office suddenly became clearer, and my hand stopped before touching the door. It was Corona’s melodic voice that I heard.

“And anyway, we have no reason to doubt the tech,” she was saying. I had caught her in the middle of a statement, and judging from the tenor of her voice, it was an important one.

“But we also have no reason to doubt what he saw,” Nathan replied, and his voice sounded strangely strained and distant, as if he was speaking with a fear that I hadn’t assumed him capable of.

Nelson was close behind me now, and we shared a look with each other that seemed to agree on one point: we weren’t going to knock just yet. Not when Nathan was discussing something that made him sound so frightened.

“You have a surveillance team with their eyes on the skies at all times, Nathan. We have cameras, drones, X-ray and thermal blocking, and the projection. Don’t you find it strange that there was only one person who saw a government ship over Edgewood?”

My heart sank. Nelson sucked in a breath… and didn’t let it go.

A government ship over Edgewood?

Jace was standing awkwardly behind us, just far enough away to avoid eavesdropping.

“Guys,” he whispered with unease. But Nelson and I didn’t move. Spying or not, this seemed important, and we needed to know.

I had never seen an airship over Edgewood, and there was no reason for the government to have ships in this area. Unless they knew something. And if they did know something, how long could we truly have before we were attacked?

What if we hadn’t gotten away from Smally safely? What if we had been followed? What if we were being watched at that very moment? The thought was chilling. And how would that affect our missions to retrieve our lost family members? Would Edgewood have to go on lockdown to be safe?

“I have every faith in Piper. If he said he saw it, then it was here,” Nathan replied tersely.

Piper? Could they be talking about the meeting I interrupted yesterday? If so, was that why Piper had refused me entry?

“Even if it was here,” Corona was responding with conviction, “we have no reason to believe it saw anything. This is your tech, Nathan. You have to trust it.”

“It’s Piper’s tech too, Corona,” came the response. “And he knows as well as I do that it’s not a hundred percent foolproof. Nothing is.”

Nelson looked at me, puzzled. I was thinking the same thing she was. The projection was Nathan and Piper’s tech? What exactly did Piper do in his past life? And one step further: if they knew it wasn’t foolproof, why had they built an entire city under it? Were we all in more danger than we’d ever realized?

Suddenly, Jace’s fist was between us, rising up to rap on Nathan’s door, a scowl on his face. He wasn’t the type to eavesdrop like this, and he never had been. He preferred action.

The conversation between Corona and Nathan immediately ceased. Then, Nathan’s voice, sounding much cheerier than it had just a few seconds before, called out to us.

“Come in!”

Jace pushed the door open and the three of us stood in the doorway. Jace was the first to make a move. He strolled into the office confidently, offering polite salutations.

Nelson and I tried our best not to look like we were slinking in guiltily afterward.

Nathan stood from his desk to greet us. But then I noticed with unease that he was picking up his phone and turning off his computer as well. Surely he wasn’t leaving.

“Always a pleasure to see you all,” he said briskly, walking around the front of his glass-and-steel desk. “But I’m afraid I have to be off.”

My shoulders fell.

Luckily, Nelson was prepared.

“We won’t take long, Nathan, and this is important,” she said strongly.

Nathan looked at her and nodded. “I understand, Nelson. Truly. First thing tomorrow, then.”

I could barely contain my frustration. Tomorrow? Tomorrow just wouldn’t do. He could spare us five minutes, and he could spare those minutes now.

And then, although it shamed me to think it, I thought impulsively, After all, I saved his life.

But before I could verbalize any of that, Jace spoke.

“First thing tomorrow,” he repeated, agreeing.

Then Nathan was past us and out the door and Nelson and I were looking after him, defeated.

Corona made no move to leave. She stood, casually beautiful in a tailored suit, at the edge of Nathan’s desk, and leaned back against it.

“I’m sorry,” she finally said. “You know Nathan.”

I knew I should’ve left Corona to deal with whatever important security things she had been talking about with Nathan. And I knew I didn’t have a good reason to be personally offended. But I couldn’t help the way I felt.

“He could’ve spared us the time,” I told her, unable to suppress the emotion. “The parade planning could’ve waited.”

I immediately regretted saying it. But to my surprise, Corona seemed more confused than offended.

“Nathan wouldn’t have walked out on you guys over the parade,” she said softly. “He has a lot on his plate right now, including many more teams that need his attention and are also seeking information. He has to spread his time between everyone on his teams and on different bases, even if you guys are obviously his favorites.”

She delivered the last line with a wry smile.

“Maybe you could help us instead,” Nelson said from beside me.

She was right. Why hadn’t I thought of that? Corona was the second-in-command for the organization. If Nathan was too busy, then we should be able to propose our mission to Corona instead.

But Corona put her hand up.

“I know how important finding your family is,” Corona said. “But I’m sorry. I can’t prioritize the needs of the few over the needs of many. You’ll have to speak to Nathan. You’ll have to trust the process.”

“How did you know?” I asked. How could Corona have possibly known that we were here to talk about Hope and Rylo?

“We extracted the data from the archives drive,” Corona said. “I knew you would’ve done the same, albeit more selectively.”

The second drive. The one Nelson had given Nathan, with the information from the archives. Of course. But if Corona had realized that we would be desperate to start a mission to find our children, surely Nathan had, too. So how could he have pushed us aside when he knew how important it was to us—and that we would absolutely need his help, if we were going to accomplish it?

“I promise you, we will get to that. But we have to take time to plan and recuperate. And we have other missions that need our attention in the meantime, too,” Corona continued.

It was the same line of reasoning that I had used against Henry just the day before. These things took time. And we had to do them the right way. But it was so hard to accept that logic. I couldn’t focus on anything else. I didn’t want to be here anymore. I wanted to be with Hope.

But what could I say to convince Corona? And how would we ever get Nathan and Corona’s help if I tried to insist that they needed to drop everything just so I could get my daughter back?

In the end, I nodded in agreement. It physically pained me to do so, but I couldn’t see any other option. I saw Nelson sigh and nod as well, while Jace shifted his weight awkwardly in the back of the room.

We turned to leave, and I thanked Corona for her time from the doorway.

As I shut the door, Corona said simply, “I know how you feel.”

As we started our walk back toward the dorms, I thought about what Corona had said; she knew how we felt. Then I remembered.

“Corona lost a child, too,” I said to Nelson and Jace. “That was what Corona meant at the end.”

Nelson nodded. “Yeah, I was just thinking about that maybe we shouldn’t assume they can’t understand our feelings on the matter. Corona might feel the same way. And who knows how long she has been waiting.”

Jace put his arm around my shoulders. It was heavy, but I felt comforted by his warmth and his presence.

“We’ll find them,” Jace said. “We’ll find all of them.”

I leaned into him. I had to believe that. I had to believe that I would bring Hope home someday, even if it was taking longer than I wanted it to. I had been trying to bring her home for two years. And now I was closer than I had ever been. I just had to keep going.

At least we were safe and together in Edgewood to do our planning. Or were we? I suddenly remembered the information we had overheard before entering Nathan’s office.

“I think I interrupted that meeting between Nathan and Piper yesterday,” I began. “I think—”

But I didn’t get the chance to finish my thought. Just then, two huge figures rushed at us and plowed into Jace, lifting him up and beginning to run off with him. Jace didn’t even fight back in his surprise.

The act was so sudden that I stood paralyzed for a moment, watching Jace as he was swept away from us. But then my logic and strength returned.

“Jace!” I yelled, Nelson and I taking off after him.