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"Which one’s the registration building?" Beetle asks in a hushed voice

We look about Behind us the Sentry guards are starting to bring the prisoners up the avenue There are horrified sobs froht is a large three-story building The lights are on in one of the rooround floor

"That must be it," Natalie says

We hurry down the alleyway next to building, du the way At the back of the building is a large parking lot, filled with military trucks Some have the nu represents the town the prisoners will be taken to after they’ve been registered There don’t appear to be any drivers in the trucks--theyout of the cold, until it’s tihts in the building are off We peer through the s, searching for the records room Day stops outside one of the s

"This roo cabinets in it," she whispers

I carefully open theand we cli com-desk in the center of the room I turn it on, but am immediately asked to enter a password I switch the com-desk off We’ll have to do this the old-fashioned way I force open one of the locked drawers to find stacks of manila files inside, in alphabetical order There are thousands of the the Tenth has officially been operational only since the ballot a feeeks ago Purian Rose must have secretly opened the caraph of a prisoner--a Darkling woman called Thelma Grieves, thirty-two years old, Nordin species, prisoner number 0000458712, laboratory 6, Prie red letters across the document I put the file back and turn to the others

"We’re looking for Lucinda Coombs and Yolanda Theroux--"

"Fillion," Elijah corrects "Mom was my dad’s mistress, not wife I only took his surname because it’s tradition in my culture"

None of us knohat Kieran’s surname is, so we can’t search for hi to our friend Amy Jones "I think the Sentry took her here, after they killed Stuart"

Beetle helpscabinets for Lucinda’s file, Natalie and Elijah take the E–F cabinets, and Acelot and Day look for A in theto read the files

Day lets out a frustrated sigh "I can’t find Aht?" Natalie says "Maybe she escaped?"

Beetle glances at ot here

The sound of footsteps approaches the door and everyone freezes Beetle reaches for his gun and softly cocks the ha the seconds: one, two, three, four The guard walks past the door I exhale We keep searching

"Here," Natalie says in an urgent whisper, passing a file to Elijah

"That’s Mo held in laboratory seven, in Pri cabinet, then stops A crease forain and pulls out a docua manila file "Lucinda Cooood possibility Kieran’s been sent there too It’s a relief to know they’re still alive, although if they’re in the science laboratories in Prio," I whisper, reaching outthe document, her face ashen Tears brim in her blue eyes

"What is it?" I say

"I’ the file to ed man stares up at er back, dropping the file to the floor

The raph is my dad

14

NATALIE

ASH SINKS TO HIS KNEES, the contents of his father’s file scattered across the floor in front of hi to contain the howl threatening to escape his lips, knowing he can’t ; it’s taking allupthe papers beneath my knees, and draw him into my arms He buries his face into my hair and lets out a pained wail, unable to hold it in any longer, the sound ers, his whole body shuddering with grief

"I’ down raph and his face pales "It’s his dad," he asps

"God," Acelot mutters

From what I read on the cover sheet, Harold was captured teeks ago and taken to one of the laboratories in Prian failure Whatever experi to hians to shut down What are they doing here?

Outside the opena truck engine revs The Sentry guards are returning to their vehicles in the parking lot, ready to transport the first batch of prisoners to their barracks

"We need to leave," Elijah says quietly

I don’t knoe’re going to get Ash out of here I’ his silken hair "Are you going to be able to do this? Destiny can colistening with tears "I need to get raph from Day He tucks it into his pants pocket and cliather the loose papers on the floor and shove them into the nearest cabinet, and then we follow hi for us in the alley About fifty feet away, the back door of the registration office opens and the first prisoners are escorted across the parking lot by several ar truck marked with a nuet on one of those trucks" Beetle points to the vehicles nearest to us et on?" Day whispers