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“Because I knew you’d freak out like this!”

“Yeah, no shit!” Chris yells “All this ti to find the killer, and all along it was you!”

Adaback and forth between the others “She’s not the killer, guys Aether just wants us to think that We already knoon’t suffer from future shock”

Chris snorts “What, you think they planted this report in case we happened to find it in thirty years? No fucking way”

Trent shakes his head “We know that Adam doesn’t suffer future shock, but that’s it Sorry, Elena, but Chris is right There’s nothing in these files that even hints that Aether is going to kill us”

Zoe looks unsure, her face turned down to the floor She sighs “If this is true, then it’s not your fault, Elena You can’t do anything about future shock But…you really should have told us”

“I know,” I say “I know I just thought I could fix it or find out more before—”

Our headsets suddenly buzz, and then Lynne’s voice says, “The police are in the lobby Get out now!”

22:18

We burst out of the lab Lynne is already in the hallaiting She grabs Adaot it”

There’s no ti else We rush down the hall and into the stairwell My ankle throbs as I lihts, ht there Chris throws open the door to the parking garage and we dart inside

“Freeze!” the police yell “Hands up!”

Two cops stand in front of a police car, their guns pointed at us No batons this time Panic spikes inarrested or shot But with our ti out, we can’t afford to do either

A lighter flicks, and then Trent lobs one of the sh for us to start running in different directions as thick, white sins to fill the air I head toward Future-Adaun in my backpack I don’t want to use it, but if it’s the only way out of this unfire and the plink of bullets on un clatters to the ground Shit, these cops are notaround

Lynne crouches next to ot she was still with us I don’t see any of the others or Future-Adaun but can’t find it

Adam’s voice cries out and my head jerks up One of the cops twists Adales, the cop bashes hiuttural screae of the car to haul myself up, but then I hear Lynne yell, “No!”

There’s a loud bang next toseems to shift into slow un, now in her hands so over Adam is knocked back The cop bounces off the side of a car and then hits the ground with a thud Before I can even process what Lynne has done, another shot fires She collapses beside me

For a second I can’t move She shot him, she killed that cop, and then—oh God, no I hunch close to the ground, hands treushes out of a hole in her chest and she’s not breathing She’s already gone I feel faint Lynne’s dead, and my hands are covered with her blood, and I don’t knohere anyone else is or if Adaet out of here, right now

Zoe appears in the s down her face as she hovers over Lynne’s body Seeing her clears et Adaun and push h the pain Ada around his body I can’t tell if he’s breathing or not, but he must be alive He has to be