“An excellent reminder,” Whitney says. “Now, I know you’re all dying to hear about the Initiation Heist.” She grins. “It will be our biggest—and most dangerous—heist to date.”
The kids around me perk up even more.
“In a few months, we’ll be hosting a challenge,” Jeff says. “It will be an obstacle course of sorts, designed to measure your preparedness for the Initiation Heist.”
“We take the heist very seriously. As those of you who participated in last year’s heist as assistants—and will be leading your own heists this year—know, the stakes are real. You could get caught, and we can’t risk involving anyone who isn’t ready,” Whitney says. “For that reason, anyone who fails to complete the obstacle course or the person with the slowest time will be discharged to Keystone Farms to help grow food for Unrankables in need. Life at the Farm is simple, though without the use of technology, the work is hard. But ending up there isn’t a life sentence. If you’re able to get past Farm security and survive the wilderness to make your way back to Keystone, we’ll happily continue your training.”
Survive the wilderness? Nope. Guess I better find a way to own that obstacle course…
“On the other hand, the four of you with the best times will be chosen to compete against one another in the Keystone Quest,” Jeff continues. “The Quest champion will be awarded three things. First, the ability to choose their partner for the Initiation Heist, rather than being assigned one.” He ticks the items off his fingers as he speaks. “Second, the locations of every top-secret Keystone hideout around the world—which is information that is usually earned well after you’re initiated—and finally, one get-out-of-jail-free card.”
“Normally, if you’re caught during a heist, we do our best to set you up as a Maker or Laborer once you serve your sentence,” Whitney explains. “But as a Quest winner, you are considered to be amongst our best and brightest, and we would do everything in our power to rescue you and keep you among our ranks.”
I can’t imagine what would happen to me if I got caught… Unrankable much? I just got here… I don’t want to start over somewhere else… Hugging myself, I slump in my seat, as if that could root me in Keystone. It would be worth winning the Quest just so I’d know no matter what I could come back here… Not that I have a shot at competing in the first place.
“You’ll be given details specific to your part of the Heist after the Quest, when partners are announced,” Jeff says.
An excited ripple runs through the room. Peeking at the front row, I’m relieved to see Garrett has lost interest in me. He again faces the stage, arms folded across his chest, but the left corner of his mouth is curled up in a nonchalant half smile. Even he seems to be buying into the hype. A shot of adrenaline jackknifes my heart, sharpening my vision, and I’m breathing cool, menthol air.
But then, winning might be fun…
“Room assignments and schedules are on the table at the back of the hall. Lessons begin tomorrow, and you’re expected to take them seriously,” Jeff says. “After all, the future of humanity is at stake.”
…
I read my roommate’s name—Rayelle Chen—as a pretty girl (shorter than me!) with glossy black hair walks over. She wears thick glasses that distort her eyes, making them appear impossibly large, and her lips are painted in black gloss, so her mouth appears smaller than it is. I’m instantly self-conscious of my attempt to paint the stars across my face.
“Elisha?” she asks.
“Yes.” Nodding, I hold my breath, awaiting recognition beyond the bird incident.
“I’m Rayelle. I guess we’re roommates.” She offers a meek hand, along with a blank smile—the kind of smile you give a stranger when you’re sizing them up.
Accepting her hand, I give it a little pump, my heart pounding.
Her fingers squeeze mine, and I exhale relief. If she knew who I was, she would have recoiled, my Influencer touch being the acid that dissolved her kindness.
“So, you’re new here? That’s weird.” She leads me through a fireplace different than the one I arrived from, where the fires have been extinguished, and into a short tunnel. “They barely ever let new people into the training program. Most of us were born into it.” We climb a ladder and emerge through a trapdoor into the forest. “Where are you from?” she asks as I crawl into the damp, cool outside air.
“I grew up in a Maker complex in Ojai,” I say, reciting the cover story Allard prepared for me as I close the trapdoor and re-cover it with leaves.
Her jaw drops. “How did you end up here? You must have done something terrible to have been forced to disconnect.”
“It wasn’t really something I did,” I say quickly, fearful she could guess my identity. “It was more that I hated letting strangers’ opinions of me rule my life. I didn’t fit in.” That much is true.
We walk side by side down a narrow trail, the leaves of the great sequoias pattering in the breeze overhead.
“Then you came to the right place.” She smiles. “And if you’re here, you must be talented.” We approach a cute boy with dark hair and golden skin leaning against a tree, studying his schedule. His jaw is clenched, accentuating his face’s angles, and his arms are ripped, his biceps bulging beneath his jumpsuit sleeves. First Garrett, and now this guy? Now entering the forest of teenage male models… Is being seriously hot a requirement to be a thief? Or maybe if you can’t use technology, there’s nothing better to do than work out… Mysteries that may never be solved.
Rayelle lowers her voice. “We’ve only had one other transfer— Hi Kyran!” Breaking into a megawatt smile, she waves like she’s trying to flag down a rescue drone.
Kyran glances up. “Hey.”
“You get to run your Initiation Heist this year! Aren’t you excited?”
He glances over his shoulder like he’s searching for an escape hatch. “Sure.”
“Are you going to the dorms?” she asks. “Do you want to walk with us?”
“Nah. I’m waiting for Garrett.” Shrugging, he goes back to reading.
I wince at his easy dismissal while my ears perk up at the possibility of a Garrett sighting.
“Okay. See you down there!” she says, unfazed. We continue past him, and my cheeks burn for her.
“That was him—the transfer,” she continues. “From the School of the Seven Bells in Colombia. He’s a legacy, though. His parents are big-time smugglers, and he’s a natural—he’ll be one of the final four for sure. Rumor has it he could pass the Seven Bell pickpocket test by the time he was five.”