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I didn’t mess around. Once I knew what was going on, I took immediate action. And I wasn’t taking no for an answer. Not even Bynes was going to hold me back. This was bigger than her. Bigger than all of us. And we had to do something now .

I was just so grateful that Giza was there.

Because if it had only been Bynes, the way everything happened next would have probably been very different.

But Giza made it happen. The fire he lit under everyone’s asses had even Bynes giving him a wide berth.

And only five hours later, we were in a huge situation room back at Fort Warren, and all the major players were present—even Jacob.

Thank goodness Giza was compassionate enough to order Jacob real clothing, a kindness Jacob told me he would never forget. Wearing the regulatory tan cargo pants and olive-green shirt, Jacob looked just as much as a Dissenter as anyone else in the room. And it was a very packed room.

On one side of the long, rectangular table sat Sasha, along with Giza and two other Dissenter commanders I didn’t recognize.

On the opposite side, First in Command Gary Fisher sat next to Charles Calvernon, who eyed me suspiciously the moment he walked in through the door.

General Bynes sat on the other side of him, and Lieutenant General Krous sat next to her.

A hologram of a man I recognized from my review back at the rebel camp turned out to be Archer McClintok, First in Command of the East, and he was depicted on the opposite side of Sasha.

I stood at the head of the table, next to my brother, who was standing on his own two feet.

The relief I felt when I saw him walking, felt some of his former strength, almost brought me to tears.

And it felt so good to be standing beside him as equals, finally fighting for the same side.

Across from me at the other far end of the table, was Wes.

His blond locks were tied back in that low ponytail that lit a slow, simmering burn deep within me.

He was healing well, already looking so much better than he did previously.

I wanted so badly to touch him, to hug him, to tell him I was wrong and to please forgive me.

But it would have to wait. Because this was bigger than me and him, too.

That fact, however, didn’t stop me from feeling the sting when I noticed he refused to look at me.

“Good evening,” Jacob began, clearing his throat, bringing the room to attention.

I was in awe. As battered as he was, surrounded by a room of people that wanted nothing more than to see him hang, Jacob stood tall and confident, commanding the room effortlessly, as though it was always his to command.

I didn’t think I could ever lead like he did.

Not like this. But at least he was finally on our side.

And everyone was going to figure out just what an asset he really was.

Only two people gave him the courtesy of a nod—Giza and Sasha. Wes remained quiet, stoic. Everyone else just glared, but he held their attention.

“I know you know who I am, and I’ll begin by saying that I am nothing but extremely grateful for the rescue operation you conducted to save my life. I know that my family and I have caused your people nothing but pain and suffering, and I am truly sorry for the part I have played in that.”

He paused for a few seconds, giving everyone a moment.

“There is nothing I could ever do to repair the hardships I have caused on your people. But I intend to do everything in my power to make amends and right the wrongs cast upon this nation. And that is why I am here, why I’ve asked Mara to call this meeting.

Because what I am about to tell you will make a difference.

War is upon us, whether you realize it or not.

And Raúl is more prepared than ever to face you all. And he will win.”

Jacob looked away from the crowd, staring at the table for a moment as he took several deep breaths.

I inched toward him, touching his shoulder with my own, lending him my strength.

He glanced at me, giving me a quick smile before returning his attention to the room.

“With my aid, Raúl has created a piece of technology that will change the tide of this war if he’s given the chance to use it.

We can’t let that happen. Several months ago, a small group of Dissenters stumbled upon a processing plant where we were developing a prototype. ”

“The nanochips,” Sasha said, her eyes widening.

“Yes,” I confirmed. “NIT-V1.”

“NIT-V what?” Fisher asked.

“NIT-V1,” Jacob repeated. “Neural Implant Transmitter Version One. It was our first prototype for a cranial implant.”

“A cranial implant?” Bynes spoke up this time. “A new tracking device?”

“Would all of you just shut up?” I snapped. “Just listen for a minute. You’ll get your chance to ask questions, but this will go much faster if you just let him finish.” Everyone looked at me in surprise, but I ignored them and looked at my brother, motioning for him to continue.

He cocked a brow before looking back at the room.

“NIT-V1 is more than a tracking device. It’s an implant that transmits electrical impulses into the brain, stimulating different neural networks and causing the brain to rewire itself over a short course of time.

The nanochip is implanted in the back of the head, into the brainstem, and then attached to the amygdala.

From there, we can send commands into the brain, telling it to stimulate running, jumping, kicking, and so on.

Whatever we want the body to do, we can artificially stimulate the brain into giving the body the command through this implant. ”

I looked at everyone in the room, but all I saw were blank stares. Did they not get it? Did no one understand what was happening?

“Pardon me,” Krous spoke up, “but are you trying to tell me you have created—”

“A device that can control the brain. Yes, that’s exactly what I’m telling you,” Jacob answered patiently.

“That’s impossible,” Bynes shot back. “That technology doesn’t exist and there’s no way you’re going to convince me that you just happened to figure it out.”

Charles stood up, glaring at me and then at my brother. “I’ve heard enough. It sounds to me like you’re both trying to postpone the inevitable. I am smart enough to see this ridiculous ploy to avoid standing trial—”

“It works!” I shouted at him, slamming my hand on the table to grab his attention. “The nanochip is real, and it works. I’ve seen it firsthand.”

“Mara,” Giza interjected, “what do you mean you’ve seen it?”

I faced him. “Chelsea. Chelsea was implanted with NIT-V1.”

Sasha’s body stiffened as her eyes grew wide with shock. “What?”

“Tell them, Jacob.”

Jacob glanced at me and then looked back at Sasha.

“When Chelsea was captured at the processing plant, we took her in for questioning. She refused to answer, so my dad had her implanted with the device. She received the first prototype. We ordered her to tell us the location of the camp, as well as anything else she knew about the Dissenters. She—” he faltered, but forced himself forward.

“She was very resistant to the transmissions, but we eventually got what we needed and then released her to return to the camp. The ultimate test was to see if we could get her to betray the Dissenters.”

Sasha’s jaw dropped. “You ordered her to kill me.”

Jacob’s brows furrowed, his lips set in a thin line as a pained expression crossed his face, but he nodded, admitting his crime.

“Yes. We just never found out if it succeeded.” Sasha leaned back in her chair, the shock painted on her face, aging her.

Jacob swallowed. “I knew it wasn’t perfect before we implanted Chelsea.

It created a type of electrical feedback in the brain, causing many of the original test subjects to go mad.

Several had short-term memory loss. It just wasn’t ready.

But my father didn’t care and wanted to begin production right away.

I’d been working on an improved version of the device, and I was almost done with it when Chelsea was captured.

I had a partner in Telvia who was helping me.

She knew all the plans, had access to all my work.

She’s completed the project, and now my dad has an improved implant. ”

This time, Wes spoke up. “NIT-V2.”

“That’s right,” Jacob confirmed.

“You were retrofitted with the implant.” Wes stated it plain and simple, as though he was telling the room the sky was blue. Emotionless.

“Yes,” Jacob confirmed again.

“ What? ” Bynes yelled, standing in her chair and pulling out her sidearm.

“Calm down!” I yelled, extending my arms out. “It’s not active, not yet.”

Giza stood up this time. “ Sit down , General Bynes,” he ordered before setting his gaze on me. “What do you mean, it’s not active?”

Jacob spoke up. “The technology isn’t ready.

Before the raid at the camp, Sally and I still had a lot of work to do, and we both knew it was going to take most of the summer.

When I was at the tower, she visited me under the guise of not understanding my notes to complete the project.

She…she warned me that the device was almost finished, and that my father had plans to implant me with the chip.

She’d been stalling the project, trying to buy me time.

But she couldn’t keep stalling without creating suspicion.

She warned me they would activate the chips within a few weeks. ”

“How could you possibly trust her?” Bynes sneered.

Jacob snapped. “Because Sally was more than a colleague to me. She was my partner. We loved each other, but we were never matched because she was from District 2. She risked her life to tell me what was going to happen. And…” his voice grew quiet as hurt twisted his handsome face.

“She was asking for permission, and I gave it to her. I knew what it meant, but I would rather be my dad’s mindless puppet than watch her die at the hands of my father. That’s why I trust her.”

My hands covered my mouth, filled with grief. My brother was in love with someone from another district, never allowed to be together. And she was tasked with creating a device that would steal his autonomy forever.

I couldn’t believe it. How ironic that my brother and I would find ourselves in the same situation, but the roles reversed.

I turned to face Wes. He was my brother, he just didn’t realize it.

He didn’t know that I was the device that would be used to control him.

The only difference was Sally gave my brother the last piece of autonomy he would have.

She gave him the power of choice. To choose his fate.

And he loved her more for it. Suddenly, I felt sick and rotten inside, the guilt causing acid to build up in my throat.

“Wait a minute,” Giza cut in. “If they’re not active yet, then how much time do we have?”

“I can’t be sure. Sally gave me some timelines, so based on those…three days?” Jacob stated calmly.

Sasha cleared her throat, her voice serene as always. “What happens once the chips are activated?”

I dropped my arms, hands curling into fists. “Do you remember all of those District 3 and District 2 citizens going missing from Telvia?”

Sasha placed a hand over her lips. “Oh my heavens…”

“What?” Charles barged in. “What’s this about people missing?”

Giza spoke up this time. “We’ve been getting reports for months of hundreds, possibly thousands, of citizens going missing from the Middle and Subclass. It was something we were trying to investigate prior to the loss of the camp.”

“It’s not just them,” Jacob interjected.

“Every captured Dissenter, every person in the reeducation camps, every single Telvian soldier and REG officer…all of them. Every single one is being retrofitted with NIT-V2. And the second that device goes live, every single one of those individuals will be totally and completely under my father’s control. And they will obey his every command.”

The room grew silent, everyone trying to wrap their minds over the giant clusterfuck we were all in. And then Sasha tapped her nails on the table once, then twice. Slowly, she stood up from her chair as she rolled her shoulders back, bringing herself to her full height.

“I never thought I would find myself saying these words but, what do you propose we do, Mr. de la Puente?”

Jacob looked to me and I to him, our gazes locking. Because we knew exactly what we needed to do, and we had less than three days to make it happen. I turned to face her. “We’re going to resist, Sasha. And we’re going to take the fight to them.”