Glitch

Regan and Elliot hide from the security guards in the same fountain where they hid before. Regan reflects that this time, Elliot is her friend. She notices a security camera that resembles the one Officer Salzburg showed her mom—the one meant to catch Butterflies. Regan and Elliot recall the next clue from the Cocoon: “the prototypes are a bust” (301). Regan realizes that these “security cameras” are really explosives, and they’ve probably been planted all around campus. Elliot inspects the camera and determines that it is indeed an explosive, but it might be too complicated for him to dismantle several of them in the time they have left, especially since they don’t know where the rest are planted or how many there are. Regan instructs Elliot to bring the camera with him as they go to her house; she remembers there being a map of where the new security cameras were installed. The kids aren’t sure if Officer Salzburg knew the cameras were explosives or not, but they suspect he might have known since he’s still alive.