BEFORE LENA MET ZOEY

Hero and the other Exchangers had kidnapped Able Brick.

They had taken one Pure to Heaven. After they delivered nine more to that better place, they would be allowed to live there, and a Bloodhound would lead them to their father. Ten Pures were the cost for a reunion with their father. For them, Pures had become currency.

Hero had flown the Exchangers' spaceship to Hawaii. It sat in a massive meadow within a forest, and trees stood outside like armed Freemans ready to execute a Soynite, but Hero didn't see any pale brutes. At schools on Free, Freeman children were taught how to kill. Yet no Freeman would kill Hero, or his siblings, or Zoey.

Her friend Crammer Cole had been born a Bloodhound.

Would he find Hero's father for him?

"Why did I have to be blindfolded?" Zoey said, as she sat on Hero's big bed. "I was wearing that blindfold for some time."

Hero had seen Heaven, but Zoey hadn't. If she learned about that place, its people would murder her. Then they would murder Hero and the other Exchangers. Or maybe Heaven's people would murder them before murdering Zoey. Either way, it would be horrible.

"It's for the best, Zoey," Hero said.

He stood on his bedroom's blue floor, as if sitting next to Zoey might make him reveal his secrets to her. She had told him and the other Exchangers about the Children of Still. He had informed her about the Lock Tannis Church. He would never pray to Lock, no matter how many times Bane Sinister might try convincing him to. A black double triangle symbolized Bane's cult.

Hero couldn't let Zoey know what the symbol on each of the Exchangers' backpacks meant.

Zoey sighed. "Okay. Also, I wish that I could stay with you for a lot longer. But I'm pretty sure that I'll be back with my mother today. And if Crammer agrees to find your father, it probably won't take long for him to find him. Whatever happens, I think that I'll be out of your life soon."

"We could always visit each other," Hero said. He flashed Zoey a smile. "You're a wonderful girl. When you're gone, I'm definitely going to want to visit you."

Zoey smiled. The sight was beautiful like Soy had been. The Exchangers' museum employee jackets had come from that planet, and Wade had discarded the one he had worn during Able's kidnapping. A laser from a Freeman gun had damaged its sleeve, but he had chosen a different employee jacket to be his. Right now, the Exchangers didn't wear their jackets. They weren't preparing to take someone.

Back inside that Freeman base, Zoey had run in front of Hero, using him as a shield. She had known Wade wouldn't shoot his brother. Hero couldn't deny she was clever, but keeping secrets from a smart person could be difficult. Wade knew that. Still, he hadn't killed Zoey.

"Thanks for being nice to me," she said. She put her hands on her knees, touching them through her blue jeans. "You even saved my life. I'm grateful. You could've let your siblings kill me, but you didn't. You gave me help when I needed it. I'm never going to forget that. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Hero said. "I saved you, and I'm going to save my father, too. He has done so much for me and my brothers and sisters. I refuse to let him stay with those pale brutes forever. And I know that your father is a secret to you, but you still have Boone. He's out there somewhere. So is Lovely. You're going to find them, or maybe they'll find you. Either way, you're going to be with them one day."

Zoey nodded. "I know I will. Me and you both have fathers we need to see. Maybe I'll never meet my birth father, but at least I have Boone. He's not in this spaceship with us. But he's still my father. He loves me, and I love him."

"I can tell you do. We met our fathers while the Freemans were destroying our planet. I hate that we met them on the worst day of our lives, but it's comforting to know that they love us. Wherever they are, our fathers still care about us. The Freemans don't, though. And they took my father away from me. I hope that he isn't suffering too much."

The Freemans had despised the Soynites for many years, even before the births of the former Highs. The average Freeman would rather lock a Soynite inside a prison cell than let him or her be at peace.

Hero had met Able inside a Freeman base. He had delivered him to Heaven. Its people had Able, and they would have nine more Pures. The Exchangers would complete their mission. Ten Pures would be on Heaven, and so would Hero's father. Like Able, he had been captured by Freemans. Hero refused to believe one had murdered his father. Someday, his time as a prisoner would end.

"I think that he's still alive," Hero said. "And I'm going to find him."

Zoey put her hands on the comforter. "I hope you keep believing that. If you stop, you will have less of a chance of finding your father. You need to stay optimistic. We both have to. If we lose hope, what will we have?"

"I'm never going to lose hope. I believe that I'm going to see my father again, and I will. Even if your friend Crammer doesn't find him for me, I'll find him anyway. I don't think that Crammer is the only Bloodhound in existence. I'm sure that there are more of them out there. If Crammer doesn't take me to my father, me and my brothers and sisters will find a Bloodhound who will."

Hero didn't tell Zoey about the Bloodhound on Heaven, the person who would guide the Exchangers to their father if they accomplished their mission.

Hero looked at the photograph taped to the wall. "My father deserves to be found. He isn't going to spend the rest of his life inside a Freeman base."

"He won't," Zoey said. "Because you're going to get him back. You're going to save him, Hero. I know you will. You saved me from your siblings. And you're going to save your father from the Freemans. We both know that he doesn't deserve to be with those horrible people. He deserves to be with you. This spaceship is where he needs to be, not whatever place the Freemans took him to. I hate that your father isn't here."

"I hate it, too. Back at the Ascend Museum, the Freemans killed my birth parents. It was already bad enough that they were destroying our planet. They killed my parents. My father adopted me after that. He chose to be my parent, and now he's gone. I hated the Freemans even more when they took him from me."

Wade entered the room. "So did I."

Zoey stood, and moved closer to Hero, who wouldn't let any of his siblings hurt her. Wade might wish a red laser had entered Zoey's brain inside that Freeman base, but Hero didn't. Saving her had been worth it.

Wade looked at her as if she had told him she wished a Freeman would shoot him in the arm again.

"Hero should've let us kill you," he said. "You should've died back in Washington."

Hero glared. "Stop it, Wade. Zoey is alive, and you need to accept that. She didn't die today. She's here, and she has to reunite with her mother. And maybe her Bloodhound friend will find Father for us. Keeping her alive was worth it. In more ways than one, actually."

"Her Bloodhound friend might not want to find Father for us. And he's not the only hope we have at finding him."

Regardless of what Wade had said, there was a possibility Crammer would find Hero's father. A Bloodhound was a Bloodhound.

"I know," Hero said. "There must be other Bloodhounds out there. But there's still a chance that Crammer will help us. We need to meet him, because he might be willing to take us to Father. Zoey's friend could be useful to us, Wade. If you killed her back in that Freeman base, we wouldn't have this opportunity. We wouldn't be able to meet Crammer soon."

"Hero is right," Zoey said. "It's a good thing that you didn't kill me at that base, Wade."

Wade shook his head. "We'll see if it's a good thing. Right now, you're just a girl whose friend probably won't find my father."

"I'm more than that," Zoey replied. "I saved your brother's life. I'm not my stepsister. I'm not a High, but I am Hero's savior. And his friend."

If someone killed a High in front of Hero, he wouldn't sob as if a beloved friend of his had died. The Highs were children Theo Majestic had turned into Soy's leaders, and Hero didn't plan on dying on that planet. What Zoey wanted to do for Lovely wasn't something he wished he could do. To him, the Highs were as normal as himself.

Zoey had stopped a Freeman from killing Hero. She was more special than Lovely and her co-rulers.

"I would die for any of my siblings," Wade told Zoey. "But I will never be willing to die for you. You saved my brother, but that doesn't mean I have to like you."

"But you should," Hero said. "Zoey isn't a part of this family, but we do have to like her. We have to keep her safe. She got separated from her mother, and she has other people she needs to see. If she dies, she won't even meet her stepsister. I want Zoey to meet her. And I want her to reunite with the people she cares about. Maybe she will even meet her birth father. If she dies, none of that will happen. She's my friend. I want her to be happy."

"You made a big mistake when you became her friend, Hero. When all of us needed your help earlier, you ran away with this girl. You abandoned us in that hall with those Freemans. And why did you do it? You did it so you could protect Zoey, a girl you barely know."

Hero clenched his fists. "I know her pretty well. And I knew that you and the others were going to survive the fight in that hall. We survived the attack on the Ascend Museum, after all."

"We did," Wade said. "And it's too bad that you helped this girl survive back at that Freeman base. She better get reunited with her mother soon. I can't wait for her to be away from us. If Crammer decides not to find our father, she will be gone from our lives even faster. That's why she needs to be with her mother again. She needs to be with her as soon as possible."

The longer Zoey remained with the Exchangers, the higher the chance she would find out about their mission. Freemans had learned about the Exchangers' goal, and they had died. If Hero was fortunate, Zoey wouldn't learn too much. He would rather not see one of Heaven's people kill her.

She moved closer to the round window. She put her hand on the glass, as if her mother touched the other side of it. She couldn't see Misty Windsore.

Unlike Zoey, Hero's mother was as dead as the Freeman Zoey had killed in that Freeman base's lounge room. She had shot him to save Hero.

When would Wade stop wishing she had died in Washington?

Zoey faced Hero, and she rubbed her arms through her purple shirt's sleeves.

"Soon, I'll be back with my mother," she said. "If she hits me, please don't get mad at her. She only hits me when I deserve it."

Hero frowned. "What? Your mother hits you?"

"Sometimes."

"That explains why you got scared by my hand earlier," Hero said. "And your mother shouldn't hit you, Zoey. Family shouldn't hurt family."

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"It's okay," Zoey said. "My mother loves me. It's not like she hits me every day."

Hero would rather get stabbed in the arm than see Zoey reunite with the less compassionate Misty. The pale brutes who had destroyed Soy deserved to be hit, not the girl who had helped Hero survive inside that Freeman base while he was separated from his siblings.

He couldn't let Zoey have a reunion with Misty, but she had a Bloodhound friend. Crammer could lead Zoey's abusive mother to her.

"Still, she hits you," Hero said. "I can't let you see your mother again."

Wade nodded. "I agree."

Zoey gestured at the space around her.

"You can't keep me here!" she said. "She's my mother. I need to be with her, Hero."

"You don't need to be with someone who hurts you," Wade said. "I don't like this mother of yours. And if we let you reunite with her, she will be able to hurt you. Why should I let that happen? Some people deserve to die. The Freemans, for example. And some people deserve to get hurt. You're not one of them, though."

"You want me to die. Why are you acting like you care about me?"

"I wanted you to die," Wade said. "I didn't want you to get abused by someone who is supposed to protect you. I still don't want that to happen."

Zoey wasn't just someone who had gotten separated from her mother. She was a girl who had suffered because of her mother, who could find her with Crammer's help.

Hero toyed with his Soynite pendant.

"Hero," Wade said. "What are we going to do?"

Misty could use Crammer to find Zoey, and that would lead them to the Exchangers' home. Believing they could keep Zoey away from Misty and Crammer forever would be as foolish as expecting to see Kat smile with happiness anytime soon.

"We need to confront Misty," Hero replied. "Her best friend is a Bloodhound. Wherever we go, she will find us. Eventually. We need to face her. Get Macy and the others. Bring them here."

"Okay," Wade said.

He teleported out of the room.

Zoey crossed her arms, frowning. If Hero could, he would keep her separated from Misty for the rest of her life. But Crammer could make it difficult for Hero to do that. He would have to meet the terrible woman who had abused his friend.

"After you confront my mother, are you going to let me leave with her?" Zoey said.

"I will if she decides to stop abusing you," Hero replied.

"My mother deserves me."

"And you deserve better. You don't deserve to be hurt, Zoey. You deserve something else."

"And what's that?" Zoey asked.

Hero took a step closer to her before putting his hands on her cheeks. He looked at her lips. Her hands went to his sides. After shutting his eyes, he kissed her. The kiss wasn't like the platonic one he and Macy had shared earlier, back when he didn't know Zoey. Like the fact he might someday reside on Heaven, knowing her was great.

Hero ended the kiss. Zoey touched her lips.

"That was my first kiss," she said. "And I wanted you to give me it. I also want to see my mother again. I know you hate that she hurts me sometimes, but that's what she has to do when I deserve to be punished. It's necessary. Like when you had to get away from your siblings to save my life. My mother has to hurt me sometimes."

Hero clenched his fists. "I hate her. And you're the smartest person I know, but you don't even realize that you're a victim of abuse. The others are going to be in this room soon, and I plan on telling them what your mother does to you."

Hero grabbed Zoey's hands. He would never use either of his to hurt her. When he had the opportunity to kill her in that Freeman base, he hadn't. He had chosen to save her. He had allowed her to live inside his home.

"You're safe here," Hero said. "I'm never going to hurt you. None of my siblings will, either. You don't have to worry about one of us hurting you, because we won't. You have to worry when you're with your mother, though. But you shouldn't have to do that."

"I appreciate your concern," Zoey said. "But I belong with my mother. I don't belong here."

She glanced around the room.

"This isn't where I need to be," she said. "My mother is out there, and I need to be with her. Her home is my home. I can't live in this spaceship forever, Hero."

Hero moved his hands away from Zoey's. "The others are going to be in here soon, and we're going to do our best to help you."

After Wade entered the room, Hero's other siblings did the same. Macy, Sydney, Everett, and Kat might not know what Hero and Wade knew.

"Wade," Hero said. "Did you tell them what Misty does to Zoey?"

"No," Wade answered.

"Zoey's mother abuses her."

Macy, Sydney, Everett, and Kat frowned. They had reacted to Hero's announcement in a way they should have.

Sydney hugged Zoey. She hugged her back.

"I'm sorry, Zoey," she said.

They stopped hugging. Their embrace had been sweet like Zoey, who had a mother who didn't deserve her. Hero had kissed her. He touched his lips, as if doing that might make them kiss again. Their kiss hadn't been a violent slap. It had been a kind gesture, one like Hero and Zoey's first hug. The fact he had shown her compassion didn't make him want to frown.

Wade approached the window.

"There are two Soynites outside," he said. "One of them is a woman. The other is a really big man."

Zoey smiled. "That's my mother! And her best friend, Crammer. They're here. They're finally here. I have to see them."

Wade looked at Hero. So did the other Exchangers. Their father was absent, and they expected Hero to lead them well. Zoey expected to be reunited with her abuser.

"Hero, what are we going to do?" Macy asked.

Zoey put her hands on Hero's arms. "Let me be with my mother. I have to be with her. She needs me."

Hero sighed.

"Okay," he said. "But if she hurts you, I'm going to get angry."

Zoey kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Hero."

Misty had arrived outside the spaceship with Crammer, and Hero would confront her.

Wade," he said. "Teleport all of us outside. It's time for us to meet Zoey's mother."

Wade teleported, taking Hero and the others with him. Sunlight greeted their skin. They stood in the massive meadow Hero had parked the spaceship in. Grass blades swayed as a gust blew. The man and the woman Zoey had mentioned weren't far from them. She had shown Hero a photograph of the woman.

Misty Windsore stood six feet tall. She had the height of the average Freeman woman. The wind brushed against her long brown hair, and she pointed her brown eyes at Zoey.

Crammer Cole was seven feet tall and muscular. Sunlight touched his black hair, and his eyes were brown. He hadn't been born a Freeman. Regardless, like them, he supported someone who didn't deserve support.

"Mother!" Zoey said.

She ran. When she was close enough, she jumped onto Misty. Zoey had her legs around her while they embraced. Soon, her shoes touched the grass again. The hug had ended.

Grinning, Misty caressed Zoey's cheek.

"My baby is with me again," she said. "I missed you, Zoey. I didn't know where you were. I didn't even know if you were still alive. But thanks to Crammer, I found you."

Someday, a Bloodhound would find Hero's father. He might be a corpse. Or he might be a living man. He hadn't been born as a Bloodhound or a Pure. Still, Hero would kidnap nine Pures to earn a reunion with him. A father was a father.

Crammer smiled at Zoey. "It's nice to see you again, Zoey."

Zoey and Crammer hugged, then she stood in front of Misty again. The Exchangers remained nearby.

"Who are those kids, Zoey?" Misty asked.

"They're my friends," Zoey said. "And they're going to introduce themselves."

Hero nodded. "I'm Hero Shame."

The other Exchangers introduced themselves to Misty and Crammer.

"We're looking for our father," Hero said. "His name is Mitch Shame, and he adopted most of us. His only biological child is Sydney. Freemans captured him. Zoey told me that Crammer is a Bloodhound."

Hero looked at the man who could lead the Exchangers to the beloved Mitch Shame.

"Are you willing to find my father, Crammer?" Hero asked.

Misty shook her head. "No, he isn't. I'm sorry, but I don't want Crammer helping anyone who isn't me or Zoey. Plus, your father was taken by Freemans. I don't want Crammer to die trying to save him. He's my best friend. I need him."

"That's fine. I don't think Crammer is the only one who could find my father. There must be other Bloodhounds out there."

"I'm sure there are. And I hope you've been good to my daughter, Hero."

Hero had saved Zoey from his siblings, and he had let her live in their spaceship. He had kissed her not long ago.

"I have," he said.

"Do you have any Saves?" Misty asked.

"I can fly. Just like Boris Endman could."

Misty glared. She looked away.

"Mother," Zoey said. "I'm sorry for interrupting. But I have to give you something. It's your invisibility bracelet. I lost it, but I got it back."

Zoey turned invisible. When she gave the black bracelet to Misty, she turned invisible like Zoey had done. Misty had a glare on her face when everyone saw her again.

She slapped Zoey.

The Exchangers advanced, except Kat. Zoey stepped in front of Misty, aiming her palms.

"Wait," Zoey said, as Misty stood behind her. "Wait, wait, wait. I deserved it. I shouldn't have misplaced her invisibility bracelet."

Misty kissed the cheek she had slapped. "I only hurt my baby when I have to."

"You never have to," Hero protested. "You shouldn't—"

"Stop it, Hero," Zoey said. Tears left her eyes like Vamp emerging from a syringe. "Please. My mother punished me because I should've been more responsible. She hurt me, but she had to do it. I need you to understand that."

Hero believed he needed to rescue his father. He would never believe Zoey had deserved that awful slap. His fists trembled.

The blue sky remained above the forest and its trees. Hero could grab Misty, fly into the air, then drop her. But he didn't do it. He could try convincing her to stop abusing Zoey.

"I can heal you, Zoey," Macy said.

Zoey shook her head. "No. I need to feel the pain. It's part of my punishment."

"There's a Freeman base nearby," Misty said. "And so is my spaceship. It should still be where Crammer parked it. Hero, you and your siblings took care of my Zoey when I couldn't. I'm grateful. I would love to invite all of you into my home. Follow me."

The Exchangers joined Zoey, Misty, and Crammer in their residence.

Like the Exchangers, the three of them lived inside a huge Soynite spaceship. They all gathered in a room that had blue sofas that were pushed against four walls. A table stood between Hero's sofa and the one Zoey, Misty, and Crammer sat on. The sun's light streamed into the space through a round window. Misty and Crammer flanked Zoey, sitting next to her. Holding a cup, Hero sat between Sydney and Macy. He took water into his mouth before swallowing.

Zoey didn't have a cup. She rubbed the spot where Misty had slapped her. Her long brown hair was stroked by Misty. She touched Zoey with what seemed like genuine love. Misty had slammed her hand against Zoey's face, and the affection she showed her didn't make Hero smile. He frowned.

The Exchangers had told Misty and Crammer more about themselves and their past experiences, but they hadn't mentioned their plan to abduct nine Pures.

"I'm sorry all of you can't be with your father," Misty said. "Zoey lost her stepfather. I lost him, too. We don't know where he is. His name is Boone Windsore, and his daughter is one of the Highs."

"We already know about him," Hero said.

Zoey had told him about Boone, and the other Exchangers had learned about him as well. If Boone hadn't met Zoey, Hero wouldn't have found out Theo had made new Highs. One of them was Don Ascend's daughter. But Boone had forgotten her name.

Misty leaned forward. "If you ever meet him out there, be good to him. Please."

"I will."

Zoey had spoken about Boone as if he had become the universe's best Soynite. He might be a better person than his wife, Misty. Zoey hadn't seen him in years. Crammer could use his power to find him, but he hadn't done so. Hero had a missing loved one, someone he intended on finding. Yet Misty made no attempt to reunite with Boone.

His daughter and five other children ruled Hero's home planet, and Zoey ruled nothing. Though he respected her more than he respected Lovely and her co-rulers. Hero didn't don the jacket he had been wearing when he injected Vamp into Able's bloodstream, and he didn't search for Pures inside a Freeman base, but he was on a mission to help Zoey. People should help their friends.

"I still find it shocking that Lock Tannis is Reed Pisces," Misty said. "It's a good thing that Bane told you that."

Hero had told Misty and Crammer about Bane Sinister and the Lock Tannis Church. Bane didn't sit in this lounge room, but he remained a threat. Hero hoped he would never kill Everett or any of his other siblings.

"He wanted us to join that horrible cult of his," Hero said. "That's why he told us about Lock's true identity. We didn't join the Lock Tannis Church, though. We never will. Bane can turn invisible. He can heal wounds. And he can see the past and the future, too. He's dangerous. And he has a lot of Soynites who would kill for Lock if they could."

"I can see the past and the future, too," Misty said. She put a hand on Zoey's shoulder. "A long time ago, I had a vision of the past, and it changed my life in a big way. You can't fight fate, Hero. Remember that."

Hero hadn't forgotten the former High that Freeman in Washington had mentioned. "There's something else I have to tell you. Boris Endman is dead. We learned that back in Washington. I don't know how he died, though."

Misty stood before launching her cup, and water came from it. The cup bounced against the floor.

"No!" Misty yelled.

Her cup rolled, then hit a wall. Tears fled her eyes. She scurried out the room, as if her guests had morphed into armed Freeman warriors.

Zoey stood.

"Mother!" she said. "Wait."

Crammer grabbed her arm and forced her to sit. "Sit down! I'm going to talk to her."

Zoey rubbed her arms through her sleeves. She stayed seated, as if she believed Crammer might slap her like Misty had done outside. Hero toyed with his pendant.

Crammer left the room.

After ten seconds, Everett said, "Misty acted like someone broke her invisibility bracelet."

Crammer could comfort Misty, and Hero could go back home and start a certain investigation. Boris Endman couldn't try finding out what had happened to his missing loved one. But Hero could.

He brought his cup closer to his lips. After swallowing the water, he stood, then placed the cup on the table.

"There's something that I have to do," he said. "I'm going to be back, though. Wade, teleport me back to our spaceship."

After Wade teleported Hero to his bedroom, he left by using his power.

Hero approached the wooden dresser. He retrieved a notepad and a pen from one of its drawers, then closed it. He sat on the bed, and pressed his thumb against the pen's plunge, freeing its tip. He opened the notepad to a blank page.

"Alice Endman was kidnapped on February 1, 5,000,000,006," Hero said, as he wrote, letting black ink meet the notepad's yellow page. "She was born on January first, one month before her kidnapping. Her father is Archer Endman. Her mother is Holly Endman. Her grandfather is Boris Endman, a former High. Alice has brown hair and brown eyes. But her hair could be dyed now."

Hero took a breath.

"The kidnapper should have the power to go invisible," he said, writing. "They snuck into the home of Archer and Holly. They did it by using a Save or an invisibility bracelet. Alice's pendant was taken. In order to prevent anyone from recognizing her as Alice, her kidnapper wouldn't let the girl wear her pendant. The kidnapper possibly kidnapped her because they hate Boris Endman. The kidnapper possibly abuses Alice. In order to prevent anyone from uncovering the truth, they might have raised Alice alone. At least for some time, anyway. The kidnapper probably wasn't married at the time of the kidnapping. Assuming they hate Boris, they might become upset if they learned about his death. Because they weren't able to kill him."

Hero's breath trembled.

"Alice Endman is Zoey All."