On her way back to school, Cammie fixates on the fact that it isn’t really her birthday. Tired and distracted, she hits a torch in the passageway, which opens up another path she’s never seen before. The passage leads to places where she can see into different rooms of the school, and Cammie finds her mother in her office, crying. In a flash, Cammie realizes it’s her father’s birthday, and she continues down the hidden passage to an abandoned classroom, where she sits for hours. The next day, Cammie goes to see her mom and walks into a meeting between her, Mr. Solomon, and another professor. Bex’s dad has gone missing, and they ask Cammie how to tell her since she knows Bex well. Cammie advises they don’t tell her yet. They don’t have proof his cover has been blown, and Bex doesn’t need to know yet because there will be “plenty of time for grieving” later (221).

Cammie finds it difficult to concentrate in class for the next week. In Covert Operations, Mr. Solomon hands out a form asking whether the students will continue with the class next semester, telling them not to “take this decision lightly” (226). Bex fills the form out, excited about next semester, but Cammie just stares at the form with a bad taste in her mouth.