The Girl Who Was Supposed To Die

Cady and Ty go to Home Depot and, using the last of Ty’s money and what they take from Elizbeth and Brenner, buy materials to look like they’re a cleaning crew. They head to Z-Biotech, where Ty will put his Spanish to use when the pair pretend to be a new cleaning crew who won a bid to work. Cady’s mom believes that Elizabeth’s badge should let them into the building as she has top-level clearance. There should also only be one security guard. The two use the badge to enter the complex, then park and go over their plan. They approach the second card reader and see the lone security guard, who doesn’t even look up until after they enter. When they tell him they’re the new cleaning crew, he looks hesitant, and then reaches for the phone as they walk by. Cady turns and points her gun at him. They lock him in a conference room, then rip the phone at his desk from the wall. They then head to the third floor, where Cady’s mom mentioned the vaccine could be found.

They enter the lab, which isn’t entirely unfamiliar to Cady: “Now that I’ve had high school chemistry, I know how impressive Z-Biotech’s lab area is” (198). Surveying the area, Cady and Ty realize that there’s negative airflow, meaning air is being kept from entering. It’s a safety method in case something goes wrong in the lab so that things don’t go airborne. They notice the eggs that are being incubated to make more of the vaccine and decide to warm the eggs to the point of destroying them. While Ty starts a fire so that the eggs and the hantavirus within them will be destroyed, Cady searches for and finds the vaccine. It’s in a nondescript plastic container. Cady realizes that she needs to come up with a plan to throw Kirk Nowell off of their scent when it’s discovered that the vaccine is gone. She hears a door open and when she turns, finds that Kirk Nowell is standing there with a gun trained on her and Ty. Nowell mentions that he’s been trying to contact Elizabeth but that she wasn’t answering, and then he noticed through an app that she was shown as being located at Z-Biotech. He has Ty and Cady remove their guns, and then asks what they’re doing there. He deduces that someone must’ve been infected, and Cady admits that Max is infected and needs the vaccine. When Nowell does the math, he realizes that Max doesn’t have that long to live but that it’s a price his parents must deal with for their actions against Z-Biotech. He then takes the vaccine and pours it down the sink, crushing their plans for saving Max. Suddenly, the alarm goes off. Nowell goes to the warmer door and opens it, only for an explosive fireball to envelop him. The chapter ends with everything going dark for Cady.

Cady wakes up in a hospital room with her mother next to her. Unlike her abrupt wakening in the cabin days prior, Cady now “know[s][she is] safe” (208). Her mother informs her that Max has been given the vaccine. It turns out Cady took the real vaccine and placed it in an insulated lunch container, thus keeping it cool when the blast happened. She’d marked plain water as the vaccine, which is what Nowell poured down the sink. Also, her father went into surgery for his gunshot but is doing fine. Lastly, Ty suffered first- and second-degree burns like her but will also be fine. Her mother thanks her for being so clever. They were saved by a backdraft that was created when Ty made the fire. Nowell opened the door and received second-degree burns. The sprinkler system went off and alerted the fire department. When the fire department found the security guard tied up, they alerted the police. Nowell was found with a gun in his hand, and Ty was able to explain to the police most of what happened. He, along with Elizabeth and Brenner, are now in custody.

Ty and Cady are cross-county skiing at her parents’ cabin. She thought it might be too traumatic for Ty, given that his father died while skiing, but he suggested going along. Cady mentions how Nowell, Elizabeth, and Brenner, along with a handful of accomplices, are now awaiting a trial that won’t take place until summer. They’re being investigated by Homeland Security. Nowell tracked Cady to Newberry Ranch via Brenner’s cellphone. He used a spoof card, as James had suggested, and then killed Dillow. Brenner, as a computer scientist, was responsible for changing her Facebook page.

Cady looks at Ty and wonders if there’s something more between them: “I have only this moment, sparkling like a diamond in my hand and then melting like a snowflake” (213).Even though they were the recipients of a huge ceremony and their lives are now mostly back to normal, they live in two different cities. But they’re texting and, with her memories back, Cady feels they can be closer, something that she’d felt while they were on the run. She also ruminates on the hantavirus. The government is making the vaccine and will issue it to farmers so that they’ll be prepared when the season comes where the virus might crop up. Ty notices she’s cold and offers her cocoa, as well as marshmallows. She again wonders if he likes her. He turns and kisses her, and Cady remembers the phrase, “Don’t act. Be” (213) and kisses him back.