“You know you take on a whole different tone when you talk to Lorenzo?” Dad stole a glance at me. “It’s like you’re suddenly a decade older. I think I started noticing that right after Denver.” He sounded wistful about this, and I couldn’t figure out why.

  “Trying to be professional, I guess.”

  “Or you’re growing up.” He stole another look at me. “Sorry. Sentimental parent moment.”

  “Huh?”

  “You’re not exactly like most teenagers. Even if you take out the TOS stuff, you’re sixteen and take college classes. You have a crazy brilliance with technology. You’re a major part of the same organization your mom and I work for. Sometimes we have to set aside that you’re our son and not even able to vote or drink yet.”

  If there’d been enough light in the car, Dad would have seen me blushing.

  “But there are still moments, regular moments, where you’re just my son growing up, and none of that other stuff plays into it.” He didn’t stop going down this uncomfortable path. “Sometimes it’s small stuff like when your voice changed or when you asked me to show you how to shave. Then there’s the more obvious stuff, like when I’m gone for a while and come home to find that you’re taller or bulked up. Or even taking on more responsibility. Tonight it was that shift in your voice.”

  I wasn’t often speechless, but I had no clue what to say. As the silence stretched out, I got more uncomfortable. Was thank you the right response?

  “Don’t worry.” Dad apparently had superpowers that let him sense that I was overwhelmed. “You don’t have to say anything. Just know I’m proud of you.”

  Eighteen

  Saturday morning wasn’t nice. Despite the drive, I hadn’t relaxed much from the game. It usually takes a few hours to come down from the adrenaline. Usually I went out with Eddie, and when I came home, I chilled with Netflix or something. Dad and I talked a lot on the drive about all kinds of stuff, and I enjoyed the conversation, but it didn’t do much to release my energy.

  We got to the hotel around eleven thirty. I spent about an hour in Dad’s room doing some TOS work since I wanted to check on what Lorenzo reported earlier. When I went to the room I was sharing with Dean and Lars, they were awake and watching hacked hotel porn.

  I was impressed by their ingenuity, illegal though it was. I wondered if others on the team had done the same thing—or if they could without Dean. They were polite enough to ask if they should turn it off since I’d arrived. I said no. I didn’t need to dampen their fun.

  I quickly got ready for bed because my body made it clear that it was time to lie down. I popped in my earbuds to tune out the bad dialogue and moans. Luckily the cot sat low to the floor, and with its position I couldn’t see the guys or the TV, which was just a flashing light in the room.

  Despite the exhaustion, sleep didn’t come quickly. My mind refused to rest and my legs were restless. I didn’t conk out until sometime after two.

  The wake-up call was unwelcome. Luckily, with two roommates, I could shower last and steal a few more minutes’ sleep.

  At breakfast the team was ridiculously chipper, and I struggled to put aside my foggy start. Mrs. H distributed information she’d received overnight that outlined how the competition would work.

  There were seven teams. Entries were loaded onto a server located in each team’s work room. A proctor would be present at all times to make sure there was no tampering. Teams would randomly select a room that would become theirs for the weekend. No internet connections were allowed on the computers, and everyone’s phones and other devices would be inside the break room and only able to be used when individuals were outside their workrooms.

  Once the competition started, the clock wouldn’t stop. After time ran out, teams would return to the hotel where the awards banquet would start at three.

  The winners would be determined by points awarded. We’d earn points based on how fast we decrypted entries and by how long it took for the other schools to crack ours.

  Alice made a frustrated face. “I don’t see anything about bringing notes. Can I bring my print outs?”

  Mrs. H read through the information. “It doesn’t say you can’t, so you can see if they stop you.” She folded the papers and put them next to her nearly finished oatmeal. “I want to say how proud I am of all of you. You’ve made a lot of progress in the past couple of weeks. Now we go for the win. What’s our strategy, captains?”

  Oh cool. She had them determine how we would proceed today. That was awesome and something I wished I’d thought of.

  Dean and Jessie traded looks.

  “Six modules and nine of us.” Jessie leaned in, speaking quietly so we moved in to hear better. The other teams were in the dining room—it was easy to spot the clusters of teens. No need to give up our strategy. “Each of us should grab a module and try to crack it on our own. That’ll give us a first look at everything. If you can’t crack what’s in front of you, stop and buddy up with someone else. After an hour we’ll break and rethink our strategy.”

  “Theo.” Dean looked to me. “We’d like you to take a look at all the modules and let us know which ones you think we can easily knock out and which ones will be more difficult. For the more difficult ones, focus on what you think we need to do to succeed. That okay by you?”

  “Sounds good. And I’m around for questions like when we’re in class. I have no doubt we’re going to take this.”

  Everyone finished up their last bites, and Mrs. H told us to meet in the lobby in twenty-five minutes for the bus to campus.

  I stayed at the table for a few minutes after the others left. It gave me a chance to send off some messages before I went quiet for most of the day.

  “Theo, got a sec?” Dean dropped into the seat next to me. I thought he’d gone with the rest of the team.

  “What’s up?”

  “I heard Wes got suspended for a couple weeks and might even get expelled. Some of his thugs got suspended too. All because of you apparently.”

  I nodded. I’d heard the same. I figured my report was either the final straw or more information had surfaced afterward. “Yeah. Don’t worry. I didn’t bring you into it.”

  “Is it true you crushed his junk and took out two others?”

  I shrugged. “They came after me and I dealt with it.”

  This time he nodded. “Thanks for doing what I didn’t have the balls to do.” I couldn’t suppress a laugh. “What?”

  “Way too many references to balls for this early in the morning.”

  “Aren’t you supposed to like balls?”

  We looked at each other, like we couldn’t believe what the other had said.

  I tried to look annoyed, but I couldn’t. Truth was I wanted to laugh more, but I held it since we were talking about serious things. I went back to what I’d done about Wes. “Look, he needed someone to bring him down a peg or two. He messed with the wrong guy.”

  “Well, thanks. I’m going to talk to Ms. Cohen on Monday and let her know what he’s been doing to me. If you can speak up, so can I.”

  “Good.” I held up my phone. “I need to text Eddie before I’m cut off for the day. I’ll see you in a few.”

  “Yup.” He got up and left the restaurant.

  I’d figured he would be pissed that I turned Wes in, even if I didn’t mention his name. Hopefully Dean would follow through. That would help ensure Wes was expelled, and maybe force him to get help to reform himself.

  I texted Eddie.

  Good luck at the meet today. Make sure to send me a selfie since I don’t get to see you looking all sexy by the pool. It’ll be a treat for one of my breaks.

  Then Dad.

  Enjoy your day! I’ll let you know how it’s going when I’m on breaks.

  Then it was Lorenzo’s turn.

  No phone most of the day. Text Defender if there’s an emergency. He can track me down. I’ll check in when I can.

  By the time I sent Lorenzo’s, Eddie had texted back.

  I’ll send you something good. I promise. Make sure you kick some cyber ass today (or whatever the right term for this competition is). Catch you later.

  I smiled and felt energized despite the lack of sleep.

  Nineteen

  The welcome and orientation were brief. It gave us the chance, though, to see the competitors as sixty-some students and teachers packed into a large classroom in the Mudd building on the Amherst campus. Once room assignments were handed out, everyone moved to where the classrooms we would work in were located.

  “This is it.” Mrs. H stood in the doorway labeled with a two. “You’ll do great. You’ve got a firm strategy, and there’s no way any of these schools can beat the teamwork you’ve got. So go in there and start on the path to a win. I’ll see you at lunch.”

  Inside the room were four tables, each with four laptops. We had more computers than people, which could be a good thing depending on what we were trying to do. Each of the computers had an ethernet cable that ran to a router at the front of the room. The router plugged into a small server that had a monitor connected to it. The screen faced away from us. A college-age guy stood next to the table.

  “Good morning. I’m Chet and I’ll be your proctor for the competition. Please leave your phones and backpacks on the table by the door.” Most of us had started to do this before he said to. “The only things you can have at the computer stations are the notebooks and pens provided. You can also use the whiteboards that are around the room. Who are Jessie and Dean?” They raised their hands. “Very good. Is this your entire team?”

  Our captains looked around at all of us clustered behind them while Alice hastily stashed her notes in her bag.

  “Yes,” Dean responded.

  Chet crossed the room and closed the door behind us. The formality surprised me, especially since we could still come and go from the room. Even the couple of competitions I’d done at MIT hadn’t been this strict. I guessed it was because of the amount of money up for grabs.

  “If you need to exit for a break, you can at any time.” Chet returned to the front of the room. “You can take your backpacks with you, but when you return they must be already closed and returned to the table.”

  We all nodded and made murmurs of understanding.

  “In two minutes, the computers will switch on and you’ll be able to start. Next to each are the instructions on how to access entries. Of course, you won’t need to work on your own.” Chet’s enthusiasm was a bit much for as early as it was. His job was to make sure we didn’t cheat. Yet he sounded like a spectator at a game, waiting to see his favorite team. “You’ll be able to work continuously until two o’clock tomorrow afternoon. That’s all you need to know from me. If you have any questions, just ask. Good luck.”

  “Okay, guys, we do what we talked about at breakfast,” Dean instructed. “Theo, will you keep track on the hour?”

  “You got it.”

  “Let’s grab a seat so we’re ready when the computers come on,” Jessie said. “Let’s do this!”

  Now the team perked up with whoops and hollers. I’d never heard them like this, and it made me feel like I was about to hit the ice. I offered up a hearty “Go Tigers!” and a couple of others followed suit.

  Right at eight the laptops snapped on, and we got to work. I decided to pace myself and look at each entry for ten minutes. Even with ones I thought were simple, I planned to go in depth so I’d give good reconnaissance to the team.

  The first two left me underwhelmed. It was difficult for me to not break them because of the messy code. I hoped Dean took one of these two in the first hour because he’d knock it out with no problem. These would likely be cracked quickly for most of the teams.

  Entries Three and Five were solid. I was glad we’d improved our entry because the original would have paled in comparison to these. Four was in the same class as our entry, but still different. This one would take some time. It looked like each team member from that school put something different on it. It made me think of a door that had multiple locks and chains. If that team was smart, there were decoys too—similar to the idea of not locking all the locks on a door so an intruder might actually lock some while unlocking others.

  Six was an anomaly—far more sophisticated than the other five. I wasn’t even sure where I’d start with it. If it were a job, I’d unleash several scripts to find its weaknesses, but manually? This might be one that no one gets into. I could build something like this, but would average high schoolers? Could Dean? It’s one thing to decrypt, but it’s something else to build security on this level. Mrs. H and I certainly hadn’t taught these encryption concepts to the team. I’d have to review this one more.

  “Yes!” Alice said. Cullen and Lars flanked her at a laptop. “Number two is down, guys.”

  I grinned, quietly thrilled that it wasn’t Dean who’d cracked it. The team gelled so well.

  “I’m close on One,” said Nat.

  Jessie and Dean abandoned their screens and went to stand behind Nat.

  “Walk us through it,” Jessie said.

  Nat detailed what he’d done that worked and what failed. Jessie leaned over and scrolled through what was on the screen. I watched from my seat. If they wanted me, they’d call. The room, however, had stopped working and watched to see if we’d complete another module in the first hour.

  “There.” Jessie pointed at the screen, and Dean nodded.

  Nat looked confused as he studied the screen. “Shit. I don’t see what you’re talking about.”

  “Let me sit.” Nat moved so Jessie could take over the keyboard.

  While Jessie typed, Dean explained. It was perfect teamwork. Several others came in behind to watch. “Got it!” she declared.

  “That’s an hour guys.” I called time and the team applauded.

  “Two knocked out in the first hour. Great job,” Jessie said, going to one of the whiteboards. She put up columns for one through six and then marked Xs through the first two. “What do we know about the other four? We’ll hold Theo’s comments for last.”

  The people who’d looked at Three, Four, and Five all gave their commentary and were pretty spot-on from my assessment.

  “Six is a bitch,” Cullen said. “That’s why I moved to work with Alice. It’s beyond anything I’ve seen. Even Theo’s toughest one for us didn’t look like that.”

  “He’s right,” I said, deciding to break into the discussion. “It’ll be tough to crack Six in the time allotted. I didn’t think we’d see anything like that here.”

  “Can you do it?” Dean asked.

  “Eventually, yes, but I’m not sure I can do it by tomorrow afternoon either. I’ll need more time to create a game plan. As for the rest of them, your reviews nailed it. In my view Three and Five are very doable. Four is clever and is the closest to what we developed. It’ll take time, but I’m sure you guys can get it.”

  The team absorbed my information and looked ready to go.

  “Let’s take a quick break,” Dean said, and I liked the confidence he displayed. He needed to let himself be like this more often. “Jessie and I will come up with the breakdown of how we want to proceed, and then we can get back to work. Back here in ten?”

  The team was in good spirits as we headed out of the room to enjoy time away from the keyboard. Dean, Jessie, and I walked out together, talking quietly.

  “Six is a big problem, eh?” Dean asked.

  “Definitely.”

  “How about we put you and me, along with Cullen and Alice on Four and split up the others on Three and Five.” Jessie talked fast while we walked. “Theo, can you stay on Six and come up with a strategy on how we can tackle it?”

  “Works for me.” I smiled, pleased that she didn’t want me to hack it for them.

  Twenty

  Returning from the break room at the end of the hall, we found Mrs. H studying a monitor in the hallway. It hadn’t been there when we’d left the room earlier.

  “Oh, hey, you guys are doing great it looks like.” She gestured at the screen and we looked at it.

  The monitor showed how many modules had been broken by each school. We were in a four-way tie for first. Two schools had one and the remaining school had none. At the bottom of the screen was a note: Leader board only shows how many modules have been hacked. Scoring for timing will be added after the competition is complete.

  “And we’re ready to attack three of the others.” Jessie sounded full of confidence.

  Mrs. H smiled, as if all the plans she’d put in place were executing perfectly. We hadn’t won yet, but I guessed she felt pretty good about it.

  Back in the room, we got to work. I brought up Six to study it. It was something I might create to secure sensitive TOS information. Is this what it looks like to teachers when a parent helps too much with homework? It’s hard to believe they even let it in the competition since it was leaps and bounds ahead of the other entries.

  Maybe the team that submitted Six had someone skilled like Dean and me. It almost had to be a single person since it didn’t seem possible a whole team of people our age could have this level of skill. I couldn’t discount that it might be a fluke too. Maybe it’s the infinite monkey theorem in action—left long enough a monkey at a keyboard could code something uncrackable.

  I smiled at my weird thought, which evolved into monkeys trying to design encryption.

  The code was beautiful, and the more I studied it, the more I marveled at the masterful structure. Nothing resembled a backdoor, but there were some traps waiting for those who weren’t cautious.

  I’d looked long enough. I decided to dive in to crack it. I didn’t want to do the team’s job for them, but my review hadn’t given me tangible information to tell them.

  After a couple hours or so, a recognizable pattern emerged. How had I missed these? Maybe because they shouldn’t be here.

  I opened my notebook and wrote out what I saw, and there was no doubt.