- JK: Marcus isn't being taken back into custody. Instead, it's Van hugging him. And Jolu. But no Darryl.
- The truck that's brought them here leaves, ignoring Marcus's shouting. This is getting to be a pattern.
- Turns out they've been dropped off where North Beach meets Chinatown. Marcus explains the area is historically important—the Beats hung out there—and there's also good Italian food. Time to eat.
- After checking out their money, Marcus, Van, and Jolu sit and order some food. Freedom feels pretty amazing after that time locked up. They compare notes about what happened. Everyone thinks they were gone for a different amount of time.
- Turns out the mysterious questioners were harder on Marcus than Jolu or Van. Jolu had to repeat himself a lot, but he got to eat with other people in a mess hall. Van didn't have contact with anyone for two days, though she was fed regularly.
- Marcus realizes that not unlocking his phone the first time they asked was the cause of his "special" treatment. He sounds upset.
- Marcus vows that he's "going to get them" (5.29). Jolu says you can't fight against something like that.
- Now it's time to catch up on the news. The three don't have any phone battery, so they can't call home. Then they see a San Francisco Chronicle newspaper box.
- Turns out the bombs went off five days ago. And the bridge that was blown up was the Bay Bridge, not the Golden Gate Bridge.
- Marcus has a blinding insight: "Terrorists don't hate airplanes or bridges. They love terror" (5.38).
- Should they tell their parents? Get a lawyer? Tell their story to the world?
- Marcus says no. They have to stay free to fight back.
- Does Marcus have a plan? Nope. But he asks Jolu and Van to give him one day to hatch one. They nod, and then all walk down to Market Street.
- Turns out Market Street is full of eighteen-wheelers, soldiers, people in suits, and cops. Department of Homeland Security is most definitely in full effect.
- Everyone heads towards their respective homes: Marcus to Potrero Hill, Van to North Mission, and Jolu to Noe Valley.
- These neighborhoods aren't very far apart, but have incredibly different vibes.
- Marcus takes the hard way home. It involves lots of hills and Victorian houses. Just in case we forgot this book was set in San Francisco.
- Marcus really loves the Mission.
- And pizza.
- But passing Goat Hill Pizza makes him think about his time in jail. He sees more eighteen-wheeler trucks and feels eyes watching him. Creepy.
- Home again, home again. His parents are both there even though it's the middle of the day.
- Everyone's talking at once and happy he's home.
- Marcus gets himself a glass of water and some cookies from the "biscuit barrel" (his mother's British, so that's why it's not a "cookie jar"). He's soothed by the routine.
- This is totally better than jail.
- Not surprisingly, mom and dad want to know where Marcus has been. He explains he was quarantined with some friends in Oakland.
- Luckily reading the newspaper gave him the details about what happened to people who were actually quarantined.
- Marcus's dad is angry. He teaches in Berkeley and is a mild-mannered librarian. But he's now starting to Hulk out because he's so angry (5.72).
- Marcus's mom is also super steamed. She says "barbarians" and we learn that although she's lived in the United States a long time, whenever she encounters American cops or airport security (there's a whole list) she's suddenly 110% British again (5.73).
- The family makes some lame jokes and order some food. Marcus doesn't want Goat Hill pizza, even though it's his favorite thing ever. So they get Pakistani food instead.
- More questions about people who are missing. No one knows where Darryl is. We learned that the underwater tunnel for the BART train also blew up. Thousands of people have died.
- Marcus heads to his room to start trying to find Darryl using the internet. He grabs his laptop but it won't stay on. Strange.
- Marcus built his laptop, so he notices quickly that the case is misaligned. Two hours of investigation inside the computer reveals something new on his keyboard: a bug that would capture every keystroke typed.
- Marcus's under surveillance. Yikes.
- Now he feels really paranoid. He uses a little device he made for a science fair to look for hidden cameras, but doesn't see any.
- But the computer's a problem. Luckily he has a new Xbox Universal still in the package in his closet. Microsoft gave them away for free during the last Christmas season trying to get people to play their games.
- Turns out some high school kids in a Brazilian favela broke the security for the device, so Marcus can use it to run ParanoidXbox, a flavor of ParanoidLinux.
- Marcus sets up his Xbox and looks for wireless internet connections. ParanoidXbox lets him surf the internet undetected through other people's wifi signals.
- Marcus feels in control and loves it. Technology is working for him, not against him. No one can wiretap this.