That same night, after leaving Katrin at his safe house, Evan drives to Northridge and visits Melinda Truong at CraftFirst Poster Restoration, a vintage poster business that also provides document forgery services. Evan follows her into a dark photography room and gives her Katrin’s passport to examine. Melinda confirms it is authentic, emphasizing that not even a high-skilled forger could achieve such a precise copy. She tells Evan that Katrin’s identity is real.

Back in his Vault, Evan watches the surveillance footage confirming Katrin never left the loft. She notices her tense movements while sleeping, feeling “unnerved” himself. He continues to wonder how the kidnappers detected him and Katrin. His only information is the killer’s nickname heard during the motel raid: Slatcher.

Evan searches federal databases for information on Danny Slatcher. Slatcher’s file contains surveillance photos linking him to a Pelican case Evan himself used to transport sniper files. Evan assumes that the man was the Chinatown sniper. Next appears a photo of a woman labeled as Candy McClure. Evan searches Slatcher’s criminal records and ATF Violent Felon File, but they are completely redacted, indicating government involvement or protection. Evan realizes Slatcher is something far more dangerous than an ordinary hitman. He decides he must infiltrate the Chinatown crime scene to reexamine the shooting.

Two days after the shooting, Evan approaches the apartment building across from the diner, which remains under heavy police control. After studying the patrol patterns, he breaks into a neighboring building and into an apartment, moves quietly to the balcony, jumps between balconies and finally uses a longboard as a bridge to cross an alley and reach the sniper’s apartment. Once there, he finds a circular hole cut in the glass door, then observes the apartment. A female officer approaches and Evan pulls himself onto the roof, barely avoiding detection.

On the roof, he discovers a heating vent concealing a discarded McMillan rifle, latex gloves, and a medical mask—professional touches to avoid gunpowder residue detection. Back in the apartment, he finds tripod marks in the carpet and a staple in the ceiling where a screen drape had been hung, apparently to conceal Slatcher from view. Examining the shooting angle, Evan realizes Slatcher was not aiming at Katrin. The bullets were meant for him.

Evan walks the Los Angeles River channel to process the revelation. He reconsiders the events and concludes that someone hired Slatcher specifically to kill him. He thinks that Katrin could not be a “bait” and that he was responsible for her trials. Knowing that he has several enemies, he wonders who might be behind Slatcher. He decides to call the number of Sam White’s killer. When someone answers, Evan asks which Orphan he is. After a tense silence, the voice confirms he knows Evan is Orphan X, and Evan, in turn, identifies him as Orphan Zero. Evan warns him he should not have killed Sam White, then hangs up.

Meanwhile, Slatcher is in a motel room with Candy. After she retreats to the bathroom, he opens a metal box containing press-on fingernails and a high-definition contact lens display. He uses it to type a message in virtual space, contacting someone called Top Dog to report that they have a problem.

Evan returns to the loft and tells Katrin that he is the target. He suggests that his enemies paid off her enemies and killed her father to draw him out. Katrin grows agitated, realizing she knows too much information and is now at a greater risk. Evan promises to protect her if she trusts him. He puts her passport back into her purse, filled with “self-loathing.” They, ultimately, have sex against the window overlooking the city.

Later, as she sleeps, Evan’s RoamZone rings. A desperate man named Guillermo “Memo” Vasquez asks for his help, claiming Morena Aguilar gave him the number. The man describes Morena accurately, including her burn scar. Evan gets suspicious, as he had instructed Morena to give his number to only one person. Frustrated, he thinks that someone is lying. Either Katrin or Vasquez is an impostor working for Slatcher. He schedules a meeting with Vasquez in two days at his Elysium Park address. He leaves a note to Katrin to remain in the house, then drives to Vegas to find Morena, believing she is now in danger since both the impostor and the real client referenced her.

Just after six in the morning, Evan arrives at a cluster of trailer homes near Vegas, where Morena’s aunt lives. The aunt understands who Evan is but refuses to reveal Morena’s whereabouts, claiming she is safe. As Evan walks away, Carmen whistles at him, climbs out a window and calls him. Carmen explains to Evan that Morena left three days after they arrived at their aunt’s, having spotted someone watching them at the grocery store. Too frightened to use a phone, Morena has visited Carmen twice at her school playground, approaching only after observing from a distance.

Evan instructs Carmen to tell Morena to meet him at the Bellagio Casino restaurant at noon. Carmen does not know when Morena is going to appear, but Evan says that he will wait as long as necessary.

Evan visits Tommy Stojack again and asks him to verify Katrin’s identity. Evan explains she gambles and Tommy might be able to look through a casino contact who can run facial recognition on past gambling footage. Tommy asks him why he believes that is true and Evan notes that the best cover stories contain more truth than lies. Tommy promises to try and find information but warns Evan that there are no guarantees.

Evan secures a table at the casino restaurant in the Bellagio hotel, overlooking the dancing fountains, and waits for Morena. He soon realizes his instructions were imprecise—a second restaurant, Jasmine, also overlooks the fountains from across the lake. He holds his position for six hours, watching both venues.

After dark, he spots Morena inside Jasmine, moving fearfully between tables. When he rises to go meet her, he spots Danny Slatcher closing in behind her. Evan stands on his table and waves until she notices him, then gestures for her to look behind her. She spots Slatcher, who reaches for his weapon. Morena has nowhere to go and moves along a wall. Evan signals her to point Slatcher toward him; she does, and Slatcher focuses on Evan instead. Evan signals Morena to flee, then knocks over blackjack chips to create chaos, escaping while security blocks Slatcher. In the corridor, Candy nearly stabs him with a stiletto before he slides past. He reverses his jacket and slips out onto Las Vegas Boulevard. Morena has vanished—safe from Slatcher, but now even more frightened and unlikely to contact Evan again.

Evan drives to the Elysium Park address Vasquez gave him, scouting the dilapidated neighborhood. He walks around, but finds no signs of surveillance. He still feels agitated, thinking about Morena’s safety. On his way back, Katrin calls his burner phone, asking where he is. He tells her he is fixing things and will return on Wednesday night.

Back home in the Vault, Evan reviews all surveillance footage since he left, confirming Katrin followed instructions perfectly. He watches her sleeping, showering, ordering groceries and crying at the window. He ponders that she might know she is being monitored. Evan sleeps, dreaming of Jack telling him, “The past isn’t dead” (208). He wakes up shaken and meditates to clear his mind. He defines his priorities: He cannot trust either Katrin or Vasquez, so he must watch Katrin for any contact with a handler before pressing Vasquez hard at their upcoming meeting. He settles in the Vault to monitor her continuously.

Evan continues watching Katrin when Mia arrives with Peter, saying she has a work emergency and asking him to watch Peter. Evan says he is busy but then reluctantly agrees. Peter explores the penthouse, touching everything. Evan feeds him, settles him to do his homework and returns to the Vault to continue monitoring Katrin, who does nothing suspicious.

A cry, then a crash, brings Evan running. He finds Peter has pulled down Evan’s 18th-century katana sword and cut his thumb. Evan cleans the wound and seals it with superglue. The sword’s wooden sheath and needs specialized repair. Soon after, Peter falls asleep and Mia arrives. Evan helps Mia carry Peter down to her condo.

Evan puts Peter to bed. In the bedroom doorway, Evan and Mia stand close together. Mia recalls a meditation exercise from college where partners repeatedly asked each other what makes them happy. She had said the song “Hymn to Freedom,” then poses the question to him several times. He offers safe answers—Rhodesian Ridgebacks, vodka—before finally answering: her freckles. They kiss, but Mia pulls away, saying it might be confusing for Peter. Evan agrees to go when Peter emerges from the bedroom, asking what they are doing; Mia claims they were moving furniture, and Evan leaves.

Back in his penthouse, Evan notices Peter’s handprint on the refrigerator. He returns to the Vault and monitors Katrin. He goes to bed, but the smudge nags at him through the night. Unable to sleep, he finally gets up and wipes it away.