Rosabelle goes out into the winter day and is immediately confronted by Lieutenant Soledad. He used to be an important part of the Reestablishment, but since it fell, he is now just a glorified security guard. Soledad pretends that he’s there for a routine inspection and stares into Rosa’s eyes.

Rosa is one of the only people not connected to the Reestablishment’s neural network, a system that allows everyone to communicate via thought. Soledad never knows what Rosa is thinking, nor does anyone else. Soledad admits that he’s there because Rosa’s gunmanship skills are needed to assassinate some recently captured spies from the Resistance. Rosa agrees to do it but demands food, medicine for Clara, and firewood in exchange. Soledad tells her that she may never be unsanctioned, primarily because she is not connected to the network, unlike all the other citizens, because her body rejects the Nexus chips that have been implanted in everyone else.

James is a member of the Resistance that was victorious over the Reestablishment and now spies on and studies it. James was raised by his half-brother Warner and Warner’s wife Juliette (the protagonists of the Shatter Me series). Warner is the “ruler” of the New Republic, and their father was the supreme commander of North America before he died. The citizens of the New Republic differ from those in the Reestablishment in one crucial way: They all still have the superhuman abilities that Klaus eliminated from all the Reestablishment citizens except Rosa.

James is arrested and sits in a metal containment cell that listens to his every word. When he finds a package of gummy bears in his pocket, he eats it and savors it. He tells himself that if they wanted him dead, they would have killed him by now.

Rosa materializes out of thin air, and her appearance is so striking that James assumes she’s a robot. Rosa is confused by his casual attitude and grabs him, holding a knife to his throat. James notices how Rosa smells, and she notices his smell, too. Rosa cuts James’s throat and leaves him to die, disappearing the same way she appeared.

James wakes up and realizes he’s on a gurney being pushed down a hallway, with Rosa and another man beside him. James has the ability to heal his own wounds, and he acts dead as he waits for his throat to heal. When it does, he surprises Rosa and the other man by attacking Rosa and shoving the gurney into her ribs. Rosa tries to stab James again but only hits his shoulder.

They are interrupted by a group of men with neon weapons. One of the men (Soledad) has a biomechanical arm. James knows that he and his people are in a precarious position, as the Reestablishment creates propaganda to draw people back to their side. The man with the bioengineered arm knows who James is and tells Rosa to shoot him.

Soledad tosses his gun to Rosa, but James grabs the gun and begins shooting everyone in sight. They shoot back at him, but James’s reflexes and skills are beyond theirs, and he only acquires minor wounds that quickly heal.

Rosa is in extreme pain and forces herself not to cry. She knows that if she dies, Clara will be sent to live in an asylum under brutal conditions. Rosa manages to find a weapon and shoot James, but she misses twice, and James laughs at her.

Eventually, James has killed everyone but Rosa. He stands over her with his gun. She asks him to tell “them” to be gentle with her sister Clara. James looks at Rosa for a moment and then leaves without killing her.

Rosa is unconscious, dreaming of a more peaceful and simple life, in which she and her sister are healthy and happy. When she wakes up, she is inside a metal case. She hears people talking about putting her in the cradle, and suddenly, she is dropped down into cold water and pitch black. All around her are floating bodies.

A voice starts telling her to close her eyes, and Rosa knows it is Klaus, an omnipotent artificial intelligence that is created by harvesting human minds. When Rosa closes her eyes, moments from her life start flashing before her, as though Klaus is searching for something. Rosa thinks she is about to die. Klaus tells her she is not, though it is unsure if she deserves to live.

After escaping the prison, James goes into the forest, wondering how he will escape the island. He knows he is being watched by everything, including the animals that constantly flock around him. He regrets not killing Rosa, seeing it as a mistake that he ever viewed her as more than a killer. As he considers his next move, James thinks of his older brothers, Warner and Adam, and decides to do what Warner would do.

Rosa watches James, who is in the forest, on a screen with a commander named Damani, who assesses his every move. The hope is that Klaus will be able to predict everything James says and does. Rosa wonders if James is aware that he was submerged in the cradle several times before he escaped. When James says something slightly different from what Klaus predicted, Damani starts to show signs of concern.

Rosa watches as James undresses to wash off and cannot help but admire his figure. She also wonders how he can be so calm and casual. In considering the purpose of Klaus and its ability to shape human behavior, Rosa considers the possibility that the entire purpose of this AI is to eradicate any possibility of further resistance.

Rosa forgot about the mail her sister handed her this morning; since her clothes were taken and burned, she no longer has it. Damani tells her that James took the mail from Rose before leaving her alive, and they watch as he opens it. Rosa watches with dread and a feeling of being personally invaded. It is an invitation to Rosa for her own wedding, which is supposed to be to Sebastian. Rosa tells Damani she has no plans to get married, but Damani ignores this and informs Rosa that she will be marrying Sebastian and reporting to him (as her Lieutenant) as well.

Trying to ignore her horror, Rosa turns her attention back to the screen and watches as the gun James stole explodes, sending him flying. He falls through several tree branches, breaks several bones, and lies on the ground in agony. Damani reminds Rosa that every aspect of this experiment must be controlled—they hope that the time it takes for James to heal will allow them to set up the next phase. He tells her to begin preparing for her mission, which is still unknown to her.

Rosa’s interrogation involves being questioned for hours and hooked up to a machine that slowly electrocutes her brain. As her brain capacity drops and she approaches a risk of permanent brain damage, Sebastian, her interrogator, asks her about her loyalties and doubts regarding the Reestablishment. Rosa admits to having doubts but not strong enough to cause her loyalty to falter.

When the process is over, Sebastian talks about how much he looks forward to marrying Rosa and putting a ring on her finger. Rosa thinks of all the pain Sebastian has caused her and gets the impulse to vomit. When Sebastian tells Rosa that he’s arranging for Clara to have 24-hour care with a nurse while she’s gone on her mission, Rosa feels as though he is tempting her, but remains suspicious and guarded. She hopes that if she succeeds in the mission, she can win back her rights without Sebastian’s help.