Return to Zero Read online

  The question: “HOW CAN WE HELP?”

  At first, once Lexa made the website live, nothing happened. But then their in-box began to ping, messages scrolling down faster than Taylor could keep track of. Lexa brought them up one by one on the projector and they read through them together. Some of them were gross and weird, some of them obviously fake, some of them simply asking if this whole thing was for real. But there were others . . .

  A sick mother in Ghana who was being swindled for her medicine.

  A boy trying to break away from a gang in Colombia.

  A conservationist in Sri Lanka who was worried about elephant poachers.

  Anything that seemed real and necessary, Lexa dragged to the globe and populated a dot there with the request’s details. Soon, their entire map was glowing. These weren’t people like the ones that the Foundation “helped.” This wasn’t for pay or for status. This was all about doing good. About serving humanity.

  The room fell silent as they slowly realized just how much work there was to do. Then, without even realizing they were doing it, everyone there turned towards John. They were looking for direction. It was all a little overwhelming.

  John was smiling. He hadn’t even noticed their eyes on him. “It’s perfect,” he said quietly. “Just like I imagined.”

  Taylor stepped forward and clapped her hands.

  “So,” Taylor said. “Where do we start?”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  PITTACUS LORE finished recounting the story of the invasion of Earth in the I Am Number Four series and is now ready to tell another story. His whereabouts are unknown.

  Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.

  BOOKS BY PITTACUS LORE

  THE LORIEN LEGACIES REBORN

  NOVELS

  GENERATION ONE

  FUGITIVE SIX

  RETURN TO ZERO

  THE LEGACY CHRONICLES NOVELLAS

  #1: OUT OF THE ASHES

  #2: INTO THE FIRE

  #3: UP IN SMOKE

  #4: CHASING GHOSTS

  #5: RAISING MONSTERS

  #6: KILLING GIANTS

  THE LEGACY CHRONICLES NOVELLA COLLECTIONS

  TRIAL BY FIRE (Contains novellas #1–#3)

  OUT OF THE SHADOWS (Contains novellas #4–#6)

  THE LORIEN LEGACIES

  NOVELS

  I AM NUMBER FOUR

  THE POWER OF SIX

  THE RISE OF NINE

  THE FALL OF FIVE

  THE REVENGE OF SEVEN

  THE FATE OF TEN

  UNITED AS ONE

  THE LOST FILES NOVELLAS

  #1: SIX’S LEGACY

  #2: NINE’S LEGACY

  #3: THE FALLEN LEGACIES

  #4: THE SEARCH FOR SAM

  #5: THE LAST DAYS OF LORIEN

  #6: THE FORGOTTEN ONES

  #7: FIVE’S LEGACY

  #8: RETURN TO PARADISE

  #9: FIVE’S BETRAYAL

  #10: THE FUGITIVE

  #11: THE NAVIGATOR

  #12: THE GUARD

  #13: LEGACIES REBORN

  #14: LAST DEFENSE

  #15: HUNT FOR THE GARDE

  THE LOST FILES NOVELLA COLLECTIONS

  THE FALLEN LEGACIES (Contains novellas #1–#3)

  SECRET HISTORIES (Contains novellas #4–#6)

  HIDDEN ENEMY (Contains novellas #7–#9)

  REBEL ALLIES (Contains novellas #10–#12)

  ZERO HOUR (Contains novellas #13–#15)

  BACK ADS

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  COPYRIGHT

  RETURN TO ZERO. Copyright © 2019 by Pittacus Lore. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  www.epicreads.com

  COVER ART BY JOHN DISMUKES

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2019000130

  Digital Edition JUNE 2019 ISBN: 978-0-06-249384-2

  Print ISBN: 978-0-06-249380-4

  ISBN 978-0-06-291315-9 (intl. ed.)

  1920212223PC/LSCH10987654321

  FIRST EDITION

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