Albuquerque · Chapter 7

Ryan “Cypher” Tulley

Ryan “Cypher” Tulley has been staring at someone else’s code for two hours. Three monitors, a deadline on Monday, and somewhere in all those lines, one syntax error.

At twenty-seven, Cypher designs advanced computing systems in Albuquerque. He’s quiet company until a difficult problem or a clever joke catches his attention. He likes learning how things work, and he has the patience to follow a problem well past the point of irritation.

Behind the blackout curtains

It’s still afternoon in New Mexico. In Cypher’s bedroom, monitor light falls on cables, takeout containers, and clothes he could probably find more easily than anyone else. Somewhere under all of it, he has work to finish.