Vicious

Back at the hotel, Mitch shows Victor three EO profiles, including the blue-haired girl, and labels them as Eli’s target list. Mitch hacked the police database and found a set of flagged possible EOs. Each has a middle name containing Eli’s name. Sydney flips through the list of dead EOs and finds herself in the pile. Her middle name is listed as Elinor, which isn’t true, and she’s both elated and scared by the idea that Eli “thinks [she’s] dead” (198).

Eli meets Detective Stell, who’s now working with Eli, at the bank. Against Eli’s wishes, the cops killed Barry because his powers were performing erratically, making him a potential threat. Eli finds a note Victor left with Barry: a drawing of stick figures that represent Victor and Sydney. Eli orders Stell to burn Barry’s body and retreats to his car, where he remembers shooting Victor a decade before. Eli calls Serena to proclaim they “have a problem” (202).

In the past, Eli talks to the cops after shooting Victor and spins the tale to absolve himself of suspicion. Eli wants to care about Victor’s injuries and Angie’s death but senses a “gap between what he felt and what he wanted to feel” (205).