“I have the pattern,” Marie says, simply at first. She looks up with wide eyes, tears glistening there. “I’ve got it.”
Sloane turns to James, who’s watching her, head on his arms. A trickle of blood leaks from his ear, slides down his jaw. Sloane curses and rushes over to him. She grabs a napkin and wipes away the blood, and James follows her with his eyes, not moving.
Sloane gets down on her knees at his side and puts her palm on his cheek. “Hold on,” she whispers. “For me, hold on.”
“Always for you,” he says quietly.
If James is this bad, what condition is Realm in? He’s already died once today.
Marie grabs her black bag and heads toward the bedroom. Wes helps me up. It’s still a little difficult, but I want to check on Realm.
“The Program got to you when you were a kid,” Wes says in a quiet voice. “They’ve ruined your life from the start.”
I’m on my feet, standing to face him as I get my bearings. I feel suddenly exposed, broken down. And I can’t lie about it—not yet. The ache of the truth is slowly coming over me. Wes gathers me into a hug, letting me cry against him.
“This is why we’ll win,” he whispers into my hair. “You’ve survived their worst, and now it’s your turn. You’re going to make them pay. You’re going to destroy them.”
I want to believe him, not just that we’ll win, but that I’m the reason for it. I need that. I need to know it was worth it somehow. They essentially killed the little girl I used to be. It has to count for something.
Marie comes back into the room, her entire demeanor professional, emotionless. It’s exactly how we need her to be. I quickly straighten out of Wes’s arms, swiping my palm over my face to clear my tears.
“We’re beginning,” she says, before focusing her attention on James. “And let’s get him into the room before he dies at my kitchen table.”
•••
Realm sniffs a laugh as they lay James next to him. He looks sideways at his friend, but James stares at the ceiling, annoyed that he’s getting this unwanted attention.
“Do we seriously have to share everything?” Realm asks.
“She loves me,” James says, his voice barely a whisper. “So I already won.”
He tilts his head to the side, and he and Realm smile at each other. Wes helps me to a seat, and Sloane begins to pace the room, chewing on her nails.
Marie puts her hand on Realm’s shoulder. “This is going to be... uncomfortable.”
“Awesome,” Realm replies.
“Now, using the pattern we extracted,” she says, motioning in my direction, “we’re going to overwrite your memories. It will either smooth the cracks, or it will widen them, distort them. And we won’t know until we try it.”
Realm nods that he accepts this risk, and Marie takes the crown and fits it onto his head, attaching the wires. She gets her laptop ready, and unexpectedly, Realm looks over at me.
And it hurts to see him so sick, so half out of this world. We had a whirlwind friendship, that kind of summer camp romance that lasts a lifetime. Add in the threat of being erased and lobotomized, and I daresay Realm and I lived a hundred friendships in those weeks.
“Hope you don’t kill me,” he says, flinching a smile.
“Same,” I reply. “And if you don’t die, you owe me a card game.”
His eyes weaken. “I’d like that,” he murmurs, tears gathering. The air in the room grows thick with grief.
Marie’s finger is shaking as it hovers above the key. And then she hits enter, and Realm screams.
We all flinch back, and Realm bares his teeth, Marie trying to keep him from pulling off the crown. The scene is alarmingly violent, and I wonder if it’s because she doesn’t have all the equipment needed, or if she’s killing him. James watches in horror, and fresh blood streams from Realm’s nose.
Realm convulses, his eyes rolling back in his head. And all at once he goes limp. I get to my feet, and Sloane stops pacing.
“Michael,” she calls under her breath.
It’s a horrific sight, and just as I look at Wes to see his reaction, I hear the squeal of tires outside the duplex, cutting through the night air. Shouts, voices.
