By the film of dust on all the furniture, I knew Riley hadn’t been here since the rebellion. I tried to contact him again. No response. Perhaps he was still mad at me.
I cleaned the room as best as I could. Finally exhausted, I switched back to bluelights, dumped my tool belt in a corner, curled up on the couch and fell asleep.
The sudden brightness of the daylights woke me. I stared at my surroundings for a few seconds in confusion until I remembered my location. According to the clock, it was hour twenty-five of week 147,021. Riley leaned on the door to the hallway, but his posture was far from relaxed. His black hair hung in his eyes, obscuring half of his expression.
I sat up and pulled my legs in close, making room for him to sit down.
He didn’t move. “What are you doing here?”
“Lamont kicked me out. It was either this, the pipes, or the barracks.”
“Dad and I have a couch.” His flat tone held no emotion.
I sensed I trod on thin metal. One wrong word and it would buckle underneath me. “Last I heard, your brother had claimed it.”
“Blake moved back to the barracks weeks ago. He couldn’t stand the quiet.”
Which made sense. Growing up in the lower two levels, we had been assaulted by the constant noise of the other scrubs. For most of the scrubs, the clamor soothed and comforted. For me, the racket grated and drove me into the pipes, seeking privacy and distance from the noise.
“I tried to contact you a couple times,” I said in my defense.
“I know.”
Not good. “Riley, I’m sorry for getting angry. I’ll skip my next shift and we’ll spend time together.”
His muscles relaxed just a bit. Progress.
“Why did Doctor Lamont kick you out?” he asked.
“She gave me an ultimatum.” I told him about the argument.
As I talked, he moved away from the door and closer to me. “I’m surprised she didn’t tell you to leave sooner.”
“Why?”
“You’re nasty to her at every opportunity. And I suspect the only reason you stayed there is to make her suffer for her actions during the rebellion. Her guilt was probably why she put up with you as long as she did.”
I wanted to correct him, but I suspected he was right. “I like helping the patients.” Weak.
“You could have interned with Doctor Sanchia.” Riley sat next to me.
“I wasn’t that nasty. More like grumpy and a little surly.”
“Sorry, but no. Nasty is the right word.” He held up a hand to stop my protest. “Consider your refusal to take a blood test. She still grieves for her daughter and you could ease her pain.”
“What if I’m not Sadie?”
“Then she’ll know Karla lied and there’s no hope.”
“Wait a minute. Karla could be telling the truth and Sadie is living in the lower levels right now.”
“Doctor Lamont already tested every girl born close to Sadie’s birth week. All fifteen of them. No match. You’re the last one.”
Oh. “Are you going to counter all my comments?”
“Yes.”
“Why? Her betrayal could have sent us all to Chomper, including your father.”
