Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 144277 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 721(@200wpm)___ 577(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144277 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 721(@200wpm)___ 577(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
It’s going to be OK. It’s going to be OK.
And I say this, I picture us. Tyse and me sitting in that restaurant after I had all those brain scans at the Tau City health center.
The look on his face. The seriousness in his eyes. And the way he demanded, gently, and firmly, that if we were going to be partners, we needed two things.
Absolute trust.
And absolute loyalty.
So as the needles stab my skin, and as the spark of life is sucked out of me, I repeat his words like a mantra.
If I have your back, then you must have mine.
I’ve got your back, Tyse.
And I am one-hundred percent sure that you will have mine.
PART IV
“Scholars have long debated the authenticity of the Augment’s Creed. Whether it was recited before battle, whispered during shutdown, or merely etched into the walls of some broken mind—we may never know. But its lines endure.
Not as doctrine, but as a kind of final prayer. A machine’s reckoning.
‘I am the executioner and the death...’ Not a boast. A confession.
I do not ask you to forgive them. Only to hear them.”
—Master Finnegan Scott, Lectures on the Line So Bright, Final Chapter: “The Creed and the Quiet World”
30 - JASINA
Something is chirping.
It’s not loud, but it is offensive. I’m exhausted. The weeks of traveling, not to mention my new pregnancy status, have finally caught up with me and all I want to do is sleep. I have no interest in anything else right now and even my offer to go with Finn for his first augmentation appointment was half-hearted.
Of course, if he wanted me to come with him, I’d have gotten up and gone. But, as he said, this is a medical procedure. And even though he’s making this decision of his own free will, there’s no way he’s not going to be nervous. How could he not? It’s a major decision.
So when he told me no, my relief—though internal—was immediate. I’m just so tired.
The chirping continues. Relentless.
I sit up quickly, swatting hair away from my face, and blink. “Oh, my god, what is that incessant noise!”
That’s when I realize it’s coming from inside a pile of last night’s clothes, which are lying in a puddle on the floor at the end of the bed, right where Finn left them when he stripped me naked last night.
Ohhhhh, last night.
I smile as I crawl down the bed, picturing all the things he did with that mouth of his. I don’t mind Finn’s rough side, I really don’t. But his soft side is even better.
Lying flat on my stomach, I reach over the side of the bed, grabbing at my discarded skirt until I fish out the PPD—chirping found.
I just… don’t know how to stop it. So I’m shaking it, desperate for some peace and quiet so I can go back to sleep, when Xi’s face appears on the screen. I gasp, realizing I’m naked, and start clutching for covers. “My god—and I mean that in the most disrespectful way—you should not be allowed to just pop in on me like this!”
“I’m very sorry,” he says, seemingly unaffected by my panic. “But you answered my call.”
“What call?”
“Did the device not ring?”
“That chirping?”
“It’s called a ‘ring’ and it means someone would like to talk to you. You answered my call, so I simply assumed you meant to. Should I call back later?”
I want to tell him yes, but I want to know what he wants even more. “No. I’m fine.” And I am, having managed to cover myself with the sheet. “What did you need to talk to me about?”
“I have planned a day for you, if that’s all right.”
“What kind of day?” My irritation melting as the moments pass.
“I thought you’d like to meet some local ladies. They have a book club you could join. It comes with a high tea. That’s generally something women enjoy from my experience. Does this sound like something you’re interested in?”
“It is… but what will I wear? All I have is last night’s dress.”
“There’s a package outside the door. I took the liberty. If you’d like to shop for clothes today, you could do that as well, but I figured you’d need something to get started.”
“I don’t have any coin so—”
“Oh,” he waves a hand at me on the screen. “It’s free, Jasina. There’s a card in the package with your name on it. Any time anyone in one of my cities expects you to have coin, just give them the card and it will be taken care of.”
“Wow. That’s very generous of you.”
“It’s the least I can do. Also, you needn’t worry about going back to 702.”
My heart does a little flip at this revelation. “What do you mean?”
“I mean for you to stay here.”
“What about Finn?”
“Oh, he’ll be home every night, don’t worry about that. The procedure is going well by the way.”