72

Lila Easterlin

October 18, 2047. Washington, D.C.

It took forty minutes to reach the Capitol Shopping Center’s parking lot, and another half hour to find a parking space. Most of that time Lila relived Danika’s execution, over and over. Only it hadn’t been an execution: It had been an exhibition on torture, a primer on all the things defenders would do to you if you defied them. Why was it that the mind insisted on lingering on exactly the things you most wanted to forget?

Lila tried to drag her thoughts back to the present, to the vehicles parked everywhere—in fire lanes, on the grass medians, along the road leading to the shopping center. No one was sure if the defenders had a reliable way to keep track of who was complying with their designated shopping day and who wasn’t, but no one wanted to risk finding out.

“Not Target,” Kai said.

Lila paused. She’d automatically headed toward Target, forgetting that it held bad associations for Kai. She scanned the big shopping center. There was a Hobby Town, but neither of them had a hobby. The grocery store didn’t count (food was a staple, so buying it didn’t stimulate the economy). She pointed their cart toward Office Depot.

“I wonder if the defenders understand that a lot of these people can’t afford to buy random shit. A rash of bankruptcies isn’t going to stimulate the economy.”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t say that too loud.”

As soon as they got inside, they split up and began filling their cart with things they could actually use—preferably bulky items that made the cart appear full.

Lila grabbed a printer and tossed it in the cart. She was heading toward the printer ink aisle, but it was slow going. The store was packed.

Everyone she passed looked at her intently for a moment, then quickly looked away. Fortunately her stitched lip, bandaged cheek, swollen left eye, and bruised forehead would heal. It was probably 50 percent better already.

When they weren’t gaping at her, Lila watched other people’s faces. She was morbidly fascinated by the shift in the default human expression since the defender occupation began. People rarely smiled, and rarely looked angry or even annoyed. They tried to keep their faces flat, emotionless, but undertones of fear and something like sadness, or self-pity, bled through. Back in the days of the Luyten War everyone looked openly afraid, but something about this situation caused people to try to tamp their emotions.

Kai found her in the printer ink aisle, limped over, and dropped four reams of paper in the cart. “You can never have too much paper.”

A defender came around the corner, his arms full of boxes.

“Shit,” Lila whispered.

“Here. People aren’t buying enough of these.” The defender dropped three identical boxes into their cart. According to the box, they were roll sorters. Lila had no idea what they were, but she now owned three.

“That should be enough,” Kai said. “Let’s get to the checkout line before he comes back with more.”

Another defender was patrolling the checkout line. Lila watched as he grabbed some big-ticket electronics at random from a pile and added them to an old woman’s cart. Evidently her cart wasn’t full enough. Lila was about to share a coded snide comment with Kai when a voice trumpeted in her head.

I have information for you.

Lila’s purse slipped from her fingers. She gripped the shopping cart with both hands to stay on her feet.

“You okay? What’s the matter?” Kai asked.

Why would a Luyten speak to her? As far as she knew, no Luyten had communicated with a human being since the invasion of Australia.

There are bathrooms in the back of the store. Beyond them is a fire exit. I’ve disabled the fire alarm.

“I have to go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” She forced a smile, left the line, and headed toward the back of the store.

The exit was at the end of an L-shaped hallway. When she got outside Lila eased the door closed, maintaining her composure despite the presence of the scarlet-colored Luyten, waiting between two Dumpsters. It was in the prone position, three appendages on the floor, three folded.

As she stepped toward it, Lila glanced around to make sure no one was around.

There are no humans nearby, or planning to come back here anytime soon. That much I can tell you.

“I’m not particularly worried about humans. What do you want? I need to get back inside before I’m missed.”

I’ll try to be brief, but it’s important I be clear. The defenders were more rattled by the attacks on their birthing facilities than you know. They’ve decided that, as things stand now, they’re far too outnumbered by humans to maintain control.

“I know. I got their marching orders. They’ve got me spitting out defenders as fast as the facility can create them.” The strangeness of the situation hit Lila anew. A Luyten was talking to her, probably the one that killed her father.

Their plan is to reduce the human population as well.

The Luyten’s words silenced all of her internal chatter. “They’re going to cull us to a manageable number?”

Yes.

“What’s a manageable number?”

Between a quarter and a half billion.

What was the current world population? Lila had no idea.

Two-point-three billion.

“You’re telling me they’re planning to kill off more than three-quarters of the human race?”

Yes. The Luyten sounded almost sad. She wondered if it was telling the truth.

The Luyten stood; it towered over her. Suddenly she wished she’d brought Kai with her. It could kill her in an instant.

I have no reason to hurt you. We’re not like the Defenders. Violence is not our default response.

But lying was, if Five was typical of their species. The Luyten would have much to gain if they could convince humans to go after the defenders in earnest. Much to gain.

Defenders have started clearing out of some heavily populated areas. They’re preparing to use chemical weapons in those areas. You can confirm that.

“All right. I appreciate the warning. I’ll pass it on.” She found herself monitoring her own thoughts as she reeled them out, then monitoring the thoughts of the monitor. It was a maddening loop.

If all we had to offer you was a warning, it wouldn’t do much good. You can’t beat them on your own. It took a step toward her; she tensed, resisting the urge to step back. We have a common enemy. You’ve come up with a brilliant plan to defeat them, but you need our help.

Don’t be shocked. The Luyten interrupted itself as Lila reacted to what the Luyten was suggesting.

“Holy shit.” The words just came out. Lila glanced around, relieved that there was still no one around, because she’d just shouted. You’re proposing we ally with you against the defenders? She thought it instead of speaking it. The words were enough to get her killed on the spot, if the wrong ears overheard. “Hold on. What ‘way to defeat them’ are you talking about?” That detail had slipped past while she absorbed the rest.

Restoring serotonin to the defender’s brain physiology. The new defenders will act as unwitting spies; we’ll pass on the defenders’ plans and strategies to your commanders.

Lila had forgotten about her wild idea.

Once the new defenders are in place, humans and Luyten attack simultaneously. We can serve as ground forces. As soon as your commanders know what they want from us, we’ll know, and we’ll follow their orders—

It was insanity. Yet what did the Luyten have to lose by proposing it? And if we did? What would keep you from turning on us once the defenders were gone?

There won’t be many of us left after such a war. And as I said, violence isn’t in our nature; we prefer compromise. Unlike the defenders. Its tone shifted; it whispered into her mind. They’re insane. You made them too quickly.

Lila barked a bitter laugh. “Yes, well, we were in a hurry.”

I know. I’m sorry. We’re sorry.

Lila couldn’t believe she was having this conversation. “Why are you talking to me? Why don’t you talk to the rebels? They’re the ones making the decisions.”

Because we trust you.

She laughed at the absurdity of the statement. “You trust me? I fucking hate you. I hate you more than I hate the defenders.”

We’re aware of that. More important, so are you.

Lila shook her head. Oliver was right—they were baffling. Their words were clear, but following their logic made your head ache. “I’ll pass this on, but that’s as far as I’m getting involved. I’m a scientist. I have a family. I’m not playing Joan of Arc for you.”

Fair enough. You can go now. That’s all I wanted to tell you.

“I can go now. Thanks—thanks for your permission.” She turned to go, then hesitated. She couldn’t resist asking.

“Are you the one who killed my father?”

Loblolly School, it said. All over soon.

The words chilled her. Barely a day went by when she didn’t hear those words, the twisted attempt to console her with words spit from the hole of a monster coming to tear her to pieces. She looked at the massive thing standing over her.

“You ruined my life.”

The Luyten made a draining sound, like water being flushed down a toilet. Maybe to them it was a sound of regret, or apology. Everything bad, all of the suffering in her life, could be reduced to this Luyten.

“I don’t need your apology, if that’s what you’re offering.”

No. But believe me, you need what I’m offering. The Luyten raised two of its appendages, as if waving goodbye. The defenders will go on killing until there’s no life left.

“No one’s going to trust you.”

Maybe not. But you’re right: We have nothing to lose by trying.

Lila turned to go back inside, saw there was no knob on the outside of the door. “Great.” She headed around the back of the strip of stores at a brisk jog. Kai would be worried.

She spotted him in the parking lot, heading back toward Office Depot after stashing their purchases in the car. When he saw Lila jogging toward him, he stopped.

“Where’d you go? I was worried.”

Lila slid her hand under Kai’s bicep, then turned him toward the car. “I just spoke to my father’s killer.”

They inched along toward the exit.

“Do you think it’s telling the truth?” Kai asked.

“I don’t know. It can’t be.” She looked at Kai. “It can’t be, can it?”

“I don’t know. I could see the defenders doing that. Let’s assume for a minute it is true. What do we do?”

Lila curled into the corner of her seat, pressed her temple against the cold window. “If it has to be done—and I’m not saying I’m convinced it does—I’m not the only one who could do it. The Hong Kong facility is still operating. We could pass along the Luyten’s message to someone involved in the rebellion. One of your poker friends, maybe. Let them decide if it’s a good idea, and if they do, they can contact Kim Han, the head genetic engineer at the Hong Kong facility.”

Kai shook his head. “Honestly, I’m not sure that’s a good idea. If we decided this had to be done, I don’t think we can risk telling anyone—no one at all—until the altered defenders are in place. There are bound to be people dead set against allying with the Luyten—people who’ll give us up to the defenders in a heartbeat to stop us from exposing our throats to the Luyten.”

The weight of Kai’s words felt like a rope around her neck. “Kai, we can’t possibly make this decision by ourselves. If we went ahead with this, we’d be putting everyone’s life at risk—”

“If the Luyten is telling the truth, everyone’s life is already at risk. Four out of five, Lila. I don’t like those odds, not for us, not for Errol, not for anyone.”

Lila was about to scream at Kai to let her finish, but she caught herself. She wondered if it had been a mistake to tell him at all. She hated herself for wondering that. “This is all moot, because I’m one of those people who are dead set against allying with the Luyten. I don’t trust them. No way. If I discovered someone was doing what we’re talking about doing, I’d squeal to the defenders, too.”

Kai pulled out of their lane, cut in front of a car doing its best not to let them out. The driver leaned on his horn. Lila gave him the finger and glared until he looked away.

Tell me what we can do to prove we can be trusted, the Luyten said in Lila’s head.

“It just said, ‘Tell me what—’”

“I heard it,” Kai said. He shuddered. “I forgot just how bad that feels.”

“There’s nothing they could do that would make me trust them.”

“They have no pinkies, so I guess a pinkie-swear is out.”

Lila burst out laughing. Maybe it was knowing the Luyten had heard Kai’s ridiculous remark that made it funny. Maybe she just needed an excuse to laugh, to release some of the tension building up inside her as it sank in that the Luyten might back her into a corner so she has no choice but to do this. If she could do it. She wasn’t even sure she could. It would be an incredible feat. “We don’t have the right to make this decision, either way.”

Kai chuckled humorlessly.

“What?” Lila asked.

“I’m the Boy Who Betrayed the World.” He waved a hand in the air. “This is what I do.”

Sometimes Lila forgot how heavily that weighed on Kai.

“What if we talk to my dad? We could get his opinion, at least,” Kai suggested.

“That sounds like a plan.” Anything to take the weight of this decision off Lila’s shoulders sounded good to her.