"It has been three hundred and five days since your last uplink." Fisting my hands, I let my gaze drop to the ground. "That is," the soft, calm voice paused briefly, "four-point zero six six six cycles."
Annoyed, I swallowed down the next bottle of what Finch somewhat affectionately called "Slivertone Slime". It tasted terrible but offered a laundry list of needed vitamins, minerals, proteins, and electrolytes. Basically, the nasty green substance kept my system running, and if I wanted to function properly, it meant drinking 72 ounces of it once a week.
For shits and giggles, I asked, "What is the previous longest cycle before system uplink?"
"Roughly one point five zero six cycles or one hundred thirteen days."
I dropped my third and final bottle on the marble counter, letting my head fall forward. 113 days, or 1.506 cycles, was the longest I'd gone before. The longest I'd gone without being fucked by at least one of the six men now hunting me down
My muscles and joints ached almost constantly, riding on the dying edge of pleasure that I could gather from my trusty vibrator. Frustration climbed inside me again, and my own ministrations paled in comparison to what I actually needed. Even with the modifications I'd made, I still couldn't uplink on my own.
A grimace was still painted on my face as I pulled up at the school in my Jeep. There was only a small group of students milling about the campus. I was thirty minutes early, and the sun was just barely coming over the horizon. My fingers tapped the steering wheel with the pulsing beat of the music as I turned my thoughts over to my main problems.
My mind drifted back to my conversation with Garett. His sad face popped up in my mind, bringing me further into depression.
"You look exhausted. You haven't been taking care of yourself."
I rolled my eyes at Garett's chiding tone and stuffed another chip in my mouth. Parked near the edge of the canyon, I was isolated from the rest of the world. The sun, bright and cheery, was suspended above me like a beacon of hope.
"Just a little insomnia; nothing to worry about, dad."
"You'd sleep better if you were home," he tsked, twisting his eyes away from mine. "Yet another reason to return to London."
"Dad, you know I can't. Not... not yet."
"The six... they told me what's going on."
My lips pinched and rolled inward as annoyance shot through me. I had enough to deal with, and my father, knowing just how bad it was getting, wasn't on my to-do list. Trying to remain calm, I took a deep breath and slid down further in my seat.
"It's nothing to worry about." My voice whispered, "Just an adjustment period."
"You need to uplink."
I sighed, nodding my head. "I know."
"Right now."
"I can't right now!"
"Why not?"
"I just... can't."
Disbelief and annoyance rolled into one on his face. My face reddened as he continued to stare, obviously hoping for some type of explanation. I bit my bottom lip as I waited for him to drop the subject.
I was absolutely, positively not having this conversation with him. My uplink process was easy at first, but then it became an uphill battle that the Six loved to climb. Garett tipped his head to the side and narrowed his eyes, watching my increased squirming with interest.
"I'm guessing this isn't something I, as your father, want to know."
Chagrined, I nodded. "Definitely."
He sighed but mercifully dropped the subject. My adoptive father looked just as bad as I did. His shoulder-length coal hair was gelled backward, curling at the ends where it touched his jacket collar. Dark circles were under his red-tinted eyes, and the droop in his shoulders was more pronounced.
A week had passed since our last conversation, and it felt like a lifetime. I felt wild and restless as I sat and twiddled my thumbs. The vast openness just outside my car called to me. It made me want to run. It made me want to laugh. It made me wish I was free.
"I know that look."
Despite myself, a smile curled the edge of my mouth, and I glanced down at the screen again. Garett's face mirrored my own. It was caught up in the moment, and I knew which memory it was centred on.
"You're thinking of the Barrington Cottage." He continued, smiling largely. "Those were some summers fraught with peril."
The name Barrington Cottage set the stage for a cosy small home on the edge of the forest. In complete opposition, Barrington is a four-story, football field-sized cabin with all the modern amenities you could possibly think of. We spent plenty of summers there, inventing, relaxing, hiking, and enjoying life. Those times were the ones I held dear, especially since my parents were part of many of them.
"Do you think of them?"
Garett froze, blinking at me with a suddenly sorrowful stare. "Often." His hands fisted on the table before he leaned back in his chair. "Your mother and father were better than what this world deserved. They were so selfless with anything and everything. Your father would have given the shirt off his back." A tear streamed down his face. "It's heart-wrenching to think they died in that manner."
"No kindness for the kind." I croaked, sucking in a breath.
"I know that's why you started this project, Ivy."
"To save others."
"It still can."
"Not yet; it's not ready yet."
Garett frowned. "It'll never be ready if you keep saying that."
"Because it's not!" I shouted. "You put this on the market now, and it'll only hurt people. I can't risk that, Garett. I won't."
He was silent for a moment, but he eventually nodded his head. Hesitation crossed his features and fell away as his eyes glanced above the tablet screen. My stomach dropped, and I was hoping beyond hope that one of the six hadn't walked into the room.
"What's happening to you exactly?"
"Nothing to worry about, dad." I tried to smile at him, attempting to alleviate the tension between us.
His gaze sharpened. "Tell me what is happening."
I couldn't uplink; I hadn't been able to find a solution to the glitch, and I was halfway around the globe from the people I loved dearly. And to top it off, my patience and time were wearing thin. A tremor shot through my body, making my fingers quake until I fisted them harshly. I couldn't tell Garett; I had avoided his hawking gaze until the bitter end of the conversation. He vowed that he wouldn't let it drop.
"Shit." The curse was out of my mouth before I could stop it. "Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn." It was getting worse, and even as I clasped my hands together, the bouncing was more pronounced. The tremor travelled restlessly up my hands, wrists, and arms to my elbow.
Frowning, I watched as Kira pulled into the parking lot. She threw her long brunette hair over her shoulder, stepping out on stiletto heels and directly into the arms of her boyfriend. Greedily, he kissed her, trapping her thin frame against the emerald-green Porsche Cayenne she drove.
Hoping to slip by unnoticed, I hurried inside the school and to my locker. Yanking my backpack from the confined space, I thrust my arms through the straps and tightened them. It was filled to the brim with books and the ridiculous joke that the professors called 'homework'.
The simple problems they spewed out were chump change and were insignificant compared to what I now faced. Dumping my bag on the ground next to my desk, I blinked slowly and slid backward in my seat. As I exhaled, my system came to life, bringing lines of bright gold through my vision.
With my sunglasses covering my eyes, I sorted through the lists as they flew by my sight at light speed. Last night I uploaded new protocols to the server, running through simulation after simulation until my eyes were red and I was barely standing. My breath wheezed out between my clenched teeth as more red text crossed my sight, signalling another failure.
The beating heart in my chest squeezed tightly, making it nearly impossible for me to breathe. I rolled my lips inward and flared my nostrils, forcing air into my lungs. Tears gathered at the edges of my eyes, ready to fall, but I wouldn't let them.
Kira slunk into the classroom just moments later, her semi-attractive boyfriend in tow. They rounded the first line of desks, stopping to my left, leaning against the flimsy tabletop. It screeched, displacing itself under their weight.
"Well, well, well..." the third voice caught the attention of the couple, and they glanced towards their friend. His gaze was on me, centred directly on my exposed face. "Look who finally came out of their hood."
Ignoring him, I dug into my backpack, pulling out my organic chemistry book to lay it on my desk. He came closer, rounding the first four rows of desks to stand near mine on the fifth row, pushing against the bank of windows. A slow smirk crossed his mouth as he gazed at my face; it grew as he dragged his gaze downward.
"I knew you had an incredible body." He whispered, leaning towards me. "You should let me see more of it."
I eyed him steadily through my dark shades. To some, I suppose he would be attractive. He had big brown eyes, lashed with thick blonde eyelashes that matched his shoulder-length blonde hair. His jaw was sharp and narrow, more feminine, underneath his slightly crooked nose.
Standing at 177 centimetres, I towered over other people, including him. The height difference didn't seem to affect him, and he pressed closer, smiling fully now, obviously emboldened by my lack of response. My lips rolled inward as I dropped all expression from my face. Disappointment and frustration, it seemed, would have to wait for later.
"Not on your life."
He blinked, surprised. "I know you'll change your mind, princess. They always do."
Scowling, I turned my head to look outside. "Not even if you were the last man on Earth. Not even if you were the last man in the universe."
"I think--"
"Sean, do you think that maybe just once you could be where you need to be when the bell rings?"
He cracked a confident grin and turned to face the professor. They made eye contact, staring each other down. Slowly, Sean raised his hands in surrender and moved towards his seat. His head turned towards me once more before he sat down.
The confidence he radiated was disgusting. I had already fallen prey to two blondes. And though both of them sported shoulder-length platinum blonde locks, neither one had ever approached me with that demeanour.
Both Will and Murphy were demanding; that's why they never paired well. Whenever they were inside me, they wanted my attention to be focused on them and nothing else. It was their name they wanted to hear, no matter who else was inside me too.
My stomach dropped at the thought. I wasn't sure I would survive them if I was caught. It would be six of them, all six of them, working in tandem to please me and themselves.
I wouldn't be allowed out of the room for days