Within some quiet lab, the soft hum of the fluorescent light from a lamp flickered briefly. William's eyes, bloodshot from lack of sleep, flickered toward the door. His hands paused mid-reach for a tool, frozen by the quiet click of the latch.
The door creaked open, revealing Emily, her silhouette sharp against the dim light. Her hair was pulled back into its usual tight bun, but her hazel eyes were alive with something—a blend of anxiety, frustration, and something darker she couldn't fully conceal. She clutched a sleek metal container, her fingers tightening around it as if it might fly out of her hands.
"Emily," William muttered, straightening himself, running a hand through his unkempt hair. He blinked at her, confused. "At this time of night? What the hell?"
He looked behind her, half-expecting someone else. His eyes were expectant, maybe even a little hopeful, as he tried—unsuccessfully—to smooth out his rumpled lab coat.
"Where's Rose? You said you found her on the call this morning," William's voice carried an edge, a sharpness that hadn't been there before.
Emily avoided his gaze, her fingers visibly tense as she set the container down with a too-quiet thud. Her eyes briefly flicked to his side, where she knew, beneath his shirt, a fresh gunshot wound still throbbed. They hadn't talked about it, but she knew it was there—like the other things they never talked about anymore.
William looked, well, like shit, honestly. Dark circles under his eyes, hair that hadn't seen a comb in a week, and yet... damn him if he didn't still look annoyingly good. Even in this state, with his slightly too-long hair curling at his neck and his angular jaw catching the low light, he could probably walk into a bar and still get a number. Meanwhile, Emily felt like she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
"Emily, say something."
She sighed. Her eyes darted back to him, filled with emotions she couldn't even name—guilt, fear, frustration, and… pity? No, something worse. Something that made William's stomach drop like he'd missed a step on the stairs.
"William…" she began, but her voice cracked. She cleared her throat, tried again. "I found her. But... she's not... she's not exactly herself."
William froze, his brow knitting as he took a step forward, the concern in his voice betraying his calm exterior. "What do you mean? Where is she?"
"She's… she's with a man named Liam now." Her voice barely made it past a whisper.
"Liam?" William echoed, blinking. "Who the hell is Liam? And why the hell isn't she here with you?"
Emily shifted, her fingers tapping restlessly against the counter. She knew she needed to break it to William, but this was no easy thing.
"It's complicated," she muttered, running a hand through her hair before realizing it was tied back and awkwardly letting it fall to her side. "That man… well… he owns her now."
For a moment, William just stared at her, his brain playing catch-up. "Owns her?" he finally said, his voice dangerously low. "What the hell are you talking about, Emily?"
Emily snapped, her frustration bubbling over. "Do you think I know how to explain this to you? Just—give me a second!"
She pressed a palm to her forehead, trying to collect her thoughts, but the weight of the moment made the silence stretch uncomfortably long. William stood still, watching her, his anxious energy barely concealed behind the quiet, and that just made everything worse.
After what felt like an eternity, Emily spoke again, her voice soft but filled with the cold, hard truth.
"Rose... she told me that she think she's been turned into a half—" she winced, "a half love-bot, William. Lucas did something to her."
William's breath hitched. "A love-bot?" he repeated, his voice cracking slightly in disbelief.
Emily nodded grimly. "Apparently....and not only that, Lucas… he gave her to his brother as some kind of twisted gift. And that brother? He's Liam Jones. A high-ranking soldier from Futurion Defense Force...that's all I learnt from Rose. "
A bitter laugh escaped William's throat. "You've got to be kidding me. A love-bot? What kind of sick—"
"Believe me, I didn't want to believe it either," Emily cut in, her own laughter shaky and humorless. "But here we are. Liam Jones… has her now."
William's jaw tightened, his hands curling into fists as he struggled to find words, but the absurdity of it all struck him, and a low, humorless chuckle escaped his lips. He shook his head.
"So, what… she's, like, some futuristic robot Barbie now?" His laugh grew louder, more manic, "Jesus, Emily, when you said you had bad news, I didn't think—"
Emily stared at him, her lips pressing into a thin line. "I'm sorry to break it to you."
Outwardly, William was still the picture of calm. It had to be that way. Always keep it together. But the thought of Rose being manipulated—used—gnawed at him, stirring up feelings he'd long since buried.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner....since this morning?" His tone came out sharp, harsher than he'd intended.
"You've found and met her this morning anyway. Why did you let her go back? Why didn't you tell me a thing other than that you've found her back? We could've… I would've done something. "
Emily's lips twitched, but she didn't flinch. "Because we had to be careful," she replied, her tone dry and detached, like she was holding something in. "We let Rose into this dangerous game to help us out and now…" She exhaled, her frustration breaking through, "now it's worse than we ever thought."
William felt his stomach churn but he didn't let it show. He didn't have time for that. He glanced over at the lab equipment, anything to distract from the tightening in his chest. Rose—he couldn't even think about what they'd done to her.
"Tell me everything." His voice was quieter now, strained but steady. "Whatever it takes… we fix this."
Emily's eyes flicked to him, wary but determined. "Fine. But first, we need to figure out what's happening to her."
She motioned to the sleek metal container on the counter, her fingers still tapping against it nervously. "These samples—they'll tell us everything."
William didn't hesitate. He moved mechanically toward the lab bench, like a man too exhausted to care about how absurd the situation was.
The cool, clinical sound of instruments clinking filled the room as he began setting up. His heart raced in his chest, but his hands were steady—at least, for now.
William could feel Emily's eyes on a hologram next to him. The results of the test would show up there. He didn't say anything, keeping his focus to accurately perform tests. The results should give him something concrete—something he could fix.
Emily sighed, muttering something to herself and William as she shifted uncomfortably on a chair.
"Lucas doesn't do anything by accident. He's been one step ahead this whole time. Rose must've gotten too close to something. And I mean...yes..that was our goal! But this is not as much as what we're willing to sacrifice... "