AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The memory from his flashback was intact, a file saved in his enhanced brain.Rhys ported the memory to SP29, whose eyes flashed brightly as he absorbed it.“Fuck,” he muttered.
“I can’t keep living like this,” Rhys said.“I have no idea why my brain keeps doing it.Except for a couple of instances, I don’t know what’s triggering them.They’re getting worse.”
“And you think knowing the cause of them will make all of this stop, or do you want a surgical intervention?”
“Surgery could erase everything.”
“We could clone you again.”
“No.”Rhys’s answer was immediate.“Absolutely not.I don't want to lose Hannah.”
SP29 regarded him thoughtfully for a moment, considering the weight of his refusal.“You’re understanding what it is to be human now, aren’t you?”
“I just don’t want to forget her.”
SP29 pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers.“I’ll help you figure this out,” he said.“Although, if there are any answers to be found on New Eden, they’re probably in your head.You’re the original cyborg.You’ve been cloned the most often.”
Rhys nodded.“I’ll help you out as best I can with your Jasmine and Darius problem.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I’m not sure you can.”
“Why not?”
“The way you feel about Hannah?”SP29 said.Rhys nodded.“That’s how I feel about both of them.”
Surprise wouldn’t let Rhys reply.
“So, things for me are complicated,” SP29 continued.He nodded his head back in the direction of the houses.“Let’s go home.We’ll work on your problem in the morning.”He quickly corrected himself when his chronometer reminded him of the time.“I suppose it’s already morning.”
“Later in the morning.”SP29 finally smiled.“We’re people.We don’t have to be so pedantic anymore.”
ChapterTwelve
Hannah stirredand reached across the bed for Rhys.All she touched was a cold bedsheet.She sat up and looked around the bedroom.“Rhys?”Slipping out from under the covers, she padded along the floor to the landing.“Rhys?”she repeated.A light glowed downstairs.
She found him in the kitchen, seated at the table, nursing a glass of water.He brightened when he saw her.“You're up early.”
“I’m always up early.”She took the seat across from him.“Is everything all right?”
He gave a half shrug.“I think so, between us, at least.”Warmth rose in her at his words.Just as quickly, it was gone when his expression grew serious.“I spoke to SP29 earlier.Neither of us could sleep.”
“Through your link?”
“And verbally.We went for a walk.”He hesitated.Something twisted in Hannah’s stomach at the indecisive look on his face.
“And?”she prompted him.
“Hannah, what I’m about to say to you—it’s private.It needs to stay between us.”
“Of course.”Her discomfort bloomed into full-blown concern, bordering on panic.“Is he okay?”
“No, but he isn’t unwell in the ways you might think.”He looked away for a few seconds, color suffusing his cheeks.Was heblushing?
Her concern gave way to confusion.“Rhys, just tell me what’s going on with him.Maybe I can help.”
“It's about your friend Jasmine too.”
She could have collapsed on the tabletop in relief.“If this is about SP29 having a thing for her, he has nothing to worry about.I assure you, anything he has in mind, she’ll be up for it.”
