Total pages in book: 210
Estimated words: 200837 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1004(@200wpm)___ 803(@250wpm)___ 669(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 200837 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1004(@200wpm)___ 803(@250wpm)___ 669(@300wpm)
Anyway, the part about her boyfriend that bothers me isn’t the fact that he exists. It’s not even the fact that she still has feelings for him. The part that bothers me is their history.
Childhood friends, teenage sweethearts, first loves.
That’s a hard act to follow, even if he did send her into the tower as some ritualistic sacrifice. Given the choice to go back or stay, she would go back.
Which shouldn’t bother me—she and I are nothing to each other—but it took me three hours to fall asleep last night after I got in bed with her. She had no trouble whatsoever putting me out of her mind and sleeping through the night. She passed out like a baby within minutes.
And then the first thing I started thinking about when I woke up—even as I was getting out of bed and opening the door for the phone delivery—was her.
Her. A woman who is no one to me.
And how I am nothing more than the inevitable… rebound.
Which kinda pisses me off.
I’m kind of a big deal. Well, was kind of a big deal. Yes, I am a failed augment, but being an augment at all puts me in the top point zero-zero-one most intelligent people of the known world. I have a pension, for fuck’s sake—which most augments never even get because they die—and I’m only thirty years old.
I’ve got my whole life ahead of me.
Kind of. If I were interested in living somewhere other than Tau City Tower, and I’m not. Not at the moment, anyway.
This is another thing that’s bothering me. She said no to the hotel offer last night, but she’s probably rethinking that decision in the light of day. And once she gets some coin in her hands, she’ll be doing more than thinking about it. And I guess that’s my fault because I’m the one who set her up with a job with Rodge. But I can’t just leave her on her own all day. It’s the tower, for fuck’s sake. It’s not a bad place most of the time. But the people here… they’re the farthest thing from up-city we have in this place. Someone needs to keep an eye on her and no one’s gonna do it for free. The job with Rodge was the only choice on short notice.
So she’s gonna get coin. And as soon as she figures out that she can pay her own way, that’s what she’s gonna do. She’s gonna go get a room. Her own room. One with electricity, and heat, and AC, and screens. But the most important thing is that it will be a room she doesn’t have to share with me.
Because let’s face it, we’re just a couple of fuckin’ strangers who got stuck with each other simply because I stumbled into her on a day when she either lost her mind or walked through a dimensional portal.
And now that work’s over, this is all I can think about.
I was pretty busy all day because the man I’m running security for is a politician from Lambda. He’s got his own team staying close to him, but Stayn says he doesn’t trust the politician—does anyone trust a politician?—and wanted me to follow him. I’m sure the man was thrilled about that, but what can he say? It’s not his town, is it? If he wants to be here, he’s got to put up with me.
But I’m only working days. Stayn has someone for the night shift, so it’s just a little past seven when I walk back into the Ruin District and start climbing the outside steps to the tower.
Anneeta is waiting for me at the top, once again looking like a child model in a fashion show for eccentric small people. Her skirt today is a ballerina tutu in pink and everything else—tights, shirt, boots, vest—is all different shades of tan and brown. The only other thing that’s pink are the ribbons in her haphazardly plaited hair.
She’s cute as fuck, this kid. But every time I see her all I can think about is how she shouldn’t be cute as fuck. Because she’s a homeless seven-year-old so addicted to spark, I’m not even sure she’s technically human.
Of course, I’m one to talk. As an augment—failed or not—I’m not technically human either. But I look the part of failed augment. Anneeta here looks like… an avatar. Something artificially generated for virtual space. A little too smooth and perfectly imperfect.
“Hi, Tyse.”
“Hey. Where ya been? I’ve been asking around for ya for two days now.”
“Here and there. How’s the lady doing?”
“Good, I think. Haven’t seen her all day.”
“She’s working for Rodge.”
“Yeah. Did you go up there?”
“I passed by on my way doing something else. I didn’t say hi, though. Are you working now?”
“Kinda. For the week.”
“Well, I was thinking… I could be her friend. If that’s OK.”