We stop in front of a carved wooden door, and he picks the lock.
“That’s so sad,” I say. “Did they send you here?”
“Uh-uh. I’d heard rumors about Keystone, and I ran away when I was ten to see if it was real. Robie found me wandering in the woods, and I begged him to let me in. I couldn’t do nothing any longer, and I agree with my dad. Disconnects are the only ones with the tools to restore balance.”
He opens the door, and we enter a musty library. Endless rows of books tower under carved wood ceilings, and leaded glass windows filter light from an unknown source.
“This is so familiar…” My breath catches in my throat as it hits me. “Are we at Hogwarts?”
Stewart laughs. “Yes and no. They filmed the Harry Potter movies at the real Bodleian in Oxford. I’m glad you remember it. Few people do. And now for the true test.” The floorboards creak under our feet as he leads me to a stack labeled “rare.” Pulling out the thirteenth book on the eighth shelf, he shows me the cover. “Do you recognize this?”
“Nineteen Eighty-Four?” I shake my head. “Should I?”
“No. It’s almost been completely erased from current memory, but this book is the reason Keystone was built. This is one of two known copies in existence—the other one is hidden in the Walker Library in Connecticut. This book is about erasing memory, changing history and language to reflect the government’s ideals while keeping society under constant surveillance. When it came out in 1949, Keystone was established in order to preserve a record of history—to prevent Nineteen Eighty-Four from becoming reality.”
He hands me the book, and I run my fingers over the tattered cover. It feels like it might disintegrate beneath my fingers, but my instincts tell me this book has power.
“The thing is, it’s happening anyway,” Stewart says. “This book is what it would be like inside the Super Brain, where there would be no freedom of expression or thought. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, the Thought Police shut down free will, but the Brain wouldn’t need Thought Police. Any idea that wasn’t in line with government-approved thinking would instantly be erased by the central mind. But that’s not the scariest part.”
I swallow. “What is?”
He licks his lips and takes a deep breath. “The scary part is that the Super Brain is artificially intelligent. It will constantly keep learning, and if a large part of society uploads their minds, the technology might keep growing to the point where it becomes smarter than Madden and its teachers. Anything that big has a life of its own—we’d be up against yottabytes of data—and the machine could end humanity as we know it. Like, no more humans. Not even apathetic, brainwashed ones. It would be Disconnects against the machines.”
Ice runs down my spine, and I stare at him, wrapping my head around the enormity of it all. “That’s terrifying.”
“It’s tough to digest.” He nods.
“How can you be so calm?”
“Because I think truth will overcome. We’re going to do our job. We’re going to stop the Super Brain in the first place, and someday we will have Utopia. It will evolve naturally. It just takes time.” He nudges me with his elbow, doing his McConaughey. “Stick with me, kid. I’m telling you, we can have it all.”
Giving in to the urge to hug him, I whisper “thank you” in his ear. A moment passes, and I step awkwardly backward, appalled at my display of human emotion.
He laughs. “If we’re going to beat Madden and the Super Brain, we better get busy. Locks you seem to have down, but how are you with ciphers?” He takes back Nineteen Eighty-Four and replaces it.
“Not very good,” I admit. “I worked on them with Allard a bit when I first got here, but we’ve been concentrating on other things…”
“Well, code breaking is my specialty. We only have four weeks to get you up to speed, but I think you can do it. On the night of the party, we’ll have them all cowering in fear.”
“What party?”
“The Into the Woods Party. It happens the night before the Quest, and it also happens to be New Year’s Eve.”
“Let me guess—it takes place in the woods?”
“Yep. Everyone goes. It’s our last hurrah. Once partners are assigned, we aren’t allowed to talk about our part of the heist—unless we need to share information.”
Ducking into the corridor, we leave the library and wind our way to the surface. “I’m not sure I’ll go… I’ll probably need to study, if it’s the night before the Quest.”
“Don’t decide yet. I told you, stick with me. In a month, you may be ready to talk some smack. Garrett and Chloe have no clue what’s coming.”
I laugh. “We’ll see.”
Chapter Fourteen
December 20X5, Keystone
I’m out of excuses, and I can’t put off my journal any longer. The night before my brain scan, I return to my secret room. Taking a deep breath, preparing to acknowledge my demons, I put pen to paper before I can talk myself out it.
…
September 6, 20X4
Truth: Life is easier when you cease to feel.
I got rid of Peter, and the girls spilled their secrets. Kylie’s was weak—her parents purchased likes and comments and followers to inflate her stock price—but Lil surprised me. It turned out the picture I sent to Samantha was from Lil’s private collection. The dick really did belong to Peter Waters. She was a complicated girl, and I believed the benefit to staying on her good side. And in some ways, knowing Peter was shady made me feel a little better about ruining his life.
“Look at all these clones wishing they were us,” Lil said, scrolling through the Network screen on her balcony. “They’re so boring.” Shutting down the screen with a swipe of her hand, she put her feet up on a chaise. Fire was in the air that night. The Santa Anas swept through the dehydrated city, setting the sky ablaze in a spectacular display of red and orange. Positioning her mojito against her pedicured toes with the Hollywood Sign glowing pink in the hills beyond the terrace as her backdrop, she blinked, snapping a picture. “I feel like I’ve taken this shot a thousand times. We need to shake this slumber party up or else we’re going to lose our audience.” Lil’s parents were out of town, and none of our parents cared if we came home. As long as we were livestreaming, they knew we were safe. We couldn’t hide offline much longer.
“We need fresh blood,” Kylie said.
“I can invite Jax over,” Deena said, lazily fanning herself, eyes on the crimson sky. He was her current crush. “Maybe he can bring some friends.”
My ears perked up, hoping “some friends” meant Adam. I’d only seen him in passing a few times since that day on the Boulevard, but, true to his word, he’d been in touch. My insides fluttered as I remembered the first note. He’d brushed passed me without so much as a glance on the Boulevard. I was shattered that he didn’t acknowledge me until later that afternoon when I found a folded paper square in my pocket. When I got home, I made sure my Life Stream was off and unfolded it in the back of my closet. It was a note written on real paper with gray lines and a torn edge, like it came out of a journal.
E—
I told you I’d find a way. If you want to play with me, leave your response in the flower box where ocean meets sand.
I like your hair today.
—A.
Tearing a page out of my Book of Secrets, I immediately responded, tucking his note safely inside the book. It took me a couple days to figure out that “Ocean” and “Sand” were streets, but once I did, the game was on. We kept the notes simple—observations about the other person or little jokes—but the real fun was crafting the riddles and finding new hiding places. The notes were the only happy thing in my life. Looking forward to them was my salvation.
“I’m bored with them, too, but go ahead,” Lil said, snapping me back to reality.
Half in a daze, I studied our shadows, s
tretched long by the setting sun. A line of perfectly spaced Bubble Cars glided down Sunset Boulevard, transporting people we would probably be entertaining tonight wherever they were going. Maybe they were studying our feeds now. I don’t know them, but they know me. Too well. What’s next? Where do we go from here? This is it. We have it all…
Lil sat up. “And I’m inviting Samantha Valenti over. Then we’ll have some real fun.”
The hot wind prickled my skin, and, despite the warm evening, I shivered. My eyes flitted to Dee’s, and I registered her fear. But then it was gone.
“What do you want with Samantha?” I asked.
“Her numbers have been growing ever since the Peter scandal,” Lil said. “She owes us a thank-you.”
“Shouldn’t you thank her for getting him fired?” I asked. “You wanted to get back at him for dumping you. She did you a favor.” It wasn’t like me to be combative, but my patience was wearing thin. Lil wasn’t the only one who was bored.
“Absolutely not,” Lil said. “We’ve created a monster, and she needs a reminder of who was queen first. Keep your enemies close, Ella.”
Recognizing the underlying threat in her voice, I bit my lip to keep from blurting what I really thought—that she was evil to the core. “Do whatever you want,” I muttered.
The wind smacked against the building in a thunderous whoosh, whipping our hair across our faces.
“Let’s go inside,” Lil said, waving a hand to open the sliding glass doors that led to the living room. “Samantha will be here in ten, and we’ve got to prepare. We go live in twenty.”
…
“Thanks for having me over.” Samantha stepped inside the stark penthouse and set down her overnight bag.
“Thanks for coming.” A fake smile on her lips, Lil led Sam to the great room, where we were lounging on cushy white couches. The space was wallpapered with screens that displayed a three-hundred-sixty-degree view of Los Angeles. Normally it felt like we were perched on a pedestal in the center of the city, but that night the screens were showing the movie Believe, and we were taking turns having our avatars star opposite heartthrob Jake Branson.
“Are you streaming right now?” Lil asked Sam.
“No,” she replied.
“Good. We’ll tell you when it’s time to go live,” Lil said. “Have a seat.”
“Okay.” Her knees shaking, Samantha lowered herself next to Dee.
“Mojito?” Lil asked.
“I’d love one,” Sam said, her excited voice echoing around the room.
My heart ached at how eager she was.
“How about for you, Ella?” Lil asked.
“No thanks,” I said, barely registering the question. I was too busy sweating, watching Lil bat at her prey. I rarely drank, anyway—I was too afraid of what might air on the Networks should my inhibitions be lowered.
Frowning at me, Lil picked up a pitcher and poured the limey cocktail into a sugar-rimmed glass. “We’ve noticed your numbers.” She handed the drink to Samantha. “Very impressive.”
Samantha beamed. Accepting the glass, she tucked a short blond lock behind her ear. “Thank you.”
“You should thank me,” Lil said. But then she covered the threat with a wide smile, replaced the glint in her eye with a sparkle. “I’m so happy you’re here. It’s going to be fun.”
A bell chimed.
“That must be Jax and Bryce,” Deena said, holding her palm toward the screen to pause the movie, then swiping across her face to switch the view in her AMPs to the front door. “I’ll get them.” Instead of gesturing to unlock and open the door, she leaped up, returning seconds later with Jax’s arm slung loosely over her shoulder.
“Hey,” Jax said to Lil, his baby blue eyes flashing against his tanned skin. “Is it cool if we shoot some hoops?” The VR game room housed a regulation-sized basketball court.
“That’s not why we invited you over.” Lil pouted.
“But it’s why we came over.” Bryce pretended to punch her arm. He was the shorter of the two, with dark hair and eyes, but they were both soccer stars and had the bodies to prove it.
She swatted him away. “I invited you over because we have a new friend.” She grinned at Samantha. “And I wanted to give her a proper welcome.”
Sam’s cheeks flushed under the thick layer of foundation matted to her face.
My stomach churned.
“Where’s Adam?” Lil asked.
I leaned over, pretending to straighten my shoe so they wouldn’t notice my interest.
“At some surf charity thing with his dad.” Jax shrugged. “What’s the plan?”
“We need to go live, but we want it to look artsy—not algorithm-edited,” Kylie said, swiping so the wallpaper changed to a mirror and reapplying her lipstick. “This is a slumber party—what do you think our fans are expecting?”
“A pillow fight?” Bryce suggested.
“Exactly,” Lil said. “Five hot girls getting sloppy…you guys are down to man the screens, right?” Her eyes met theirs, and something passed between them—a mutual acknowledgement.
This is all bad.
“Girls, follow me. To the closet!” Lil said. “Boys, drink up and make yourselves comfy. We’ll be back in a few.”
She led us down a long hall to her bedroom and giant walk-in closet. “I was just gifted the cutest PJ’s. This is the perfect opportunity to show them off.” Opening a drawer, she handed me pink-and-white striped boy shorts and a fuzzy pink push-up bra with white bows. “Ella, you’re so sweet, this is perfect for you. And it will make it look like you have boobs.”
I stared in terror. “I thought I wasn’t supposed to—”
“Wear it,” Lil cut me off. “Don’t worry. That’s why Jax and Bryce are filming. We’ll put our Life Streams on a delay, and I’ll screen everything before it goes out. You can trust me.”
I knew better, but I reluctantly started to change.
She chose a low-cut, black, lace nightie for Deena that Jax would “love,” a vintage apron-style halter for Kylie, and a slouchy, off-the-shoulder top that grazed the top of her thighs for herself.
“And for Sam…” Lil held up a sexy red lace bodysuit with thigh-highs and devil horns.
“I’m not comfortable showing that much skin,” Sam said, taking a step backward.
“But it will look great on you,” Kylie said. “You’ll be so hot. Bryce won’t be able to take his eyes off you.”
“You have nothing to worry about,” Dee added. “Being seen partying with us is going to be great for you. The networks will love this.”
Sam looked at me. My heart thudded, and I couldn’t meet her eyes.
“Come play with us,” Lil said. “We’ll make you a star.”
Her words hung in the air, a breathy promise.
Sam hesitated, staring at the red lace. After a moment, she took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. “Okay.” She excused herself to the bathroom to change.
“We’re not really going to post this, are we?” Deena whispered as soon as she was out of earshot.
“Of course not. Not of us, anyway,” Lil said. “Jax and Bryce know what they’re doing. This is like a game for them. Don’t worry.”
Samantha emerged from the bathroom, trying to cover herself with her T-shirt.
“HOT!” Kylie squealed, grabbing the shirt out of Sam’s hands so she had nothing to shield herself with.
Lil took Sam’s hands and started dragging her down the hall. “We’re going to get huge numbers out of this.”
“I’m not sure,” Sam said, and I recognized the plea in her voice. It was the same one caught in my throat. But I couldn’t let it out. Nauseated, I covered my mouth to keep from getting sick.
“I’m not feeling so well,” she said. “Maybe it was the mojito… Maybe I should go home.”
“But you just got here.” Lil tightened her grip. “We’ll have some champagne. The bubbles will settle your stomach.”
Arms linked, Deena and Kylie followed them down the hall. I dragged my feet, bringing up the rear. Crossing my arms over my chest, I hugged myself like I could keep from falling apart.
“Jax! Bryce! Get a load of this.” Lil shoved Samantha into the center of the great room.
From the couch, the guys barely acknowledged her.
“What do you think?” Kylie asked, posing with her hand on her hip.
“You can clean my house any time,” Bryce said to Kylie. “But I wouldn’t touch her with a ten-foot pole and rubber gloves.” He nodded at Samantha, whose shoulders slumped. She tried to shield her chest with her arms.
“Don’t be dumb,” Lil said, throwing a pillow at him. “You’re not allowed to touch anyone, anyway. You’re here to watch.” With that, she popped a bottle of champagne and took a big swallow before handing it to Dee.
“Pillow fight!” Kylie yelled, picking up a furry white pillow and nailing me in the face with it.
I threw up my hands to defend myself. “Ouch.”
“Come on, Ella.” Dee handed me the bottle. “It doesn’t hurt.”
“That’s what you think.” I picked up a black sequined pillow and swung half-heartedly at Dee, dousing her with champagne in the process.
“Oh,” she sputtered. “It’s on.”
She whacked me in the back of the head just as Lil took her down at the knees, and I couldn’t help but laugh, hearing my old friend squeal with glee. The champagne flowed, and we pounded each other with pillows, running around giggling, tripping, tackling. I nearly convinced myself it was fun.
Jax circled us, controller in hand, manually filming. I tried to make sure I was covered, terrified of suggestive images of me existing, but with the pillow assault, it was all I could do to stay on my feet.
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