Mom loops her arm around Dad’s and they lead our small party out of the hospital and toward the private parking garage reserved for our family. When I head in the direction of where we left the Range Rover Mom yanks me back.
“I had Scott take the car back to the house as his last duty,” she says. “You girls are riding with us so I can make we all get there.”
I roll my eyes as my sisters and I are forced into the Hummer SUV with our parents, Kenji,
Grandad and Grandma Sara.
Alan, Aunt Minnie, Luce, Haley and Grayson get into Aunt Minnie’s deep violet Jeep.
Or, as I like to think of it; the fun car.
It was tradition that after Dad’s surgery the whole family went to the beach house, our small oceanside cottage in Ft. Perch, to celebrate Dad’s birthday.
The seats in the Hummer are limo style and the minute we’re all settled every eye flicks to Kenji.
“So,” Angel chirps, openly assessing Kenji with her sharp eyes. “What made you want to come meet us ?”
“I invited him,” Dad tells us. “We’ve been corresponding and meaning to connect for a few years now.”
“Yeah,” Kenji adds with a crooked smile “I figured since I’ve sampled every drug the cartel offers…I should at least see how it’s made.”
I can’t tell if he’s joking or not, but either way it’s a ballsy thing to say.
“The cartel doesn’t deal in drugs anymore,” Mom says quickly. I can tell she doesn’t approve of what he said but she knows she can’t get all shrill with him like she does with us.
“MBC purchased a healthcare conglomerate decades ago,” Dad supplies. “The cartel traffics mainly in alternative market cybernetics and organs now. I've found people looking for organs tend to be better than drug addicts at paying back their debt… there’s also less competition.”
“I had no idea. I wish my Dad had told me you wanted to meet me sooner,” Kenji says. “Growing up in Neoluddite land was tough for me because I wanted more--”
The car stops suddenly.
“Boss,” the bodyguard driving calls back to Dad.
The tint fades off our window and I see two Federation police cars blocking our path.
Dad shakes his head and Mom rolls her eyes. The bodyguard rolls down our window as a uniformed officer walks up to it.
“How can I help you fine gentlemen ?,” Dad ask in a fake jovial tone, resting his chin on the cracked window.
“Just a standard checkpoint,” the officer says. “I need everyone out. We’re checking IDs.”
“Who put you up to this ?,” Dad asks, keeping his tone playful. “Captain Ramirez ? Oh, or was it Detective Simpson ? The Commissioner ? Is this really necessary ?”
“Mr. Washington, as long as you’ve got nothing to hide this won’t take long.”
“Yes, sir,” Dad smiles.
The driver rolls up the window and Dad gives us all a stern once over. Grandma Sara is crouched low in her seat and Mom is helping her put in a fake syn and skin coverings on her fingertips.
“Everybody out,” Dad directs the whole car.
Kenji looks confused as we all file out and the officers bring out the mean organ sniffing dogs to slobber all over the inside of the car.
This happened whenever we traveled in a large group. They always think we’re secretly trafficking organs or people for illegal harvesting. I knew what my family was underneath MBC's success. The Federation has a whole taskforce dedicated to putting my father in jail.
A uniformed officer walks down the line of us, scanning each of our syns.
“My boss says Happy Birthday, Mr. Washington,” the officer says to Dad.
“I hope your boss got me a gift,” Dad says conversationally. “You’re making us late to my party.”
“The identification in this syn is blank. Where’s your ID ?,” an officer barks at Kenji
“I—I—I just got it,” Kenji stammers. “I didn’t know---I had to--,”
“He’s was raised on neo-luddite land, it’s his first one. Show them your physical ID,” Dad tells him and Kenji shakily fishes a thick plastic card from his pocket that they inspect and move on.
Grandma Sara glares at the officer as he inspects her but they don’t ask any questions. Grandad proudly tells the officers he doesn’t have a syn and we have to wait while he is fingerprinted. They fine him for some outstanding warrants and then let us go.
We shuffle back into the SUV and nobody says anything the rest of the ride. When we get to the beach cottage everyone from the fun car is waiting for us on the front porch.
“They’re fucking assholes, they’re just trying to set you up.” Aunt Minnie tells Dad. “They didn’t stop our car and we were right in front of you.”
“I know,” Dad nods.
“It doesn’t matter.” Mom says triumphantly, leading the way to the cottage’s front door. “It’s Zacharias’s birthday…Let’s celebrate.”
Mom unlocks the doors of the beach cottage and I can hear the catering staff moving around in the kitchen. Mom takes one step inside and then she stops, turning to Atsumi sharply.
Mom always put together an elaborate dinner for Dad’s birthday party with some oddly specific ethnic cuisine and cocktail. Last year it has been a three course 19th Century French dinner recreation. The year before it was a high concept Pan-African smorgasbord.
But this year Atsumi was put in charge of the dinner with the help of Mom’s assistant and--
“Atsumi. You ordered pizza ?,” Mom says through clenched teeth. “Didn’t I give you menu suggestions ?”
There were dozens of trays of delicious looking greasy pizza with every topping imaginable lined up in the center of the perfectly decorated dining room table.
“You said she could pick,” Angel reminds her.
“It’s perfect. I’m starving,” Dad smiles, kissing Atsumi’s cheek.
“I might actually like the meal this year. Point me in the direction of the pineapple and salsa, Kitten!” Grandad says making his way into the dining room.
Mom begrudgingly turns on the music and as everyone starts getting plates and grabbing seats I realize I’m starving.
-2-
I grab a slice of sausage and a slice of buffalo chicken and tail Kenji as he makes his way in to the kitchen where Luce set up shop at the kitchen counter, drinking a beer and working on his tablet. Kenji was either bold or naïve to sit with Luce and I wasn’t going to miss hearing what Luce thought of him. I pull up a seat next to Alan Gray who is also at the counter staring in to his syn while eating a slice of pepperoni.
Haley is leaning against the end of the counter, hovering over Luce.
He looked like a completely different person when he
wasn’t at the hospital. He’d changed from his pastel scrubs into a fitted cropped
tank that showed off his flat toned stomach and artfully ripped black pants that sat low in his hips. The look worked for him---—from behind he could pass for one of my girlfriends.
When Kenji pulls out a stool to sit at the counter too Alan and Luce don’t look up from their work but Haley politely reaches his open palm across the table and Kenji shakes it awkwardly.
“I’m Haley,” Haley smiles and nods to the stool next to him. “This is my son, Grayson.”
Grayson is perched on a stool next to Haley, listening to something on a pair of circular neon orange inner ear pods. He’s absently tracing the lines of the tattoo on the exposed part of Haley’s lower back with a stylus. The tattoo on his back was one of the few I could remember him not having and then having one day. It was highly stylized but it didn’t take long for anyone to realize it was Luce’s name.
That was the other thing people at the hospital didn’t seem to know.
He was covered in tattoos. It wasn't even against hospital policy to have them but he always kept them covered.
Kenji’s eyes travel down Haley’s body to the detailed ink on his collarbone, arms, abdomen and the bits of skin revealed by the rips in his pants. On his right arm he had the word fuckwhore in bold calligraphy with a stylized phoenix burning through it.
Luce had told me most of the tattoos were from when Haley was sex trafficked during the war. He’d also told me other stuff he probably shouldn’t have told his then 9-year-old niece who thought she was asking an innocent question about a pretty tattoo.
Like I said; Luce Grace. No filter.
“I like your black ink,” Kenji tells Haley. “I want to get a good tattoo while I'm here. How much does your guy charge ? Does he do the traditional Japanese stuff ?”
“He’s not really working right now,” Haley shrugs absently, taking a green pepper from Luce’s plate.
“Luce Grace, right ?” Kenji says in Luce’s direction.
Luce looks up and gives Kenji a nod before going back to his tablet.
“I think human tech hybrids are fascinating,” Kenji continues to the back of Luce’s head. “I heard stories about you from people at Arkham… I’ve always wanted to meet a real life android.”
At this Alan makes a bark of laughter and Haley’s head drops into his hands.
Luce looks up from his tablet incredulously and I bite my pizza in anticipation of the show.
“You’re family so you should get this right,,” Luce says to Kenji in a patronizing tone. “Get your facts straight before you open your mouth and say dumb shit to my face. I’m not a fucking android. I’m a cyborg”
Then he points to Alan.
“He's an android.”
And finally Luce inclines his head toward Grayson.
“He's a clone.”
Kenji isn’t phased by Luce dressing him down but suddenly
looks deeply interested at Grayson, who must have his ear pods off because he is turning pink at being acknowledged.
“A clone ? Seriously ?,” Kenji grins peering closer at Grayson. “I didn’t know they did that.”
Grayson suddenly turns shy, wrapping his arms around Haley's waist and pressing his face into his side.
“They don’t,” Alan says suddenly getting into the conversation. “I do. And it’s not what you’re thinking It’s really more of your standard genetic cloning process with some cybernetic enhancements because I wasn’t sure if the gene sequencing--”
“He doesn’t fucking care about the science,” Luce cuts him off.
“No, it’s cool,” Kenji says. “But…why ? How ?”
“Um, it’s complicated,” Haley says
“No it’s not,” Luce breaks in. “Haley was briefly accused of a crime so he can’t adopt but he also happens to be a hermaphrodite--”
“Luce--”
Kenji looks totally confused and I choke on my water because while I knew Grayson was created in a lab I never really asked how.As he’d gotten older he did have a striking resemblance to Haley. Except for his eyes—which fluctuated between dark green and blue.
“Oh, so you can just…what ? Procreate with yourself ?” Kenji asks.
“It’s not really like that.” Haley snaps glaring at Luce. “I have a genetic mutation so I have both XX and XY chromosomes—”
Alan cuts him off to go into some long, super scientific explanation about gametes, genetic material and chromosomes that gives me flashbacks to the AP genetic ethics class I'd failed.
“Uh-oh. Are you all traumatizing him already ?,” Dad asks, sidling up to the counter and putting a protective arm around Kenji.
Dad had removed his jacket and his waistcoat is unbuttoned, which for him is the equivalent of walking around in pajamas.
“Just explaining the difference between modified people,” Luce grumbles.
“He asked about it,” Haley clarifies quickly.
“This is my birthday party,” Dad says to Luce in a teasing voice. “We’re not talking business--”
“This isn’t business for us,” Luce cuts in. “It’s our fucking lives.”
Dad gives an exasperated sigh.
“Luce, I know,” Dad smiles softly. “I was just kidding. Can you try to be pleasant--”
“I’m fucking here aren’t I ? You’re the one being an asshole,” Luce snaps and gestures to Kenji. “Bringing him here.”
“Alright, Luce,” Dad says in the same placating voice he uses when my sisters and I try to explain the difference between our favorite lipsticks to him.
“Why are you so intent on denying your daughter’s what should be theirs?,” Luce continues. “We don't know him. Your father was an evil motherfucker and you’ve always been hopeless fuckup but atleast Rayne still did right by you--,”
“Drop it, Luce,” Dad whispers in a cutting tone. “You walked away from the cartel years ago. I don’t want to hear your opinions on how I run things--”
I see Grandma Sara start across the room, silently making her way over to them. Dad usually took Luce’s sour mood with humor but something was different about this.
“Do you run things ? Sure, you have nice shit but even I can see stocks are down. Rayne was always scared of how weak you were,” Luce continues. “You've never deserved this. You know damn well you shouldn’t even be in this position--”
“Enough, Luce. It’s been decades. Are you still mad he never chose you? I was his biological son, this was just my birthright--”
“Your only birthright was to die long and slow with a bullet in your head like the rest of the shitty men in your family. But look at you spry and healthy and better than fucking ever!” Luce spits in a mocking tone. “You were supposed to be the one to end up in a fucking chair--.”
“Alright, I think that’s enough from you, big brother,” Dad says and reaches his hand behind Luce’s neck.
“Don’t--,” Haley and Alan say at the same time but it’s too late.
Dad adds only the smallest amount of pressure to Luce’s neck
and Luce’s normally vibrant eyes turn the same muted black as a broken tablet
screen. Luce suddenly jolts up to his feet standing in an awkward position like a waiting marionette. The bunch of fiber optic
cables connecting the back of his neck to the server in his mobility chair are
lighting with a pastel rainbows as they strain against the distance of his suddenly
standing body.
Luce’s features fall slack and he lets out hard grunts as
his upper body and face tick violently.
“Luce? Luce ? What the hell ? I thought that just turned him off!” Dad says, awkwardly trying to coax Luce back into the chair.
“That switch hasn’t worked in years,” Grandma Sara says calmly going up to Luce. “I think when you pressed it you made his system get stuck in a reset and the chair is fighting for control or maybe the system is…”
Grandma Sara trails off as she hardwires a tablet into Luce’s mobility chair and starts frantically moving through warning screens
“Aren’t you going to fucking help ?,” Aunt Minnie hisses shoving Alan Gray violently.
“It’s not the hardware, it’s a software issue--”
“He has a temperature,” Haley says moving his hand from Luce’s reddening forehead and then feeling Luce;s knees. “I think his knees are locked.”
Grandma Sara moves me out the way to plug another tablet in and I decide to just get the hell out of the way completely. I find my sisters in the corner of the kitchen and Atsumi looks freaked but she can’t stop staring at Luce. Neither can I. I’d heard Luce had some issues but I’d never seen them.
“Has this happened before ?,” Kenji asks walking to stand with us.
“I don’t know,” Angel says. “Is he dying or something ? Did Daddy…kill him ?”
“No,” I say quickly. “I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
Luce maybe wasn’t everyone’s favorite relative but I knew he loved us. He’s been there my whole life for every little event even though most places could barely accommodate his chair. I’m not sure what Grandma Sara would do without him, she’d be completely alone.
The cottage is tiny and Mom ushers us out of the kitchen area and we wander out to the front porch with Kenji. We mostly just sit there until Grandma Sara comes outside with a sleeping (fuck, I hope he’s sleeping) Luce in his chair.
“Mother, wait. Let me call you a car--,” Dad calls coming out the house behind Grandma Sara
“It’s fine,” Grandma Sara says. “It’s not that far to the station. Enjoy your party, we used to take the train all the time--”
“Atleast let me pay for the upgraded seat--”
“Happy Birthday, Zacharias” she says, hugging him. “Don’t worry about this. Your brother will be fine.”
“Keep me updated on him,” Dad says. “I’m going to a 22nd Century Healthcare Symposium next week maybe I can ask around if someone could help him. I guess I didn’t realize how—how bad its gotten.”
Grandma Sara just nods. After hugging us girls goodbye she continues down the street, determined to walk the quarter mile to the train station.
-3-
I thought I’d be assigned to babysit Kenji but I barely see him the first week he’s living with us.
Our property in Mojave is on a revitalized piece of desert, it’s an 8 bedroom mansion with an attached guest suite, underground pool and basketball/tennis court. Kenji is put up in a guest room on the wing of the house opposite of us girls and spends his mornings shadowing Dad at the MBC office, his afternoons visiting museums on his bucket list and then he and Dad spend the night going through the family history or playing on the basketball court.
I shouldn’t be jealous.
Mom had always joked that between working with Aunt Minnie, being oughtdaughtered at home and growing up with Aunt Twyla and Grandma Sara Dad probably needed more testosterone in his life.
I get it.
But I also can’t get what Luce said at the party out of my head.
Why are you denying your daughter’s what should be theirs?
“Do you think it’s weird he’s here ?,” I ask my sisters. I don’t even have to say who the he is.
It’s late and we’re sitting by the underground pool, my sisters are doing their homework for school tomorrow but since I graduated a few weeks ago and doing a gap year I’m doing some meditative shoe shopping.
“I mean, it’s weird he hangs out with Dad so much,” Angel admits from where she’s sprawled on a marble bench “I thought he’d want to get crazy…Kind of like that thing religious people do when they’re teenagers--,”
“It’s probably culture shock,” Atsumi says. “I feel kind of bad. It probably sucked living like a neo-luddite. We should take him out--"
“He’s an adult,” Angel reminds her. “He doesn’t want to do the shit we do--”
“Maybe not the shopping,” Atsumi says. “But like paintball, arcades, racing, dancing…that kind of stuff. There’s older people there all the time.”
My sisters could be sweet, but they weren’t seeing where I was going.
“Yeah, but do you guys think Dad’s going to…give him everything ?,” I ask, finally saying the thing that’s been getting to me.
“No way!” Angel says. “I mean…not everything. Mom would never let him do that. Kenji might be family but we don’t really know him--”
A rustle sounds from the cherry blossom trees lining the pool and Kenji steps out, he seems shocked to see us and I wonder if he heard us talking about him. Angel’s eyes are the size of saucers.
“Hi,” he greets us uneasily. “I was trying to look at the stars and I got lost--”
“Stars ?,” Atsumi asks.
“It’s strange,” he says. “You can’t see them here like you can at my home. I thought if I went deeper into the property, away from the light I’d see them…I couldn’t.”
“I got your stars,” Angel smiles and displays this new app she got on her syn that splashes realistic stars across the air. They twinkle and dance across her face.
“GIRLS!,” Mom’s sharp voice sounds from the speaker embedded in the pool house. “What are you doing out there ? Get back to the house, it’s way past you bed time. What have I told you about waiting until the last minute to do home--”
Angel mutes the speaker and rolls her eyes.
We walk back to the house, Atsumi asks Kenji about going to the concept car racing track with us and he agrees.
Once we get to house they all go to their separate rooms but I hang back and knock on my parent’s bedroom door. Their room was right in the center of the house.
“Come in,” Dad calls.
I open the door, Mom’s lying on top of their ornate bed eating
chocolate covered raisins off her stomach and watching a stupid competition
show on the oversized screen installed on their wall. She’s wearing one of the dramatic
ass negligees that she likes to walk around the house in. The gray silk flows
down to her ankles, the thin lace straps and thigh slit show her irezumi, the colorful traditional
Japanese tattoos on her arms and legs.
Her tattoos match the bodysuit of ink Dad keeps underneath his suits.
Dad’s sitting in the leather arm chair, facing the screen and eating his dinner from a plate in his lap. He’d spent dinner working on something with Aunt Minnie in his office.
“Dad ?,” I ask walking inside the room.
“Everything okay ?,” Dad asks and points to the arm chair across from him. "Sit down.”
“I swear, if they vote Alina B. out I’m not watching this shit anymore,” Mom mutters to the screen as I sit down.
“Why did you invite Kenji here ?,” I ask him.
Dad looks relieved at my question. I’m sure he’s been waiting for me tell him I’m pregnant since they caught me making out with a boy in my room three years ago.
“He’s my cousin, our family,” Dad frowns. “He wanted to see how we live. Are you not getting along ?”
“No…I…I was just thinking,” I say. “This gap year thing sounded cool but maybe I could…come to work with you ? Maybe you could give me a job or start teaching me about how MBC works--”
“Now you want a job ? Didn’t I offer you a job with me ?,” Mom interrupts.
“We could not work together,” I remind her. “And it’s not the same.”
Only my mother could make being a brothel madame seem utterly boring. Virtue made enough money to keep it’s doors open, but it wasn’t the multi-billion dollar empire Dad was leading. I wanted the same opportunities Kenji was getting.
“I don’t want you involved in my work, Ellie “ Dad tells me. “I gave you the life I did so you could explore other things. To only do the things you enjoy. I don’t want you tangled up in--”
“But you let Kenji--”
“That’s different.”
“That’s bullshit. You’re picking him over your own daughter ? Is it because I'm a girl ?,” I ask. “Luce was right…we don’t know him, you should tell us girls more—"
“Ellie--”
“What? You think were not responsible ?”
“We’ll, you’re not responsible, Eloise,” Mom cuts in using that righteous tone I hate. “You can’t even make it to your damn volunteer job on time. And don’t think we aren’t going to have a conversation about those three custom cars you decided to purchase--”
“God, whatever Mom! Can you ever shut up?,” I yell.
I don’t mean to say it but I was trying to talk about bigger things than spending money and she wasn’t fucking hearing me.
Dad stands up suddenly and grabs me hard on the chin, wrenching my face up to meet his eyes. Dad rarely disciplined us and had me or my sisters so I’m momentarily shocked.
“I’ve had enough of your disrespect, young lady. You mouth has been nonstop these last few weeks. If I ever hear you speak to your mother like that again you are going to be sleeping on the street,” Dad says, in a low terrifying voice. “You’re an adult now. I will kick you out. Now, apologize.”
“Dad, you know she’s always bitching at us—”
“I said apologize,” Dad repeats, his voice hard.
Mom crosses her arms with a self-satisfied expression on her face. It was rare for Dad to picks sides, let alone hers.
But I’m not giving her the satisfaction.
I stand up and leave the room.
“Ellie,” Dad calls. “Get back here and apologize to your mother.”
“God, no. I’ll just go sleep on the street or whatever. I don’t care,” I say, opening the bedroom door and leaving.
“Really ?,” Mom says following after me. “You’d rather sleep outside than treat your own mother like a human being--”
I ignore her and turn towards my sisters and I’s wing of the house. Mom grabs my arm pulling me back.
“Let go of me--”
“No. If you don't want to be respectful you can go right now. Exactly how you are,” she says
“Fine,” I counter folding my arms.
“Eloise--”
The name thing does it. She does it on purpose. She knows I hate it.
“Fuck you, Mom.” I throw over my shoulder as I jerk out of her grip, fly down the stairs and go out the front door, slamming it hard on my way out.
***
-4-
This was such bullshit. They had threatened kicking us out before when we really messed up but I always thought it would be Angel who would push too far and actually leave.
It’s almost midnight. Most of my friends still live at home and I can’t imagine having to explain I was kicked out to their parents. I just want to unload and there is only one person I can bitch about mom to who will always back me up.
I have no idea how to get to the Sprawl without a car, but I
start by going the same direction Grandma Sara had walked when she left Dad’s
party last month. It takes me 20 minutes to get to the train station by foot. I
notice I still have access to my personal account with my monthly allowance so I wasn't totally cut off.
$7000 dollars should be enough to get me through the night.
Right ?
It takes me another 20 minutes and help from two drunk strangers to clumsily get myself a ticket for the train.
The train smells awful and I stake out a corner in the back for myself and curl up. As we get closer to the Sprawl the train crowds with people who are clearly looking to get laid. I feel stupid in plastic sandals, leggings, a lacey camisole and silky oversized cardigan but I hadn’t been planning on leaving the house.
I’d been to the inner Sprawl a few times when Mom made us come to her office but we’d always had a bodyguard driving us. When the train stops I cue up directions to Virtue on my syn and follow the walking directions until I see the familiar front. By the time I get to the brothel I’m not even mad anymore. I’m just determined to show them I can be fine on my own.
And my feet are fucking killing me.
The music coming from Virtue is loud tonight, it reverberates to the sidewalk outside and there is a small crowd milling around in the outer lobby. The women working the reception desk greets me enthusiastically by name and barely 10 seconds later Grandad is walking through the lobby door. He’s wearing a slim fitting navy brocade suit jacket and sharp looking black platform heels. He envelopes me in a hug that smells like liquor and perfume.
“Oh, Bells, your mother told me you were coming this way!” he whispers enthusiastically into my ear.
I forgot she could track me on my syn. I click it off and pull it from my ear.
Let her worry for real now.
“We’re hosting a little open house tonight but tell you what,” Grandad says, putting his arm around me and leading me towards the brothel’s entrance. The crowd of partiers waiting to get in shoot me daggers. “We have a new young boy I can pull from the floor. I think he might be just your speed. Rumor has it the young man’s got a wicked tongue.”
I openly shudder.
Grandad had a good heart, but no boundaries. He’d bought me a sex toy on my 18th birthday. I’d told him I was going to throw it out but truthfully it was probably my most used birthday gift. Despite how normal he made it sound, him knowing about my sex life grossed me out.
“Not tonight,” I say. “I’m just tired, Grandad. Can I just go up to your suite and crash for the night ?,”
His eyes get soft, I can tell he feels bad for me because he doesn’t get mad at me for slipping and calling him Grandad in public.
“Oh, Bells, I’d love nothing more,” he says pressing his hands together. “But I might be entertaining guests and you know my suite isn’t made for overnight stays--”
“What about a vacant room ? Please, I can’t go back home tonight--,”
“I think we’re at full capacity right now but don’t you worry, love! Sara has more than enough space! I’ll dip out of the open house for a bit and walk you over,” he says and turns to his receptionist. “Send one of those message thingies to Sara.”
Keeping his arm around me, Grandad walks me out of Virtue and down the street. It was past midnight on a weekday but this part of the city doesn’t seem to sleep and we duck in and out of busy store fronts where he insists on buying me things even though I have my own money.
We pick up a knockoff Louis Vuitton overnight bag (that looks shockingly similar to the real one I have at the house) and fill it with new clothes, toiletries and the ever-essential cute accessories. I hate that shopping is therapeutic for me, but it is. With every new necklace, syn cover or mascara I chuck into my bag I start to feel more myself.
Once my knock off Louis is full we walk deeper into the city, moving away from the pristine storefronts to a mess of criss cross street where the LED lighting is harsher and I feel like my new luggage is going to be stolen. All of the Federation holosigns are broken or hacked with obscene jokes, the streets are littered with graffiti and people fighting and drinking. The amount of illegal cybernetics walking around is staggering. But everyone in this block seem to know Grandad and he has short easy conversations with almost all of them. Some of them even know me from when I was a baby and approach me excitedly to ask which of my sisters I am.
Treasure Island, Grandma Sara and Luce’s apartment building, looks like an abandoned gray corrugated box. I’d never actually been to their apartment, we always sent a car to pick them up when they met us in Ft. Perch or Mojave. The inside is two floors of two apartment separated by a stair case and open railing. One of the apartments on the lower level must be Grandma Sara and Luce’s converted office because it says Fallwater on the front door and the LED says it is closed for business.
We walk up the steps to the second floor and Grandad pulls me close.
“Now, you want to be careful because ever since the whole grieving-widower-tried-to-kill-her-thing Sara is a little…finnicky about loud noises,” Grandad whispers.
Before I can ask what he means he opens one of the second floor apartment doors without bothering to knock.
The apartment is small.
Grandma Sara and Luce’s entire apartment might actually be the size of my bedroom at home and I want to cry. I can practically see the entire space from where I’m standing at the door.
The space is utilitarian and cluttered. The furniture is faded black, the walls are beige and there isn’t a single piece of decoration except for the built in shelves overflowing with spare parts and old tech. The only color is a stack of colorful grocery service delivery bags by the door,
Luce rolls out of a room down the small hallway, wearing
only loose fitting sweatpants and greets me with a neutral nod.He always wore long sleeve white button ups or track jackets so I'd never seen this much of him. His arms are inked with the words Chaos and Freedom in a faded black. His bare chest is
scarred and he some intricate floral tattoos that feel incongruous to
everything I know about him. He also has a nipple ring.
Grandma Sara shuffles out of the other bedroom down the hall,
also in her pajamas-- an oversize tanktop and gray boxer shorts. They stare at me quietly.
“Well, I’ll leave you party people to it!,” Grandad quips, kissing me on the forehead. “We’ll go out for croissants in the morning, Bells and then I’ll got put that mother of yours head on straight.”
Grandad leaves and I turn to Grandma Sara and Luce with a pitiful smile.
“It’s been a while since we had a guest,” Grandma Sara says running her hand through her messy hair. “Are you hungry ? We don’t have much food right now…I don’t know when the food delivery comes.”
“I—I think it’s by the door,” I tell her.
She and Luce seem to both notice the grocery bags sitting by the door for the first time.
“We use the empty apartment downstairs for storage,” Grandma Sara continues. “But if you need to stay longer we can try to clean it out for you.”
I shake my head almost too quickly. I was not living like this for more than one night.
A door on the other side of the living room--a door that apparently adjoins Grandma Sara and Luce’s apartment to the apartment next door—opens and Haley steps through.
“Hi, El,” he says quietly. “Come on. You’re staying on our side.”
Grayson suddenly pops up behind Haley, gripping a faded stuffed robot in his hands. Haley jumps in surprise at Grayson’s sudden appearance.
“Daddy, where are you going ?,” Grayson asks.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Haley smiles down at him. “El came over and is staying with us for a while--”
“Just one night,” I clarify.
“I want to show you my room!” Grayson exclaims.
He’d been in my room plenty of times when we babysat him. He’d always been so delighted by our house and it never occurred to me it was because his home was so small.
“You can show her in the morning,” Haley tells him quietly. “It’s late, please go back to bed.”
“You have to come with me, Daddy.” Grayson says, pulling Haley back into their adjoining apartment by his shirt.
Luce follows them. He piles my shopping bags and rip-off Louis duffel in his lap and then deposits them in the living room of Haley’s equally tiny apartment.
The apartments are identical but Haley’s walls are painted with a pastel geometric design and the furniture is new and more modern. The apartment looks more lived in and vibrant. It was kind of cute. Maybe I was too judgmental. I could do this….as like a vacation condo or something.
“I like your decoration,” I say
“Thank you. My sister is into that kind of thing, she did it all,” he explains quickly as Grayson continues to tug him into his room.
Luce and I stand in the living room in the most awkward of
silences as we eavesdrop on Haley trying to put Grayson back to bed. Grayson wants Haley to stay with him until the morning, claiming he can't go back to sleep unless he's there.
“Was I ever that clingy ?,” I ask Luce. “I bet if I loved my parents half as much as he loves his Dad I wouldn’t be here right now.”
“That’s not love. That’s a cybernetic glitch,” Luce scoffs.
“Really ?”
“No,” Haley says finally coming out of Grayson’s room.
“Sure it is,” Luce continues. “He’s part cyborg, weird shit happens when you mess with undeveloped brains. Not to mention the attachment parenting--”
“None of that is true, stop telling people that,” Haley says pointedly. “It was just me and him for a long time. I just think he’s still adjusting to the change--”
“You’ve been here three fucking years--”
“The couch folds out,” Haley interrupts Luce. “My sister ordered it from this special retailer—she says it’s supposed to be very comfortable. Or you can sleep in my bed and I can stay with Grayson--”
“Thanks, but I don’t want to put you out. Sleeping on the couch....sounds great," I lie.
“Well,” Luce grumbles turning his chair back to the door. “Now that all that is settled. Good night.”
“Wait--,” Haley says putting a hand on Luce’s chair. “El…did…did you want to talk about what happened ?”
Luce looks visibly annoyed but he doesn’t roll away.
“Oh, I’m fine I…I just wanted to call their bluff. I just feel so cheated,” I huff flopping on the couch. “Dad was practically running MBC when he was my age and what am I doing ? I thought maybe he was going to do things differently and passing it on to someone in the company but then he brought Kenji in and…I feel like I should have more shit figured out by 18, shouldn’t I?”
“No,” Haley says at the same time Luce says “Yes.”
“When I was your age I was already an enforcer in the cartel. Shit was brutal back then but I wanted it, I went for it and I did it for years.” Luce tells me.
“That’s not true,” Haley says. “You’re a new 18, Ellie. When Luce was newly 18 he just got accepted into Stanford and was deciding whether to go or not. I was working at a harvest lab, living under my grandmother’s cult’s rules thinking that was going to be my life forever. Whatever happens now isn’t going to define you. It’s just part of the journey.”
It doesn’t work to make me feel less stupid and sheltered but I don’t tell him that.
Luce doesn’t leave right away and we end up watching a comedy show streaming on the holoscreen. At one point I sprawl out on the couch and Haley moves from his perch on the arm of the couch and into Luce’s lap. I’m exhausted and start to drift to sleep as the credits roll but I’m pretty sure I can hear them full on making out behind me.
I wake up alone on the couch a few hours later to the sound of Grandma Sara calling Luce’s name from the apartment next door. At some point someone had put a soft blanket over me and I snuggle into it as I slowly open my eyes.
It was 3AM. My usual bed time when I’m having a night out.
The holoscreen is still on and showing a special breaking news report.
I see my family’s house on the screen.
And it’s up in flames.
Explosion at Washington Mansion, the on screen text reads