“Fuck!” TJ yelled, rubbing his chin as he sat up inside the micro-bot tank. Beth had actually shot him. Taken his life. Now he only had one left. He’d have to be careful.

Brian smirked at him. “For a second there, I thought I was gonna get a show.”

“Wake her up,” TJ ordered, ignoring Brian and getting out of the tank. Even though she’d shot him, it didn’t diminish the attraction he felt for the fiery redhead.

He was testing her before. Seeing where her boundaries were. He’d found them.

Growing up, his mother had a surly mare who hated everyone. She’d buck when anyone would try to mount her. She bit. She kicked. She was as wild as they came. Her name? Nyx.

It was a coincidence that had struck him the second he’d seen her avatar’s name. But after their last interaction, he knew it was no coincidence. He’d broken Nyx, the horse. It would be his pleasure to break this Nyx, too.

Brian cleared his throat. “It’s not working?”

TJ climbed from the tank and made sure he didn’t have any stowaway micro-bots in his pockets. “What’s not?”

“She’s not waking up.” A furrow appeared in Brian’s brow as he typed away at his keyboard. “She should be waking up.”

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Maybe it was the tranquilizer he’d given her. “She did take a sleeping pill before she went to bed. Perhaps that’s what’s keeping her asleep now?”

Brian walked over to the clear tank, the tiny microbots all around her, clinging to her like a second skin. He put his hand in and lightly shook her shoulder. “Beth?”

TJ watched for a minute while Brian tried to unsuccessfully wake her. “Maybe it’s good to give her some time to cool down,” he offered.

Brian’s concern turned into a knowing smirk. “You’re probably right. She’ll come around on her own.”

TJ hoped that sentence would have double-meaning. Hopefully she would come around. Hopefully he could figure out what made Beth tick and give it to her. “What time is it?” TJ asked.

Brian glanced at his watch. “Almost noon.”

“Let’s grab lunch, then we’ll watch the show until she wakes up.” TJ gestured to the screen on the ceiling where they’d been watching Beth before TJ joined her in the simulation.

She was currently staring at TJ’s headless corpse. Blood dripped down her jacket sleeves, and she pulled it off and wiped her face.

TJ turned his back to the image and left the room.

Gary was napping on the white couches in the sunken living room. TJ cleared his throat, and Gary jerked away.

“What? How did it go?” Gary got to his feet and straightened his skinny tie.

TJ and Gary had been best friends since their days at USC. Roommates, co-conspirators. TJ had the ideas and the capital, and Gary helped him bring them to fruition.

“It looks amazing. You should go in and check it out. Have Brian shift the projection to the wall. And order lunch. We’re gonna be here a while.”

TJ hoped when Beth woke up she wouldn’t kill him. In the meantime, he had some serious research to do.