8:45am. I stand outside Emotiv’s glass entryway with my tiny vial of Composure clutched in my right hand. Should I drink it now? I kick myself for not asking Dani more questions when I had the chance.

Pressing my face against the darkened windows, I strain to see any sign of Dani or Frank inside. The cafe is unlit, empty. They must be in the back room—strategising, maybe.

Shouldn’t I be involved in that, too?

I glance at my watch. 8:46am. Fuck.

The street is teeming with workers walking to shops and factories. In the central lanes, AI cars chauffeur VIPs to Centre Square—colossal glass towers with panoramic views of the whole city. I lean against Emotiv’s front door, watching each car drive past. Occasionally one will blare loudly at a pedestrian crossing; some people wave apologetically, and others continue their walk without a backwards glance.

8:47am. Didn’t Dani tell me to get here early? I glance at the vial of Composure again, careful to keep it hidden from passers-by.

It’s warm from my body heat. If I unscrew it, I can turn and chug it with my back to the road. I don’t want to get interviewed in this state. My heart is already threatening to explode. I dread to think how much worse it’ll get when I’m facing a warden and their rifle.

The door behind me clicks open. I fall backwards, but catch my balance before I tumble. Dani grins at me, grabs me by the collar and drags me inside.

“Good morning, Kyla,” Melly speaks over the tannoy, “welcome to Emotiv. I see you’re not scheduled to work today—“

“It’s cool, Melly,” Dani waves a hand, “she’s here for the wardens.”

“Records updated.”

“Timesheets,” Dani explains, closing the door behind us and locking it. “Okay, glad you’re here. We have about ten minutes. Come with me.”

I hold out my vial of Composure, but they push it back at me.

“Nope, that’s yours. For emergencies.”

I follow Dani to the back room. They produce a small cup and hand it to me.

“I brewed a fresh one for you.”

The drink smells amazing—earthy, wooden, sweet. “Is this… patchouli?” My nose wrinkles. I like the smell, but I’m not sure I want to drink it.

Dani nods. “Trust me.”

One sip puts any concerns I had to rest. Dani wasn’t lying—they really are very good at this. The syrup is mixed with oat milk, and a swirl of caramel floats delicately on the surface. Composure tastes like a mixture of cinnamon and maple syrup.

“Now, bear in mind that this is a weaker strength than usual—“

“Weaker?” I raise my eyebrows. Weaker isn’t good. My knees are wobbling already. I need stronger. Strong.

“It’s a necessity today,” Dani gives me a tight smile. “The wardens have ways of telling if we’ve dosed ourselves. Expect them to test you when they arrive. They don’t waste time with them during a raid, but they’ll have a swab sample with them today for sure. Their test won’t pick up anything under a single dose of Emotiv, so a half dose should be fine.”

“Will it do anything?” I gulp the drink, aware that we don’t have much longer.

Dani shrugs. “It should give you a nudge, at least. Calm the nerves a little.”

My heartbeat slows somewhat as they speak, and I take longer, slower breaths. It’s not much, but it does settle my stomach—though that could be the oat milk. I look at my watch again.

8:58am.

“Oh God—“

“Don’t panic,” Dani smiles at me. “I’ll do the heavy lifting. Just stick to the story, okay?”

Emotiv’s front door rattles with a series of loud bangs. Dani sighs. “Guess that’s them.”

#

Frank waits with me in the cafe while Officer Harding questions Dani in the office. My right foot won’t stop jiggling up and down, no matter how I sit. I settle for perching on one of the counter stools and counting the cactus plants on the wall. Frank eyes me warily.

He can’t say anything because the other warden—Officer Nolt—stands at the door, ensuring no patrons come in. He’s probably listening to every word we say, too, making sure we don’t tell each other anything when we come out.

Frank’s already been in, followed by Dani.

I’m next.

I can feel Frank’s gaze burning into my cheek, but I daren’t look at him. I already know what’s at stake. Dani pushed the button. I don’t know anything else.

Dani pushed the button. I don’t know anything else.

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Dani pushed the button.

My foot wiggles on the floor, bouncing my knee up and down.

The office door opens, and Dani breezes out, smiling warmly. “Can I get you anything, officer Nolt?”

Nolt shakes his head. He’s still wearing his helmet, so I can’t read his expression. I like to think he’s as astounded as I am. Didn’t you just go through questioning? How can you be this cool? Another stab of jealousy twitches in my eye as I gape at Dani.

“Kyla Chase,” Harding calls my name, beckoning to me with one finger. “You’re up.”

Breathe.

I push myself off the stool, counting my steps to the office door. Eight… Nine…

Harding holds a hand up and smiles crookedly. “Put this in your mouth, please.”

He hands me a small white strip of plastic. He did this with Frank and Dani, too. This’ll be the dosing test. The moment the plastic touches my tongue, my mouth fills with saliva. It burns slightly, forcing me to take it out at once. Harding raises an eyebrow.

“Sorry,” I murmur. “Not done that before.”

“Ah, fresh meat,” Harding jeers. “I didn’t think you looked familiar.”

He takes the strip from me and holds it up, waving it slightly in the air. It turns yellow, then blue, then green.

“Okay,” he waves me inside. “You’re clear. Last one, Nolt.”

The door closes behind me, sealing me in with Harding. It’s a small room, just enough space for Frank’s desk, two chairs and a computer tower. There aren’t any cupboards or shelves, but of course, Frank has plants everywhere. The foliage trails over the desk, spilling down the legs, and peeks out from shelves near the ceiling.

“Take a seat.” Harding motions to the chair opposite him.

I land heavily in the chair, unsure where I should look. Should I face him down, or avoid eye contact? The half-dose of Composure is still taking an edge off. Still, I don’t think Dani accounted for just how anxious I would be about this interview.

Dani pushed the button. I don’t know anything else.

I look up. Harding isn’t wearing his helmet. I watch him flick through some notes on his tablet, brow furrowing slightly. He looks up at me in surprise. “Oh, I’m sorry. I just have to finish some notes from your friend’s interview. I won’t be a moment. Please, have some water.”

Harding pours me a cup of water. I force myself to take more deep breaths while he scribbles notes. He tuts and shakes his head, crossing something out with his finger.

What did Dani say? Was something they said too obvious? Does Harding not believe them? My breath falters as I watch him. I take a sip from the cup to relieve the dryness in my throat. The water is cool and crystal clear—I’ve never had anything filtered for the upper classes before.

Harding raises his eyebrows now, scanning something on the screen. Is that surprise? Disbelief?

I’m completely absorbed—watching every move he makes, waiting for him to ask me something, anything. But he seems pretty content with getting his paperwork up to date. He rests his chin on his thumb, and strokes the stubble on his upper lip with his index finger.

A bead of sweat trickles between my shoulders and down my back.

I clear my throat. “Um, excuse me?”

Harding’s eyes flick up to me, but he doesn’t move.

“I thought you had to ask me some questions?”

“Oh yes, yes, we’ll get to that. Just a few more pieces to take care of. Won’t be a moment.”

His gruff tone from yesterday is gone—he’s warm and friendly now. I could almost forget that he stunned a man unconscious yesterday. I interlock my hands and squeeze my fingers together every time I’m tempted to ask another question. Just wait, Kyla, be patient. Maybe he won’t need to ask you much anyway, now he knows you’re new.

I take another sip from the cup.

“So,” Harding drops his tablet with a clatter and looks directly at me. “Who pressed the button, Kyla?”

A lump forms in my throat, threatening to choke me. I cough again and shrug. “Dani pressed the button.”

My lips burn. I take another sip of water to cool them down.

Harding nods. “And why did they do that?”

I can’t continue the lie. Maybe I can sidestep his question. “The guy that came in? He was abandoned, wasn’t he?”

“That’s right. How long have you worked here, Kyla?”

“Only a few days.” I relax a little and smile.

“It says on your records that you were studying Astrophysics?” Harding gives an impressed nod. I can’t stop the flush of pride that tickles my neck.

“Oh, yeah. I dropped out. I wasn’t cut out for it.” I eat my humble pie like a good girl. This I can deal with. This isn’t lying. This is easy. What was I worried about?

“So you came to work here?”

“Yes.”

“And on your second day, an Abandoned breaks in—“

“Well, he didn’t break in, exactly.”

Harding leans forward, elbows on the desk. “Oh?”

“No, he just sort of… walked in, I guess.”

“And what did he want?”

I shrug. “A cup of water.”

“And you got that for him?”

“Dani told me to—“ I stop, swallow. The dry lump fills my throat again. Stupid Kyla, you nearly ruined it.

“It’s okay Kyla, go on.” Harding smiles.

“Frank showed me the alarm button that morning,” I falter. Begin with the truth. That’s the easy part. “So I knew what it did. But when Dani asked me to… I wasn’t sure how to do it.”

Phew. Saved by semantics.

“Dani asked you to get the man some water, didn’t they?”

I laugh, aiming for incredulous. “Of course!” I can’t bring myself to say the word ‘not’, so I try to make my tone sarcastic, but I’m not sure I pull it off.

“Kyla, could you tell me a little about Caleb?” Harding turns his tablet to me and slides it across the table. It displays a picture of my mother and Caleb, sitting in the neighbourhood garden.

“I… I don’t—“

“You know my job as a warden, Kyla?”

“I—“

“You know that it’s our job to keep everyone safe, and keep the city clean and secure.”

“Yes, but—“

“You know that we have a range of tools at our disposal to do so.”

I hear the electric hum of his rifle buzzing nearby. Why hadn’t I noticed it before?

“Now, I’ll ask you one more time, and I’m sure you’ll tell me the truth because you are a responsible citizen, aren’t you?”

I nod, my face burning. My tongue feels numb, swollen. I swear it’s filling the entirety of my mouth right now, which all burns like I’ve eaten a raw chilli pepper. I take long, slow breaths through my mouth to cool it.

“What did Dani tell you to do?”

“To serve the man some water.” I regret it the moment the words leave my lips. So much so, that I’m not even sure where they came from.

Harding smiles. “That’s better.” He slides the water bottle across the desk to me. “Drink some more. It’ll help with your tongue.”

I frown, taking the bottle of water. Harding stands and adjusts his uniform, letting out a long sigh. “I hope you’ll enjoy your promotion, Miss Chase. You’re sure to do well here.”

Before I can ask him what he means, he puts on his helmet and walks past me. I scramble from the chair and follow him back into the cafe.

“Dani Lutz. Please come here.” He points his rifle at Dani.

Oh no.

Dani raises their hands in the air and walks over to the spot Harding points at on the floor. “Another question for me, Officer Harding?”

“No more questions.” He pulls the trigger.

I scream, watching helplessly as Dani is enveloped by an electricity net. They slump to the floor, and Officer Nolt steps in, catching them under the armpits. Both wardens lift Dani between them while Frank shouts and swears at them to ‘stop’ and ‘put them the fuck down’.

The room swims, and voices blur together.

Dani’s eyes are still partly open. As they’re carried from the cafe, they give me a small smile and sign a message over Harding’s shoulder. Make it right.

I slump in the corner as my vision blurs, still holding the bottle Harding gave me. I turn it and read the label through my overflowing tears.

‘Honesty’.