Dani drags me along the dark corridor until we reach a stairwell. Pushing the door open, they lead me through and pause at the bottom of the steps. “You okay?”

I heave a dry laugh, shaking my head to hold back tears. “Why are you helping me?”

“Huh?”

“After what I did—” My throat tightens, my head swims. I lean against the handrail to steady myself. Dani reaches out, letting me lean against their body.

“Hey, now. This really isn’t the best place for a catch up, ya know?”

Another heaving laugh expels what little air I had left in my lungs.

Dani takes my hands and raises them between us. The light is dim here, but I can make out the outlines of their face, their eyes. “I forgive you. Okay? You didn’t know what Harding was doing, and I should have prepared you better.”

I shake my head. That’s too generous, not the way of things at all. “I should have known—”

“Kyla, honey, he broke the law. He’s not allowed to dose you like that, not unless there’s a risk to national security or… something like that.” Dani shakes their hands in the air flippantly, then leans in, serious again. “He fucked you over. Threw you under the bus. It’s not your fault.”

I nod, hoping they can’t see the tears dripping down my cheeks.

Dani sighs and pats me on the shoulder. “Come on. We’re not in the clear yet. Did you find Frank’s note?”

The last five minutes passed in such a blur I’d almost forgotten about the bottles in my apron. I hold them out for Dani to squint at. They nod, pausing at the last bottle, filled with orange syrup. “Is it this one? Blessed?”

“Yeah. I figured…”

“Clever girl.” Dani grins, beckoning for me to follow up the stairs. “Come on.”

They take the stairs two at a time. I do my best to keep up, careful not to trip on the steps as we go. Once we’ve climbed a few stories, Dani comes to a stop at an apartment door. Number 439.

Dani opens the door with a low squeak.

We walk into a tiny apartment, lit by old, buzzing CFL bulbs. Paper peels in strips from the top of every damp-stained wall. There are no windows, although I can see some daylight in the next room, presumably the bathroom. I gulp, thinking guiltily about mum’s house, with multiple bedrooms and a fully furnished kitchen. I thought it was like that for all workers, but I guess not. You could barely squeeze two of my rooms into this entire space.

“I think I need a minute,” I say, aware of my knees shaking.

Dani motions to the sofa—a grotty leather three seater tucked into a corner of the room. I sit heavily and a puff of dust flies into the air, making me cough. Dani sits and leans on their knees, gazing at me. “What’s up?”

Now that we have some light, I inspect Dani’s face—scratched and dirty, but warm, aware. “When we last met, you were—”

“Oh, that.” Dani chuckles softly, but looks at the floor. “Yeah… I was sort of… out of it. I’m sorry if it scared you.”

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“Please don’t,” I say, putting my hand on theirs. “I’m the last person you should apologise to.”

Dani leans back, pulling their feet underneath so they nestle into the corner of the sofa, leaning against one arm. I do the same, mirroring them. “Do you mind… telling me what happened?”

“I will. Soon. But not right now. Your situation is more important right now.” Dani lifts a finger and bends over, reaching for a laptop on the floor. Hoisting it onto their lap, they flip the top open and the screen comes to life.

A grid of four squares displays different angles from Emotiv—the counter, Frank’s office, the entrance, the store-cupboard.

Frank’s unconscious form is still lying on the floor, not moving.

“Oh, shit—” I cover my mouth, worried I might be sick.

“It’s okay,” Dani says, squeezing my shoulder. “He’s out, but he’ll be just fine. He’s built like a bear. No way that shock will hurt him.”

Dani watched on the cameras…

My cheeks flush with shame as my mind replays the scene at Emotiv. The way Harding played me in the store-cupboard. My total incompetence at lying under pressure. How I electrocuted both Harding and Frank with barely a second thought.

“Did you see all of it?” I ask, afraid to look them in the eye.

“Yeah, right up until you pulled the trigger. Then I came down to fetch you. I’ve been watching the feed for a few days.”

So this is where Frank has been keeping you.

Meanwhile, in the office, Harding’s partner flicks through paperwork, occasionally reaching over to the CCTV monitors and tapping keys on the display board.

“They’re trying to access the footage,” Dani says, typing something into a command box below the camera displays.

“What are you doing?”

“Keeping them locked out. At least for a while longer. We need to think.”

I frown. “What’s the point? I shot Harding with his own gun—I’m as good as abandoned already.”

Dani shakes their head. “I might be able to wipe it. If we can keep them out until we find Lena—”

“Where is Lena?”

“I uh… I’m working on it.”

I reach over to Dani’s hands, still typing feverishly on the keyboard, entering one command after another in the command box. “Dani. It’s okay.”

“No.” They pull away, continuing to tap keys. “There’s still a chance. I don’t want you ending up like this, too. We can get you back… Ha!”

Dani turns the screen triumphantly, motioning to the top left square. Frank is stirring. “See? Frank will keep them out of there. Don’t you worry. We’ll have you back at Emotiv in no time.”

I give them a tight smile. Frank and Harding stir on the floor, stumbling over each other and rubbing their heads. There’s no audio, but their flailing arms and angry faces tell the story.

Where did she go?

How should I know?

Harding pushes past Frank, bustling into the office on the bottom right corner of the screen. He nudges his partner aside and punches the commands on the CCTV display board. Frank follows, shouting something at them, pointing to the doors.

A message bar displays in the middle of the screen, typing out one letter at a time.

Dani—Have to cut the stream—Wardens gaining access—Sorry—Melly.

The display goes blank.

“Shit.” Dani closes the laptop and tucks it behind them.

“It’s okay,” I say, keeping my voice as steady as I can, even though my heart is pounding against my ribs, insisting that I get up and run. Quickly, before Harding finds me. “It’s alright. We can find Lena, and she’ll wipe it.”

“What did Frank’s note say?” They won’t look at me—focusing on the wall ahead, like they’re trying to find a bug staring back at them.

“It… It just said ‘Blessed’ in orange ink.”

They sigh, hanging their head between their knees.

“Dani..?”

When they look up, my pounding heart stops for a moment. Their eyes are full of tears, threatening to spill over onto their cheeks. “Frank hadn’t told me how to find Lena yet. I don’t know where she is. We’d never find her in time.”

“So… The footage… and Harding…”

Dani sobs suddenly, curling into a ball. “I’m sorry Kyla… I’m sorry Kyla… I’m sorry… Kyla… Kyla…”

I’m a statue on the sofa, staring at a broken shell of a human. I should panic, shouldn’t I? Worried about what will happen. When will they catch me? Will I go to reform or will they just shoot me on sight?

But Dani rocks back and forth, whispering to themself. “Kyla… I’m sorry… Kyla… I’m sorry…” The warmth in their eyes, their spark, is gone—replaced by the vacant expression they had in the alleyway.

I scoot over on the sofa and rest a hand on Dani’s shoulder, stroking softly. “Shh, it’s okay. Dani, it’s fine.”

They continue rocking, the whispers so quiet that I can barely hear a syllable, and I keep stroking their shoulders, keeping one ear open for footsteps on the stairs.

Now what?