I headed home. All I wanted was to shut myself in my room and sleep. I’d messed up at the Lab and risked my job because I’d been careless. I should have known better. I should have paid attention to the stats, should have monitored the oxygenation levels. But instead, I’d passed out and ignored Kate’s warnings. Except…she never told me to keep them at 5 percent.

I noticed Tammy’s car parked out front of our house and my heart sank. I could just picture Tammy’s well-meaning face, her eager questions about April, and cringed.

April and I hadn’t spoken in nearly two weeks. Our relationship was probably over, and I’d been too focused on avenging Mama to care. Now, however, I felt as if I’d been punched in the gut. I remembered our trip to see her aunt, the vision of what my life would have been like if we had stayed in Moscow. I pictured April trying to reason with me, to console me, and to pull me back, and seething anger rose inside of me. That whole experience had been a colossal mistake. Mama died because of Phil. She would have been alive if we’d stayed in Moscow.

Time is a construct. Flashed in my mind. What exactly does that mean?

For a moment, I considered circling the block and waiting until Tammy left. But then I steeled myself and walked in. It was my house, after all.

I found Sergei and Tammy sitting in the kitchen, an open bottle of champagne in front of them.

“Rodion!” My brother rose to greet me.

“We have some news!” Tammy yelped and stuck out her hand.

A diamond sparkled on her left ring finger. It looked expensive, though I couldn’t be sure.

“We’re engaged.” Tammy clapped, her cheeks turning bright pink.

“Congrats! Wow!” I forced a smile.

“I know, it was so soon, but Sergei and I, when we were in New York, I have an uncle, he’s a jeweler, and he took us to see his stuff. And Sergei got me this ring. He saw how much I liked it.” Tammy threw an adoring look at my brother. “And Sergei just proposed to me!!!” She stared at her ring, then stuck it out again.

“We wanted to tell you in person.” Sergei said.

He said ‘we.’ Like he was no longer my brother, but now belonged to some cult and could not operate alone.

“Oh, cool. Thank you.” I squeezed out.

“And we already set a date. We’ll get married on Valentine’s Day! The most romantic day of the year.” Tammy opened her eyes wide.

“You are?” I opened my mouth wide. “Like next year?”

“No! Next month. Here, have a drink with us!” Tammy reached for a glass, but my brother stopped her. He knew I didn’t drink because of Mama.

“We’re going to move in together, and there is a place in Squirrel Hill. It’s really nice, and it’s gonna be available on February 1.” Tammy said, “So we decided we’ll get married soon. Why wait?” She reached for Sergei’s hand and he kissed it.

April. I remembered how we did the same thing. But that was in the past.

“Umm, yeah, I was gonna tell you, I figured now that you got this job, you’ll be fine living on your own. Right, Rodion?”

“Of course.”

“So you can stay here. And Vlada is nearby.” Sergei continued. “And if you need us, we’ll be nearby.”

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Again, ‘we.’ As if I cared where Tammy was. As if my brother no longer existed as a person.

I went to my room and sat there, staring at the wall, doing nothing. I couldn’t even force myself to read. Sergei would soon move out, and I’d be left all alone. Sergei had been the one constant in my life. The one person I could count on.

I noticed Stewart. The fox, the lovey, the toy I’d had all these years. He’d been sitting in the corner of my room, on a shelf, collecting dust, but now I noticed his bright brown eyes. They called me. I took him and brushed his bright red fur.

“Hey there, little guy.” I said. “It’s just you and me now.” I didn’t expect him to answer, of course. But he opened his mouth and barked,

“Hi, Ryder.”

“I’m Rodion. I don’t call myself Ryder anymore.” I frowned as I looked at him.

“Ryder!” Stewart guffawed.

“Whatever.”

I threw the fox on the bed. The next moment, my brother walked into my room without knocking.

“Hey, are you on the phone?” He asked.

“No.” I shook my head.

“I thought I heard you speaking. Are you alright?”

“Yeah.” I shrugged.

“Sorry, I was gonna tell you myself, but Tammy was so excited. Anyway, I’ll help you out, cool? Sign the lease over, it’s gonna be alright. Your own place.” Sergei said, his tone reassuring. “Might be fun. What do you think?”

“Yeah, no worries.” I mumbled.

“And I want you to be my best man.” Sergei said. “So that means you gotta plan my bachelor party.”

“What?”

“Jimmy and Nate can help you out.”

“You’re actually having a bachelor party?”

“Yeah, why not? Gotta celebrate, seize the day.” Sergei looked at me. “What’s up with the fox? You haven’t gotten rid of that thing yet?”

“Not yet.” I shook my head.

***

My alarm went off at six the following morning. I stared at my phone. January 7, 2009. That was a weird dream. I thought about how I’d passed out at work, Sergei telling me he would get married. I sat up, and right away felt my muscles aching. The gym. I remembered. It hadn’t been a dream. The events of the previous day came together, fitting like a puzzle. It was all real.

I thought of Ben and got ready for my workout. It’s good to have a routine.

At exactly seven I parked in front of the gym. I expected to see Ben and was thinking of how I’d greet him, how we’d high-five each other, how I was becoming a part of a brotherhood. But Ben wasn’t around, so I walked in and saw the receptionist.

“Hi, Matt.” I said, proud of myself for remembering his name. He looked up at me in confusion.

“Hello. Are you checking in?”

“Yes. I registered yesterday. You gave me a tour.”

“I did? Sorry, it’s the January special. We have lots of new people. Alright, what’s your name?”

“Likharev.” I spelled out my last name. Matt typed it out and clicked, nodding.

“Alright.”

“And your first name?” He looked up at me. Other than my brother, I had not met any other person with my last name in Pittsburgh, so I was sure I’d be the only Likharev in his system, but Matt looked up expectantly. So I said.

“Rodion.”

“Umm, sorry, the name doesn’t match.”

“Can you check again? I came with Ben.”

“Ben?”

“Yes, Ben.” I was about to say Ben’s last name when I realized I didn’t know it.

“Can you spell your last name again for me?” Matt asked, and I did. Again, the clicking of the keyboard. “And your first name?”

“Rodion.” I said. Matt shook his head.

“Do you have a middle name maybe?” Matt raised his eyebrows. “We do have another Likharev in the system, maybe you go by a different name?”

I gulped.

“Ryder.” I said and felt as if I was jumping into a void.

“Yep! There you are. All set. Sorry for the confusion, man. Have a great workout.”

I took a step back from the counter. My heart beat fast and I felt as if the ground shifted underneath me.

Ryder.

I remembered seeing my digital twin on the screen, working out. Was he real? Was he functioning independently from me?

“Do you know where to go?” Matt asked.

“Sorry, I gotta go.” I turned around and headed for the exit. I ran to the car.

I gotta get to the Lab right away. I gotta see what’s going on with Ryder.

I drove through the empty streets of Pittsburgh and within minutes parked in front of the Lab. I ran up to the door and knocked.

No answer.

I knocked again.

No answer.

Only then did I remember the time. 7:30am. Of course, it was too early. I needed to wait until the Lab opened.

I sighed and was about to walk back to the car when I heard the shuffling of footsteps. The door opened and a woman in a housecoat appeared on the doorstep. She looked to be about seventy years old.

“May I help you?” She croaked and adjusted her glasses.

“Hi.” I stepped back. “Do you live here?” I stared at her in confusion.

“Excuse me, young man, what are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry. I think I got the wrong address.”

“Is this some kind of prank? I’m going to call the police.” The woman slammed the door in my face.

Within seconds, I bolted to the car and drove off.