Unplugged (5 page)

The quiet made me uneasy. “It's just a few more blocks,” I said.

“I'm sorry I acted like such a jerk last night,” Adam said. “I know you were only trying to help.”

I turned to him. “Then make up for it by telling me what you know about this message. Why us? How many other people got it? Who sent it?”

He shook his head. “Honestly, I don't know anything more than you do.”

We turned the corner, closing in on Appless Bar. Unlike everywhere else, this street was empty. “For some reason, I believe you,” I told him.

“You should. I'm not lying.”

“Let me ask you something else,” I said.

Adam glanced my way. “Go ahead.”

We came to a stop before the door of the bar. It didn't exactly look like an inviting establishment. The windows were dark and the outside was dingy, like it hadn't had an architecture update since the first people plugged in. Even the sign was broken down, the name barely lit on the wall and flickering dimly. The second
p
in
App
had gone dark, the download draining away and nobody ever bothering to fix it. The only other thing I knew about this place was that it was coded so no one could App within its walls. Other than schools and workplaces, very few
places prohibited Apping.

I took a deep breath, my eyes on Adam. “If whoever called this meeting can really help us unplug—will you do it?”

“Yes,” Adam said, his voice full of confidence. “No doubt about it.”

“It's because of your girlfriend, right? You have a girlfriend who got left on the other side of the border.”

Sadness welled in his eyes. Adam was so different when he wasn't wearing that hard, cold expression. “Her name is Parvda.”

I nodded. “I remember.”

He hesitated. “What about you? Will you unplug?”

Ever since I received the message, I'd been considering what I would do if this turned out to be a real opportunity. I'd thought about Inara, how she was always claiming we were as real as sisters can ever hope to be, and how leaving her behind would hurt her terribly—it would hurt us both.

“It depends on the circumstances,” I told Adam. “But I have a mother and a sister in the Real World and I need to find them. I want to make sure they're okay.” I stopped, thinking I'd said all that needed saying, but then realized there was something else. “And I want to find out why my mother thought it was best that I leave the Real World. Whether or not I might still have a place there. And I want to know who I am for real, too,” I added.

Adam nodded. “I understand.” His expression grew far away. “Being a Single makes it seem like we don't have a place anywhere. Not really.”

These words hung between us, their echo full of longing. Adam's honesty made me think he and I were going to be friends.

An alarm went off in my brain reminding me of the approaching hour. “Time to find out who called us here. Are you ready?”

“Yeah. Let's go.”

Adam opened the door. Inside, the bar was nearly as dark as the night outside. Adam entered first and I followed. There were a few men scattered at tables, none of them talking, all of them alone. Another man was working, mixing drinks without the help of any Apps, which was a strange sight. He didn't seem surprised to see us standing there, even though we were clearly out of place.

“All the way in the back,” he said to us.

Adam and I crossed the room toward another door, this one smaller, crooked, like it led somewhere we shouldn't be allowed to go. Tentatively, I pushed it open. The hinges groaned as it swung wide.

Someone else was already there. Her head snapped in our direction. I knew the girl by sight. She was another Single. She sat at the only table in the room.

“Hi, Sylvia,” Adam said as he walked inside, as though
this was just another chance encounter in the lounge at our hall.

I raised my hand in a wave. I'd noticed Sylvia occasionally in the cafeteria and the lounge, but I'd never talked to her. Until now, I didn't have much reason to. It's funny how you can live with someone and not know her at all.

Adam and I stood there awkwardly.

Sylvia spoke, her voice steady. “You guys got the message too?”

Adam opened his mouth to answer, but right then, another person entered the room behind me. His eyes turned icy, frosting over, as he took in the new member of our group.

Sylvia's hands balled into fists.

I turned around to see who it was.

Our newest attendee closed the door with a loud slam, and the rest of us jumped. Her long hair curled down her back, the color of fire. The black dress she wore hugged her virtual body, barely reaching the top of her thighs, accentuating her curves and long thin legs. She crossed her arms and I caught a flash of green sparkly nails.

The smile on Lacy Mills's face was wicked. “Obviously you got my message. How daring that you took me up on it! Perhaps there's hope for us all.”

“WHY ARE WE
here?” Adam demanded.

Lacy glared. “Sit down, angry boy, and I'll tell you.” The bartender appeared in the doorway with three tall glasses of bubbly brown liquid. For Lacy, there was a thin, delicate flute of something pink and sparkling. “Have a drink.” She plucked the champagne from the tray. “This is going to take a while.”

When none of us moved, the man set the remaining glasses on the table, then turned around and disappeared into the other room.

Adam walked to one of the empty chairs and pulled it out, the legs screeching against the dusty floor. He eyed his drink, but didn't touch it. Neither did Sylvia. Lacy
waited for me to join everyone at the table, but I stayed by the door. I had no reason to trust her, so I wasn't about to go and make myself comfortable.

“Fine, have it your way,” Lacy said to me. “You Singles can be
so
overly self-important.”

“I didn't come here to be insulted,” Adam said.

“Like I said,
so
overly self-important. You take everything
so
seriously.”

Lacy was one of the top celebrity Under Eighteens that people loved to hate, but she was turning out to be even nastier in person. I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms. “If you don't get to the point, I'm leaving,” I said. Adam nodded in agreement. Sylvia was watching me. “We're
all
leaving.

“I'm not leaving,” Sylvia said quietly.

My eyebrows arched. So Sylvia wasn't going to let herself get pushed around.

“Ooh, conflict among Singles.” Lacy sounded bored. “How
dramatic
.”

I reached for the handle on the door, ready to walk out. Adam got up, knocking some of his drink onto the table.

Lacy put up her free hand, fingers long and delicate. “Fine. Get a grip, everyone. I'll tell you why I called you here.”

Slowly, Adam sat down again, taking a long time to adjust his chair. I leaned back, crossing my arms.

Lacy took a dainty sip of her drink, swallowed, and then began to speak. “So. We're at Appless Bar because I needed to make sure you were all, well,
you
. I didn't want anybody showing up as, like, Medusa or a kangaroo or something.” She laughed and waited for us to join her. When we didn't, she let out a sigh. “But we're here tonight so we can discuss the current political situation—”

“The political situation?” Adam spat before she could say anything else. “You want to talk to us about politics?”

Lacy batted her eyelashes. “I know, it's hard to believe, isn't it?” She swept a hand across her virtual body. “Totally gorgeous
and
brainy, too.” She walked to the vacant chair between Adam and Sylvia at the table and sat down. She crossed her long legs and tapped her nails against her champagne flute. Satisfied we were all listening, she leaned forward. “The three of you are about to get what we all want, which is to unplug and see our”—she paused, seeming to search for the right words—“our
loved
ones in the Real World.”

My brow furrowed. Lacy Mills had loved ones in the Real World? I wasn't sure what was more surprising, that she wanted to unplug, or that she and I had something in common. I finally went over to the table and sat down in the only remaining chair. I took a long gulp of the drink that still awaited me. It was bitter.

“In exchange for unplugging, you'll help me get what
I
want. I'm in charge of everyone, of course—the organizer,
if you will.” She smiled, happy with her status as leader. “What you do on your own time when you're not carrying out orders is your business. You Singles can see your families.” She flicked her hand like she was swatting at something distasteful. “Your devoted
girlfriend
. Whatever.”

Adam shifted uncomfortably. “I don't take orders from anyone.”

Lacy's head snapped toward him. “Maybe
I
should be the one to leave. Then where would you be without my resources? My connections? You think someone else is going to help you unplug?”

Adam got up and started to pace. The floor creaked under his steps. “This isn't a game for me. For any of us.”

“Everything is a game,” Lacy said. “How do you not know that yet?”

I grabbed the back of Adam's shirt in my fist, and he stopped pacing. I gave him a fierce look. I didn't like Lacy either, but she was right—when it came to unplugging, this would be our only chance. “What exactly do you need us to do?”

Lacy smiled, pleased at my interest. “As you know, dark things are happening among the Keepers—things that could jeopardize the safety and future of every citizen in the App World. There are people on the other side of the border organizing against those Keepers. The three of you are in charge of extracting someone—someone
very
important—from this quagmire and returning him home to his rightful place in Virtual Reality.” She took another slow sip of her drink. Lacy was stalling. She obviously loved reminding us that she held all the power.

“But the border is closed,” I said.

“Oh! Is it
really
?” Lacy's eyes flashed. “I had no idea! Thank you so much for enlightening little ole ditzy me.”

I pressed my lips together.
Okay. Point to Lacy
.

She got up and began to circle the table, steps slow, heels clicking against the floor, dust floating up into the atmosphere. “Obviously, if there are ways around the law forbidding unplugging, there are ways around the law forbidding someone crossing back,” she said. “Especially if you're this particular boy.”

Sylvia had been quietly studying the glass in front of her. Now her eyes flickered to Lacy. “What boy?”

Lacy's gaze slid across each one of us. “Rain Holt,” she finally announced.

I stared at Lacy in disbelief. “Rain Holt?”

Adam looked like he had swallowed something distasteful. “Rain Holt is a useless, rich playboy.”

“To you, maybe,” Lacy said. “But to me—and to this world and the people who matter—he's priceless.”

I eyed Lacy, my brain spinning. “You'd risk everything—your life even—to see Rain again?”

She shrugged. “I need a little excitement.”

There was a false ring to her words. Something Lacy
wasn't telling us. The glass in my hand was cold, sending shivers through my code. I peeled my fingers away. “How do you imagine we'll find him? Bodies don't work like virtual selves. Bodies get tired.”

“And bodies get damaged,” Adam pointed out.

“As for the potential dangers,” Lacy began, “why do you think I've invited you three along? Just consider yourselves”—Lucy pursed her lips theatrically—“my advance team if things get dangerous. If I could go alone, I would, but as we've already established, I'm not
dumb
.” Lacy rolled her eyes. “And don't worry yourselves too hard. The Real World isn't
that
big. It's pretty much New Port City where all the plugs are and then, well, a bunch of land and abandoned towns.” Lacy tapped a finger against her champagne flute. “Besides, I have it on good authority that finding Rain isn't going to be the hard part. The difficulty will be in convincing him to come back.”

Something in Sylvia simmered, like a pot on the verge of boiling over. “Why would he need convincing?” She locked eyes with me, then Adam. “Maybe this really is a game to you. Maybe you're just sending us all to our deaths.”

Lacy placed her hand on the table in front of Sylvia. Peered into her face. “Well, that's a chance everyone is going to have to take now, isn't it?”

Sylvia said nothing. Just watched Lacy darkly.

“Have a drink, you could use one.” Lacy pushed
Sylvia's glass toward her, but Sylvia didn't touch it.

“What's in this for you?” I asked.

Lacy turned to me. “Let's just say that Rain and I have a history,” she said. “Besides, think of the scandal when everyone finds out I've rescued the Prime Minister's beloved son! When I've whisked him home to the App World, safe and sound!”

“Whisked
us
home,” I corrected.

“Of
course
that's what I meant,” Lacy said.

“And this mission, what does it involve?” I asked. “What will we be expected to
do
when we get to the Real World?”

“Patience, Skylar, darling. All will be revealed in time.”

I shook my head. I didn't like this.

Lacy sighed. “I know. It's hard not having every teensy detail.” Her eyes grew narrow. “But that's part of the deal. You can take it or leave it, and if you leave it, you'll never get to unplug.”

I studied Lacy. There was something about her tone that made me wonder if even she knew what we were getting ourselves into, or if she was just as in the dark.

“Why the three of us?” Sylvia asked before I could get to this same question.

Lacy's haughty expression faltered a moment. Uncertainty passed over her face. “I'm not the one who made that decision,” she admitted. Then her haughty expression returned, more confident than ever. “But in my
humble
opinion, you three have the most compelling reasons to unplug. Singles who care way more than any others about Service. All lacking in resources. All desperate. All stubborn. All uncharacteristically ambivalent about Apps and virtual living. All unable to let your ties to the Real World go,” Lacy went on, ticking off her reasons.

I suddenly found it hard to breathe. “How could you know any of this about us?”

Lacy shrugged. “It's not that difficult to search people's thoughts.”

My hand went to my head, as though I could protect it, as though Lacy was digging through my mind right now and I could get her out. “Searching people's thoughts—that's illegal,” I cried. “Mind privacy is one of our inalienable rights! Hacking someone's brain . . . It's the lowest of the low!”

Lacy drank the last sip from her glass, unruffled. “You can think those idealistic little things all you want, but it won't make them true. Privacy disappears if you have the right connections.” She set the empty flute on the table. “Lucky for me, I do.”

Adam grabbed his drink for the first time, and he drained it all in one gulp. “So, when we're not carrying out this ‘mission,' we can do whatever we want, right? That's the deal.”

“Yes. You can live it up in the Real World all you like. And it goes without saying, but these plans are secret. If
I find out you've told anyone, you're virtually dead. With enough capital, I could
erase
you.”

You are evil
, went my mind.

Lacy's head snapped in my direction. “No, Skylar,” she said. “Just smart.” Her expression was fierce, daring me to challenge her.

I glared. “Get out of my head.”

“Not until I know that I can trust you—all of you,” she added, eyeing Sylvia, then Adam. “Which basically means never, so get used to the fact that your mind is no longer your own. Well, at least until we get to the Real World. Even I don't have a way to create technology where there simply is none.”

Sylvia ran her finger in circles along the top of her glass. It made an eerie, mournful sound. “What's the plan, exactly? When would we leave?”

“The plan is simple. The three of you will arrive at a to-be-determined location in Loner Town at the hour I give you,” she said. “And you'll each come alone. Traveling in a group will raise too much suspicion.”

My mouth fell open. “You want us to just walk into Loner Town, by ourselves?”

“Yes,” Lacy said simply. “Our contact for unplugging is there.”

“Loner Town is dangerous,” Adam said. “We'll go together. And you'll tell us exactly where, now.”

“No,” Lacy barked. “I'm calling the shots and I will
tell you when I decide it's time. I can't have you Singles blabbing to all the others.” Her eyes zeroed in on mine. “Especially
some
people who are
so
devoted to their little best friends! The less you know, the more likely it is you'll keep your mouths shut.”

“But—” Adam tried.

Sylvia cut Adam off with an exasperated glare. “Let her finish.”

My eyes widened. I was suddenly glad Sylvia was here. It would be good to have someone else around who would help rein Adam in. And maybe Lacy, too.

Lacy uncrossed her legs and recrossed them. Her green nails sparkled as she moved. “As for when we get to the Real World, there are people awaiting our arrival, to help us transition back to the real body. Be prepared—apparently it can take days, even weeks, for the body to support normal functions again like walking and talking. Even seeing.”

I nodded. This I already knew. The Preparing for Your Service App that sixteens download explained all of this. It was daunting to think of being that vulnerable, but it didn't scare me. I'd already planned on unplugging, so I'd accepted the risks long ago.

“Though”—Lacy's tone dipped conspiratorially—“there are all sorts of rumors about how being plugged in is changing our brain chemistry. Altering our relationships to our bodies.”

“What kinds of rumors?” Adam pressed.

“Of course,” Lacy went on, ignoring Adam, “who cares about brains?” She ran a hand along the length of her virtual self. “I can't wait to see Rain's face when he gets a look at the body I'm in. I bet it's gorgeous!”

Adam cleared his throat.

Sylvia rolled her eyes.

But I couldn't help thinking that this was another thing Lacy and I had in common—excitement about seeing our real bodies.

Lacy smacked the table and the three of us jumped. “Now! I'll be in touch again soon with a GPS download for our meeting location. Then we'll be on our way!” She dusted off her hands, like this was all so easy, like everything was decided already.