The doctor turns to face her. Just like she used to, Laura squeezes her hand, and nods toward a white curtain at the end of the office they’re sitting in. “Of course you can, dear. Though I don’t see what there is to think about.” The doctor shrugs and wipes her hands on her white lab pants. “But meanwhile, I’ve got a robe and some comfy clothes in there. Go ahead and change. You’re absolutely drenched.”
Kaarina glances at the curtain. Her stomach twists unpleasantly. She wishes Bill would say something. You know it’s been at least twenty minutes since your last “It’s a scam” rant. Should I be worried?
“Go on, sweetheart. Once you’ve changed, I’ll show you the test results and some brain scans. It’s amazing work, really. If I do say so myself.”
Kaarina sits on her chair, still hesitating and staring at the curtain. One of the nurses walks over and puts her hands on the chair, gestures for Kaarina to get up. While she slowly treads toward the curtain, Kaarina taps for Bill, hoping that changing her clothes will give her enough time to have a conversation with him.
After she steps into the small changing area, the nurse gives her a quick smile and closes the curtain. She looks almost identical to Nurse Saarinen.
Kaarina takes off her hoodie, clears her throat. Though she’s just had a drink, she suddenly feels parched.
Bill? Care to join in here? What do you think is going on?
Her jeans fall to the floor in a sodden heap.
Bill? Come on, I need you. Stop acting like you’re on your period.
The “comfy clothes” are more like rough paper on her skin. She wraps the hospital robe around her body and stares at herself at the mirror. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe this is a time-capsule. And it’s taken her back to the day of the chipping, when someone drilled a hole in her head. The same day when she woke up early just to hear that she was doomed to be different from everyone else. An underdog.
And now, her second chance has arrived. The nightly vegan meals. Her very own comfy gaming chair. She’ll finally be able to read the billboards and walk on the blue tiles.
Markus doesn’t need her. Not really. He’s just bored with life. As soon as he gets his new house, new neighbors, and a beautiful view… would he really want to hang out with someone like her? A woods person? And Raino already got what he needed. Thanks to Kaarina, he now knows his son is alive and well. Everyone else at the pharmacy will have to find another PI to track down missing persons. They’ll surely find another Unchipped con artist to scam them out of their CC’s.
The doctor peeks in. “You about ready? Let’s go to the lab. You’re not going to believe all the exciting news we have for you. You must be absolutely tickled, huh? Come on now, Nurse Niemi and Nurse Penttilä are almost done with their shift, and I’ve already asked them to watch their overtime.” Doctor Solomon’s chuckle is soft, genuine.
Something feels off. Why is the room spinning?
Bill, should I go with her?
The curtain opens and four nurses walk in. Two of them grab her by one arm, two of them by the other. When she walks between them, Kaarina does her best to focus on their faces. It’s not four nurses after all. It’s only two.
No—now it’s four nurses again.
Two nurses.
Now it’s four.
Her stomach flips but she doesn’t vomit. The water in her empty belly slushes around as they make their way into the lab. From there they keep going: through the small hallway, and into an operating room.
Metal instruments lie on a metal tray. A hospital bed with paper sheets sways slowly in the middle of the room. A tinted-glass pod, big enough to fit two Kaarinas in it stands next to the bed with wheels. It looks comfy, like a cradle to crawl into. The four nurses hold onto her until she lies safely on the bed. Two nurses let go of her, then disappear as if into thin air.
“What. Did you. Give. Me.”
The doctor is humming, a sound that reminds her of the blue tiles that snake around the city. Kaarina stares at the ceiling, where the vents seem to multiply in front of her eyes.
“Bill. Are you. There.”
Doctor Solomon chuckles softly. “I’m afraid your telepathic little friend can’t hear you, dear.” Her footsteps approach and a friendly face fills Kaarina’s blurry field of vision. “It probably wasn’t your brightest idea to tell a stranger about your West-Land connection. People may not trust each other, but they sure do spill the beans to improve their social ranks.”
Another paper sheet is placed over Kaarina’s body. Somehow, she’s lost her robe somewhere. Maybe it’s hiding somewhere outside this room. With her mind. With Bill.
“Now, I would be lying if I didn’t tell you I was a tad disappointed to learn about your shenanigans in the city. The reason we left you alone all this time and never came after you is that you haven’t participated in any of the nonsense the other loose test subjects get up to. I can’t tell you how many of them we catch almost on a weekly basis, lurking around the city with their black trash bags.”
Her chuckle tickles Kaarina’s ears, soothes her mind.
The doctor scoffs. “Some black market they have going on. Rotting meat in plastic bags.”
She reaches for an object, plugs something into a socket by the hospital bed. The sound of clippers whirring somewhere behind Kaarina’s head startles her, but she’s unable to move her head, or her hands, or her body.
The doctor’s hands work steadily on her head. Wisps of short blonde hair fall onto the floor. “Our guards can basically smell them before they see them. I’m not sure what the market is for rotting animal flesh in this city, but whoever is buying it must be well vaccinated. And
