Hybrid Read Online Free Page B

blame Dom or the GNW for causing the reset or Bastian for stupidly keying the trigger to her face and not just her name or... The list could go on, but it all boiled down to her own decision. If she hadn’t gone in the first place, if they’d just gotten out instead and set a plan in motion to scan the other location, if she’d even just gone through Johnson’s memories in more detail—then none of it would have happened. Now she just needed to convince herself of it, and maybe Iria, too.
    Iria opens her mouth a couple more times and then settles back against the wall, stabbing the barely touched food on her plate. “Fine. But I wanted to protect you. I didn’t want you to get hurt.”
    “I know.” Sai leans back in her chair, her own food suddenly not as appetizing. “I thought there’d be more criticals.”
    Iria raises an eyebrow. “You don’t have any idea how long you were out, do you?”
    Sai suddenly feels a little lightheaded. “A while...”
    “You were out for weeks, Sai.” Iria crosses her arms and glares mildly, but the twitch at the corner of her lips puts Sai at ease. Maybe the talk did them both some good.
    “We weren’t supposed to lose anyone.” They’d lost Trikel and that still stung, despite not knowing her for long. “I should have known we were starting a war.”
    “Sai!” Iria focuses on her, brow pinched. “We didn’t start the war—we’re finishing it. They started this when they first began testing that damned drug. You know it, I know it, everyone who isn’t controlled by the GNW propaganda net knows it.” She pauses for a second, eyes serious again. “You know how it works. The suggestion that everything is fine, like a dull haze, holding their emotions at bay, encouraging them to accept events passively because everything is okay.”
    Sai shivers, suddenly cold. “I can’t even imagine that loss of faculty, that loss of controlling what I’m allowed to feel...”
    “Exactly.” Iria smiles, regaining some of her usual cheery composure. “Now cut it out before you ruin my lunch.”
    Despite herself, Sai grins. “Fine, fine, think only of your stomach. You should. It’s gotten a little rounder than I remember.”
    “What! How?” Iria splutters indignantly, her food forgotten momentarily.

    Mid-step, her leg’s weight multiplies impossibly, dragging her off-balance, sending her stumbling for the safety of the rail against the wall. Sai ignores the gasp that escapes Aishke, effectively pretending the other girl isn’t in the room with her. Not like she’s been much help anyway, but at least they’ve both seen each other at their most vulnerable. It’s quid pro quo.
    Sai’s head pounds, and she relaxes for a moment despite the tightness banding her chest, shifting her leg back into place to properly support her. Focusing on the joining points, triggering the synaptic connections back down through her spine, she feels the whirr and the click, and the leg is once again a part of her body.
    Sweat beads her brow, causing small rivulets to cascade down her face and cling to her eyebrows. Her breath comes in ragged gasps, recovering from the sheer pressure caused when her legs won’t sync up with her brain. Despite the click, Sai’s head doesn’t quit, and none of the healing techniques Dom showed her seem to be working. The blinding pain makes the bright room far too white, and she clenches her eyes to try and shut out the offending glare. But it stabs against her the backs of her eyes for several seconds more.
    “Sai?” Aishke’s tone is timid, but there’s something else there. A small but strong hand grips under Sai’s elbow, lending support and perhaps a little commiseration. “We should get you back to your bed.”
    All good intentions, always good intentions. But the constant need to rest has gone on far too long. It’s been a damn week since she woke up! Sai sucks air in with exasperation and counts to five. “No. I’m sick of going back to bed.