Chapter 39

Renee woke to an empty bed.

A quick query and her sight displayed the time: 5:20 AM. Too early to rise, even for Simon. She quelled the panic and rose to her feet, pulling the sheet over her body for slight warmth and cover.

She could always use the computer to find out his location - but that was cheating. Just as off limits as looking into his thoughts, despite the times she'd wanted to. The girl had sworn to fill the void as 'owner' in name only; crossing the line in deed was not something she would do.

The carpet sank under her feet as she stepped through the apartment's hall. The place was not nearly as grand as any of the residences the synthetics had experienced before, but it was safe, and it was home.

The doors to the other bedrooms were shut, probably locked. She and Simon had liberated the three occupants two weeks before; none of the synthetics yet trusted her or each other.

But Simon would not be visiting them.

The last door in the hall was open, a sliver of light escaping through the crack. She entered without knocking.

Simon sat in a chair near the head of the bed, on the opposite side of the machine keeping his duplicate healthy.

He glanced up as she entered, lifting his head from his hands.

"Simon," she said, settling on the younger boy's bed. She gathered her lover's hands in her own. "You need to sleep."

"I thought I heard him."

"You dreamed you heard him." Renee glanced at the serene face of the child in the bed. "Seven won't wake."

He sighed and leaned back, gaze to the ceiling. "If I hadn't covered his eyes-"

"No," she interrupted. "You can't blame yourself. Matt said it was unlikely you caused it."

He shook his head. "A 42% chance. So very unlikely."

"Even this is better than where you both were, right?"

He said nothing.

Renee sighed.

"Come back to bed," she said, tugging his arm.

He followed her to the bedroom.