Chapter 6
The Return
Around eleven, a low rumble rolled up the driveway.
Then came a heavy thud.
Jane was already moving.
She reached the front door just as the truck’s cargo door slammed open.
The same driver.
Big, sweaty, and already breathing hard, as though the crate had personally offended him.
He wrestled a long wooden box to the edge of the truck and dropped it onto a wheeled cart with a solid bang.
Jane stepped outside and watched him haul it up the driveway. He tipped the crate onto the concrete near the front steps, scraping the wood against the ground.
Rough.
Final.
The driver straightened, wiped his hands on his shirt, and shoved the tablet toward her.
“Sign.”
Jane scrawled her name without looking and handed it back.
By the time she raised her eyes, the driver was already halfway to the truck.
Gone almost as quickly as he had arrived.
Jane turned toward the crate.
This time, she was ready.
No hesitation.
She went inside, retrieved the small pry bar, and returned to the porch.
The straps came off first.
Quick work.
Then the nails, each one popping loose with a sharp, satisfying crack.
The wood shifted beneath her hands.
Jane paused for just a second, her fingers resting against the lid.
“…Okay.”
She wedged the pry bar beneath the edge and pulled.
The lid came free with a final crack.
The large envelope sat on top of the packing material again.
READ THIS FIRST.
Jane pushed it aside.
Not this time.
She began pulling away the layers of protective wrapping. When the final sheet of plastic slid away from Cam’s head, she stopped.
His face was different.
A raised light-blue plate now covered the front of his head.
Smooth.
Seamless.
But not original.
Jane leaned closer.
The dent was gone.
“Okay…” she whispered. “That’s new.”
She examined both sides of his head.
Both auditory covers were attached.
Perfect.
As though nothing had ever been wrong.
Jane pulled away the remaining plastic and cut through the restraints securing Cam’s arms, body, and legs. His limbs shifted slightly when the final strap released.
Loose.
Ready.
She reached toward the side of his neck and found the recessed activation button beneath his jaw.
Jane pressed and held it.
One.
Two.
Three.
A soft internal whir responded immediately.
Power.
She felt it before she fully heard it.
The light-blue plate shimmered faintly.
Jane stepped back, unsure what to expect.
Cam was coming online.
Booting.
Waking.
She wasn’t sure what to call it.
His head moved first, turning slowly and deliberately. Then he raised his arms and placed his hands against the sides of the crate.