Reception

Chapter 9 - Switching Providers

Damien placed his hands on the granite table to brace himself, "You're not seriously going to think I believe you?"

"I didn't assume you would," Alice replied, grinning to show her perfectly white teeth, "at first."

"Or ever," retorted Damien coolly, "I believe that you're a terrorist group."

"And I believe that you're a banana," scoffed Alice, rolling her eyes, "but that doesn't mean that it is the absolute truth." Alice folded her arms, her hard, piercing blue eyes pulling Damien's focus, "I don't expect you to just up and join The Holos. The offer is on the table."

Damien's chocolate eyes hardened, their gaze matching Alice's, "Let's just say that you are the good guys, what proof would I have of this?"

Alice stopped her hard gaze and moved forward, her arms sliding across the granite table until they couldn't extend anymore. She stretched and pulled back, taking her time in her response. After a moment she tapped her right forefinger on her chin, humming to herself.

"Well?" urged Damien.

"I'm thinking!" snapped Alice, almost snarling.

Damien's mouth shut just as fast as it had opened. Alice continued to think until she grinned at a conclusion, "Go ahead and look at the archives posted by the government on your TED. Your government always says that they have all of their past out on display, right?" Damien nodded. "Well, then you should be able to pull up the details about the massacre that happened at Great Britain. They named that day, yes, 'The Holo Day,' a pun on the word 'hollow.' They claimed that The Holos killed all those people, making that day empty." Damien continued to let the words sit in his mind. He soaked them in steadily, beginning to wonder where this was going. "Hypothetically, if I'm right, then there will be inconsistencies between stories that the government provides. After all, you can't keep a lie going unless you tell another lie," she said, her triumphant grin still on her face, "But, if I'm wrong, then yes, you can disregard anything I've said and we're all just a bunch of murderers out to get you."

Alice stood up after finishing her statement. She placed her sunglasses back on, using her right hand to flick back some of her auburn hair that had rebelliously attacked her face. After a small, short exhale she looked back to Damien, throwing him a quick grin, "We'll be in touch." She began to walk away, her steps accentuated by high heels he had never noticed she was wearing under her black jeans. Damien cursed himself for being snuck up on so easily. He was about to dismiss Alice altogether when, before he knew it, he felt tiny hands find their way to his shoulders, gripping. He felt and heard deliberately heavy breathing as that same, bell-like voice cooed, "Sleep tight. We're watching you."

Damien jumped, sending Alice into a laughing frenzy. She backed up a few steps as she held her stomach. When her laughing spree finally ended, she waved in an almost friendly way and trotted off on her heels, finally out of sight.

"What a creep," Damien mumbled.

"What a cute creep," commented Michael.

"Shut up," Damien barked, glaring at no one in particular.

*****

The room was stark-white. The way it was built made it feel as if it had been built as a lab for scientists at one point. White pannels were evenly spaced up the length of the walls. There was only one door out of the room. White tiles along the top and bottom of the room complimented the walls. A single, wooden table occupied the majority of the space at the center of the room. There was also a chair, made of similar wood, tucked and pushed in underneath it.

The room wasn't terribly large, but it wasn't small, either. It was decent, clean, and for lack of a better word, comfortable.

However, Sarah wasn't planning on staying there forever.