The System by Gemma Malley

Author:Gemma Malley
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Dystopian, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Coming of Age, Science Fiction, Genre Fiction, Literature & Fiction
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Published: 2013-12-05T00:00:00+00:00

16

‘You’ve called your central base Cassandra?’

Raffy looked at Milo defensively. ‘So?’

‘So it’s a weird name.’

Raffy pulled a face. ‘I guess,’ he said. ‘Just seemed kind of apt at the time. She’s tricky.’

Milo laughed. He’d taken to hanging around Raffy’s cubicle for an hour or so most days; officially he was there to monitor Linus’s work, but in reality he didn’t seem that keen on spending time with the man tasked with building the System; only with the younger one who was supposed to be checking it. Raffy didn’t mind. They were getting on pretty well. And he knew Milo would be useful to him at some point soon. ‘All women are tricky. You should have had her change into a man. Much more straightforward.’

‘Yeah, I’ll stick with Cassandra if it’s all the same with you,’ Raffy said with a shrug. ‘Not exactly a hit with the girls right now, if you know what I mean. Cassandra’s the only woman who’s actually talking to me.’ He looked meaningfully out of the glass door of his cubicle; Milo followed his gaze to where Evie was lying on a sofa, her eyes fixed on the screen ahead.

‘Still not talking to you?’ Milo asked sympathetically.

‘Not even looking at me.’

‘Well, plenty more fish in the sea.’ Milo winked. ‘Let’s have a look shall we?’ He leant in towards Cassandra and moved his hand towards the screen. ‘How about her,’ he said, pulling up an image of a blonde girl walking up some steps. He tapped the screen and some text came up.

Hi, I’m Vanessa. I have 43,689 Watchers. I’m a student right now but I want to be an actor some day. I like dancing, eating out and sexy lingerie. Follow me and I can promise you a good time!

Raffy stared at her; Milo laughed. ‘Your pupils are dilating like crazy,’ he said. ‘There are loads of them. Here, what about her?’

A brunette appeared. Hi, I’m Sara. I have 506,782 Watchers. I work as a receptionist but my first love is winter sports. Watch me bomb down mountains, then join me for some après ski in the hot tub!

‘She’s nice,’ Raffy said, his cheeks reddening slightly. Then he sighed. ‘Thing is, Milo, you’re out there with these people. I’m not. And if Thomas has his way I’ll probably never be.’

Milo pulled a face. ‘I wouldn’t say that. If he gets his System, he might release you into the wild, you never know.’

Raffy turned sharply. ‘You think?’

Milo shrugged. ‘I don’t know. But I don’t see why not. He likes loyalty. Are you loyal, Raffy?’

Raffy held his eye for a few seconds then looked down. ‘I wasn’t loyal to Evie,’ he said quietly.

‘Thomas won’t mind about that.’ Milo grinned.

‘These girls … they’re really real? I mean, they’re actually out there?’ Raffy asked then. ‘Girls like this? Beautiful girls in hot tubs and dancing in their underwear?’

‘They’re actually out there,’ Milo nodded, peering at the screen. ‘Sara there is in Nantes if I’m not very much mistaken. Not so far away.

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