Robin Wasserman - Shattered

“The whole point is that it has to be a total surprise,” Jude said. “If they knew we were there, we’d have to fight our way out. And we’d lose. There’s no way to alert the orgs without giving ourselves away.”

“Then we come up with another plan!” I insisted. “I’m not—” I didn’t even want to say it out loud. The words would have sounded ludicrous coming out of my mouth. I’m not killing anyone . As if I was the type of person for whom that was even an option. Unrecognizable was one thing. This was alien. This was unthinkable. “Tell him, Riley. Tell him we can’t do this.”

I waited for Riley to take Jude’s side or keep his mouth shut. But he shook his head. “No,” he said firmly. Not to me, to Jude. “She’s right. We don’t do this.”

“It’s not like they’re innocent. They’re not in there having a tea party. They’re trying to kill us . We’d just be striking first. Self-defense isn’t a crime.”

“You want to turn us into monsters?” I asked. “You want to confirm everything they say about us? You want to make it all true ?”

“You want to die ?” Jude snapped. “This isn’t just about Sloane and Ani and all the rest of them, not after what you saw. We didn’t turn this into a war, they did. And in a war, you fight. Self-defense is not murder.”

“Dead is still dead,” I told him. “And if you knew anything about what it was like when people—”

“Lia, don’t,” Riley said, his voice quiet but insistent.

“No!” I cried. “If he understood what it’s like when people fall, when they stop breathing, and their eyes… if he’d seen what we saw, he wouldn’t…”

“That was fake,” Jude said tightly. “So maybe you’re the one who doesn’t get it. I’ve seen death. The real kind. And I’ve seen people die because they couldn’t protect themselves.” He shot a glance at Riley, who looked away. “Or because other people refused to do what was necessary to protect them.”

“It doesn’t make it okay,” I insisted. “It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t find another way.”

“Stop being such a child!” Jude yelled. “Sometimes there just isn’t another way.”

“And sometimes there is,” Riley said. “So we find one.”

“Zo could be in that building,” I said.

“You said she’s not allowed in there,” Jude reminded me.

“Fine. So someone else’s sister could be in there.”

“You’re right,” Jude said. “ Sloane . Sister of an eight-year-old kid named Max. And Ty’s got two little brothers. Brahm has an older one, who doesn’t acknowledge his existence.”

I couldn’t believe he’d bothered to find out about anyone’s families, much less remembered the details.

“Then there’s Ani. Who doesn’t have anyone,” Jude continued. “Does that make her less valuable? Does that mean we should sacrifice her so the orgs trying to kill her get to live?”

“I don’t want to sacrifice anyone ,” I said.

“You want. You want. Like that matters.” Jude shook his head, plainly disgusted. “Reminder: They’re orgs. They’re going to die sooner or later, so what’s the difference if it’s a little sooner than later?”

“You don’t mean that,” Riley said.

Jude shrugged. “Maybe I do, maybe I don’t. Here’s what I know. Sometimes it’s necessary to sacrifice. Isn’t that the bedrock of our wonderful society? Isn’t that why the masses get shoved into the cities, why they live in the dark, eating synthetic garbage, dying without med-tech? So that the few can enjoy their cars and their network and their organic, free-range beef? Pollution stays under control, population stays under control, everyone’s happy—everyone who counts, at least. Every day, we sacrifice the many for the good of the few. So why not, just this once, sacrifice a few for the good of the many?”

“And it’s just a coincidence that in this case, the ‘many’ is us,” I said sarcastically.

“It’s no coincidence,” Jude snapped. “It’s self-preservation. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re in trouble. It’s not just the Brotherhood. It’s the government restrictions. It’s the corps turning on us. It’s BioMax claiming to be on our side but holding the keys to the kingdom. What happens if they suddenly decide that mech tech is too much trouble for them? What if they don’t want to give us new bodies anymore and just let the old ones break down? Let us disappear? We have no control ,” Jude hissed. “And you may be okay with that, but I’m not. At some point, we have to start standing up for ourselves. I say we start now.”

“Listen to yourself,” I said. “Orgs. Mechs. Us. Them. Like they’re so different from us—like you’re so different from Savona. As if you don’t sound just like him, ranting and raving and not caring who gets hurt. You’re both so convinced that you’re right—”

“The difference is I am right!”

“I’m sure he thinks so too.”

“Wake up, Lia! Some people are right and some people are wrong. Some things are right. And if you’re too cowardly to admit that, if you’re too scared to face up to the truth and do what needs to be done, then you’re just as wrong as they are. Maybe more so. At least they believe in what they’re doing. You’re just being willfully stupid.”

“Don’t call her stupid,” Riley said.

“I can speak for myself,” I told him, putting a hand on his shoulder so he would know I appreciated it, even if I didn’t need it. Then turned back to Jude. “Don’t call me stupid.”

“Go ahead,” Jude told Riley. “Nod along with your girlfriend. Let her tell you what to think.”

“That’s not what I’m doing,” Riley said. “She’s right. You’re wrong. That’s it.”

“Oh, really?” Jude sneered. “Since when do you care who gets hurt? As long as you get what you want, right? Take care of what’s yours, and never—”

“Shut up,” Riley said, a warning in his voice.

“You think he’s going to choose you ?” Jude asked me. “Think again. He knows what he owes me. He’s never going to forget that.”

“You owe each other,” I said. “And now he’s paying up by stopping you from doing something stupid. Why don’t you stop being so pigheaded and paranoid and listen ? We’re not your enemy.”

“We?” Jude rolled his eyes. “I love how she talks like she knows you. But she doesn’t know anything, does she? Not about who you really are. What you’re willing to do.”

“I’m telling you to shut up—”

“He doesn’t have to tell me anything,” I said loudly. Like shouting would make it true. “I know what I need to know.”

“So do I,” Jude said. “This is the only way to rescue our people. And to stop these psychos from doing any more damage. I’d rather do it with you, but if I have to, I’ll do it alone.”

We argued with him. We kept arguing until there was nothing left to say—until it was clear that Jude was convinced this was the only way. And every time Riley spoke, every time he exchanged one of his looks with Jude or trailed off in the middle of a sentence, knowing Jude would understand and I wouldn’t, I wondered. I hated myself for it. But I heard Jude’s voice, his unspoken expectations, and I wondered. Who were you, Riley? I thought. What did you do?

The argument drained us all, and in the end we were still left with no alternatives, no compromises, no resolution. We all agreed: Ani, Sloane, Ty, and Brahm needed to be rescued.

We agreed that the lab was dangerous and should be destroyed.