新媒网 · 跨境数据社区

I picked up the chrome handset and cleared my throat. “Hello?” “Janie?” The voice was male and sounded young. “Yes?” “Finally! I’ve been worried sick about you. My folks have been so cagey about what happened to you while I was under. You know how they are.” “Uh, what?” He chattered on, speaking faster by the word. “I told them I’d stop taking my medicine unless they let me see you. Figured it would work quicker than a hunger strike, though no luck yet. I found your number in my dad’s office.” I glanced at the phone to make sure I was on the right line. “Who is this?” “Very funny. Anyway, they told me you’re almost better now and said we can come pick you up tomorrow. Actually, they said they’d send a railcar to pick you up, but I’ll convince them to let me come along. Or I’ll hide in the trunk. Whatever works.” I tried to make sense of the young man’s rapid-fire babble, my jaw going slack. If I was understanding correctly, there really was another clone just like me. I knew I wasn’t the only one. For a moment, my mind went still, like the dead center of a tornado. I wasn’t the only one. I wasn’t alone. Then my thoughts resumed their usual whirl as I processed what I’d heard. The boy seemed to think I was literally the Jane—the Janie—he knew. It isn’t possible to switch someone’s consciousness, their self, into another body, even an exact genetic copy. That’s a common misconception. Sometimes people clone deceased family members, especially children, and wind up bitterly disappointed when they can’t replace the ones they lost. Clones are much more successful when new iterations step into an occupation rather than into someone’s personal life. “I’m not sure you understand how this works,” I said, wishing I could see the strange boy’s face. “Normally, we get training to teach us about our roles, but I’m not actually the same—” “Isaac!” A man spoke in the background, with a commanding tone that would make the strictest teacher on campus sit up straight. “Who are you talking to?” “Janie.” Isaac’s voice became muffled, and I imagined a faceless boy holding a phone’s mouthpiece against his shoulder. “I found the number for her hospital on your desk. She sounds a little mixed up, but—” “Put the phone down.” The urgency in the voice made my stomach churn uneasily. “Relax, Dad. I’m just letting her know we’re picking her up—” There was a beep, and the line went dead. “Hello? Uh, Isaac?” No response came. I set down the phone, more confused than ever, and tried to get my head around what I’d learned. Isaac had known my voice. There was another person just like me. A person he called Janie. My batchmate. Continue reading REPLACEMENT Free in Kindle Unlimited! 📚 www.amazon.com/dp/B0B6BGX1YM