"Soooo... How was it?" Gabi asked me once we were out of the cellar. He had a stupid grin on his face.

"You're not referring to...?"

"Well, yes, I am. How was virgin wonder boy?"

That mischievous smile, those inquisitive eyes, that aura around him as if he was some dog begging me to give it its bone already,... Who was he? A chronic gossiper?

"We've not done it, Gabi. Can you just be serious for some minutes, please? Got enough on my plate." I sighed.

"Fair enough. I guess you're right. Agape's proud of you, you know," he said while we were walking out of Angel Rock's clearing and into the woods.

"Really?"

It was rather dark in the small woods on Angel Rock, but I could get a glimpse of admiration on his face.

"She's said so in front of everybody right after you've left. I couldn't agree more."

"That's only gonna make things even more difficult for me in your group."

"Nah, don't worry. We'll get out of this mess, and nobody's gonna hold you accountable for Ray's death or anything."

"Aren't you at least a bit nervous about this? About tomorrow?" I asked him with worry as we got out of the woods and went towards Amanita's parking lot. Frankie was waiting for me only a few steps ahead.

He sighed. For the first time in my life, I felt that he was getting genuinely serious.

"I would be lying if I said that I'm not at least a bit nervous. But I don't..." He sighed. "I'm not good at this being serious thing, you see. It's like a defence strategy. My sense of humour kicks in and helps me chill. It eases my stress. I know life is not all beer and skittles. What can I say? I guess I'm weird, right?"

"Never thought of it that way."

We stopped right beside Frankie. He went on softly thus:

"I'll be fine, Daphne. Agape's plans have never failed."

"Until I came along, I guess."

"It's not your fault. Seriously. I mean that I trust her with my life when she says we're gonna win this thing. She trusts our plan to go through the additional check-ups undetected; thus, so do I."

"And Ray?"

"We might have got a mole – or not. The clones might have simply wanted a scapegoat. It's happened before. Agape disagrees. She says that then Ray's murder would be a coincidence, and she doesn't believe in coincidences. But I'm willing to test this theory. Tomorrow at midday, my check-up. With my life on the line."

"Oh, Gabi..."

"By the way, Agape will not check your nanochip. It's against her moral code of conduct. She only snoops when there's an active op, just to be able to provide immediate assistance if needed. The rest of the rebels need to know their place in the group, that's all. She's the boss, and they should follow orders. Period."

He was admirable when he spoke softly and seriously like that.

"I hope so, Gabi."

"I think she should check our nanochips, though. All our chips. Just to be on the safe side. Again, we agree to disagree. She's really stubborn, you see."

"That would be a shitload of work, Gabi. To be done in very little time."

"I know right? But it's worth a try. The threat of getting caught by Agape might actually make the mole flee out of survival instinct. Isn't it worth a try staging such a treat at least?"

"It could work, yes."

"Besides that, you don't need to do anything. All those things you've said you'd do to prove you're not guilty and to stay away from trouble, from us. Agape's thrown a fit when you were already gone. That was the only part that she didn't enjoy from your speech. Noble, but she doesn't approve of it. You should talk with her tomorrow about this. You'll both feel better."

"I guess I will. Thanks for the advice, Gabi."

"You're welcome, cariño."

Out of the blue, we heard a group of people approaching fast. Gabi's face went pale and he gasped.

"Quick. Squat down behind that car," he whisper-shouted at me while grabbing one of my arms and squatting down beside me. Luckily, a car parked near us was shielding us from that potential danger.

"What is it? Who are these people?" I asked whispering when I got a glimpse of a group of adult men clad in black clothes, wearing masks, and carrying heavy bags and backpacks with ease. Some had lighters in their hands.

"Rioters," he replied, whispering sternly. "Shhh... Don't say a word."

We remained silent. It wasn't easy with my heart playing the drums so loudly inside me.

"If they attack our home again, I swear I'm gonna lose it this time," he said, full of anger.

However, the rioters walked by and went down the promenade in a hurry.

"What the-?!" Gabi was as bewildered as I was.

"Where are they going?" I asked with worry.

"I don't know."

A few blocks down the promenade, they started to unpack some stuff I couldn't see properly – until they used their lighters. Molotov cocktails. They started to throw them at a large house in a frenzy. Barely a few seconds later, they were already done and fleeing from the crime scene.

"Gotta call the fire department!" Gabi exclaimed as we stood up again. While he took out his mobile phone and dialled it, he whispered some profanities in Spanish.

When they got his call, he spoke in a hurry.

"I'm calling to report a fire. It's Mr Beaumont's house and shop, from Dawn," he said and waited for a reply. "Yes, the butcher." They confirmed they were coming right away. "Thank you."

"You didn't give them an address."

"No need to. Mr Beaumont is famous around here. He's the richest butcher in Dawn." He stared at the distant fire with a frown. "I wonder why the rioters who've been nagging us would target him, his family, and his business."

"Are you sure these were the same people? They were masked."

"Same style, same number of men, same MO,... and same night. Something smells fishy here."

I wondered about it for some seconds in silence.

"Let's check the news online. You got attacked right after Ray got exposed in the media, right?"

I took out my device and checked the latest news on clone newspapers online.

"There you go," I said, showing him what I had found.

"Mr Beaumont has been found guilty of treason and rebellion during his nanochip check-up?! But... he wasn't one of us! He was just a rich, fat guy in his forties!"

"Something smells fishy, just like you've said, Gabi. Maybe you're right about the scapegoat theory after all. Or maybe there's something even darker behind this."

"Or both. I wouldn't rule anything out, Daphne. Things are getting nastier than I thought."

"Be safe tomorrow, OK?"

A few minutes later, I arrived home and parked Frankie in our garage. The house was dark and silent. I guessed my father had gone to sleep already. It was late.

I turned on the lights in the living room only to gasp in amazement.

There was a huge fruit basket on the table. A myriad of different sweet perfumes overwhelmed my nose. I got closer to it only to stare at it, wondering where such a treasure had come from. Fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and other healthy groceries were luxury products that we couldn't afford at home. We usually ate little, and only processed food the origin of which I never dared to question. That was why such fresh fruit was alien to me and other lower-income traditional humans.

All of a sudden, I realised there was a card. It was a superbly decorated card made of thick, and therefore, expensive paper. It was sealed. I opened it and read its content.

A baffled Eros had sent it when his mother had told him about Miss Radica's murder and the IOU message written in blood, targeting me. He was appalled and worried about my well-being. He was displaying how much he cared about me, especially after supporting him in his career choice. The fruit basket and the card were a thank you gift as much as an invitation to seek solace in him whenever I needed it. He even wrote a PS note at the end, suggesting that he'd buy me a mobile phone. That way he'd be only a call away.

I started to blush and freak out when I read that. Another mobile phone?! And a GSNS-supervised one, no less! Not bloody likely!

I left the card on the table and went to sleep. I didn't feel like it after the hectic tsunami that my life was turning out to be, but I felt like I needed to lock myself in my room and pretend that I could actually disconnect from reality. I needed it badly.

"Daphne! Wake up and come to the kitchen this instant!" My father's voice roared, displeased.

With really bad bed hair, a feeling that I wasn't fully awake yet, and a mild headache, I emerged from my bedroom and rushed to the kitchen.

"It's too early, dad. My alarm clock hasn't even gone off. What is it, dad?" I whispered drowsily.

"Would you mind telling me why a delivery guy brought a huge fruit basket yesterday evening while you were out rejecting a 'friend'?"

"I don't know. I..."

"Who's Eros Nevermore? The delivery guy told me that name was the sender. Don't tell me it's the one and only Eros Nevermore, the son of the Secretary of State and Lenore Nevermore, former top model and current CEO of Oyster? Eros, the most expensive baby ever born in the BioBank? The clone prodigy?!" He wasn't angry, just overwhelmed that a famous clone was so close to me.

"Why do you ask me if you already know the answer, dad? And please, don't speak so loudly. My brain is going to... implode," I whispered while leaning on the threshold and massaging my forehead with a hand.

"You worked only for a day in the Sappho Residence. How come he's so friendly towards you? I don't get it."

Thankfully, the volume and tone of this voice were much lower and calmer, but equally inquisitive.

"We're friends, that's all," I replied while crossing my arms over my chest.

"Was he the 'friend' you had to reject yesterday?" His smile was that of a naughty cat.

"What?! No!"

He burst out laughing. That made me come closer to him in a defiant attitude, but he wasn't impressed. I shook my head vehemently and grunted while going to the fridge to get some milk for breakfast.

"Oh my God!" he exclaimed joyfully while I took a long sip directly from the bottle. I only did it because it pissed my father off. He was pissing me off, so he had it coming. "You've got not only one young man after you, but two."

That made me spit the milk from my mouth in a heartbeat. I almost choked on it.

I turned to face him and complain. He stared at my terror-stricken yet blushing face, with the pearly milk staining both my mouth and chin, and he went on laughing.

"I heard you coming home late last night. Really late. I wanted to give you a lecture about it this morning, especially now that there's a rebel group on the loose in Thalis. You make me worry. But if that's how you handle your relationships... Look, I don't want you to hide anything from me. You don't need to go out late at night to sneak away from me. I'd rather know the truth and be sure that you're gonna be safe. You're feeling ashamed of getting a fling? Fine with me. You don't need to tell me their names or anything. I won't bother you with more questions. Not even when they buy you such nice things... like this fruit basket. Just don't go out so late at night, OK? Promise?"

"OK, I promise," I said after a heartfelt sigh, knowing that I'd break that promise. 

At least the card had been sealed, so my father hadn't read it. He knew nothing about Miss Radica's murder and all that shit. I wasn't planning on telling him. He was too worried about me already, about my future and my prospects. I couldn't load his shoulders with the weight of an unsolved murder aimed at harming me.

"Just one thing before I shut up about any potential boyfriend. Promise me you'll reject Eros Nevermore the next time you see him, please."

"Why do you want me to do that?"

"He's a clone, Daphne. Don't get your hopes high. He's not for you. You don't belong in his world."

"I already know that, dad. We're just friends. You're the only one who doesn't believe me."

"Well, this fruit basket and this card seem to disagree, sweet pea."

I sighed, acknowledging that he was right. Eros seemed more and more interested in me as days went by. I might need to do something about it, but I didn't want to break his heart.

"Dad, no offence, but I don't want to discuss guys with you, OK? Like ever."

"OK, OK! I'll seal my lips. I just... I would love to know you shan't be alone when I'm gone, that's all."

That was when I came closer to him, hugged him, and placed a soft kiss on his right cheek.

"Don't worry about me, dad," I whispered lovingly.

"Now, what was that about?" he asked, smiling at me with bewilderment.

"Nothing. Can't I kiss you?"

"You're hiding something from me, aren't you?"

I laughed out loud. If only you knew, dad!

"Sure!" I replied nonchalantly, mocking myself. "I'm hiding a boyfriend from you! Hahaha!"

At least my father would never know about Sigi. I would never introduce him to him, or any of the rebels from Amanita, for obvious reasons. As regards Eros, it was a sane course of action to keep him at a safe distance from me. I'd find a way. I wouldn't think it wise to introduce him to my father either. None of those guys was meant to be connections in my father's social life. Both were dangerous for different reasons.

"I fancy watching tonight's game at the Sports Palace. They're repeating last week's match, aren't they? Shell vs Dawn. I was told that there's this hockey star in Dawn's team who's beyond amazing. May I come with you?"

Oops.

That Friday morning, I was so nervous that I kept checking my mobile phone every now and then at work. By half-past twelve I still had got no news.

Gabi's turn for his check-up was at midday. I was worried sick about him. I didn't want to lose him.

The rioters from last night, Mr Beaumont getting falsely accused of being a rebel, Ray's getting caught despite his perfectly clean and stoic behaviour, a potential mole, the IOU, Eros' fruit basket, Sigi's truth and our tryst, my father's gossipy nature,... I was sure I'd get a heart attack pretty soon.

A sudden vibration coming from one of my white coat's pockets startled me when I was sweeping the huge marble floor of the entry hall. I sneaked into the stairs with my cleaning cart when nobody was looking and got the call. It was Agape.

"Daphne, are you alone? Can you talk?" she asked in a hurry, noticeably upset.

"Yes, I can. Just don't tell me that Gabi..." I couldn't find the courage to finish that sentence.

"Nah, he's perfectly fine!" she exclaimed nonchalantly. "He's come back in a hurry only to brag about his success. Now he thinks he's the greatest genius in the whole world. He's so annoying! Right now, he's putting my patience to test – and honestly, I'm about to blow up."

On the one hand, I was relieved to know he was alive and well, fooling around as usual – or more than usual, actually. On the other hand, Agape sounded exhausted and pissed due to his childish behaviour.

"He's insufferable!" she exclaimed, and then she let out a tell-tale sigh.

"How was his check-up? Anything unusual that we can focus on?"

She let out a hysterical laugh.

"Agape, are you OK?"

"Daphne, I've supervised his check-up, like Ray's. That wasn't a check-up. That was a porn flick."

"What?!" She was weirding me out. "What have those policemen done to him?!"

"It's not what you think. Gabi's passed his check-up with flying colours only because," she replied, her voice in full throttle, "instead of using the meditation-related techniques I taught him, he's been fantasising about X-rated stuff... involving him and... me. And he did so on purpose, knowing that I'd be supervising the whole time! Have you got any idea how disturbing that is?!"

"Oh... my... God..." I couldn't find any other words.

"I had always taken him for a stupid flirt, but I guess that he's got a dirtier mind than I thought possible."

"So, he's obsessed with sex. That's how he's dodged the bullet?!"

"Yep. Couldn't have phrased it better myself. He's not even flinched when the cops have asked him about whether or not he knew that Ray had been involved in the rebel group that's currently terrorising Thalis. His only answer: 'My boss is a hot chick. I'm totally whipped. Can't wait to get close to her and...'" She sighed. "You get the drill. But I don't get it. I was expecting the mole, if we've got one, to have given a complete list of our names. Then, Gabi should've gotten caught, but... I don't understand clone cops. And I don't think Gabi's the mole, just as Nemesis has suggested. She says he is only 'cos he's survived the check-up."

"I don't get it either. Oh, has Gabi told you about Mr Beaumont and the fire yesterday?"

"Yes, I've even visited Mrs Beaumont this morning. It's..." She made a brief, ominous pause. "Look, I need to talk to you. Not over the phone, though. Can you come to Amanita during lunch break? I'll get you lunch – my treat. I need to talk with someone who's in their right mind, just the two of us. About what you said last night, the rioters, the mole, you know. I think I'm onto something, but I want to share it with you first. I want to know what you think about my hypothesis before I let the rest know."

"OK, sure. Are you all OK? Have the rioters come back?"

"No, don't worry, Daphne. It's mellow around here right now. We'll see when night falls, though."

Hello, sugar cubes!

What do you think Agape's hypothesis is? Why does she need to talk with Daphne face to face? Stay tuned! 😊

XOXO

MS