Page 61 of Chaos Theory

FIFTY-EIGHT

MAEVE

I wake up suddenly and confused. I fumble around for my phone on the bed. The shape feels lumpy and unfamiliar until I remember it’s the burner phone. I hold it close to my face, squint my eyes open a crack. No new messages.

I’m ninety-eight per cent numb. That’s probably how Kobi would describe this feeling.

I feel around on the bedside table for my real phone. No new messages. I log in to my email account. One new email. From Kobi.

I bolt upright. My heart leaps. Until I read the first line. How quintessentially Kobi. The whole thing. I forward the email to Shane and Josh, then let the phone fall onto the bed as I sink down, downwards into sleep.

I wake up to vibrations from my phone. No idea what time it is. I look at the screen blearily and see that it’s Ron and it’s 5:30am. No way am I going to answer that. A minute later, my phone pings. You have one new voice message.

‘ Maeve, I’ll keep this brief. You’re fired, obviously.

You’re lucky I don’t sue you for inciting criminal damage or something, but my lawyer says you basically have nothing so it’s not worth it.

Anyway, I hope I never see your face or hear your name again.

’ There’s a pause, a sigh. ‘ I don’t know, maybe I should go back to chatbot development. It’s a lot less trouble. ’

I lie there, looking up into the darkness. It’s so dark I don’t know if my eyes are open or closed. Time is endless yet also looping. My mind goes fuzzy.

The burner phone makes an unfamiliar sound. I pick it up. Apparently it’s 6:30am. Another voicemail. This time from Josh.

‘ Hey, it’s Josh. It’s still early and I didn’t want to wake you so I dialled straight into your voicemail…

Sorry, I hope that’s not creepy. So listen.

I read Kobi’s email. And it’s given me an idea…

I’ve been awake since three so maybe it’s not a good idea.

But I can’t stop thinking about it. Anyway, I was wondering…

can you meet me at the farm today? As soon as you can.

Also, can you text me the exact location of the farm? ’