Page 142 of The Restoration Program

“Don’t youdaretalk to me about responsibility!” She reveled briefly in his responding silence. “It’s over.”

“What?”

Sniffling, Nicole craned her neck, drinking Ryan in. Those arms that had held her. The hands that had caressed her, cradled her. That handsome face so capable of sweetness that used to make the world feel brighter and safer with every little smile. She could picture him like a scene from a favorite movie. A man that was separate from the angry person standing over her now.

“I love you,” she said. “I’ve loved you so long and so hard, Ry. And I think for a long time, I would’ve done anything to make you stay. Even with all this shit going on.” She gestured at her printed body frantically. “But… not anymore. You crossed a line. It’s over. I’m done.”

Nicole couldn’t hold his wide-eyed gaze.

“You can’t be serious,” Ryan breathed, like he’d been punched.

“It’ll be easy. We have nothing legal binding us, so there’s no need to involve attorneys. I’ll just gather the rest of my things this week, and you can transfer my money to a new account. I’ll work with the Facility to see about getting an individual account through them, if necessary.” She swallowed painfully. “Maybe we can talk more then.”

“No.”

“What?” Nicole gave a harsh laugh. “What do you mean, ‘no’?”

Ryan gripped the railing. Nicole skittered back, heart hammering. The thin metal groaned as his knuckles whitened. “I need you. I-I know it might not make sense to you, but it’s true. This is just a mistake, and we’ll come out of this stronger than ever.”

“Oh, you need me as much as you needed that cunt?” Nicole asked.

“You’rethe one that left. I was trying to make things work for both of us. Like I have from the beginning.” Ryan’s voice took a sharper edge.Crueler. “And where do you plan to live, huh? Have you seen those cubicles they’re setting up at the Facility? You’d be living in a sterile box like a lab rat.”

“Darlene offered to let me stay with her. And let me tell you, Ry—I thought having to constantly look over my shoulder was just part of being a NüPrint. Turns out, it’s part of being a NüPrint aroundyou. The entire time I’ve been at Darlene’s, I haven’t jumped out of my skin—not even once.”

“And how long do you think that’s gonna last?” The railing groaned again. Nicole backed into the wall, afraid the metal might bend and snap in his hands. “Face it, you’ll get sick of being her pet girlfriend sooner or later.I’myour home. You belonghere.”

“Not anymore!”

Bile rose in her throat as they stared each other down for what felt like awful, dragging minutes. Exhaustion chased adrenaline round and round under her skin. She wanted to collapse. She wanted to hit him. She wanted to crawl into bed and lie quietly with him while he stroked her hair.

But he wasn’t himself. Pretending would only claw away the last dregs of who she was. There was no end to this conversation that didn’t end messier than it had begun.

Darlene’s silhouette paced closely outside the frosted glass of the front door.

“I’ll call you from Darlene’s tomorrow,” Nicole muttered, moving to the ramp that led to the floor. “I’ll need you to open the door—unless you’d like to wait for the cops to do it.”

Ryan’s palm dropped into her path like a lead weight.

“What the hell are you doing?” she croaked. Her heart leapt to a hummingbird pace between one step and the next.

“You’re my wife,” Ryan answered. He no longer yelled, but that was somehow worse. “You’re going to be reasonable and stay, and we’re going to talk about this.”

“Wehavetalked—”

“We’ll work through it,” he said, steamrolling over her. “And you’ll come home where you belong.”

“You’re fucking delusional.”

But as she spoke, they locked eyes, and there was no hope in slowing the thunder of her heart. True understanding passed between them for the first time. He had the power to refuse her. She couldn’t stop him. Her insides writhed with fear. She glanced at the front door and his hand blocking it. Then she turned on her heel.

“I’ll wait for the cops in the bedroom,” she stammered.

He moved his hand to block her path yet again.

Shaking, she dared to meet his gaze again. Pathetic. She was so fucking pathetic, caught in this bizarre game of cat and mouse. There was no other role she could play while he loomed over her. She bolted for the front door, screaming Darlene’s name.

Her cry inspired Darlene to take up another useless attempt at forcing her way through the door. “Keep your hands off her, you fucking pig!” Darlene shouted.