Hesta sat silently by the window of the old train. The train was about to arrive, and she opened her eyes halfway.
Last night, just as a stream of alarm emails flooded her inbox and she was about to rest, Tulan knocked on her door and asked whether she had received any higher-classified information. Hesta could only shake her head.
In fact, two hours later, Office No. 2 gave her a rather unexpected order: Jane, proceed to Awad Prison immediately. Victoria will meet you there.
Victoria? She should have boarded a plane to District 1 several hours ago—according to her, she was attending a funeral and picking up a few things while she was there.
The train began to slow, and Hesta rose and headed for the door. She had brought little luggage on this trip, only an empty backpack in case she needed to bring something back.
The Weihotun Plateau in central District 12 was awakening beneath the faint morning light. Few passengers got off at this hour, but the platform was packed with people waiting to board. Hesta walked against the crowd toward the exit. Countless faces appeared and vanished from her sight, and suddenly, she felt a chill—
Would there come a day when she saw another version of herself walking toward her? That person would see her too, stop in stunned disbelief, and then the two of them would stare at each other and ask, "Who are you?"
The closer she came to Awad Prison, the stronger Hesta's unease grew. She had begun to doubt the identity of the Victoria inside the prison. Remembering the living dead she had seen aboard the Ascending Bright rescue ship, she could not help worrying about the fate of some "real" Victoria.
Could Office No. 2 still be trusted? She