âWhen you need it,â I said innocently. I could sense her wide eyes and felt her tug sharply on one of my curls.Â
âDaddy and Mama paid good money for that temp corrector!â She scolded as I pouted at her, patting the abused curl back into the dark brown mass of my hair.Â
âAnd they save plenty more when I donât use it!â I snapped back, âBesides, itâs not like Iâll freeze to death. This right here is the real stuff! I didnât even know people went hunting anymore!â I said with a grin, turning to face her fully.Â
She clicked her tongue and turned away from me, shaking her head as she took a sip.Â
âCome on, Lysie,â I whined, shaking her shoulder a bit, âjust sit and relax with me for a bit. Itâs nice for an analog club! The music is easy and the crowd is cool.â
She glared at me, setting down her now empty glass.Â
âItâs an analog crowd, and theyâre dangerous. And youâre an obvious target,â she shot back. I frowned and my gaze fell to the floor, excitement fading almost instantly.Â
Only available for immediate installments, my eyes were the most expensive thing my family owned. Bright pink, high end cyberwear that could locate, analyze, and store any and all environmental information I perceived. I was the perfect spy, a living camera; with the work my family did, they were constantly hitting replay.Â
This also meant I was the most well protected member of the family. I was chauffeured around in armored cars for the shortest of drives. My parents knew everything about everyone I spoke to for more than five minutes. Bodyguards lingered at my sides if I so much as took out the trash.Â
My sister, however, didnât need fancy cyberwear to read people. I watched her as she looked around, eyes clicking back and forth as she carefully assessed the patrons at the bar.Â
There were happy couples leaning on each otherâs shoulders as they swayed along to the music. Under the shadows of the curtain, suited men were watching the room the same way Lyselle was. The singer, up on stage, was prancing around, flirting with an obvious drunk that leaned too far back in his seat. No one else had joined us at the bar, even though there were three young men about our age idly chatting with the bouncer at the doorway.Â
One made eye contact with me. I could see the shadow of his brow kick up, and I quickly broke the gaze.Â
To me, it was a quiet bar full of quaint people. I looked up at Lysie and she decided otherwise.Â
âYouâre getting too good at this sneaking out thing,â my sister remarked, standing up out of her chair and wiping a smudge to fix her lipstick. I rolled my eyes and slid off the stool, shrugging the fur coat back over my shoulders.Â
âApparently not good enough to shake you off my back,â I snarked back. She scoffed, smirking and nudging me.Â
âNo one will protect you like your big sister.â
I hated her for it, but it was true. Whether it was kidnapping attempts or schoolyard bullies, my sister was always on my side. I smiled at her and bumped her with my shoulder, finally earning a smirk from her.Â
âYou ever gonna teach me how to do it myself?â I complained as we started towards the exit. âYouâll be too busy to-â
Ow. Ow? My neck hurt all of a sudden. It stopped me in my tracks and I reached a hand up to rub the ache. Moving my head started to feel like a grand feat of labor. Lyselle said something, she looked concerned, but it sounded like I was underwater. I stumbled and her face became a blur.Â
I distantly felt leather wrap around my arm, strong and swift. Lyselle was shouting, and I felt her nails dig into my other arm. Then everything went black.