“I won’t have a choice.” “When we cross that b****y bridge, we’ll face it then.” “I don’t want to hurt you or Hernando. But my will is not my own.” “What are you saying?” Damián shook his head as if I was speaking a foreign language. Frustration ripped through me as I dug my fingers in his sleeve, jerking him around to face me. I had to make him understand. “Will you listen to me?” I grated. “If the Society gives me an order, I can’t stop myself. I have no control. If they order your death and good chance they will, I am forced by a device, an implant. It’s like compulsion. I won’t be able to stop until you’re dead.” “It’s not going to come down to that. I won’t let it.” “Promise me,” I held tight to his sleeve as if my life depended on it, “when it happens, promise me that you will

