THE DEAD COPY

THE PRICE

David's wound was worse than they thought.

Elliot sat in the back of the van, pressing a bandage against David's arm, watching the blood seep through his fingers. David's face was pale, his breathing shallow.

"Stay with me," Elliot said.

David's eyes fluttered. "I'm trying."

Charlotte met them at the haven's entrance. She took one look at David and started shouting orders. "Get him to the exam room. Now. Maria, grab the trauma kit. James, I need IV fluids."

They carried David inside. Elliot followed, his hands covered in blood.

Frank grabbed his arm. "There's nothing you can do. Let Charlotte work."

Elliot pulled away. "He came because of me. He fought because of me. He's dying because of me."

"He's dying because Whitmore's guards shot him. Not because of you."

Elliot looked at his hands. At the blood.

"It feels the same."

The surgery took three hours.

Charlotte emerged from the exam room with dark circles under her eyes and blood on her scrubs.

"The bullet fragmented. I got most of the pieces, but there's one lodged near his spine. I can't remove it without risking paralysis."

"Can he survive with it there?"

"Maybe. The fragment is small. But if it moves, it could sever his spinal cord. He'd lose function in his legs."

Elliot leaned against the wall. "Does he know?"

"Not yet. He's still sedated."

"When will he wake up?"

"A few hours. Maybe less."

Elliot walked to the exam room. David lay on the table, his face pale, his chest rising and falling in shallow breaths.

Maria sat beside him, holding his hand.

"He saved my life," Maria said. "In the lab. A guard was about to shoot me. David pushed me out of the way."

Elliot sat across from her. "He's a good man."

"The best." Maria looked at David's face. "I didn't know him before the haven. We were in adjacent tanks for months, but we never spoke. Now I can't imagine my life without him."

"Then don't."

Maria nodded. She leaned down and kissed David's forehead.

"Come back to me," she whispered.

The other copies from the raid were in bad shape.

Charlotte moved from room to room, treating wounds, stabilizing vitals, calming fears. Marcus helped where he could, his face tight with worry for Anya.

"Your daughter is stable," Charlotte said. "The neural readings are improving."

Marcus nodded. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet. We have a long way to go."

Elliot stood in the common room, watching the chaos. Copies huddled together, some crying, some staring at the walls, some praying.

Frank walked up beside him. "We lost three."

Elliot's heart sank. "Who?"

"Two from the cells. They were too weak. Their bodies gave out." Frank's voice was flat. "One of Marcus's men. Took a bullet to the chest. Died before we could get him in the van."

Elliot closed his eyes. "Their names?"

"Does it matter?"

"They mattered to someone."

Frank was silent for a moment. Then: "The copies were Elena and Marcus. The guard was Rodriguez."

Elliot nodded. "We'll tell their stories. When this is over."

"If this is ever over."

Zoe found Elliot on the roof that night.

She sat beside him, her legs dangling over the edge, her eyes on the stars.

"You blame yourself," she said.

"Of course I do."

"You shouldn't. You gave them a choice. They chose to fight."

"They chose to follow me."

"Because you gave them something to believe in. Hope. Purpose. A reason to keep going." Zoe looked at him. "That's not nothing, Elliot. That's everything."

Elliot was silent for a moment. Then he said, "Adam gave himself up so we could escape."

"I know."

"He's alone in that facility. Surrounded by enemies. And I left him there."

"You did what you had to do."

"I did what was easy."

"No." Zoe's voice was firm. "You did what was necessary. If you had stayed, you'd be dead. And the copies you saved would be dead. And Adam's sacrifice would mean nothing."

Elliot looked at the stars.

"How do you know so much?"

"I've been hiding for ten years. You learn a lot when you're alone." Zoe smiled. "Mostly, you learn that the world doesn't care about your guilt. It only cares about what you do next."

Elliot nodded slowly.

"Then I guess I better figure out what to do next."

The call came at midnight.

Zoe patched it through to the common room speakers. Whitmore's voice was calm, almost friendly.

"Elliot. I hope I'm not interrupting."

"What do you want?"

"I want to make a deal. Your friend Adam is safe. Comfortable, even. He's been quite helpful. His knowledge of Gavin's research is... illuminating."

"If you hurt him—"

"I have no intention of hurting him. He's far too valuable. But I do need something from you."

"What?"

"The copies you've been hiding. All of them. In exchange for Adam's freedom."

Elliot's hands curled into fists. "You're insane."

"Am I? You have something I want. I have something you want. That's the basis of all negotiation."

"The copies aren't property. They're people."

"People who wouldn't exist without my technology. My facilities. My research." Whitmore's voice hardened. "You have twenty-four hours. After that, Adam's cooperation becomes... voluntary."

The line went dead.

The common room was silent.

Elliot looked at the copies gathered around him—David, still weak, propped up in a chair. Maria, her hand on his shoulder. James, his arm around Lily. Marcus, his jaw tight.

"Whitmore wants us to surrender," Elliot said. "He wants to trade Adam for all of you."

David spoke first. "No."

"David—"

"No." David's voice was weak but firm. "Adam gave himself up so we could escape. If we go back, his sacrifice means nothing."

Maria nodded. "I'm not going back to that place. I'd rather die."

James shook his head. "Neither am I."

Lily stood up. Her eyes were clear. "Adam told me once that the only way to win is to refuse to lose. If we give up now, Whitmore wins."

Marcus stepped forward. "My daughter is here. She's safe. I'm not putting her back in that monster's hands."

Elliot looked around the room. At the faces of the people he had saved.

"Then we need a new plan," he said.

The planning took the rest of the night.

Zoe pulled up satellite images of Whitmore's facility. Frank mapped the guard rotations. Charlotte identified weak points in the security grid.

"We can't attack head-on," Frank said. "We don't have the manpower."

"Then we go in small," Marcus said. "A strike team. Infiltrate. Extract Adam. Get out."

Elliot shook his head. "Whitmore will be expecting that. He'll have doubled the guards."

"Then we give him something else to worry about."

Zoe spoke from her laptop. "I've been analyzing Whitmore's financial records. He has other facilities—smaller, less guarded. If we hit them simultaneously, he'll have to divide his forces."

Frank nodded. "Divide and conquer."

"How many facilities?"

Zoe pulled up a list. "Six. Scattered across the state."

Marcus studied the list. "My team can take two. Frank's team can take two. The copies can take the last two."

Elliot frowned. "The copies aren't soldiers."

"They're survivors." Marcus looked at David. "And survivors fight."

David nodded. "I'll lead one of the teams."

"You can barely walk."

"I can shoot."

Elliot wanted to argue. But David's eyes were steady.

"Fine," Elliot said. "But if things go wrong, you retreat. No heroics."

David smiled. "No promises."

The next twenty hours were a blur.

Elliot moved from room to room, checking on the copies, preparing them for the mission. Charlotte handed out weapons and armor. Zoe programmed the communications gear.

Frank trained the copies in basic combat—how to hold a rifle, how to take cover, how to move as a unit.

"You're not soldiers," Frank said. "You're not warriors. You're people fighting for their lives. Remember that."

Lily raised her hand. "What if we freeze? What if we can't pull the trigger?"

Frank looked at her. "Then you run. There's no shame in running. The shame is in giving up."

Lily nodded.

Elliot watched from the doorway, his heart heavy.

Adam called at midnight.

Zoe patched the call through. Adam's voice was tired but steady.

"Whitmore is planning something. He's been meeting with his scientists. Talking about a new experiment."

"What kind of experiment?"

"He wants to create a perfect copy. One that doesn't degrade. One that can be controlled completely."

Elliot's blood ran cold. "Is that possible?"

"Maybe. Gavin came close. But the process was unstable. Whitmore thinks he can fix it."

"With your help?"

Adam was silent for a moment. Then: "I've been pretending to help. Feeding him false data. Sabotaging his research."

"He'll find out."

"Eventually. But by then, I hope you'll be here."

Elliot gripped the phone. "We're coming, Adam. Tomorrow night."

"Be careful. Whitmore isn't stupid. He knows you'll try something."

"Then we'll be smarter."

Adam laughed. It was a weak sound. "I hope so."

The line went dead.

Elliot couldn't sleep.

He walked through the haven, checking on the copies. David was awake, staring at the ceiling. Maria was asleep beside him, her hand on his chest.

Lily was in the common room, cleaning her rifle.

"You should rest," Elliot said.

"I can't. Every time I close my eyes, I see the facility. The cages. The tanks."

Elliot sat beside her. "I see them too."

"How do you make it stop?"

"I don't. I just... keep going."

Lily looked at him. "Is that enough?"

"Sometimes. Other times, no." Elliot put a hand on her shoulder. "But it's all we can do."

Lily nodded. She went back to cleaning her rifle.

Dawn came too fast.

Elliot stood in the parking lot, watching the copies load into the vans. David leaned on Maria, his arm bandaged, his face pale. Lily climbed into the lead van without looking back.

Frank walked up beside Elliot.

"You don't have to do this."

"Yes, I do."

"You could stay here. Lead from behind."

Elliot shook his head. "I'm not asking anyone to do something I wouldn't do myself."

Frank was silent for a moment. Then he said, "You're a good man, Elliot."

"I'm a copy."

"So am I." Frank put a hand on his shoulder. "That doesn't make us less."

Elliot climbed into the van.

"Let's go."