Chapter 1 1

The smell of antiseptic was the first thing to assault Dejah's senses. It was a sharp, chemical sting that burned the inside of her nose and coated the back of her throat with a metallic taste. Her eyelids felt like they were weighted down with lead, but the sounds of the room were filtering in with agonizing clarity. The rhythmic beep of the heart monitor. The hum of the air conditioning. The rustle of stiff sheets against dry skin.

Dejah tried to lift her right hand, but it wouldn't obey. A dull, throbbing ache radiated from the inside of her elbow, and when she forced her eyes open just a crack, the blur of a clear plastic tube snaking into her arm came into focus. An IV drip. She was tethered. Again.

Her body felt hollowed out. It was a sensation she knew intimately, the feeling of marrow regenerating too slowly, of blood volume being just below the threshold of functioning. She was a vessel that had been tapped one too many times.

The heavy oak door to the private suite swung open, banging against the wall stop with a violence that made her wince. The sound of stilettos clicking rapidly against the linoleum floor followed. It was a sharp, staccato rhythm-aggressive, impatient. Dejah didn't need to look to know who it was.

Kathryn Kensington walked into the room, her gaze fixed firmly on the window, on the wall, on anything but Dejah. She was wearing a cream-colored power suit that cost more than the entire foster care budget of the county Dejah had come from. Kathryn looked impeccable. She looked like a mother who cared deeply about appearance, and not at all about the girl lying in the hospital bed.

Dr. Lowe followed her in, his head buried in a thick metal medical chart. He was a small man with cold hands and eyes that looked at patients like they were biological equations to be solved.

"Are her levels adequate?" Kathryn asked. Her voice was tight, clipped. "Jenna can't wait much longer. The fatigue is setting in."

Dr. Lowe flipped a page, the sound of the paper tearing through the silence. He didn't look at Dejah either. "The hematopoietic stem cell density is barely passable. We can proceed with the bone marrow extraction, but it will be risky for the donor. Her cellularity index hasn't recovered from the last harvest."

"Passable is fine," Kathryn said, waving her hand dismissively as if swatting away a fly. "Just get it done. We need the harvest by tomorrow morning."

Harvest.

The word echoed in the cavern of Dejah's mind. It triggered something dormant, a cold, calculating subroutine that had been buried under layers of trauma and enforced sedation. Her brain, usually a fog of exhaustion, suddenly snapped into a grid of hyper-focus.

Keywords detected: Spare part. Extraction. Harvest. Risk.

She wasn't Dejah the high school drop-out. She wasn't the clumsy, sleeping girl in the back of the class. Those were layers of camouflage. The fog lifted. Her pupils, previously dilated and sluggish, contracted sharply. The blur of the room sharpened into high-definition clarity. She saw the dust motes dancing in the light beam. She saw the slight fray on Dr. Lowe's stethoscope. She saw the tension in Kathryn's jaw muscle.

"Oracle," her mind whispered. "Online."

Dejah opened her eyes fully. The usual dull, cow-like submission was gone. In its place was a flat, predatory stillness.

Kathryn finally turned her head and looked at Dejah. For a second, she paused. She frowned, a wrinkle marring her perfect Botoxed forehead. "You're awake. Good. Don't play dead. It's annoying."

Dejah tried to speak, but her throat felt like it had been scrubbed with sandpaper. Only a dry rasp came out. She needed water. She needed hydration to flush the sedatives from her system.

Kathryn saw Dejah's gaze drift to the pitcher of water on the bedside table. She didn't pour it. She took a step back, her nose wrinkling slightly, as if Dejah were a contagion she might catch if she got too close.

"Jenna is here," she announced, her voice softening into a sickly sweet tone that made Dejah's stomach churn.

The door opened again. A nurse pushed a wheelchair into the room. Sitting in it was Jenna Kensington.

She was wearing a silk pajama set that shimmered under the fluorescent lights. Her hair was brushed to a shine, her makeup was flawless-a touch of blush to simulate health, or perhaps to hide the lack of it. But she didn't look sick. Not really.

Jenna reached out a hand. Her skin was smooth, manicured, and warm. "Dejah," she said, her voice trembling with a practiced fragility. "I'm so sorry. I know this hurts you. I hate that I have to ask this of you again."

She placed her hand over Dejah's.

Dejah's brain analyzed the contact instantly. Temperature: 98.6 degrees. Grip strength: Normal. Capillary refill in fingernails: Instant.

Jenna wasn't cold. She wasn't weak. She was thriving on the blood Dejah had given her three months ago.

"Don't apologize to her, sweetie," Kathryn cooed, rushing to Jenna's side and stroking her hair. "You have nothing to be sorry for. This is why we brought her here. It's the least she can do after everything we've given her. It's her only value."

Dejah watched Jenna's face. It was a masterpiece of acting. But the Oracle saw what others missed. As Kathryn spoke, the corner of Jenna's mouth twitched upward. It was a micro-expression, lasting less than a fifth of a second. Duper's Delight. She enjoyed this. She enjoyed watching Dejah being drained so she could shine.

Dr. Lowe stepped forward, a tourniquet in his hands. "I need to confirm the blood type match again before the procedure. Just protocol."

He grabbed Dejah's arm. There was no gentleness in his touch. He treated her limb like a piece of meat on a butcher's block. He tied the rubber strip tight, pinching her skin. He didn't bother to tap the vein to bring it up. He just jabbed.

The needle missed the vein. Pain, hot and sharp, shot up Dejah's arm.

Her body reacted instinctively. The muscles in her forearm coiled, ready to snap his wrist. It would take three pounds of pressure in the right direction to dislocate his thumb. But she stopped. The monitor was beeping steadily. If her heart rate spiked, they would sedate her again. She needed a clear head.

Dejah forced her breathing to slow. Inhale for four. Hold for four. Exhale for four. The pain became just data. A signal to be acknowledged and ignored.

Dr. Lowe grunted, dug the needle around under her skin until he found the vein, and drew the blood. He ripped the tape off when he was done, tossing her arm back onto the mattress. A dark bruise was already forming.

"We'll prep the OR," Dr. Lowe said to Kathryn. "Make sure she doesn't eat anything."

"Let's go, Jenna," Kathryn said, turning the wheelchair around. "You need your rest before the big day."

Jenna looked back at Dejah over her shoulder. Her eyes were bright, mocking. "Get some sleep, sister. You look terrible."

They left. The room fell silent.

Dr. Lowe lingered for a second. He walked over to the pain management pump connected to Dejah's IV. With a callous flick of his wrist, he turned the valve to the 'off' position. He didn't log it in the chart. It was just a petty act of cruelty, a reminder of who held the power.

The door clicked shut. The silence was heavy, suffocating.

Dejah lay there for ten seconds, counting the beats of her heart. Then, she sat up.

The movement made the room spin, but she locked her jaw and waited for the vertigo to pass. She looked at the IV in her arm. The lifeline. The leash.

She didn't hesitate. She gripped the plastic hub and ripped it out.

Blood welled up quickly, a dark crimson pool staining the pristine white sheets. It wasn't a spray-her blood pressure was too low for theatrics-but the steady ooze was a messy declaration of independence. She pressed her thumb over the puncture wound to staunch the flow, swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

Her bare feet hit the cold linoleum. Shivers ran up her spine, but they weren't from the cold. They were from the adrenaline flooding her system.

Dejah walked to the bathroom, her steps unsteady but determined. She gripped the edge of the sink and looked into the mirror.

The face staring back was pale, gaunt. Dark circles bruised the skin under her eyes. Her lips were cracked. But the eyes... the eyes were different. The dull, defeated look of the foster girl was gone. In its place was a cold, calculating fire.

"Oracle," she whispered to the reflection. "Welcome back."