UnSouled

“Quiet, Pork-n-beans,” Co

“I wasn’t thinking clearly,” Una admits quietly, looking down at the dirt floor of the sweat lodge. “I’m still not.” Instead of talking about the Rewind, she talks about Wil again. How he would tune and test all of her guitars before they were sold. “He put his soul into his music. I always felt that a tiny bit of him was left resonating in the instrument after he played it. Once he was gone, the guitars never felt the same. Now when they play, it’s only music.”

“So you thought you’d make our friend here your little guitar slave.”

She raises her eyes to burn him a glare—but she doesn’t seem to have the strength for it anymore. She casts her eyes down again.

Co

“Why are you here?” Co

“I have enough of Wil Tashi’ne’s memory to know that this is where your friend the clapper would run to hide,” he says. “And I think you know why I’m here. I’m here for Risa.”

Hearing her name coming from his mouth brings Co

“So, you’re going to blackmail her into being with you, like before?”

“That wasn’t me! That was Proactive Citizenry.”

“And you want to bring her back to them.”

“No! I’m here to help her, you idiot.”

Co

“You’re wasting your time,” pipes in Una. “You can’t reason with him. He’s not human. He’s not even alive.”

“Je pense, donc je suis,” the Rewind says.

Co

“Just because you think, doesn’t mean you are. Computers claim to think, but they’re just mimicking the real thing. Garbage in/garbage out—and you’re just a whole lot of garbage.”

The Rewind looks down, his eyes glistening. “You don’t know a thing.”

Co

“Of course, Unwinds aren’t legally alive either,” Co

The Rewind lifts his eyes to him. A single tear falls, absorbed by the knee of his jeans. “Your point?”

“My point is, I get it. Whether you’re a pile of parts, or a sack of garbage, or a full-fledged person has nothing to do with what I, or Una, or anyone else thinks—so do us all a favor and stop making it our problem.”

He nods and looks down again. “Blue Fairy,” he says.

“You see!” snaps Una. “He is like a computer—he spouts garbage that makes no sense.”

But Co

“Sorry, Pinocchio, but Risa’s not your Blue Fairy. She can’t turn you into a real boy.”

Cam looks at him and grins. Co

“How do you know she hasn’t already?”

“She’s pretty amazing, but not that amazing,” Co

Una stiffens and frowns at him. “I don’t have to take insults from a runaway Unwind.”

“I was actually being sincere,” Co

Una holds her glare a moment more before returning her gaze to the ground.

“You said you want to help Risa,” Co

“That’s between me and her.”

“Wrong,” Co

The Rewind seethes, breathing through his nose like a dragon about to flare. Then he backs down. “I can help her bring down Proactive Citizenry. I have all the evidence she needs. But I won’t share it with anyone but her.”

The Rewind seems sincere—but Co

“I have my reasons.”

“Are you going to tell him?” Una asks Co

“Tell me what?” Cam looks back and forth between them.

Co

The despair in the Rewind’s eyes is as soulful as any legitimate human being. Co

“But . . . but . . . the news said she was traveling with you!”

“Yeah, the news also said I attacked a harvest camp in Nevada. You of all people should know not to trust the media.”

“So, where is she?”

“I don’t know,” Co

The Rewind stands in frustration. “You’re lying!” Co

“Just give me a reason, Pork-n-beans!”

“Stop calling me that!”

“He’s telling the truth,” says Una. “It’s just him, Lev, and some low-cortical girl. Risa Ward wasn’t with them when they showed up.”

It’s more information than Co

“Sisyphus,” he mumbles. Co

“You realize I can’t let you go. I can’t take the chance that you’ll tell the authorities where we are.”

“I’ll tie him up again,” says Una, advancing toward the Rewind. “No one comes out to this old sweat lodge anymore.”

“No,” Co

“I don’t want him there!”

“Too bad.” Co

Both Cam and Una agree reluctantly.

Then he turns to the Rewind. “Whether you deserve dignity or not, I’m going to give you some.” And although Co

“Cam,” he says.

“All right, Cam. I’m Co

Cam nods his acceptance. “I appreciate your honesty,” he says. “The feeling is mutual.”

•   •   •

Pivane is there when they get back to the shop. Co

“He can’t know about Cam,” Una says. “The Tashi’nes must never know about Wil’s hands. It will destroy them.”

The way it destroyed you? Co

Una sends Cam down into the basement. He’s too weary and spent to protest.

“I’ll wait here and make sure he stays put,” Una says. “Can I please have my rifle back?” And when Co