by Malinda Lo
“But—”
The call ended. Reese pulled the phone away from her ear and stared down at the screen. There was a photo of her on the background. She was standing in the kitchen making a face at the camera.
“What did she say?” her mom asked from the driver’s seat.
“I think… I think she’s been censored.” Reese had a dreadful suspicion about what Sophia Curtis meant by “how your experiences affected you personally.” The show was due to air in an hour. It was too late to back out now.
“I’m calling Diana Warner,” her dad said. “She should know what’s going on.”
Reese gazed down at the photo on her mom’s phone. She couldn’t remember when her mom had taken it, but judging by the length of her hair it must have been at least a year ago. The thought of how different her life had been then—right before junior year, before she and David had been partnered together for debate—made her head spin. The screen darkened, obscuring the image. Feeling ill, Reese unrolled the window to gulp breaths of cool, misty air.
As the wind whipped into the backseat, her mom called, “Honey, are you okay? Are you going to be sick?”
She swallowed, tasting something sour in the back of her throat. “I’m fine, Mom,” she lied.
The Sophia Curtis Show began with Sophia spotlighted in a dark television studio, looking directly into the camera as she said, “It’s been nine days since one of the most extraordinary revelations in history: We humans are not alone in the universe. In the past week, we have struggled to make sense of the news that extraterrestrials known as the Imria have been visiting Earth since 1947 and, apparently, cooperating with a secret branch of the United States government. But while you and I—the public—have only been aware of this for a little over a week, two teenagers were swept into this incredible story two months ago during the June Disaster. Tonight, we talk to seventeen-year-old high school students Reese Holloway and David Li and find out how their experiences have changed their lives.”
As the opening credits for the program rolled, Reese glanced at David, who was seated next to her on one of the two matching couches in his living room. Here we go, she thought, and he gave her a tight smile. His twelve-year-old sister, Chloe, was curled in the corner of the couch beside David, biting her lip. Across the living room Reese’s parents sat stiffly on the other sofa, while David’s dad paced at the rear of the room. David’s mom was perched on the edge of a chair they had brought in from the dining room.
The show returned to Sophia Curtis in the studio as the theme music faded. “It all began on June nineteenth, when Reese and David were in Phoenix, Arizona, waiting to fly home to San Francisco from a debate tournament.”
The scene cut to Reese and David in Mr. Murray’s classroom at Kennedy High School, explaining what had happened when they left Phoenix. Reese found it disconcerting to watch herself on television. She looked much better than she had during the press conference outside her house; Sophia Curtis’s hair and makeup team had turned her into a pretty girl, though her lips rarely curved into a pretty girl’s smile. She seemed tense, and there was a tightness to her jaw that Reese had never seen before; it made her appear sort of angry. David looked more relaxed than she did, and from time to time he flashed a smile at Sophia, but he also seemed a bit uncomfortable. That was when Reese realized that the camera never showed Jeff Highsmith, who had been seated out of sight beside Sophia Curtis. Reese remembered him interrupting her and David repeatedly, telling them they couldn’t speak about this or that. None of that made it into the interview.
After Reese and David reached the point in which they mentioned the adaptation procedure, the program switched scenes to the Imrian press conference on Angel Island. Dr. Brand was shown explaining what she had done after Reese and David had their car accident. Then the show cut to the press conference on Reese’s front steps, when she and David theorized that the government hadn’t known what the Imria were doing.
“When we return,” said Sophia Curtis before the show went to commercial, “we’ll speak with Senator Joyce Michaelson, who helped bring Reese and David home to their families. What exactly did the government know about this adaptation procedure? Senator Michaelson explains, right after this.”
Reese’s mom let out her breath across the room. “Well, it’s not so bad so far.”
“They cut out Jeff Highsmith,” Reese said. “They’re not acknowledging that he was there manipulating the interview at all.” Reese’s phone vibrated and she pulled it out of her pocket. There was a text message from Julian.
Were you not allowed to say the
words Area 51? Did they cut that?
She texted back: Yes.
Senator Michaelson was interviewed in her Washington, DC, office. She wore a navy blue suit and gold earrings and looked genuinely concerned as she said, “What happened with Reese and David was an unfortunate misunderstanding. We truly regret that. They were two teens caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, and they should never have been detained in Nevada. I’ve apologized to them directly and I want to take this moment to apologize again, on behalf of the United States government.”
Sophia asked, “Why were they taken from their homes in the first place?”
Senator Michaelson said, “I’m told we had reason to believe that they had received unauthorized medical treatment after their car accident. As you know, the teens were treated on a military base, and we were concerned that they might have adverse reactions to this treatment. They were brought back to the base for a follow-up for their own safety.”
“That is bullshit,” Reese muttered, watching the senator smoothly delivering the lies.
“Reese and David said they were taken against their will,” Sophia said. “Why didn’t the government simply ask them to come in for an exam?”
Senator Michaelson frowned. “The men who made the decision to act in that manner have been reprimanded and placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation. All I can say at this time is that they acted hastily and without going through the proper channels. They were concerned about the teens’ safety, but they should not have done what they did. That’s partly why I acted so quickly when Catherine Sheridan, Reese’s mother, contacted me for help. I have two children of my own, and I can understand why Catherine was so upset.”
Reese glanced at her mother, who looked pensive. “Do you think she’s being forced to say that?” Reese asked.
“I don’t know. She’s obviously delivering a preapproved speech, but I don’t know if she believes it.”
“Listen,” David interrupted, turning up the volume.
“—regret what happened with David and Reese, the more serious offense was done by the Imria,” Senator Michaelson said. “They should never have performed that medical procedure on these teens—these children—without the consent of their parents. While I understand that President Randall wants a clean slate with the Imria in order to pursue peaceful talks, I believe the Imria should address the troubling fact that they essentially used these two teens as test subjects.”
The show cut to footage of Reese and David arriving at Travis Air Force Base nine days earlier, looking dazed as they descended from the airplane. “Last Thursday, when Reese and David returned to California,” Sophia said in a voice-over, “the Imria also returned from their five-day-long absence.” The scene changed to an overhead shot of Reese’s house as she, her parents, and David’s family arrived. They climbed out of their cars while reporters surrounded them. “But when the Imrian ship reappeared above San Francisco, no explanation was immediately given for its sudden return,” Sophia said. The video switched to the black triangle hovering over the city while crowds thronged the streets below, tiny signs bobbing in a sea of people. “As the Imrian ship flew over the Noe Valley neighborhood, perceptions of the extraterrestrial visitors began to shift from stunned curiosity to outright hostility. That hostility erupted in violence on August fourteenth, the day that the Imria first spoke to th
e world at a press conference on Angel Island in San Francisco Bay.”
Reese had never seen footage of the protesters at Fisherman’s Wharf. Now she watched herself being herded through the roiling crowd as a man broke free, raising his hand. She flinched as she saw her parents push her onto the ground while the police moved in, circling the gunman and shoving him onto the pavement.
“What led this man, Mitchell Cole, to threaten the teens?” Sophia asked as the picture returned to the studio where she sat in a pool of light. “What’s behind his distrust of the Imria and their adaptation procedure? When we return, Mitchell Cole tells his story.”
“I had no idea she was going to talk to him,” David’s mom said.
“Why is she giving him airtime?” Reese’s dad asked.
Reese leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and dropping her head into her hands. So far the show had avoided focusing on anything too personal, but the more time that passed without Sophia mentioning Reese and David’s relationship, the more anxious Reese became. Were the producers saving it for the end? David touched her, his hand sliding lightly over the small of her back. Halfway through, he thought.
She sensed his own tension through his touch, the acidic bubbles in his stomach and the taut muscles of his shoulders. I wish they’d get to the end already.
“Reese, you don’t have to watch this if you don’t want to,” her mom said.
Reese glanced up, surprised. She realized her mom was talking about the interview with Mitchell Cole. “It’s fine, Mom. I want to hear what he has to say.”
When the program returned from the commercial break, Sophia explained that Cole had been released on bail Friday morning, funded by members of a newly formed Ohio-based group called Americans for Humanity and Liberty. Cole joined Sophia in the studio for the interview. He was wearing a blue button-down shirt and dark pants, and his short, light hair was cut with military precision. “I acted alone,” he said in response to her first question. “I don’t know Americans for Humanity and Liberty.” He had no discernible accent, but there was an underlying tone of contempt in his voice that made Reese bristle. “Whoever they are, they’re on the side of freedom, and I stand with them.”
“Why did you do it?” Sophia asked.
He cracked a brief, cold grin. “Those teens are hybrids. Human-alien hybrids. They’re the first of an army that the aliens are creating. That army’s going to take over our country and our world. We have to put a stop to it. I know you probably think I’m crazy, but I’m not. If what I did wakes people up, then it was worth it. They’re coming for us.”
“You mean the Imria?”
He shrugged. “You want to call them that, sure. They’re aliens. They’ve been taking people for decades, experimenting on them to create these hybrids.”
“Are you talking about alien abductions?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know anyone who has been abducted?”
“I’ve been abducted.” He leaned forward, stabbing his fingers into his palm as he spoke. “They took me. They did things to me that make me wake up in the middle of the night screaming. I saw them in that press conference on the island. They act like they’re trying to benefit humanity, but it’s a lie. They want to change us into them. Adaptation. That’s what they’re calling it. It’s genocide. If we don’t stop them, the new world order will come, and we’ll all be goners.”
Reese shrank back into the couch as Cole spoke, his pale eyes bright in the studio lights. He spoke with such paranoid conviction that even Sophia seemed taken aback. The scene cut to Sophia alone in the studio, who said, “Cole’s theories have not arisen from nowhere. They’re firmly rooted in decades of conspiracy theories. In Cole’s scenario, Earth’s sovereign governments will be destroyed and turned into a single global totalitarian regime: a new world order. I spoke with conspiracy expert Peter Vikram, a professor of history at Harvard University, to get his perspective on Cole’s theory.”
Vikram was a middle-aged South Asian man dressed in a crisp, dark purple shirt and stylish glasses. He was interviewed in his office, sitting at his desk in front of a wall of books. “The new world order typically refers to the idea that there is a secret cabal of powerful men who wish to rule the world,” Vikram explained. “This cabal is often believed to be comprised of businessmen, particularly Jewish bankers. In many ways it’s an anti-Semitic theory. Many of those who believe in this theory fall into the category of right-wing extremists who also believe in stockpiling weapons and building secure bunkers to defend against the coming of this so-called new world order, when individual liberties will be severely curtailed. Mitchell Cole has a slightly different perspective. He’s from the camp that believes that a new world order will be brought about through an alien invasion.” Vikram gave Sophia a wry smile. “At least this version of the theory is a bit more progressive, since it’s not humans of any stripe who are out to get us; it’s only aliens.”
“Do you think that Cole’s theory bears any weight?” Sophia asked.
Vikram grew serious again. “If you had asked me a week ago, I would have said absolutely not. One of the things that is fascinating about conspiracy theories is the way they express anxieties about the modern-day world. They’re an expression of paranoia, and a way of exercising control when one feels powerless. If you believe the world is going to hell in a handbasket, you can take steps to ensure that you survive the apocalypse by stocking up on supplies, building a safe house, et cetera. With regard to Cole’s theory, we can no longer simply call him paranoid. The Imria have revealed themselves. Aliens truly do exist, and I must admit that even I have found their initial statements to be confusing and a little frightening. That changes everything.”
The next segment of the show centered on Dr. Brand’s explanation of the adaptation procedure, followed by interviews with a neuroscientist who had begun to go through the documentation the Imria had released on Thursday afternoon. “I can’t understand it all,” he said, “because much of it involves science that is far more advanced than what I’m knowledgeable about. It seems as if the Imria used a viral-like vector to introduce Imrian DNA into the teens’ cells. The information provided also states that the adaptation is now fully heritable—it would be passed on to children of anyone who was adapted, male or female. I’m not entirely clear on how this works, since the Imrian DNA is added to our mitochondrial DNA, which is only passed on through the mother—at least in humans. But somehow this adaptation procedure has caused the male to also be able to pass on mitochondrial DNA to his offspring.” The scientist seemed a bit awed. “If I’m correct, this is a huge revolution in medical science.”
As the show returned to the interview with Reese and David, explaining their ability to communicate through touch, Reese glanced at her phone to check the time. The show was almost over; there were only ten more minutes. Maybe, Reese thought hopefully, Sophia wasn’t going to get into her relationship with David after all. Another text message from Julian made her phone buzz.
I don’t buy that guy’s theory. Aliens wouldn’t fly all the way here todestroy us.
She texted back: You trust the Imria?
On television, David’s father was talking to Sophia Curtis about setting up an academic review board to test David’s and Reese’s abilities. Her phone vibrated again.
If they’re advanced enough to get here, why would they kill us?
David nudged her. What are you doing?
She showed him Julian’s text messages and saw a skeptical expression cross David’s face.
Why does he have such faith in the Imria? David thought.
He’s an optimist. Although he does think the government is shady.
They’re all shady.
Reese heard Chloe catch her breath, swallowing a giggle. Reese glanced at David’s sister and then at the television. She froze. The scene had changed to Mr. Chapman’s old classroom. She and David were looking at each other as Sophia Curtis said, “… would bring a lot of fr
iends closer together. What about you two?”
The tension in Reese’s face that had made her look angry was gone. Now she looked shy, and her cheeks were tinged pink.
Sitting on David’s parents’ couch, Reese felt the air drain from her lungs. She could barely watch the screen as David reached for her hand and said, “We’re together now.” All she could think about was how the students at school on Monday morning would react. Her internal organs seemed to shrivel up in anticipation.
“Aw, you look cute,” her mom said from across the room.
Reese was mortified. She slouched down on the sofa, wishing she could hide somewhere. What had made her think it would be a good idea to watch this with her parents?
“You both look very sweet,” David’s mom said.
And David’s parents! Maybe she could skip the first day of school. Or the first month.
Thankfully, the show was ending, and Sophia Curtis was delivering a closing statement that Reese couldn’t hear because of the buzzing sound in her ears. All the blood must be rushing to her head in embarrassment. Her phone vibrated again. She looked down to find a short message from Julian.
LOL LOL
CHAPTER 16
Several television vans were parked outside Kennedy High School when Reese’s mom dropped her off Monday morning. The front steps were crowded with students hanging out before the first bell, and some of them were being interviewed by reporters. Photographers were waiting on the sidewalk as well, long-lensed cameras in hand.
“The reporters can’t follow you inside,” her mom said, reaching out to squeeze Reese’s knee. A flash of encouragement came from her touch, but the knowledge that the reporters weren’t allowed in didn’t make Reese feel better. She knew they’d simply be lurking outside.
