Ty, a shift manager with an alcoholic wife, creates a female replicant in a dystopia veering toward full mechanization. For Ty, the surreal drudgery of working in a retail environment is interrupted when robotic interfaces are installed at his job...
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The encryption software ran day and night.
On the fourth morning, the interface screen shifted from scrolling algorithms, reading "COMPLETE."
Damon didn't see the unlocked files until later that afternoon. He was too busy unpacking boxes and pretending that Helia was helping more than she was hindering.
"Oh, you're so strong!" he said as she carried a small box of stuffed animals to her room.
"Like Hulk," she agreed, eliciting a chuckle from her uncle.
His good nature faded considerably as he pretended not to notice Ty and Jennifer arguing from their bedroom.
Nothing new really.
Except, it was a different Jennifer, a sober Jennifer. That wasn't the end of the story. More than anyone, Damon understood this. At the same time, he thought about all the nights Jennifer had stayed out, returning home to pass out the next morning. He recalled the cruel words she slung at Ty upon waking, and the rough way she handled Helia, or tried to pass responsibility of her daughter onto her brother-in-law.
In the absence of all that bullshit, Ty should've been happy. But he wasn't. Although he had ceased the heavy drinking and midnight chats, Ty trudged around the house, shoulders stooped. Occasionally, he brightened, but only for Helia.
Part of healing Ty meant finding Sam. And Damon was close.
