Read Imitation for Free Online Page B

“You ready?”
    I nod and push back from the table,
happy to leave this room behind.
    We return to the parlor where the
albums have been neatly restacked into small piles on the rug. I
sink down to the floor and pick up the first one. Linc remains
standing and when I look up at him, he is watching me with a
creased forehead.
    “ What?” I ask.
    “ You must’ve really hit
your head,” he says, sinking down next to me.
    “ Why’s that?”
    “ Because Raven Rogen never
sits on the floor.”
    My cheeks burn. I’ve made another
error. I return my attention to the album in my lap. I scan faces,
commit them to memory, and repeat them for Linc who nods or frowns
accordingly. I come upon one picture of a woman dressed in a bright
yellow feather costume. She is obviously some sort of performer
with her arms spread wide for dramatic effect and her outlandish
outfit and high-heeled shoes. I think she must have been going for
sensuous or even sexy, but to me, the effect is
ridiculous.
    I let out a giggle and Linc’s fingers
go still against the page. He looks over at me like he’s never seen
me before.
    “ What?” I say, trying—and
failing—to contain the rest of my laughter.
    “ Your laugh …”
    “ I’m sorry, but she looks
like a giant bird,” I say, only to giggle again.
    His expression turns from confusion to
utter concentration. My laughter dies. There’s a shift in the way
he watches me. I can’t identify it, but neither can I look away. If
this is what it feels like to have a boy look at you, no wonder
they keep us segregated in Twig City. My nerves dance on
end.
    Out in the hall, a gruff voice calls
out to another. The words are muted but it’s enough. The spell is
broken. Linc looks away. I blink furiously and stare down at the
album shared between us.
    Linc clears his throat. “This one,” he
says, picking up where we left off.
    An hour passes.
    Albums are cast aside, replaced by
fresh ones. A face catches my eye. It is a boy, striking in his
similarity to Linc, though this face is rounder, older. “Who is
that?” I ask.
    Linc is quiet for a long time. When I
look at him, he is staring at the page so hard I think he could
burn a hole through it. “That’s Adam,” he says finally. “My
brother.”
    His answer intrigues me. Any sort of
familial reference makes me curious because I have no idea what
that would feel like. Sometimes I think Ida and Lonnie are like my
sisters but I suspect it’s not the same. My attention returns to
the picture. “You look like him. Are you close?”
    “ We were.” He hesitates
and then his voice goes flat as he says, “He’s dead.”
    I can’t help the flinch of my
shoulders. Death is so final for me, a soulless being. For humans,
they say it isn’t the end, though I have no idea what would come
next. “What happened?” I ask.
    “ There was an attack on
his employer. He was outnumbered and they killed him.”
    “ His employer?”
    “ Congressman Ryan and his
son. They survived. Adam did not.” He presses his lips together and
goes silent.
    I don’t push. It’s clear he doesn’t
want to discuss it further. His story sounds an awful lot like the
one he and I are currently living out. And then I realize … “You’re
supposed to protect me.”
    He doesn’t answer.
    “ Linc, you don’t—you
shouldn’t.” I don’t know how to say it without giving away too
much, but I feel the weight of it all pressing against me and I
have to say something. “It’s not worth it. I’m not worth it.
Don’t—don’t die for me.”
    He glares at me, his expression so
cold I shrink back. “Don’t be ridiculous,” he snaps. “None of this
is for you. It’s a job and I have my orders. We’re done
here.”
    He springs to his feet and is gone.
The door slams shut behind him. In the hall, I hear him speaking to
someone before his footsteps fade.
    I am alone.
    I’m never alone.
     

 
Chapter Four
     
     
    The following afternoon, I spend two
hours with the