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Nohen Elder rolls the body in the field over so we can see the face, I can see that, once again, the girl at the rabbit farm has empty eyes

I drop to my knees beside her Elder has his hand on his neck; he’s co Doc and his police force, but it’s already too late Much too late

My h the revulsion is bubbling up inside of irl’s arms are spread wide, with deep purple bruises at her wrists Finger marks encircle her throat Her skirt has been pulled up Her eyes are wide and stare unblinkingly at the e rabbit nuzzles her bare foot The bottorass-stained, her knees ently pull down the heainst her knees, al the mud, and then I push her eyelids closed

"Who would do this?" Elder asks

We can do anything ant, Luthor said

I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out I try to force them from me, but all that comes out is an almost inaudible sound of fear

"What happened?" Doc calls as he rushes forward through the field His assistant Kit follows him

Doc starts to examine the body I’m in the way, I know it, but I can’t seem to move until Kit puts her hand on my elbow and pulls me up She draws me away from the body and faces me toward the walls, away fro reen med patch

"No," I say automatically I never trust any of the medicines made on this ship

"It will calm you," Kit insists

"No"

I turn back to the body Elder and Doc are both kneeling beside the girl, talking in urgent tones Arguing

"Elder!" A voice calls from the other side of the field I see a female Shipper--tall and slender with i toward us

Elder stands "Marae, thank you for co"

"You told me to come," she says simply

The three of thelance at me Elder and Doc discuss an autopsy as Marae taps on a floppy rapidly, her fingers dancing across the screen Kit runs off at Doc’s order to begin preparing an exa the crisp, dark clothing that the top-ranking Shippers wear They consult with both Elder and Marae before ather the rabbits that got loose, another fixes the fence, another brings an electric cart and starts to load the girl’s body

The whole tiirl’s face, at her closed eyes, and remember how once she cried and didn’t knohy

Elder est person on the whole ship, younger even than ives a coh I’ve been so sure that Elder’s the leader Godspeed needs, I’ve never actually seen hie Not like this And while this only proves that he can lead this entire ship like I always said he could, it also makes me feel even more detached I don’t know him Or--I know him, but only one hi in his devotion, but I don’t know this Elder who commands people older than him, who issues orders that are immediately obeyed This Elder has never been more alien to me

"I will try to collect asthe autopsy," Doc says as two Shippers lift the body onto the electric cart

I want to say: I think I knoho did this

"Do you think there will be enough to identify the rant you access to the biometric scanner database"

Doc starts to follow the cart "There ernails I can use If not, I believe there will be seminal fluid present in this case It h all the records"

I want to say: I only met her once, but I feel like I knew her better than any of you

As Doc leaves, Elder gathers the Shippers together "Shelby, see if there’s any kind of vid feed of this area froirl was attacked Buck, I’d like you to track down any Feeders in the area and question them; maybe there itnesses to what happened here"

I open , and I need soether

But no sound co my windpipe I s dryly He’s not here Not anyain I should speak, I have to speak

But I can’t

Instead, I run

My body thrills at this--I haven’t run in ages I’ve been too scared to go onas I would for exercise I’ around h to keep all the pieces of

Past the fence, down the path, past the soy fields When I get to the main road that connects the Recorder Hall and the Hospital, I go straight to the Hall I don’t knohy I should hate this place The last time I saw Luthor, it was here, in the Recorder Hall But I’ else, that the clue Orion left for me is here, andtoas I enter the Hall, pass the groups of people pouring over the wall floppies, and head straight to the fiction room I throw open the door so hard that it bounces off the wall, and I don’t pause until I reach the shelf that holds the book I’ for

I slide the heavy book off the shelf, panting in an effort to catch irl, a tree, and a se, the illustration faded My heart races as I carry the book to the table in the middle of the room I collapse into a chair and let the book thunk heavily on the ine Elder’s look of disdain at the way I let it slaainst the surface He treats books like treasured, rare things, and I guess they are, but -ear books and read them until they fell apart, and I like his method better

I flip the book open and read the title page

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

by