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UnWholly Neal Shusterman 29950K 2023-08-31

Connor lets hiood"

"There’s a TV here, right?"

Connor points to it "Yeah, but there’s no line in, and the color sucks"

"Don’t need a line, and color’s not gonna ot" Starkey pulls out a s it into the TV’s data port "You should sit down"

Connor laughs "Thanks, but I’ll stand"

"You sure?"

Connor gives hie to conizes the show iazine he has seen many times before A fao screened in behind her says angel of division

"A little over a year ago," she begins, "clappers took out an unwinding facility in Happy Jack, Arizona The social and political fallout froirl--an infae, however, is not what you think You may have seen her in various public service announceone fro one of the Juvenile Authority’sthe poster child for the cause of unwinding Yes, you heardHer naet her anyti breath and realizes that Starkey was right--he needs to sit down His legs practically fall out from under him as he sinks into the chair

The studio shot cuts to Risa being interviewed in so different about her, but Connor can’t yet tell what it is

"Risa," begins the journalist, "you were a ward of the state slated for unwinding, became a coconspirator with the notorious Akron AWOL, and were even present at Happy Jack Harvest Camp to witness his death After all that, how is it that you now speak in favor of unwinding?"

Risa hesitates before answering, then says, "It’s complicated"

Starkey crosses his arms "Yeah, I’ll bet it is"

"Quiet!" snaps Connor

"Could you walk us through it?" the journalist asks, with a disarht off her face with Roland’s fist

"Let’s just say I have a different perspective now than I had before"

"You’ve co?"

"No, it’s a terrible thing," she answers, which gives Connor hopeuntil she says, "But it’s the least of all evils Unwinding is there for a reason, and the world would be very different without it"

"Pardonthis out, but that’s easy for you to say, now that you’re seventeen and beyond unwinding age"

"No co in Connor’s gut

"Let’s talk about the charges against you," the journalist says, looking at her notes "Theft of government property, namely yourself; conspiracy to commit acts of terrorisainst you have been dropped Does that have anything to do with your change of heart?"

"I won’t deny that I was offered a deal," Risa says, "but the dropping of those charges is not the reason why I’ that no one else would notice in the slightest, except for those who know her

Risa crosses her legs

For Connor, it’s as if the air has been sucked out of the jet He half expects oxygen

"If you think that’s bad, listen to this next part," says Starkey, actually seee of heart a matter of convenience or a matter of conscience?"

Risa takes time to craft her answer, but that doesn’t"Neither," she says "After all I’ve been faced with, I find I have no choice Foris a matter of necessity"

"Turn it off," Connor says

"There’s still more--you really should hear the end"

"I said turn it off!"

Starkey reaches over and turns off the TV, and Connor feels his s too hot to handle--but he knows it’s too late; the fire has already leaped inside In this o He wishes Lev hadn’t come in to save hi now

"Why did you show ht to know Hayden knows, but he’s been keeping it fro and co who’s your friend and who’s your eneht?"