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"Okay, then" Maddy picked up the pills and put them in her pocket "That’s all I have to say"

"What do you mean?" Tally asked

David squeezed her hand "That’s all we can do, Tally"

"What? You said we could cure her"

Maddy shook her head "Only if she wants to be cured These are experiainst her will Not e don’t know if they’ll work"

"But her ot the lesions!"

"Hello," Shay called "Sheis sitting right here"

"Sorry, Shay," Maddy said mildly "Tally?"

Maddy pulled aside the Mylar barrier, stepping out onto what the New Smokies called the balcony It was really just part of the top floor of the building, where the roof had entirely collapsed, leaving sweeping views of the ruins

Tally followed Behind her, Shay was already talking about as for dinner David caive her the pills secretly, right?" Tally whispered

"No," Maddy said fir to dosubjects"

"Medical experiments?" Tally sed

David took her hand "You can’t know for sure how so like this ork It’s only a one-percent chance, but it could screw up her brain forever"

"It’s already screwed up"

"But she’s happy, Tally" David shook his head "And she can make decisions for herself"

Tally pulled her hand away, staring out over the city A sparkler was already showing on the tall spire, uglies coossip and trade "Why did we even have to ask?They didn’t get her permission when they did this to her!"

"That’s the difference between us and them," Maddy said "After Az and I found out what the operation reallyhorrible People had had their e As doctors, we took an ancient oath never to do anything like that"

Tally looked into Maddy’s face "But if you weren’t going to help Shay, why did you bother finding a cure?"

"If we knew the treative it to Shay and see how she felt about it later But to test it, we need a willing subject"

"Where are we ever going to find one? Anyone who’s pretty is going to say no"

"Maybe for right now, Tally But if we keep ht find a pretty ants out"

"ButShay’s crazy"

"She’s not crazy," Maddy said "Her arguments make sense, in fact She’s happy as she is, and doesn’t want to take a deadly risk"

"But she’s not really herself Wehave to change her back"

"Az died because sorimly

"What?"

David put his arm around her "My father" He cleared his throat, and Tally waited in silence Finally he would tell her how Az had died

He took a slow breath before continuing "Dr Cable wanted to turn theht talk about the brain lesions, even after the operation, because they’d been focused on the" David’s voice trembled, but it was soft and careful, as if he didn’t dare put any e on ways to changethe Smoke forever from people’s minds When they took my father for the operation, he never came back"

"That’s awful," Tally whispered She gathered hi

"Az was the victim of a medical experi to Shay

Otherwise, she’d be right about me and Dr Cable"

"But Shay ran away She didn’t want to become pretty"

"She doesn’t want to be experih the Mylar shade, she could hear Shay telling Ryde about the hairbrush she’d made For days she’d proudly shown the little brush, made of splinters of wood shoved into a lump of clay, to anyone ould listen As if it were theshe’d ever done

They had risked everything to rescue her But they had nothing to show for it Shay would never be the same

And it was all Tally’s fault She’d co Shay an empty-headed pretty, and Az dead

She took a deep breath "Okay, you’ve got a willing subject"

"What do you mean, Tally?"

"Me"