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Chapter 10

‘No,’ I said, horrified, shaking my head ‘That’s not possible ’Brandon looked like he felt sorry foryou what I read,’ he said ‘Dad seeh those EGG people did it—’‘Egg? You must mean ELF,’ I corrected him‘Whatever,’ Brandon said ‘It was still his fault Dad’s, I mean He should have had better security ’‘He should have made sure those plasravely‘Well,’ Brandon said, looking uncoh that it wouldn’t have fallen down if someone hadn’t shot it with a paintball—’‘I don’t believe you,’ I said, cutting him offHe shook his head ‘I’m sorry,’ he said, ‘but it’s true If anyone’s to blame, it’s those elf people—’‘Not about the plas up fro Cosy todead I can’t be dead ’‘Oh, believe me,’ Brandon said ‘Emerson Watts? She’s dead It was in the paper and on CNN and everything I even saw the obituary It was in the file in my dad’s office with the rest of the stuff ’It felt as if so tooher lower lip, released it and said, ‘I’ht I saw the way that thing landed on the girl, and shewell, I don’t see how anyone could have survived that It squashed her Like a bug ’‘If I’m dead,’ I demanded when the steamroller finally th of the loft, which I pro to you? How can I just have eaten that blackened sea bass?’‘Because,’ Lulu said patiently ‘I already told you You had a spirit transfer—’‘Ohas a spirit transfer!’‘God, OK,’ Lulu said, blinking rapidly ‘You don’t have to yell ’‘There’s got to be so ‘I mean, if Emerson Watts is dead, and I’m Nikki Howard, why are Emerson Watts’s parents the ones who’ve been atin the hospital? Why haven’t Nikki’s parents been there?’‘Well, because Nikki doesn’t have any parents,’ Lulu said matter-of-factly ‘I mean, she became an e contract ’I quit pacing and stared at her ‘What are you talking about?’‘Nikki never got along with her parents,’ Lulu said ‘You know you never – I mean, she never – talked about theht,’ Lulu said ‘Nikki didn’t have any family I mean, none that she spoke to Or about I think –’ Lulu dropped her voice to a whisper – ‘I think Nikki’s parents were poor Like trailer-park poor ’‘Why are you whispering?’ I asked her‘Well,’ Lulu shrugged, ‘I don’t know I uess becauseWell, it’s not very classy to talk about rew up, or anything that happened before she ca to pace again ‘That still doesn’t explain whatin Nikki Howard’s hospital room ’‘Because they know that’s where your spirit is,’ Lulu explained patiently ‘Maybe her body is dead, Brandon But her spirit is still alive Which, of course, leads us to the real question: where is Nikki Howard’s spirit? Is it just floating around out there? If so, we need to capture it!’‘What we need to do,’ Brandon said, co Lulu, ‘is call Kelly and tell her we have Nikki here in the loft But that Nikki doesn’t know she’s Nikki Then we need to ask Kelly where the REAL Nikki is Nikki’s spirit, I mean ’I looked back and forth between the two of them And wondered if I could possibly have been kidnapped by two stupider people‘Do you think Kelly did this?’ Lulu asked ‘I’ve always thought there was so with her I et Nikki on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swi there’s plenty of time and that Nikki shouldn’t worry But what kind of la Kelly is behind this whole spirit-transfer thing’Only I didn’t hear how Brandon replied Because I had reached up to scratchthat wasn’t just hair and s and stood there in front of one of Nikki Howard’s floor-to-ceiling s, staring unseeingly at my own reflection – or Nikki Howard’s reflection – and the bright lights of don Manhattan beyond it as I felt alongAnd there it was All along the base of my – or Nikki’s – skull A puckered line of skin, hidden by long blonde hair It didn’t hurt, but it was still tender So that had left a hideous raised scar, about half an inch wide and five or six inches longThe thing is, I knehat it was I knew exactly what it was, froery shows Christopher and I liked to watch on the Discovery Health Channel Someone had made an incision at the back of Nikki’s neck, then peeled her skin back, hair and all, until the glea white bones of her skull had been revealedOnly why? Why would so like that? Unless And then I re that made my blood – Nikki’s blood – run cold A rainy Sunday afternoon at the apart of Doritos we’d sery show:BRAIN TRANSPLANTS: THE SURGERY OF THE FUTURE IS HERE NOWNo No wayWhat had they said in that docu like the stuff of science fictionBut scientists in Europe had proved it was possible to transplant the brain as a separate organ into an intact ani, situation for many days‘Sweet,’ Christopher had said ‘I want one ’The docuone on to assert that it was only ethical considerations that were keeping the technology froued that it was i brain‘Immoral my ass,’ Christopher had said ‘They can transplant my brain into the Hulk’s body any time they want ’Christopher had been disappointed to learn that the technology for whole-body transplants – the correct term for brain transplants – in huo, hu would it be until whole-body transplants were as routine as heart transplants?Was that it? Was I the first ever recipient of a whole-body transplant? Had that plasma screen crushed my body, but spared my brain? Had Dr Holcombe then removed my brain and transplanted it into the nearest convenient brain-dead body on handthe body of Nikki Howard, who’d apparently suffered from some kind of collapse at or around the same time as my accident?No No, that was ridiculous First of all, it wasn’t even possible Hadn’t the docu able to perforery in humans?And second of allould anyone use that kind of technology – if indeed it did exist – to save s that had only confused h Frida’s weird reaction tome if I was really me Of course she wasn’t sure if I was mebecause I was Nikki Howard on the outside, not the sister she knew and (allegedly) lovedAnd what about Dr Holcombe’s insistence that I not move or sit up? This would ery patientAnd his assertion that I’d ress than they could have hoped for? They’d transplantedlucidly and (soh, of course, o)And what about the fact that I was the only patient I had seen on the entire floor as Lulu and Brandon had been wheelingtop secret Why? Because of what the documentary had mentioned, about the ethical controversy over such a procedure?And what about the fact that sudden

ly I liked fish?Or the fact that I, E out of Nikki Howard’s sapphire blue eyes, instead of my own muddy brown ones?My God It all made sense I hadn’t had a spirit transfer, as Lulu Collins kept insisting Dr Holcombe had sawed open Nikki Howard’s cranium, removed her brain and slidall the appropriate nerves and arteries and veins, before fusing her skull and finally stitching her skin and hair back into placeThe realization causedI kneas sprawled out on the white carpet, looking up at Lulu and Brandon’s anxious expressionsand being licked in the face by Nikki Howard’s dog‘Nikki?’ Lulu was crying ‘Nikki, can you hear me? Oh, Brandon, this is all our fault Maybe we shouldn’t have taken her from the hospital Maybe she really is sick!’‘Nikki?’ Brandon was giving my face little s me ’‘Oh ’ Brandon lowered his hand ‘You scared us Are you all right?’‘I’m fine,’ I said ‘Help me over to the couch ’Brandon pulled me up, and then chivalrously carried me over to the couch Once I was settled on to it, Cosabella caave me a few more restorative kisses‘What happened to you?’ Lulu wanted to know ‘Was it hypoglycaey drink or soo pour her a TaB ’‘No,’ I said weakly, refraining froar free, not really useful for hypoglycaemics ‘I’m fine Really ’Lulu shook her head ‘Do it anyway, Brandon Nikki – Em – whatever your name is I’m sorry I’ to help What can we do? What can we do to ,’ I said tiredly Because that’s all I felt Not outrage over what had been done to er Not even wonderThey’d done it They had done itI was the world’s first brain transplant ‘Oh, here,’ Lulu said She took the can of TaB Brandon had brought over, and waved it under my nose ‘I think you should drink this ’The drink actually sreat Which made no sense, because it was diet And I hate diet I reached up and took hold of the can, then took a sip It was cold and sweet and delicious‘Look, Nikki,’ Lulu said ‘Or Em Or whatever your naent, Rebecca? Or your publicist, Kelly? Should we call Kelly and see if she can tell us what’s going on?’‘Don’t call anyone yet,’ I said I wasn’t ready to go back to the hospital Not now Not knohat I suddenly knew Or was fairly certain I knewWhy hadn’t they toldfor?‘I’ Lulu the e out here, and maybe rest a little before I decide what to do next?’‘Of course you can,’ Lulu exclaimed ‘I mean, this is your loft I’m the one who pays you rent ’‘Nikki Howard,’ I corrected her ‘You paid Nikki Howard rent ’I was the world’s first brain transplantand the body they’d chosen to transplant my brain into was one of the planet’s most famous supermodelsSeriously The Hulk would have been better