“Nah. I’m curious is all. Now, this is called a mouse.” He held up a black plastic oval with a roller ball on the top. “You use it to click on this icon.” He demonstrated, clicking open a little blue check mark on the screen. The Network appeared. “Just click inside that white square, and you can enter whoever or whatever you’re looking for by typing the letters on the keyboard.”

“Thank you.” I exhaled, barely able to contain my excitement.

“Happy to help anytime,” he said. “I’ll leave you to your search.”

Barely noticing him leave, I typed in Adam’s name. His feed appeared, full of surfing videos. It told me nothing, but tears pricked my eyes at seeing him again. At least I knew he was okay. I wanted to send him a message, but I didn’t have access to a currency account to pay him to read it. Looking around for Johnathan to see if I could give him some of Crystal’s quarters in exchange for use of his currency account, my hand slid almost of its own volition to Adam’s friend list. Something told me to click on Deena’s stream.

I immediately regretted my instinct. Her feed was live, and there they were. Deena—and Adam—together. His hand sliding up her puny thigh.

My heart pounded in my chest, sending blood straight to my head as I watched in dizzy disbelief. Adam leaned in, his lips finding Deena’s. The screen blurred through my tears, but I couldn’t look away. I wanted to throw up.

“Are you okay?” Johnathan asked, appearing by my side. “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost—which isn’t impossible. Ghosts are a major attraction around here.”

“No.” I swallowed. Maybe Adam was in on Deena’s plan all along… Maybe there was nothing good in my life. My temples throbbed. I needed air.

Knees wobbling, I stood. Pushing up my umbrella, I blindly ran out of the library, not caring where I was going. I wandered the streets in a fog, Adam kissing Deena on constant replay in my mind, until I ended up at Colonial Park Cemetery. Hazily focusing on the eagle statue lording over the gate, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I peered through the iron bars down a dark path lined with giant trees, their spindly arms dripping with moss, reaching out. Probably craving human flesh. I gulped and checked my map. All I wanted was my bed, and the quickest way to the hotel was through the graveyard. I was going in.