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Back Keystone Save as PDF
Chapters (53)
  1. Dedication
  2. Chapter One
  3. Chapter Two
  4. Chapter Three
  5. Chapter Four
  6. Chapter Five
  7. Chapter Six
  8. Chapter Seven
  9. Chapter Eight
  10. Chapter Nine
  11. Chapter Ten
  12. Chapter Eleven
  13. Chapter Twelve
  14. Chapter Thirteen
  15. Chapter Fourteen
  16. Chapter Fifteen
  17. Chapter Sixteen
  18. Chapter Seventeen
  19. Chapter Eighteen
  20. Chapter Nineteen
  21. Chapter Twenty
  22. Chapter Twenty-One
  23. Chapter Twenty-Two
  24. Chapter Twenty-Three
  25. Chapter Twenty-Four
  26. Chapter Twenty-Five
  27. Chapter Twenty-Six
  28. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  29. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  30. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  31. Chapter Thirty
  32. Chapter Thirty-One
  33. Chapter Thirty-Two
  34. Chapter Thirty-Three
  35. Chapter Thirty-Four
  36. Chapter Thirty-Five
  37. Chapter Thirty-Six
  38. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  39. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  40. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  41. Chapter Forty
  42. Chapter Forty-One
  43. Chapter Forty-Two
  44. Chapter Forty-Three
  45. Chapter Forty-Four
  46. Chapter Forty-Five
  47. Chapter Forty-Six
  48. Chapter Forty-Seven
  49. Epilogue
  50. Preview of Malice
  51. Preview of Incognito
  52. Acknowledgments
  53. About the Author

When I looked up, Allard was gone. In her place, a single white daisy lay across the table.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

March 10, 20X5

Truth: I can trust me.

I lowered the umbrella inside the library. Crystal gave it to me as a parting gift. She’d completed her scenes and was no longer needed on set, so she was spending a few weeks with Allard, strategizing her comeback. I learned as much as I could about disconnecting before she left, but my mind changed daily about whether I’d go through with it. The one piece of information Crystal couldn’t give me was the meaning of the daisy. She told me it symbolized purity and innocence but the rest was up to me.

Settling at a computer, I pulled up the Universal Library and typed “meaning of daisy” into the search box. I waited. And waited. And waited. It eventually came up with listings for purity and innocence, and I knew the internet wasn’t going to give me the answer.

Disappearing into the deserted book stacks, I ran my fingers along the endless rows of spines, marveling at all the ideas—people’s thoughts, beliefs, truths—shelved and forgotten.

“Well, well. Look who’s back.”

“Johnathan.” Turning around, I smiled.

“What can I help you with today?” he asked.

I studied him, unsure if mentioning the daisy would clue him into Keystone.

“If it’s something you need to keep secret, you can trust me,” he said. “We’re friends, aren’t we?”

“Are we?” I raised my eyebrows.

“Fine. We’re acquaintances. But we could be friends if you wanted.”

“It’s that easy?”

He looked at me like I’d just landed my UFO in the middle of the library. “Yeah.”

He considers himself a Disconnect…and he can’t post to the Networks, so who could he really tell about me and Keystone, if he even connects me to Keystone in the first place? “Okay. Friends.” I nodded, deciding he was trustworthy. “But please don’t tell anyone about this.”

“I won’t tell a soul. Promise.” He linked his pinkie with mine, and we shook on it.

“I’m looking for flower meanings,” I said. “For some reason the Universal Library is vague on the subject.”

If he thought anything was odd about my request, he didn’t show it. Narrowing his eyes, he cocked his head to the side. “That’s some sordid stuff, Ella, but I can help you out. What you need is the Old Farmer’s Almanac. Follow me.”

He led me to the “gardening” section and started pulling out paperback books. “Do you want one from a particular year?”

“Give me the oldest one you’ve got.”

He studied the options until he found a yellowed book, its pages wrapped in plastic. “1870?”

“That works.”

Taking the brittle book, I sat down right there on the floor, gingerly opening it.