I stared, shocked at her upfront manner, unable to keep my eyes from travelling over her again. Her hair was long and straight and gleaming. Her eyes and posture radiated confidence and energy. I realised this is what it looked like to be happy with yourself and where you were in life. I had no idea what position she had at the company. Regardless, it was beneath mine.

‘Hinting, were you?’ I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. ‘Hinting what, exactly?’

She rolled her eyes. ‘Don’t be a bitch. I thought you looked nice enough.’

I sighed, deciding I didn’t want to come off that way. I made my voice gentler, saying, ‘Looked nice enough for what?’

She waved a hand in the direction of the windows. ‘For that. I wanna head out into the city—don’t you? I thought we could go together.’

I brightened, offering her a tentative smile. ‘Oh, sure! I’d like that. Did you ask anyone else?’

‘Yep. Kim is coming too.’

I glanced at the table Gina gestured to. The red-haired girl with the pixie cut sat there. I frowned. ‘Should we ask one of the guys…?’

Gina made a disapproving sound. ‘I did. They don’t want to go out there, not at all. They say it’s disgusting. I say they’re pussies.’

‘Well…as long as we stick together, we’ll be fine—I think.’

Gina shrugged, her expression smug. ‘I go where I want. If you want to follow, then follow. I don’t follow anyone.’

I regarded her for a moment longer, trying to figure out if she were being serious.

She was.

It was better than nothing. Worst case scenario: I turned right back if things got wild. After all, Gina and Kim were both older than me. Probably more daring, too.

So I agreed. Gina called Kim over, and the both of us ventured outside. I didn’t bother telling my father where I was headed, but I left a message with Nathaniel so that he knew where to find me if there was trouble.

I half expected Gina and Kim to ignore me, but was happily surprised to be involved in the conversation, even though we had little in common outside of work. I was diplomatic enough to adapt to it, and our walk through the mall down into the underground was civil and friendly. We decided to take a pod into one of the safer areas of the outdoor city, which put us strangely on the outskirts of the island. As I suspected, there was no greenery to be found here, and certainly no other beautiful landmarks worth seeing. Instead, the edges of the city seemed even more industrial and factory-like, devoid of anything else but working people, so we found ourselves gradually making our way back into the centre of town.

That’s when things got interesting. Gina and Kim wanted to do some fashion shopping, so we approached a big and modern-looking mall, similar to the one we stayed in. We toured the low and high-priced shops, marvelling at the futuristic feel of the fashions there. Even I was fascinated with some of the clothing lines. Although I tended to drift toward business-appropriate attire, I couldn’t quite stifle my creative streak.

Here in the Metropolis, there seemed to be something for everyone—everything from minimalist, squarish clothing to the glittering, fabulous clothes marking the elite. Gina and Kim each got themselves a colourful garment, while I eyed a pointy-shouldered blazer. It was sleek and professional—but sexy. I wondered if I’d ever get the chance to wear it. In the end, I bought it anyway. The shopkeeper assured me that the garment would be shipped directly to my hotel room.

We continued on in higher spirits, happy to see more and more people milling around cement parks and gathering areas.

It was in one of these that we had our first contact with the local population.

We had spotted an art formation in the middle of a park, some kind of crumbling statue from a different age. We passed another one, identical in size and shape, then another. We followed them until we ended up at a kids’ playground—or at least an abandoned playground. There was a platform with solid ladders leading up to a woven net, where kids had presumably climbed. A little pirate ship and some rusted swings also adorned the place, though it was obvious no kids ever came here anymore.

Instead, we were approached by three men. They weren’t homeless, per se, but rough in appearance, sporting bruises and tattoos, clad in jeans and leather. My immediate reaction was to back up and leave. But the girls were taken with them, since they were approaching us in a non-threatening manner, all smiles and jokes.

‘You girls invading our playground now?’

‘Want to tour my pirate ship?’

‘That’s some of the prettiest tourists I’ve ever seen!’

Gina flipped her gleaming hair over one shoulder, boldly returning their jokes until they struck up conversation. The guys seemed very interested in where we had come from. Gina retaliated with the interview, forcing the guys to reveal they were construction workers at a building site nearby. To me that screamed low-life, but they were attractive, I supposed, and Gina grew more flirtatious with every passing minute. She had her sights on the biggest, tallest one, which left the two remaining guys ogling me and Kim. Kim, almost as bold as her friend, switched on her charm, while I felt myself shut down. I made a vain attempt to get the girls’ attention, but they were ignoring me now. I gathered my courage, loudly calling Gina’s name. She was forced to turn around.

‘Yeah?’ Her eyes shot me a look that said, “whatever it is, get on with it.”

I swallowed. ‘Can I just talk to you for a second?’

She blew out air but twitched her way to where I stood. ‘What is it?’ she demanded, her eyes drifting back to where the big guy loomed.

‘Do you think this is wise? Hanging out with these guys that we don’t even know?’

She laughed, looking at me like I was a child who knew no better. ‘We’re just having fun! You should try it sometime.’

‘I don’t know…’ I managed, casting an eye toward the guys again, especially the one that was leering at me. No, I definitely did not want to “have fun” with him. ‘I think I’ll pass, actually.’

Gina grew a little exasperated, like she thought I was being ridiculous. ‘You do know they can’t do much, right? We have our devices. If anything goes wrong, one button and the police are here. It’s really okay.’

‘Maybe it is,’ I admitted. ‘But I just don’t feel like it. Sorry.’ I shrugged and turned to go.

Gina rolled her eyes and skipped back to the group. ‘Your loss,’ she called over her shoulder.

I felt very uneasy about leaving them behind, but I checked our location on my device, and yes, she’d been right: having the authorities here would be quick and easy. Besides, Gina and Kim were grown women; they could take care of themselves.

Just before I left, the remaining guy in the group cast me a dark look, apparently displeased with my decision to leave. I realised he was the only one without any female company, and had only a second’s worth of pity to spare for him. Then I hurried away, taking cover behind a block of concrete.

It soon became apparent that I was lost. I wasn’t particularly worried, since I had a navigation system on my device, but I still felt like every building I passed looked just like every other. I grew frustrated, feeling like I was walking in circles. I reached for my device, ready to search up the directions back to our mall. Before looking down, I caught sight of a quick figure darting across the roofs of the low buildings. I squinted against the sun’s glare, trying to make out details.

Shock registered in me, but I was hooked. It was the guy, I realised—the one I’d seen at the flea market. I followed him as he stalked his next prey. He was sneaking down a water pipe to jump across two barrels. His movements were so quiet, like a cat’s. In the end, he managed to snag a device off an unsuspecting victim. He hid behind a crate, checking his catch while he lowered his backpack to the ground. I watched him stow the device among all the other things he’d stolen, and found myself speaking before I could stop myself.

‘I could have you reported for that.’