Twisted

The three clones sat side-by-side on the floor in Bella’s living room. She had provided pillows and blankets and left them to arrange themselves for the night.

‘What are we going to do?’ said Hugo. ‘If they’re so close, we’re going to be very vulnerable if we set foot outside.’

‘I agree, but I do not think Bella will want us to stay here any longer than this one night,’ said Brontë. ‘We have to get away, as quickly as possible.’

The other two nodded.

‘I’ve had nothing from Xavier and the others,’ said Alain. ‘Nor Jean-Claude.’

‘Should we initiate contact?’ said Hugo.

Alain shook his head. ‘We have no way to know whether we would be putting them in danger if we send any kind of signal. For the moment, I think we must keep ourselves separate, for all our sakes.’

‘Since we have been together, I have come to appreciate the value of group support. Can we three at least travel onwards together?’ sad Hugo.

Brontë’s fingers twisted and untwisted in her lap, betraying her agitation.

‘You know the price of discovery-’

‘But if we work together, we could outwit them. They are only human. Look how easy it was to deal with them in the warehouse,’ said Hugo. ‘You’re the one with the transport and logistics expertise - you must be able to find us a way out of here - what do you recommend?’

‘Without access to the internet or our communication channel, it’s difficult to evaluate routes and methods of travel,’ snapped Brontë.

Alain, ever the peacemaker, held up his hands. ‘We must work together to keep each other safe. Hugo, you have the advantage of understanding more of human motivation than we do, Brontë has the planning expertise and I ought to be able to circumvent any barriers to our access to technology. If I can tap into Bella’s mobile phone using her own log in, that should keep us concealed and you can look for the best options Brontë. How long would you need to research?’