Legacy is about living with intention and purpose, knowing that what you do today will echo through eternity.

  ~ Unknown

  “Well, Sarah, have you considered our proposal?” Mr. Fleischer smiled, clearly confident of victory, while Lawyer Guy opened his briefcase.

  “I have,” she said, pleased that she managed to keep her voice steady and sounding calm, despite her racing heartbeat.

  Mr. Fleischer nodded toward her new body. “Once you sign the document, we’ll sign over permanent ownership of your new body to you. You’ll hardly know anything is different.”

  “It is a very close match, sir.”

  “Very good. You’ve made a wise choice, Sarah.”

  Lawyer Guy pulled the sheaf of papers from his briefcase, but before he could pass them across to her, Sarah held up a hand. Her fingers trembled only a little as she made her play.

  “Sir, I have one condition.” Mr. Fleischer’s smile faded a little. “Before I sign, I want to meet the renter in person.”

  “Sarah, you know our policy.”

  “I know, sir, but I need to look her in the eye and know she’ll take good care of it.” She paused and looked down at her hands. She hoped that made her look submissive, but really she couldn’t risk him seeing her fury blazing in her eyes. Forcing herself to speak softly she added, “I want a moment to say good-bye.”

  She looked up and met Mr. Fleischer’s gaze, hoping her attempt at innocent honesty was working.

  “You’re just making it harder on yourself.”

  “It’s a reasonable request. I’m a sentimental girl. Please.”

  Mr. Fleischer waved a hand dismissively. “Fine.” Then he leaned forward, “But no second thoughts. No hysterics.”

  “Of course not. I just want a few minutes alone with her, with my old body.”

  “Ten minutes.”

  “That should be enough.”

  To Lawyer Guy he said, “Set it up. I want this wrapped up by tomorrow.”

  “Sir, can I ask how you found someone who looked so much like me in so short a time who was willing to sign over permanent corporal possession to me?”

  “That is not your concern.”

  “She has agreed to sign the body over to me, right?”

  “Of course,” Mr. Fleischer lied with a straight face. “All the documents will be in order.” Sarah had no doubt they would be.

  Mr. Fleischer reached for his phone. “Now that this is settled, please excuse me.”

  Sarah rose and managed to not sprint for the door. She found Tomas in the labyrinthine depths of the transfer facility and pulled him into an empty transfer station.

  Doubts and fear about what she’d just agreed to made her mouth dry. She found it difficult to speak, but forced the words out.

  “You suggested there’s another option. Talk.”

  “You’re very motivated,” he commented.

  She gripped him by the collar and pulled his face close. “Don’t play games with me. I don’t have time for it. You showed me, I get it, I’m in. Whatever it takes. I’ll help you with whatever you’re planning. Just promise me I’ll get to keep my own body.”

  Tomas smiled. “I was hoping you’d say that, although you’re moving faster than I thought you would.”

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  “I can’t afford to hesitate. They want me to sign over permanent corporal possession tomorrow.”

  “Then we don’t have much time,” Tomas said with a frown, but he sounded determined rather than worried. Sarah took that as a good sign.

  “I arranged a private meeting with the renter to say good-bye.”

  Tomas smiled. “Brilliant. We can work with that.”

  “Will Dr. Maerwynn help us?”

  “No.”

  “Will one of her medical assistants help?”

  “No.”

  “Then who? You’ve got to have a plan to get around them, right? They’re not the only people who can do a transfer?”

  “No, they are not.”

  “Then who?”

  Tomas sighed. “I’m going to have to ask you to trust me on that part.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “No. Trust me on this, and we’ll get your body. I promise.”

  Sarah took a deep breath. That was not exactly reassuring. How much did she really know Tomas?

  Apparently a lot less than she’d assumed. He definitely had some kind of agenda, was using her in his own way just as much as Mr. Fleischer wanted to.

  Except, she knew exactly what Mr. Flescher wanted. What did Tomas want?

  Could it be worse than losing her body?

  Maybe, but she had to make a choice. A definite path to losing her identify forever, or a murkier path glimmering with a Will-‘o-the-wisp hope that maybe she’d come out better.

  In the end, she wanted to trust Tomas more. Was that stupid?

  Maybe. He just might be a better liar than Mr. Flescher, but what choice did she really have? She’d keep her eyes open and watch out for herself, but she made her choice and picked a side.

  “What do we do?”

  “You need to go talk with Jill.”

  “Hold on, Jill won’t help us. You’ve got to know that.”

  “She will.”

  “I doubt it. She’s only motivated by money.”

  “She’ll get it. But you’re wrong. There’s one thing that’ll motivate her more.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like learning about the real health risks tied to transfers.”

  That surprised Sarah. “What kind of health risks?”

  “The risks are minimal to the renters, but for donors, you who transfer many times, the risks are very real.”

  “Like what?” Sarah demanded.

  She shouldn’t be surprised that there were even more secrets, but she wasn’t sure how many more she could handle.

  “You’ve already seen the early stages, Sarah. You think that weird memory of that beach house in the Caymans was a fluke?”

  “Yes,” she said without conviction. That memory had felt completely real.

  “Or Jill’s comment about shopping for birthday cards for grandkids?”

  “That was pretty weird,” she admitted.

  “It’s more than weird. It’s dangerous. That so-called nervous breakdown of Irina’s was the corporation’s way of hiding the transfer sickness.”

  “What happened to her?” Sarah asked, bracing herself for even more bad news.

  “Too many transfers. Each one consumes a little of a soul’s power. After too many, the soul becomes too weak to maintain its integrity, and wisps of lingering identity from the bodies they inhabit begin to seep in to fill in the cracks.”

  “That’s gross.”

  “Worse than that. With enough transfers, the percentage of fragments of other souls incorporated into the mix grows too high. It fragments the soul beyond its limits and drives people insane.”

  “That’s horrible.”

  Sarah hadn’t thought things could get any worse. She wanted to ask Tomas what else he was keeping from her, but didn’t dare.

  She frowned at a new thought. “So, over time, does our F-factor increase?”

  He chuckled. “Not likely. For most folks, their rank never changes, but if it did, I would expect it to drop as the soul fragmentation ate away at the integrity of their souls.

  Sarah frowned at that, thinking of the weird waking-dream memory of the screen showing her F-factor climbing to F-6. Had it been right, or just a subconscious cry for help, an intuitive recognition that she needed to be stronger, or risk losing her mind?

  Before she could ask more about that, Tomas added, “The machinery they use in the transfers is experimental. It’s designed to filter brainwaves and block mental dissipation and soul fragmentation. It helps, but it’s not perfect.”

  “So eventually we’ll all end up like Irina?”

  “Or worse. Even with the machines, most people lack the strength of soul to handle more than a couple transfers. Only donors with a rank of F3 or above can even try, although F3 is still very low.”

  “Hold on, are you saying our F-factor ranks really rate some kind of soul strength?”

  “Something like that. The ranking system has been around for a long time, but they’ve twisted it out of the norm.”

  That made a certain kind of sense. No wonder those other applicants with the lower F-factor ranks had been turned away. The company wouldn’t want to have to cover up more mental breakdowns like poor Irina.

  “So, I was right. I’d sensed something was wrong.”

  He gave her a warm smile. “Yeah, you’re the only one to sense the danger so far. Soul fragmentation is no joke. Think of the worst psychopaths in world history. A large percentage of them were suffering from soul fragmentation insanity. It’s not a new problem.”

  “If we leave, will our souls be okay?”

  “Probably, but it’ll require some study. Sarah, no one with F ranks have ever transferred so many times. You’re treading unexplored territory.”

  Sarah groaned, rubbing at her temples where a migraine was starting. Her world had gotten turned upside down too many times too fast.

  His words made it sound like there could be F-factors other than F, but she didn’t ask. She had more than enough to swallow already.

  “Tomas, I can’t process this right now. It’s too crazy.”

  “Then just believe me when I say the situation is a lot more dangerous than you understand. I’ll give you some internal documentation from Dr. Maerwynn herself for Jill to read. That’ll convince her to help.”

  Sarah nodded. That would work, and maybe Jill would understand enough to escape Alterego before it destroyed her.

  “Why don’t you just explain it to her?”

  Tomas smiled. “I have to write a letter.”