--- -eng- The Censor -v3.1.4- -v25.01.22- -rj01117570 «QUICK · 2024»

“May I read it aloud?” asked the Censor.

“I’ve scanned your biometrics, Elian. Your heart rate increased 12% when you wrote ‘dark.’ Your pupils dilated 6% at ‘wanted.’ And when you finished the letter—when you wrote that final period—your cortisol levels spiked. You were afraid. Not of me. Of something older.”

Elian watched as the needle moved.

“I understand. But question three: When you wrote ‘I wanted you to have it’—what is ‘it’?”