perfectìy still, willing himself to calm down, to concentrate on the thoughts that were just out of reach, to bring them to the front of his mind and examine them.
Dimly, words began to echo in his mind.
Adam didn’t want to die.
He just wanted to get out of this dumb place.
The only thing he liked about it was Dr. Engersol’s class.
… and his computer.
His computer. But what did it mean?
Once more an image of Amy’s empty skull rose up in his mind, but then another memory took its place.
The cat.
The cat they had been working on all morning.
Its skull cut away, parts of its brain destroyed by lasers.
The cat was blind, and deaf, and couldn’t feel anything.
But it was still alive.
Now he heard Dr. Engersol’s voice:
By far the majority of the creature’s brain is occupied with the simple tasks of accepting stimuli and maintaining bodily functions.
Engersol’s voice continued to drone in Josh’s head as he recalled what the scientist had said that morning, word for word. Like a blue-white lightning flash, in a moment of brilliant clarity it all came together in Josh’s mind.
The experiment on the cat didn’t have anything to do with artificial intelligence. It was only meant to get them thinking about how much of their own brains were taken up with keeping their bodies alive.
But if someone didn’t have a body …
Josh’s mind sped, the implications of his thoughts quickly taking hold.
If a brain could be taken out of a body and still be kept alive …
Jeff’s words rang once more: Adam didn’t want to die. The only thing he liked was Dr. Engersol’s seminar and his computer.
Was it possible? Was that what Adam had done? Let Dr. Engersol take his brain out of his body and hook it up to a computer?
An icy chill seized Josh, and he shuddered as he thought about it. It wasn’t possible—it couldn’t be possible.
Could it?
The cat.
The cat’s body had essentially been cut off from its brain, but the brain was still alive.
And he’d actually seen Amy’s body, with the brain missing from her skull.
Josh nearly jumped off the bed when he heard a soft tap at the door, followed by Hildie Kramer’s voice. “Josh? It’s Hildie. May I come in?”
Josh’s mind raced. What should he do? Should he ask her all the questions that were suddenly churning through his mind? But what if she knew what had happened to Amy?
What if she’d helped Dr. Engersol?
He had to pretend he hadn’t figured out anything at all! If she knew what he was thinking …
He got off the bed and went to the door, opening it a crack. Hildie, her eyes looking worried, reached out to push the door farther open. “Are you all right, Josh?”
Josh, shaking his head, took a step backward from the door, letting Hildie come into the room.
“I—I just don’t feel very good, that’s all,” he said, his voice faltering under the housemother’s gaze.
“Of course you don’t,” Hildie said in her most soothing tones. “And I know how you must feel right now. Amy was one of your best friends, wasn’t she?”
Josh nodded, saying nothing, but his eyes remained fixed on Hildie. Why had she come up to see him? Was she really just worried about him, or was it something else?
“I thought you might want to talk about it a little,” Hildie explained, seating herself on the bed and patting the spot next to her in an invitation for Josh to join her. “Finding her like that was a terrible thing to have happen to you.”
Josh stayed where he was. “I’m okay,” he said. “It’s just—it’s just hard to get used to Amy being dead.”
Hildie nodded sympathetically. “And I guess we didn’t really know Mr. Conners very well, did we?”
Josh hesitated, then managed to shake his head. “I guess he was just being nice to me so Amy would trust him.” Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Hildie’s reaction to the words he’d made himself say.
Was it only his imagination, or did she seem to smile just a little bit?
“It’s terrible,” Hildie sighed. “But things like that happen sometimes.”
“But Amy—”
“Amy was a wonderful little girl,” Hildie said. “We all loved her, and none of us will ever forget her.” She hesitated just a moment, then looked deep into Josh’s eyes. “Have you called your mother yet?”
Josh shook his head.
“Wouldn’t you like to?” Hildie asked.
Josh took a deep breath. “I—I don’t know,” he stammered. “I’m afraid if I tell her what happened, she might make