Rebel by Amy Tintera Read Free Book Online

problem.” Addie said it loudly, so that several of the Reboots around us turned and frowned.
    I stopped and faced her. “I’m not sure that pissing them off right away is the smartest idea,” I said quietly.
    “I don’t care.” She pointed at something, although when I followed her finger I couldn’t tell exactly what. “That crazy girl is rounding up all the girls and telling them to take theirbirth-control chips out.”
    I raised my eyebrows. “Which crazy girl?”
    “The redhead. Um, Jules. Micah’s sidekick.”
    “Did you tell her no?”
    “Yeah, I told her no. Apparently it’s my
duty
to have children. Apparently procreation is
encouraged
. And since I’m an Under-sixty, I’m
especially
encouraged.” She threw her hands in the air. “Some of the Austin Reboots are buying this crap!”
    I shifted uncomfortably as I glanced at Jules, who was standing outside a tent not far away. Her red hair blew in the breeze, her eyes narrowed as she watched us.
    That was weird. And not exactly something I wanted to deal with.
    “You don’t have to do that,” I said.
    “Damn right I don’t have to do that!”
    “Is there a problem here?”
    I turned around to see Micah standing behind me, one eyebrow cocked. He peered at me, then Addie.
    “Your sidekick wants to take my birth-control chip out,” Addie said.
    His eyebrow lifted higher. “My sidekick?”
    “Jules,” I said quickly, giving Addie a “calm down” look. I barely knew her, and her loudmouth tendencies were already getting on my nerves.
    “Yeah.” She ignored my look. “She says it’s my duty.”
    “Well, I don’t know about duty, but we’re a big fan ofReboot children here,” Micah said evenly.
    “I’m not doing it.”
    “HARC forcibly sterilized you,” Micah said.
    “I’m cool with it.”
    Micah’s jaw moved, like he was trying to control his temper.
    “It should be her decision,” I said quietly. “You’re not going to force her, are you?” I tried to keep the question light, but I was actually worried.
    “Yes, it’s her decision.” He sighed, like he was disappointed.
    “What a relief,” Addie said dryly. “Me and my baby maker are going to go over there and tell the others.”
    I didn’t know whether to give her an exasperated look or laugh at that comment, and the edges of her mouth turned up in a smile when she caught both expressions on my face. I quickly wiped away my amusement as I turned to Micah.
    “I’m surprised she survived at HARC,” Micah said, watching her walk away. “Doesn’t seem like she takes orders well.”
    I shrugged. Addie had been at HARC for six years, so she must have done something right. And I couldn’t help thinking that maybe she was simply tired of taking orders. I certainly was.
    Two Reboot kids ran around the fire pit, and Micah followed my gaze. He grinned. “Cool, isn’t it?”
    “Weird,” I murmured. The girl Reboot was maybe four years old, and she shrieked as a shorter girl chased her dangerously close to the fire. No one seemed concerned by this, andI guessed it wouldn’t matter if both of them fell in and rolled around in the flames.
    If Reboot babies were encouraged, it didn’t look like that many people were feeling inclined. I’d only seen the one baby last night and I’d only noticed one little boy, other than the two girls at the fire pit.
    “Are there a lot of kids here?” I asked.
    Micah headed in the direction of the food table, motioning for me to follow him. “No,” he said, eyes downcast as he handed me a bowl. “There were more, but they’re gone now.”
    “Gone where?” I asked. A girl about my age shoveled oats into my bowl. Everyone was close to my age, actually. The makeup of the reservation was similar to HARC, with most Reboots falling between twelve and twenty. Where was everyone else? Shouldn’t there have been more people around Micah’s age? Or older?
    He was silent until we sat down in the dirt. “We had more people about a year