Brian trailed after Lucy as she scampered down to the cellar. He gagged on the cocktail of fumes wafting up from the cluttered chamber. Beakers and bottles clogged the high shelves, while electronic parts were strewn over every other surface.
“I’m so glad you came to see this,” Lucy said as she guided him to the tidiest table. “I was worried you wouldn’t.”
In the centre of the table was a shape covered in a cloth.
“Let’s see it then.”
Lucy snapped away the cloth with gusto, revealing a bell jar. Inside, a mechanical heart churned a sparkling red liquid.
“What is this?”
Lucy’s face fell for a moment. “It’s love. It’s my love. I extracted it and put it in this artificial support system.”
Brian’s eyes widened in horror. “You hacked out one of your feelings? Lucy, that’s crazy. You’ll become a monster without it. How could you? I can’t cope with this anymore.”
Brian turned and fled upstairs. Lucy held the front door open and slam.
“But I was going to give it to you…” she whimpered as the tears started.