CONFESSIONS

“What?” David said.
“Your taking the pills won’t prove anything, Tally¹,”
Maddy said. “You don’t have the lesions.”
“But I will have them. I’ll go back to the city and getcaught, and Dr. Cable will give me the operation. In a fewweeks, you come and get me. Give me the cure. You’ve gotyour subject.”
The three of them stood there in silence. The words hadpoured out of Tally of their own accord². She could hardlybelieve she’d uttered them.
“Tally . . .” David shook his head. “That’s crazy.”
“It’s not crazy. You need a willing subject. Someone whoagrees before they become pretty that they want to be cured,experimental or not. It’s the only way.”
“You can’t give yourself up!” David cried.
Tally turned toward Maddy. “You said you’re ninetyninepercent sure these pills will work, right?”
“Yes. But the one percent could leave you a vegetable,Tally.”
416 Scott Westerfeld“One percent? Compared to breaking into SpecialCircumstances, that’s a breeze.”
“Tally, stop it.” David took her shoulders. “It’s too dangerous.”
“Dangerous? David, you can get across into New PrettyTown no problem. City uglies do it all the time. Just grabme out of my mansion³ and stick me on a board. I’ll comewith you, just like Shay did. Then you cure me.”
“What if the Specials decide to change your memory?
Like they did my father’s?”
“They won’t,” Maddy said.
David stared at his mother in surprise.
“They didn’t bother with Shay. She remembers theSmoke just fine. Az and I were the only ones they were worriedabout. Because we’d been focused on the brain lesionsfor half our lives, they figured we’d never shut up aboutthem, even as pretties.”
“Mom!” David cried. “Tally’s not going anywhere.”
“And besides,” Maddy continued, “Dr. Cable wouldn’tdo anything to hurt Tally.”
“Stop talking like this is going to happen!”
Tally looked into Maddy’s eyes. The woman nodded.
She knew.
“David,” Tally said. “I have to do this.”
“Why?”
“Because of Shay. It’s the only way that Maddy will cureher. Right?”
Maddy nodded.
“You don’t have to save Shay,” David said slowly andevenly. “You’ve done enough for her. You followed her tothe Smoke, rescued her from Special Circumstances!”
“Yeah, I’ve done a lot for her.” Tally took a breath. “I’mthe reason she’s like this, pretty and brainless.”
David shook his head. “What are you talking about?”
She turned to him, taking his hand. “David, I didn’t cometo the Smoke just to make sure Shay was okay. I came to bringher back to the city.” She sighed. “I came to betray⁴ her.”
Tally had imagined telling her secret to David so manytimes, rehearsing this speech to herself almost every night,that she could hardly believe this wasn’t just another nightmarein which the truth was forced from her. But as thereality of the moment sank in, she found the words spillingout in a torrent⁵.
“I was a spy for Dr. Cable. That’s how I knew whereSpecial Circumstances was. That’s why the Specials came tothe Smoke. I brought a tracker with me, ““You’re not making any sense,” David said. “You foughtwhen they came. You escaped. You helped rescue mymother . . .”
“I’d changed my mind. And I never meant to activate⁶ thetracker, honestly. I wanted to live in the Smoke. But the nightbefore the invasion, after I found out about the lesions . . .”
She closed her eyes. “After we kissed, I accidentally set it off.”
“What?”
UGLIES 417“My locket. I didn’t mean to. I wanted to destroy it. ButI’m the one who brought the Specials to the Smoke, David.
I’m the reason why Shay is pretty. It’s my fault your father’sdead.”
“You’re making this up! I’m not going to let you—”
“David,” Maddy said sharply⁷, silencing her son, “she’snot lying.”
Tally opened her eyes. Maddy was looking at her sadly.
“Dr. Cable told me everything about how she manipulatedyou, Tally. I didn’t believe her at first, but the night yourescued us, she’d just brought Shay down to confirm it.”
Tally nodded. “Shay knew I was a traitor⁸, at the end.”
“She still knows,” Maddy said. “But it doesn’t matter toher anymore. That’s why Tally has to do this.”
“You’re both crazy!” David shouted. “Look, Mom, justget off your high horse and give Shay the pills.” He reachedout his hand. “I’ll do it for you.”
“David, I won’t let you turn yourself into a monster.
And Tally’s made her choice.”
David looked at them both, unable to believe any of it.
Finally, he found words. “You were a spy?”
“Yes. At first.”
He shook his head.
“Son.” Maddy stepped forward, trying to hold him.
“No!” He turned and ran, tearing the Mylar shade downand leaving the others inside speechless; even Shay wasshocked into silence.
418 Scott WesterfeldBefore Tally could follow, Maddy took her arm in a firmgrip. “You should go to the city now.”
“Tonight? But—”
“Otherwise, you’ll talk yourself out of it. Or David will.”
Tally pulled away. “I have to say good-bye to him.”
“You have to go.”
Tally stared at Maddy and slowly realized the truth.
Although the woman’s gaze held more sadness than anger,there was something cold in her eyes. David might notblame her for Az’s death, but Maddy did.
“Thank you,” Tally said softly, forcing herself to holdMaddy’s gaze.
“For what?”
“For not telling him. For letting me do it myself.”
Maddy shook her head, managing a smile. “Davidneeded you these last two weeks.”
Tally swallowed and stepped away, looking at the city.
“He still needs me.”
“Tally—”
“I’ll go tonight, all right? But I know that David will bethe one who brings me back.”

1 tally   

n.计数器，记分，一致，测量；vt.计算，记录，使一致；vi.计算，记分，一致

参考例句：

• Don't forget to keep a careful tally of what you spend.别忘了仔细记下你的开支账目。
• The facts mentioned in the report tally to every detail.报告中所提到的事实都丝毫不差。

2 accord   

vt.给予（欢迎、称颂等） vi./n.符合，一致

参考例句：

• Most people are in accord with their desire for peace.在渴望和平这一点上，大多数人都是一致的。
• The hearts of our people accord with those of yours.我们两国人民心心相印。

3 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

4 betray   

vt.背叛，失信于，泄露，暴露

参考例句：

• He promised never to betray the organization.他发誓永不背叛组织。
• Keep calm.Don't betray your identity.沉住气，别可露馅儿。

5 torrent   

n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发

参考例句：

• The torrent scoured a channel down the hillside. 急流沿着山坡冲出了一条沟。
• Her pent-up anger was released in a torrent of words.她压抑的愤怒以滔滔不绝的话爆发了出来。

6 activate   

vt.使活动起来，使开始起作用

参考例句：

• We must activate the youth to study.我们要激励青年去学习。
• These push buttons can activate the elevator.这些按钮能启动电梯。

7 sharply   

adj.锐利地，急速；adv.严厉地，鲜明地

参考例句：

• The plane dived sharply and rose again.飞机猛然俯冲而后又拉了起来。
• Demand for personal computers has risen sharply.对个人电脑的需求急剧增长。

8 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。