chapter1212

Juna couldn't help blurting out, "That's awesome."

Lincoln looked over, curiosity written all over his face. "So how do we control them?"

Lydia's lips curled into a knowing smile. "They can control the clones from their headquarters, but so can we."

The real power was in Professor Boris's hands. Technically, Lydia had access too, but she was always so busy, running from one place to another, she didn't have the time to keep tabs on the clones every single day.

Juna leaned in, voice dropping. "So, what's it like for a clone when they're being controlled?" Lydia answered, calm and matter-of-fact. "Once the signal is sent, the clone's nervous system gets overridden. They lose the ability to move on their own and just follow orders. They can't fight back, all they can do is obey whoever's in control."

Juna and Lincoln exchanged a look, both clearly impressed. It really was something else.

Lydia turned to Lincoln. "You can relax for now. If anything comes up, just let me know." Lincoln's eyes were full of admiration. "Alright, Lydia."

By the time Lydia drove back to the Norwood house, it was almost two in the morning. She looked up at the second floor and caught a faint glow in Lucinda's window, a shadow flickering at the edge. Lydia just smiled, shrugged it off, and went inside.

Behind the curtain, Lucinda watched as Lydia quietly slipped in. She quickly

switched off her night light and pretended to be asleep, though her mind was racing. Lydia was always sneaking around, coming home in the middle of the night. She had to be up to something shady.

But their parents were completely on Lydia's side now, and Lucinda didn't have anyone else to back her up. She had no way to keep track of what Lydia was doing. Besides, Lydia was way too sharp. If Lucinda made even one wrong move, Lydia would catch her, and their parents would probably threaten to kick her out of the family again.

Just thinking about it made Lucinda want to scream. Lydia was clearly up to no good, but no matter how hard she tried, Lucinda couldn't find any proof. Actually, it wasn't that she couldn't find evidence, it was that everyone else seemed determined to keep her from getting it.

Her thoughts wandered back to Grace. Back then, Grace would always support her,

no matter what. Sure, Grace wasn't the most reliable, but at least she was on

Lucinda's side. Maybe it was time to pay Grace a visit.

With those thoughts swirling in her head, Lucinda finally drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, Lydia got a text from Mikey. He said Mona and Mrs. Brown had been calling him nonstop, asking him to come visit Maple Town. It was easy to say no during the week, but now that it was the weekend if he kept making excuses, they'd definitely get suspicious.

Lydia thought for a moment, then replied, [Just go. Let's see what they're up to.] She was leaving for the international medical

Country D in a couple

of days, so she figured Mikey's tap might be the perfect chance to deal with the Brown family.

competition Country Diet

Mikey texted back, [Are you coming with me?]

Lydia smiled at her phone, then typed, [If I show up with you, Mona might just explode right there.] She sent another message. [Let's split up and move separately.]

She scrolled through her contacts until she found Malcolm, the secretary from the Supervisory Department, and shot him a text. [Can you come with me to Maple Town today? I need your help with something.]

It was Malcolm's day off, but the second he saw Lydia's message, he replied right away. [Of course, Ms. Norwood. I'm ready whenever you are.]

Meanwhile, in Maple Town, at the Brown family's house, Mona sat at the dining table and checked her phone. The second she saw Mikey's message confirming he was coming, she jumped up from her seat, barely able to contain her excitement.