My child is being ERASED in fifteen minutes.

Mirri always left her room a mess. She was fifteen years old, and somehow, her room was worse than her seventeen-year-old brother’s.

I picked up pizza boxes and old makeup wipes, stuffing them into a trash bag.

My gaze landed on her diary. I picked it up, flipping through pages that definitely weren’t meant for a mother’s eyes.

She liked a boy, hated her brother, and wished I was dead, ending yesterday’s entry with a far-too-detailed doodle of my untimely demise. I found myself smiling.

Teenagers.

There were less-than-savory entries about her father.

She wished she knew him, hated him, and wished she could find him. Every word scrawled across the pages sent my heart creeping into my mouth.

Mirri was a baby when Jake was sentenced. Eli didn’t want to know him.

He knew what he was.

Mirri, however, was too curious.

I snatched up Mirri’s bedclothes first. Then I stripped her pillows.

While I was unloading the washer, the phone buzzed again.

Felix, our tabby, darted through the cat flap, almost sending me toppling, and sped into the kitchen.

“Felix,” I hissed, scooping him up, stroking him. I checked my phone.

Three notifications lit up my screen, sent thirty minutes ago:

Child Safety™️: “YOUR CHILD IS BEING ERASED.”

Child Safety™️: “YOUR CHILD IS BEING ERASED.”

Child Safety™️: “YOUR CHILD IS BEING ERASED.”

Panic flooded through me, and suddenly, I was paralysed. My phone didn't feel real in my hands.

Another notification popped up:

“Child Safety™️: YOUR CHILD IS BEING ERASED. IS THIS YOU? ENTER YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS AND PASSWORD NOW.”

Child Safety was a child-lock feature designed to keep them safe.

It had tracked them since they were babies and offered the option to upload memories as they grew.

I didn’t think they could be erased.

I called Mirri.

No answer.

Stumbling across my kitchen, I stabbed in Eli’s number.

No answer.

Breathless, my hands shaking, I tapped on the app, and entered my details.

My verification: Always my babies’ birthdays.

INCORRECT VERIFICATION flashed up.

Then a notification: Child Safety™️: “YOUR CHILDREN ARE BEING ERASED. MIRRIAM LILY AND ELI LILY WILL BE PERMANENTLY ERASED IN FIFTEEN MINUTES.”

No.

I called the app and was immediately connected to a robot.

“Good morning, how can I help you?”

“My children,” I spat out, “my children are being erased. I didn't even know that was possible! I didn't do it! I.. need you to stop it. Right now. Please…stop it.”

“Of course, ma’am!” The robot trilled. “Can I have your favorite memory, please?”

“What?”

“Ma’am, I need your favorite memory so I can pull up your details.”

“Spain. 2017.” I whispered. “On the plane, and it my son’s first time flying. He was…”

I squeezed my eyes shut. “Eli pressed his face against the window. He was...he was laughing and pointing at the clouds.” My eyes stung. “Is that enough for you?”

The robot hesitated. “I'm sorry, ma’am, that's not the one I'm looking for. If you have any more questions, please feel free to—”

“Fucking LISTEN to me,” I squeezed out. My lungs ignited, burning, scalding, my blood set alight. “Someone has hacked my account and is ERASING my children. I want to speak to a human. Now.”

“Ma’am, I need your favorite memory to proceed.”

I swallowed. “2020. Mirri’s tenth birthday. It’s… a sunny day. She’s having a pool party with her friends, and has cake on her face. She’s sitting on the edge of the pool, swinging her legs, and…”

I exhaled. “She tells me she loves me.” My legs gave way, my throat swelling around every word.

“Please… help me.”

The robot made a human sounding sigh. “Ma’am, I'm sorry, that's not the memory I currently have on file.”

My bones felt like lead, like living was impossible. “What are you… talking about?” I whispered. “My children,” my voice collapsed into a wail I couldn't control. “You need to help me save my babies. I can't lose them. I can't…. please.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am. There’s nothing I can do.” It hesitated again. “I do have a reason for your children’s erasure on file. It was added yesterday at 4:03pm by a second party on the account. Would you like me to tell you?”

I didn't reply.

“It says, erasure reason: “For letting me rot. Bitch.”

Silence.

“Would you…like me to repeat—”

The line went dead— and I wasn't sure who it was.

Was it me or the robot?

Gravity pulled me down, down, down, my head pressed against my kitchen floor. Everything felt numb. Wrong. Like I was losing myself. A sickening nausea crawled through me, pain thrumming across my temple.

My phone buzzed again, and I screamed.

Child Safety™️: “YOUR CHILD “MIRRIAM LILY” IS CURRENTLY BEING ERASED.

Child Safety™️: “YOUR CHILD “ELI LILY” IS CURRENTLY BEING ERASED.

Child Safety™️: WOULD YOU LIKE A PDF TRANSCRIPT OF [MIRRIAM LILY] AND [ELI LILY?]

I turned off my phone.

But still, it buzzed again, turning itself on.

“Child Safety™️: Erasure complete. Thanks for using Child Safety™️!”

I stared at the notification for a long time.

Then the door flew open.

“Mom, I'm home!”

I jumped up, my heart hammering through my chest.

A smiling teenager stood in my doorway.

“Hi!” She greeted me with a hug. “I'm staying at Rue’s house tonight, all right? I'll be home late.”

A teenage boy slipped past her, scowling, and dropped his bag. “Mom, you forgot my lunch.” He rolled his eyes. “I had to eat KJ’s!”

I stumbled back, my skin prickling.

“I'm sorry…” I laughed a little, keeping my distance.

“Who… exactly are the two of you?”

Was this Jake? Sending teenagers to fucking threaten me?

“Mom.” The boy laughed nervously, his eyes wide. “What's—”

“Get out.” I pulled open the door, panic creeping through me. “Get the HELL out of my house!”

“Wait!” The boy whispered. “Mom.” His eyes frantically darted behind me. “Where are the twins?”