Dump One Loser, Gain Six Husbands.

yes snap

ing split in two. She gasped, a ragged sound in the dead quiet of the room, her hand f

d was

ated through the mattress, a subtle, calming frequency. Her bedroom in her

bilities. The ratio of females to males was one to one hundred thousand. Females were rare, precious assets, revered wherever they went

enny Mcdaniel

from the doorway. "Even if I die, even if I get exiled to

d open, the sound cracking thr

tailored just a little too tight across the shoulders, the fabric a synthetic blend that caught the light with a

Mcda

nto place with a f

ul but only made him look petulant. "Finally awake, are we?

k. And from the memories of the original Anja, she could see the woman had been utterly blind. She had cried over him, pleaded for his attention, and rearranged her entire life to please him. For what? For a male of thoroughly average looks-decent, but nothing

courtroom drama. "This political arrangement our families cooked up? It's over. I've found someone I actua

he polished wood of the nightstand. The clack was sharp and final. An elec

spat, his voice rising with theatrical fervor. "I'm telling you now, Anja. Even if I

ed by a strange, icy calm. The Anja from Earth thought he was a joke. A weak, insecure man puffing up his

l from his cheap shoes up to his self

oice was quiet, devoid of the hy

nt look on his face faltered, replac

e plush headboard. She crossed her arms. "The big, dramatic

as supposed to go. She was supposed to cry. To beg. To make a scene that would

confident edge. He puffed his chest out again, a desperate at

id, her tone bored. "You want to end

te he had thrown down. She simply look

," she c

lied instantly from an unseen

he ordered. "Project the annulment agre

on

air beside the bed, displaying the contract in crisp, clear text

shock. "What are you doing?

pressed her thumb against the glowing box. The system chime

PTON HAS UNILATERALLY DISSOLVED THE MA

r for a moment before the

he room's speaker system. A new, distinctly official

ady Anja, your matrimonial contract has been successf

eds of millions of males in the Commonwealth. If one lacks vision, there will

y Anja, should you desire, the Federal Marriage Center

a comical mix of disbelief and panic. He had come here for a fight, for drama, for a validation of

e a weak squeak. "Just like that? This is a tr

ame, Kenny. You wanted out. You're out. Congratulat

nished speaking, the AI's synthesized voice sp

roperty has been revoked. You are now classified as an unauthorized intruder. You

p across the room, originating

ur... your secur

ir of sleek, gunmetal-gray security drones descended. Their optical sensors glowed with the same me

's face. All his practiced arrogance vanished.

oing!" he yelped,

tripped over the edge of an expensive rug, catching himself on the doorframe. He looked back at her, his eyes

t give him

voice dripping with fin

slid shut with a deafening thud,

eturned t

on was gone. She thought about the Federal Marriage Center's final message-match her with new husbands. And the words "no upper limit" echoed in her memory from the original Anja's knowledge o

e in this new wor