I’m the upgrade, the thief whispered. I’m the one who’s going to use this life for something. You’re just the man who stole it first. And now, I’ve reported Arthur Vance for the murder of Elias Thorne. The police are on their way.
He spent the night in a 24-hour diner, nursing a single cup of black coffee paid for with the crumpled twenty-dollar bill he kept in his shoe for emergencies. He watched the news on the mounted TV, half-expecting to see his own face labeled as a fugitive. Instead, he saw something worse. Identity Thief
The thief reached into his drawer and pulled out a folder. Inside were photos of a younger Elias Thorne—the man who had just walked into the room—standing over a shallow grave in the woods. Except, in the photo, the man holding the shovel had Elias’s face, and the body in the dirt had the thief’s. I’m the upgrade, the thief whispered