Contents
Part Four
Overview
Klara, Josie, and Chrissie meet Paul and visit Mr Capaldi, where Klara discovers the "portrait" is a replacement body for Josie that Klara is meant to inhabit if Josie dies. Paul resists; Chrissie wavers. Paul then aids Klara in extracting fluid from her head to sabotage a Cootings Machine, hoping to secure the Sun’s help for Josie. That night, Helen pleads with Vance to support Rick’s college chances; the result is uncertain. By morning, a new Cootings Machine is working, and Josie’s recovery remains unresolved.
Summary
At the Friend’s Apartment, Josie anxiously awaits Paul. He arrives warmly, but tension with Chrissie resurfaces as they depart for Mr Capaldi. In Capaldi’s stark studio, Chrissie views the work and falters. Klara is sent to complete a complex survey, while Paul studies Capaldi’s measurement charts and grows hostile.
Klara secretly enters the studio and discovers the "portrait": a lifelike, empty Josie body. After Paul storms out with Josie, Capaldi and Chrissie reveal the plan—if Josie dies, Klara must "inhabit" the replica, continuing Josie for those who love her. Chrissie begs Klara to make it work; Klara suggests hope still lies in saving Josie.
Later, Chrissie drops Klara at a burger place where Paul and Josie have gone. Paul, conflicted yet moved by hope, drives Klara to search for the Cootings Machine. He proposes extracting P‑E‑G Nine from a cavity in Klara’s head to destroy the machine’s engine. Despite fear, Klara agrees; Paul makes a small incision, drains fluid into a bottle, and Klara pours it into the machine’s intake.
At a sushi café, Josie seems withdrawn while Helen and Paul talk. That evening in a diner, Helen beseeches her former lover, Vance, to help Rick gain entry to Atlas Brookings; emotions flare and Vance leaves without committing, though he appears impressed by Rick’s designs. Chrissie collects Klara, taking her back to Josie.
That night Josie says Chrissie briefly offered to quit work and replace Klara’s role; Josie refuses. At dawn, Klara stays vigilant for the Sun’s promised healing. On the drive out of the city, they see a new Cootings Machine working, implying their sabotage may not be decisive. The Sun’s special help has not yet arrived, leaving Josie’s recovery unresolved.
Who Appears
- KlaraAF narrator; completes Capaldi’s survey, discovers the replacement Josie body, sacrifices her own fluid to disable a Cootings Machine, and hopes for the Sun’s healing.
- JosieIll teenager; affectionate with Paul, unsettled by revelations, refuses Chrissie’s idea to replace Klara, later quiet and reflective.
- Chrissie (the Mother)Torn between faith in Capaldi’s plan and doubt; pleads with Klara to ‘continue’ Josie; briefly proposes replacing Klara; anxious caretaker.
- Paul (the Father)Skeptical and angry at Capaldi; helps Klara extract P‑E‑G Nine and sabotage the Cootings Machine; philosophizes about the human heart.
- Mr Capaldi (Henry)Artist-technologist; reveals plan for Klara to inhabit a Josie replica; orchestrates Klara’s survey, confident in technical continuity of self.
- RickJosie’s neighbor and friend; presents drone designs to Vance; supports his mother during a fraught appeal.
- Miss HelenRick’s mother; orchestrates meeting with Vance and emotionally pleads for Rick’s admission; leaves outcome uncertain.
- VanceAtlas Brookings donor; impressed by Rick but embroiled in past grievances with Helen; departs without committing.
- CindyWaitress who recognizes Klara’s old store and defends AFs outside the theater.