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best way to cope with the sterilizations and other crippling conditions, as well as the restrictions Ambers have to deal with regularly.
    “Back then, our parents were miserable, and they wanted their children to be happier than they were. Mandatory parenting classes were developed that taught new parents how to raise our generation so that coping mechanisms are developed and in place from birth. They went to the classes gladly. Every parent was desperate to have their one and only child live a happier life than they had. They were hopeful that this program was the solution, so they rigorously followed the recommendations and totally immersed us in an environment of unconditional acceptance and almost constant touch.
    “Now, people who have been born and raised as Ambers, our generation, have a stronger connection with each other. We have built in coping skills to help us deal with the Repopulation Laws as well as all of the inevitable catastrophic illnesses that many of us were diagnosed with at our genetic testing.”
    “Here in Amber, we don’t have the invisible don’t-touch zone around us like you had in Sapphire. Touching is no different for us than breathing,” Jordan cut in. “We just do it. We don’t think about it. It’s such an intrinsic part of our lives that many Ambers have difficulty going periods of time without the support of someone else’s touch.”
    Jaci studied Jordan as she spoke. She was short-haired, petite and fit. Definitely a no-nonsense type of woman. Somebody who would fit in with a crowd of men as well, or maybe even better than with a crowd of women.
    “You may not realize it now, but we’re helping you heal, emotionally and physically, with our presence, our touch and our support,” Emily said.
    There was a lull in the conversation. The women let what they’d said sink in. For long moments, a relaxed silence filled the room. Jaci looked at the four of them surrounding her, touching her.
    Jaci closed her eyes to escape the scrutiny of the women. Just yesterday, she would have preferred death to life in Amber. Maybe it wouldn’t be as bad here as she thought. A surge of hope took up residence within her. She did feel emotionally better today, surrounded by these women, than she did yesterday. Could it be true? Could she feel included, happy even, being Amber?
    Jaci opened her eyes and looked at each one of them individually. She had the feeling they would sit there and wait for her, holding her, hugging her, raking their fingers through her hair as long as she needed it. Overcome by the depth of sincerity and acceptance she felt from these women, she nodded her head slowly in understanding.
    “Let’s take a break. I have to pee, and I need some tea and food,” Hannah said, slicing through the silence. They all answered in murmurs of soft agreement, getting up from their places on the bed. Jordan and Emily went to the kitchen together.
    When Hannah returned from the bathroom, she and Caroline helped Jaci from the bed to the toilet and closed the door behind them as they left.
    After she went to the bathroom, Jaci took stock of herself. She noticed the removal of the mandatory birth control device that had been implanted in her arm since she was sixteen. She wouldn’t need it now. She poked at the two small stitches in her skin from the removal procedure. They didn’t hurt.
    She lifted up the front of her hospital gown and took off the dressing covering her incisions. The two horizontal cuts in her skin were an angry red with vertical strips of tape keeping them closed.
    That’s it. It was done.
    Jaci’s emotions plummeted. Like falling through thin ice, cold anguish enveloped her. The quickness and magnitude of the plunge caught her off guard. She groaned aloud and fell to her knees, bracing herself on the edge of the tub. “Oh fuck, fuck, fuck,” she sobbed almost imperceptibly.
    It didn’t matter. None of the things the women told her today mattered. It was a distraction,