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Volume Three: Don’t Let Her Go (Issues 129-191)
Upon their return home, the girls congratulate Danielle on her new job. Adrian turns right back around, having promised Amy a date that evening, and warns Erin not to break Raven for her first time around. Erin seems to ask Adrian if he is interested in Raven, to which he says no but thanks her for asking. Erin and Raven have their date, Raven increasingly flustered and blundering until Erin takes initiative and shuts her up with a kiss. The two enjoy each other for the evening as Raven fulfills a longtime crush.
At his home, Q gets out of the shower and shaves. He considers the pink vial of perfume, still in his possession since his last date with Kanti, and seems prepared to dump it down his sink drain before the doorbell rings. He quickly dresses and opens it to see Kanti, likely under the effects of previous suggestions of his, dressed in an elaborate sari and bidding him “Namaste.” He eagerly welcomes her, his earlier temptation to ditch the perfume forgotten.
Vik calls Amy, only to see her and Adrian and realize he’s been stood up. Dejected, he attempts to make himself feel better, only to trail off as he sees Kanti and Q on their own date. Following their date, Kanti and Q begin walking home, Kanti wondering as to her own actions, claiming she’d intended to never wear a sari. At Q’s urging, she reveals she is pantyless beneath the dress, and he passionately pulls her into an alley and bends her over. Later, after their date, Kanti asks him what landed him in prison, and he reluctantly agrees to share, saying he will understand if she doesn’t want to continue their relationship afterward.
On their way home from their own date, Adrian and Amy discuss Zenon. Amy reveals he was obsessively getting all the Wilmot females into his office and hypnotizing him after a trip to New York. She mentions a woman he was calling, but cannot recall the name. Later, however, as they have sex (after shamelessly flaunting her Master in front of her disapproving twin sister, Hayley), she recalls the woman’s name as Claudia Coulbeck. Adrian reacts, recognizing the name as a friend of Echo’s, and suggests they discuss more later. Sidenote: This is the first direct link given between Zenon and Claudia, as well as between Claudia and Echo, implying that what has happened to befall Adrian may have been far less accidental and more purposeful than originally theorized.
Speaking of Echo, while putting Raven to bed, Erin discovers a picture of her taped to the inside of Adrian’s nightstand, along with an engagement ring which he never got the chance to give her. They discuss the next day, and while Erin expresses sympathy for Echo’s sudden breakup with him, both she and Adrian are happy to be together. Jacqui arrives, and he shares his history with Echo. Afterwards, he plays music for them both at the record shop, impressing them with his ability, while Rain listens from outside with a smile.
The History: Adrian and Echo were at Juilliard for music and ended up together. However, she dropped out and moved back to England, the news being communicated to him by Claudia, Echo’s roommate at the time.
At her townhouse, Claudia receives a letter. She calls Derek and gives him an address on Wall Street, urging him not to “fuck this one up.”
At Student Health, Marliese gives a checkup to Hitomi, a busty Asian cheerleader and roommate of Caitlyn, who has been complaining of headaches. She prescribes her some medication and sends her away; after Hitomi’s departure, she looks wonderingly at her recent charts, all marked by Diagnostic Code 339.82 - headache associated with sexual activity. Later that evening, Caitlyn looks after Hitomi and offers to skip class to watch over her. As she does, she sheds her bathrobe, and Hitomi ogles her nude body.
Q, the perfume bottle in hand, asks Yves for lab access at Princess Pink, the beauty supply distributor they both work for. Yves agrees, later asking Q as he plans to head out for delivery if he’s alright. Q admits that he thinks Vikram has created something called “Pink Clouds,” to which Yves visibly reacts. He advises Q to stay clean.
At work, Dani sees a flash of herself in getup similar to the maid outfit she’d worn the night she had been triggered by Derek and cries out in fright.
This will not be the last time that Dani seems frightened of flashes to her past, and more and more clarity will be revealed with each one. She later sees another flash when admiring one of the owner’s pet birds, this flash taking her to a skyline apartment with a much expensive bird in a cage and a nude woman.
In New York, Derek uses a proxy to confirm that the room information given to him by Claudia is accurate and to scope out the building. The next day, he uses the proxy as cover to break into the room, which seems to have a strong odor. Once inside, he calls Claudia, remarking that her boss is sick. However, he confirms to Claudia that he’s found Danielle and is seen holding a pair of her panties. It is unclear what specifically Claudia is seeking or why she is having Derek look for Danielle in New York when he theoretically knows she is still at Wilmot. It could be, however, that she is really looking for information about her boss, and Dani’s article merely confirms she had been in the apartment at one time.
Vikram confronts Laura about her relationship with Adrian, displeased to learn he is also dating Amy and wondering what it is about Adrian. Laura tries to calm him, but upon both Adrian and Kanti arriving, Vik seems to be overwhelmed and excuses himself awkwardly. Afterward, Laura and Adrian go on a date to get to know one another better, and Kanti and Vik talk; despite his begrudgement of her dating Q, he is at least glad to know that she has not also fallen under Adrian’s spell. Unnoticed by anyone, as Vik and Kanti discuss #49 while leaving and closing up the laboratory, an unknown person picks the lock, sneaks inside, and photographs Laura and Vik’s chemistry notes.
At student health, Amy’s twin sister Hayley seems to be suffering from the same sexual headaches as the slew of other women. She imagines her sister nude and pauses, seeming perturbed and yet intrigued by the idea.
After their date, Adrian and Laura go home and prepare for anal sex. Dani enters and disrobes, showing her pilot logbook. She reveals as they romp that she learned to fly from her father while in Mons, as well as revealing that she was originally schooled in Paris before moving straight to Wilmot. This is in direct contradiction to her earlier profession whilst under trance to Zenon that she was an English exchange student, which Adrian also seems to notice. Following Laura’s departure, he brings Mallory Dani’s flightbook, surprising Mallory, who claims that Dani was not a pilot but had expressed interest in becoming one in the past. Dani’s statements to Laura seem irreconcilable with what the Infirmary tenants know of her, so Mallory and Adrian retire together after resolving to discuss the matter with Danielle in the morning.
Claudia reconvenes with Derek and says she wants Zenon to handle the next phase of their plan, instructing Derek to leave the Wall Street address alone. When Derek wonders what will happen if her boss returns, she tells him that is impossible, as her boss is dead. However, after Derek leaves Claudia sinks into her chair and puts her head in her hands, whispering to herself, “Please let him be dead.”
Erin returns from her rehearsal, walked home by her friends Reka and Weston. She returns to her room and withdraws a pentagram locket from a drawer, donning it with a smile. She then slips into bed with Adrian and Mallory. The next morning, Adrian leaves early to meet with Rain for music lessons as well as further conversation.
Laura is awoken by a call from Vik, who informs her of the laboratory break-in. She arrives to find Kanti and Q there as well, and the three chemists discuss the chemical composition of Laura’s concoction, the aforementioned Pink Clouds. Q says that they would be able to tell if someone was using the formula if they engaged in a foolish public display of collecting women, which inspires a sudden bout of worry in Laura as to her relationship with Adrian. She attempts to convince herself that her feelings are genuine, but the others imply that Adrian might have dosed Laura without her knowledge to gain access to #49. Laura spitefully responds to Kanti’s suggestion of the sort that Adrian is not like Q and storms away, leaving Kanti to conclude Adrian is the likely culprit. Laura calls Amy, asking if she’s had any headaches recently, as they are a symptom of extended exposure to Pink Clouds. Amy confirms she hasn’t but says Hayley had one the previous day, sparking Laura’s fears. She abruptly hangs up.
Amy subsequently checks on Hayley, whose headache is gone. Hayley, seemingly throwing caution to the wind, propositions Amy to sleep with her, recalling a previous time when they were drunk when Amy had suggested it. Haltingly, Amy agrees, ignoring a call from Zenon as she and Hayley have sex.
At the Infirmary, Erin and Mallory discuss some of Erin’s insecurities about their new relationship, only to be interrupted by a scream from Danielle upstairs. Danielle has a nightmare in which she is told to take steps closer and closer to the open skyline window from her flashbacks, finally stepping off of the edge and falling when the voice instructing her fails to catch her. Mallory and Erin comfort her. When prompted by Mallory, Danielle claims she was in New York in the dream and that “he” was being cruel to her. Laura arrives and informs Erin that she desperately needs to speak with Adrian.
In her room, Hitomi does her makeup and dresses herself in a slutty schoolgirl outfit, preparing to hit the campus and get laid. Passing by a fairly ridiculous amount of public displays of affection, she eventually finds Imani, another cheerleader on the squad, and Coates, who are currently heavily petting on a lounge couch. Biting her lip, she asks to join them. Hitomi learns that Coates is married to an archaeology student who is okay with him and Imani’s affair. The two assure Hitomi she is under no obligations, but when she finally boils over and demands they take advantage of her, they eagerly comply.
As Kanti and Q leave Vik at the lab, Kanti asks if Q used #49 on her. When he admits he did notice the symptoms, she asks if he took advantage of her suggestibility, and he lies, saying he did not. The two plan how to get inside the Infirmary and recover Adrian’s imagined stash of Pink Clouds.
Adrian has several messages as he departs from Rain’s tutoring. Erin is complaining he didn't wake her up with sex, Laura is calling with her frantic concerns, and Mallory is calling to inform him of both Laura and Dani’s distress. He shows up at work to find a distraught Laura, with whom he departs to explain matters. He promises to explain to her what Rain has told him and what happened on the Night of the Watch.
While we do not get the full scoop on the Watch, the characters are now aware of what we will eventually know. The Watch is capable of making deep and permanent changes to an individual through its influence, meaning that the suggestions it made on the minds of Erin, Dani, Mallory, Jacqui, Laura, Caitlyn, Marliese, and Amy are irreversible. According to Rain, Dani’s old boss, whom she calls the Watchmaker, was its inventor. When Laura asks if they can just use the Watch to undo the original commands, Adrian admits that, according to Rain, that would leave even more damaging effects, and Laura herself admits it wouldn’t even work. She does warn him that they need to keep close track of the Watch, as Dani may misplace it in her absentmindedness, but overall, Laura seems put at some measure of ease.
Adrian and Erin take a break from work with Jacqui’s permission to have sex at the Infirmary. Alone in her shop, Jacqui curses Rain for unknown reasons, likely simply frustrated at her continued interference in her life (the two women were previously established to be on rocky terms due to history between them). At the Infirmary, Adrian recalls mid-coitus that he needs to check on the Watch, and he and Erin are alarmed to see its box pulled out from beneath Dani’s bed and empty. They rush back to work and have Jacqui drive them to the hangar to warn Dani about the stolen Watch. However, much to their relieved chagrin, she reveals that she is carrying it on her person.
On the way home, Dani discusses her dreams and flashbacks with Adrian and Erin. She has conflicting memories of her boss as sexy and kind, but her dreams and flashbacks indicate a cruelty at odds with her memories. She does not know what became of him, or even why she is at Wilmot, but turns down the idea of using the Watch to recover her memories fully, never wanting to look into it again.
Abruptly a car swerves down the road behind them and strikes Dani, from behind, grievously wounding her. Desperately, Adrian tries to call for help, but Erin orders him to take her hand. She seizes Dani’s other hand and seems to brace herself for some dreadful undertaking, urging him to not let her go.
STOP
Volume Three begins to properly introduce Pink Clouds, though we won’t fully understand the compound’s capabilities and history until Volume Four. Q seems to be a character of two minds, struggling not to give into the temptation to use Pink Clouds and instead trying to do the right thing by neutralizing Adrian. His and Kanti’s aspirations are noble, if mistaken, as the Watch is the true source of Adrian’s harem.
Danielle’s past continues to unfurl, revealing contradictory memories of her history with le boss and increasingly implying a sinister origin. Dubbed the Watchmaker by Rain in her conversation with Adrian, he appears to be at the root of most of the madness that has unfolded thus far.
The climactic moment of Volume Three is, of course, the hit and run of Danielle, which will function as the inciting incident for Erin’s own mysterious background and abilities to begin creeping into the story, revealing her to be as complicated and mysterious a character as Danielle, if not moreso.
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