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To acquire bots for his new club, Benny the sexbot salesman does an underhanded deal with Quinn’s robotics company at their friend Henry’s expense—and Henry’s life begins to unravel

‘Put it this way, we’ll kill two birds here, Quinn. We’re sitting on a gold mine.’

Quinn lets a snort escape. ‘What birds shall we kill, and where is this gold mine, Benny?’

‘Henry is the bird. I can heal his Little Problem and put The Uncanny Valley Club in motion at the same time, and in case you haven’t realised it yet, the club is our gold mine. It’s a win-win for you, Quinn. If you back this idea, I’ll consider any suggestions for improvement from you. I’ll consider shares, and maybe even a partnership down the track? Put your spin on it—whatever takes your fancy—and at the same time, put the money into your best guy. I’m talking Henry here, not me.’

Win-win for you, Quinn. Quinn likes the sound of that. ‘Have Henry trial your club? You’re a smooth talker—I’ll give you that, Benn—but Henry won’t be fooled into that. He may be bored with himself right now, but he’s not stupid.’

‘You’re not hearing me, Quinn. We both know Henry won’t go for that. I’m not here to tell you how to do your job, of course, but this is what you should do: you ask him to look the club over for you to see if it’s worth the investment, and while he’s in the club, I’ll give him the royal treatment. He’ll love it. You have no idea, Quinn. Have you seen the European clubs? He’ll love it. You’ll love it. For fuck’s sake, we’ll all love it. You think he needs a holiday? This is better than a trip to the beach. Let’s bury him in The Uncanny Valley Club experience, and I guarantee you’ll have your old Henry back. We’ll razz him up good ’n’ proper. All he needs is a good going over from one of your best girls. You know what his problem is, right?’

‘I’ve heard the story.’

‘Let’s have him try out a new model. A man like you, I bet you’ve got an awesome new model in the works.’

‘You’ve got me interested, Benny—I’ll give you that.’ Quinn pokes at Benny’s nose on the gram. ‘Tell me this: how much will Scottie put in? Put me down to equal Scottie.’