My mother was one of the most famous AI researchers in America.
Not long after I was born, she built an AI companion device for me. Every year, she replaced its body and upgraded its programming. By the time I was ten, it had become a robot that looked no different from a real girl. My mother called her my “little sister,” Ava.
Mom said Ava was linked to my biometric wristband and equipped with the most accurate lie-detection system possible.
If I lied, Ava would always know.
From then on, Ava decided my punishment.
The moment she sounded an alert—even if I was telling the truth—Mom would hit me and lock me in the windowless storage room.
I tried to explain. I even tried to fight back.
But every time, Mom’s face would harden. “Ava was built by my own hands,” she’d say. “Her system can’t be wrong. If someone is wrong, it has to be you.”
On the first weekend of summer vacation, in a rare move, Mom took Ava and me to an adventure park outside Austin.
I stood on a free-fall platform over sixty-five feet high, clutching my chest as a knot of fear tightened inside me. I shook my head, again and again.
A blue light flashed in Ava’s eyes. She immediately displayed a report for Mom.
“Morgan’s elevated heart rate is caused by lying. Full-body scan shows no health issues.”
Mom’s face darkened. She grabbed my ear and dragged me toward the edge of the platform.
“Lying again. You’re jumping today.”
The moment the safety line dropped me, a pain ripped through my chest as if my heart were splitting apart. My mouth fell open, but I couldn’t pull in any air.
My vision started to go black. Mom stood above me, still scolding me, her voice loud as she accused me of using lies to manipulate people.
A bloody tear slid from the corner of my eye.
*Mom, this time I really wasn’t lying.*
I died.
From now on, I would never say another word you could call a lie.
My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 30 I called Westley. It was the first time I had contacted him since leaving the coast. “That post was made public by you,” I said. “A device company is using your words to argue that machines hold no responsibility.” There was a pause
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 29 “But the notice says ‘accurate and objective.’ It doesn’t say it can be wrong. It doesn’t say that when a child and the system conflict, the child must be checked first.” The principal stepped to the edge of the stage. “Please don’t conflate
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 28 People in the auditorium applauded. When it was time for questions, I walked to the microphone. “What data do you use to define ‘truly in distress’?” The representative smiled. “That’s a proprietary model. The specific parameters are a trade secret.” “What if the
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 27 The school information session was scheduled for Monday night. I could have just opted my daughter out. But the notice made it clear: after the trial, the system’s records would go into students’ behavioral files. A child without a wristband might be marked
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 26 “I know.” “No. A moment ago, you were still asking me for a chance.” She froze. I made every word clear. “I don’t hate you, and I’m not going to take revenge on you. But I did not come back to be your
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 25 “After I got out, I never went back to research. I never touched another children’s device. I do laundry at a care home, and I donate everything I earn to child-help organizations.” “Mo, I’ve changed. Can you give me one chance?” “You served
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 24 Claire had been out of prison for years. I had seen photos from her sentencing, but the person standing before me looked even older. Her fingers were bent, and pale scars crossed her knuckles. The places she had split open pounding the floor
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 23 “Do you still go every day?” “Not every day,” he said. “I can’t walk that far anymore. Only when the weather is good.” I looked at his trembling hands. “In your post, you wrote that you would spend the rest of your life
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 22 A week later, I went to that seaside town. My husband came with me. My parents stayed home to look after our daughter, insisting I call them every day. The community center was smaller than I’d expected. Posters for child-help hotlines covered the
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My Mother’s Perfect AI Lied And Left Me For Dead Chapter 21 I looked at his anxious face, and tears spilled from my eyes. Once, another child had said her heart hurt. No one had answered her like this. “It’s not… sickness.” I gripped his hand. “It feels like I remember what happened to her.”
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