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In a world where every word and gesture is copyrighted, patented, or trademarked, one girl elects to remain silent rather than pay to speak, and her defiant and unexpected silence threatens to unravel the very fabric of society.

Speth Jime is anxious to deliver her Last Day speech and celebrate her transition into adulthood. The moment she turns fifteen, Speth must pay for every word she speaks (Sorry is a flat ten dollars and a legal admission of guilt), for every nod ($0.99/sec), for every scream ($0.99/sec) and even every gesture of affection. She's been raised to know the consequences of falling into debt, and can't begin to imagine the pain of having her eyes shocked for speaking words that she's unable to afford.

But when Speth's friend Beecher commits suicide rather than work off his family's crippling debt, she can't express her shock and dismay without breaking her Last Day contract and sending her family into Collection. Backed into a corner, Speth finds a loophole: rather than read her speech-rather than say anything at all-she closes her mouth and vows never to speak again. Speth's unexpected defiance of tradition sparks a media frenzy, inspiring others to follow in her footsteps, and threatens to destroy her, her family, and the entire city around them.

Gregory Scott Katsoulis is a writer, teacher, artist, and goofball. He is in love with ideas and possibility. When he is not writing, Katsoulis composes incidental music and enjoys taking photographs of faces, debunking bunk, and confounding children by teaching them about black holes, time-travel paradoxes, and the hilarious fallibility of human memory. He lives in the lovely and stimulating Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Frankie Maria Corzo is a film and voice-over actress and audiobook narrator. She obtained a BA degree in theater studies from Montclair State University.