Marcus 582: Book Three of Cyborgs: Mankind Redefined (21 page)

Marcus nodded and frowned. He hoped King was still with Rachel, but knowing Rachel, she’d run him off. Her instincts for danger were not very high. “Can you stay and call this in to Peyton? I need to get to Rachel’s. He might go after her next.”

Eric nodded. “Of course. Go. I’ll see you later.”

Marcus turned and literally ran out the door.

***

After King left, Rachel let herself finally breathe. It was good to be back in her own space again. It was also good to be alone and not in fear of her life.

Some kind soul had removed the remnants of her botched dinner from the kitchen counters and stuffed the spoils into the recycler. Unused dishes and silverware remained on the table, waiting for the next meal to be served.

She looked around and sighed at the signs of normality littering her living area. Through the bedroom doorway, she noticed the bed was trashed, probably from her last sex-a-thon with Marcus. They had gotten a little more energetic than usual from what she recalled of that day.

She pulled off and hung up the spare jacket she’d found in the lab. Beside it was her other jacket and her carryall. Reaching into the bag, she felt around until she came up with the handheld Nathan had tricked her into accepting. It was still on and still working, even though she’d never bothered to recharge it. Though she had never heard of an unlimited power source, the thing had been live for almost two weeks now without a recharge.

She suddenly looked at the hated device with new eyes. Rolling it over in her hand, she studied the pulsing power indicator. No doubt the device had been used to track her to her residence. How else could Nathan have so easily known where she lived?

Feeling the need to rectify her mistake, she walked to the kitchen and promptly dumped the expensive geek toy into the recycler on top of the spoiled food. She started the machine and winced as the handheld got crunched and died a violent death.

In retrospect, maybe she should have taken the handheld into the lab for Seetha to analyze. There may even have been hazardous materials in it. Guilt over what she may be doing to the environment warred with her liberation to be free of one more symbol of her stupidity. She stood in her kitchen, chewing on her lip, and wondered if she was ever going to feel mature.

The notifier announced a visitor, but didn’t say who it was. Suspicious, Rachel looked at the recycler and sighed. Now she was almost wishing to have it back. Her rebellious decision making had always suffered from the single worst timing in the world. Sighing again, and reluctant to deal with the unwanted visitor on her own, she still hoped to get a peek at who had come calling. It certainly wasn’t Marcus. He had his own key now.

On her way to the door, the security override dinged to release the lock. Her worst nightmare walked inside, making her instinctively back up.

“No…” Rachel said, even though he’d yet to make any demands. His smile was coldly confident. It was the same look he’d had when he announced he was her creator and could do whatever he wanted to her.

“Hello, Rachel 235. You keep getting away from me when we have some important unfinished business. I must say it was very accommodating of you to shrug off your cyborg bodyguards. You made my task much easier.”

“They’re coming back soon,” Rachel declared.

“Yes, I’m sure they are. But they will be too late to stop me this time. I need all the chips from your cybernetic compartment and I need them now. You can’t be walking around with evidence of my work in your head.”

“Well, you can’t have them back,” Rachel said firmly.

“Your rebellion, based on nothing more than blind stubbornness, is precisely why turning you into a Customized Companion made so much sense. The delights of your body would never outweigh the tediousness of your constant resistance to intelligent suggestions and orders that potentially might save you from yourself. However, I have no more time to waste. Instead, I have conceded that converting you is not to be my destiny. But I also can’t let you take all my hard work back to Dr. Goody-Two-Shoes for her inspection. Kyra would take one look at the logic chip and instantly know who I am. That does not suit my needs at this time.”

Rachel shook her head. She didn’t want his stuff in her, but she didn’t want him taking them out again either. “Your muscle guys aren’t here to help. You’re not taking anything from me. I’ll fight you and do whatever it takes to keep you from stealing my…cybernetic components.”

His long-suffering sigh made goose bumps rise on her arms. Her eyes widened when he pulled a remote from his pocket.

“I am your creator, Rachel 235. Everything in you is mine and always has been. We didn’t get to test your controller remote before we left the lab. We’re just going to have to settle for testing it in real time.”

Rachel felt the buzzing in her head return. It was steadily rising to eardrum splitting proportions.

“Stop,” she begged, her hands going over her ears when she could no longer bear the loudness of the sound.

She saw him swipe at something on the remote. The pain level shot higher and the sound got louder than she imagined possible. Stars danced over her eyes and she felt her knees give way. How could anyone bear this kind of sonic pressure inside their skull?

By the time he reached her side, the pain was so great she couldn’t even feel what he was doing to her. Her cybernetic compartment sprung open and the motion startled her slightly. She felt a tugging, several snaps, and then a flash of lighting raced through her head unchecked as it electrocuted her entire body. Blessedly the buzzing stopped, but it was replaced by the most profound weakness in her limbs she’d ever experienced.

She opened her mouth to yell at him only to find she couldn’t. Once again, it appeared she’d lost the power of speech.

She watched him fill his pockets with her components as he stepped away from her and prepared to leave.

“There’s no time to remove the processor and ripping it out would destroy it. We’re going to have to get rid of it the old fashioned way, I’m afraid. It will have to fry itself inside you. I hate to lose the technology, but such is the cost of real science. Look on the bright side…after this you’ll no longer be a cyborg. I know how much you hate them.”

He lifted the remote again, only to lower it when he heard a voice at the door yelling her name. Like something from an old action vid, her tormentor flattened himself against the wall. Marcus burst in and immediately ran to her. At the door, her torturer slipped around its edges and snuck outside into the hallway without being seen.

She tried to point to him, but it did no good. Marcus wouldn’t look at anything but her.

Head
—she mouthed silently, before the dizziness completely overwhelmed her. She closed her eyes and melted with relief into Marcus’s arms.

Chapter 16

Marcus felt on Rachel’s scalp until he found the button to open her panel. When it gave way, he peered inside and swore. She was passed out now…and no wonder. The only thing left in her cybernetic compartment was the bad guy’s processor. Panic raced through him.

Could the processor alone provide enough life support functionality to keep her brain alive? Could Rachel possibly die because all her chips were missing? He had to know the answer and quickly. He fumbled in his pockets until he found his handheld. His hands were shaking as he connected to Kyra.

“Marcus, is everything alright?” she asked, answering immediately.

“Doc, they took her all her chips. All that’s left is her processor. Is Rachel going to die?”

Instead of answering, he heard Kyra yell for Peyton and go off-screen for a tense moment. When she came back, he saw the seriousness of the situation before she spoke. His gaze dropped to the woman in his arms. This couldn’t be happening…not to Rachel…not to him.

“Marcus, listen to me closely. Peyton and I are on our way. Eric is going to get there first. Do what Eric says no matter how crazy it sounds. I have to break this connection in case Eric needs to call either of us. Just…keep an eye on her breathing.”

The com went dead and something inside Marcus did too. He closed his eyes and fought tears of frustration. All the time he’d spent watching her had been for nothing. Here she was dying and he’d been off seeking revenge. All those months he’d guarded her, he should have spent that time teaching her how to be more aware. His ego had been too wrapped in him being her protector. He should have taught her how to fight for herself. Rachel was his biggest failure. She was so young…so beautiful. It wasn’t right for her to die yet.

Because there was no one there to witness his meltdown, he bent his face to Rachel’s and wept. Now she’d never know he loved her…that he’d fallen in love with her the moment she’d defied Brad Smith to help save them all. When Eric ran inside the still open door, his friend found him with tears running down his cheeks. Marcus didn’t even care.

“They stole all her chips, Eric. I think she’s dying. Kyra wouldn’t tell me…but I could see it on her face.”

Eric’s eyes flashed. “No. Rachel is not going to die. You’re going to pull my logic chip and put it in her.”

Marcus glared at him in disbelief. “And watch you die instead of her? What the hell kind of answer is that? No one should have to die to fix this shit. She’s not really a cyborg anyway. She didn’t sign up for this life. Her survival shouldn’t hang on some missing technology from cybernetics she never wanted.”

“Stop losing your shit, Marcus. No one is going to die, especially me,” Eric declared. “Look—I’d pull the chip myself, but it’s physically impossible. You’re going to have to do it. Remember when we got emergency training on how to revive a dying cyborg with the chips of one damaged beyond repair? Well, this is not exactly that kind of situation, but it’s close. I have a spare logic chip and we’re going to use it.”

Marcus glared. “You’re lying and I’m not sacrificing you, Eric. Don’t ask me to choose between two people I care about. What if I lost both of you? Then I’d be completely alone.”

Eric knelt until he was eye-to-eye with Marcus. “I know this is hard for you, but you have to calm down and listen. I realize you’re scared about losing her, but that doesn’t have to happen. I’m double wired. I always have been. I’m a cyborg times two—two panels, two processors, and two damn logic chips which control life support function for the brain. I can operate on either one or just one. They replicate to each other back and forth, which is how I rebound from things quicker than the rest of the team. But technically I only need one logic chip to survive. Rachel needs one before brain damage starts to occur. This is the only way, Marcus.”

“Kyra and Peyton are on their way. Kyra can do it when she gets here. I’m not a technician.”

Eric shook his head and put his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I know Kyra is coming, but she isn’t going to get here in time. They’re too far away and Rachel has been waiting long enough. Doc made me run all the way here from Nathan’s condo because she knew I was Rachel’s best chance.”

“What if I pull the wrong chip?” Marcus demanded.

“You won’t. The largest chip is the logic chip. Just don’t mess with the others. And after you pull mine…well, you’re going to be alone for a bit while my functions transfer. While I’m out, you’re going to have to install the logic chip in Rachel immediately. Afterward, use your onboard power to send a slight charge to the processor to jumpstart the reboot.”

Marcus swallowed. “I can’t do all that, Eric…I can’t hold both your lives in my clumsy hands. Why would you ask me to do this? Haven’t we been through enough?”

Eric squeezed Marcus’s shoulder and shook it hard. “You
can
do it and you damn well
will
. We are not going to let Rachel just lie here and die in your arms. She’s going to live and tell us who the bastard is that did this to her. Then we’re going after the sonofabitch and take him down. Now damn it, Marcus. Pull one of my logic chips and put the fucker in Rachel.”

Eric reached up and felt for his component panel on the side nearest Marcus. He tilted his head until the open compartment was nearly in front of his friend’s nose. “Just do it.”

Marcus drew in an angry breath and focused on his cyborg side trying to get calm. He took two deep breaths. “In case this goes to shit, you probably should know I love you like a brother.”

“Are those badass tats just for show? God, you’re so mushy. I’m going to have to pull your man card. I love you too, dumbass. Now grab your balls and pull the freaking chip.”

Marcus swore and reached into Eric’s component compartment. He yanked the largest chip from its metal slot. Eric made a strangled sound and slumped forward while Marcus’s stomach made the same motion. Had he just killed his friend?

With trembling fingers, he slid the chip into the corresponding slot inside Rachel’s component compartment, swearing the whole time. By the time he got that task finished, he was breathing like he’d scaled a fifty story building, the main thing he had been designed to do.

He looked at Eric’s crumpled, half-sitting form. He looked at Rachel’s completely inert one.