His amusement vanished. “Could you?”
Staring into his eyes, she decided tell him the complete truth. “Yes. With enough time I could find flaws in the system. I could get a signal out and fool it into thinking it wasn’t sending one.”
His hand cupped her face. “I knew that but thank you for being honest.”
“You’re welcome.” She stepped into him, missing his touch, and wrapped her arms around his waist. He didn’t pull away and she was grateful for that when he hugged her back. “What about you? Are you going to be just as honest with me as I am with you?”
“What do you want to know?” His body tensed.
“How is it going with me staying with you? Has this council of yours responded yet in any way to you not following their exact orders?”
“They are either unaware of what I’ve done or they are contemplating how to handle my defiance. They have not contacted us but I know they are awaiting a report on your death that they have not been sent. I also have no idea if Blackie sent them a report, what he would have stated to them, or if he also has not contacted them.”
“How bad do you think you’re going to get into trouble?”
He shrugged his broad shoulders. “I’m not certain. They may order the Bridden to return to dock with us.”
“What happens if they do?”
He looked anywhere but at her. “I don’t wish to discuss this any longer.”
She held her breath and then blew it out. “They’ll come to kill me, won’t they?”
Ice finally met her gaze. “No. No one is going to harm you, Megan. I won’t allow it.”
“So that’s the worst they can do?” Fear inched up her spine as terrifying images flashed through her mind of all the horrible ways a person could die. “Be honest.”
He shook his head. “No. They could send the Star after us.”
“What’s that?”
He paused. “A large class-A starship. We have a few of them but the Star is within a few days range. The others are farther away.”
“And if they send it after us?”
He swallowed, looking away from her. “It wouldn’t be good. I am friends with the man who usually commands her. He would attempt to stall the council but he has a family to think about. If he were to attempt to refuse orders they could go after his female next. I will not ask him to put his future on the line.”
A horrible thought struck her and she reached up, cupping his face, forcing him to look down at her. When their gazes locked, she frowned at him. “Is your life in danger because of me?”
“Not currently.”
“But it could be?”
He paused. “It’s a possibility if the council believes I have lost my ability to be reasonable.”
“If they think you’re nuts, you mean?”
“Yes.”
She let her forehead fall to rest against his chest. She released his face and slid her hands down his torso to wrap around his waist. She loved Ice, the emotion so strong it nearly choked her as she tried to form words. He was admitting that he’d face danger just to protect her. Cyborgs weren’t known for being warm and cuddly creatures. Would they kill Ice? The answer that came to her was a big yes. He knew that yet he’d still kept her. He didn’t say it but he risked his life for hers. The love for him swelled inside her painfully. He wouldn’t do that unless she really mattered to him.
“Promise me that you’ll tell me if that happens.”
“So you can worry about my fate?”
“No.” She refused to look at him. “I don’t want to die but I don’t want you to die for me. If they are that set on killing me then hand me over.”
Ice lifted her off her feet and forced her to look at him when he brought her face level. He stared into her eyes, studying her. “You’d rather I hand you over for death than risk my life for yours?”
She nodded. “What can I say? It’s been a great nine days we’ve spent together.” She hoped her sad attempt at humor worked but then he spoke.
“You’re attached,” he gently accused. “Aren’t you?” His beautiful eyes searched hers as they gazed at each other.
She shrugged. “I could lie but you’d just grab my neck and know it.”
He gently slid her down his body and released her, stepping away. He walked toward the bed and stopped there, keeping his back to her.
Megan bit back a curse. She’d gone and upset him but the days and nights spent with him had been great. Ice was an amazing person. He had a quick sense of humor, passion that was fire hot, and she had fallen totally in love with the guy. She didn’t want to lie to him ever again. They’d started out on deception and they were past that now.
“I know you can’t offer me that back. You were very clear about your aversion to getting attached to me, Ice. I don’t even blame you. There’s no need to get upset with me.”
He looked over his shoulder at her and then slowly faced her completely. “You tempt me in so many ways, Megan. Would it help at all if I confessed to you that you are the only female I have ever considered being with long term?”
“I like hearing it.”
He suddenly grinned. “It is true.”
“That means a lot to me.” It did. It is the thought that counts, right? She didn’t want to ponder that thought too closely. She wondered how long they could last—how long it would be before their relationship ended. “When is your next planned trip to your world?”
“We have no plans to return to Garden as of now. We are currently far from the planet in case you were being tracked. We didn’t want to lead them back to our home world to our women and children.”
“I’m really not a spy or a bounty hunter.”
He closed the distance between them. “I know that.”
“Ice?” A male voice suddenly barked from a speaker near the door. “Get to control now. We have a ship approaching and we had a signal sent from our ship to it. Secure that damn female. She is communicating with them.”
Shock tore through Megan as she stared into Ice’s eyes. “I didn’t.”
He frowned. “I’m aware.” He moved, nearly knocking Megan over to get to his discarded clothing. He started to dress quickly. “What about the bots?”
“The bots? You dropped them off on the Hixton.”
He jerked up his pants. “We did not. We were too worried it was a trap.”
“Shit!”
“What?” Ice grabbed her arm.
“They are the source of your signal. Why didn’t you tell me you kept them? Damn it, Ice. They are machines regardless of how they look and I assumed you dropped them off. You never told me that plan changed.”
“They can send and receive signals?”
“If their theft alarms are triggered you bet they can. They will start sending out location signals so that they can be retrieved.”
“Can you silence them?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I can try.”
“Get dressed.”
“Ice,” the male voice on the speaker barked. “Respond, damn it. They are coming at us fast and have locked onto us. I’ve never seen any shuttle move so fast. Stop your human from responding. The signals are bouncing back and forth and we can’t shut it down or block it. We’re trying.”
Ice moved to the door, not bothering with his shirt, and touched the pad on the wall. “It’s not the human. It’s the bots. Have Onyx meet me in the cargo hold and make sure all of them are there when I arrive in two minutes.” He released the pad and spun.
Megan had put his shirt on and a pair of his underwear. She didn’t bother to try to find pants, knowing none of his would fit. “Let’s go.”
Ice gripped her arm and stared down at her, searching her eyes. “Can I trust you, Megan? Are you really going to help us lose that shuttle or are you going to send a signal to them?”
Pain lanced through her though she knew he probably had to ask. She noticed he’d placed his thumb over her wrist so he could touch her pulse, feeling
it for a lie.
“I’m happy with you, Ice. I don’t want to be found and I don’t want any of your people hurt.”
He nodded, released her, turned, and the door opened. He moved quickly and Megan had to run to stay behind him.
The cargo hold they entered was the same one she’d first seen and she did a head count on the bots. All twelve units were in the room. They were hooked to cords and Megan frowned, staring at where they were attached to the walls.
“They needed recharged,” Ice explained. “Should we unhook them?”
Megan nodded. “It won’t stop them from transmitting but unplug them anyway. Your ship is probably being used to amplify their signals.”
Ice moved quickly, unhooking each bot. Megan walked to the center of the group and inhaled deeply, trying to catch her breath.
“Authorization four-nine-red dwarf,” she said loudly.
All twelve units responded, their heads tilting back. Megan stopped in front of the closest one. “Status?”
“Theft mode initiated by remote transmission.” All twelve bots spoke in unison.
“Cancel theft mode and block incoming signals. It is a hacking attempt.”
Their heads lowered and twelve pairs of eyes fixed on Megan. “Incoming codes confirmed,” they said in unison. “Theft mode initiated. In contact with retrieval team.”
“Cancel,” Megan ordered. “Authorization four-nine-red dwarf. I am the programmer of Folion. Confirm my identity.”
“Megan Bellus, identity confirmed via retina scan,” the bot closest to her stated.
“Cancel theft mode. It is a hacking attempt. Shut down all outgoing signals and block incoming signals now. Do not respond to hacker. They are attempting to lock onto you to steal you.”
“Conflicting orders,” they all stated.
The door to the cargo bay opened and Onyx came storming in. “What’s going on?”
“The bots are the ones responding. Megan is attempting to have them shut down but they don’t know what orders to follow.” Ice’s voice softened.
“They are still sending signals,” Onyx whispered. “I’ve managed to decode their transmissions and lock onto the frequency but I’m unable to block it. They are sending out our location to the other ship.”
“Stop initiation signals,” Megan ordered them.
“Order denied,” the bots replied. “Theft mode initiated. Programmer has been compromised and tortured into submission.”
“I have not.” Megan was taken aback. “That is not an accurate statement.”
The bots stared at her. “We are being told you are compromised.”
“Damn it!” Onyx moved closer. “I’m reading their communications. They are being ordered to not listen to you and someone is attempting to block your access by trying to reprogram them to not respond to you.”
Megan jerked her attention to Onyx. “How do you know?”
“I’m listening.” He frowned.
She stared at him, not seeing any kind of earpiece to the bridge of the ship. “How?”
“We have implants.” Ice moved closer. “Onyx is listening into their communication signals. That’s his gift.”
Onyx drew his weapon, glancing at Megan. “How do I disable them?”
“It would take a long time to damage them all enough to stop them. They have artificial skin but they have complex skeletal interiors. They have reinforced metals that shield their computer brains and I don’t have the tools to open them up and remove their core power sources. That is the only way to stop them from sending signals.” Megan bit her lip. “Bot, cancel theft mode.”
“No,” they said in unison. “Megan Bellus is compromised.”
Megan cursed and turned away to stare at Ice. Her gaze darted around the cargo bay seeing nothing stored inside it besides the bots. A plan formed.
“They want the bots so give them up.” She moved toward Ice. “Can you open up the cargo doors to space from your bridge?”
He nodded. “Yes. Control can do that.”
She moved toward the doors they’d entered. “Then do it.” She turned. “Bots, move to the exterior doors if you want to be retrieved. When they open, exit the ship you are on. You will be picked up by a retrieval team.”
Long seconds went by. Onyx nodded. “They transmitted what you said to the shuttle following us and they told them to do as you bid.”
The bots actually moved. Ice grabbed Megan’s hand. “You mean just dump them out into open space? Won’t it destroy them?”
“Nope. It’s not real good for their skin but it will be minor repairs to fix any damage that occurs. Leaving them out there for an extended time would be bad but you said that shuttle hunting them is closing in fast so they’ll pick them up quickly. Just pop the seal with oxygen and they should be pulled right out of your hold when it depressurizes.”
Onyx moved around them and opened the door. Ice jerked Megan into the hallway and sealed the doors behind him. She stared up at him and realized he had mentally linked to his ship when he spoke aloud without touching the pad and his voice broadcast throughout the ship.
“Blow the cargo door open so the bots are sucked out. If that ship wants them they can pick them up out there. Just do a count and make sure they all end up in space.”
After a slight hesitation, a voice spoke through the speaker in the hallway. “Brace. I’ve never done this before and I don’t know how violent it is going to be.”
“Do it,” Ice ordered, yanking Megan into his arms.
Even from the hallway a loud groan could be heard and the floor vibrated slightly when the cargo hold depressurized violently. Megan gripped Ice around his waist and prayed that all the bots ended up outside the ship. Otherwise they’d have to pressurize the hold, go in, and manually send each one out an airlock.
“All twelve bots are clear,” the male voice stated. “Now what?”
“Change course and get us the hell away from them,” Ice demanded. “Keep track of that incoming shuttle and see if it follows us or if it heads for the bots.”
Megan looked up at Ice. “If you had told me you kept them, I would have warned you that they could signal. I could have had you find me the right tools to open them up and disarm their theft systems.”
“I didn’t think about it.” He looked grimly at Onyx. “Was it Earth Government talking to them?”
“No.” Onyx looked at Megan and then back at Ice. “They worked for Barcarintellus.”
“The company that owns Folion.” Megan sighed. “They would have sent a retrieval team for those bots.” She frowned at Ice. “Do you have any idea what kind of money is tied up in each unit? There’s no way they wouldn’t attempt to locate them. For future reference, if you have their expensive merchandise on board, they are going to send retrieval teams after them.”
He hugged her tighter. “I’m just glad it wasn’t you sending out signals.”
“I’d never do that.”
“Ice? The enemy shuttle adjusted course for the bots and is not following us,” the male in control stated.
“Disaster averted.” Megan blew out her breath. “I bitched about being bored but I could have totally done without that bit of excitement today.”
Ice chuckled. “I wasn’t bored once I reached my quarters.”
She grinned up at him. “Me neither.”
“I’m returning to my room now.” Onyx sighed. “I was sleeping and I wish to finish my rest cycle.”
Chapter Nine
“Megan? Wake up now.” The urgency in Ice’s voice broke through her sleeping haze and Megan forced her eyes open. She frowned at Ice, bent low over her. Alarm spread through her as she saw the look on his face.
“The council?” He shook his head. “That shuttle picked up the bots and is now attempting to follow us. Do you know why they would do that? We returned their bots.”
She sat up and rubbed her eyes. “No clue.”
“They may be coming after us to retrieve you next.”
She shook her head, dropping her hands to her lap. “I’m not worth the cost or time. Programmers are easy to replace.”
“They are attempting to follow us, Megan. You are the only reason that is logical.” He paused. “They are sending out a coded message and we think they are sending it to you.”
“Me? Why?” She frowned.
“I don’t know. Get dressed. We’re going to Control.”
She nodded and when Ice moved back, she swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Ice held out clothing for her and she dressed quickly. She was confused and alarmed. She could think of no reason for the retrieval team to come after her. It just didn’t make sense. It wasn’t cost effective and her company believed in making money, not wasting it.
Minutes later they entered the control center—the large shuttle’s navigational room. Two cyborgs were at the control panel and both males stared openly at her bare legs. She ignored them, keeping her attention on Ice as he pulled her to a terminal.
“What is your code to access incoming signals? Don’t respond but access the message.”
She stared at the screen and then reached for the control pad, typing in her employee code in full view of Ice. “Okay.”
The screen suddenly filled with a tan face and Megan gasped in utter shock.
“Miss Bellus, this is Markus Four-Ten. Please respond to our signal. This is urgent.”
“Shit,” Megan muttered.
“You know this human?” Ice leaned in closer, staring at the face on the screen.
“It’s not human.” Megan hesitated, stunned and disturbed at the same time. “That’s a defense model.”
She met Ice’s confused gaze. “Defense model?”
“You’ve met the female sex bots. Meet one of the latest male defense models that my company created. It’s a Markus Model, number four hundred ten. They look real unless you saw two of them standing next to each other. They used one mold to form them so they are identical in appearance. The female sex bots have more molds so they have a few different faces, body types, and sizes.”
“What the hell is it?” Onyx approached and frowned at the screen.
She turned in the chair. “It’s a hybrid of cutting-edge medical technology meeting up with robotics, kind of. Their minds are cloned human brains with a new artificial growth material that is constantly regenerating along with their exterior skin. Their programming is completely different though from other bots because they don’t have many circuits or memory chips, more organic than machine. You could bomb their bodies and only damage the exterior skin but not the bot interior. Their bones are a classified metallic substance and their internal systems are shielded with that stuff as well. I heard all their organic materials are that special rejuvenating substance. I worked on their programming extensively before I took the job on Folion but jumped at the chance when I got the better offer.” She paused. “They scared me.”