Freak of Nature

chapter Twenty-One



Lucas looked up from his computer, as if he had been concentrating on something important, when Harrington stormed into the room. The man’s face was dark red, a vein pulsed on his forehead, and he had balled his hands into fists. The door slammed behind him. “How the hell did this happen?”

“It was always a risk,” Lucas said evenly, carefully composing his face into a calm expression. “Why else would we have armed guards and have kept her under lock and key if we didn’t see this as a possibility? You give someone that much technology…” Lucas leaned back in his chair and frowned, rubbing his temples. “She must have felt threatened. She is programmed to react to threats. We should be glad she ran instead of killing everyone in the room.”

That silenced Harrington. He shoved his hands in his pockets and looked out the window, his eyes distant, lost in his own thoughts. “Dammit!” he burst out. “We need to get her back. Why isn’t her GPS working? What the hell is the use of all this technology if it’s not even going to work? You realize it would be the end for all of us if the media got ahold of this story.”

“We were aware of that potential when we signed on for the job with the extensive nondisclosure forms you made us sign.” Lucas leaned forward and tapped on the keyboard. “I’m not sure what’s going on. Look at this—the signal shows her still in her room.”

Harrington came around the desk and looked over his shoulder. “Could she be back?”

Lucas didn’t answer.

“Do you think she was smart enough to reprogram the system to throw us off? Could she have had access to the programs?”

Lucas pushed his seat back and stood up. “You know, I bet that is exactly what happened. I never thought of that. She certainly has enough knowledge stored in her database.”

“We made her too well,” Harrington mused, bitterly.

“It could just be a glitch. As you know, computers are not fail proof.” Or maybe I helped her escape, Lucas thought wryly.

Ever since he had sounded the alarm, Lucas had been a nervous wreck. In order to keep suspicion off himself, he had to be the one to notify the guards about her escape. After seeing her off into the night, he sounded the alarm.

He had to hide a smile. For Kaitlyn, getting off the compound would have only taken minutes.

Hopefully he had done enough to keep him in the clear.

According to the initial reports, she’d managed to evade the security team so far. At one point, they were on her trail, but lost her. Not even for a second did he doubt her ability to evade capture. He was more worried what would happen once she tried to blend in with civilians.

Harrington paced the room. The burly man looked like he was about to blow a fuse. “I am supposed to renegotiate the terms of the hand off with the secretary of defense. Tomorrow. How in the hell am I going to explain we’ve lost the package?”

Lucas knew Harrington would find away. He always did.

“You could call and tell them you have to push back the negotiations due to a conflicting schedule,” Lucas suggested.

Harrington swiveled and stared at Lucas like he’d lost his mind. “Son, we are talking about the United States Government. They wait for no one.”

“Well, then tell them you are having second thoughts and need more time. This is, after all, a huge commitment for IFICS.”

The usually calm and collected Harrington growled with frustration and angrily swiped the pen holder across the desk. It clattered to the ground, pens rolling across the white tile floor. “It looks like I don’t have a choice.”

Lucas ignored the outburst and went back to his computer. Harrington left the room without another word. Of course, he didn’t bother to pick up his mess.

By now, Lucas thought, Kate had access to her memories. He wondered how she handled seeing the traumatic experience that landed her in the hands of IFICS. If only they had more time together before she left, he could have helped her through it.

She was all alone.

God, he wished he could be there for her. No one should have to remember what she went through. He should have told her the police had caught the bastard thanks to the DNA they had pulled from under Kaitlyn’s nails. If he ever saw her again, he would make sure she knew she saved other women from being attacked. Not that it would give back the life she lost that night. But her old life was over. She wouldn’t have lived on like she had without Lucas and IFICS.

Professor Adams burst through the door, his hangdog face exhausted. He crossed the room, his loafers silent on the tiles, and settled at the desk across from Lucas. Leaning forward on his elbows, he caught Lucas’s eye. “Do you know something about her escape?”

Lucas’s hand stopped mid-air before he hit the next key stroke. “I can’t believe you just asked me that.”

The professor sighed and threw his hands up in the air. “I’ve gone over it a thousand times, Lucas. There is no way she could have gotten out without help.” His face hardened and his eyes narrowed at Lucas. “I talked to the guards, and they said you’ve been spending time with her after work.”

“Of course I didn’t help her,” Lucas said angrily, his heart pounding. “I think you know how important this job is to me. I’ve given everything to this company.” He was surprised at how easily the lies rolled off his tongue.

Professor Adams pushed his glasses back up his nose, shaking his head sadly. “I’ve seen the way you look at her, Lucas. She seems to have gotten to Quess, too. If you know anything that can help us get her back, you need to tell me. It’s not safe out there for her. She needs to be in a controlled environment.”

“It’s not exactly safe in here for her, either!” Lucas couldn’t stop the words from coming, and once they were out, he gritted his teeth.

“What are you saying, Lucas?”

Lucas’s gaze automatically flicked to the security camera in the corner of the ceiling, pointed directly at him. “Look, okay. Yes, she got to me,” Lucas said, “and yes I liked her. But I didn’t help her escape. If I knew where she was, I would tell you. I honestly have no idea. She could be anywhere. She is programmed to be evasive and avoid capture, after all.” It was mostly the truth, though Lucas would have said anything to protect her.

The professor waited a beat and remarked, “We could shut her down.”

Lucas’s heart slammed against his chest. Adams wouldn’t seriously do that. He couldn’t. “If we shut her down, she’ll die.”

“But she wouldn’t be a danger to anyone. If news of a cyborg came out, and that she—a lethal, tactical machine—was loose in the general population, that would be it. We would all be done. Sent to jail. I’m too old for prison. Don’t for a second think that we wouldn’t be the fall guys for this debacle. The Department of Defense would point at us and cover their asses.”

“We knew the risk when we accepted the job,” Lucas said through clenched teeth. “If we shut her down, then who knows who would find her with the GPS off-line? And I don’t think Harrington would approve of his hundreds of millions of dollars and technology being thrown away like that.”

Adams glanced around the lab. As the heating unit clicked on, he stood and came to sit in a chair nearer to Lucas. In a low voice, he said, “You could convince Harrington. He trusts your judgment. If you told him it was the best course of action, he would listen.”

“Forget it. Just give the security team time. I’m sure they can bring her back in.”

Adams laughed bitterly. “We both know there is not a chance in hell they can capture her.”

Truer words had never been spoken. They would know since they were the ones who made her.

“I’ll speak to Harrington myself.” Adams dropped his head. He looked older than usual, weary, as if the life was being sucked out of him with every passing second Kaitlyn was gone.

“I wouldn’t bother. Harrington is well aware of the options. It will just piss him off. Let him make up his own mind.”

“Maybe you’re right,” Adams said. Perhaps I should just take off. Lord knows I’ve got enough money saved after all the years here. I’m too old for prison. I have my wife and Quess to think about.”

“Don’t do anything rash,” Lucas told him. “Just give it time to unfold. If it looks like the authorities are going to come after us, then you can act. Just get your affairs in order, but hold steady for now.”

“Such a smart young lad you are, Lucas. I’ll just stay the course for now. But the first sign of things going south…”

“I don’t blame you.” Lucas stood up and walked over to the coffee pot to refill his mug. He was tired and knew sleep would not come any time soon.

Keep running, Kate, and don’t look back.

“Where would she go? We should be able to figure it out. After all we programmed her.” Adams said thoughtfully. “Perhaps we can outthink her and lead a team to her.”

Lucas took a sip of his coffee and tried to think of a response. Maybe he could throw them off her trail, but he really had no idea where she would go. Adams wasn’t aware she had feelings and now had access to her old memories. Would she return to her old home? Lucas didn’t think so. At least not right away.

“I have no idea where she would go. It could be a huge city that she could meld into or find a cave in the middle of the woods. I’m afraid none of us can think like Kaitlyn even if we did program her. Her software is so advanced our minds couldn’t begin to keep up.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Adams grumbled under his breath. “I just wish we could find a way to fix this disaster, before it comes back to haunt us.”

Taking another sip of his coffee, Lucas remained silent.