by Adams, M. L.
I turned and looked at the girl.
So that’s why the robots went crazy, I thought. Who is this girl?
“She paid for her insubordination,” Merrick said. He reached out and gently touched her face. She turned away and I noticed a large bruise and cut high on her left cheek. “I guess I understand. You Alphas have to stick together. Some sort of cyborg camaraderie.”
The shock on my face must have been obvious, because Merrick added, “Oh come on, Ben, you didn’t know?”
I slowly shook my head.
“You don’t think I spent 100 billion on a program just to create you?”
I looked around the room and noticed another six armed CyberLife security guards file in. Sarah still knelt on the floor. She was watching the exchange with sad eyes.
I swallowed hard and, without answering Merrick’s question, said, “What do you want?”
“Benjamin, surely you know by now what I want?”
I glanced at the journals on the table. Merrick followed my eyes, then laughed.
“Old research journals? You think that’s why I’m here?”
I nodded.
“No, Benjamin,” Merrick said, shaking his head. “The Alpha program served its purpose years ago. I shut it down for a reason. You could have asked me for these journals and I would have given them to you.”
“What about me? You didn’t shut Alpha down, because I’m still here. And her . . .” I nodded at the girl Merrick called Eight.
He laughed. “A hundred billion dollars is a lot of money, Ben. I wasn’t just going to throw it away. I kept you around for long term testing. See how your system held up over time. And I must admit, the data you provided was helpful for the Beta program. Not to mention the production units we just started shipping.”
I was too stunned to reply. All this time I’ve been nothing more than an obsolete model?
“Do you really think I would have let you go otherwise? I mean, would you trust a teenage boy with top-secret technology?”
I remained silent.
“Speaking of that, your little football stunt was interesting. If that hit you’d taken last week had damaged your implant, you’d be dead. As it was, it held up pretty well. Another good test.”
“You knew?”
He laughed again. “Of course I knew. Katherine has been sending us reports all semester. I knew the second you tried out for the team.”
My mouth fell open. I turned to look at Sarah.
“Bitch,” she mouthed.
“Katherine,” I said, turning back to Merrick. “Worked for you?”
“In a way. Her mother is on our board. I needed someone to keep an eye on you and report back. Who better than a pretty cheerleader from your school?” Merrick glanced at Sarah and smiled. “Although, it looks like you’re doing pretty well on your own.”
My eyes fell to the floor. I wasn’t sure how much more I wanted to know. Everything I knew to be true for the previous seven years had unraveled in a matter of hours. And it was only getting worse.
“Sir?” Stevens said from behind Sarah.
“I know, I know,” Merrick said. “We need to get moving.”
He turned back to me, his smile gone. “No, Ben, I don’t care about the journals. I want what Megan stole.”
“What is it?” I asked.
Merrick’s face hardened. “All of the research notes, plans and source code for our Infiltrator program.”
“Infiltrator?”
Merrick nodded. “State of the art cybernetic programming. Turns any soldier into a super hacker. The DoD already paid us one billion for it. Kinda need it back.”
I swallowed hard.
“Eight,” Merrick said. “Get it out of him.”
“Why did you kill Megan?” I blurted out.
“It was never our intention to kill Megan,” Merrick said. “Blame that on a . . . well, an overzealous guard.” He raised an eyebrow at Stevens. “We only meant to bring her in and find out where she hid the stolen data. Have to admit though, pretty clever hiding it in you. It took us a couple days to figure that out.”
Merrick glanced at Alpha Eight. For the first time, she spoke, “His system is resisting, but I’ll be through soon.”
Merrick flipped his head at Stevens.
I turned as the man lifted his gun to Sarah’s head.
“No!” I cried out. “Please. Dr. Merrick. Don’t.”
“No, Ben,” Sarah said, quietly.
Stevens backhanded her across the head. She fell to her side on the floor.
“Leave her alone!” I yelled.
“Then give me what I want, Ben,” Merrick growled.
I slowly nodded. I wasn’t exactly sure how to tell my system to stop resisting the girl, but I did my best to think it, hoping it would do what I wanted.
“Sir,” said Stevens, who had bent over to pick Sarah up off the floor. “She’s wounded.”
Merrick bent down, unzipped Sarah’s jacket, and frowned at her bloodied t-shirt.
“I said leave her alone,” I snapped.
“Shut up,” replied Stevens.
Merrick inspected the bandages, then turned and looked at me. “She’s been shot,” he said.
“No kidding,” I growled. “Your men shot her.”
Merrick looked around at the commandos spread around the room. Several shook their heads. His eyes landed on Stevens. “Wasn’t us,” the head of security said.
“When did this happen?”
“Two hours ago,” I replied. “Just after your men attacked the FBI convoy.”
Merrick frowned again. His calm and confident demeanor vanished. He glanced at Stevens, who was speaking rapidly into a throat mic.
“Sir,” Stevens said. “Rogers and Cooper aren’t answering.”
“Men, defensive positions!” Merrick called out. He then whirled around to face Alpha Eight.
“Get that data out of him. Now!”
“But if you didn’t shoot her, then who did . . .” I said.
Before I could finish my question, a pain rushed through my body and I collapsed on the floor. Merrick kneeled next to me. “Ben, you no doubt know by now that Eight has control of your system. Just like earlier, she can shut your heart off, stop your lungs from working, you name it. She’s gone through a few upgrades since the Alpha program. There is nothing you can do.”
With an effort, I looked up at Alpha Eight. She stared back at me with a blank expression on her face.
“She’s going to transfer the files now,” Merrick continued. “Don’t do anything to stop her, or I swear, the next bullet your cute little friend takes will be in the head. Got it?”
I slowly nodded and Merrick let go.
A new message appeared on my HUD. It read:
I’m sorry.
I stared at the girl. Her face remained as passive as before.
My name is Alex.
Suddenly, the pain started to fade. I looked over at Merrick, who was busy talking to Stevens.
Pretend you’re still in pain.
I remained on the floor and did as she asked.
“Eight,” Merrick said. “Is he resisting?”
Alpha Eight, or Alex apparently, turned to Merrick and shook her head.
“Good,” he replied. “I’m sorry it came to this, Benjamin. There was a time I thought of you as a son. I know you didn’t have anything to do with Megan’s plans. At least not at first.” He paused and looked back at Sarah. “But there’s nothing I can do. You and your friend here know too much.”
I watched in horror as Merrick grabbed the pistol out of Steven’s hand and aimed it at Sarah’s head. “Eight, when you’re done, shut him off.”
At that moment, something snapped. Acting on instinct alone, I threw myself at Merrick. Assuming I was incapacitated by Eight’s attack, neither of the two older men was prepared. I struck Merrick in the side, knocking the gun out of his hand. It slid across the floor, out of his reach. He grunted as he smashed into a bookcase.
Just then, a loud bang and flash filled the room.
47
I rolled off Merrick and covered my ringing ears with my hands. Blind and deaf, I felt around on the floor for Sarah. I finally found her and pulled her close as the staccato sound of gunfire filled the room.
The brightness faded and I was able to make out Stevens, who stood several feet away. He lifted an assault rifle off his back, only to be cut down by a wave of bullets.
I turned away and wrapped an arm around Sarah. I dragged her across the floor and under the large library table that held the computers. I covered her body with mine the best I could. Bullets smashed into the table above us. Shattered computer parts littered the floor.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched another CyberLife guard fall, dead from a bullet wound to the head. I couldn’t bring myself to feel sorry for the man.
To my left, Alex lay on the ground less than six feet away. She was curled up in a fetal position with her eyes and mouth slammed shut.
“Stay down,” I said to Sarah.
I slid across the floor and grabbed Alex by the arm.
She flinched.
“It’s okay,” I said.
Bullets whizzed by as CyberLife and the attackers continued to exchange gunfire. Alex tilted her head up and opened her eyes. With only brief hesitation, she reached out and took my hand. Together, we crawled back across the floor and rejoined Sarah under the relative cover of the table.
A half-minute later, the gunfire ceased.
Smoke filled the room along with the smell of gunpowder and burning electronics. I heard heavy footsteps moving around the room. Before I could think of a plan to escape, a pair of black combat boots appeared in front of the table.
Then the smoking barrel of an automatic rifle.
“You three, come out,” a man commanded. “Now.”
Out of options, we obeyed.
Once standing, I counted six men in full, all-black, body armor. Their faces were covered with goggles and masks. Like the CyberLife guards, each carried an assault rifle. All were aimed directly at us.
My heart sank when I realized something was missing. No badges. No SWAT or POLICE written in large block white letters.
I surveyed the room. Dr. Merrick sat on the floor with his back against a bookshelf. His gray suit jacket and white shirt were dotted with blood stains.
“Room is secure,” the man said into a radio. “We’ve got seven minutes before the police arrive. Bring her in.”
“Who are you?” I asked.
He ignored me.
Two more commandos entered into the room. They were followed by a tall, black-haired woman wearing a sleek, form-fitting black body suit. She walked with a confident, elegant stride. She was beautiful and had a figure nobody on the planet could miss.
She approached the guard standing next to me. “Any casualties?”
“No, ma’am,” the guard replied. “We caught them by surprise.”
The woman turned to face me.
“You must be Benjamin Raine,” she said.
She pulled a black glove off her hand and extended it. When I didn’t take it, the guard poked me in the shoulder with the barrel of his gun.
I shook her hand. Like her icy blue eyes, it was cold.
“I’ve heard so much about you,” the woman continued. “Megan always had nice things to say.”
She knew Megan?
“She said you’re a smart young man. Of course, she refused to tell us your name. So it wasn’t until a few days ago when we learned exactly who you were.”
“Who . . . are you?” I asked.
The woman smiled. “Oh, how rude of me. My name is Maya Sage,” she said. “President and CEO of Paragon Technologies.”
Her name sounded familiar. After a moment, I remembered why. Maya Sage was the CyberLife executive who fired Carter and his team.
I glanced at Alex. She sent a message.
Don’t trust her.
I replied with a subtle nod.
“You probably haven’t heard of us,” Sage said. “Alex here is welcome to try and find us online, but she won’t. We’re a new player in the global market for cybernetic technology. And now, thanks to you and Megan, we’re also the leader.”
The woman turned to Alex, and said, “Megan told us a lot about you as well. But I must admit, I didn’t expect you to be part of the deal. Nice little bonus. Two cyborgs for the price of one.”
Several of the guards chuckled.
Sage then turned to Sarah. “And who might you be?”
“Leave her alone,” I said quickly.
Sage turned and cocked her head. “Am I bothering her, Ben? I just want to know her name, that’s all.”
She turned back to Sarah.
“I’m Sarah.”
“Nice to meet you, Sarah. How’d you get mixed up in all this?”
Sarah stared back, but didn’t respond. Sage shrugged, and said, “No matter then. Kill her.”
The man standing behind Sarah shoved her to her knees. He pulled a gun off his hip and placed it against her head.
“Wait, no!” I yelled, wondering why all these adults were determined to shoot Sarah. Again.
It’s your fault, Ben.
“She’s my friend,” I said. “Please . . . don’t hurt her.”
Sage waved her hand and the guard lowered his gun. “That’s better.”
“She’s been helping me figure out why Megan was killed,” I continued. “That’s all. She has nothing to do with this.”
Sage turned back to Sarah. “Oh, are you the hacker who helped Megan copy the files?”
Sarah swallowed hard and then slowly nodded her head.
“Well thank you for that.”
“Screw you,” Sarah growled. The guard hit her and she fell to the floor.
I lunged for her, but the butt of another guard’s assault rifle ended my rescue attempt. I doubled over, holding my stomach and gasping for air.
“Now, Ben,” Sage said. “You’re a bright kid. Let’s keep this civil, shall we?”
I made eye contact with Sarah. Her face was contorted in pain. Blood dripped down the side of her head where the guard hit her. Her lips trembled.
“Please, I’ll do whatever you want,” I said. “Just let Sarah and Alex go. The files are in my head. You can have them.”
Sage smirked. “That’s nice of you, Ben. Of course, you do know, that Megan was including you in the deal?”
“That’s fine,” I said quickly. “Just let them go. Please.”
After a pause, Sage said, “I can’t do that, Ben.”
“Three minutes, Ms. Sage,” the guard said.
Sage turned to another man I hadn’t noticed before. He was smaller than the others, had messy hair and a pair of over-sized glasses. He wore a black combat suit, but wasn’t wearing the helmet or goggles, and I didn’t see a weapon. Instead, he was holding a tablet computer with a long rubber antenna sticking out its side.
“Make sure neither of them can transmit,” Sage said, nodding at Alex and me.
“Already done,” the man replied. “I’ve jammed her outside comms already.”
“What about his?” Sage interrupted.
“No need. Already deactivated. Probably by the CyberLife team.” He nodded at me. “She has an open encrypted channel to him, but I’m working on shutting that down now.”
“Two minutes,” another guard said. “Looks like a half-dozen patrol cars.”
“What about the SRT team?” Sage asked.
The man looked at his tablet before replying. “They lifted off from the construction site two minutes ago. Team two has already departed the area.”
“Good,” Sage said. “Use the remaining Hellfire to slow the cops down.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Sage walked to where Merrick sat hunched against the bookshelf. Blood now completely soaked the front of his shirt and suit. Sage kicked h
is foot and frowned. “A pity,” she said, shaking her head. “I wanted the famous Dr. Merrick to know who took his company down.”
I stared at Merrick and felt another pang of loss. He betrayed me, no doubt about it. But just like Megan, good or bad, he’d been a big part of my life.
“You don’t think the cops are just going to let you walk in and take over CyberLife,” Sarah said. “Not after what you’ve done. You killed FBI agents.”
Sage turned to look at Sarah. She smiled, and said, “Smart and pretty, Ben. Good work. She reminds me a lot of Megan.”
I bit my lip, not wanting the guard to retaliate against Sarah again.
“Don’t worry about the authorities,” Sage said. “I have friends in high places.”
“Why go through all the trouble to get me and the data?” I asked. “Why not just buy the company or something.”
“Good point, Benjamin. But there was no way Merrick would ever sell. Especially not to me. Let’s just say we didn’t part on the best of terms.”
“Ma’am,” a guard said. “One minute.”
Just like on the highway east of town, my system picked up a Hellfire missile launch.
Three seconds later, a loud explosion shook the library.
“Make that five minutes,” the guard said.
I swallowed hard.
More killing.
Not sure when I’d get the chance again, I asked the one question that started it all.
“Did I have cancer?”
Sage looked at me and sighed. With the hint of a frown I thought might actually be genuine, she said, “No, Ben, you didn’t. Neither did Alpha Eight or any of the others.”
“Why?”
Sage shrugged. “Business. CyberLife was trying hard to win multiple Department of Defense contracts. They were worth billions and would have made the company—and Merrick—the richest in the world. The problem was, the nature of the cybernetic implants and the surgery to install them required test subjects. Young, healthy test subjects. Kids in their prime—both physically and mentally—to stand up to the rigors of years of surgery. Not an easy task.”
I was too stunned to speak.
“We paid doctors around the country to find candidates,” Sage continued. “I don’t remember your specifics, but I’m guessing you just visited the doctor on the wrong day. Same with Alex here.”