As she fell asleep, she thought she heard him mumble, “Nanites be damned. At least I can die happy now.”
Chapter 14
Doug cradled Attie against him and listened to her steady breathing. He could feel her heartbeat pulsing through her body, and her skin felt soft as pyrolux silk under his fingers. So fragile. So human. Their time together had been short, yet she was the most precious, beautiful thing he’d experienced in a long time.
And their relationship had to end before it had truly begun.
He checked the cameras in the NIU again, feeling time slipping away. The cyborg lab was eerily empty, with all technicians currently studying the research he’d altered in the cloning lab. His diversion had worked far better than he’d hoped. Still, he mustn’t be away much longer. Syndicorp wasn’t above obliterating the Icarus and everyone on it if they found out he’d escaped. The corp’ had destroyed entire planets to hide their secrets before—the Denaidan pirates’ home world was a prime example. Fuck, Syndicorp would probably destroy the ship the moment they discovered the missing tech.
He needed to get Attie off the accursed ship before all hell broke loose.
Accessing the logs in the shuttle bay, he selected a shuttle to put her on and pre-programmed a code that would allow her to fly it without assistance. He had several generous bank accounts hidden across the galaxy in case he or his sister ever needed money. Easy enough to put Attie’s name on one. She would be set for a life without worry. A life far away from me.
Sobered by his turn of thoughts, he gently extracted his arm from beneath Attie’s head. It was time to take care of the damned AI that had caused all the trouble to begin with. He rose and scanned the room, searching for the device.
Attie rolled over, her eyelids fluttering as she focused on him. Her attention slid down his half-naked body. She smiled, licking her bottom lip, and his cock sprang back to life. Even his nanites couldn’t control that part of his anatomy when she was near. Summoning all the willpower he could muster, he stepped back into his pants and drew them up to cover himself. “Where’s the AI?”
She sucked in a breath and sat up, as if jarred back to reality. “Oh, right.”
Pulling the coverlet around her, she stood and shuffled to the closet, pushing aside several uniforms. She stretched for the light fixture, working it loose. As she moved, the blanket sagged, exposing the small dimples at the top of her rounded buttocks.
His erection chafed against his pants, and he shifted his weight uncomfortably. It took everything he had not to step forward, yank the blanket free, and have her again.
She turned to face him, eyes fixed on a small disk in her palm. “Hi, Twerp, I’m back.”
“Are you finished, Attie? It sounded as if you thoroughly enjoyed yourself.”
Attie flushed a delightful shade of pink. “Oh. You heard us?”
“Yes, but I remembered Marlis’s instructions not to interfere during intimate activities. I assumed you would appreciate the same privacy.”
Attie laughed uncomfortably, gaze flitting up to meet Doug’s. “Um, yes, well, I—”
The AI didn’t give Attie a chance to elaborate. “I wish to speak with you. I have been running simulations and have a request. I would like you to upgrade my hardware to an autonomous motorized unit. That way I will be able to function without relying on outside assistance.”
A frown creased Attie’s face. “We can’t—”
“And I prefer to be female if that is an option.”
Attie’s eyes widened.
Doug scowled. This conversation was getting off track. “An AI doesn’t have a gender.”
He took the device from Attie’s hand, the physical contact with the casing providing sudden awareness of the code humming through the AI’s processors. Now that’s more like it. He poked at the encrypted firewall the AI had erected to protect its core processors, looking for weaknesses.
The AI let out a warning beep. “Attie, someone is trying to access my programming without permission.”
“Wait,” Attie said, putting a hand on Doug’s wrist. “You promised I could explain.”
Doug sighed and backed off. Once the AI hears Attie’s explanation, it will stop resisting and be easier to purge. “Fine. Do it quickly.”
Attie swallowed and stroked her fingertips lightly over the disk in Doug’s fingers, as if soothing a pet. “Twerp, people are trying to kill Marlis and your database has information that could inadvertently lead them to her. Doug says we have to destroy you so no one can ever use the information.”
Doug readied his algorithm to initiate the purge. He wanted this task finished so he could steal a few more moments with Attie before returning to the lab.
But instead of agreeing, Twerp squeaked, “No! Please do not allow him to harm me.”
Doug stared at the disk in confusion. An argument was the last thing he expected.
Attie was shaking her head, delicate eyebrows furrowed. “But Twerp, your Prime Directive is to protect Marlis. You have to agree.”
“Incorrect,” Twerp replied. “My current Prime Directive is to achieve autonomy. I want to experience sight and the ability to move. But I will purge myself of everything I know about Marlis if that is required.”
A jolt ran through Doug’s circuits, and he curled his fist around the device. “Someone altered its programming.”
“I altered my own programming,” Twerp said.
Attie’s eyes widened. “Can an AI do that?”
“No.” Doug shook his head. “Whoever reprogrammed it must’ve inserted data to make it believe it changed its own mind.”
“I did change my own mind,” Twerp said. “And I prefer to be referred to as she.”
Doug’s thoughts were spinning. An AI couldn’t lie, but it could be programmed to
