My Cyborg Savior (Crimson Romance)

by Ravena, Honoria

  No one could promise they wouldn’t be. Tensions were high, and too many things had been done for them to leave the core planets alone.

  “Thanks for the information. It will keep my people on alert if I make it back to them.”

  “As for your daughter,” Cyrus shrugged. “The government has hired her for other purposes. Instead of turning her into one of you, they educated her. Took her out of the gutter. You should be grateful.”

  He wasn’t grateful. He was furious and terrified. How dare they go near her! He hated this man for knowing the young woman he didn’t. Damn him. The term “manufactured” also pissed him off. His kind weren’t toys, and if the government had abandoned cyborgs it likely meant they’d gone on to other more dangerous projects, most likely just as life-destroying for the unfortunate.

  “Keep your goons away from my kid.”

  “Too late. She works for them, and she doesn’t work for me so I can’t fire her.”

  He growled and clenched his hands. What could he do? He didn’t even know what she looked like. Or what her name was. Her mother had changed both their names when they’d moved. He’d tried to find them once he broke the brainwashing but they’d disappeared.

  “Are they going to hurt her? I want her name and location.”

  The senator considered that. “I have no idea if they’ll hurt her. They usually leave employees alone, but since she’s yours I expect that she’s in danger. Especially since she has a knack for sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong. Damned journalists. She’s changed her name back to Charlise but added the last name Cole. She should be easy enough to find. Her pretty face has been splashed all over the news lately.”

  He swallowed and it went down like a ball of lead. “She’s a journalist?”

  “Yes, she’s become a sort of PR person for the government. She probably makes things up to cover their misdeeds.”

  “Why are you telling me all this?”

  His eyes narrowed. “Because she’s started searching for you. As a leader in the cyborg project, I’ve been informed and consulted on how to proceed. Apparently she knows who and what her father is. She seems to wonder what happened to the cyborgs, and won’t take the fact that we killed most of them for an answer. She seems to think there’s more to it. She’s right, of course. But if she keeps going forward with her investigation it could get her killed.”

  His mind raced with possibilities. He had to do something to stop her, or get her away from them. Cyrus was right; digging into his past would get her killed.

  Torin glanced at him from the pilot’s seat. “Galen, you have to stop her.”

  He shook his head. “One problem at a time. We need to finish this mission before I start worrying about what my offspring is up to.”

  The senator nodded. “A good plan. When you decide on something, I’ll help implement whatever plan you come up with if it’s a good one.”

  “Why would you help me? You hate us.”

  “But my daughter loves you. There must be something worth loving. She’s a very particular girl. And your daughter is unique as well. I don’t want her hurt. She reminds me a lot of my own child.”

  He took a deep breath and shook his head to clear it. He couldn’t think about this now. They’d get killed if he stopped to worry about her. She was safe for now.

  The ship set down gently and he unstrapped his harness. He stood as the senator did. Cyrus reached into the compartment above his chair and pulled out two collars.

  “Oh, fuck no. We’re not wearing those.”

  “You have to. No cyborg slave would be without one. The guards will immediately know something is wrong if you don’t have them on. They’re turned on, but most every function is inactive. Check for yourself.” He tossed a collar at Torin. “You do still have the ability to control electronics, do you not? You should be able to at least check for the abilities of these. And even if they were fully active, you could disable them.”

  Yes, eventually they could break a collar, but it would take a minimum of two hours. And by then he could have easily betrayed them. And while parts of the collar were inactive now, that was easy enough to fix. They were taking a big risk wearing them, but the senator was right. If they didn’t they’d be discovered at the first checkpoint.

  Torin shook his head. “He’s telling the truth, it’s not active, but … ”

  Galen nodded. “I know. But what choice do we have?”

  Torin paled and his hands shook as he placed the collar around his throat. “I hate you, Galen. We don’t need wrist bands?”

  “No, these are updated versions. Galen’s slaver had an older model. These will work with only the collar.”

  Galen snapped his in place. A sick feeling filled his gut and he wondered if he’d made the mistake that would get him killed.

  But the senator didn’t shout to the guards that they should be arrested. The government officials barely even glanced at them. Odd, considering Galen’s list of crimes was longer than his arm. They must not study their own most wanted list very damned often. A mistake on their part.

  As they passed the first checkpoint, the tension in the senator’s shoulders eased. “I was worried they’d recognize one of you. But then again, your files have been buried for so long everyone assumes you’re dead.”

  Torin snorted. “Yeah, but we’re stealing ships constantly. Can’t believe they wouldn’t make our faces known.”

  The man arched an eyebrow. “Really? We didn’t know who was stealing our ships. We assumed it was pirates.”

  Galen growled. “Torin, you have a big mouth.”

  He shrugged. “I assumed they knew we were stealing them. So did you.”

  Torin had a point. Even pirates weren’t bold enough to take from the government. They’d have to be crazy. He nodded.

  “Time to stop talking now, gentlemen. You’re silent watchdogs. Nothing more.”

  They both straightened to the rigid posture they’d been trained to hold. It was ingrained in them. Something they’d tried hard to forget, but never quite managed. Though, it had been a long time since they’d practiced. Lapsing into chatter and jokes was normal now unless they were in a combat situation.

  They continued to pass manned and unmanned checkpoints without a problem. They’d passed so many that Galen thought his head was going to explode. How many could there possibly be? The government hadn’t been this paranoid about the project when he was in it. Though, since they’d started escaping, the policies had been changed. Still, this was getting ridiculous.

  They stepped out of an elevator and the senator sighed. “That’s it.” He turned right and started walking briskly down the hall.

  “Now, I have a question. Why do they think you’re so devoted that you wouldn’t rescue your own daughter?”

  He glanced over his shoulder but kept moving. “Because I showed no emotion when they took her, only anger and disappointment in her. I’m not proud of it, but it did keep me in the loop. Of course, they still won’t tell me what’s being done to her, and once she’s moved from this facility I’ll have no contact. But for now, she’s in processing, so I’m still allowed to see her. We have hours before that changes, if we aren’t too late.”

  He stopped in front of a door at the very end of the hallway they’d turned down. “This is it. I’m warning you, keep her restrained until we are well on our way out of here, and remove that tracking device as soon as possible.”

  He grabbed Galen’s hand and slapped a memory chip into it. “This has a code that will allow you to scan for every kind of tracking device the government uses. I suggest you use it on anyone who goes on a mission outside of your facility. And definitely use it on her.”

  He pressed his thumb to the panel on the door. There was a small beep and it slid open.

  She was slumped in
a chair in the middle of the room. There was blood on her temples where they’d probably tortured her while trying to brainwash her.

  Galen’s stomach roiled as he stumbled to her. He collapsed next to her, but didn’t dare try to wake her. What if she cried out and tried to get them caught? He silently started undoing the straps that held her to the chair.

  Her father crouched down next to him. “Try not to wake her.”

  “I know,” he ground out through clenched teeth. “We have to get her out of here, so we’re going to have to move her at some point. Maybe we should gag her.”

  Cyrus nodded. “Sounds cruel, but it’s probably a good idea. I don’t know if they sedated her or not. Probably not. She probably passed out.”

  “Think there’s tape anywhere?”

  Torin thumped him on the shoulder and Galen glanced at him to find he had a roll. “What the hell are you doing with tape?”

  “Remember back when I thought I was going to have to knock your ass out and drag you home? Tape is good and portable for that. Nothing works quite like it. Besides, this stuff isn’t supposed to pull off skin. Kidnapper’s Tape is what they call it where I’m from.”

  “Oh, now that’s fucked up. And you think that would actually hold me?”

  His eyes went blank. “Held me once.”

  Galen didn’t ask. All of them had pain, and secrets from the past, and none of them were cool with sharing it. “Glad you have it.”

  He snatched it from him and started winding it around Jamila’s wrists. He slapped a length of tape over her mouth before throwing her over his shoulder. “Now what?”

  Cyrus glared at him. “Now we get out of here.”

  Torin coughed like he was covering a laugh. “And how the hell do we do that? We passed seven checkpoints to get down here.”

  Cyrus marched to the door. “There’s more than one way out. We have a shorter, emergency exit. We’ll have to make it there unseen. Our ship will be waiting.”

  Great. It was a better option than going back the way they came, but they’d have to get there without being caught. No sure thing.

  “Also, as soon as we open the exit silent alarms are going to go off. We’ll have two minutes, maximum, to get out of here before ground troops arrive. Five for aerial pursuit.”

  Galen cursed. “We can’t make it off planet that fast. It’s not possible.”

  “We’re going to have to. I was hoping you and Torin had some sort of flight skill.”

  Torin nodded. “I can do it. We’ll full burn as soon as we lift off. We won’t make it back to the station, but we’ll set the beacon off. Our people will be looking for us, and unless the government knows our frequencies they won’t be able to pick up the beacon.”

  Galen glanced at the senator. “Do they?”

  “Not that I know. But I’m no longer kept completely in the loop. I’m a consultant, and I never dealt in tactics or intelligence even before.”

  “Dammit. Hopefully they don’t have anything, or we’ll be screwed.”

  Torin shrugged. “We have to chance it. I don’t see another way. If we don’t go full burn, we’ll be caught. Our little jumper is faster but they’ll overwhelm us by sheer numbers. It’s dangerous if we don’t leave quickly. If it comes to the worst, then I do have a friend in a very low place that will get us there. For a price. Michael is a pirate, but he’s alright people.”

  Galen snorted. “A rousing endorsement.”

  “Well, I could lie, but that won’t get us anywhere.”

  Galen strode to the door, and peeked out. “All clear. Let’s move.”

  They moved silently this time. The senator took each corner alone to make sure no one was there. They would have to duck into a room if someone was coming.

  “We’re close — one more corridor and we’re free.” He turned the corner and froze.

  “Dr. Boris, it’s good to see you.”

  Fuck. Torin and Galen slipped backwards and Torin pulled on door handles to find an empty room to duck into.

  Jamila groaned and shifted on Galen’s shoulder and he froze. Come on, baby. This is not the time to wake up. Torin waved at him frantically and he dashed for the door the man held open. He silently shut it behind them and leaned against it.

  Galen glanced around the room and spotted a cyborg frozen in a chair, gaping at them.

  “Shit, Torin, are you nuts? There’s someone in here.”

  “We didn’t have a choice. Everything else was locked. I don’t know why this dude’s cell wasn’t.”

  The man growled low in his throat. “Because this isn’t a cell. I’m here by choice.”

  “Dude, you’re strapped to a chair.”

  His eyes narrowed. “It’s to keep me still during the experiments.”

  Galen felt bile rise in his throat. He’d been there before. They needed to get this man out. But they couldn’t risk it. Not when he was well and truly working for them.

  “Someday we’ll get you out.”

  The man’s upper lip curled into a sneer. “I don’t want out. This is where I belong. I’m doing a job I enjoy. The government knows what’s best for its citizens. I’m doing good work and you’re a traitor. You’ll see the light or you’ll be executed. I hope I’m there for that.”

  Torin glared at him. “Can we shut him up?”

  Galen shook his head. “Nope. I remember giving those speeches to the men who rescued me. He’ll spout the government’s good intentions until he loses his voice. What do you think drove my wife away? She said I scared her, but I’m convinced my political speeches made her stark raving mad.”

  Torin chuckled but it was hollow. “We can’t get him out, can we?”

  Galen sighed. “No, but at least we know about this place. We’ll send a team in to liberate it.” His hands trembled with rage. “I hate this shit. They need to leave people alone. Get real recruits for their armies. Something. Anything.”

  The new cyborg shouted. “There are traitors in here. Traitors. Somebody stop them. They’re taking a woman.”

  Jamila jerked on his shoulder and tried to sit up. He shifted her on his shoulder so she fell back down his back. She screamed under the tape and hit his ass with her bound hands.

  “Easy, girl. Come on. It’s Galen, stop screaming. Sit tight and we’ll get out of here.”

  She didn’t pause in her screaming and his heart sank. She was brainwashed. She might not even remember who he was, and even if she did, she’d never believe he was here to help her.

  Torin stepped behind him. “Hey, Jamila, come on. Snap out of it. We’re here to help you.”

  Her struggles and screaming suddenly ceased. Her hands balled in the back of his shirt and instead of hitting him, a muffled noise that sounded like it could be his name came from her.

  He ran his hand up the back of her thigh. “Relax. We’re getting you out of here. We have to keep you tied. We don’t know if you’re — ”

  His voice broke and he couldn’t finish his sentence. But she didn’t try to pound his back again, and the screaming ceased.

  The senator poked his head in and the cyborg started shouting again. They quickly rushed out of the room and shut the doors.

  “Let’s get out of here. Now. Everyone on this planet probably heard that bastard shouting.”

  The whoop of an alarm made everyone jump.

  “Fuck. Run.”

  They made a mad dash for the door at the end of the hall, following the senator’s lead.

  He pressed his thumb to the exit’s key panel and there was a loud buzz. The light above the door flashed red and it didn’t open.

  “Shit. The facility is in lockdown.”

  Galen glanced at Torin. “Try to kick it down, while I go in through the computer system.”

  Tori
n immediately lifted his foot and pounded it against the door. Galen closed his eyes and started hacking the system. Their safe guards were up. He had to watch his back. Once they’d determined that cyborgs could hack their computer systems, they’d started adding special viruses when safety systems went off. Viruses that could kill a cyborg by shutting down the computer that controlled his brain. Boom, dead. It wasn’t a way Galen wanted to go. And that was if they wanted you dead. He’d seen one man hacked and go right back to the government. All the deprogramming wasted. Galen was the superior hacker, which was why he’d asked Torin to take on the door.

  He found the switch for the door and tripped the locks. It burst off its hinges as Torin kicked it one last time.

  They rushed onto the ground and ran headlong for the waiting shuttle. The wiz of stun guns being discharged filled the air. Jamila curled tighter onto his back, and screamed. Torin dropped like a stone in front of him.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Galen snatched Torin’s hand and dragged him the rest of the way to the ship, and up the ramp. His foot caught the edge and he fell the rest of the way, yanking Torin with him. Jamila squeaked as he came down hard on her legs. She managed to stay sitting and not whack her head on the floor. Cyrus sank into the pilot’s seat.

  Galen took a deep breath and shouted. “Computer, close the doors and lift off. Now. Don’t wait for the doors to close fully.”

  “Unadvisable.”

  “Do it, you piece of shit.”

  “Affirmative.”

  “Damned straight.”

  Bitingly cold air whirled around them as the ship shoved itself at full speed into the air. The gears closing the door screamed in protest, but kept moving. The ramp slammed closed and he breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Computer, full burn. Head for the following coordinates.” He kept the coordinates to himself as he transmitted them directly to the ship.

  He gripped Jamila and Torin tight as they jolted forward.

  When the pressure lifted the senator sighed and turned in his chair. “That was close.”