Marcus 582: Book Three of Cyborgs: Mankind Redefined by Donna McDonald Read Free Book Online

saved her from a humiliating body search. That heroic deed was at least worth a pizza, a few beers, and a decent thank you.
     
    She relaxed under his stroking hand and met his blue gray gaze. It was kind and friendly and caring.
     
    “Yes…or…some…thing…comes…with…din…ner.”
     
    Rachel felt a thousand butterflies take flight inside her stomach when Marcus smiled and followed her inside.
     

Chapter 4
     
    Seetha grinned as she watched another fine ass strutting its way out her lab door. She appreciated each cyborg patient’s fine form and considered her visual enjoyment to be one of the perks of her job.
     
    Their second cyborg patient that morning had come in on crutches, but left walking on his two legs like normal. Grateful to be repaired, he’d hugged her and winked at a distracted Rachel. Her assistant hadn’t even noticed the man’s admiring glances.
     
    The moment the lab door sealed out the people in the hallway, Rachel turned to her, eyes full of desperation.
     
    “Fix…me. Don’t…care…about…pain.”
     
    Seetha sighed, but nodded. “Okay. I can try to tweak it again, but we need to find out why the adjustments aren’t holding and fix that. You know this by now, right?”
     
    She picked up the scanner and laid the tip against Rachel’s resonance implant to get a reading. As the information started being captured, she snorted and gave her assistant a stern look.
     
    “See? These readings are exactly what I’m talking about—the resonance settings are staying the same. It’s your organics that keep changing. If I didn’t know it was impossible, I would swear your vocal chords are rebelling against the resonance implant.”
     
    After the scan finished, Seetha read through the data. Sighing heavier, she calibrated new settings into the device.
     
    “I’m going to adjust for the flux of change you’ve been experiencing. Your vocal tone might be pitched a little higher than your norm, but the calibration should last a bit longer. Of course, I’m basing the adjustment on your history of decline, which is more guesswork than scientific.”
     
    “Just…do…it,” Rachel ordered.
     
    Seetha held the Forensic Calibrator up in the air. She ought to let Kyra be the messenger of doom, but damn it—she was the one working with Rachel every day. She couldn’t stand keeping the real solution a secret. To her way of thinking, nothing was gained from sparing people’s feelings.
     
    “Rachel…there’s a permanent way to fix this. It sucks, but it’s the only thing that’s really going to help.” Seetha sighed heavily when Rachel stepped away. “No…now come back here…and stop shaking your head. I’m not the one who found it, but I happen to agree with the solution. I’ve been studying your file since I came to work here. The reason your resonance implant tweaks aren’t holding is because your processor is a prototype that keeps failing to hold the settings. You need a better processor installed. Kyra’s been too chicken-shit to tell you it’s the only way to fix your problems.”
     
    Seetha held her breath as Rachel stepped within range again and closed her eyes.
     
    “Not…that…can’t…please…just…fix…me.”
     
    Swearing, Seetha reluctantly touched the calibration tool to the port on the device. Tears gathered in Rachel’s eyes, but never fell. “Almost there, honey. Hold still just a little longer. There it is. All over.”
     
    She grabbed Rachel’s arm when it finished. The girl was weaving from the excruciating pain of the chords being re-stretched.
     
    “Now speak to me,” Seetha ordered.
     
    Rachel opened her mouth. Nothing came out.
     
    “ Oh shit ,” Seetha exclaimed, assuming the worst.
     
    Rachel put her hand on Seetha’s chest as she shook her head. “No. Wait. It worked. It just…hurts bad. Damn…tingles.”
     
    Seetha let out the breath she’d been holding. “Okay. That’s a relief. You can let go of my boob