Mechanical by Pauline C. Harris Read Free Book Online

waste time on something so
trivial. Just then, the phone rang. “Excuse me,” the lady said and
walked a few feet away to answer it. “Yes, we have rooms
available,” she said in a singsong voice.
    I watched as she gestured with her hands and
started to lean more towards the phone, turning her back to me. I
looked swiftly around and then took my opportunity, leaning as far
over the counter as I could to catch a glimpse of the computer
screen. I saw Marian Jacobson at the top of the screen and looked
lower, searching for her room number.
    “Hey!” the lady snapped. She hung up and
rushed towards me. I backed away, but not before memorizing room
number 347. She glared at me and pointed toward the door, her eyes
cold and unforgiving.
    I didn’t say a word, simply headed for the
exit. I stood outside, watching parties of three and four enter the
building, but waited for a larger group. Leaning back against the
wall, I bided my time.
    Finally, a group of six headed towards the
door. I moved quickly and became part of their cluster. As we
walked into the lobby, I was relieved to see the lady at the
counter preoccupied with a family.
    In the elevator, I pushed the button for
level three. The elevator whizzed to life, passing floors and
flashing lights. Once the doors opened, I stepped out. I started
skimming the room numbers as I walked down the hallway until I
finally came to room 347. I knocked firmly on the door and waited.
When no answer came, I tried again, but as before, no one answered.
I grabbed the handle of the locked door and confidently turned it
until I felt the metal snap between my fingers like dried clay. I
shoved against the door until it reluctantly cracked open.
    Inside, the room was dark. I heard the TV
blaring in the other room, sending lights flashing along the wall.
I made my way around the corner and saw a dark-haired girl lying on
the bed, watching the TV. She turned to look at me as I entered.
Shock registered on her face and she gasped, springing off the
bed.
    “Don’t take me back,” she pleaded, her eyes
filled with fear. I studied her. Physically, she looked like one of
us, but she was behaving oddly. Strong emotions like shock and
dread were never exhibited among us, and we definitely never
begged. We were far above that.
    I started to walk towards her slowly and
noticed she limped as she edged backwards. “It’s okay,” I said,
“you’re going to be fine.” But my words sounded hollow, even to my
own ears, and she just looked that much more frightened.
    “What are you going to do?” she asked, her
voice quivering.
    “I’m going to take you back to the
Institution,” I answered, thinking that telling her the truth could
do no harm since I was blocking the only door.
    She shook her head violently. “No. You don’t
understand. What they’re doing is wrong. You can’t do this.”
Desperation clung to her voice.
    I moved closer to her now and she started to
panic. Her terrified expression surprised me and caused me unease.
What could make an android so afraid? Certainly not the
creators?
    She suddenly turned. My mind raced, and
before she had even made a move, I knew what she was going to do.
She ran towards the balcony, her limp making her gait uneven and
awkward, the one place I hadn’t thought of.
    “No!” I breathed, wondering why I hadn’t
noticed it before. Why had I failed to assess the situation fully?
Why hadn’t I realized the full potential of this threat? I rushed
after her as she scrambled out onto the balcony and reached for her
arm, but she was too fast. She jumped and threw herself over the
edge.
    Instantly, I reached over the railing and
grabbed her arm, hearing her cry out. The force of her weight
coming to a stop yanked me forward and my grip slid to her wrist as
my other hand braced myself against the railing.
    “No!” she nearly screamed, trying to claw at
my hand. Her thrashing started to loosen my grasp. She was slowly
slipping away. I grabbed her other