BioCybe (16 page)

“Triggers? What do you mean?”

“When they did the initial enhancements, they weren’t as
knowledgeable when inserting the circuitry and chips into the brain. His
records show that they damaged some receptors in the section where memories
are—”

“They damaged his brain?”

“Yes. Unless…” The furrow between her brows returned.

“What?”

“Well, the Dendarans have had him for quite a few years.
It’s hard to know exactly what they’ve done, apart from run their own
experiments. I’ve got some contacts I can follow up… But they would have had to
reconfigure his chips, which meant getting inside his head. Literally as well
as figuratively.”

“Damn it all! So if they have expertise in this area… Levia,
if they have, then he knows about you.”

The server came in their direction, weaving her way through
the patrons. “Morning! It’s such a lovely day. What can I get for you?” She
peered closer at Levia. “Do I know you?”

The one side of Levia’s face blanched. “I…”

His muscles tensed. Was this woman some kind of threat to
Levia? He read her badge, Elda Endrado.
Someone from her family?

“Levia?” When he said her name, the young woman in front of
them frowned and peered closer.

“Your name is Levia? That was my sister’s name. She’s passed
now…”

Levia’s eyes were wide with shock, and her mouth trembled.
Panic and fear rolled off her in waves while his gut lurched. What could he do
to ease her pain?

“I…” Then she was up, pushing away from the table as tears
spilled down her cheeks. “I… I need to be somewhere.”

* * * *

Sandon found Levia in their room, smears of her theatrical
makeup on her hands while she hunched at the end of the bed. “Why now? When I’m
finally starting to get some peace. It’s… It’s not fair.”

Her broken words jabbed at him like sharp splinters of
glass, cutting through him.

“I didn’t…” He’d never before felt so helpless.

She looked like a broken doll, her shoulders heaving, and
the sounds that erupted from her throat, no matter how hard she tried to
contain them, shredded his mind.

Everything he touched—everything he did for her, ended in
ashes. Immaterial of how well intentioned his actions were.
This is the
biggest mess up of my life!

“Levia?”

“I need some time alone, Sandon. Please.”

He nodded. Whatever they’d had was gone. She was pushing him
away, as if she didn’t feel the connection between them. He couldn’t blame her
though. Once more, he’d made the mistake of thinking he knew best and it ended
in a tangle. Sandon didn’t know how to fix it.

He didn’t know if there could ever be some kind of fix that
would make this better. How could it? She’d just come face-to-face with her
sister who thought she was dead.

Instead of waiting and hoping she’d turn to him, he
shrugged, hoping to rein in the shattering of his heart. “Sure. I’ll go for a
walk.”

He felt like an old man, broken and battered, as he let
himself out of the room. The woman he loved didn’t need him. She’d turned away,
and that gutted him.

Brooding wouldn’t help, but her sense of disquiet grew.
Where was Sandon? His prolonged absence didn’t make sense. Levia had needed
time to deal with the revelation that she’d come face-to-face with her half-sister,
but now she needed him. His presence centered her.

She’d had to escape before Elda realized who she was and
showed horror. She also had to work out how to explain to Sandon that it wasn’t
him she was denying, but herself. The pain on his face, when he’d left, was
seared into her brain.

Levia was sure he didn’t realize she knew how she’d wounded
him. But after the revelations of her father and seeing Elda… “How can I trust
myself not to hurt him?”

Rocking on the floor, the truths pounded into her brain. She
trusted him on every level.
Without question.

Once again, Levia gazed at the door, hopeful he’d enter
through it while she watched. “Where are you, Sandon?”

She rose and paced the floor. Step, step, step, turn and
repeat. The rhythm in her head beat its own time.

When the thudding came at the door, she hurried over, sure
it was Sandon, but when she flung it open, it wasn’t. Yet another shock rattled
her.

Standing on the other side of the door was someone she hadn’t
seen in many long, lonely years.

“My daughter, Elda, said you looked like my oldest girl.”
The woman was gray-haired and so much older! Withered, as if grief had stolen
the vital ingredient of her soul. “She was taken from me…” Her mother shook
like a leaf, and Levia wanted to enfold her in her arms.

Where was Sandon? She needed him now. “I…”

From the corner of her eye, she saw Sandon making his way in
her direction. Indecision warred,
my mother is here
, so close, but Levia
needed him.

If Sandon looked at her, would he see her? He wasn’t looking
in her direction right now, instead, he’d stopped, hands clenched and eyes
closed. Would he leave again? A split second of indecision could cost her a
lifetime she’d never regain, her mind told her. She needed to tell him that he
was important to her, and she wanted him to share this journey with her.

“I need a minute. Please, stay.” She brushed past her
mother, sure her mother still wasn’t aware of who she was, and hurried down the
hall, just as Sandon caught sight of her. He looked like he was about to bolt
again. The stiffness in his shoulders and the tension on his face clawed at
her. “Wait! Sandon, please, don’t go!”

She could read the pain in his soulful brown eyes.

“You have a visitor.” His voice sounded dull, and she knew he’d
been about to leave.

“Don’t leave me again, Sandon.” Her voice shook under the
onslaught of her roaring emotions. She stretched out a hand, and noticed that
it shook. “Please, come with me. Meet her. It’s… She’s my mother.” Even as he
shook his head, she grasped his hand. “Please. I want to share this with you.”

“You don’t need me. You’re strong and capable. You go, I’ll
wait.”

His words stopped her dead. “What do you mean? Sandon?”

“Look, I’m just in your way. It’s taken me a while to work
it out, but you don’t need me—”

“Not need you?” Understanding flooded and warmth filtered
through her, driving away the chill she hadn’t even recognized.

“But I do, Sandon. I need you by my side. You’re… You’re the
other half I didn’t know I was looking for. I—” God, she was nearly
hyperventilating! Her brain frying under the onslaught of emotions, and no
matter how hard she tried to deny them, they had grown into love. “Damn it,
Sandon, I love you. I’ve learned from all the stupid things I’ve ever done in
my life that sometimes you have to take a chance. I’ll take any chance to be
with you, because I don’t want to lose you. I didn’t understand how I hurt you
when I turned away at first. It wasn’t because I didn’t want you, it was
because I was scared.”

He tugged back, as if trying to release himself from her
grip. “What?” His gaze burned through her, seeking the truth. “Don’t play with
me.”

“I’m not. See? I don’t even know how to tell you I love you.
I’m so fucked up that I can’t even get that right.” She locked her muscles,
sure he was about to leave her, while she tried to make up for her foolish
self-absorption. “Let me say this once, in a clear and concise manner. I. Love.
You.”

“You mean it?” He continued to gaze at her and she reached
out, her hand shaking as she cupped his cheek.

“Yeah, I mean it. For whatever good it’s going to do you.
You’re really my other half. Without you, I’m… I’m incomplete.”

He sealed her words with a kiss.

* * * *

Watching Levia heading back up the hall, where the woman
stood, Sandon was struck at how similar they looked. Once Levia had spoken the
words,
she’s my mother
, there was no doubt.

“Would you like to come in?” Levia’s words may have wobbled
a little, but the spine he’d admired in her was slowly creeping back. For the
first time, he noted she’d also replaced her makeup, covering the glowing
green. She called it her mask of humanity, and he frowned at the thought.

“I shouldn’t have come really. I mean…” The woman, Levia’s
mother, shook her head and clearly felt uncomfortable.

“It’s not a problem. Please, come in and join us.” Sandon
held the door open.

At the end of the bed, Levia stopped and for a moment Sandon
glimpsed the girl she’d been, before the enhancements, before the war impinged,
and it entranced him.

They ushered her mother in the room, and Sandon set about
making the woman a cool drink while Levia fussed with the collar of her suit.

“I’m so sorry. I really shouldn’t have interrupted you, but
when Elda, my daughter, said she’d seen someone who reminded her of my oldest
daughter... I had to come find out more.”

Levia smiled, the corners of her lips lifting in a wobbling
uptick. “Well, I guess that makes sense.”

“So tell me. Do you have family nearby? Maybe we are
distantly related. My daughter, Levia, would have been about your age. She died
in an accident on her way back from testing.”

“About that, see… The funeral…”

“Oh, the accident was bad. They didn’t let us view the body,
just the casket.” Levia’s mother dabbed at her eyes, wiping away the mist of
tears.

Sandon realized with a start that this was the same song and
dance used to hide the truth of Levia’s father’s death too.

“But how did they know it was your daughter?” Levia rubbed
the knee of her bodysuit, and even though he wanted to roll his eyes and push
them on to a reconciliation, he didn’t. It wasn’t his place to push them
closer, to start the conversation. So he sat back, his own cold drink in hand
and sipped.

“The state took care of it all. They said there was a duty
of care, and as she’d been… Well, they arranged for the checking of her
credentials. It was terrible though, as I’d already lost her father in a
similar accident.”

“Your daughter would have been twenty-seven, wouldn’t she?”
Levia used hushed tones, and her mother nodded.

“Uh, Levia?”

Her mother’s head snapped up. “You’re named Levia too?”

Levia shot him a look filled with an angry emotion, but he
shrugged. He was prepared to wait, but it didn’t help to fill in some of the
gaps early on.

“Yes. But you see, when Levia died, there was a lot more to
the story. Do you know anything about the BioCybe program?” Levia leaned in. “When
the testing takes place, they stream the students into the pathways most suitable
to the person’s skillset.”

The nod of understanding this time was slower, as if her
mother was unsure or concerned of what would come next. “Uh, yes. But what does
this have to do with the BioCybe project? I don’t know anyone involved… Oh no!
She was killed by a BioCybe?” Levia’s mother clasped a shaking hand to her
mouth.

“No! Levia became a BioCybe.”

He held his breath and waited as her mother’s eyes rounded
like saucers. “No! My daughter is dead. How can you say something like that?
What kind of an unfeeling creature are you?” She pushed out of her chair and
stumbled in the direction of the door.

“Wait, Levia’s telling the truth. Look at her face, and tell
me you don’t see your own daughter.”

A gray-green tinge settled on her ashen face. “No. Levia’s
dead.” The wisps of gray hair floated around her face as her body shook. “She’s
dead.”

Sandon could see that she was clinging to that information
like a raft in wild seas. Her life was being turned upside down and anything,
even the worst knowledge of the death of her child, claimed the status of
normalcy right now. The pressure surrounding his heart like a tight band
squeezed.

Levia sucked in an unsteady breath, her body tensing before
his gaze.

“Levia’s not dead. She didn’t die that day or on any since
then. She was taken into the BioCybe program. This is Levia standing right
here.” He pointed to Levia, who watched him, her face pinched and white. Again,
the band squeezed a little harder, but he plowed on, understanding that until
the words were said, she’d skirt around the truth. And the truth needed to be
aired. “This is your daughter.”

“No.” Levia’s mother paced. “It’s not true. They told me…”

“They lied, Mama. After the testing, I was sent to Kefla and
they…” She gulped and the sound together with the incoherent moans battered at
him. His senses were wound so tight, he was sure they’d explode.

Action. He had to do something to cut through the tension
practically strangling him.

“It’s true. We have the records. Let me show you.” He
reached for the woman and steadied her as they made their way toward the
desktop computer system. It hummed and he opened the file, showing the photos
of Levia on the day of her testing, then after each enhancement. Her mother
quivered.

“Why? Why did they do this?”

No one answered her question. There wasn’t one to be had.

* * * *

Lying on her back after another energetic session of
lovemaking, Levia’s mind swirled, thinking about what was to come. She’d need
to use her neural net tomorrow, download the updates and maybe even some of the
information she’d gleaned into her personal communications system. And after
this brief time away, how would Sandon react?

The blur of thoughts confused her, so instead Levia welcomed
his presence.

“So what do we do next?” The sound of his voice washed over
her.

She blinked, then turned just enough to see the profile of
his face haloed by moonlight. “We need to get back to the
Echo
. If he
comes…”

“I wasn’t thinking that, just yet. I meant us. Your family
and this whole mess.”

She drew back. “We’re a mess?” She giggled.

He groaned and twined his fingers around hers. “You’re
deliberately misunderstanding me. I meant the mess created by the government.
The minute your mother starts telling anyone that you are still alive…” Sandon
shrugged, but she knew exactly what he meant.

“She’s terrible at keeping secrets, Sandon. She won’t be
able to help herself.” Levia sighed. “I was released from duty, and our current
mission is an…an aberration. They won’t give a care what happens to me after my
tour.”

She’d done her duty to the commonwealth, but it was a
nameless, faceless, and emotionless entity. They used whatever resources were
available to them during the war, but when it was over, her usefulness had come
to an end.

“So?” His quietly spoken word startled her.

“What do you want to do? I mean, I don’t really…” Levia
stopped speaking as Sandon stretched a hand toward her and touched her lips.

“I want to be with you. I want to build a life with you on
the
Golden Echo
.”

“Ohhh…” Shock ricocheted. Since enhancement, she’d never
considered where her future would lead. Finding love seemed something that was
little more than a strangled dream, lying in ashes. Forever? She’d denied
herself any thoughts of that kind of future. “I…” Could she accept what he
offered? A new kind of hunger filled her, piercing the darkness that had
invaded her soul so long ago. “I want that more than anything.” It was true,
now she wanted to reach out and snatch it away from the fates that would deny
her everything.

“Good. When this is done then. You’ll stay with me.”

“Yes.”

The silence changed. Deepened. “How are we going to hunt
down Ordan Mayerber?’

Levia worried her lips with her teeth, aware that this very
question had been gnawing at her consciousness all night. “It won’t be
we
.
It’ll be
me
.”

He moved, a jerk and a twist. “You aren’t facing him alone.”

Anger shot through her. “Don’t you think—”

“It’s got nothing to do with whether or not I think you’re
capable. You’re the woman I love. I will protect you.”

The anger melted. How could she possibly hold onto it in the
light of his words? The emotional response left her weak. Squeezing her eyes
shut, she concentrated on what she had to say. “But you can’t protect me. I’m
not even sure I can protect you. The only thing I know for certain is I won’t
risk you, Sandon. You’re too important to me.”

“Ditto.”

“What?” She glanced in his direction, not sure what he was
trying to say.

“Ditto. You’re too important to me to just let you head off
to fight an assassin who will likely…” He ran a shaking hand through his hair.
“I will be there. Anything you tell me to do, I’ll do. But you won’t be alone.”

“Oh, Sandon.” How could she tell him that her concentration
would be split? That she’d be so busy hoping to protect him, that Ordan might
get the jump on her? “Please, don’t ask this of me.”

He hissed and she slumped against the sheets.

“I’m a man, Levia. It’s what we do. Protect the women who
mean everything to us.”