sex bots 04 - one night steined (7 page)

“You’re going to hurt yourself,” he called after her.

“Yeah, yeah.” She turned around to back out a door.

He followed behind. “So, what’s it like?” Frank spent so little time around Kuri lately it occurred to him he hadn’t asked her about her
glitch
. Sure, he’d done an intake years and years ago. But since then, he’d only paid attention to whether she was malfunctioning, not to the details of her experience.

“What’s what like?” Her steps got a little stiffer. Kuri’s shift to nervousness made it clear she knew what he was talking about. She put down her box.

“When you, y’know, lose it? Is there an aura? Like with a migraine? Any consistent triggers?” Frank knew he’d slipped back into clinician mode, but he didn’t know how else to ask what he wanted to know. He tried again, speaking more softly. “What’s it feel like?”

Kuri stopped, just inside the final door that led outside. It was dark and quiet in the little hallway. Perfect for telling secrets. “I can feel when it’s going to happen.”

Frank wanted to ask more—whether she could head it off, a thousand questions. But he held his breath.

“First I see blips of code. They pop into my head—not like when I’m searching for it.”

He nodded. Every stein could call up their code at will. But only those being controlled remotely had data stream into their brains. “So it happens even when you’re alone?”

Kuri raised a shoulder in half-agreement. “Yeah. Weird, right? I get blips all the time, though more when I’m tired.” She sighed. “Or upset.”

Frank felt like an ass. He wondered how many times one of their fights had worn Kuri down enough to set off her malfunction. “So, after the aura, what happens?”

She rolled her eyes. “You know.” An outside door opened and voices carried down the hall. It sounded like a football team storming into the tunnel.

Shani was shouting as she talked to Ben and Kee. “And then the asshole asks me, ‘Did anyone stand on it?’ and I’m all, ‘of course someone stood on it. It’s a damn ottoman.’ But the effin’ store wouldn’t refund me my money.”

Frank smiled at the sound of Shani’s voice. He tried to catch Kuri’s eye, but she picked up her box and lifted—blocking her eyes from his sight.

Chapter Five

Kuri stared out the window as Frank drove the moving van over the bridge and along the wide, industrial streets toward the warehouse. Squat craftsman houses dotted the edges of the landscape. Lights from their porches battled the darkness. They crossed into the Scandinavian neighborhood of Ballard and Kuri peered down from the highway to the rusty fishing boats and docked trawlers.

“You still with me?” Frank touched her hand. He’d inquired about her mental status every fifteen minutes all day, but since evening fell Frank had upped his rate of questioning to once every ninety seconds.

She rolled her eyes. “Yes, Frank. I told you I’d let you know when it hit again.” Kuri shifted in her seat so she could look him square in the eye—or square on the side of the head, since he was driving. “I do get some warning, usually.”

He darted a glance her direction. His expression looked momentarily angry, but then he gripped the wheel harder and his face relaxed. It was as if he’d diverted his frustration from his head to his hands. “When you feel it coming on, could you go somewhere? Lock yourself in a room or something?”

Kuri didn’t miss the edge of disbelief to his voice, and she answered by snapping, “Duh, I never thought of that. You’re a genius. Now you’ve solved all my problems. What’s next, Dr. King? Curing cancer?”

Frank scowled at her, but the edge of his lip lifted as if he were trying not to laugh. “I was only trying to help.”

She scooted back in the seat, crossing her legs underneath her. “I tried it. Of course I did. But if I can manage to lock a door while aware, I can just as well unlock it while
glitching.
” Kuri bit her lip to stop herself from elaborating. She hated that her alter ego was so smart. It was like being at war with an equally matched opponent.

“You like seafood, right?”

Kuri blinked at Frank’s sudden change of topic. They drove along Salmon Bay, where docks and marinas alternated with waterfront restaurants. Steins needed the high mineral content in organ meats to run their internal batteries, so mostly they ate brains and offal. However, with the heavy metal load in the ocean, steins could get quite a few of their required nutrients from fish. She smiled at the idea of seeing Frank in his dress shirt and pants again, ordering off the menu like a real date. “Okay.”

Frank’s lip curled up into something like a smile, but he turned his face away so fast Kuri couldn’t be sure it happened.

“We need to change first.” Kuri furtively sniffed at her armpit. Her cotton sweatshirt smelled like sweat and dust. Frank had changed into a t-shirt and loose hemp drawstring pants for hauling boxes. His clothes were smeared with dirt and oil from when he’d taken apart some of the desks.

“Sure thing. I brought some clothes.” Frank patted a duffel bag set on the floor of the front seat’s divider.

“Let me guess, you brought some for me too?” Kuri sneered at the bag on the floor. It was so typical of Frank to do something like that—demand she leave her house in clothes she’d practically slept in and then take it upon himself to get her toothbrush, pajamas and stuff from Shani or Barb later in the day. Kuri ran her hands through her hair, tugging to dull the frustration. Frank was such a control freak he might have gone out to buy her new clothes while she was distracted. Some girls might have found his actions sweet, but Kuri found them suffocating.

“Well, yeah. I figured you wouldn’t mind.” Frank pulled past a chain link fence and into a lot down the street from the warehouse. Empty boat trailers and older-model vans filled the gravel pad. A dim light shone from inside a rusted truck with a cab trailer.

Kuri wondered whether the occupant was a squatter or someone in charge of managing the adjacent hangars. “Are you sure we can leave the truck here tonight?” She waited until Frank had opened his door and descended the truck to follow.

The chain-link gate whirred closed. Frank stepped around to Kuri’s side. “Yeah. Q-ter paid off the attendant.” Frank bent to open his duffel bag and dug out a sweatshirt. He pulled it on and lifted the hood over his head.

“Okay.” Kuri accepted the hand he offered and let him lead her across the weed-strewn gravel. When they passed the lit cab-over-trailer, the curtain rustled and a male face peeked out from within. Kuri shivered. It was dark and she had been
glitching
like crazy lately. But Frank squeezed her hands, warm and comforting.

He stepped around Kuri so that the camper’s occupant saw Frank more than her. Frank waved to the man—a quick lift of his hand and a possessive grip around Kuri’s waist telling the guy in no uncertain terms that Kuri was with Frank.

When they’d passed the camper, Frank didn’t take his hand off Kuri’s hip, and she was surprised to find that she didn’t mind his touch. Between the dark and the unfamiliar setting, Kuri’s nerves strung tight. But being with Frank made her feel safe.

“I booked us at a hotel.” Frank drew open a hole in the chain link and urged Kuri through. “I didn’t think you’d want to sleep in the back of the truck.”

All around, hangars and warehouses shielded them from the rushing sound of the street beyond. It wasn’t busy that late at night, but the intermittent cars created a
swish…swish…swish…
like the ocean.

“We’ll go in together, but do you mind checking us in?” Frank kicked a rock with his foot as they walked.

“I don’t mind covering check-in.” Kuri stroked her thumb over his palm, letting him know she appreciated his attempts at romance. Between going to a restaurant and staying in a hotel, he was taking a big risk being out in public. Kuri thought Frank was handsome—with his imposing body and rugged looks—but he was very scarred to be human. Then there was the issue of his hands.

“It’s up that way.” Frank nodded to the right and across the street, to where the lights were brighter and more copious. “The hotel’s next to a fish house.”

“Great.” Kuri found herself easing closer to him. He felt warm against the night chill. They walked on the sidewalk and every time a car passed, Kuri flinched a little. So often when she walked alone at night, guys hooted out the windows or honked. In a part of town with warehouses and empty lots, she was a sitting duck.

When they neared the section where awnings blinked and signs lit the sky, Frank reached into an outer pocket of the bag. He drew out a pair of thin leather gloves and slipped them on. Then he hoisted the duffel onto his shoulder.

She frowned at the loss of contact with his skin. Though now that Kuri thought about it, his arms were grafted, so it wasn’t really
his
skin. “Do they feel the same as the rest of you?”

Frank peered down at where they held hands. “Yeah, mostly. I tested them back when I first escaped. The pale one’s less sensitive and less coordinated than the dark one, but it’s on my right side so that’s understandable. He held up their joined palms and grinned. “I’m left handed.”

Kuri chuffed a little laugh. “Yeah, but did your hand decide or your brain?”

He picked up their pace as they neared the motel’s entrance. “Oh, I’m sure it’s my brain.” He plowed toward the door, head slightly lowered.

She felt his pulse hammer even through the fabric of his glove. “Shh…” Kuri rubbed his arm. “I’ll take care of it.” Kuri ran her a hand along the side of Frank’s face. Stubble covered the lower part of his jaw, and scarring ran from his ear to his cheek. In all the time she’d known Frank, he’d always taken care of her—even when she’d hated him for it. Tonight, she realized, she had the opportunity to take care of him instead.

“People are staring.” Frank pressed her hand away.

Kuri was sure she’d never seen him scared before. “They’re staring because they’re wondering what kind of sexual dynamo you must be to get a chick as hot as me.” She stepped past Frank to push open the glass door to the small motel. A mid-price place, the hotel had a lobby stocked with free coffee with stained sugar packets and a jumbo-sized cylinder of non-dairy creamer. The waiting room consisted of four chairs on a drab carpet and a raised counter with a bell. She didn’t need to ring it, though, because a bored-looking teenager in a tan-and-red uniform stood waiting.

Fixing her most human-looking smile to her face, Kuri walked up to the counter, pulling out her fake ID.

* * * * *

Kuri met Frank’s eyes over the top of her glass of wine. It was sweet and red and tasted delicious coupled with the liver she’d ordered for dinner. Liquid heat poured through her when she saw Frank watching. She licked some of the greasy richness off her lips.

He shifted in his seat, maybe getting more comfortable, possibly adjusting himself under the table. She buried her face in her wine to hide her blush.

“Do you want dessert?” Frank asked gruffly. He scrubbed a hand over his lips.

“No thanks.” Kuri set down her fork. She peered around the room’s dancing candlelight and flowers in vases, wishing the date didn’t have to end.

The thought must have shown on her face, because Frank cocked his head to the side and told her, “Y’know, I can take you out whenever you like.” He lowered his voice. “I can’t afford places like this all the time. But sometimes… You only have to ask.”

Kuri shrugged. She couldn’t imagine ever asking Frank to take her out. That would extend their relationship well past one night. “I thought this was an experiment.” Curious, she searched his eyes, waiting for an answer.

“Well…” He shoved a hand through his hair and leaned back in his seat as if he were trying to get away. “I told you I care about you. Have for a long time.” Frank wiped his lips with a napkin, as if he was cleaning the damning words from his mouth.

“Oh.” She sat, dumfounded. The way he’d said it, Kuri could have interpreted his caring as affection between friends. However, she knew he meant more. As in, Frank
liked
her. Maybe even loved her. She couldn’t seem to look at him.

Similarly, Frank studied the ornate wallpaper. Anything to distract from those words that hung heavy in the air, unwilling to be unsaid. “We should get the check.” Frank lifted his hand for the waitress.

“Yeah, I’m really tired.” Kuri made a show of yawning into her hand.

Even with all the times Frank had her on the operating table, she’d never felt as under the microscope. Hyperaware, Kuri wondered if she was leaning too far forward or if her jeans were too tight. Things were simpler when strange men in strange cars wanted her—then it wasn’t her fault. Now she wondered if subconsciously she’d been flirting with Frank, and whether indeed, she’d brought his attention on herself.

“Ready?” Frank stood and held out his gloved hand. He didn’t look any different than before his proclamation. He wasn’t leering. If anything, his expression was kind.

“Sure.” Kuri clasped hands with his. Her mind struggled to catch up with the new information. But he didn’t seem to need an answer, and as they exited the restaurant and walked down the night-dark street to the hotel, he didn’t grope or say anything off-color.

When they reached their motel room, he pulled out the room key and started opening the door. Her nerves kicked into a frenzy and she wanted to run as far and as fast as she could. Preferably to another state. “So. We gonna have sex now? You think I’ll remember it this time?” She tossed her head back, trying to urge the grayness. God, she wanted to black out now. Kuri knew she’d forget in the end—she always did. But she didn’t want to remember the beginning either.

Frank pressed a hand to the small of her back. “No. We’re not going to have sex.” He followed her inside and then shifted her around to face him. “At least, I’m not.” Red crept up his cheeks. “If you normally… I mean, if at night you need to… Well, I can wait in the bathroom ’til you’re done with whatever you need to do.”

Kuri stared at him for a full minute, trying to figure out what he was talking about. Then the thought of masturbation occurred to her in a bright and blinding flash of awareness. She screwed her face up in a look of utter disbelief. “Ew. No.” Kuri stalked as far away as she could in the tiny room. In this case, it was only to the other side of the bed. “Do you think that’s why I
glitch
? Because I’m uncontrollably horny?”