Tempted Cyborg (2 page)

He snorted again. “Safety my ass. You only do it because it will give you fewer problems.”

“Think what you want.”

“I want to eat in my room,” he demanded. “I don't want to sit here and wait.”

“You won't have to.”

Suspicious filled his gaze. “What are you talking about?”

“You are going to meet someone.”

Jade grinned and left the room.

CHAPTER 2

Avril saw confusion in Hunter's beautiful eyes through the one-way window as Jade left the interrogation room. Seconds later, Jade entered the room she was in and Avril tensed. The time had come for her to finally come face to face with Hunter.

Jade smiled at her. “Are you ready?”

Avril clenched her fists. “No.”

“Everything will be all right, and if something goes wrong, the cyborgs will be by your side within seconds.” She nodded toward the two male cyborgs who stood inside the room.

They were both much taller than a human man could ever become. Their bodies were muscular and intimidating. Their gazes were serious and Avril couldn't help but wonder if they ever smiled. She knew they were cyborg soldiers, specially designed to protect the people who worked for MedAct. She had no idea how many they were, but she knew that each one of them was bound to a doctor or other personnel.

Avril looked through the one-way window again and studied Hunter. He looked tense with his gaze fixed on the door. She had no idea who he expected to walk through it, but his clenched expression told her that he probably expected his worst nightmare.

“I have faith in you, Avril,” Jade said. “If anyone can make Hunter bind himself again it's you. Besides, you two already know each other, and that will help a lot.”

Avril felt her hands tremble. “I hope so.” She had no idea if she trusted her own words or not, though. “I will not give up on him.”

“I know you won't.” Jade put her papers on the desk that stood inside the room. “But before you go in there, I need to tell you a few things.”

Surprise filled her. “Tell me what?”

Jade's gaze turned serious. Jade was small and attractive, but the strength she radiated said that she wasn't to be taken lightly. This woman knew what she wanted and how to get it.

“We managed to receive new information about the Fighters just a few days ago. We don't want to spread the information before we are sure that it's true. Therefore, I would appreciate if you could help us figure it out.”

Avril inhaled deeply. She hadn't expected that. “Figure out what?”

“The Fighters rarely allow us to investigate them, meaning we can't study them to learn what goes on on the inside. We drug them to keep them calm, but we never do more than that. We don't want them as enemies. We want them to understand that we mean no harm. Because of that, we don't know much about them. It's our loss, I know, but we prefer to have it that way. It's best for all of us.”

Avril nodded. She liked that approach. “So what do you want me to do?”

“Up until now, we have believed that the Fighters become unstable because they lose the bond, but now, it looks as if a small part of the bond survives when their bound ones die. We believe that is why they are still alive, but their programming doesn't interpret the remaining of the bond as a bond anymore. We believe their programming interprets it as a malfunction and wants to repair it. To do that, it needs to find a new bound one. The Fighters programming tells them that they need to get bound again as soon as possible. It screams inside of them and if they touch an unbound woman, their programming will think that they want to bind themselves again. When that happens, the bonding process initiates and that is why they never touch an unbound woman.” Jade looked at Hunter who still seemed tense. “As you know it varies from Fighter to Fighter how complicated the new bonding is. Their eyes flash three times during that time. The first flash initiates the bond, the second flash accepts it, and the final flash seals it.” Jade looked at her. “You need to go through all that with Hunter, but I want you to find out if any of the things I've just told you are true.”

Avril's heart pounded in her chest. “How am I supposed to do that?”

“One intimate touch should initiate the bonding process. If that is true, his eyes will flash as you kiss him, hug him
,
or do anything intimate with him. Just don't force that touch upon him. He will hate you for it and we don't want that.”

“And if he doesn't want my touch?”

“Then it might be another sign that the theory is true.”

Avril nodded. “I understand.”

“You think you can find out more about it?”

“I'll try.”

Avril swallowed. She had never been this nervous in her entire life. As if trying to become Hunter's new bound one wasn't hard enough. Now, Jade wanted her to find out more about the Fighters. There was no guarantee Hunter would ever open up to her.

“You have all the time in the world, Avril.”

All Avril could do was nod as she took a deep breath. The moment had finally come. The moment where either all her dreams would come true, or the moment where everything broke into thousands of pieces.

Her legs almost moved on their own as she left the room and approached the interrogation room. Her heart pounded hard inside her chest. Her palms were warm and her knees weak. So much time had passed since they had last seen each other, and all she could do was hope that he would recognize her.

She put her hand on the handle and slowly pressed it down. What did he feel at this moment? Was he as tense and nervous as she was? Or was he ready to fight for his life?

Avril looked down at the floor as she entered the interrogation room. The rose was still firmly in her grasp. She didn't dare to look up, to see him in the eyes as she closed the door behind her. A deafening silence lingered in the room. She could almost hear her own heart race inside her chest.

After a few nerve-wracking seconds, she finally dared to look up and look at him. He stared at her. She didn't see anger, but surprise was written all over his face. Did he recognize her? His gaze lingered down her body and to her hands. More surprise crossed his face when he spotted the rose. Hope awakened within her. Maybe he did recognize her. She gave him a gentle smile and took a step closer to the table. His posture instantly hardened and his gaze darkened. Avril froze.

“Who are you?” he asked with a deep and threatening voice.

Avril's heart fell.

She had hoped in vain. He had no idea who she was. He didn't recognize her, but she couldn't blame him. After all, it had been twenty years and she doubted that he had ever thought of her during all that time. She wasn't the child he had once known. Judging by his wrecked appearance, he had had other things on his mind. But at the same time, she couldn't get away from the pain it caused.

“My name is Avril.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Avril?”

She smiled again as she approached the table. She didn't want to make any sudden moves. He could interpret that the wrong way.

She stopped in front of the table and laid the rose on it. She didn't dare to give it to him directly. She had heard Jade's words about the bonding process initiating from one intimate touch. Would that happen if she accidentally touched him as she gave him the flower even if it wasn't an intimate touch? She didn't know, but she wouldn't risk it.

“This is for you.” She pushed the flower closer to him.

He picked it up and studied it for a while before he shot her a dark gaze. “Is this some kind of joke?”

Avril tried not to show that his words hurt. Didn't the rose trigger some kind of memory in him? Cyborgs were supposed to have an amazing memory.

“No, no joke.” She pulled out the chair and sat down.

“Then why are you giving me a rose?”

She watched him for a while. Her heart still pounded hard inside of her chest, almost unwilling to calm down. Her chin trembled, making it difficult to talk, but somehow, she managed to form words and speak them without sounding too afraid or too desperate. Her entire body felt weak just by being this close to him. Thankfully, she was sitting and not standing. There was no telling when her knees would have given in beneath her if she had still been standing. He had always made a deep impact on her. As a child, her childish crush on him had ruled her daydreams. Over the years, he had become a memory she had always turned to whenever she had needed comfort.

He had always understood her and he had always been there for her, as a friend. He had made her feel like someone had actually cared about her. Her childhood had been a lonely experience. Her parents had taken care of her, but they had been passive. They had never spoken to her about all those things a child needed to talk about. They had never done anything together with her. Their dinners had mostly been silent or filled with pointless discussions, but Hunter had been there for her. He had given her all those things she had so desperately needed from an adult. Someone who had listened, someone who had understood and done things together with her. Sarah had always been there too. Today, Avril understood that Hunter and Sarah had known what her life had been like because they had never told her "no". They had made time for her, and Avril couldn't have been more grateful. Then Sarah had died and Hunter had been taken away by MedAct. The most important people in her life were gone and it had broken her heart. But now, Hunter was back, and she would do anything to make him stay. She would return the favor. She would save his life just like he had once saved hers.

She watched him lower his gaze to the rose and study it for a while before he looked up at her again.

“You say your name is Avril?”

She nodded. Tears gathered behind her eyes when she saw his face relax and a gentle smile revealed on his kissable lips.

“You're not a child anymore.”

She smiled too and dried away the tear that managed to run down her cheek. “No, I am not.”

He looked her over. It sent a wave of nervousness through her. Did he like what he saw? She knew she wasn't one of the fittest women out there, but she wasn't fat or anything. Makeup didn't decorate her face either, and her dark brown hair hung down her shoulders.

“You have grown into an attractive woman, Avril.” His expression was serious, making her believe he meant it.

She blushed. “Thank you.”

He leaned back into his chair. “How come you are here?”

“I heard you had been brought in and I needed to see you. You've been in my thoughts ever since ...” Avril didn't finish. She couldn't, but she saw his smile disappear. Sadness filled his eyes.

“Do you work for MedAct?” he asked, obviously not interested in talking about the past.

“No, I don't. I work as a waitress outside of Glaswell. I'm renting a small apartment near my work.”

“So life has been good to you?”

She shrugged. “It's been okay, but it's been ... boring.” She licked her lips. “I have thought of you every day since you disappeared. I was so worried. For years, I had no idea what had happened to you. Then one day, I heard you had joined the Fighters. It made me happy to hear that you were still alive, but the few photos that had been taken of you showed that you lived a tough life.” She swallowed hard. It was difficult to talk again and her throat became thick as the tears threatened to run down her cheeks again. “I watched you turn into someone I didn't know. Every few years, new photos of you showed up, and with each photo, you looked even more marked by life. I wanted to help you just like you had once helped me. That is why I'm here now.”

Avril jerked when he grabbed her hand. His touch was warm and firm, but his eyes didn't flash. Apparently, a touch like this didn't trigger the bonding process.

He smiled at her. “Thank you, Avril. I really appreciate you thinking of me over the years and for wanting to help me.”

“You and Sarah were my whole world. You both meant to me more than you'll ever know. You kept me on my feet and gave me a purpose. And when you disappeared, you took a part of me with you.”

His grip on her hand tightened and she hugged his hand back. “I'm so sorry, Avril. I didn't know.”

She nodded. “It's okay. The important thing is that you are back, and I'm so happy to see you again.”

“I'm happy to see you too.”

They looked at each other for what felt like minutes, and Avril couldn't help but take in his beauty. His handsome and dark features made her emotions go wild. He awakened everything she had felt for a long time. She had forced herself to put him in the past and move on with her life, but now, when he sat right in front of her, it was impossible to do. What she felt for him now was much stronger than just a simple crush. It had evolved into love over the years. She hadn't been able to stop it.

“So what do you do apart from working as a waitress and running around at MedAct?” He grinned.

“Not much. I spend most of my time at home reading books or enjoying a movie.”

“Do you have someone in your life?”

Avril winced. She hadn't expected that question. “No.”

“And how about your parents?”

She shrugged. “I have no idea. I haven't spoken to them in two years.”