“I don’t think you can help me.”
“Josh, buddy, I’ve got a degree in mechanical engineering and robotics. I can fix just about anything. Give me a chance. Besides, where are you going to go? It’s getting dark.”
“I won’t go back to Kidsmith.”
“Okay, I can take you home.”
For the first time the boy’s eyes showed a promise of hope, even if only briefly. “My home?”
“Maybe,” he said, “I’ll have to talk to them first and see what they say. I can’t promise that though.”
Just like that, the hope disappeared. “That’s what everyone says. But they won’t let me talk to them.”
“Well, come home with me. Please. You can meet my wife and daughter. And I’ll see about fixing you.”
Josh took another glance both ways down the street, as though considering running again. Then the boy’s shoulders slouched as he resigned himself to whatever fate James offered. He climbed in the truck and pulled the door shut.
“Thank you for trusting me,” James said. He got his first good look at the boy. Scars and bruises covered his arms and legs. Nobody would want this kid back… unless it was to finish what they started.
“I hope you can stop the monster,” Josh replied, “Otherwise it will probably kill you too.”
10
They pulled up in front of James’ house, a beautiful two-story home in a nicer neighborhood than the other ones he’d visited so far. It rested up in the foothills on the outskirts of the city, and as the world grew darker, they had a tremendous view of the lights of Boise spreading out below them as far as the eye could see.
“I don’t think bringing me here was such a great idea,” Josh said. He didn’t take his eyes off of the lights. “I don’t want it to hurt your family because of me.”
“Nonsense. It can’t hurt you now, or my family. We’ll cut through the house and tell Laura I’m home, and then I’ll take you to my shop. We’ll see what we can do for you.”
Josh followed sullenly as they cut through the house. James gave his wife a quick kiss on the lips, while a little girl peaked sheepishly around her mother at him. She had big brown eyes that studied him curiously.
“Daddy, do I got a brother?” she asked.
“No, he’s a boy I need to help.”
“What’s wrong with him? Is he broken?”
“Daddy’s going to find out. His name is Josh.”
The girl extended her hand. “Hi Josh, I’m Kylie.”
Josh shook it. He couldn’t help but smile. It seemed she had a happy home. Maybe James wasn’t so bad after all.
“Come on, Josh,” James said.
He led him out the back of the house to a large shed. As they walked, a small white dog with a large brown spot over each eye and ear bounced along beside them. Josh reached down and let it lick his good hand. “What’s his name?” Josh asked.
“That’s Sparks. He’s a Jack Russell terrier.”
“We couldn’t have a dog. Mom doesn’t like animals.”
Sparks followed them into the shed, a well-lit workshop with tools everywhere. “Your file said that you have an internal head injury.”
“No, I got that fixed.”
James turned, looking him over from head to toe. “And how did you manage that?”
“I met a guy. He said he could upgrade me so I wouldn’t break down anymore. He said he’d make me like Neil.”
“Neil… that’s the boy you left with?”
Josh nodded. “He said he’ll last forever.” He glanced around the shop and added, “Do you know how to do that?”
“That’s not something you should let others do to you,” he said, “There’s a good chance that he could ruin you permanently.”
“He was better than the people where you’re from. They said they didn’t think they could fix me at all. That they would take my parts and throw the rest of me away.”
“Who told you that?”
“I don’t know. Some guy. I don’t remember.”
“Huh.”
“So can you fix my arm?”
“Let me see it.” As he touched it, Josh winced and jerked away. “It hurts?”
Josh managed to nod, and sniffed.
“Would it be better if I turned you off?”
“No,” he said, and shook his head for emphasis. “I don’t want to be shut down anymore.”
“Well, it’s going to hurt a lot more then. Can you be tough?”
“I’ll try.” True to his word, Josh didn’t pull away as James took the arm, feeling from his wrist to his shoulder. “Is it broken?”
“No. You just have a dislocated shoulder. Your bones are made of titanium, it’s almost unheard of for a kid to have a broken bone. The bigger risks are to all of the internal organs. They’re made out of plastics to mimic the real thing, and of course then there’s your brain. That’s basically a computer. Since your bones are designed to imitate real bones, this type of injury is a bit more common. Owners like to jerk their kids by the arm. I’ve seen quite a bit of that. I’m going to pop it back into place. Ready?”
Josh nodded. James bent the boy’s arm at a ninety-degree angle and brought it to his chest. The boy closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. With one hand on his shoulder, he rotated the arm outward and pushed in on the shoulder. It went back into place with a pop.
Josh gasped. “It’s better!”
“Easier than the real thing,” James said. “I’ve done this many times.”
He continued to stare at his arm in amazement, wiggling his fingers as though he still couldn’t believe he’d been fixed so easily. “Thank you,” he said.
“Now are you ready to help me?”
Josh eyed him warily, but the man had proven his good intentions. “You want to catch the monster.”
“Yes. What’s your connection to it?”
“I don’t know,” He stood up and Sparks ran over to him, dropping a ball at his feet. He kicked it away, the dog chasing after it eagerly. “It just seems to be following me. It’s found me everywhere, in the mountains, at Kidsmith, then at that man’s house. I don’t know what else to tell you about it. I saw it tear apart someone. Just before you found me.”
“So you don’t have any way to find it?”
“Not really.”
James rubbed his chin, thinking. “Tell me about the other boy, the one you ran away with.”
“Neil? I don’t know much about him. He’s the one that broke my arm. I don’t want to see him again.”
“Does he have a connection to the… your monster?”
“No, he didn’t believe me. I think the monster’s just after me. That’s why I think it’s a mistake to have brought me back here. Can I call my parents now?”
“Not just yet. You help me find the monster and I’ll let you call them. I promise.”
Josh slowly shook his head. “He’ll find us.”
11
Angel sat in a corner among the piles of what she considered junk, reading a book on existentialism and religion. The author, obviously, hadn’t had androids in mind when he wrote it. Who would write a book for an android anyway? And androids didn’t write books either, so she was stuck with what she got. It was but one book of many that Cody had stacked throughout the house, and she knew he hadn’t read even close to half of them. Even living forever, he still wouldn’t read them all, whatever his intentions.
The whole concept of “I think, therefore I am” made her pause. She didn’t see a difference in the way that she thought, as compared to Cody. She learned from her experiences, she formed thoughts of her own. The only difference was that she had a purpose. Cody had already gone to bed tonight, without her. By the logic of her design she didn’t have a purpose except to wait for the next time she was needed.