Page 17 of Seductive Architect (Grunts of Vanguard #2)

“Psst.”

I tried to ignore the inevitable conversation.

Instead, I sat at my usual table, watching as the employees arrived for work.

After yesterday, I didn’t deserve a cookie frappe.

I grimaced as I took another swig of my coffee.

Black. I had a feeling before the end of the day, I’d need caffeine coursing through my veins.

“Psst.”

“What?”

Janet glanced back and forth as if somebody might be following her. I chalked it up to her usual dramatic flair. She took a seat opposite me, her back facing the lobby doors. I slid my chair three inches to the side to ensure she didn’t block my view.

“There’s something wrong with Arthur. ”

“Did he threaten to fire you again?”

Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forward.

“Not once! He didn’t bat an eye when I told him I wanted to change all the photos on the website with me and my crown.

” With Janet, I expected nothing less. Glancing up, the tiara on her head didn’t even warrant mentioning.

I half-expected her to say they were the Crown Jewels of England, she discovered on a black ops mission.

“You’ve worn him down,” I reasoned.

Her head cocked to the side. “Are you ignoring a conspiracy?”

“We don’t use the C-word.” Though she had a point. Everybody had their off days, but never had Arthur shied away from his sister. “Have you noticed anything else?”

“Drew showed up this morning and didn’t say hello.”

I raised an eyebrow. While some humans acted erratically, two similar oddities made it to the wall.

Arthur never wasted an opportunity to fire his twin, and Drew never entered the office without a smile and pleasantries.

He refused to drink coffee, and I never understood how he could muster coherent words at that hour.

“Odd,” I said. I’d have to update the wall. It wouldn’t be surprising if the clones had discovered I knew their plan. It’d make sense that they’d want to silence me before I connected the dots.

“Earth— Friend!” At least Wyatt appeared his normal— “Look at who I bumped into? ”

He looked no different from any other day at the office. He had opted for a light blue dress shirt and a black tie with white swirls. Wyatt had his arms around Hudson’s shoulders as if they were old friends. To be fair, Wyatt considered everybody a friend.

“Did you get sexier?” Janet asked. Hudson blushed in reply. “No, serious. I’m keeping track.”

“When shall we go on a double date? Dustin would love company.” Before I could respond, Wyatt had his cell phone out. “I’m texting him now.” Great, now I had to figure out the situation with Hudson before introducing him to Wyatt’s boyfriend.

Hudson shot me a grin. “It’d go on the list.”

First double date. Now the list made sense.

These were truly his first-time experiences.

It wasn’t him checking items off a bucket list. He documented each experience, cataloguing them as he learned.

It wasn’t so different from how an algorithm adapts with new input.

It made him both mechanical and human at the same time.

Maybe humans weren’t so different from machines?

“As long as Wyatt doesn’t choose the place.”

Wyatt’s face scrunched up. “Why is that?”

“Last time, Drew and I showed up at the candy store. Chocolate is not a meal.”

“Orion is having a grumpy day.”

“Dustin says it’s a date.” Before I could reply, he charged toward the elevators. I’d be willing to bet money he bee- lined it to his desk drawer where he hid his chocolate stash. He constantly asked me to install a laser security system to keep Janet from pilfering his snacks.

Janet glanced back and forth, her eyebrows moving from shock to concern to surprise. The emotions flashed across her face faster than I could interpret. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she invented a new language based on eye movement. Knowing Janet?—

“I’m detecting a lot of sexual tension here,” she said. “I’m going to excuse myself and find a man who will compliment my tiara.” She jumped to her feet. “And don’t forget what we talked about.”

One mystery at a time. For now, I needed to figure out the one attached to a man I wanted to climb like a lumberjack.

“Will do. Ask Connie if you need help.” With a salute, she dashed off, grabbing the arm of the first employee she bumped into.

We both watched as she belted out, laughing, pointing at the tiara.

“Your friends are…”

“Intense?” I gestured to the chair. “That’s the nicest way I could put it.”

“I was going to say friendly. We don’t have to go on a double date. That smile, and he’s so eager. I didn’t want to crush him with a ‘maybe.’”

I expected a super soldier to be more… soldier-y.

He didn’t have a weapon strapped to his back, nor did he speak like a man taking orders.

I had met little old ladies at the gr ocery store with more force than Hudson.

Everything about this felt off. I had assumed that they’d be ruthless and try to replace supers.

Maybe Synergy created models for the sake of…

sorting their mail? I almost chuckled at my innocence.

“Get up to anything interesting last night?”

“I watched Gone with the Wind .” His eyes lit up. “Did you know it’s the most popular film of all time?”

“That’s it? Didn’t go out looking for adventure?” Any less subtle and I’d grab his wrist and tell him I spotted him at the bank. He didn’t need to know that I had a secret identity. I couldn’t risk him telling his superiors.

“Just me and a package of chocolate chip cookies.”

If he wouldn’t give up the truth, I’d try less direct methods.

I held out my hands across the table. When he gripped my fingers, I let my powers surge.

Every electronic device in the building fought for my attention, desperate to be heard.

The printer begged for toner while the elevator complained about the morning rush exceeding its weight capacity. Thousands of voices demanded I listen.

The hair on my arms stood on end, and the muscles in my thighs vibrated.

For a moment, I swore I could see the code flowing through Hudson as if it were blood.

My eyes narrowed as I pushed away the roar of white noise.

I could hear it. The machine inside him…

no… not in him. All of Hudson was a machine, a synthetic human, powered by code at the cellular level.

I could hear snippets, points wher e one system talked to another.

The programmer responsible for this couldn’t be human.

If I could eavesdrop on the conversation, perhaps it could hear me?

Who are you?

Hudson’s hands trembled before he jerked back. His eyes darted like he didn’t recognize the room. He scratched his head, looking about as if he had woken from a deep sleep. He fixed his tie and nervously flattened his beard before standing.

“I should get to work.” He flashed a smile, but it didn’t quite hold its usual glee. “We still on for tonight?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

He gave a slight wave and wandered off toward the elevator.

If I relied on the wall, it’d suggest that Senator McAfee had reached out to Synergy to create super soldiers.

I couldn’t prove it… until now. I thought I had gotten soft, trading facts for this feeling in my gut.

If the senator wanted to create soldiers to replace supers…

this is where my theory fell apart. Had the experiment gone awry?

I found the missing puzzle piece, but it didn’t fit, not like it should.

I had asked a question, but I wasn’t prepared for the answer.

Help .