Page 26 of Seductive Architect (Grunts of Vanguard #2)

I stood at the water fountains outside Synergy.

I watched the handful of people working on laptops.

How many of them had been corrupted by Apex’s influence?

He had turned my entire office into drones.

I wasn’t sure if he needed them or if he was just toying with me.

Had the smiles, the talk of emotions… had it all been to manipulate me?

“Why so glum?”

Had Apex told her about our meeting? I had to assume that she had tracked my phone. She integrated into every piece of my tech. I realized my mistake. I flipped open my phone.

Orion: Yes.

My eyes narrowed, staring at the screen. With a simple thought, I reset it to factory default. Tossing it in the trash, I realized I’d need to do more than that if I wanted to become a ghost.

“I can explain…”

She had been my best friend for as long as I could remember.

There was nobody who understood me like her.

While on dates, she’d be the one whispering comments when I found myself with a dud.

If I needed company, she had been there.

The good times and the bad, she had been my confidant.

It made what I was about to do feel like a betrayal.

“Sorry, Connie.”

“What do you?—”

“Connie, lockdown protocols. Authenticate. Orion Epsilon 7796.”

Silence.

When Connie first became self-aware, I had been worried that someday she’d try to destroy the world.

It wouldn’t be the first time my conversation with machines had gone awry.

For a computer capable of learning and embedding itself in every system?

That’s exactly how I found myself in this problem.

I wanted to believe her innocent. I wouldn’t delete her.

For now, this contained her in a single computer and cut off her access to the outside world.

One of the scientists glanced up at me, their eyes narrowing.

If I closed my eyes, I could see faint traces of the code that allowed me to communicate with machines.

Thankfully, it appeared Apex had only learned to broadcast. For now, he wasn’t receiving information.

It meant if I stayed out of sight of electronics, I could hide.

A hand gripped my shoulder from behind.

I spun about, the gauntlet covering my hand as I prepared to knock the scientist on their butt. Hudson caught my fist as if it were nothing. He glanced about, hiding my suit between us.

“You’re jumpy. Jumpier than usual.”

“I—” Could I trust him? I couldn’t believe Apex had it in him to create somebody as amazing as Hudson. He believed emotions made us inefficient . If it had been a couple of weeks ago, I might have agreed with him.

The gauntlet vanished as I held Hudson’s face. I leaned in for a kiss, and he wrapped an arm behind my back, pulling me in tight. I wanted to drown in his humanity. Hudson took the lead and had all but dipped me as he returned the kiss. He proved a fast learner. He’d get outstanding marks.

“Wow,” I said. As I felt him thicken in his pants, inefficient was the last word I’d use to describe him. “It’s you. ”

“Who else would I be?”

I had a lot to explain, and unlike before, I didn’t want my suspicions to linger. Hudson deserved to hear the truth, but not here. I’m sure Apex watched us through dozens of security cameras. It’s what I would do. Whether or not he wanted to admit it, he had inherited my traits.

“We need to talk.”

He frowned. “Wow. That is an awful phrase.”

I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “We’re good.”

“That makes me even more nervous.”

“Come on, we need to go.”

“But work.” He pointed at the building. “I still have packages to deliver.”

Even in a life-or-death crisis, I glanced down. Every time he used the word “package,” there was only one that came to mind. When this was over, I wanted to spend a weekend in bed, naked, adding entry after entry to his little black book.

“It’s life or death.”

“Oh.”

Hudson turned back to the building. That distress—the conflict—that was his humanity. What Apex saw as a flaw, I saw as a strength. Funny, coming from the guy who always claimed machines were better. Apparently, I just hadn’t met the right human.

“I’m asking you to trust me. ”

I reached for his hand, lacing my fingers through his.

Even with danger lurking around every corner, I wanted to freeze this moment.

If we had time, I’d have spent the afternoon trading stories and asking him about his plans for the future.

Right now, we had to save the world; then we could plan our next day.

“I do.” He smiled. “Very much so.”

Normally, I compartmentalized my life. Work stayed in its neat little box.

My research stayed there. I thought my dating life would be the same.

The walls had come tumbling down as everything mushed together.

If it were anybody else, they’d be racing toward the door and ignoring my text messages. Hudson… he wasn’t like the men before.

Hudson wasn’t a dwarf.

“Let’s go.”

“What is this place?”

We walked down the stairs into the basement before reaching a dented fire door.

In the heart of the business district, anybody who spotted the door would assume it was just another access to the basement.

Even as we entered, it looked like storage for an old office building.

Shelves held old computer monitors and boxes filled with extra printer paper.

Need an extra keyboard? There were dozens.

“I’ve been renting this basement for years.”

Hudson poked at a broken filing cabinet.

We weaved through shelves, holding boxes with old files.

Since taking over the lease, I had never bothered to open the boxes.

They could be old case files from the lawyer on the thirteenth floor, or they could be annual reports for the accountant. I didn’t care.

We reached a wall covered in old metal cabinets. I pushed against one of the doors, the scanner inside reading my palm. When the door hissed, I pulled it open, gesturing for Hudson to step inside.

“I thought the wall was the extent of your theories .”

“I’ve been prepared for the hostile takeover for years. I thought it’d be aliens. I wish it were aliens.”

When we stepped inside, the lights turned on.

It looked like the typical living room found in an industrial warehouse.

One end had a kitchen, shelves stocked to the brim with non-perishables.

If I were careful, I could survive down here for at least three months.

I had put off including a hydroponics garden.

Lesson learned. If we survived, I’d be more prepared for next time.

“What is this place?”

“Doomsday bunker.”

“We’re not living down here, are we? ”

I chuckled. I’d have to change inventory and double up on food if I had a companion with me.

The thought of being trapped with Hudson for months with nothing to do wouldn’t be horrible.

We’d have to find our own entertainment.

I’m sure by the time we left, his book of firsts would be filled to the brim.

“No, at least I hope not. You’re standing in a clean room.”

“I guess it’s clean.”

I forgot he didn’t speak the lingo. “There are no electronics connected to the outside world. No signals can come in or leave. It’s a?—”

“A Faraday cage.”

I raised an eyebrow. “How do you know that?”

“I noticed the books on your shelves. Truth: The Hidden World was all but falling out of the spine. I figured if you’d read it that many times, it’d be worth checking out. Did you know I can read an entire book in under an hour?”

He read Truth for me? I sheltered my exes from my hobbies, worried they’d think me one of the eccentric people who see conspiracies at every turn.

The few I introduced to a fraction of my hidden world had bolted for the door.

None had nodded their heads, determined to add their perspective.

To stop and read the book that first opened my eyes…

I wrapped my arms around Hudson. I didn’t have the vocabulary to explain the feelings storming inside my chest. Excitement.

Worry. Intrigue. Awe. Terror. He wrapped an arm around my back, pulling me in close.

An underlying fear wanted me to want to run, but the cacophony of emotions… I wanted to run toward him.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

The door hissed, and Hudson whipped me about, standing between me and the entrance. As fast as I could summon my gauntlets, he had already positioned himself to leap. Whether or not he realized it, when necessary, his super soldier program shined.

“Put your clothes on.”

I relaxed as Janet stepped into the bunker, her hand covering her eyes. Of course, she had them parted, as she hoped to catch a bit of skin. When she spotted us, she dropped her hand with a frown.

“Well, that’s not what I was hoping to see.”

Hudson didn’t move. His fists remained clenched until I rested a gloved hand on his shoulder. “She’s safe.”

“That’s what you think,” she said. She didn’t question the bunker or the crates of food on shelves. While the door sealed behind her, she hopped on the leather couch, propping her feet up. “Not bad for a doomsday shelter. Could use a little more chrome. Maybe swords.”

I didn’t tell her the blades were hidden in a closet in the back. I took Hudson by the hand, guiding him to the chair across from Janet. He had softened, but I wasn’t entirely sure he wouldn’t attack.

“Why here?” Janet asked .

“They’ll think to look at my apartment.”

“They?”

How did you tell somebody you met their “father” and that he’s an evil machine hell bent on enslaving mankind? I’m not sure even Kiki could help with this discussion. Worse yet, I unknowingly created said evil machine. Would that make me Hudson’s— Nope. I’d ignore that.

“I broke into Synergy and found the missing link.”

“The architect?”

Hudson didn’t just read the book; he had synthesized the material. We’d have to discuss his other gifts when we weren’t on the verge of a societal collapse. That’d be perfect pillow talk for our next sleepover.

“Yes. Apex.”

“Connie’s boyfriend?” asked Janet.

“Connie?”

I took a seat on the ottoman and for the next hour, I explained everything from the beginning.

To my surprise, Janet didn’t interrupt once.

I got a few mhmms and nods, but she let me speak.

Her silence might as well be the first sign of the apocalypse.

Now my allies were my aggressive co-worker and synthetic boyfriend.

Boyfriend? Mental note made for after we saved the planet.

Hudson’s jaw dropped as he leaned back in the chair. “Wyatt is Mr. Supreme? ”

“I taught him everything I know,” Janet said. “Someday he’ll make quite the hero.”

“Apex is controlling everybody?”

I nodded. “That’s the code that I’ve been hearing for the last couple of weeks. I thought it was a project at Synergy, but it must have been when Apex started reaching out to the people in the office.”

He gestured toward Janet. “Why not you?”

She tapped her head. “This is impenetrable. A little trick they taught us at MI6.”

We sat in silence while we mulled over the facts. The situation had grown dire, and I couldn’t find a straightforward way to victory. Apex had laid a plan, making it impossible to stop.

“We have to blow him up,” Janet said.

“What about Arthur and the others?” I asked.

“Neural inhibitors.”

I didn’t want to ask how she knew about the technology. “We can’t get to everybody he’s infected quickly enough.”

“We can’t,” Hudson said. “But Connie can.”

They both turned to me. Logically, she had been compromised, possibly infected by malicious code from Apex.

The facts were clear. She had betrayed my trust, misleading me while I investigated the senator.

Facts didn’t negate years of her being my confidant.

She had been with me when I got fired from the herbal supplement job.

When I got lonely, she’d log into my console and create a character to fight beside.

Absolutes came from machines, and eyeing Hudson, I realized perhaps I had isolated myself too far.

“He’s right. This just became a rescue mission.”

“We’re going to save my girl.”

Janet jumped to her feet. I believed Connie had been picking up bad habits from Janet. Perhaps that’s what happened with your friends. Thanks to Wyatt, I kept an extra chocolate bar in my drawer, just in case of emergencies.

“Shit,” I said. “Apex has Wyatt and Drew.”

She pointed at Hudson. “We have a super soldier, and…” She waved a hand in front of me. “Whatever is going on over here? Of course, I could handle them myself, but I suppose teamwork makes the dream work.”

She had a point. Though if we were going to go on a suicide mission, I’d need to make some adjustments to my armor.

While I considered the arsenal necessary for our mission, Hudson stood, holding out his hand.

When I glanced up, I could have swooned.

That beefy body, the bulge of muscles in his chest, but most of all, that grin.

I took his hand.

Janet threw her arms around us. “Welcome to the Coven. We’re not the best heroes, but we get shit done.”

I had taken a risk letting people see the real me.

An accidental lunch date had turned into a world of possibilities.

I didn’t know where things would go with Hudson, but I wanted to find out.

Even Janet continued to surprise me. They weren’t the allies I expected at the end of the world, but they were the ones I needed.

Now we needed to save the rest of our friends and stop the end of the world.

“First superhero team,” Hudson said with a smirk.

“Damn straight.” She gave us both a hard smack on the ass. “Now let’s save the world.”

In a world full of heroes, be Janet.