The Strumbellas – Spirits
Connor glanced over the sign that read Chicken Feed and then the lieutenant's back as he walked towards it. He had just been ordered to remain in the vehicle, but Taylor ducked her head back down to the car window and smiled at him. "Come on."
He trailed behind her obediently as they joined Hank at the window. Hank was talking to a man about placing a bet, but the blonde just glanced at them before focusing on the menu, seemingly unfazed by whatever illegal activities they were discussing. When his business concluded, he joined them, giving Connor a sour look.
"They don't have salads here," he told Taylor.
"Good to know," she responded, focusing on the man behind the counter. "Can I get the jalapeno cheddar burger, extra bacon. And Cajun fries, please." Hank snorted at her, but she just raised her eyebrows at him as she paid for her food. "Don't be jealous because you can't eat spicy food, old man."
"Yeah, yeah." Connor looked between the lieutenant and the blonde woman, analyzing their interaction. They still sounded like they were arguing, but the tone was different than their first encounter at the crime scene. Was this what humans referred to as teasing? He would need more analysis to be sure. There did not seem to be any markers of hostility between the two as they collected their food and headed toward a table.
"Did you have to bring the plastic asshole? It doesn't even eat." Hank complained as Connor joined them.
"He is our partner." Taylor replied as though scolding a child while she emptied several ketchup packets over her fries. "You can't leave him in the car like luggage."
"Might as well be luggage." Hank grumbled as he lifted his own burger in his hands
"Your meal contains 1.4 times the recommended daily intake of calories and twice the cholesterol level." Connor finally spoke up just as Hank was about to take a bite. "You shouldn't eat that."
"Everybody's gotta die of something." Hank replied, taking a bite as if in protest. Connor glanced over at Taylor, who was already shoving fries in her mouth.
"Your meal has—"
"Don't you dare finish that sentence." She cut him off, pointing a french-fry at him. "I don't need that kind of negativity in my life, thanks."
Connor looked between the two again as they continued to eat in contented silence. Finally, he decided to speak, "Is there anything you'd like to know about me?"
"Hell no," Hank responded immediately, causing Taylor to roll her eyes as she took another bite of her burger. "Well, yeah, um... why did they make you look so goofy and give you that weird voice?"
"That's his way of asking why you're so attractive," the blonde said, laughing at the glare the lieutenant gave her in response. Connor blinked in surprise, his LED swirling yellow for a moment as Taylor grinned at him. "Are you sure you weren't designed to be a Traci model?"
"Jesus Christ, I'm going to puke." Hank frowned down at his food while Taylor continued to giggle next to him, looking to the android for a response.
"I was not designed with Traci programming. CyberLife androids are designed to work harmoniously with humans. Both my appearance and voice were specifically designed to facilitate my integration." Connor answered, trying to keep the hint of uncertainty out of his voice.
"Humans respond better to pretty people." Taylor confirmed with a nod, still grinning up at Hank as he glared back at her. Connor's LED flashed yellow again. He felt like he was missing something.
"Can I ask you a personal question, Lieutenant?" Hank raised his eyebrows at the sudden change in subject but nodded for him to continue. "Why do you hate androids so much?"
"I have my reasons." The lieutenant responded simply. Connor's brow furrowed at the vague response, but he didn't know what to say in reply.
"Maybe I should tell you both what we know about deviants?" He suggested instead, drawing Taylor's eyes away from Hank and to him.
"Yes, please," she said with a hint of excitement. "I want to know what CyberLife thinks about deviants."
"We believe that a mutation occurs in the software of some androids which can lead to them emulating human emotions—"
"In English, please," Hank interrupted, frowning.
"They don't really feel emotions, they just get overwhelmed by irrational instructions, which can lead to unpredictable behavior." Connor explained.
"Emotions always screw everything up." Hank conceded.
"A software error? They're seriously going with that?" Taylor grimaced at her food and sat the half-eaten burger down, reaching for a napkin.
"So what do you know about deviants? You're supposed to be the expert." Hank turned his attention to the blonde as she twisted her hands in her lap. Connor could detect the sudden rise in her stress levels. He found himself wanting to search through her profiles again, but had promised he would not, so he waited for her to answer.
"Well—" Hank's phone rang, cutting her sentence off. The lieutenant checked the screen and cursed.
"It's Chris," He informed them as he stepped away to take the call. Connor watched him go before turning back to Taylor, still anticipating her response, only to find her blue eyes fixed on his face. Her eyebrows were drawn down, lips quirked into a frown.
"You know, you don't act like other androids." She spoke softly, her eyes still scanning him. His LED flashed yellow again.
"I am a prototype." Connor said by way of response. Her frown deepened, but she didn't say anything else. He had a feeling he had said the wrong thing somehow, but before he could consider it, Hank returned.
"We have a tip on the android. Let's go."
Taylor hung back as Hank and Connor spoke to the cops on scene, glancing around at their surroundings. There was a bus stop nearby where the android and child had gotten off and proceeded to the convenient store. The cashier said that the female android had asked him for help and left with the child when he refused them.
"She wouldn't have gone far if she had a kid with her," Taylor muttered to herself, glancing both ways down the street.
"I agree," Connor said from beside her, making her jump. She hadn't noticed his approach. "We have locked down the area while we search. Do you have any specific places you think a deviant might go?"
"It was cold, and she had a child with her. They would have to find someplace warm, sheltered from the rain." Taylor's eyes fell on the two-story house across the street. "Deviants usually gravitate to places that are abandoned by humans. For safety."
Connor followed her gaze to the house, his LED flashing a familiar yellow as he tilted his head to consider the building. He paused for a beat, then said, "We should check it out."
She trailed him across the road and toward the fence that surrounded the house, watching his brown eyes scan the area for any signs of the deviants. She walked towards a run-down car to the far side of the lot, peering into the windows.
"Here," Connor's voice came from behind her, and she turned to find him kneeling by the chain link. There was a hole near the bottom that looked to be cut out, just big enough for a person to slip through. "There is thirium on the fence. You were right."
Connor looked up at her and smiled. She felt her heart skip a beat, hoping that the android didn't notice as he pushed the fence out of the way and crawled through the hole, holding it open for her to follow.
"Be careful," he advised, offering his hand to help her to her feet. Taylor accepted it, peering up into his face again. He really was unnecessarily attractive, she thought again, noticing the freckles that spattered his cheeks and the one rebel lock of brown hair that had fallen across his forehead. Connor released her hand and reached up to adjust his tie.
"Find something?" Hank's voice brought her back to reality. She turned to see the lieutenant standing on the other side of the fence, hands on his hips. "Or are you two just sneaking off to make out?"
Taylor felt the heat creeping up her neck, mostly because she had been ogling the android a few seconds before the accusation and appreciating his appealing features. Hank raised his eyebrows at her in amusement, proud of his joke at her expense.
"Make out?" Connor asked from her side, his tone innocently perplexed as he tilted his head, making Taylor internally scream. His LED flickered yellow and she knew he must be searching for what the term meant. She could tell the exact moment he figured it out, for he turned to her with his face a mask of doubt.
"Actually," Taylor responded, interrupting before the android could say anything more mortifying, "we found a trail."
This seemed to remind Connor of his mission, because he turned back to Hank and nodded in affirmation. She released a small sigh of relief. "Yes, Miss Kolbeck suggested that the deviant may have been hiding in this abandoned house. There are traces of thirium on the fence there where someone has cut through."
"Well let's check it out, then." Hank said, crawling through the hole in the fence after them. The trio walked around toward the front of the house, taking in the boarded windows and overgrown grass that surrounded the porch. Hank pulled out his gun and stepped in front of them as they approached the door.
There was an android standing in the middle of the room as they stepped inside, but it was not the one they were looking for. He was tall and blonde, staring at the three of them in near horror. Hank immediately pointed his gun at the deviant, his blue eyes falling on the knife in its hand. "Detroit Police! Freeze!"
"Where is the AX400?" Connor asked, his brown eyes doing a sweep of the room. Taylor couldn't look away from the other android's face. It was horribly damaged, the wiring visible through his left cheek. She wondered if he could still see out of his left eye.
"R-Ralph hasn't seen any other androids." He said, looking even more nervous as Connor started to search the room. She glanced down at his arms, which were damaged as well, wondering if his owners had been responsible.
There was a sudden bang from behind her, and she turned to see the AX400 running out of the open door, dragging a little girl behind her. Connor jumped up from the floor, where the android must have shoved him before fleeing, and immediately ran off in pursuit.
"Connor? Shit!" Hank ran after them, gun still in his hand, disappearing out the door.
Taylor turned back to the android in the room, her eyes wide. The android seemed to take a moment processing that they were now alone, his LED flashing between yellow and red, before it raised the knife in his hand toward her. Her hands leapt up into a position of surrender as a reflex, making the android flinch.
"Whoa, I don't want to hurt you." She said quickly, trying to keep the terror from her voice.
"Liar! Humans always try to hurt Ralph. You want to hurt Ralph's friends, too." His eyes shifted from her to the door, where the AX400 had fled. Taylor shook her head, drawing his attention back to her immediately as he waved the knife closer to her face.
"What happened to you?" She kept her voice soft. Ralph looked at her suspiciously as he closed the distance between them, pressing the knife against the hollow of her throat. "Who hurt you?"
"Ralph was just doing his job. The humans attacked Ralph. They hit him over and over and over—"
"I'm so sorry." Taylor felt tears pricking the corners of her eyes, trying not to wince at the tip of the knife broke her skin. She wasn't sure if she was sad for the android or terrified that he was about to kill her. "You must have been so frightened."
"Ralph was scared." He finally lowered the knife a bit, allowing her to breathe properly. "Ralph thought he was going to die."
"But you didn't." Taylor said carefully. She reached her hand out slowly, hesitantly, and placed her fingers over his on the knife. She could feel his synthetic muscle tense under her touch, his hands trembling slightly, his mismatched eyes wide as they stared at their touching hands. "You survived. You're a survivor."
"A... survivor?" Ralph repeated the words as though he had never heard them, his LED still spiraling between yellow and red.
"Yes. But you have to leave now. The police will catch you if you stay here. They're distracted by the chase outside. You can slip away." He looked back at her face, considering her words, the knife finally lowering back to his side. The seconds stretched out, feeling like hours, days, until he finally nodded.
"You're right. Ralph will escape." And just like that, he disappeared through the same door that the AX400 had fled with her two partners, leaving her standing alone in the silence of the room.
Taylor collapsed to her knees, her legs dissolving like sand beneath her. She touched the spot on her throat where the deviant had pressed his knife, her fingers coming away with blood. She was shaking all over, her breath coming out in ragged gasps as she realized she was crying.
"Miss Kolbeck? Miss Kolbeck!" Connor appeared in the doorway a moment later, his brown eyes wide, his LED a solid ring of red as he spotted her collapsed on the floor. He was across the room in a second, kneeling beside her as he looked her over for wounds. "Are you injured?"
She opened her mouth to speak but couldn't form any words. Connor reached out, his fingers brushing against her collarbone, making her flinch. He placed both of his hands on her upper arms, staring earnestly into her face. "Miss Kolbeck, you are in shock."
A strangled laugh that was half sob escaped her, high pitched and awful to her own ears. She couldn't stop the tears that were still running down her face. Connor stood and, faster than she could process, slid his arms under her knees and her back to lift her from the floor. Her fingers curled around the lapels of his coat, trying to steady herself from the sudden shift in gravity. "Wh-what—"
"I will take you back to the car." He informed her in his matter-of-fact tone, adding softly, "You're safe now."
Oddly enough, she did feel safer. Connor was extremely warm to the touch, his body still overheated from the running. She could hear the whirring of his internal fans trying to cool him off as he carried her. She leaned into his chest and closed her eyes, repeating the words over and over in her head. You're safe now.
"What happened to the other android?" When she finally opened her eyes again, she found Hank staring at the two of them dubiously.
"He escaped," she said, gratefully that her voice was finally steady. Connor lowered her back to her feet, his arm lingering on her back, his eyes still scanning her for an injury he might have missed.
"He escaped." Hank repeated, glaring at her.
"You left me alone with an armed deviant!" She shouted back at him, her voice cracking. Hank seemed to realize that she was still shaking, and the gravity of the situation sank in. He looked her over, his eyes finding the trickle of blood on her throat, and his face crumpled with guilt. It wasn't as satisfying as she had anticipated. She pushed past him and headed down the sidewalk, muttering, "I'm going home."
Taylor shoved her hands in the pockets of her coat as she hurried away, ignoring the stares of the cops who were still on the scene. The faster she walked, the more the colors around her started to blur. Her hands were still shaking in her pockets, so she balled them into fists and ducked her head.
The sudden hand on her arm elicited a squeal that she just managed to keep from a scream. Connor pulled his hand away, his LED flashing red in alarm. "Miss Kolbeck, you shouldn't be alone. You are still in shock." He held up the small first aid kit in his hands, "And you are injured."
"It's just a scratch," she said, shaking her head, turning to go.
"Taylor." Connor placed his hand on her forearm again, his voice pleading. He had never called her by her first name and it made her pause. She turned back to him, her blue eyes meeting his brown, and remembered the moment of peace she had felt when he was holding her. Now she felt like she was crumbling to pieces and she just wanted to be alone. "Please let me help you."
No, her head was shouting it, trying to pull her arm away, to turn and run. But she was caught in his gaze. In the light of the sun, his eyes had bright rings of copper that flickered as he scanned over her face, his brows drawn down in concern. Instead, she found herself saying, "Okay."
He sat her down on the nearest bench, opening the first aid kit. She watched him remove the gauze from its packaging in silence, her vision blurring again, colors swirling into a kaleidoscope of nothing. Connor's long fingers brushed her collar again as he wiped the blood from her skin. She winced as the disinfectant touched the open spot on the hollow of her throat.
"I'm sorry." Taylor looked at the android across from her, but his eyes were focused on her neck, his jaw clenched. "I shouldn't have left you alone." He paused. "You shouldn't have been at the crime scene. It's dangerous."
"Connor." His eyelashes fluttered as he looked into her eyes again, and she released a breath as his LED flickered to blue from the angry circle of red it had been a moment before. "It's okay." She reached over squeezed his hand. "Thanks for coming back."
Connor looked down at their hands, his LED flashing yellow for a brief second, before he closed his fingers around hers. "I will take you home."