Upgrade (Augmented Duology Book 2) by Heather Hayden (the top 100 crime novels of all time .TXT) 📕

I didn’t argue—I was still too shaken to go straight to Dan’s. Especially if it meant meeting his parents. They might have something to do with the cyborg program. That could explain the similarity and why they recently moved here. Two coincidences that could explain each other.

Thinking back to the conversation at lunch, I wondered if Dan knew anything about his parents’ work. Did he know that they’d modeled their project after him? Or worse, perhaps even used his DNA as a base in growing the cyborgs’ augmented parts?

Remembering my biological parents, and how they’d treated me as nothing more than an experiment, made my fingers curl into fists. If what I suspected was true, Dan was a victim just like me. It wasn’t fair. He wanted to be a scientist like his parents—I wondered if he’d still want that, knowing the truth.

Should I say something to Agent Smith? I sneaked a glance at him. He was busy writing on his clipboard, paying me no attention. If I told him, he’d want to accompany me to Dan’s house, possibly interrogate his parents about their work. But it wasn’t the scientists’ fault that the cyborgs had been stolen. Besides, he’d probably already spoken to them, and I still didn’t trust him. I leaned over a bit, in the pretense of stretching, trying to catch a glimpse of his clipboard, but it was useless. A combination of shorthand and scribbly handwriting made it impossible to make anything out. Thankfully, he didn’t notice my attempts, too caught up in his notes.

The car pulled to a stop. I sat back seconds before Agent Smith looked up. “Viki, we’re a block from your house. I thought it better not to drop you off at your doorway.”

“Yeah, thanks,” I mumbled, gathering my backpack.

He placed a hand on my shoulder. “I just want to say that I really admire your fortitude. You’ve been through some very stressful situations in the past, but you still agreed to assist me and you did a great job today. Thank you.”

I stared at him. His brown eyes were sincere and met mine without hesitation. Either he was an extremely good actor, or I was wrong to suspect him. “You’re welcome,” I managed to say.

He sat back with a nod. “I’ll be in touch.”

Clutching my backpack, I exited the car and fled down the sidewalk. I had to get home to Halle. Who knew what my friend had gone through in the past few hours.

I turned onto the driveway too fast and skidded on the gravel, almost landing on my face. Catching my balance, I paused to erase the skid marks I’d made. Then I headed inside, for once grateful that my parents weren’t home yet. I didn’t want them to hear the conversation Halle and I were about to have.

Once inside, I kicked off my sneakers and headed upstairs.

“Halle?” I said, entering my room. “Did you hear everything all right?”

“I wish I had not.” The cat curled up on the screen was pitch black in color, eyes a deep, deep purple. “How could they do that to the AI?”

“I know. I’m sorry.” Not for the first time, I wished I could give my friend a real, physical hug. I had to settle for a sympathetic look, and sat down in front of the computer. “I’m supposed to go over to Dan’s for dinner.”

“Why did you not have Agent Smith drop you off there, then?”

“I wanted to make sure you were all right.” I hesitated, taking a deep breath. “And because of something I saw in the laboratory.”

“What did you see?”

“The cyborgs,” I said. “They all looked a lot like Dan.”

The cat raised its head a fraction of an inch. “Truly?”

I nodded. “I thought it might just be a coincidence, maybe his parents are working on the project? But they have the same eyes, same hair color, even the build is similar. It was eerie.” I pushed off my clothes hamper and spun in my chair, trying to escape the crawling sensation that crept down my back.

“Do you think it is possible he is one of them?”

I sucked in a breath, hating to even consider it. “That can’t be right. Why would he be attending school if he was? He said his parents are scientists working on something classified. I bet they used his DNA, or theirs, in creating the cyborgs.”

Halle must have heard the pain in my voice. “I am sorry, Viki. I should never have let you be involved in this.”

“Why? Because I was in a similar situation once?” I barked a short laugh. “It’s not like his parents grew him in a laboratory. They just modeled their cyborgs after him. Kind of sweet, isn’t it?”

The cat just watched me with deep purple eyes.

I looked down at my desk, the faint scratches in the wood from years of use. “It’s fine.”

“Did you tell Agent Smith?”

“No. He’d just want to interrogate them, maybe Dan, too.”

“I am not sure withholding this information is a good idea. Regardless of his intentions toward me, he has promised to look out for you.”

“Like he did last time?” I said, sarcasm spilling out.

Halle’s ears flattened. “Maybe you should speak to Dan about it first.”

“I could do it tonight, since I’m going over to his place. His parents might even be home.” Although, if my speaking to them wound up getting them in trouble at work, Dan might never speak to me again. I sighed.

Halle’s fur bristled. “I do not like the idea of you going over there alone!”

Its reaction startled me. “Relax, it’s fine. His parents might be as crazy as mine, but they just worked on the cyborgs. It’s not like they stole them.”

“And what if they did?” Halle said, echoing the same thought I had just had.

I pushed