Rising Tomorrow (Roc de Chere Book 1) by Mariana Morgan (essential reading txt) 📕

idea that Eloise was the actual designer of the VRP was too good to be true. Ingram opened her mouth to speak, but Gonzalez lifted his hand sharply. He needed Eloise to say what was on her mind—questions could wait.

‘It was altered,’ Eloise continued steadily, ignorant of the reaction she had provoked. ‘I don’t know how… I don’t even know how that was possible, but the VRP is definitely mine. At the 4th, I copied it and sent it to myself to study the alterations… I didn’t want anyone to know it was mine.’ The words came out so slow it felt like each might be the last. Ingram’s desire to force the Elite woman to speak faster intensified, but she kept obediently quiet.

‘I need to analyse it. I need to get home!’ Eloise repeated after a pause. She wanted to shake off the fog, but rapid head movements only made her dizzy.

‘One of our colleagues took a Steal—a military aircar to check if that would be safe. We will know soon. In the meantime, please, tell us more about the VRP.’

Ingram shifted uncomfortably. It was the first she had heard about the possibility of going back to Eloise’s residence, and instantly her common sense balked at the idea. It was stupid.

We barely made it out of Lyon in the first place, and now we are considering going back to where Wagner will most likely be looking for Ms Moretti? Ingram bristled, but then an obvious explanation presented itself. No, he’s lying. He’ll promise her anything if it means keeping her calm.

‘The VRP is in my database under 2718SEX3. I designed it a few years ago,’ Eloise admitted, then paused, unsure what they wanted to know.

‘I didn’t know NanoC designs adult VRPs,’ Gonzalez prompted.

‘It doesn’t. My adult VRPs are sold under a different name. They are custom. I—I don’t write many of those, but I have been in the business long enough to have acquired some special clients,’ she explained vaguely.

‘Was the 2718SEX3 programmed to allow non-consensual use?’ Ingram could no longer keep quiet.

‘No!’ Eloise barked. ‘Absolutely not! Just because I offer a wide range of VRPs doesn’t mean I ignore the law, Ms Ingram.’

‘Sergeant,’ Ingram murmured automatically.

‘Ms Moretti, please continue,’ Gonzalez said, and gave Ingram a warning look. ‘No one is implying that you have broken the law. Tell us more about the VRP. Before it was altered, I mean.’

‘It was a fairly simple one. Comfortable, stimulating and relaxing VR premises. The usual full range of environmental factors, aesthetic designs and customisability along with a user-friendly drag-and-drop menu…’ Eloise continued for a couple of minutes, spitting out dry facts as if she were reading a manual.

‘Any VR characters programmed into it?’ Gonzalez asked.

‘Of course. It included a wide range of women and men, of all ages, shapes and sizes. Legal ages.’ Eloise shot Ingram a look.

‘A VR brothel?’ Ingram asked before she could bite her tongue, then winced, more sensing than seeing Gonzalez’s scorching stare.

‘Yes,’ Eloise replied coldly. The gratitude she had felt towards Ingram just a few minutes ago was melting fast. ‘A brothel. They are legal, you know. Real ones and VR.’

Eloise had bristled more than she would have liked, but the conversation was taking them dangerously close to her even more special adult VRPs, which she did not want to discuss with anyone.

‘What activities were programmed into it?’ Gonzalez asked. He was close to kicking Ingram out of the room, but decided against it for now. The woman had too much personal history for it to be resolved instantly, but her input could prove invaluable. She was likely to notice things that might escape Gonzalez’s scrutiny.

‘All of the activities,’ Eloise replied, shrugging. ‘Anything that humans have ever done in pursuit of sexual pleasure that was preserved in any way. Books, holo-films, magazines, fiction, science, historical, modern. All of it.’

‘Including fetish practices like flagellation and bondage?’

‘Of course. They feature quite prominently in human culture.’

Gonzalez nodded, feeling his cheeks heat up slightly.

‘Tell us about the safety features. How do you prevent injuries during more… passionate sexual encounters?’ Blush or no blush, Gonzalez was hungry for information after so many weeks of waiting.

Eloise pressed her lips tight, considering the deeply ingrained rules about keeping quiet about the technical aspects of VR design. Briefly she hesitated, but then realised that she was long past worrying about corporate espionage. In light of the last few days, it was simply meaningless.

‘In the same way as with all my VRPs.’ She shrugged again. ‘The bio-feed from an n-suit prevents death or damage to human flesh and bones. The severity of various activities can be monitored in four standard ways through the safety locks. First, verbal input while the VRP is running. It boils down to a basic “more”, “less” or “stop”. Second, pre-programmable expectations one specifies before starting the VRP. And third, nano-memory. As you use your custom n-suit it remembers what you like; it learns to read your life signs and the concentrations of various chemicals in your brain and blood, and it adjusts the VRP accordingly. As a default, any VRP I design incorporates all three options to work at the same time.

‘On top of that there is the fourth feature, an in-built failsafe switch that will not allow any activity to get out of control. This lock simply switches the VRP off when the n-suit senses predetermined danger, such as impending loss of consciousness or the obstruction of airways. I can give a whole list if you want. The safety locks are comprehensive.’

Gonzalez and Ingram looked at each other, confused. The military used NanoC VRPs for training. What they had now heard did not match their experience. Was it really possible Eloise didn’t realise how easy it was to misuse her VRPs?

‘What if someone chooses to remove some or all of the locks? Could that be done?’ Gonzalez asked.

‘No, the safety locks are deeply embedded in the code—the VRP wouldn’t work if you started messing with it. More importantly, the