Touching Ice Read online

  Flint stared at her, studying her face, and then sighed, giving his full attention to Ice. “A few members of the council arrived just before you did.” He paused. “We’re being graced with Councilman Zorus’ presence.” The large cyborg’s voice deepened when he said the name. “He demanded to be present and speak to them himself. He is insistent that we can broker a deal and is rambling on about how useful an ally they will be.”

  “Damn.” Ice was irritated. “Nothing good happens when he is around.”

  “Exactly.” Flint gave a nod. “I have Mira locked in our room where she’s out of sight and I put a few guards outside my quarters. I don’t trust that bastard since he hates all humans.” He focused on Megan. “My wife would like to meet you, Megan. Mira is from Earth. I’m afraid she may want to spend hours talking to you. I believe she’s lonely for another woman to spend time with and I hope you will humor her.”

  A human had married the big cyborg? It surprised her but she managed a nod. “That sounds nice.”

  “Good.” Flint turned, addressing the rows of cyborgs standing at attention. “I want everyone prepared for the worst. You heard Ice’s female and read the report.” He turned then, staring down at Megan. “If this goes bad, do you have any suggestions? We’re prepared to attempt electrocution in case that flaw design wasn’t fixed.”

  “Pray,” she said softly.

  The dark-haired cyborg softly cursed. “Great.” He lifted his head, stared up at a camera, and nodded. “They are docking.” He faced another door. “We’re boarding their shuttle. If a fight takes place we are going to retreat and attack their ship. That is a target we know how to deal with.”

  Ice nodded and spoke softly. “You heard Flint. Keep linked to me and if this goes bad undock and we’ll meet up at our preplanned destination. Do not wait for us to return. We’ll stay aboard the Star.” He met Megan’s raised eyebrow. “I’m talking to the Rally. We’re in constant communication.”

  Doors opened and Megan tensed, expecting the Markus Models to enter the large cargo bay but instead she saw four cyborg males approaching but they weren’t wearing black uniforms. Instead they wore red matching ones. Ice tensed.

  “The council,” he whispered loud enough for Megan to hear. “Zorus is the one on the far left.”

  It stunned her that such a handsome man had such a black heart. He looked tall, probably at least six foot four with dark-brown hair tied back in a tight ponytail. He had thick, dark eyelashes that windowed a pair of sexy, dark-brown eyes that locked on her. The rage she saw when their gazes met had her inching closer to Ice as the four council members drew near. All cyborgs were beefy, strong men, but Zorus seemed particularly thick muscled in his shoulders and upper arms.

  “Ice.” Zorus glared at Megan. “That is what you risked your career on? She’s not even attractive.”

  Ice moved suddenly, putting his body in front of Megan, blocking her view of the rude bastard who’d just insulted her. She knew Ice put himself between her and the council members to protect her.

  “Councilman Zorus.” Ice’s tone turned chilly. “She’s attractive. It’s your perspective of humans that is disagreeable.”

  “They can’t be trusted.”

  Flint cleared his throat. “The shuttle has docked with us and the Markus Models are waiting.” Something in his dark eyes flashed. “Why don’t you go first since you set up this meeting, Councilman Zorus?” He waved his hand toward another door. “After you, sir.”

  Megan craned her head a little to peer around Ice and watched as Zorus shot Flint a glare but he nodded. “They are going to be aid against the enemy.”

  That had to be humans, Megan surmised. She stood there until Ice reached back, offering her his arm. Her fingers gratefully curled around his forearm as he led her to follow the four councilmen toward the waiting shuttle that held her biggest fear. The doors opened and the cyborgs entered in pairs, with Zorus at the lead.

  For some reason the councilmen stopped quickly inside and Megan thought she heard one of them utter a harsh curse. They moved forward again and Ice’s arm tensed under her fingers. She heard him mutter a four letter word and her gaze flew up to his. He stared at something ahead of them to the left. She had tall men blocking her view and didn’t see what captured their attention until they were almost in the center of the small cargo hold.

  Megan stared in horror at the far wall. One of the sex bots was naked, bound by her wrists pulled above her head, dangling a few feet from the floor, and her hair was gone. The now-bald bot blinked and as she turned her head to track the movement in the room, Megan got to see the back of its head from a side view. The rear plate of her skull was missing so her inner electronics were exposed. The bot’s lips moved but no sound came out. At that point Megan saw the other damage that had been done to the bot. Her artificial skin had been cut open in places on her thighs and down one side by her hip to expose her inner metal frame.

  “Oh my God,” Megan gasped. “What did they do to her?” She took a step toward the bot but Ice’s hand clamped down on her fingers, locking her to him, and kept her in place.

  “Quiet,” he whispered. “Mask your expressions now. They come.”

  She heard them before she could see them enter the room. She’d forgotten how heavy the Markus Models were with their metal interior frames and the resulting thumps their feet made on the cargo flooring as they drew closer. She had to inch away from Ice a little to see around the cyborgs in front of her but she couldn’t go far since Ice had her hand pinned on his arm with his fingers gripping her. Four androids walked into the cargo area single file and then lined up side by side to face their visitors.

  “Eerie,” a cyborg muttered behind Megan.

  She knew what he meant. The androids were exact replicas made from the same mold. If that wasn’t bad enough, they moved in synchronicity, each movement a mirror as they silently studied the four cyborg council members. Their heads turned at the same angles, their gazes locking on each male one at a time, and finally someone spoke.

  The councilman stepped forward a few feet and halted. “I’m Zorus. You requested asylum and we’re here to discuss the terms.” He glanced at the four artificially made men. “Are there more than four of you? Who is in charge?”

  “We all are in command,” they said in unison. “This is the number of our strength.”

  “Shit,” another cyborg whispered from behind Megan. “So much for Zorus thinking there are a bunch of models willing to stand up to Earth Government. I’m glad there’s not more of them. It’s creepy the way they talk together.”

  Megan understood that sentiment as well and the uneasiness his voice revealed. The defense hybrids were hive minded, obviously linked together, and working as one unit. They hadn’t been designed that way so it was something Megan surmised they’d changed in their own programming. She had a feeling that the council members were wishing they’d heeded her warning now as she watched Zorus take a step back from his potential new allies. He cleared his throat but before he could speak again, they did.

  “You brought programmer Megan Bellus with you. As one of our terms, we demand the threat destroyed.”

  Ice reacted first, before Megan’s stunned mind could translate that the machines wanted her killed. He released her and a heartbeat later put his body directly in front of hers. His hand reached for the weapon holstered to his belt and gripped it. A tall cyborg, a bald one, suddenly brushed against Megan’s arm, stepping forward to her side. Ice turned his head, met the cyborg’s gaze, and nodded.

  “Get her out of here if this turns bad, Coal,” he whispered.

  The big, bald cyborg nodded grimly and whispered back, “I’ll protect your female with my life.”

  Ice faced forward and moved to the right, putting himself in full view of the Markus Models. “We’re not going to kill Megan Bellus for you. Why would you ask that of us? She’s my wife and she’s not a threat. We brought her with us because she’s familiar with your kind. We wanted h