Reborn: Book 1 The McKensie Chronicles

Chapter 5

As I turned to go up the slight incline toward my home the hair on the back of my neck stood up. This newcomer who called himself Connor was clearly not human, nor even biological that I could tell. He was not showing any signs of cold despite the fact that his clothes were frozen sheets crackling from the water turned to ice crumbling and shifting as he moved. Further, he had a wary, almost predatorial look in his eyes that made me feel like I was being hunted. I knew I was taking a risk by inviting him to my home, and because of it, I was on high alert. My senses let me know where he was and how he was moving despite the fact he was behind me. Dan and Anne fell back instinctively, sensing my apprehension. As always with my two wolves, I could almost see what they were seeing. I attributed it to how close we'd become as a family.

For his part, Connor simply began walking up the hill with me. He remained just within my peripheral vision but was wary of me for some unknown reason. "It will be daylight soon; the first sunrise should start in half an hour or so." I began making conversation. "I'll put some breakfast on for us, assuming you eat the same kinds of food humans can eat."

"I can eat" Connor began in a casual voice that should have hidden the wariness I felt in him as he spoke. "But I am an Android, and technically do not require it. I imagine food is scarce since it's winter so you should save your stores for yourself."

I stopped walking for a moment to turn and look at him. "Well, that explains why you aren't passing out from hypothermia yet. OK then, I'll fix something up for me and the pups. Later today we can go harvest the rest of that bear. There's no sense in letting it go to waste. "I said while turning back to resume walking the few hundred meters we had left to get to my little cabin.

After a few more paces Connor sighed exasperatedly.

"What?" I asked when I heard Connor sigh.

"Nothing," he said aloud. Yet I somehow knew he was fighting an internal battle. I could almost hear his thoughts. It was as if not one, but two visitors were walking with me, and they were opposed as to how to handle the situation they found themselves in.

We walked the remaining distance in silence, each wary of the other; each hopeful that things would work out positively. I wondered where this android man came from. He seemed to spend the time sizing me up as if I might be an opponent in a fight.

As we neared the cabin, I could hear Caleb calling out to me. "McKinsey!! You really need to know who you look like before you go greeting someone from another world."

"OK Caleb," I said in an exasperated tone, "Tell me then, who do I look like?"

"Um, who's Caleb?" Connor said as I reached for the latch that held the door firmly closed.

"My AI friend who resides in my palm tablet. Didn't you hear him as we walked up?" Pulling the door open I heard Caleb respond before Connor could reply.

"You are the same model, the original actually, as the person who led your kind to war against Viagenetics, and later the whole Galactic Alliance. Her name was..."

"Colonel Alice Winters" Connor interrupted. "So, you were apparently having this conversation when I landed, and you were resuming it when we got back?"

"Yes, didn't you hear him as we walked up? Caleb can be quite loud when he thinks I am ignoring him."

"That is because you WERE ignoring me, Kinsey. One day it's going to get you hurt."

Wait." Connor said. "I didn't hear anything when we walked up, and I have EXCELLENT hearing."

"Then you'd better get your microphones, or whatever you call the pickup device checked because..." Caleb cut me off.