STRATEGIC BEHAVIOR (REVISING)

CHAPTER 12: MORTALS

There were lights in the windows of neighboring houses when the trio arrived home. As Skylar dragged from the van and trudged inside, she glanced over her shoulder at the glistening city. It was almost unrecognizable. Now thousands populated the secret installation, including a vulnerable number of children. A shudder passed through her. When Norma touched her hand, Skylar met her friend's weary gaze, which seemed to say, "Saving the world can wait." She closed the door.

"Hungry?" Magnum asked.

"Starving. Mind if I sit this cooking session out?" Norma mumbled, heading to the living room.

"No problem. Get some rest."

Skylar followed Norma, but the AI's casual stride to the kitchen drew her attention to his broad muscular back and his narrow hips. She lifted a brow and slid her eyes elsewhere. Settling on the couch, she lolled her head on a mountain of pillows until Norma broke the silence.

"You can tell me you told me so," her friend said quietly.

Staring at the ceiling, Skylar bubbled a laugh. "Not even my vivid imagination could've dreamed up what a shitshow this would turn out to be... but you were right, too." She confronted the anxious wreck across from her. "Magnum has his benefits. I'm not saying I'm completely won over, but he's not the what concerns me at the moment."

"Right. What are they not telling us about this project?" Norma pursed her lips.

"They're not telling us anything about this project," Skylar pointed out. She watched Magnum with meal prep, but her mind was on the news report and its troubling implications. Mr. Betts or someone on the board of directors had orchestrated a grim cover story to explain the disappearance of Norma and the students of Dillwyn.

The frown lines creasing Norma's face said the tech mogul understood her former life was irretrievable. Still, wiping a known government fugitive like Dr. Black from existence was nothing. Kidnapping a hundred kids? That was unthinkable.

"I agree with Dr. Lacasse," Skylar continued after a beat. "Our primary mission is to identify the threat Project Eutopia poses. Then, we shut down the experiment." She gestured for emphasis, although Norma shook her head in disagreement.

"What if I can't? Realistically, I don't have weapons or troops. I'm not prepared for a full-scale attack should the board get wind of rebellion. If I fail, there's no relief coming for the innocent people trapped within this barrier. People will be killed." The tech mogul's voice cracked.

Tears spilled that couldn't be blinked away. A fine tremor seized her fingers when she tried to dash them. She hid her hands between her thighs and visibly fought to compose herself. But Skylar had never seen her like this. Hypothetical failure loomed in both their nightmares. Yet, while Sky was always one to catastrophize, Norma had always exhibited self-assurance. Raw vulnerability was unexplored frontier.

"Come here," Skylar whispered. "You're not alone in this. You have me and—"

Magnum left the kitchen but detoured to the basement. Skylar paused, wondering where he was going. He promptly returned with two glasses of wine. She chided herself for not putting a modicum of faith in him. Hadn't he proven he took seriously the job of protecting them? Expelling a breath, she refocused on Norma.

"You have us. After all, you didn't upgrade that hunk of biological spare parts just for his physique, did you?" She grinned, and Norma gave a twinge of a smile. "His expertise is the art of war. What's your take, Magnum?"

He shrugged, returning to the stove. "We know our objective. What are our obstacles? Confinement, incomplete intelligence, and heavy surveillance. Another, which you considered in my regard, though not as it relates to the remaining AI units, is the possibility of override."