Genomorph

Chapter 33

CHAPTER 33

Gretchen entered the room where Ryan was working on the modified control program carrying a tray piled high with food. He did not even stir as she set it down on the table behind him.

“Mr. Ryan, you must eat,” Gretchen said.

Ryan turned, a smile coming to his face. He had been working on the program for nine days, and Gretchen had kept him well supplied with caffeine and sugar, as well as more substantial food, but this was the first time she had ever spoken. She had a lovely, soft alto with just the barest hint of an accent.

“Thank you, Gretchen, you’re right,” he said. “I could use a break. Would you join me?”

“I really should get back to my duties,” Gretchen said, blushing.

“I’m sure Amanda wouldn’t mind if you kept me company for a bit,” Ryan said. “I’d really like to have someone other than my computer to talk with for a while. And please, you can drop the mister and just call me Ryan.”

“All right…Ryan, I would like very much to stay for a while,” Gretchen smiled shyly.

Ryan thought she had the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. He stepped over to the small table and sat down, eying the food hungrily. Gretchen moved to serve him and he held up a hand.

“Please, you’re on a break,” he said. “I can dish out my own food. Have a seat.”

Gretchen sat in the chair opposite him, her posture very straight and proper. Ryan realized sadly that while she had come far from the girl Amanda had taken in, she still had a long way to go. In effect, she had replaced one type of programming with another; from sexual servant to domestic servant. Now she hid behind that programming.

“If I may be so bold, you are working too hard,” Gretchen said hesitantly. “You never leave this room. The grounds are lovely, and I find that taking walks helps me to relax.”

“That sounds nice,” Ryan smiled. “Would you take a walk with me later on?”

“I…I could not,” Gretchen stammered. “I have much work to do.”

“I guess I’m not the only one who works too hard.” Ryan grinned.

“It…it is hard for me, Ryan,” Gretchen said softly. “I know Mrs. Breton told you where she found me…what I was. Even after all this time…I am never far from that place.”

Ryan’s eyes softened and he almost reached out to take her hand, but somehow knew it was too soon for that. Instead he said, “I can’t begin to imagine what you went through, and I would do anything in my power to make those memories go away. I don’t have a lot of friends, but I would like to be yours, Gretchen.”

“I … I would like that too, Ryan.”

*****

Gary Rand was an old friend of Melissa’s father who ran a gun shop and indoor shooting range that drew a lot of business from law enforcement. Melissa had introduced Brandi to Gary when she had asked about gun shops a few weeks earlier. In addition to selling guns Gary was also a gunsmith and did custom work, and Brandi had talked with him at length about getting some special work done.

Security was something that concerned Brandi a great deal, with good reason. While the people that were pursuing her were technically government agents, they operated outside the law. The very fact that they had held her in the Nevada lab and were pursuing her now that she had left was a violation of the law; she had done nothing wrong and had in fact fulfilled the agreement she had signed before she was transformed. That the machine had done something unexpected was irrelevant; she had demonstrated that she was no threat and several of the scientists had said the same.

Still, that would not stop them from trying to force her back, and they would not hesitate to hurt or use those she had become close to. She was not worried about herself, but Melissa and Karen were another story, so a few weeks earlier she had asked them how they felt about guns.

“My dad’s guns are in the closet in my room,” Melissa had told her. “They’re registered in my name now. I’ve fired them before; he took me to the range several times when I was younger. They haven’t been used in several years though.”

“I have no problem with guns,” Karen had said. “I’ve never touched one in my life but I understand that they are not inherently evil. I’ve just never had a reason to touch one before.”

The next day Brandi and Melissa had gone to see Gary, taking her father’s pistols with them. He had used a pair of Colt Python revolvers; one with a four inch barrel as his service weapon and a second with a two and a half inch barrel as a back up and concealment piece. They were in good shape and well maintained but had been sitting in a case for over two years. Brandi had asked Gary to give them a full check and make any repairs necessary, and then had talked with him for some time about a special order.

It had only taken a few days to get the Pythons back into pristine condition, and in the three weeks since then they had returned to Gary’s regularly, using his indoor range. Brandi worked with Melissa and Karen on becoming familiar with the revolvers, loading them with thirty-eight special rather than full magnum loads so they could become comfortable with them. She had also encouraged them both to apply for concealed weapons permits so that they could carry them when they were away from home.

Brandi had been pleased that her skill with weapons had improved just as her hand to hand combat skills had. It was not surprising, but she had been uncertain as to just how much better she would be. Mercer had never allowed her to have any contact with weapons of any kind in the Nevada lab, probably because he feared she would try to escape.

~ A lot of good that did them. ~

They drove to Gary’s in Brandi’s newly purchased car. She had wanted to get something practical, along the lines of Melissa’s Escape hybrid, with good cargo capacity and fuel economy, so that if they had to run they could load up and go.

She had ended up with a bright red Pontiac Solstice convertible. The little sports car had just been so adorable and sexy and she had just known that she would look absolutely hot driving around in it. It was impractical at best, and yet on another level it was perfectly within the character she presented to the world. A girl like her looked much more natural behind the wheel of a sports car than an SUV.

“We can use yours if we have to bug out,” she had told Melissa sheepishly when she brought the car home. “What can I say ... I’m just programmed that way.”

Brandi had become far more comfortable with the behavior that was programmed into her. Fighting it only led to stress, and a stressed out Genomorph tended to break things. She dressed like a sexy girl and even enjoyed it, though Melissa often had to rein in her more risqué selections. It wasn’t that she minded the way Brandi dressed; in fact she loved that her girlfriend was not afraid to show off her body. But she knew that there was still that last bit of behavior that Brandi was struggling with; her attraction to men, and dressing too provocatively would only make them notice her more. It was not like Brandi actually tried to dress sensually either; I fact the opposite was true. When Brandi had first been transformed and escaped the lab, she had thought about her appearance constantly and dressed to hide it. Now, she tended to dress without thinking about how she looked, and her programmed nature led to her dressing in a way to best display herself. Usually all it took was a raised eyebrow from Melissa and she would correct her look.

Being with Melissa helped her deal with her desires a lot, but it was getting harder. Brandi knew it was only a matter of time before she succumbed. As for her flashy car and dress, well, she thought of it as hiding in plain sight when she gave it any thought at all. If the people looking for her were around, they would have in mind the frightened, insecure girl from the lab who tried as hard as she could not to be a girl. They would be unlikely to think the hot blonde in the flashy red sports car was the fugitive they were looking for.

She silently thanked Ryan Sanders again for the identity he had constructed for her. Her credit history was spotless and that had smoothed the transaction. Her paying cash for the car had smoothed it even more.

~ You get at least two big wet kisses when I see you Ryan, ~ Brandi thought with a grin. And who knew, by then she may be over that last hurdle and he could get a lot more. Ryan was a geek, but he was a really cute geek.

Of course she would not even have the car were it not for the money from Amanda Breton. The trust fund provided her with a monthly allowance that more than covered her expenses, and she could access larger sums for major purchases, like buying the car. She had already replaced the cash she had spent from the ten thousand Susan had provided her, and added more to it. They now had twenty-five thousand dollars in cash hidden in the condo in case they had to run. In addition, each of their vehicles had a ‘bug out’ kit in it, which included an additional five thousand dollars, so they could make a getaway without ever having to return to the house if necessary. She had also given Melissa and Karen the information necessary to access the numbered account should something happen and they became separated. Should the worst happen and they had to flee while they were separated, Amanda had provided them with the location of a secluded house in the mountains north of Los Angeles where they could meet and regroup.

She thought of all the people in her life now; Susan, the Admiral, Mrs. Breton, Arnie and now Melissa and Karen. How could she survive without them? And how had she been so fortunate, with so much arrayed against her? What about the connection to Brandon? Amanda, Susan, Arnie and even Melissa…all people whom Brandon had crossed paths with and saved. It certainly did seem that fate was working overtime in her life.

“Do you believe in fate Melissa?” Brandi asked as they drove to Gary’s shop.

“I believe you are fated to get a ticket if you don’t slow down.” Melissa told her. Brandi grinned and dropped her speed down from sixty to the posted forty-five.

“Sorry, some of the old me is still there.” She giggled. “I always was an adrenaline junky.”

“Now to answer your question, yes I believe there is such a thing as fate.” Melissa said. “I believe there is something out there, something greater than us, that subtly guides us. Why do you ask?”

“Just thinking...” Brandi said growing quiet. The wind was whipping her hair back and in her mirrored shades, tight jeans and low cut blouse, Melissa had to admit that this was the perfect car for her. She looked like she belonged in a music video.

“So much has happened to me, and I thought I was in control, but now I wonder.” Brandi continued. “Someone or something was looking out for me during my carefully planned escape. If they hadn’t been, I’d be locked up in that hell hole in Nevada right now.

“And even before then, there are so many people that through some strange twist of fate crossed Brandon’s path at just the right time, you especially. If I hadn’t been on that beach in San Diego to pull you out of the water….I can’t even think about what my life would be like now.”

“You are in control Brandi.” Melissa said. “You control your destiny. Fate is what life hands us; sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s bad. Destiny is what we make of it; and I believe that some people, those that have the capability to handle it, get handed more by fate, so that they can forge a greater destiny. Fate put all of those people in your path, but you made the choices, you took action and you set the course of your destiny.”

“That still puts a lot on me then.” Brandi said.

“Yes it does.” Melissa admitted.

“Good. I don’t like being controlled.” Brandi said, and then flashed one of her sunburst smiles. “Gently nudged in the right direction from time to time I can tolerate.”