Perfect (3 page)

“Drew, we’ll figure it out,” Michael told me.
“We won’t let Yvonne take you away and you won’t let Yvonne take us
away.” He smiled a little shakily.

I smiled back but deep down I knew that I
would eventually have to say goodbye. There was no way they’d ever
be safe with me. The thought made my stomach hurt and almost
brought me to tears. But I knew I had to do it for them.

Chapter Three

The cabin was dark
and eerily quiet, the air still, cold and musty. Shadows danced
through the windows from the moonlight outside and I could hear the
irritating sound of a mosquito flying close by my ear. I swatted it
away and the sound lessened, but I knew it was still there. I
quietly drummed my fingers against the wooden floor beside me. As
an android, I didn’t need sleep. I could, of course, force myself
to fall asleep, but the thought made me feel vulnerable and uneasy.
Especially here.

Suddenly, a knock at the door startled me to
my feet from where I had been lying on the floor, and Michael and
Jessica rose from their half-sleep. I wasn’t sure exactly what time
it was. None of us had a watch. Michael and Jessica had always
shared a phone, much to Jessica’s chagrin, but it had been lost in
our dash from the creators. I knew it had to be at least nine or
ten in the evening. My heart thudded and I prayed it wasn’t a
creator. I tried to find my way across the room as I stumbled
toward the door.

“Drew?” a voice called and I breathed a sigh
of relief, stopping to think for a moment how crazy things were for
me to be relieved at the sound of Yvonne’s voice.

I walked over and turned the doorknob.

“Took you long enough,” she muttered and
walked inside. She dropped a plastic bag on the couch. “Brought you
more food.”

“Thanks,” I replied halfheartedly, feeling as
though we were merely an afterthought.

Jessica and Michael were half hidden by
darkness, watching her carefully.

“So anyway,” Yvonne went on. She walked over
to the couch to sit down, but changed her mind once she saw its
condition. She pursed her lips and frowned. “Hmm,” she murmured.
“Well. The reason I came here is because I’ve devised a plan.” She
smiled devilishly, her tone slightly excited, conniving.

I groaned inwardly. “What kind of plan?” I
asked cautiously, noting that she seemed way too pleased with
herself. It had to be something elaborate. And most likely
dangerous.

“To stop the creators,” she said with a tone
suggesting it was the obvious answer. “Well, not exactly stop them,
but at least to hamper them for awhile.” Her eyes danced.

“What’s your plan?” I asked.

“So, you know that their software, tools, and
models used to perfect people are controlled by their computers,”
she snorted. “Obviously.”

I nodded.

“I’m going to start a fire in the server room
at the Institution. That will basically disable all the computers
and slow down their ability to perfect more people,” she explained,
looking excited.

“But...a fire?” I asked, slightly confused.
“Isn’t that a little dangerous?”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t worry, Drew,” she
snapped. “We’ll be fine. Besides this is just a way to buy some
time until we figure out a better plan to really stop them.” She
smiled again.

“Huh,” I said, walking over to the couch and
letting it all sink in. It seemed like a pretty flimsy plan and I
doubted Yvonne was going to let us have a say in it. “And you’re
telling me this because you want my help?” I guessed.

She nodded. “All of you.” Her gaze darted to
Jessica and Michael briefly then back to me.

“And what do you want us to do?” I asked her
cautiously.

“Well, I have Jeremy and a few other androids
helping me with this, so it won’t be just us,” she assured me. “But
Jessica and Michael,” she stared them down and Jessica shrank back,
“I want to use as bait.” Her eyes danced as though Jessica’s
reaction was funny. She seemed pleased at their frightened
expressions.

Anger blazed within me as I watched her look
them over as though they were nothing more than cattle. I stood
quickly. “No, I’ll be bait if necessary—but not them.”

She glared at me and shook her head. “No. I
need you to hold off the guards. You’re an android. They aren’t
strong or fast or even smart.” I heard Jessica utter an angry cry
of complaint before Yvonne shot them a disgusted look. Michael held
her gaze and glared. “So all they’re good for is being bait,” she
finished.

I ignored her comment even though I was
seething. “What exactly will they be doing?”

“You stick them under the creators’ noses to
create a diversion then lead the creators on a wild goose chase,
leaving the computers free for me to damage,” she explained. “It’s
insanely simple. The creators aren’t exactly the brightest bulbs on
the planet.” She laughed and her nose wrinkled as she did so. “They
made the mistake in creating people who are smarter than they are.”
She shot me an amused, knowing look.

I watched her, trying to make sense of her
irritatingly vague explanation. “How can I be sure that Michael and
Jessica will be safe?” I pressed, trying to make my tone sound
intimidating, although I was sure I was failing miserably. Yvonne
had a way of climbing to the top of every conversation.

“They will be. Don’t worry,” Yvonne assured
me with a flick of her fingers. “All they need to do is lead the
creators around the corner of the door where you and a few other
androids will be waiting to knock them out. Like I told you, Drew,
it’s easy, simple, and fast. We’ll be out of there in no time at
all.”

“It doesn’t sound to me like you’ve thought
this through very well,” I commented warily, hoping she’d take the
hint.

She didn’t. “We’re stronger, faster, and
smarter than they are. What’s there to think about?” she asked
bluntly. Her dark eyes held my gaze, her eyebrows raised in
question. “I’m not exactly giving you a choice here,” she
added.

I stared back at her for a few seconds,
tension hanging in the air around us, and then I shrugged
unhappily. “Fine. As long as you ensure that they will be okay,” I
demanded through gritted teeth, although I basically felt like
strangling her.

“Yes, I already told you that. Everyone will
be fine.” She looked around the room at all of us, seeming annoyed.
“Okay. Well, I’ll be seeing you,” she said and headed for the door.
“Oh, by the way,” she added, as if just remembering. “We’re
performing my little plan tomorrow.”

I looked at her incredulously, my mouth
opening in shock. “What?” I asked in disbelief.

“Yep. I’ll be around at about five tomorrow
morning to get you guys.” She smiled. “See ya.” And with that she
closed the door behind her with an irritating creak.

I stared at the door in shock. “We haven’t
even talked about details,” I said to no one in particular, my
words dissolving in the silence around me. Anxiety and dread
clamped around my heart as I envisioned the many ways Yvonne’s plan
could go wrong.

“Ugh,” I heard Jessica moan, her tone whiny
and tilting upward, suggesting she was more afraid than she wanted
us to know. “She bugs me,” she said through clenched teeth, sitting
down on the couch.

I nodded. “Yeah. She’s kind of conceited,” I
said. “And rude. And selfish.”

Michael laughed. “Yeah, and there are
hundreds of other words we could use to describe her.”

“I’ll just stop there,” I said with a
grin.

“So, five in the morning,” Michael groaned
dolefully.

“Fun,” Jessica chimed in. She and Michael
exchanged worried glances before settling into their sleeping
places, and the light was turned out. But I didn’t sleep, the main
reason being because I didn’t need to. I barely needed any sleep at
all. I could go for a week without sleeping. Besides, I didn’t
think I could sleep even if I wanted to.

Instead, I sat there in the dark staring
ahead at nothing. Yvonne had better not let Jessica and Michael get
caught. But we really had no choice in the matter. I wanted to
scream with how frustratingly powerless we were. I squeezed my eyes
shut and hung my head, praying that God would keep Jessica and
Michael safe.

I opened my eyes and stared once again into
the darkness, thinking about the next day and what Yvonne would
make us do once this plan of hers was finished.

Chapter Four

I heard a car pulling
up the gravelly road and I stood from my spot on the floor. Through
the window, in the dim morning light, I recognized Yvonne climbing
out of the vehicle, her usual gray attire replaced with black
clothing. I walked over and gently shook Michael and Jessica
awake.

Yvonne rapped loudly on the door and I
hurried over to open it for her. “You guys ready to roll?” Yvonne
called as Michael and Jessica sat up sleepily. She rolled her eyes
upon seeing them, her somewhat cheery mood replaced by irritation.
“Wake up and get ready,” she said and headed for the car.

I pulled Jessica to her feet as Michael
clambered up from his position on the floor and stretched. I
grabbed their arms and pulled them toward the door and soon we were
in the car heading toward the Institution.

Jessica rubbed her eyes as the car swerved
down the road and although Michael was trying hard to hide it, I
could tell he was still half asleep. I couldn’t help noticing the
growing feeling of dread forming in my stomach as I stared out at
the buildings that whizzed by. Everything was familiar but
terrifying at the same time. The Institution was where I had been
created—lived my whole life—but now they wanted me dead and I was
walking right into their hands. What was I doing? Following
Yvonne’s orders, that’s what. I couldn’t help but be frustrated
with the stupidity of the situation.

Just then I noticed the Institution coming
into view and my stomach flipped. I swallowed and watched the
windows as Yvonne pulled the car into the back parking lot. In the
dim morning light, the Institution somehow looked more ominous and
cruel than it normally did. It struck me as odd how this could ever
have been my home. Yvonne turned the key and pulled it out, causing
the humming of the car to quiet and the freezing silence to
surround us. It only made my hair stand on end and my body shiver
with anxiety.

She turned around to look at us. “Okay. I
cannot
get caught doing this,” she said firmly, although she
didn’t sound doubtful. “I will lose my position and their trust.
Once I’m done starting the fire, I will stay here and act like I’ve
been here all morning. You guys will take this car back to the
house, pretending to steal it from me. Whatever happens, the
guards, even the ones we knock out, cannot see my face, Jeremy’s
face, or any of the others who are working with us. They can only
see you guys.”

“Okay,” I answered reluctantly, knowing that
this act would only make the creators hate me even more. Want me
even more. Try harder to capture me.

“It’s early, so there won’t be many androids
or creators roaming the halls. Just guards. And they’re easy to
take care of,” she said with a flick of her hair. “I know where the
guards are stationed and I’ll tell you when you need to do your
thing.” She unlocked the doors with a flip of a switch. “The key
will be lying on the driver’s seat,” she called back to us as she
stepped out of the vehicle.

My stomach churned from being nervous but I
followed her quickly toward the back door, Jessica, and Michael
right on my heels. Yvonne checked to see that no one was in the
hallway, swiped her key and then we walked right in. I was shocked
at how easy it was. My heart was beating so fast I thought it might
burst.

We hurried down the corridor, and hearing our
footsteps echoing eerily through the building made me all the more
nervous. Yvonne slowed to a stop and turned to me. “Around the
corner up there,” she whispered, “will be a guard. You take him out
and we’ll follow.” She gave me a light but firm push.

After shooting her an exasperated look, I
hurried ahead. I peered around the corner and, sure enough, there
was a guard. He turned sharply around when he heard me approaching,
but he didn’t have time to react before I had hit him over the
head. He fell to the ground with a thud as Yvonne, Jessica, and
Michael appeared. Jessica looked close to fainting. Her skin was
pale and slightly green.

Yvonne sprinted to the lead once again and we
soon entered an elevator. As soon as the metal doors shut behind
us, Yvonne punched in a floor level and it began to rise. “Outside
the door will be another guard,” she said to me. “I will be hiding
off to the side while you take care of him,” she said and moved
over so she would be hidden by the side of the wall. Her gaze never
left mine.

The elevator dinged startlingly loud once we
had reached the level, and the doors quickly slid away. A guard was
standing outside, just as Yvonne had predicted. When he saw me his
eyes widened and he began to raise a gun. But he didn’t get a
chance to shoot, for I hit him like I had the other guard, before
the gun had even been directed at me. He was out cold. I wanted to
snap at Yvonne that she was just wasting this chance on a stupid
plan that would only hamper the creators for a limited time. After
today, the guards would most likely be replaced by androids. It
would never be this easy again.

We hurried out of the elevator and were met
at the end of the hallway by Jeremy and a few other androids I
recognized from the years I had lived here. They smiled at me
briefly but uncertainly, as if they were afraid of association with
me. I wondered what the creators had told them about me. I wondered
how much they had exaggerated—lied—and painted the story to their
advantage.

“Security systems have been shut off,
including cameras.” Jeremy told Yvonne in a hushed whisper. “There
are a few others downstairs guarding the entrance to the elevator.
They’ll warn us if anyone comes up.”