Stanley Duncan's Robot: Genesis David III (english reading book .TXT) 📖

shot out from his left hand — his finger was broken.

“Let’s get you and me fixed up,” said Michaels. They went and got immediate treatment.

“Tin-can scum,” said Michaels as the android nurse injected a mixture of nanites and fuse into his hand. “I thought he was pure human until he launched that attack on me at super-human speed. Had I known, I would have lit him up the moment I came in.”

Dan said nothing, watching as his hand was instantly healed. He had refused the fuse.

“Thank you for helping out back there. That was quite the move you made.”

“You’re welcome,” said Dan.

“Ever think about joining the force? We could use good men like you.” Michaels scanned Dan’s body. “Strong bodied and strong willed, not afraid to take risks. Willing to protect his fellow man.”

“I’ve thought about my role as a protector.”

“Well, if you want to make a difference, come down to the station sometime.” He put forward his healed hand. “Michaels.”

“Dan. Dan Duncan.”

Stanley stood on the blood-free carpet and watched Glenda and Dan slowly make their way upstairs. “Thank goodness you’re both safe.”

Her hand crept forward. “For crying out loud, Stanley. It was just a little scratch.”

“A little scratch? Glenda, you nearly died. You need to be more careful.”

“I’m ninety-two years old. Waking up in the morning is what surprises me.”

Dan shrugged, a sly smile creeping across his face.

Stanley dug his foot into the carpet. “I’m sorry about Boots. He was a great cat.”

“I’ll miss him.” Her eyes reddened until two streams of tears, in typical Glenda fashion, slowly ambled along the moguls of her face.

“Of course,” said Dan.

Stanley felt sick to his stomach. He needed to say something. “I’ve placed his body in my freezer — I still can’t believe he’s gone.”

Glenda stretched her bony hands forward to open the door. “His death was tragic, but he lived a good life.”

“And you still have Mittens,” said Dan.

Stanley shrugged. “But Boots would still be here if she’d have kept him indoors.”

“I could never shut him away like that. He’s an outdoor cat. That would be imprisoning him.”

“No, you’d be protecting him. I can only imagine what other horrible things that demon-cat has done, let alone what other dangers lurk beyond our doors.”

Glenda pierced Stanley with her eyes. “Outside, Boots may have been exposed to traffic, scary dogs, and whatever it was that killed him, but it was the life he needed to live. And I loved him enough to let go. If I kept him locked inside, I would have been the one killing him.”

“Let me get this straight. You’re going to let Mittens go outside after what happened?”

“If that’s what he wants.”

Stanley was furious. The outside world was dangerous — why couldn’t she see that? “Glenda, that’s horrible.”

“What’s horrible is people not minding their own business.”

“I love Mittens, and I don’t want to see him hurt.”

She shrugged him off.

“I hope you will reconsider.” It was all Stanley could do to excuse himself from the conversation. Inside the condo, he and Dan caught each other up on what had happened. Stanley was too ashamed to say what he had done to protect Dan. He had kept him completely in the dark about the threats.

“There was a strange error when I got scanned,” said Dan, his hands by his sides. “But besides that, not much happened.”

“S-scanned? No, please tell me you didn’t do that.”

“Okay, I didn’t.”

“Yeah, but, you just said you did.”

“The machine wasn’t working, so whatever it is that you’re worried about — just forget it.”

Stanley wasn’t buying it. There was something off about Dan. As he quickly analyzed his body, he figured out what was tripping his senses and pointed toward Dan’s hand. “And what happened here?”

Dan reddened and stepped backward, sheepishly tucking his arms behind his back. “What?”

“Come on.”

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s not ‘nothing.’ You go out for a few hours, and you’ve already changed how you dress. Imagine what else could happen.”

Dan’s arms relaxed to his side. “So, you like the new look?”

Stanley shook his head.

“So, hey: The supermarket Frank manages is right down the street.”

“Uh, huh.”

Excitement burned in Dan’s eyes. “Super walkable.”

“They probably get a lot of foot traffic.”

Dan grinned. “And we’ve got lovely feet.”

“Which I’m going to park right over there and relax for the rest of the day.” Stanley walked toward the sofa and turned on the TV, which played advertisements for fuse. For a brief moment, he wondered what it would be like to forget everything and fuse out for a while. Soak in that ocean of bliss. He thought back to his bottle of whiskey in the cabinet, which was as far as he was willing to go. Any more than that and he would be skipping out on his punishment. After a day like today, a nightcap would sure take the edge off.

Dan practically leapt up to the cushion next to him. “Aren’t you curious as to what caused the cat to go haywire? We could solve this mystery together — what better way to show the world what you’ve created.”

“Nope. Not interested. It’s none of my business.” Stanley thought about the code on his computer, a few clicks away from pushing it to the server and giving everyone in the world a do-it-yourself assassin.

“What! Glenda’s cat is dead because of what happened.”

“And we’re alive because we keep to ourselves.”

“You’ve done a great job protecting me, Stanley.”

“That’s right. I won’t let anything happen to you.” But the truth was, he had done practically nothing. If Dan hadn’t been there, Stanley and Glenda would have been killed. If there were going to be more attacks, he needed to be able to protect the people he cared about. He went over to his computer and ordered a few components to make a weapon, marking the delivery as “urgent.”

Dan followed him like a puppy. “But you have to admit, it was pretty interesting what Glenda had to say about her cats.”

“Don’t start!”

Dan sighed. “I wish we could do more.”

Stanley could feel his disappointment as