Freak of Nature - By Julia Crane Page 0,7
going to the obstacle course,” he finally answered.
When he turned back around to face her, he found she hadn’t moved. Not even an inch. Her unflinching, impassive face just stared at him as he shrugged into his jacket. What had they done?
He longed to see something human from her, but all he got was that familiar blank stare. He wasn’t sure why he hoped he’d one day see something different. It wasn’t like she could think for herself or even feel. Not after all they had done to her. He missed the days before the upgrades. Early on, he’d wondered if she would be able to keep part of her personality, but it was soon obvious they had stripped any remaining spark out entirely.
They drove in silence deep into the woods. He longed to talk to her, but he had no idea what to say. A flash of lightning illuminated the sky filled with grey clouds. Lucas thought the whole thing was a horrible idea, but they needed to know if the elements would affect the project. They had already done a shower test, and she’d come through that fine, but they needed to see if the wind and rain would affect her abilities. If she shorted out, it would be a potential nightmare on a contract job. He zipped his jacket and jumped out of the Jeep, then rushed around to open Kaitlyn’s door, but she had already exited the vehicle.
He hoped she didn’t short circuit and get hurt. He felt a sudden urge to turn around and tell Professor Adams he wanted nothing to do with this craziness anymore. But doing so would mean leaving her to the Professor and Dr. Harrington. He couldn’t do that. He felt this overwhelming need to protect her, which was ironic since he had played a huge part in turning her into a cyborg.
Frustrated, he ran his hands through his wet hair and glanced over at Kaitlyn. He watched for any sign that the weather was affecting her mechanics. She stood still and ready in nothing more than miniscule running shorts and a tank top. Sexy as hell.
She didn’t appear bothered by the cold; all systems must have been working, her body adapting and regulating her temperature as needed. Lucas, on the other hand, was wet and freezing and longed to put his arms around her and force warmth—or maybe humanity?—into her.
In that outfit, it was obvious that large sections of her body no longer contained skin. Patches of transparent teal plastic displayed the parts of her body where humanity and technology merged. They could have designed her body to look more normal, at least to the naked eye, but Harrington had wanted it to be obvious she wasn’t human. Lucas thought it was pure arrogance.
Thankfully, her face was untouched, and the sections were strategically placed so they could be covered up if needed. Lucas pulled the stopwatch out of his jacket pocket and hit the start button. “Go,” he yelled.
She took off like a rocket. She had run this course so many times that she could probably do it in her sleep. He never tired of watching her.
Lucas stared, mesmerized, as she catapulted over the log walls and shimmied down the rope obstacle. His heart caught in his throat when she jumped from one log to the next, and she lost her footing in the rain, spiraling down towards the ground. At the last second, she lunged forward with inhuman agility and grace to grab a rope that swayed in the wind. It should have been a nearly impossible feat, but somehow she managed, and all without breaking a sweat.
She truly was a magnificent creation. Lucas felt his heart swell, partly with pride that he helped build her, but mostly with admiration.
A cold chill ran down his spine, and he was quickly as troubled as the stormy skies as he caught himself thinking of her as a thing he made, rather than a young woman that once was human.
Twenty minutes later, Kaitlyn barreled towards him in a full sprint, her feet sliding in the mud as she came to a stop. He clicked the stop button, and wiped the rain off the screen. A slow smile spread across his face. The recent upgrades had decreased her time by a full two minutes.
“Are you okay?” Lucas asked. “Did you feel anything short out?”
She stared back at him with her vacant, haunted stare. “I’m fine.”
“Let’s get you back inside so you can get