Page 49 of Kiss of Fury

“And what exactly is the context?”

“I didn’t have a choice.”

“You didn’t have a choice whether or not to murder people?” She snorted.

“Does a soldier on the battlefield have a choice whether or not to kill the enemy? If he objects and walks away, he’ll be court-martialedfor desertion and imprisoned.”

Her lip curled. “You’re saying you were battling the enemy, and if you had objected, you would have been imprisoned.”

“I would have been executed. I killed people the government deemed enemies of the state, and when I did walk away, I was captured and slated for destruction. Steel and I were locked in containment pods headed for incineration on Hell’s Gate when an electronic surge deactivated our immobilizer bands. We took an evac pod and came to Refuge.”

She blinked, her softening face offering the first sign of hope. Then she crossed her arms. “They just let you in? It doesn’t work that way.”

“They let me in because I had been preapproved for asylum and had already applied to Cosmic Mates. I’d been planning my escape for a while—it just hadn’t gone according to plan.” He leaned forward. “Can I please start at the beginning?”

She shrugged a shoulder. “Fine.”

“Solutions owned me—and I don’t mean metaphorically. The government classifies cyborgs in the same category as robots. We are considered property like a house bot or a hovercar. My DNA is human, and I am mostly organic but modified by nano technology. I wasn’t born; I emerged from a gestation vat as a mature adult.” Something flickered in her eyes, but he wasn’t sure what.

“Solutions is a fixer for the government. They’re a pseudo-private company the deep state hires when legal remedies have failed or when they prefer not to seek legal redress. Solutions allows the political elite to keep their hands clean. The cyborg line was developed to manage pesky governmental problems, but Solutions is allowed to contract with private individuals for the layer of protection it affords.Solutions looks like an independent company, giving the government plausible deniability.

She dropped her crossed arms. “Are you implying the government hires Solutions to kill people?”

“I’m not implying it. I’m stating it. That’s what’s happening. If there’s a terrorist leader the government needs executed, and the military can’t do it, Solutions handles it. Drug cartel leaders. Gang members. Coyotes and smugglers. Suspected serial killers and pedophiles. Guilty people acquitted of heinous offenses or suspected of crimes the government can’t prove in court. Haven’t you noticed how murder and robbery rates drop right before an election involving an incumbent? Solutions eliminates the recidivist offenders. The crime rate goes down, and the incumbent claims credit for successful law-and-order policies.”

“But those deaths would be reported as murders.”

“Not if the bodies vanish. Not if they’re shipped to Hell’s Gate. The individuals I targeted were murderers, drug runners, and homegrown and foreign terrorists.”

“The world is better off without those people,” she said.

He could have left it at that, but he’d promised honesty and transparency.

“Mostly,” he said. “No one would argue the death of a murderous cartel member or a child rapist is a great tragedy. If I could have been certain all my targets were irredeemable, vile criminals, I might have made a different decision. But between guilt and innocence lies a vast gray area of uncertainty and mitigating factors, and where do you draw the line? How bad is too bad to be allowed to live? And, most importantly,whogets to draw the line? What are the motives of the person drawing that line?

“The deep state and Solutions circumvent the laws and the legal process for their own aims. I began to doubt the accuracy of the dossiers I received, wondering if the individuals were guilty of the crimes they were accused of. However, we were not allowed to ask questions. Did I kill innocent people?” He took a breath. She did the same. Her lips parted as she waited for him to answer his own question.

“Maybe. Probably. Were they paragons of virtue? No. But I suspect some of them were framed.”

“You couldn’t leave? You couldn’t just say, I quit?”

“And go where? Solutionsownedme. If I’d left, they would have hunted me down. If the authorities found me, they’d return me to the company. Solutions would have eliminated me—which is what they tried todo when I did leave. Besides the fact that I was legally their property, I knew too much about their operations. Solutions and the government can’t risk exposure.”

“And the Chicago massacre?”

“That was a political hit. Mayor Lyttle did or didn’t do something and ran afoul of the political machinery, so they took her out. There was only one cyborg involved. Either he was ordered to execute everyone in her office to set an example, or he got caught killing her and tried to clean up, but witnesses got away.

“When I caught wind of the massacre, I ran. I couldn’t stomach any more.” He wiped his hand across his mouth. “I longed for what everyone else—everyone human—had, or seemed to have—a normal life, a home, freedom, but most of all, love. I wanted to be loved. To love someone in return.” He glanced at her. He couldn’t read her expression.

“I am sorry I didn’t tell you the truth. Passing as human was the only way to get sanctuary. And then you came, and you had Brody, and you were so protective of him. I tried to tell you, but I chickened out. I’m so sorry.”

Elbows on the table, he rested his forehead against his palms. There was nothing more he could say,except for one thing. “I love you, Verity. I love Brody. I would never do anything to hurt either of you. I have no right to ask, but please don’t leave me.”

The chair scraped against the floor.She’s leaving.He squeezed his eyes shut, unable to watch her go. He waited for the sound of the door, a blast of cold air, but instead felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up.

“I love you.” She settled on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I want you to come home.”

“Really?”

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