The Girl Who Dared to Stand (The Girl Who Dared #2)(12)

“We have to shut it off,” Quess added, cutting off whatever response I was trying to form. “Where is your terminal?”

“No, wait, you can’t shut me off!” Scipio said, his eyes widening in alarm.

I turned to the others. “I really don’t think that’s a good idea,” I said urgently. “He was really worried about this before—he sounded really scared.”

“He’s programmed for self-preservation,” Quess said, already beginning his search. “He can lie!”

“I’m not lying about this,” Scipio cut in, disappearing from my side and reappearing next to Quess’s. Quess jumped sideways, scattering a few objects on the desk to the ground, and gave him a glare promising death.

Scipio ignored it. “I will die if you turn the terminal off. My programming will be eradicated.”

“It will?” I asked, alarmed, and he nodded.

“To the Wastes with that!” Quess exclaimed, giving me an incredulous look. “He’s a program! He won’t die if we shut him off! Liana, he’s a liar, and he’s dangerous!”

“No, I’m not any of those things,” Scipio insisted, raising his hands peacefully. “I’ve never hurt anyone, not once. It’s against my programming. Please, Liana, don’t let them shut me off.”

He looked at me, his eyes pleading, and I could feel his fear. “Quess, I don’t think you should do that,” I said, turning back to the man. I heard books start to hit the floor behind me, and realized Grey had joined the search for the terminal. “Please, I think he’s different than the Scipio that’s in the Core.”

Quess paused and looked up at me. “Liana, I was in IT. There is only one Scipio in the whole Tower.”

“No,” I said insistently. “He said he’s the first version—the one the Scipio in the Core is based on.”

The look Quess gave me was so full of exasperation that I felt the urge to smack him before he began explaining to me exactly how wrong I was.

“I cannot believe we are having this discussion! You defied the Tower in more ways than I can count, first by springing your boyfriend, and then your best friend and her boyfriend. You took prisoners from them who were marked for death, and you pretty much broke every rule and law in the Tower. Plus, you know things that people have died over. You’re Scipio’s enemy number one, lady, the villain of the day, and he will do anything to keep you right where he wants you so that he can kill you!”

I clenched my fists to bite back a frustrated growl. “You don’t understand. This Scipio is different—”

“Quess said it, and now I’m saying it,” Grey thundered angrily. “I’m not sure why you’re being so stubborn about this, but he needs to be turned off. Now.” More books hit the floor, punctuating his angry statement, and I bit back another snappish report. I needed to remain level-headed if I was going to gain control and get them to stop long enough to listen.

“Liana, tell your friends to stop, or I will be forced to defend myself.”

Scipio’s announcement ended with the sudden buzz of an electrical charge, and I saw threads of white power beginning to form on the floor, dancing only a few paces away from us. As one, we turned to face the glowing man, who was staring at us with deadly promise in his eyes.





4





“You’re bluffing,” Quess said quietly, eyeing Scipio’s glowing figure. “The floor is non-conductive. It’s covered in fabric, for God’s sake.”

“I assure you, I am not bluffing.” Scipio met Quess’s gaze head on, his entire posture poised in challenge. “The fabric—which is called a carpet—was woven with metal filaments. Lionel wanted to make sure I could defend myself. If I activate it, I will release five thousand volts of electricity into the floor, and knock you out almost instantly. If I keep it on for too long, your heart will give out and you will die. While I am in sore need of company, I’ll not have that company murdering me.”

There was a long pause, during which the two of them stared at each other, each daring the other to make some sort of move. I held my breath as I watched. I considered jumping in, but I had faith that Quess and Grey would start to notice the same things I had. They were both smart, both compassionate. They just had to listen. Well, had to choose to, anyway.

“You’re being ridiculous!” Quess practically shouted. “Shutting you off won’t kill you! You’ll just be… off. You’ll come back the instant anyone turns you back on.”

“No, I won’t. And don’t accuse me of being ridiculous just because you don’t know all the variables of the equation.”

“What are the variables?” I interjected, forestalling whatever retort Quess was in the process of forming. I wanted to know why Scipio was so adamant about not having his power shut off, and why he thought it would kill him. But more than that, I wanted to give Quess and Grey time to see what I saw, if only so they could help me figure out what was going on here. I was certain this Scipio was different for one reason over all the others: he had given Quess the opportunity to stop before electrocuting him. The Scipio in the Core would never do that.

Scipio finally broke his eye contact with Quess, moving his gaze to mine. “It’s easier if I just show you. But you have to promise not to shut off my main terminal.”