E.R.I.C. (The Almost Series Book 2) Read Online Free

carpeting. The walls were mirrored and de-silvering. We stepped inside and a retina reader scanned Dr. Cole. She pressed floor zero. We descended quickly, stopping abruptly.
    The doors opened on marble floors. The walls were decorated with crown molding and chair rails. There was a formal dining room and sitting area. We stepped inside. To my left, a bedroom and to my right, a recreational room.
    Amie frowned. “This is your new living quarters.”
    “I won’t live in here.”
    Dr. Cole frowned. “You don’t have an option.”
    “I won’t live in this cage. You’re setting me up for failure.”
    “I’ve already sent orders to have your P.O.P transferred to these living quarters.”
    I shook my head. “No, leave him in my old room. I’m not staying here to die. If I have to fight for my life, I’d rather do it my own room.”
    “There’s one modification to this room that no other S.H.A.Y. has had. Your sponsors have paid for the development of your very own N.I.C. program.”
    “What’s a N.I.C. program?”
    She motioned for me to follow her down a narrow hall that turned sharply. “It’s been installed close by to ensure your safety.”
    “What am I being protected from?”
    She turned, facing me. “Yourself.”
    “Why would I be afraid of myself?”
    “Your artificial host implemented certain unauthorized programming to your DNA that makes you different from any other S.H.A.Y.”
    Amie shook her head. “I only made you better than the others!”
    “What—What did you do to me?”
    Dr. Cole thought I meant her. “Nothing, yet.”
    Amie tugged on her hair. She paced back and forth, shaking her finger at Dr. Cole. “She’s a liar! I am a good mother and I gave you the best programming of all S.H.A.Y.s—even hers!”
    “You’re a S.H.A.Y.!” I blurted.
    Dr. Cole turned, crossing her arms. “Excuse me?”
    I stammered. “Why else would you care about what another A.M.I.E. has done to me if you weren’t one of us yourself?”
    “That’s faulty reasoning.”
    I shrugged. “Am I wrong?”
    She said nothing.
    “Dr. Cole?”
    “Follow me.”
    Opaque glass blocks framed the entryway. We stepped through.
    “Meet N.I.C. He’s your Neural Ingenuity Clone. This is the one who will learn all there is about you and use his ‘keeper’ to adapt to protect you from all danger—including from yourself, if need be.”
    A large motherboard was imbedded into the wall. Colors flashed and ran along the ceiling. His fans blew hot air and I squinted to read the serial numbers on one of his drives. “Does this N.I.C. talk?”
    “His keeper does.”
    “Where’s his ‘keeper’?”
    “He’s not here presently.”
    “So his keeper is like his physical host that does the dirty work?”
    Dr. Cole grinned. “He’s also able to analyze and collect data that is then sent to the N.I.C. With that knowledge, the N.I.C. instructs the keeper in how to respond to a given situation.”
    “Isn’t that kind of what Pop and Amie are for me?”
    “Your A.M.I.E. does not train you.”
    “She could, though, right?”
    “A.M.I.E.s are designed to create life. They learned using a similar sequencer as the N.I.C. Both programs are able to change their initial design structure, to experience and learn. An A.M.I.E. uses this when creating another life. A N.I.C. is different, not as narrow-minded. They use knowledge to grow and become even better. An A.M.I.E. is far more dangerous, since her goals are simpler.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “An A.M.I.E. is more than just your artificial parent. She learns, and with that knowledge becomes envious and eventually turns into your enemy.”
    I stepped back, searching for my Amie. Tears flooded my eyes. Where was my mother? “You’re wrong!”
    Dr. Cole took my face in her hands. “Look at your arms.”
    I closed my eyes. She meant the liquid metal. “What’s happening to me?”
    Her hands dropped to her side. “Each A.M.I.E. desires to create the greatest life of