"Hi," Logan said quietly.
I didn't know what to say. A small part of me was angry with him, I couldn't deny that. I had put my trust in and worked with someone as reckless as Logan. That had been my mistake; trusting someone as impulsive as I was. I knew fixing androids without a proper license was punishable by law, but I didn't experiment any way I wanted.
My activities weren't a secret.
Passing my tongue over my teeth, I scooted to the side. "Coming out?" I asked him.
Logan scoffed and scratched his blonde hair. "Uh, good morning to you too, I guess."
I made sure my text was sent and my phone was safely tucked in my pocket before I locked onto Logan's gaze. Pushing my feelings down to the bottom of my gut was hard to do with only one cup of coffee. I should've had two this morning before we left the apartment.
I sucked my teeth. "Sorry, good morning, Logan."
He chuckled. Looking around the inside of the elevator, he passed his fingers over the buttons on the side panel before grinning at me. He shot me a wink. "Were you going back to your place? I can press the floor for you. Twenty-seven, right? And," he leaned out slightly from the door, "if you need some company, I can tag along."
Well, wasn't he direct? Inviting himself over wasn't something I expected or wanted. I truly just wanted to get to work. And after the last interaction I had with him, there was a sour taste in my mouth, like a mystery candy; the first bite is sweet with a bitter center. That's what he was to me at the moment. My first impression of Logan was nice, different, and refreshing until we stayed in the same room for more than five minutes together. While his intentions were similar to mine, his process was a nightmare.
If I had seen it sooner, I would've run far, far away.
Frank did warn me.
"Look," I rubbed the side of my cheek, "I need to see Katherine."
"Oh." He cupped his hands together, rocking back and forth on his heels and toes. His mouth drew down into a frown as he pinched his brows together. "Is it about the androids? I heard a crazy story about them."
My mouth parted slightly. He may have had my attention in the beginning; with his rumors and his ability to tell them. Whatever "story" he had about these androids would have to be a lie. The only other person who was there with me was Frank and I knew, felt it in my heart, that he wouldn't have gone to Logan to spread rumors. Logan may have heard what may have happened with the machines' disposal, but he wouldn't have the details.
I was the details. I knew them because I was there.
"Could I have the elevator?" I glanced inside before stepping back. "Or do you have a floor to get to? I can call another elevator."
"Um, no." Logan bit his lip. "I was going to take a walk and get some fresh air."
If I wanted to deal with him right now, I would've said great minds thought alike. Yet, what I really wanted was for him to get out of my way.
"Cool." I stepped further out of the way and motioned for him to come out into the lobby. I glanced at the door. "Don't let me stop your fun."
He came out. He patted his jeans before awkwardly pushing his hand into his back pockets. When he looked at me, it reminded me of a sad puppy. I was a cat person.
"I don't know what you're going upstairs for, but can I apologize for what happened? I've already received emails about it, new protocols have been put in place for all technicians."
"Oh, yeah?" I moved around him and stepped into the elevator while the door was still open. I gave him a side glance. "Make sure you follow each of the new rules."
Logan shifted, turning to face me. I could, no, should just close the doors in his face.
"What? I don't understand. I thought the goal was to fight the power and create a floor of acceptance."
I sighed. "You can't just 'fight the power.' You need a plan. Until you realize that," reaching over, I tapped the 'close door' button. "I hope you have a great morning."
"Elijah, wait—"
The doors shut, and I couldn't hear the rest of his sentence.
***
I stared up at the numbers of the elevators, watching as I passed each of the higher floors. I couldn't help the tension in my chest. Should I have been nicer to Logan? Despite how I felt, I would be lying to myself if I said I wasn't fascinated by him. But his actions had consequences and I knew I needed to distance myself. At least for a little while.
I exhaled sharply as the elevator shot up to the fiftieth floor, skipping past floors forty-plus. Then the doors opened, and I caught sight of a small group of people surrounding Katherine's desk. When their eyes landed on me, they scattered like roaches, leaving the boss of it all in clear view. She sat on the corner of her desk, leaning back with her body partially twisted. She looked at me with an annoyed smirk on her face.
"Well, well, well, it looks like my prized employee has decided to work."
I wished she'd stop calling me that. I was forced to live here and "work" under extreme conditions. Where was the work-life balance?
Stepping out of the elevator, I pushed my hands into my pockets. "Didn't I give you some of my work?"
Or did she figure out that it was a dummy file?
Katherine smiled at me. "You did. I have my technicians uploading the file now."
"Good." That means they haven't figured it out yet. "Is there an update on what I asked you to do?"
Katherine pushed off the desk, flattening the wrinkles of her dress suit. "Me?"
"Yeah," I bit the insides of my cheeks, "I asked you to get the employees here to have a better understanding of androids and the kindness they deserve."
"Oh, that, yes." Katherine walked toward me. "I've requested my human resource consultants to let me know what's possible within the employee contracts and their human rights."
Human rights? People are living amongst machines—nothing harms their lives. If anything, without machines, we would all be dead already. There was no way humans could maintain the world in its current state.
I wasn't going to argue with her. Sighing, I nodded, taking what she said as a small win. "All right, that's good to hear." I looked into her eyes. "But I am here because I have a request. Something that may help you," I smirked, "on a wider spectrum."
Passing her tongue over her bottom lip, she cocked a brow and crossed her arms. "Oh? And how's that?"
Good, she's biting.
"I need the ability to broadcast a speech."
She blinked. "A speech?"
I nodded. "Yeah, for everyone to see, possibly worldwide. I need it to reach as far as possible."
As her eyes bounced around different objects in the office, I focused on the large windows behind her. My distraction to sort through my thoughts. Daniel wanted me to talk to as many people as possible. I hoped what I wanted to do wouldn't need extra approval because what I would say to the people, Katherine probably didn't agree with. She came off as very anti-android even though she controlled the company that made them.
My words wouldn't be for her or humans. It would be for the androids and every machine listening. I would start building my bridge of communication.
"Okay, fine." Katherine straightened and drummed her fingers along her arm. "And who is going to pay for it?"
Well, that was a dumb question. If I was asking for the ability, that meant I couldn't do this on my own. Also meant I didn't have the money. Could regular people pay to have their faces on large screens? I wasn't aware that was an option.
I decided to answer with the obvious. "I thought it would be you?" I lifted my brows. "Or is there someone higher I should ask?"
Those words pressed a few buttons. She scrunched her face in a poor attempt to hide her anger. But wasn't I right? If she was able to lose fifty million dollars and still function without losing sleep, then paying for my broadcast wouldn't be a problem.
"There's no one higher." She traced her pointy-toe shoe over the office rug. "But how would you like to be broadcast?"
It couldn't be that easy. She was going to let me do it? "I can ask how I would like to talk?"
"Look, give me your conditions before I change my mind and think against it. If it will help me in the long run, I will pay."
My mind raced. I hadn't thought this far. I knew I wanted to reach the world, but I hadn't planned out how. Podcasts were easy; everyone listened to them on the way to work or when they were at home. But I felt like if the world saw my face, they'd feel the message. To see a human, a man, someone just like them, express concern and love for machines—they had to be able to connect, right?
I immediately thought of the large LED screens hanging against the buildings in every city, as well as the channels everyone was supposed to watch. If I had a slot and took over the televisions around the world, I'd have a good shot at this.
"What about every messaging channel? Can people see my face?"
"Fine." Katherine quickly pulled out her phone and dialed. "I'll make calls. I'll give you an update tomorrow."
Perfect. So, all I had to do was wait.
Pulling my phone out from my pocket, I turned toward the elevator and scrolled through my contacts. My thumb tapped Frank's name. With a smile on my face, I typed, I've got good news. Are you free?
There was a second before the ellipses appeared. His response came faster than I expected and stopped me in my tracks. My hand hovered over the elevator call button as I read his reply, Come to the instructional bay, it's bad, something's wrong.
"Fuck..." I hissed as the doors opened for me.