Free A Matter of Circumstance and Celludrones by Claire Robyns

did one explain how a machine could act,
react, converse like a human being and comprehend emotion?
    She hadn’t given that daydream conscious thought for ages, hadn’t even
realised a part of her still clung so faithfully, until now.
    “I admire a lady who’s not afraid to laugh at herself,” Lord Adair
murmured.
    If he only knew the whole of it.
    But a compliment was a compliment, and her first from him at that. And
the way he was looking at her, as if he’d finally decided she might be more
than a mere nuisance to be tolerated, left a pleasant warmth in her belly.
    Not quite comfortable with this new feeling stirring inside her, Lily
turned her gaze from him to the lake. A light breeze had kicked up, rippling
through the water reeds. Above, a few wispy clouds straggled in a clear, blue
sky. A perfectly normal afternoon, like so many that had gone before, but she
was starting to wonder if her world would ever return to normal again.
    “Please, tell me more about our celludrones,” she said when Lord Adair
moved in front of her. “How is Ana able to imitate human behaviour so closely?”
    “McAllister called it fabricated intelligence.” He took the stained
gloves from her and tucked them into his jacket pocket. “His celludrones
receive and translate optical and verbal instruction in the same way as the
others. The difference is their ability to process and store everything they see
and hear in addition to the instructions initially loaded.”
    He offered his arm to steady her as they navigated the sharp incline
to continue their walk around the lake. “Consider that we are a product of our
memories. The way we talk, think and act is learned by listening, watching and
mimicking. Ana watches and listens all day and, thanks to her advanced
technology, she never forgets a single detail.”
    “Given enough time,” Lily said quietly, “they’d make better humans
than us.” The thought was daunting. “How is this technology possible?”
    “I’m not a scientist, but I do know the memory fluid was made from the
sap of an extinct papyrus plant discovered in the same tomb as the schematics.
McAllister said the last of it was used in the original six. Ana and Neco are
unique and can never be replicated.”
    “Who is this Duncan McAllister you keep mentioning?”
    “McAllister was chieftain of the Perthshire McAllisters. The clan rose
in power around the time King James I united the Crowns and have been prominent
in Scotland ever since. Castle Cragloden is one of their strongholds.”
    They’d reached the ornamental rock feature camouflaging the pump
house. Lord Adair placed one booted foot on a stony ledge and rested an elbow
on his thigh.
    His gaze settled on a pair of geese waddling from the muddy bank.
“McAllister is the man your mother was visiting when she died.”
    “What an extraordinary coincidence.” As she spoke, the puzzle pieces
clicked into place, even if she couldn’t see the picture. “Oh, right. It’s no
coincidence at all.”
    “I’m afraid not.”
    She realised something else. “You refer to McAllister in the past
tense. He was killed in that gas explosion too, wasn’t he?”
    “Everyone was. You’re the last person who might have had some
answers.” He brought his foot down and straightened. “I was given the
impression your mother had confided in you, but it seems the little she did
share was nothing but lies. Sweet Jesu.” He grabbed her hand, tugged her
roughly behind him and let go again before she’d found her balance.
    “Heavens.” Lily flung an arm around his waist to keep from tumbling
forward. “Have you gone—”
    “Quiet.”
    Her mouth snapped shut and it had nothing to do with his rude command.
Somehow she’d wrapped herself around Lord Adair, one hand clutching the folds
of his jacket and the other spread over his abdomen. The layers of shirt,
waistcoat and jacket weren’t nearly enough of a barrier between her and the
lean contours of his body.
    He dipped