Free Steelheart by William C. Dietz Page A

before. Assuming her scanner was functioning correctly, and assuming her mental faculties were intact, it appeared as if the arm was fighting the rejection process] Almost as if it had a mind of its own ... and wanted to be linked to the android's body.
    The thought sent ice water trickling through Mary's veins. Could it be? Had someone or something planted a rider in the arm?
    "Three individuals, one Zid, and two humans, have joined the group on the other side of the street," the security system reported calmly. ' "That brings the total number of potential intruders to ten. The next report is due nine minutes and forty-nine seconds from now."
    Mary felt her heart beat a little faster, probed for the standard access point along the inside surface of the newly installed arm, and pried the skin apart. A pair of terminals appeared. By connecting her diagnostic unit directly to them, the roboticist could eliminate any possibility of radio interference.
    The leads made a whirring sound as she pulled them out of the scanner, made the necessary connections, and touched a series of buttons. Her eyes narrowed as Mary watched the tiny screen. It was a rider, all right... hidden in a nonspec biceps-mounted subprocessor. Not only that, but the spook boasted a whole lot of memory, a self-extending operating system that had colonized Doon's CPU and seized control of his higher thought processes. Whoever had designed and planted the rider was someone she wanted to meet.
    Then it occurred to her that the original owner had been scrapped, and no longer existed. Or did he? What if he were the rider?
    Intrigued, and desperate to finish the task before Doon became fully functional again, Mary launched a deeper probe. The response was immediate. Doon's eyes popped open, focused on her face, and squinted into the light. The voice was his—but the timbre was different. "There's no reason for alarm. A supporting program, sometimes referred to as a 'rider,' a 'spook,' or a 'ghost,' has been activated. Any attempt to modify the rider, or to delete it from the subject systems, will result in a full and unrecoverable crash. In order to free itself of the rider, and the imperatives that flow from it, the host must make his way to the facility called 'Flat Top' and deliver onboard files to Dr. Gene Garrison. The files are encrypted. Any attempt to access them will result in full system shutdown."
    Dr. Garrison? Mary had been one of his students, though not a member of the android-dominated personality cult that catered to his every wish, and worshiped him like a god. No, she'd been too independent for that, even though it meant less access to his teaching labs.
    "The crowd on the other side of the street has grown by four," the security system interjected, "and are holding a meeting. The next report will arrive in nine minutes and fifty seconds."
    How long would it take Clamface to brief the mob, exhort them to do the Lord's work, and trigger the attack? Not very long.
    Mary fed an antirejection program into Doon's electronic nervous system, unhooked the leads, and stood back. She would give him only one chance. If the android went bonkers, the roboticist would put him down, grab what she could, and scoot out through the back.
    Doon felt the rider retreat into the background, experienced a momentary sense of elation, and took control of his body. He sat up, worked his jaw, and attempted to speak.
    The roboticist backed away and raised the stunner.
    Doon knew she was afraid and felt the same way. "Don't do it—once was enough."
    Mary looked doubtful. "You won't go crazy on me?"
    The android shook his head. "It's tempting, but no, I won't."
    Mary allowed her arm to drop. The stunner was pointed at the floor. "Good. The rider came in the arm, and no, I don't have the gear to evict it. Of equal interest is the fact that a mob has formed—we don't have a lot of time."
    As if to confirm Mary's statement, the security system chose that particular