Chapter Seventeen

Rachel watched Wrath as he strode away from their grotto. She took notice of his muscular thighs and nice round ass. Even through his uniform, she could see every cord of muscle as he walked, and she bit her lip in appreciation. He was still her type.

She knew that she should try to get some sleep. She had only dozed while they were inside the mountain, and her heavy eyelids indicated a day of hiking through the desert would be a struggle. She still didn’t know what Wrath planned to do with her, but she seemed safe for the moment. He had rescued her from the unwelcome advances of Clayton. Hopefully, that meant she was under his protection.

As soon as he had grabbed her body and kissed her, she understood the cyborg was no longer Robert. It was hard for her not to think of him as a past lover. He still had golden hair and the full lips she used to kiss every day after he walked her home.

Underneath the skin, he was a different person. The teenage boy who took her virginity and whom she had secretly hoped to marry someday was gone. Rachel suspected the military had changed him considerably even before the scientists at Cyborg Sector had operated on him. Robert had been hesitant when asking Rachel to make love, but Wrath was ready to fuck. He wanted her and wasn’t going to accept 'no' for an answer.

She smiled to herself as she replayed the memory in her mind. Wrath demanded a certain amount of respect for his authority, and she hadn’t known his dominance would be such a turn-on for her. Rachel had dated quite a bit in college, but most of the guys had been geeky English majors too shy to do anything more than hold open the door. Once she’d landed her first job as a reporter, there were local fans who saw her on television and were willing to buy her dinner, but they had never been particularly attractive.

Despite his brusque manner, Wrath intrigued her. He had fucked her like he knew she would comply. He didn’t ask any questions or leave room for arguments. After all these years, Rachel had forgotten how well-endowed he was. The way he filled her gave her a sense of satisfaction she hadn’t had in a long time. Wrath plowed into her as though his body needed hers. She had eagerly indulged in the weight of his body on top of her, the slick feeling of his tongue inside her mouth, and the hard cock between his legs as he insisted she take every inch of him. Rachel had been happy to yield. At that moment, she would have given anything he asked of her.

Rachel had no illusions about the future of their relationship. If Green Squad ended up living on their own, she would have a rugged lifestyle if she stayed with them. Life with a cyborg would be far from the typical American dream of a house with a white picket fence and two children.

She would be roughing it with a group of dirty, half-crazed cyborgs. How would the rest of Green Squad treat her? Would Weapon be thinking about different ways he could murder her, only waiting for Wrath to turn his back so he could make his move? If something were to happen to Wrath, where would she stand with Green Squad.

Rachel sighed. The sex had been fantastic, but she knew it would be better for her future if she managed to get away from Wrath.

There was a guard posted at the entrance to her tiny inlet in the side of the mountain. Apparently, fucking didn’t automatically earn a cyborg’s trust. On the opposite wall, Rachel could see Wrath and the other cyborgs hovering around the tunnel entrance. The blonde cyborg stood before the others, speaking to them, listening to their replies, and nodding his head as he considered their suggestions.

It was interesting to see how the chain of command worked with Green Squad. Wrath was clearly in charge. He had ordered his men to kill and refrain from killing. They obeyed him without question, yet he valued their opinions and intentionally gathered as much information as possible before he made any final decisions. Wrath was programmed to be a killer, but he had learned to be methodical and analyze problems.

Clayton sat several yards away and was sweltering in the hot sun. He had ropes around his wrists again and looked like he was having problems sitting up. A cyborg watched over him, sweating but not as affected by the desert conditions as his human captive. Rachel hadn’t been pleased with the consultant’s actions but didn’t want him to die. The man had acted out of desperation, perhaps driven to madness by the situation. Rachel wondered if she could convince Wrath to spare him. Did the cyborgs need a reason to kill Clayton? It would leave no chance for redemption in the eyes of the media, if they cared about that sort of thing.

Rachel suddenly remembered that she was part of the media. Being isolated in the desert with a squad of rogue cyborgs and fighting for her life had taken away all thoughts about her job. The major news corporations were probably getting sky-high ratings by blasting the story of a young reporter captured by cyborgs in New Mexico. She could imagine all the so-called experts on television giving their opinions on Rachel’s ordeals. If she managed to make it out of here alive, she was going to be the biggest story of the year.

She would have to decide how much she was willing to reveal. As a journalist, Rachel had relied on people to spill their secrets and divulge their life stories. It was the life blood of the news. It put money into her bank account. For Rachel, this story wasn’t about someone else held hostage by a stranger or who had a near-death experience during a car crash. The events unfolding around her were personal. She didn’t want her time with Wrath polluted with newsroom speculation and sensationalism. Would she be able to speak publicly about it?

Slumping back against the smooth rock wall, Rachel noticed that the cyborg guarding her was staring at her face. He gazed at her curiously, as though he understood what Rachel and Wrath had done together but couldn’t figure out why. The comfort that came from being with the cyborg leader faded away. The reporter wrapped her arms around her knees and pointedly ignored her guardian, choosing instead to shift her focus to the mountains in the distance.