They both nodded to me, then went back to their posts. I'd worry about what had been done to my guys later. Had to save us all first. On the bright side, if we needed to destroy the Kendroid, it appeared that Joe and Randy were going to have little trouble with it.

Cleared my throat. "Ah, TK, I think that sort of indicates that there is nothing Stephanie needed from Drax in order to make humans into androids." Tug on the line.

"She . . . she lied to me?" He sounded shocked and lost.

"Well, you know how it is." Abigail shrugged. "A girl likes to keep her options open and all that. Play the field until you're sure you've found the right guy."

"Playing the field can be quite fun," Adriana added. "Many of us enjoy it, though most are looking to settle down with Mister Correct."

"And it's not like Stephanie had a great track record," Mahin said. "I mean, just look at the men she was involved with. Before you, I'm sure," she added politely.

"Well, I don't know that it was before TK," I said conversationally to the girls. Let the fish think you're not paying attention to it for a while. "I mean, she was sleeping with Cliff and, clearly, she was sleeping with Drax, and I'm still not convinced that she wasn't canoodling with anyone and everyone in Gideon Cleary's campaign, and I'm not sure when she made TK. She might have made him while she was with Cliff, after all."

"Oh, gross thought," Lizzie said. "Do you think she made all those other Kendroids so that they could be, like, her harem?"

"Wow, I hadn't thought of that," I said, as "Let It Play" by Poison came on. "Sure seems possible to me. After all, he's good looking, so why not make a ton of him, right?"

"Oh!" Abigail sounded totally excited. "Maybe she wanted the real Thomas Kendrick and he turned her down."

"I had not thought of that," I lied. "But that makes a hell of a lot of sense. Can't get the guy you really want? Make a replacement that won't turn you down. Genius, really." Turned back to TK. Yank harder on the line. "Sorry, got off on a tangent there. Anyway, so the plan-"

"Stop! Stop trying to avoid the question! Why did Stephanie lie to me?" He sounded a little like Jeff when Jeff was having jealousy issues. He sounded a lot more like his heart was breaking.

Felt bad, but not bad enough. I had people and animals missing and presumed to be in extreme danger. The feelings of an android were going to have to come second.

"Ah," I said gently. "Um, TK, well . . . I think she lied so that you'd do what she wanted. I mean, isn't that why people lie?"

He nodded. "But why lie to me? I love her. She loves me."

Lizzie snorted quietly. "Sure she does," she said under her breath, but so that he could definitely hear it.

He spun toward Lizzie. "What do you mean?"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, nothing. Nothing at all. I mean, why would she want a real person when she had you, right?" Lizzie really had her Teenaged Sarcasm Meter up well past eleven.

"What? What do you mean? I'm real!"

"No, Pinocchio, you're not a real boy yet." And I wasn't sure if he ever would be. Though, as with Cameron Maurer and Col. John Butler, the possibility was there.

"What do you mean?" he yelled. "Why do you say things that don't make sense? Why are you doing this to me?"

"Doing what?" I asked nicely. Yank harder on the line, be sure the hook is set.

"Making it all confusing! Nothing makes sense. You don't make sense."

"Humans don't make sense. A-Cs rarely do, either. Frankly, most organic beings don't make sense. It's just something we all do. All of us. Machines, on the other hand, they make sense. And Stephanie isn't a machine, she's organic, so she won't make sense. And maybe she wants someone else who doesn't make sense, either."

The Kendroid was shaking and it seemed that tears might be a possibility. Had no idea if he could cry-an Antony Marling Android would have been able to, but so far I wasn't as impressed with Stephanie's workmanship-but if he could, tears were going to be arriving soon.

"Why is this happening? Why are you doing this to me?" he asked plaintively.

"You have my friends and my pets. I want them back. But I want to help you out, so that's why we're here. To help." Put my hand onto his arm. Pull hard on the line. "We're here to help you, TK. Tell us what you need us to do for you."

"I . . . I . . . I want Stephanie back."

"Even after all she's done to you?" Start reeling in the line slowly.

He stared at me. "Done to me? What . . . you mean cheating on me?"

"Yes, and lying to you and whatever else she's done. I mean, how do you know that you really love her? Maybe she just programmed you to love her, you know?"

"That's so unfair," Lizzie said. "I mean, he should be free to make his own choices."

Abigail nodded. "To just make someone love you . . ." She shook her head. "Talk about removing free will."

Adriana sighed. "Unrequited love is a terrible thing."

"Unrequited, what do you mean? Stephanie loves me." He was pleading with us to agree.

Time to reel in faster. "Then why did she leave you for Drax?" I asked.

The Kendroid stared at me. He was still shaking. "She did, didn't she?"

Flip the fish onto the deck. "She did. I'm sorry you couldn't see that before. I guess it's because she doesn't see you as a real person."

"What . . . what do I have to do?"

"To achieve what?" I asked.

"To become real, to be the man she wants? What can I do?"

"Nothing," White said from behind me. "Nothing at all."

There was something in his tone. Turned around to see White, the Field agents, and Keith surrounded by Poofs and Peregrines. But they weren't alone.

CHAPTER 72.

CAMILLA, RAHMI, and Rhee were there. Keith was supporting both princesses, but Camilla was standing on her own, though it looked like Daniel and Joshua were ready to catch her if she happened to fall. All three women looked seriously pissed.

"You guys okay?"

Camilla nodded. "No thanks to him."

Turned back to the Kendroid. "We call this checkmate. What do you call it?"

He gaped. "How . . . how did you find them?" he asked White.

"It's amazing how distracted Missus Martini and the other young ladies made you," White said. "The rest of us felt that we would be of more help putting our natural talents to use." He smiled at me. "We searched the ship, found where everyone was being held, and released them. It wasn't as difficult as it could have been, since Daniel and Joshua had already examined the entire ship and had good suspicions as to where the animals would be. Once they were released, they led us to the chamber where Camilla, Rahmi, and Rhee were being held."

The Field agents looked pissed. "They were in stasis for sure," Joshua said. "No air, no water, no food, just frozen."

"How are you guys doing?" I asked the women. "For real, this time."

"We will be fine once we can avenge ourselves," Rahmi said. Rhee nodded.

"I'm with the princesses," Camilla said. "I assume you've figured things out?"

"Yeah, you guys have been gone for over a week. We've probably figured a lot of things out, but no guarantees that it's everything you know." Looked at the Kendroid again. "Your ship is officially commandeered. Matt, do you guys know how to fly it by now?"

"Pretty sure we do, Commander," Hughes said cheerfully.

"What heading do you want?" Jerry asked.

"Get us to Andrews on the double. Colonel Franklin has a nice parking place reserved for us."

Hughes barked orders and the ship shuddered. The Kendroid was shuddering, too.

"You tricked me," he said.

"No. I'm just better at salesmanship than you are." My salesmanship professor and former boss would both have been proud of me right about now, since I'd used their techniques to the letter. "I gave you exactly what I said I would. I have five guys here flying this thing for you. I'm going to take you to Andrews, and you're going to get to go see Stephanie in her cell. Maybe they'll let you stay there with her."

"Not that I'd think you'd want to," Lizzie said. "Because we weren't making it up-she's cheating on you."

"Because you're not a real person," Mahin added.

The Kendroid again looked like he was ready to cry. "I'm real," he said plaintively.

"No. You're not. I could possibly help you become more human, but you haven't given me a lot of reason to want to. However, if you do want to try to become a real boy, then I'll help you. As long as you come over to the good guy's side. You know Stephanie's wrong to be doing what she is."

He was shaking even harder. "She might be wrong, but she's all I have."

"You could have more," Adriana said. "But you have to choose to want more."

"I . . . I . . ." His face fell. "I can't. I can't change my programming." He blinked several times in rapid succession, and my music changed to "I'm Blowin' Up" by Kool Moe Dee.

"You can fight it," I said urgently. "Other androids have fought the self-destruct sequence, and you can, too."

"I don't know how!"

Grabbed his hand. "Look at me and just focus on being you. Not your programming, on you, on the person, the being, you think you are. You're more than the programming someone else gave you. That's what being human is-being able to overcome your programming when you have to, when it's right to."

The Kendroid stared at me for a few long moments while he continued blinking. Then he squeezed my hand, but not too hard. "Thank you for trying. But . . ." He shook his head, leaped over the railing, and ran off the way we'd come.

"Commander, he's heading for the same hatch we entered through," Walker called.

"Open it."

"Have grounds on viewer," Joe said. Ran over to see what he had. We were pretty high up already, which was good for us if the Kendroid self-destructed. But only if he did so when he wasn't inside the ship.

"Android has left the ship," Walker said, as we continued to rise up. "Hatch is closed and secure."

Joe had a good view of the grounds and I watched the Kendroid avoid hitting any of the buildings and fall to the ground. He didn't explode. "Think he's dead?" Joe asked.

"No. Stay on him."

Sure enough, as we rose up, I watched the Kendroid jerk and sort of bounce on the ground. Then it stopped. And, as we started forward, he stood up, looked up, and waved at us. Then he ran off, headed toward the main house and Adriana's motorcycle. Knew without asking that he could hot-wire and ride it.

"Do you think he knows you're watching him?" Joe asked.

"Yeah, I think he does."

"What do you think he's going to do?" Randy asked.

Heaved a sigh. "I have no idea." My music changed to "Home Tonight" by Aerosmith. "But I know what we're going to do. Whoever has external communications, contact Andrews and the White House. We're going home."

Everyone cheered, Poofs and Peregrines, too. Even Keith.

At least we did until Jerry shouted over everyone else. "Commander, we have a situation!"

CHAPTER 73.

"WELL, that success was short-lived."

"So," Abigail said, "you know, routine."

"Yeah. Jerry, what's up?"

"Need you to confirm countersigns." His voice was very tense. "They don't believe we're who I'm saying we are. I'm on with low-level at Andrews. They've supposedly hooked in someone at the White House, but I can't determine who. Whoever I'm talking to, they don't seem to know that American Centaurion or the Office of the President are missing any people, yourself included and in particular."

"Fan-freaking-tastic. Everyone, see who you can reach on your phones. Guys, see who else you can reach via the ship's telecommunications." Took my own advice and checked. I had bars. Called Jeff.

"Hello!" He sounded hearty and cheerful.