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Running From the AIs
Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo EXCERPT: The lightweight blanket over the dry grass provided only a thin, scratchy protection from the hard rocks as Rafael and Ellie lay on their stomachs side by side, looking over the cliff edge at the road below. Rafael could feel the heat leaching from his body into the cold rock beneath him. There was little traffic on the road, making it easy for his mind to wander to the life they left behind. They had seen three pairs of security bots passing on foot, wielding chip detection wands. As they trotted along, the bots scanned both sides of the road and the adjacent shrubbery. When the third pair of bots disappeared around the next bend, Rafael rolled over onto his back. Above, the sun shone in a cloudless blue sky. The leaves on nearby bushes fluttered in the cool breeze. “That’s the third pair in an hour, about 20 minutes apart. It means we can easily cross the road when we’re ready to get further down.” Ellie wriggled to get closer and lay her head on Rafael’s chest. “We’re going to be okay, aren’t we?” Rafael kissed her on the top of her head. “Of course, we haven’t done anything wrong. We just need to lie low until we figure out how to make them understand.” “I’m scared, Raffi.” Guilt washed through him as he thought of how his misplaced curiosity was now putting Ellie at risk. “So am I, but we can’t give in to that. Let’s get up and keep moving. We’ll make camp in a couple more hours and have the last sandwiches for dinner. Everything will seem better in the morning.” They stood and took up their packs, then moved off along the old hiking trail that ran for several hundred kilometers around the island that was home. This far from the city, the trail was now little more than a rabbit track through the scrub bushes and sharp grasses. Peeling white blazes painted on the trees continued to guide them forward. As the sun dipped lower, they made camp. With practiced hands, Rafael put up their hiking tent. There was not enough room to stand, so he knelt on the floor of the tent as he laid out their sleeping bags side by side. Outside, Ellie was preparing a meal of sandwiches, potato chips, and two flasks of water. There was no fire tonight. She laid the sandwiches on their wrappings and set them on a nearby rock serving as an ersatz table. After dinner, they brushed their teeth with the last flask of water, then removed their shoes and jackets and crawled fully clothed into the light sleeping bags. “I’ll be so glad when we can have a shower again,” said Ellie, sniffing her armpits. “I’m starting to stink.” “You still smell lovely to me, but it might be good if you tried to sleep a little further away,” replied Rafael. “You’re no prize either, but I’m too polite to mention it.” “Let’s both agree that we’re overdue for washing and just go to sleep. With any luck, we’ll be able to get clean tomorrow.” Ellie rolled away from him. Rafael lay facing her back and placed his hand on her hip. Lying there, waiting for sleep to come, Rafael retraced the events that had brought them to this point in time. 
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