Read Online Android: Golem (The Identity Trilogy) by Mel Odom - Free Book Online

surgeon. As a result, IDs could be readily established.
    “What’s his name?”
    Seward looked at me, then quickly away. “Cartman Dawes.”
    “Okay.” Shelly punched the information into her PAD even though she knew I’d already logged it.
    “I take it you don’t recognize the name.” Seward seemed surprised.
    “Should I?”
    By the time the ME answered, I’d already looked Dawes up on the Net. In that moment, I knew our case was going to be bigger than we’d initially thought.
    “Cartman Dawes is the CEO of IdentiKit.”
    Shelly knew IdentiKit. “The cloning enterprise?”
    “Yes.”
    IdentiKit was quickly becoming one of the major players on the android scene. In some respects, they were starting to offer some of the best clones on the market. When they’d first gotten into the game, they had specialized in clones made from celebrity look-a-likes. They’d gotten dragged into court time after time, but they had beaten each case because they’d had model releases from people who “happened” to look like celebrities.
    That was a low-volume trade, though, compared to the market share they’d wanted. They’d made some in-roads with domestic help models and nannies, though there had been more than a few cases where IdentiKit clones were involved in divorces. Conjecture had it that the corporation hadn’t strayed far from its sex trade roots and other fantasies were being fulfilled.
    “This doesn’t make any sense.” Shelly stared at the dead man. “Guys like this, they don’t travel without bodyguards.” She looked around the room, then at me. “So where are the bodyguards?”
    I didn’t have an answer for her.
    “Check the hotel roster again. See if anyone registered in any of the other rooms works for a private protective service.”
    I started the search, but I knew I was solid in my identification. None of the current residents were bodyguards.
    Latimer took out a piece of gum and popped it into his mouth. “This guy doesn’t have any bodyguards here. They’d have put in an appearance by now.” He smiled grimly. “And they’d have known they were out of work. Once Dawes’s heart flatlined, their severance checks would have been cut.”
    I finally caught Shelly’s eye. “We need to talk.”
    “Sure.” She followed me to a spot away from Latimer, Seward, and the dead man. “What’s up?”
    “The men who killed Dawes are still in the building.”

 
     
     
    Chapter Six
     
     
     
    Excitement filled Shelly. Her pupils widened. Her nostrils flared. Her respiration deepened. The pulse at the hollow of her throat picked up speed. I logged all those things because I watched over her.
    “Do you know where the killers are?”
    “Perhaps. They disguised themselves as ductwork cleaners.” I quickly filled her in on what I’d discovered. By that time, we were in motion, striding through the door.
    Toomis and Carter started to follow us.
    Shelly held up a hand and shot a quick look at them. “Stay.”
    Both sec guards turned and looked at Latimer. Latimer hesitated a moment, then nodded. Scowling and muttering curses, both men remained in their positions.
    Shelly turned her attention back to me. “Where are they?”
    “My guess would be the ductwork. May I lead?”
    Shelly nodded.
    I stepped ahead of her and led the way to the maintenance room in the middle of the floor to one side of the elevators. The door was locked, but I pulsed an override sequence through the chip in my hand and the lock popped open.
    The room was dark and smelled sharply of bleach, soaps, and deodorizers. Shelly coughed for a moment, then started breathing shallowly. She had a touch of asthma and strong chemical smells sometimes set it off.
    “I think they’d hoped to be out of the building in the next three hours before the body was discovered.” I closed and locked the door behind us, giving it a new combination, then turned on a light and searched the room.
    Wire racks packed with supplies filled most of