Read Online Connor Rix Chronicles 1: Rules of Force by Steve Statham - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Steve Statham
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two enhanced people applying amplified strength against
amplified strength, in addition to improved stamina, new frontiers of sexual
activity could constantly be explored.
Rix was
daydreaming of the latest exploration as he slid into a deep sleep.
****
They drove down
Broadway, windows open in the mild South Texas winter, for a late breakfast at
one of their favorite places. It had been a quiet morning. Rix and Marie had
settled into a satisfied silence since awakening among the tangled sheets an
hour earlier.
They passed the
old zoo, still intact and a tourist draw even after the war. The private
universities and museums in the area had largely escaped the damage that had
befallen the military bases and some of the downtown areas during the war. It
was the same comfortably familiar avenue that Marie had known her entire life.
Rix turned into
the narrow parking lot of Beto's Cocina. The small, bright blue building was
snug right up against the edge of the sidewalk. The windows were a riot of
competing colors, with the week's specials painted on the glass. There was a rack with a free weekly
Spanish language newspaper by the entrance.
They were
greeted inside by a waitress who smiled as she recognized them, and led the two
between the tightly-spaced tables, each covered in a brightly colored vinyl
tablecloth. They were seated at their usual spot by the front window. Marie
ordered huevos con papa breakfast tacos,
Rix settled on Chorizo con huevos .
Rix tried to
feign a positive mood. As fantastic as the night had been, this morning was
shaping up differently. Rix was feeling the early warning signs of another pain
wave, which troubled him. It was way too early for another bout. He tried his
best to ignore it.
He also knew he
needed to bring up a subject that always proved to be sobering when the two of
them discussed it.
They made light
conversation as they ate their food, teasing each other as they discussed how
they would spend the money from the Open Sky job.
As their plates
were cleared away, Rix leaned back, one arm draped over the extra chair next to
him, the other hand gripping his iced tea glass.
"I need to
go visit Jake."
She looked up,
levelly meeting his gaze.
"Yes, I
think you should," she said, carefully keeping all emotion out of her
voice. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"It's been
a while, yes," he said, glancing out the window. "I mean to visit him
more often, but something always seems to come up."
Marie was silent
for a long moment. "I think you avoid him because he's a constant reminder
on what can go wrong with these fabulous Modified bodies of ours," she
said at last.
Rix resisted the
urge to snap a reply to her. They'd had this discussion before. There were
always going to be people who didn't get rigged in the right way, just as there
had always been people who had screwed up with plastic surgery, or abused
normally beneficial drugs. The positive effects of the new physical
enhancements were overwhelming, but nothing worked out perfectly for everybody.
When Rix had met
Marie, she had been eager to undertake the Modifications. After what her family
had gone through during the war, she was determined to make herself stronger,
less vulnerable. It had drawn them closer, him leading her through the tangle
of options, side effects and potential of Modified physiology. But lately she'd
been making more comments that made him wonder if her heart was in it anymore.
"Sounds
like you're having second thoughts," he said. "Biofilm fever still
got you down?"
"Just
trying to see it clearly, that's all. Don't want to get drunk on the
power."
They sat in
silence for a few minutes longer, sipping iced tea and casually looking around
the restaurant.
"I'll drop
you off back home and then swing by to pay him a visit," Rix said at last.
She nodded, and
they got up to leave.
****
Jake was the
last guy you'd expect to end up in the new Texas Republic. A New Yorker,
amplified strength, in addition to improved stamina, new frontiers of sexual
activity could constantly be explored.
Rix was
daydreaming of the latest exploration as he slid into a deep sleep.
****
They drove down
Broadway, windows open in the mild South Texas winter, for a late breakfast at
one of their favorite places. It had been a quiet morning. Rix and Marie had
settled into a satisfied silence since awakening among the tangled sheets an
hour earlier.
They passed the
old zoo, still intact and a tourist draw even after the war. The private
universities and museums in the area had largely escaped the damage that had
befallen the military bases and some of the downtown areas during the war. It
was the same comfortably familiar avenue that Marie had known her entire life.
Rix turned into
the narrow parking lot of Beto's Cocina. The small, bright blue building was
snug right up against the edge of the sidewalk. The windows were a riot of
competing colors, with the week's specials painted on the glass. There was a rack with a free weekly
Spanish language newspaper by the entrance.
They were
greeted inside by a waitress who smiled as she recognized them, and led the two
between the tightly-spaced tables, each covered in a brightly colored vinyl
tablecloth. They were seated at their usual spot by the front window. Marie
ordered huevos con papa breakfast tacos,
Rix settled on Chorizo con huevos .
Rix tried to
feign a positive mood. As fantastic as the night had been, this morning was
shaping up differently. Rix was feeling the early warning signs of another pain
wave, which troubled him. It was way too early for another bout. He tried his
best to ignore it.
He also knew he
needed to bring up a subject that always proved to be sobering when the two of
them discussed it.
They made light
conversation as they ate their food, teasing each other as they discussed how
they would spend the money from the Open Sky job.
As their plates
were cleared away, Rix leaned back, one arm draped over the extra chair next to
him, the other hand gripping his iced tea glass.
"I need to
go visit Jake."
She looked up,
levelly meeting his gaze.
"Yes, I
think you should," she said, carefully keeping all emotion out of her
voice. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"It's been
a while, yes," he said, glancing out the window. "I mean to visit him
more often, but something always seems to come up."
Marie was silent
for a long moment. "I think you avoid him because he's a constant reminder
on what can go wrong with these fabulous Modified bodies of ours," she
said at last.
Rix resisted the
urge to snap a reply to her. They'd had this discussion before. There were
always going to be people who didn't get rigged in the right way, just as there
had always been people who had screwed up with plastic surgery, or abused
normally beneficial drugs. The positive effects of the new physical
enhancements were overwhelming, but nothing worked out perfectly for everybody.
When Rix had met
Marie, she had been eager to undertake the Modifications. After what her family
had gone through during the war, she was determined to make herself stronger,
less vulnerable. It had drawn them closer, him leading her through the tangle
of options, side effects and potential of Modified physiology. But lately she'd
been making more comments that made him wonder if her heart was in it anymore.
"Sounds
like you're having second thoughts," he said. "Biofilm fever still
got you down?"
"Just
trying to see it clearly, that's all. Don't want to get drunk on the
power."
They sat in
silence for a few minutes longer, sipping iced tea and casually looking around
the restaurant.
"I'll drop
you off back home and then swing by to pay him a visit," Rix said at last.
She nodded, and
they got up to leave.
****
Jake was the
last guy you'd expect to end up in the new Texas Republic. A New Yorker,
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