Daughter of Zeus ✔

17

Moretz opened his eyes, coughing and sputtering. "Felt like I was drowning. Jesus Christ!"

Kressick laid Ada out on the blue pull-out couch, making sure her breathing remained even. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed his son wobbling his way to an upright position. He ambled over to Kressick more quickly than a man in his condition should have been able to. For long moments, he panted, focused glazed eyes on Ada, and then he moved.

"Bitch," he ground out, accompanied by a kick to her stomach.

Kressick pulled his son from his granddaughter. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

He slapped Moretz, hard.

Moretz disregarded the slap and kept his gaze on Ada. The sound of the dissipating door opening echoed off the walls. Shylar came in. He nodded at Moretz and stopped walking when he reached Ada's side. He carefully wiped off her damp forehead with a white cloth and put a finger to her wrist then her throat. The caring attitude toward her was a stark contrast to her father's ill- treatment, and Kressick was grateful he could entrust her to a devoted individual who expected nothing in return. Weeks earlier when Shylar quietly demanded access to the equivalent of a pay check, Kressick thought the request strange, if not admirable. He certainly hadn't programmed Shylar's interest in Ada, and he figured it to be a latent memory prior to the re-wiring.

"Shylar," Kressick said.

Shylar all but clicked his heels together.

"Yes, sir?"

"Take her to the car."

With little effort, he picked up Ada and draped her over his back. His expression looked less romantic than it had before.

"Where am I taking her, sir?"

He's not even out of breath. His back hurt just thinking about carrying Ada. At her height, she had to be heavy, but in the case of Shylar's re-wiring, Kressick included muscle tune-ups.

He whispered instructions to Shylar, which were promptly carried out.

"Where's that robot taking her?" Brontes pointed  to the door.

For a few minutes, he didn't answer. He was seeing his son for the first time. The way Brontes had spoken and acted with Ada...his son wasn't the man Kressick hoped him to be.

He wasn't completely naïve. He knew the potential scope of his son's selfish nature, but Brontes had always played it down. Then he had become a public servant, sending Kressick away for three years to watch Ada in Colorado. Confident his son would enact positive changes in the world, he had gone willingly. Through Shylar's recent reports, he learned of Brontes's habits: making shady deals with lobbyists, taking bribes, abusing a slew of young girls, all while trying to ascend to Senator status.

Kressick had been willing to overlook Shylar's discoveries for the sake of his grandchildren. They needed a father, and one was better than none. Or was it? Thinking back on it, Moretz had turned Phennell into an egotistical womanizer, Darcy into a whiny git, and Ada into an unbalanced killer. Kressick hadn't raised a human being. Somewhere along the years, he had begot a monster.

"Them," he corrected Moretz. "He's taking Ada and Darcy." Moretz complained, but Kressick went on. "They'll be taken to a safe location."

"Safe. From what?"