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Ms. Goodwin turned to face them, her expression unreadable. “It seems we’re in uncharted legal territory here. The detective is consulting with her superiors, but I suspect they’ll find it difficult to pursue charges given the unique circumstances.”
Nathan nodded, his brow furrowed. “We’ve never had a situation like this before. The bots were designed for industrial purposes, not as weapons.”
Brian shifted uncomfortably. “The software is cutting-edge. It’s hard to predict how it will behave in every scenario.”
Sabrina’s mind raced. She’d given the bots the subjective commands they’d just started testing.Protect Freddy. Distract anyone else in the area.It hadn’t occurred to her to add any additional parameters. While those kinds of commands were brand new and sure to come with all kinds of unintendedconsequences, Sabrina couldn’t imagine how it would lead them to kill Josh. Then again, perhaps they hadn’t been trying to kill him, but their distraction proved deadly. Fuck, she’d just assigned intentionality to artificial intelligence logic progression. The weight of that realization settled heavily on her shoulders.
Detective Brown returned, looking grumpier than she had before. “We’re in uncharted waters here. After consulting with my boss and the district attorney, we’ve determined that we don’t have a clear path forward for prosecution.”
Heather arched an eyebrow. “Because there’s no precedent for murder by bot?”
Robyn nodded curtly. “Exactly. The law hasn’t caught up with the technology. We’ll be releasing Ms. Williams pending further investigation, but I wouldn’t leave town if I were you. I expect we’ll be sorting through everything and filing charges once we have the full autopsy and report from the medical examiner. The official cause of death will have to play a vital role in the charges we pursue.”
Sabrina’s shoulders sagged, relief warring with guilt inside her. She was grateful to be going home, but the freedom wasn’t likely to last long. The lifeless body of Josh Baker would haunt her dreams, too. Did it really count as freedom while you were trapped in nightmares while waiting to be officially arrested?
As the detective walked away, Sabrina turned to face Nathan and Brian. “I’m so sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen.”
Nathan placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “We know, Sabrina. You were just trying to save Freddy. We’ll figure this out together.”
“You have our full support,” Brian agreed. Then his face pinched with something like pain, and he added, “Just be sure to talk to me about anything you need from DS. I’m uh, notnecessarily going through all the official channels on this one. At least not yet. I will when the time is right.”
Then Brian looked at Nathan again. The two men continued their silent conversation from earlier, before Nathan nodded. “I’ll make sure Patrick has everything ready for you.”
Sabrina had no idea what that was about, but as she watched Freddy wince as he settled onto the stretcher by the ambulance, she decided it was a problem for another day. She wanted to ensure Freddy was okay before she did anything else.
Sabrina hovered near Freddy as the paramedic examined him, her heart clenching at every wince and sharp intake of breath. The medic’s face was grim as he assessed the damage - a busted lip, a black eye, a cut on his cheek and eyebrow, and bruising that seemed to cover every inch of Freddy’s skin.
“You need to go to the hospital,” the paramedic insisted, his tone leaving no room for argument. “We need to get you checked out properly, make sure there’s no internal damage.”
Freddy started to protest, but Sabrina cut him off. “He’s right, Freddy. You need to get looked at. Please. For me? I need to know you’re okay.”
He met her gaze, his eyes softening. “Okay. For you.”
Sabrina let go of his hand long enough for them to lift the stretcher into the ambulance, her heart aching at every pained flinch from each jolt of the transfer. Then she climbed in beside him, determined not to leave his side. As the doors closed and the ambulance pulled away, Sabrina leaned her forehead on Freddy’s shoulder, finally allowing herself to feel the full weight of everything that had happened.
Chapter 31: Freddy
Freddy smiled as he watched Sabrina carefully remove the new prints of her favorite posters from a cardboard box. They were on a mission to turn this cold house into a warm home, and they were making it happen one poster at a time.
“Where do you think this one should go?” Sabrina asked, holding up a Scooby Doo poster he knew she’d picked out with him in mind.
Freddy stepped closer, his fingers brushing against hers as he took the edge of the poster. “How about over the couch? It’ll be the first thing people see when they walk in.”
Sabrina’s eyes lit up. “Perfect.”
Together, they hung the poster, their bodies moving in sync as they adjusted its position. Freddy couldn’t help but notice how natural it felt, working side by side with her in this shared space. He leaned against her and soaked up her warmth. Being able to touch her freely was the best part of their new life.
As they continued unpacking, Freddy’s gaze kept drifting to Sabrina. She hummed softly while arranging her books on the shelves, slotting them between his own collection. The sight of their possessions intermingling sent a thrill through him. There wasn’t a single trinket or plant in sight. This was going to be a refuge where Freddy and Sabrina felt comfortable being themselves. He didn’t care what it took, he never wanted to live in a magazine display again.
“Hey, look at this,” Sabrina exclaimed, pulling out a framed photo of them laughing and shoving each other while sitting together at a Monday Meeting. “Where did this come from?” she asked.
Freddy’s breath caught as he remembered that day. “I have no idea. Didn’t Veronica take that after I shot ginger ale out of my nose?” Patrick had been so pissed about the papers he’d sprayed with soda. It was shortly after Sabrina started working at Taylor Industries, and Freddy had been surprised by her humor. He couldn’t remember what she’d said, only that it had something to do with video games. Looking back, that might have been the moment he’d started to fall in love with her.
Sabrina smiled, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. “She did. Do you think she got it printed and framed and put it in here?”
It could have been her, but that wasn’t where Freddy would place his money. “I’d bet Holly arranged it. She may have gotten the picture from Veronica, but you have to admit, the frame is pure Holly.” It was a simple silver design, but it was engraved with “Freddy and Sabrina” along the top and the year acrossthe bottom. Only Holly would be organized enough to manage printing, engraving, putting it together, and sneaking it into one of Sabrina’s boxes.
Sabrina placed the photo on the mantel, right next to where Freddy arranged goofy pictures of his family from his childhood. None of them included the matching outfits and elegant poses his previously displayed photos showcased.
