The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Percival casually snapped off a twig and flicked away the power line in his path. Thankfully, he was in the garden; otherwise, he would have had to endure a jolt of electricity.

But Finnian’s test was not something to be taken lightly.

No sooner had Percival tossed aside the twig than a snake, tongue flickering, shot towards him along the branch.

That did it. Percival was livid. He grabbed the snake by its body and slammed it to the ground.

But as he did, something felt off.

Why was this snake so light? Frowning, he glanced back at the pit he had passed and the discarded power line.

He decided to shut his eyes, ignoring anything else he might touch or sense.

Thirty seconds later, Percival reached the garden fence. With a firm kick, the fence collapsed. Only then did he open his eyes and turn to see that there was neither pit nor snake—just projections from a high-tech projector! Finnian possessed the skind of cutting-edge projector that Karen had been researching! Percival’s gaze sharpened, and sthoughts in his mind were now confirmed beyond doubt.

The only problem was the lack of evidence.

Stepping over the fallen fence, he approached the villa’s main gate.

With the delay, Finnian was long gone.

Percival exhaled a sigh of resignation. When Vivienne woke up, she was going to be furious.

He would have to think of a way to sweet-talk her.

As he was about to head back, he heard a loud noise oer) him. It was Vivienne! “Vivienne, you're awake,” Percival exclaimed, relieved. If Vivienne was up, the eight still out cold would get an earful, not him.

Vivienne nodded. “A little trick like that won't fool me. Did you catch him?” “No, Finnian was too fast. | couldn’t keep up.” “That old fox. If | get my hands on him, I'll make him cough up 800 billion!” Vivienne said with a vengeful tone before slipping her arm through Percival’s. “Mr. Wolf, let's head back.” Percival gave Vivienne a once-over. “Sure.” Back inside, Vivienne flopped onto the couch, half-sinking into it, and sighed, “After all that, | can’t sleep. Mr.

Wolf, let's have a drink.” Standing before her with a steady gaze, Percival agreed, “Alright.” Vivienne picked Percival’s favorite whiskey from the caband poured two glasses, her eyes shimmering as she looked at him.

Holding out a glass, she stretched out her leg and hooked Percival’s, her lips glistening in the dim light, enticing beyond words.

“Mr. Wolf, do you wantto sit in your lap while we drink?” Percival loosened his tie, revealing an attractive Adam’s apple, and rolled up his sleeves with a decisive motion.

“Or maybe, drink lying down?” Vivienne was startled, but in the next instant, Percival had flicked her leg aside, and his elbow cdown hard on her shoulder.

The glass fell and shattered, and Vivienne found herself pinned under Percival.

There was no hint of flirtation, only threat and vigilance.

“Talk, who the hell are you?” ‘Vivienne’ blinked, and her eyes quickly lost their luster, like a light suddenly snuffed out.

Percival was taken aback and only realized the truth when he lifted the person beneath him.

It was a robot! Percival was astounded. How could a robot be indistinguishable from a real person, even mimicking Vivienne’s tone of voice? Then the robot’s mouth opened, and a scroll fell that read, [Congratulations, you've passed the second trial. This is your reward.] Holding the scroll in his hand, Percival was momentarily speechless.

Was this another of Finnian’s tests? Was it a test of his resistance to temptation? But this was Vivienne, whom he naturally desired. If he felt nothing for Vivienne, that would be a real problem.

Percival carried the faux Vivienne to her bedroom, where the real Vivienne was still sound asleep.

Finnian’s sedative was indeed strong; even Vivienne had succumbed to it.

It seemed his immunity was part of this so-called test.

Percival settled himself in Vivienne’s room, leaning against the robot double, and dozed off.

Meanwhile, at a mansion somewhere in Rivenwood, Finnian relaxed on a sun lounger while a man applied ointment to his hands.

“The kid's got a good eye and steady nerves. Looks like he knew from the start that the Vivienne replica was not the real deal.” Finnian nodded approvingly, pleased with Percival’s performance in the second trial.

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The man curved his lips in a silent smile, seemingly privy to the previous night's events.

Finnian glanced at the unfinished bionic robot in a nearby room. “Aren’t you worried about sending this out? What if the girl finds out?” The man shook his head. “She’s been prepared for this. Better to send it out now than have her fooled later on.” “True. She isn’t foolish, just short on evidence,” Finnian said with pride. “But you owe80 million. Withgone, she won't let Percival pay for me.” “Done,” the man replied, finishing up the bandaging. “Medical fees, 100 million dollars. Don’t forget the transfer.” With that, the man took his medical kit and left.

Finnian snorted. “You just like family!” The next morning, Vivienne stirred awake in her bed.

She rubbed her temples, wondering if she had slept too soundly the night before.

Looking up, she saw Percival lying across “her” legs.

Vivienne blinked in confusion.

A doppelganger? Had she astral projected? But within seconds, she realized it was a robot.

She jumped out of bed and tapped the robot's head.

The craftsmanship was impeccable, indistinguishable from the real thing.

Percival was roused from sleep by a voice. “Awake? Got a headache?” “Nope, where did this thing cfrom? Did Finnian skip town?” Vivienne spotted the counterfeit and had already pieced together most of last night's events.

“Yeah, he lefta test to deal with. No clue what it was supposed to test, though.” Percival recounted the previous night's ordeal, patting Vivienne on the shoulder, “This thing, could it be skind of advanced bionic?” Vivienne nodded, quickly disassembling the robot, eyeing the 5,000-volt electric charge hidden inside. “Yep, if you'd fallen for it last night, you'd probably be singing soprano for life.” Percival’s gut instinctively tightened.

Finnian was playing hardball! Vivienne dialed up Zachary. The bionic robot Finnian left behind was even more sophisticated and precise than anything they had found in the Ashford or Boyd family. It would be prfor research and could significantly boost their progress.