Thomas Moore couldn’t quite say why he was escorting his wife on this walk.  It was almost a compulsion, an itch he couldn’t quite scratch.  Something in the man’s brain was driving him towards the tall, gleaming, white skyscraper in the center of the city.  Unlike the ache of most compulsions that start to go away as the goal is met, this one was just driving the fifty-three-year-old man forward faster.  His grip shifted, moving from holding his wife’s hand to gripping her just above the elbow.<br/><br/>“You’re<i>hurting</i>me, Tom,” Sarah complained as she tried to twist her arm out of her husband’s iron grip.  The woman was a few years younger than her husband, a homemaker who had devoted most of her life to raising their two daughters.  The youngest had just gone off to college and the couple was trying to make sense of their new life as empty nesters.  Tom had started to work longer hours in an effort to make more money so their girls wouldn’t have to take out large student loans.  When his boss offered the chance to attend the business retreat, he had jumped all over it.  Schmoozing was a guaranteed way to make his presence known around the company.<br/><br/>Mr. Moore didn’t respond to her whining.  He simply tightened his hold as he dragged his wife down the street.  Five blocks away and the itch in his brain was like a mosquito bite keeping him awake.  The more he scratched it, the more it itched.  He began to walk faster, almost forcing Sarah to scramble to keep up with him lest he pull her down.  At three blocks away, Sarah stumbled and demanded he release her.  Her pleas fell on deaf ears.<br/><br/>One block away from the glass doors of Melius Corporation and she yanked her arm, twisting at the same time as she backed away from her husband.  Her eyes were wide with fright; he had never acted like this before.  Thomas Moore was a kind, caring man who had never dared hurt his wife before.  “Tom?  What is wrong with you?  Why are you bringing me here?”  She backed away, one hand lifting as if to ward her husband off.<br/><br/>Thomas Moore the human no longer existed.  His programming was fully active now with only one objective in mind: get Sarah in the building.  Melius would take care of the rest if he could only get her through those glass doors.  He stalked forward like a cat hunting a mouse, fists clenching at his sides.<br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr"/><br/>Natalie set the carefully wrapped plate in the box before turning to smile at her handsome boyfriend.  No matter how tiring her day had been or how demanding her students were, seeing him always brought a smile to her face.  She wiped her hands on her pants and took the few steps towards Brandon, laughing as he caught her in a hug.  One sweet kiss later and she stepped back to look up at him.  After his shooting, she couldn’t help but worry about him, worry that he was pushing himself too hard at work before he was fully recovered.<br/><br/>“You made it sound like you only had a few things left to pack.  It looks like you haven’t even started in the kitchen,” she scolded lightly, unable to bite back a smile.  It was just too hard to stay mad at him.  All he had to do was flash a smile and all was forgiven.<br/><br/>“I got the keys.  I thought maybe we could finish packing and move a few things to the new place?  Maybe get a pizza?”  Nat leaned in to whisper in his ear.  “Maybe christen the new place?”<br/><br/>Her point made, she kissed his cheek and turned to go back to packing.  As far as she was concerned, the faster they got everything into boxes, the sooner they could start their life together.  “Go get changed and come help me,” glancing over her shoulder, her eyes dancing with amusement.<br/><br/>That faint buzzing in the back of her head had never completely gone away especially not now that Mr. Moore was within range that his programming seemed to have taken over.  With her back to her ever-observant boyfriend, it was easy to hide the faint frown that formed.  The periodic updates to the database had kept her apprised of his progress.  At the speed the updates were happening, he should have reached the doors of Melius by now.  Something seemed to be wrong but it wasn’t her job to assist with resistant family members.  There was one thing she could do, however.  After searching through the list of androids in the area, she sent a ping to the closest one before wrapping another plate in newspaper and setting it in the box.<br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr"/><br/>Niarah Alexander had been sitting on a park bench, enjoying the weather and listening to music while eating some flaming hot Cheetos.  She couldn’t get enough of the things.  The young woman had just licked her fingers clean of the flavor dust when a strange buzz started to tickle her brain.  She blinked once, thinking it was her music.  By the time her eyes opened after the second blink, the Melius programming had taken over.  Leaving all her possessions on the bench, she stood up and began to stride with purpose down the street.  She was only a block away.  It wouldn’t take long at all to get to Thomas to assist with the minor problem his wife was presenting.