Read Hive Monkey for Free Online Page A

pocket, bit the end off, and spat it into Victoria’s wicker wastepaper basket.
    “Look, don’t get any funny ideas. I’m not going to join your little club, okay?” The idea made him queasy. He’d had enough scientists and engineers crawling around in his skull. He didn’t need any more.
    “But you would be so welcome.” Reynolds rocked back and forth on his heels. “We have smoothed things over with Mister Dean, and reimbursed him for the cost of his camera.”
    “I didn’t ask you to do that.”
    “It is our pleasure. Our Leader is so very keen to make your acquaintance.”
    “You guys have a leader?” Ack-Ack Macaque cocked an eyebrow. “I thought you guys were like some vast hive.”
    “Every hive has a queen.” Reynolds licked the tip of his thumb, and used it to smooth his eyebrows. Two quick flicks. “Or, in our case, a king.”
    “And who is this king?” In his peripheral vision, Ack-Ack Macaque sensed Victoria tensing, bursting with unvoiced questions. He tried to ignore her.
    “To find that out,” Reynolds said smoothly, “you’ll first have to agree to meet him.”
    “Sorry, but that’s not going to happen.”
    “Are you quite sure?”
    “Sure as shit.”
    “Please, Mister Macaque. Will you at least consider it? Your brain is mostly composed of gelware, so you wouldn’t need additional implantation; at least, not much. The process of integration could be achieved in minutes, and quite painlessly. And I think it would be of great benefit to you.”
    “No, absolutely not.” Ack-Ack Macaque rolled the cigar between finger and thumb, listening to the tobacco leaves crackle. Reynolds took a step closer.
    “Welcoming you into the Gestalt would immeasurably enrich our whole.” His breath stank of coffee and mints. Ack-Ack Macaque curled his lip, exposing an incisor.
    “If you don’t get out of my face right now,” he growled, “I’ll enrich your hole with the toe of my boot.”
    Reynolds ignored the threat. He reached out his arms as if asking for a hug.
    “You wouldn’t have to be alone.”
    Alone.
    The word rang in the air like the toll of a funeral bell. Cold fingers gripped Ack-Ack Macaque’s stomach, and squeezed. He felt his arms and legs shake. Then, without consciously willing it, he stepped forward and slapped Reynolds hard across the face. The man staggered back against the desk.
    “Shut your mouth.”
    He pulled back his long arm for another strike, but Victoria stepped in front of him. She had her fighting stick in her hand, but hadn’t yet flicked it out to its full length. He glared at her, his single eye wide and wild, but she didn’t flinch. She didn’t submit. Instead, she met his gaze and held it. In another monkey, this would have been tantamount to a direct physical challenge, and Ack-Ack Macaque had to fight down an instinctual surge of aggression. If he got hold of her, he could snap her like a twig. But Victoria was his friend, and saviour: he owed her everything. He might be the alpha male on this tub, but she was definitely the alpha female, and he knew she wouldn’t tolerate any of his shit. She had no patience for insurrection or threats. The last person to raise a hand against her had been dropped from the Tereshkova ’s cargo hatch, several thousand feet above Windsor Castle. He eyed the fighting stick in her hand, and let out a long, shuddering breath.
    “Yes, boss.” He dropped his chin. His palm stung where it had struck Reynolds’ cheek.
    “Thank you.” Victoria gave him a final glare, and then turned to Reynolds, who leant drunkenly against the desk, his fingers dabbing at a split and bloodied lip.
    “I am so sorry, Mister Reynolds.” She took his elbow and helped him upright. “But I believe you’ve been given your answer. Now, do you require medical attention?”
    Reynolds shot Ack-Ack Macaque a sideways glance.
    “We are sorry you feel that way, Mister Macaque.” His voice was quiet, the earlier self-assurance muted. “For