The Ultimate Community

by J Meverington

‘Yes, Terri is a clone of Camilla.’

  Alice gasped. No wonder they’d been hiding things from her, if word got out, they’d no doubt be captured and experimented on.

  ‘Is that why Terri donated her kidney?’

  Josh nodded.

  Alice’s brain was drowning. ‘So, what is my relationship with Terri? Is she my sister? Or my mother?’

  ‘Good question. She’s a clone of your mother, so I guess... your mother?’

  ‘I can’t get my head around this Josh.’

  ‘Imagine how I felt when I found out.’

  ‘Did Terri have any choice in donating her kidney?’

  ‘No. She was taken from here and drugged and her memory erased. It took a while for her to regain her memories.’

  ‘Poor Terri. And that awful Martin for doing this to her.’

  A thought came to Alice.

  ‘Camilla. My mother. Was she aware she was receiving Terri’s kidney?’

  Josh sighed. ‘No idea, Allie. I’d like to think not. I mean, if she did, it makes her no better than Martin.’

  Alice shuddered at the thought her birth mother might have taken advantage of Terri. ‘And what about you Josh? How did you end up in London?’

  ‘Martin decided not to return Terri to community and kept her in his apartment. She managed to escape, but she was kidnapped and held to ransom. The ransom was my heart.’

  Alice gasped. ‘What happened?’

  ‘They drugged me and took me to London to remove my heart. Camilla still lived in London then, and she and Damion found me and saved me.’

  ‘That’s horrific that Martin would have used you like that.’

  ‘He would have done anything to save Terri, he was in love with her. Turns out the businessman who needed my heart died, and the kidnappers released Terri. So, it all worked out, except for the dead guy of course.’

  ‘I’m still trying you get my head around you and Terri being clones. How does it work? Were you grown in a factory somewhere?’

  ‘They take a copy of our DNA, then grow an embryo in a lab. The embryo is then implanted into a host’s womb. In Terri’s case, that was Leonora.’

  ‘Wow, that’s crazy. So, Leonora isn’t actually Terri’s mother.’

  ‘Well, technically she’s her birth mother, but otherwise they’re not blood related.’

  ‘Arghhh, my brain hurts.’

  Josh laughed.

  Who are you cloned from, Josh?’

  ‘I’ve no idea, and I don’t care. I don’t like to think about it.’

  ‘So, Ethan is a clone too?’

  ‘Yep, and Matilda. Their children, Sally and Zac, aren’t though. They’re normal kids born from a clone couple.’

  ‘Wonder if that’s anything to do with Zac’s illness?’

  ‘Could be. Nobody knows the full impact of being a clone. I mean, I feel normal, but Terri is adamant she doesn’t want children.’

  Alice had a horrible thought. ‘You don’t think I could be a clone, do you?’

  Josh laughed. ‘I doubt it. You were conceived at a school party. I doubt either Camilla or Damion would have known Martin Bickford-Smith back then.’

  But a seed of doubt had been sown in Alice’s mind. Now she knew the truth of the situation, she wished she was still in the dark. What a terrible thing to do, growing spare parts in innocent people. What sort of monster was Martin Bickford-Smith? And how much of him had been transferred to Ethan? Alice shuddered.

  When they got back to the camp, Terri came running over. ‘Where have you two been? We need to go back to London.’

  ‘But we’ve only just got here,’ Josh said.

  ‘Zac needs a hospital. He’s not responding to any of the drugs we’ve administered, and he’s getting worse.’

  While the men strapped Zac onto a stretcher, Camilla approached her. ‘I’m sorry we didn’t get a chance to chat. Come back some time with Terri and Josh, and we’ll get to know each other.’

  ‘I’d like that.’

  ‘Don’t get your hopes up too much, I’m not the mother you might be expecting.’

  ‘Thanks Camilla, I appreciate your honesty.’

  They hugged and Alice didn’t want to let go. This woman had carried her in her womb for nine months and she could feel the bond. Tears formed, and she concentrated in blinking them back, not wanting to lose it in front of this strong woman. When Camilla released her, Alice noticed she also, had tears in her eyes.

  She stifled a sob and turned to Terri. ‘Hey, am I safe going back to London? There’s someone after me, remember?’

  ‘You can stay here if you like, but it may be a while before we can pick you up.’

  Alice wondered whether to stay and get to know Camilla better, find out more about the clones and whether she knew about Terri donating her kidney beforehand. But did she want those answers? There were too many loose ends in London to deal with, Ethan being one of them. Would he ignore his son to stick to his story? She would soon find out.

  Zac looked pale as they carried him over the hill and Alice wondered if he’d survive the flight.

  Chapter 32

  They took Zac to the hospital and Terri stayed with him while they ran tests. Meanwhile, Alice needed answers. After informing Josh of her plans, she headed to the offices of BanAddiction and asked to see Dr Smith.

  Ethan came out five minutes later and invited her into his office.

  ‘Allie, how are you?’

  ‘Hi Ethan, I’m okay, but your son isn’t.’

  ‘Pardon me?’

  ‘Your son, Zac.’

  The blood drained from Ethan’s face and Alice knew what Damion had told her was true.

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘Zac’s sick, so they’ve brought him to London for treatment.’

  ‘What? What’s wrong with him? Where is he?’

  ‘So it’s true?’

  ‘It’s true he’s my son, now please, tell me where he is. I need to see him.’ He stood up and grabbed his keys.

  ‘Not so fast. I need answers from you. Everyone’s been lying, or telling me some altered version of the truth. Before I tell you where Zac is, I need you to be honest with me.’

  Ethan ran his hand through his hair then picked up the phone and asked his receptionist to cancel his afternoon sessions. He hung up the phone, looked her straight in the eye and said, ‘What do you want to know?’

  ‘All of it. Your life in The Community, the brain downloads, this business, everything.’

  Ethan explained to her about his upbringing in The Community, how he dated Matilda, and how they had two beautiful children, Sally and Zac. Then one of the Elders told Ethan he was the chosen one, and how he was to receive special messages from God. He took him to a cave, put headphones on him, and started the downloads.

  ‘At the time, I didn’t understand what was happening. The sessions caused awful headaches and I became confused. Then there were the mood swings, which I took out on Matty. This went on for five years.’

  ‘Five years of downloads?’

  ‘Yes, by the time they finished, I was a fully fledged version of Martin Bickford-Smith.’

  ‘So they changed your personality? You were no longer Ethan?’

  ‘For a time, yes. While I was Martin, I escaped The Community and came back to London and rang Rupert, Martin’s son. He helped me with a new identity that’s how I became Ethan Smith.’

  ‘Wow, and Rupert believed you when you said you were his father?’

  ‘Yes, he’d been in on it from the start. Once I had my new identity, and a facelift, I enrolled in university. It was Martin’s plan to enhance the brain downloading software, so I took courses that would enable me to do that.’

  ‘Wow, that’s heavy.’

  ‘True, and Martin wanted to do weird stuff. He was obsessed with Terri and planned to brainwash her into falling in love with him. There were other things, which, well, let’s say are best left unsaid. I started to break Martin down, repellin
g his ideas. It took some finessing, but I managed to separate myself from him. I didn’t want to lose all of Martin’s knowledge, but I wanted my own personality and memories back. I’m now at the stage, where I am myself, and Martin’s memories lay dormant in the background.’

  ‘Wow. This Martin guys sounds crazy.’

  ‘He sure was. But he had some grand ideas, not all of them stupid. Wanting to save the world by creating a utopian society was his dream. All he wanted, was to be immortal. So much so, he used people in his quest for it.’

  ‘Do you know the original purpose behind The Community?’ Alice asked.

  ‘Of course. I can understand his thinking behind it, but I don’t believe in it. In reality, it didn’t work. Martin murdered one of The Community members to save a horrible man’s life and never forgave himself for it. It destroyed his marriage to Camilla, and he suffered guilt for the rest of his life.’

  Alice wanted to ask Ethan if Camilla knew beforehand about Terri donating a kidney, but the thought of hearing something she didn’t want to, terrified her.

  ‘Who set up BanAddiction? You? Or Martin?’

  ‘Me. I’d come up with a way to help people, and I am helping.’

  ‘But you’re brainwashing them.’

  ‘No, don’t think of it like that. I’m reprogramming the addictive part of the brain. As you’ve seen yourself, it’s not permanent. It’s no different from taking drugs for pain relief. It’s a temporary fix and gets you over a hurdle. But with addiction, it can work long enough to break the habit. What I’m doing isn’t illegal.’

  ‘But it is brainwashing isn’t it?’

  ‘There are many forms of brainwashing Allie, and they are all around you every day. In the news, on TV programs, fashion, religion, all designed to control the population. Everyone must dress the same, you must obey God or you’ll go to hell, you must work nine-to-five, own a house and two cars, and have 2.5 children. It’s what keeps society going.’

  Alice thought about it. She’d always resisted those things, never wanting to have children, hated fashion, and wasn’t sure if she believed in God. She worked, but not nine-to-five, and had loved working in a bar until recently. When had that changed? After her sessions with Ethan? She’d have to think back, try to remember when the shift happened.

  He broke into her thoughts as he spoke. ‘Now, can you tell me where I can see Zac?’

  ‘Have you told me the full story?’

  ‘I have.’

  But Alice got the feeling there was more.

  Chapter 33

  While Ethan drove them to the hospital, Alice called Terri and told her they were coming. She also filled her in on how Ethan was no longer controlled by Martin Bickford-Smith. When they arrived, Zac was fast asleep.

  Ethan rushed over to his son’s bedside, took his hand, and kissed him on the forehead. He looked at him for a long time, then stood up and extended his hand to Terri. ‘Hello,’ he said.

  She shook his hand. ‘Hello Ethan.’ Her tone was cold.

  ‘What’s wrong with Zac?’

  ‘They don’t know yet, they’re still running tests, but it’s pointing to congenital heart disease.’

  Ethan put his head in his hands and breathed deeply. ‘The poor kid. I feel terrible for leaving him and Sally.’

  ‘You weren’t Mr Popularity at The Community, that’s for sure, threatening to download your brain into Damion’s as an experiment.’

  ‘Martin was, not me.’

  Zac stirred in the bed next to them. Ethan turned and stood beside him. Zac’s eyes opened and stared at him.

  ‘Zac, it’s Dad.’

  ‘Dad?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘But you look different. Am I in heaven?’

  Ethan laughed. ‘No, but I’ve altered my face, that’s all.’

  ‘But... I thought you were dead.’

  ‘No, I’m alive and well.’

  ‘Why did you leave us? Where did you go?’

  ‘I’ve been here, working on an important project.’

  Alice saw Terri roll her eyes. She could understand how Terri might be cynical, but Alice believed Ethan meant well. He’d helped her to stop drinking, and she now saw the world in a different, less self-centred way.

  Terri signalled Alice, and they stepped out of the room, giving Ethan some privacy with his son.

  ‘Do you believe Ethan’s harmless?’ she asked.

  ‘I do, one-hundred percent. He’s a nice guy.’

  ‘Have you asked him if he’s been the one sending the text-messages?’

  ‘No, but I will. But I can’t imagine him bothering. Why would he?’

  ‘I don’t know, but he’s suffered serious trauma, what with Martin experimenting on him and all. Just be careful, is all I’m saying.’

  Alice watched Ethan through the window as he hugged his son and could sense the love emanating from him. She trusted her gut feelings, and instinct told her he was a good person.

  The nurse came in and told them they all had to leave as Zac needed his rest. Ethan came out looking shaken.

  ‘Are you okay?’ Alice asked.

  ‘Not really.’

  ‘I’ve got to get back to work, so I’ll catch you two later,’ Terri said, and walked off.

  ‘Would you like to go for a walk?’ Alice asked.

  ‘Yes, that sounds good.’

  They drove back to Ethan’s apartment in Marylebone, then walked through Regents Park and up Primrose Hill. Alice wheezed as she climbed, vowing to do more exercise.

  As they neared the top, they found a spot on the grass, and sat down.

  ‘I love the view of London from up here, it’s so different from where I come from,’ Ethan said.

  ‘It’s amazing, I didn’t realise London had such a big skyline. Must admit, I’ve never been up here before.’

  Ethan smiled and looked at her. ‘Let me guess? Too busy partying and having fun?’

  ‘That was my past. Going forward it’s nothing but health and fitness!’

  Ethan laughed, and it was nice to see him relaxed. Alice continued, ‘It must have been hard for you leaving your family.’

  ‘You have no idea.’

  ‘Do you miss your wife?’

  ‘Matty? No. We were never meant to be together. I helped her through a tough time, and she fell for me. She was pretty, but a little vague. Apart from the kids, we had nothing in common. But seeing Zac lying there sick, makes me realise how much I’ve missed of my children growing up. But I don’t want to talk about my family right now. I need a distraction.’

  ‘Did you ever think about going back to The Community?’

  ‘Every day, but they’d lynch me if I did. But once I fought Martin in my head, I discovered I would be of more benefit here. I hate the way humans are destroying the planet. I mean, in The Community, we respect it because it’s our source of survival. Why can’t people see that here? I’d rather people worshipped the Earth than some deity they don’t even know exists. So, I started with little steps, helping people with addictions, and encouraging them to think for themselves.’

  ‘I noticed after my sessions with you, I doubted my way of life. Before, I’d had no ambition, and worked in bars, living day to day, having fun. I’d loved my life but then I wondered why. Who was I helping? Nobody. Then it dawned on me... I’m a big fat loser!’

  ‘Hey, you’re not fat.’ He smiled again and Alice melted. She loved the dimples that formed at the edge of his lips and had a strong urge to touch them.

  ‘Sometimes I wonder if my whole life has been a waste of time.’

  ‘Hey that’s not true, you’re always helping people. What about Steve?’

  ‘Steve?’

  ‘Yeah, the homeless man you buy lunch for.’

  ‘I don’t remember telling you about him.’

  Ethan looked shocked for a moment, then said, ‘Sure you did, that night we went for tapas.’

  ‘Oh, okay, sorry, I don’t remember mentioning him. Must be
losing my mind.’

  Alice paused for a moment. ‘Ethan, can I trust you?’

  ‘Of course you can. I don’t think I’ve given you any reason not to trust me. It was never my place as a doctor, to tell you about my past.’

  ‘Yeah, I suppose. It’s just... I’ve been receiving threatening text-messages, and I don’t know who they’re from. Damion thinks they might be from you.’

  Ethan’s eyes narrowed at the mention of her father.

  ‘What is it? You don’t like Damion, do you?’

  ‘There’s history between the two of us. He didn’t like my relationship with Matty, and Martin didn’t get on with him. I find him shallow.’

  It was true, but Alice loved her father unconditionally. He had a good heart, and he meant well.

  ‘I heard Damion had mellowed out while living in The Community.’

  ‘He did after a while. When he first arrived, he was an arrogant jerk, looked down on us like we were scum.’

  ‘Really?’ Alice couldn’t imagine Damion being like that, but then she’d only seen him in his own environment where he treated everyone with respect.

  ‘Yes. Nobody liked him, except for Leonora, so we accepted him.’

  ‘What was she like?’

  ‘She had a beautiful soul, way too good for Damion.’

  Alice didn’t like the way Ethan talked about her father, but she didn’t know what had gone on there. Damion never talked about his time in The Community and never talked about Leonora.

  ‘Damion and Martin hated each other. I can see why he doesn’t trust me, especially after all that’s happened. But I can assure you, the messages aren’t from me.’

  In her heart, Alice believed it, but she’d needed to hear it from him. Something continued to niggle in her stomach, and she thought there was more to the story than Ethan was letting on.

  ‘Would you like to come back to my place for a cup of tea?’ he asked.

  Alice would have loved nothing more. ‘Yes please.’

  Chapter 34

  As Alice entered Ethan’s apartment, the simplicity of it shocked her. An old second-hand sofa sat in the lounge, and a single bed in the bedroom, not how she imagined a successful doctor to live. But, growing up in The Community, the need for ‘stuff’ wouldn’t be high on his list.