Reverse

by Steven Tandberg

  I wished I could believe him, but that thread of doubt had weaved deeply throughout my mind. It wasn’t even a doubt anymore; it was fact, sealed and confirmed in my mind. “I wish I could, pastor,” I whispered.

  A knock came at the door. I motioned for Jamie, Coyle’s dad and the pastor to move behind me. I cracked the door open to see Freddy, the guard.

  “There’s a bunch of suspicious men parked outside the seminary.”

  I grinned at the thought of my men hanging out at the seminary. They hadn’t honked again, so I knew Somatotech’s goons hadn’t left their cars.

  “Thanks for letting us know, Freddy. If they try to come in, please stall them,” said the pastor. Freddy nodded and walked back out front. I swung the door shut and turned to the pastor.

  “OK, let’s get down to business. What’s the plan? How do we stop a company with more resources than many small countries?” asked Pastor Anderson.

  “We need exposure. The public’s perception of Somatotech has to sour little by little before we spill all the dirty secrets.”

  “And how do we do that?” asked Jamie.

  “We have Dr. Strayer’s computer and on it, his exposé. He already did the research on Somatotech and died for it. All we need to add is the additional information we know, namely, that Somatotech is actually creating clones of dying cancer patients.”

  “Then we’ll need a news source to break the story little by little,” said Coyle’s dad.

  “I’m sure Somatotech has infiltrated most news companies by now. We’ll have to be careful who we leak it to,” I said while thinking about the different news companies. CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC had all had scandals tying them to different political and lobbying groups recently. They all played to the highest bidder. That was nothing new.

  “The reporter who grilled Dr. Tessel at the press event seemed to have it in for him,” said my dad.

  “Ah yeah, I remember. His name is Gary Middleton from News 4. Does he have national ties? This needs to go big.” He had questioned the ties between Mom and Somatotech at that conference as well.

  “Not sure, but if not, we can try other ways to get it national.” My dad looked at the pastor expectantly.

  The pastor rubbed his temples. “I could start a campaign in the churches as well. The Lutheran Church is adamantly against any forms of cloning, so I expect that support would be forthcoming. Children of God are meant to be created in the bonds of love, not in the bonds of a test tube.”

  But yet, here I stand, a test tube clone, I thought.

  “That’ll put you in their crosshairs, pastor. They’ll come after you,” I said, looking at Jamie, who was already frowning.

  “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. My friends and daughter, I feel this is my cross to bear. A cross I created myself from my past.”

  Jamie turned away, and her shoulders began to shake. The pastor went to her and lightly squeezed her shoulders.

  “Honey, this fight is much bigger than all of us. Our lives, our sacrifice, can bring light into this world, illuminating the dark actions of those who strive to act as God.”

  “Save the sermon, Dad. I know you believe in all that but look at it from my perspective. I’ll lose you. I’ll have to go through my life without a dad. Who knows? They may kill mom as well. Do you want me to be an orphan?”

  “Jamie’s right. There’s no need to risk your life. You say it’s your cross to bear, but it’s not. It’s my cross, my burden. I’m the one,” I said with all the confidence I could muster.

  “You can’t do this alone. All that will bring is more bloodshed,” he said, looking at me intently.

  I couldn’t speak because I knew it was true. I looked to Jamie again as if to say, “I tried.” She glared at me.

  “Well,” I said, “If we’re going to do this, we have to be smart about it,” I said to the pastor. “Anonymity is key, especially for you, pastor. Write an anonymous sermon on the evil of cloning and distribute it throughout the church. Don’t mention Somatotech outright. That way the company won’t pick up on it at first. Later, we’ll rely on our leak to the news to blow up Somatotech’s practices. Jamie, could you start a social media campaign? We’ll make a video about me. But, Jamie, we have to tell the truth. It will only work if they see me as I truly am: a clone.” My dad’s mouth dropped like a rock.

  Before he could speak, Jamie jumped in, “So we lie?”

  “It’s not a lie, Jamie, c’mon.” I shook my head, tired of their insistence on my identity. “Besides, the impact won’t be there if they don’t believe I’m a clone. What evidence would we have?”

  “Fine, Coyle. Whatever you think is best,” she said sharply. “But, we’ll do it together. It’ll have more force if I’m in it as well. The kidnaped girlfriend revealing the truth about her supposed clone boyfriend has a nice angle.” She wiped a few tears slipping down her face.

  Dad looked expectantly at the pastor, hoping he would provide a rebuttal. Instead, he shook his head and gazed at the floor.

  “This is the only way. Dad, we need you in it as well, denouncing me as your son.”

  Dad shot up to his feet and swung his hand at my face. I dodged backward and let his hand fly by. “I’ll never, ever…” He couldn’t finish the sentence because heavy sobs interrupted him.

  No one spoke for a moment as Coyle’s dad composed himself.

  “OK, fine,” I said relenting. “But, you, pastor need to explain your work and how it could’ve led to Somatotech’s current doings.”

  “That will implicate him, Coyle, he can’t do that,” said Jamie.

  “No, Jamie, he’s right, I have to face my past. I’m innocent in that I couldn’t have ever realized their evil intentions for my work at the time but, my work did contribute.”

  Just as I nearly finalized the plans for the video, the lights shut off. Jamie squeaked out a muted scream, but everyone else had sense to stay quiet. Only a sliver of light entered through the gap under the door, although I still could see easily. The others in the room stumbled about trying to find each other.

  The car horn sounded once and then stayed blaring. That wasn’t part of our code. The hairs on my neck stood on end.

  Two persons’ footsteps approached, so I pushed my friends back behind the desk. A shadow crossed the light, and the doorknob began to turn. I shuffled to the hinge side of the door as it opened and readied myself to come down on whoever entered.

  “Pastor?” Freddy entered the room. “We’ve had a power outage.” He stood at the door well and stared at me with his brows furrowed. “Wait, how’d you get in here?” He looked back into the hallway.

  “What do you mean? I’ve been in here all alo—“ Freddy’s body flying across the room and slamming against the far wall cut me off. I saw the leg that kicked him; it moved with but such power only a clone could accomplish. In charged one of Coyle’s clones, whipping his gun at Pastor Anderson. I snapped into action, swinging my leg in front of me and contacting his leg. The gun jerked from his hand, and he stumbled, but he continued onto the pastor. The clone laid down a fury of punches on the pastor’s face behind the desk before I could pull him back. I wrapped my arm around his neck and flipped back, throwing him into the wall.

  “Run!” I yelled as the clone regained his footing. Dad grabbed Pastor Anderson and stumbled towards the door. Large welts began to form on the pastor’s face. Jamie cowered under the table, frozen in indecision. The clone kicked the door closed before they could escape and lunged in front of them. He grinned before knocking Coyle’s dad out with a clean unprotected punch. His arms moved deliberately, and I sensed a slight delay as if he had to think before he acted. His punch had power, sure, but it was no faster than anyone else’s. His movements were too easy to predict. He gripped the pastor by the arm and spun him into his chest. His other hand snapped to the pastor’s neck and cupped his trachea.

  “Stay down, Coyle. Or the prophet
dies.”

  I closed my eyes to focus on controlling him. His presence was there, I could feel it near my mind, so I forced my will on his. Our minds connected, but there was no transmission. My commands met a wall just as I had experienced before.

  “You have no power over us, chosen one,” he spoke with my voice, but it sounded as if the words were fed to him. Jamie scooted over to the wall closest to the door as he spoke. She’d eyed the gun he’d dropped near the corner of the room.

  “I may not, but seems someone else does. How does it feel to be a mule?”

  “I have no emotions AM1; I have no need for them.” He scooted towards the door, dragging the pastor. “Now, step back or the prophet dies. NOW!”

  “OK, OK!” I said loudly to mask Jamie’s movements behind them. I held my hands up in concession. I didn’t look directly at Jamie, so as not to tip him off to her presence. Her hand slipped onto the gun, and she aimed it at the clone.

  “Wait! How are you controlling him?” I asked to stall him before they escaped out the door. If Jamie pulled the trigger now, her dad would likely be shot again, and I doubted he could survive another. The thought of both his daughter and wife shooting him nearly caused my lips to curl in a grin, but the seriousness of the situation squashed the thought in an instant. The clone stared at me for a second then curled up a menacing smile.

  “You taught us, AM1. And you were an excellent teacher.”

  Jamie thought better of firing at the clone and grabbed a large book from the bookcase that had collapsed during the scuffle.

  “I think you need a few more lessons,” I said grinning while watching Jamie through the corner of my eye.

  She came down on his head with the book. It stunned him for just a second, long enough for me to dive forward, rip his hand off the pastor’s neck and spin it around. The familiar sound of snapping bones escaped his arm, close to his wrist, and he went down. A quick kick to his face while down and he was out.

  Jamie lunged for her dad and cupped his face in her hands. “Dad, are you OK?”

  “I’m OK, but your dad, Coyle. Is he?”

  I moved over to him and checked his pulse, not that I needed to, I could hear his heart beating steadily and his regular breathing. Freddy’s body produced no such sound.

  “He’s out but not gone.” My eyes shifted from my dad and back over to Freddy.

  Jamie followed my gaze. “Is he?”

  I nodded, and she covered her face with her hands.

  “Can you save him?” asked the pastor.

  I moved over to him and placed my ear to his chest. I could hear the blood flowing slowly just above and around his still heart. I moved him slightly and heard the slosh of blood in his chest, moving freely. His aorta had been damaged. There was nothing I could do.

  “We gotta go, I… I can’t do anything for him,” I said and stood up, a grave look on my face. The pastor shook his head and pursed his lips.

  A chair flew by the door, followed by sounds of a scuffle. I glanced down the hall in the direction the chair came had come from. Stefan and one of his men stood over two men in suits. Stefan’s hand remained locked on the Taser he’d just used on the goons. Blood seeped from both their faces and their eyes were closed, but I could hear their hearts beat steadily.

  I hefted dad over my shoulder and trudged into the hallway with the pastor and Jamie behind me.

  “Wait, Coyle, what do we do with him?” the pastor said, pointing to the unconscious clone on the ground.

  “Let him receive the justice he deserves. Maybe it will appease the public for a while.” Right then it hit me how big of a tactical error Somatotech had made. First, sending only one clone and two of their goons in seemed reckless, although they likely didn’t expect me to be here. Maybe this was just a test run. Second, now we have the power of evidence, that there are multiple clones.

  “Pastor, do you have a cellphone with you?” I rested my dad down on the wall, and Jamie moved forward to support his head.

  “Yeah, why?” He extracted his iPhone from his pocket. “Oh, crap,” he said inspecting his now cracked-screen phone.

  I grabbed it from his hand and turned it on. Gratefully, the screen still worked. Through the splinters, I found the camera app and snapped a pic of me next to the unconscious clone. The ultimate selfie.

  “Whatever you do, don’t lose that pic.” I tossed him back the phone. I had the upper hand now.

  “Why don’t we take him with us? Back to the compound?” Jamie asked.

  “He may have a tracker on him we can’t block. That’d be the death of all of us. The pic has to be enough.”

  “But, we could get something out of him, Coyle. Something to help us.”

  “We’d have to make sure he doesn’t have a tracker.”

  “And how would we do that?” she asked.

  Before I could answer, a click emanated from the clone and clone’s heart stopped.

  “What’s wrong, Coyle?”

  “He’s dead. They terminated him somehow.” The pastor’s mouth dropped open.

  Just then, Stefan rushed to the break room.

  “Everyone all right?” His gaze shifted from Coyle’s dad to the clone. “My men were attacked, but gratefully they’re all alive.”

  “Dang it!” I yelled at no one in particular. I didn’t want them to be involved. I looked around at the carnage around us. “Dad’s gonna be OK, but the clone, he’s gotta take the fall for all of this. How do we make that happen?”

  “Without the pastor involved it will be tricky. The whole place knows he’s here. So either he stays here and waits for the police or comes with us,” said Stefan.

  “Come with us, Dad, please. We’re safe where we are, we’ll get mom there too,” Jamie grabbed her dad’s arm.

  “Jamie, if I leave I’ll be a fugitive. I need to field this. The clone barged in, killed our friend and attacked me. There’s no foul play on my part.”

  “No, pastor, you can’t mention the clone. And, I worry the police who come will not be actual police, but a Somatotech crew. If they arrest you, they’ll kill you.”

  “So, where do I go?”

  “Home, go about your day like this never happened. Somatotech will want to erase all of this. They’ll have a cleaner here in a couple minutes with the police, I guarantee it.”

  “Dad, don’t do it, come with us, now!” Jamie urged.

  “Coyle’s right. I can’t stay here, but for our plan to work I can’t go with you either. My fate is sealed at the moment.”

  “It’s time to go, pastor, I’ll get you home.” Stefan directed the pastor toward the kitchen with a firm hand on the back.

  “Dad!” Jamie screamed as I directed her down the hall with my dad over my shoulder.

  “It has to be this way, Jamie. Coyle will take care of you,” the pastor said while turning his head over his shoulder looking back at her.

  “Why can’t you?” she yelled back.

  He had no response, and Stefan pushed him through the kitchen doors.

  31 Action and Reaction

  Once we were out of 5GMax tower coverage and had flipped off the cell jammer around Jamie’s wrist, I called Angelfire. He clicked away on his computer for less than thirty seconds and found me Gary Middleton’s cell, home and office phone numbers. I thanked him, hung up, and dialed Gary’s cell.

  Jamie and Coyle’s dad looked on while I held the phone to my ear. He answered on the second ring.

  “Hello?”

  “Gary Middleton?” I recognized his voice and remembered the tone he had at the press conference.

  “Yes, who’s this?”

  “I’ll tell you who I am at the end of our conversation.”

  “Oooh how mysterious! I’m hanging up now.”

  “I’ve got information that will destroy Somatotech,” I rattled off before he could hang up.

  He didn’t respond for a moment. “And…”

  “And what,”

  “And what is it?”
r />   “I can’t give it to you over the phone.”

  “OK, can you give me a little teaser and then email the rest to me? I’m kinda busy right now for this charade.”

  “No email, ever, and this is the last phone call.”

  “Is big brother making you nervous?”

  “If you only knew. Gary, we’ve got information that will sink Somatotech, and I want you to write an exposé using the material.”

  “So, you’re telling me what to do?”

  “I’m confident you’ll arrive at the same conclusion. But, I have to be sure you’re on the right side.”

  “The right side?”

  “We can’t risk being exposed, at least not yet. If you do anything like alert the authorities or even worse Somatotech themselves, we’ll be forced to end your career.”

  “First you tell me what to do and now you’re threatening me. You’re luring me into this so well,” he said sarcastically.

  “There’s a much greater threat out there, Gary. Would you like the information or not?”

  “Yes, of course, I’d take anything on that sleazy pile of crap,” he relented. “But, who are you and how will I get it?”

  “We’ll get it to you when the time is right. As for who I am, you met me at a press conference at Somatotech once.”

  “More smoke and mirrors, great,” he said, drawing out the last word. “You know I have to verify my sources. Just as you’re vetting me, I’ll have to vet you.”

  “You’ll have your chance. I’ll see you soon with the material. In the meantime, I suggest you start researching the ties between the army and Somatotech.”

  I hung up before he could utter another word. I glanced at my watch, three minutes fifty-five seconds.

  I looked to Jamie and Coyle’s dad but didn’t feel like saying anything. We remained silent for the rest of the ride.

  “Coyle, you need to check the news. The snake is receiving a great award,” the Doña grabbed me right as I entered the Hacienda.

  “What?”

  “Come with me,” said the Doña. We started toward the kitchen.