by John Koloen
“Are you there? Can you hear me?”
“Yes, I’m here. I just…I just don’t know what to say. Why would they do that?”
“Duncan says it’s because your boss cloned our bugs and they no longer need us. It’s just like Gruber told me. Goddamn!”
“What’d Gruber tell you?”
“I told you that,” Boyd said peevishly, his voice rising.
“Don’t take it out on me,” she said defensively. “This is so sudden.”
“I’m sorry, I’m not mad at you.”
“That’s good to know, ’cause it sounds like you are.”
“No, no, no,” Boyd said apologetically. “I’m just…I don’t know. Upset.”
The conversation was interrupted momentarily as someone walked past the conference room.
“We should get together for lunch,” she said. “I know you’re mad, but don’t do anything stupid.”
“I won’t,” Boyd said, his voice modulating to a lower register. “I texted Jason, maybe he knows something. You know, I don’t get it. I thought they need eggs to clone the bugs and now, apparently, they don’t. I just don’t get it.”
“You should talk to him. He’s here today. But then let’s have lunch in the courtyard. It’s a nice day.”
“For you, maybe,” he groused. “See you for lunch.”
57
RESPONDING TO BOYD’S text, Jason Gruber regretted the prediction he’d made about Duncan’s project. That’s the way Biodynamism, or, rather, its CEO, worked. There were only so many scientists whom Mazur valued, Nolan Thomas among them. He didn’t value Duncan, only his specimens, and now that they’d been cloned Duncan’s value had evaporated. Gruber liked Boyd and wanted to help him, but wondered what he could do as he left his lab thinking about what he would say. He could tell his friend was angry from the text: I’ve been fired. What do you know about this?
Boyd surprised Gruber as he rounded a corner into a hallway that led out of the building.
“Hey,” Boyd said.
“Hey,” Gruber said. “You’re not mad at me, are you? Because I’ve got no idea what’s going on with your project.”
“I know that,” Boyd said.
“What did they tell you?”
Boyd described what Duncan had reported as they left the building and walked in the bright sunlight, stopping at a bench in a small alcove. They leaned against the back of the bench, shoulder to shoulder, occasionally glancing at each other as they spoke.
“How did you know?”
“Just my gut.”
“But I thought you needed eggs to clone the bugs.”
“Yeah, that’s what I thought but Dr. Thomas is doing something different now. It’s called somatic cell nuclear transfer. It’s a method that was used to clone mice, and Dr. Thomas is confident it will work with your bugs.”
“You mean he hasn’t actually done it?”
“Not yet, not that I know of. It’s in process but he’s really confident that it’ll work.”
“Duncan said they’d be keeping one of the tanks.”
“Yeah, as backup. We know we can clone them using their eggs.”
Boyd grew pensive, staring at his shoes.
“So what happens to you?”
“I don’t know. I’ll have to ask Duncan. He’s really pissed.”
“I can imagine,” Gruber said as a tone played on his phone. It was a text. “I gotta go. Call me if you want to talk.”
58
ALL THAT WAS left for Duncan to do was to clear out his office and decide whether to take the severance. Maggie was more than sympathetic when he told her what had happened. She thought it time to take their relationship to the next level and this represented the clean break she had hoped for, though she did not say it in so many words. She encouraged him to take the severance.
“But I have to sign the release. I won’t be able to use anything from my work here. I’ve learned a lot about blaberus and now they want to take it away from me.”
“Maybe you should talk to an attorney.”
“It’s a take it or leave it offer,” he said. “They’re coming into the lab this week to kill the specimens. I could copy everything and take it with me but if I try to publish or do anything else with it they’ll sue me for the severance and damages.”
“Sounds evil.”
“It’s worse than academia.”
“Well, now you know.”
Duncan knew he was between a rock and a hard place. Biodynamism wasn’t a company to fool with, as evidenced by the CEO’s previous threat regarding his illegal entry into the country with specimens. He couldn’t figure out how that could be done without somehow exposing the company to sanctions, but he knew they had virtually unlimited resources, which he lacked. For him it was a choice between achieving emotional satisfaction, no matter how brief, versus putting it behind him and restarting his life with Cross in Chicago.
“This was supposed to be the greatest achievement of my scientific career, and now it’ll be like it never happened.”
“Have you seen the release?”
“It’s here on my coffee table. There must be twenty pages but there’s an executive summary. I guess they use this a lot.”
“I doubt you’re the first. If you like, you can fax it to me and I can have my attorney look it over.”
“That’s a great idea,” Duncan said. “Maybe there’s a loop hole.”
“I doubt that, not from what you’ve told me about them,” she said. “But it can’t hurt.”
“Shit,” he said, setting the phone down to examine the release’s cover sheet. “This document cannot be transmitted without written approval of the issuer.”
“Fuck!” he exclaimed, throwing the document on the floor. Stapled together, it landed with a thud. He could hear Cross’s tinny voice, as if she were shouting.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“You set the phone down, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Well, don’t do that. It’s rude. If you’re going to set it down tell me. Why did you do that?”
“The release. It says I can’t distribute it without the company’s approval.”
“So, get their permission.”
As much as he didn’t like lawyers, he had come to despise Biodynamism. Had he gotten legal advice when he’d signed his Biodynamism contract while in Brazil, he might have avoided the current unpleasantries. But then, he would not have been able to bring his specimens into the country. But how would they find out if he faxed it from outside the company? The thing about asking for permission is that it could be denied, and then they might become suspicious of him. He didn’t put it past them to have him tailed.
“I’ll ask the division administrator. Why would they object to having an attorney review it since it is a legal document?”
“Exactly. I’m sure it’s just some legal formalism. But ask your administrator. And let me know, OK?”
“You think I should take the severance, right?”
“Yes, I do. This whole thing has been nothing but a curse on you.”
“But I’ll be giving up so much.”
“And you’ll get a lot in return.”
“You mean the money? That isn’t—”
“No, I mean me.”
59
DUNCAN RECEIVED PERMISSION to fax the release as long as it went directly to an attorney representing him, which Maggie arranged. Since they’d stopped feeding the blaberus colony, both Duncan and Boyd used the time to start packing their belongings. Thanks to living in furnished apartments, they had few possessions aside from clothing and recreational gear, such as Boyd’s bicycle.
Duncan had already explained to Boyd his options. Sign a release and receive a six-month severance and glowing recommendations or don’t sign a release and make it hard on himself.
“Do I need a lawyer?” Boyd asked, as he and Duncan were clearing out the lab office. Duncan had spent the morning make copies of the observation lo
gs and digital data they’d compiled in spreadsheets and a database.
“Maggie’s lawyer is looking at mine and it looks pretty much like yours. I’m guessing it’s ironclad so…”
“So I can take the money or run?”
“I guess.”
“What’re you gonna do with all that?” Boyd asked, pointing toward a stack of photocopies.
“I don’t know,” Duncan sighed.
“You gonna try to publish?”
“I wish, but I’m in the same situation you are. Besides, even if I don’t sign the release and I try to publish, they’ll sue and it’s in court for years and I’ll just be stressed out. No, I gotta find a way to put this behind me, like Maggie wants me to do.”
“You gonna move to Chicago?”
“Why not? We get along really well.”
“You love her?”
Duncan was taken aback by the question. He’d always been secretive about his private life. But now that they were in the same boat and very likely would never see each other again once they left the company, there seemed to be little reason to be coy.
“Yeah, we love each other.”
“That’s cool, boss. You deserve each other.”
“What about you? What are your plans?”
Boyd smiled and laughed quietly.
“I’m kinda working up the courage to talk to Carolyn about, you know, moving in with her.”
“Well, you’ve spent enough time at her place.”
“Yeah, it’s just that it’s a big move.”
“Like leaving this place isn’t?”
Boyd nodded.
“I could make the money last a long time. I just won’t be able to finish paying off my loans as quickly as I’d hoped. But I’ll be able to afford minimum payments at least and Carolyn isn’t what you’d call a spendthrift.”
“And you get along?”
“Oh, yeah. She’s the best. I don’t deserve her.”
“Yes, you do. Don’t sell yourself short, Cody. I can’t tell you how much I’ve depended on you through this whole thing and you’ve always been there. You never flinched, not in the jungle and not here.”
Boyd was struck by his boss’s comments. He seldom talked like this. Boyd liked it.
“So, what’re you gonna do holed up in her school bus?”
“I’ve been thinking about writing a book, you know, about all the things that happened to us. You know, back in Brazil I thought I’d like to be a reality TV producer, but now, I don’t know what I want to do.”
“A book?”
“Yeah. I’ve always liked writing. Carolyn thinks I should write about what happened in Brazil.”
“Good luck with that.”
“That’s not very encouraging.”
“The media was filled with it.”
“But not by anyone who was there,” Boyd said.
“What about the release? You can’t write about what happened here without their permission. Fat chance of that happening.”
“When I’m rich and famous I’ll just repay the severance,” Boyd said cavalierly. “Otherwise, I’ll say it’s fiction and let them say it isn’t.”
All that Boyd had to do was clear out his locker, the contents of which he stuffed into his backpack. Duncan ended up with four boxes, two of them filled with photocopies, backup DVDs and flash drives, the remainder containing his books and personal items. Boyd helped stack them on a handcart and rolled it across the campus to Duncan’s apartment.
“When are they going to, you know, kill off the bugs?” Boyd asked as they entered Duncan’s apartment.
“Tomorrow, I think.”
“You gonna watch?”
Sighing, Duncan shook his head.
“I don’t know, probably.”
“Mind if I come along?”
“Sure. I’ll call you and let you know when.”
“Should be interesting.”
60
GABRIEL COX CALLED Duncan Thursday morning to tell him that the exterminators were scheduled to arrive at his lab at ten. Duncan, an early riser, was dressed and finishing off a bowl of cold cereal. Cox asked that Duncan meet him in his office at nine.
Cox was friendlier than usual, waving Duncan into his office. Although he was disappointed for Duncan, the outcome of the extermination meant the end to what had become a troublesome project.
“Good to see you, Howard,” Cox said, rising from his desk to shake the scientist’s hand.
“You’re in a good mood,” Duncan said.
“It’s a nice day.”
“So, what do you want to see me about?”
“I’d like you to be at your lab when the exterminators get there,” Cox said.
“You’re forgetting, it’s not my lab anymore,” he said sourly, even though he’d already decided to be at his lab.
“C’mon, doctor.”
“Give me one good reason I would want to watch while they destroy months of work, which, I’ll remind you, began many months before I even heard of Biodynamism.”
Cox sipped from his coffee.
“Would you like something to drink?”
“No, I’m fine. You haven’t answered my question.”
As a middle manager, Cox liked things to run smoothly. He hated confrontations of any kind. Given his position, he might not lose all of them but hardly ever won any. Even though he was the division administrator, most of the scientists in his division were paid more than he was and some outranked him when it came to pushing and shoving matches. Duncan was no longer among that group. Cox had thought he was being courteous and deferential and didn’t expect resistance.
“You’ve read the separation agreement?”
“My lawyer is reading it for me. I won’t sign it until he gets back to me.”
Cox froze momentarily at the mention of a lawyer.
“Well, then, you’re still an employee here and as such you’re expected to continue working. Besides, I’m not sure they understand what they’re supposed to exterminate.”
“Seems obvious to me.”
“What I meant was they seem to be taking this a little lightly. I showed them pictures of your specimens and they started joking about cockroaches.”
“Yeah,” Duncan said, stifling a laugh. “They’ll find out soon enough.”
Cox smiled falsely.
“Well, if you won’t do it, I’ll ask your chief assistant. What’s his name again?”
Duncan scowled.
“Cody Boyd, and you know his name,” he said sharply. “He won’t do it if I tell him not to.”
“Don’t threaten me, doctor,” Cox said, coldly. “Besides, I’ll offer him an incentive. I’ll double his severance.”
“You fucker,” Duncan said, angrily pushing back from his chair and rising.
“So, you’ll do it?”
“I’ll do it,” Duncan said, resignedly.
“Bring your assistant with you, just in case.”
“In case of what? What are you afraid of? If you think these guys are so incompetent, why are you using them? Fuck, get someone who knows what they’re doing, for chrissake.”
“And who would that be? You?” Cox said, finishing his coffee. “Just do it.”
61
BOYD HAD THE same questions for Duncan as Duncan had had for Cox.
“They think they’re dealing with cockroaches?” Boyd asked incredulously.
“Apparently. I hope to disabuse them when they get here.”
Duncan’s smallish office seemed larger after it had been cleared of his belongings. Duncan and Boyd were dressed in street clothes but still wore their ID badges. The original lab notebooks had already been picked up by the company. The data resided on company servers. While waiting for the exterminators, Duncan idly tried to access one of the spreadsheets. He was denied permission. He tried another. And another.
“Wow, they don’t waste time here,” he said. “They’ve locked me out of my own files, already. Fortunately, I have—”
Boyd held a finger to his lips, with his other hand motioning to cut Duncan off.
Duncan gave Boyd a look of surprise, raising his eyebrows.
Boyd peeled a sheet of paper off a memo pad on the desk. He scribbled, This place may be bugged.
Duncan raised his eyebrows again. Boyd nodded vigorously, crumpling the note into his pocket.
“I don’t trust them, do you?” Boyd whispered. “Not after the shit we’ve been through. I just can’t wait to get out of this place.”
“It won’t be long, here they come,” Duncan said, nodding toward the hallway.
62
THE EXTERMINATORS WORE identical coveralls and billed caps. The supervisor was a big, ruddy faced white guy with a furrowed face and roughly trimmed, graying beard and mustache. He introduced himself as “Mr. Miller.”
Looking at the calendar on his phone, he said, without looking up, “Which one of you is Dr. Duncan? They told me to check in with you before we get started.”
Duncan stood and the two shook hands.
“I guess that’s where they are,” Miller said, pointing at the lab.
“Do you know what you’re dealing with?” Duncan asked.
Miller thumbed through his phone momentarily and held it so Duncan could see. It was a photo of R. blaberus.
“That’s them, right? Blabbers?”
“Blaberus, Reptilus blaberus,” Duncan said coldly.
“Blaberus it is,” Miller said, looking at his phone. “According to my work order, we’re gonna move one of the tanks to another location and then exterminate what’s left. According to this, we should be outta here in an hour, give or take.”
“Is there anything you want us to do?”
“Frankly, Dr. Howard, I’m not sure what you can do to help. I just need your signature on this form so we can get started.”
“My name’s Duncan.”
“I’m sorry. Did I call you Dr. Howard? Didn’t mean to. We work all over the place and almost never see the same people twice. This is just the first of four stops we have today.”