The Gene of Life

by Tetsuo Ted Takashima

  “His heart? His soul?”

  “That’s right. He could reshape his body, but he could never change his cruel and cunning personality—that is to say, his soul.”

  “So, that’s why you created that whole situation.”

  “Your first step was luring Benchell out however you could,” Katya said. “Then you had to create a situation where he’d want to kill by his own hand. That’s what the real Benchell would do, after all.”

  “You two acted too quickly. If you had waited longer, we would have been able to guide you from the inside. But I underestimated you; I didn’t think you could do anything on your own.”

  “You mean like back at the Vatican?”

  “I mean like the first raid on Aztec Labs.”

  “Don’t tell me that was all part of your plan, too!” Katya’s expression changed.

  “It was because you two made a move of your own that we were able to completely trick the enemy. Gerhard and Benchell both believed in it—that I was on their side. And yet they didn’t appear before me. It was thanks to your actions that I was able to remove that last shred of doubt.”

  “So, you got all the players to show up by reporting our infiltration.”

  Feldman nodded.

  “I never want to go through that again.”

  “I won’t make you go through that again.”

  “One more thing,” Max said, staring at Feldman, “when did you start capitalizing on me? From the very beginning? From the time you found out about Aztec Labs? Or was Simon’s bombing at Dörrenwald part of your plan, too?”

  “We needed your—”

  Max raised a hand. “Forget I asked. I don’t want to be any more disappointed in my fellow man.”

  “We didn’t start using you until recently. I learned who you two were during this mission. And I’m beginning to think people are not to be discarded.”

  From the shore, a deep rumbling noise, plus the sirens of police cars.

  “They must have destroyed the lab in order to hide their secrets. We informed the police ten minutes after the copter took off. And we informed DC at the same time. The fire trucks and police cars from all over town must be flying over as we speak. That chief of police won’t be able to hide, either. The attorney general will have called. However . . .” Feldman turned his eyes from the lab to Max. “I did wrong by you, Professor. There must have been a small library’s worth of information a scientist would love to have—including information that might have provided a key to a cure for you.”

  “I have the best assistant I could ever ask for. And I’ve got a charming girl by my side, too.”

  Katya smiled and pulled Aska into a hug. Feldman looked on quizzically.

  A red pillar of flame spurted from Lab Building Two’s central section.

  “It’s over.” Feldman’s whisper blew away with the salty sea breeze.

  Katya held Max’s hands, and Max squeezed hers. The soft sound of the waves washed over them.

  ● ● ●

  At a sprawling white sand beach tucked under a cliff, cheerful music was playing from the fast food restaurants along the road, mixed with the laughing voices of young men and women.

  Sunrise Beach, San Francisco.

  Max was leaning against the railing, and looking out to the sea. Feldman was next to him, lighting his cigar. Katya and Aska were buying ice cream across the street. Two weeks had passed since the events.

  “What became of the Nazi war criminals at Aztec?”

  “Three escaped, but they’ll get caught. A headless snake is as good as dead. What’s more . . .” Feldman looked at the ocean. “The lab is slated for closure. After the bombing of a P4-level laboratory complex, that’s to be expected. We were lucky that a biohazard was avoided. And the Aztec Foundation will crash and burn along with their lab.”

  “Let me ask you something,” Max said, staring at Feldman. “Did you really want to catch Benchell, Gerhard, and the rest more than you wanted to live forever?”

  “Someone who didn’t experience Auschwitz or any other concentration camp wouldn’t understand.” Feldman blinked repeatedly, as though he saw a mirage in the distance. “The line between life and death is thin, Professor. We humans are so fragile, our lives so fleeting.”

  “All the more reason to desire eternal life, no?”

  “The present is beautiful because it must end. Those are your words, Professor. The present is all there is. I’ve realized that eternity has only ever been an illusion.”

  An elderly couple walked leisurely down the boardwalk, hand in hand. Feldman watched them as they went by. “One thing I regret is not having experienced that.”

  “It’s not too late, you know,” Max said, grinning.

  “I’ll do my best.”

  “I’ve got your back.”

  “I have one more regret,” Feldman said, smiling awkwardly. “That I never got to raise a son like you.”

  “You’re on your own there, bud. It’s not like there’s no chance of it happening.” Max patted Feldman on the shoulder with a smile on his face. “That reminds me, back then, in that room . . .”

  Max flashed back to the voice he’d heard by the door back then. “Geht es Ihnen gut? Bitte antworte . . . Mein Führer!” They called the man lying bloodied on the floor their Führer.

  Feldman’s forehead was sweating. His face contorted with pain, and he sucked in gulps of air. His grip on the railing tightened.

  “Was that man a clone, or was he . . . ?” Feldman said. “Let’s not talk about it. I don’t want to think about it anymore.” He drew a deep drag on his cigar, as if to distract himself. The pleasant aroma wafted Max’s way. “What about her? Will she be all right?” Feldman asked, looking at Aska.

  “Her village doesn’t exist anymore. She lost Dona, Davi, the people of Domba, and everything. She could hardly speak two weeks ago. But now she’s beginning to smile sometimes. Together with Katya, I plan to look after her for now. Then she can decide for herself what she wants to do.”

  “She can’t live in an urban setting, can she? If I’m not wrong, her immune system isn’t up to it. She’ll be hundreds of times more susceptible to viruses and bacteria than the average person.”

  “She was too sheltered. A little dirt goes a long way toward building up a person’s immunity. I just need to build up her immune system a little at a time. So far, she’s adapted with surprising speed. Which might also be thanks to her genetics. She’s got a potential life span that’s centuries long.”

  “What about your illness?”

  Katya and Aska came back. They handed Max and Feldman some ice cream. Feldman smiled and accepted the ice cream from Aska.

  The phone in Max’s pocket rang. He faced away from the group and took the call. The bright orange sail of a windsurfer was floating past. Max nodded along to what the voice on the other end was saying.

  “I can visit you tomorrow.”

  “Thank you.” Click.

  Max faced the sea. The sparkling sun stung his eyes.

  “Good news, I’m guessing,” Katya said.

  “That was Dr. Hamilton. It seems Alex’s condition has improved, if only slightly.”

  After they returned from Aztec, Aska allowed Max to take some of her bone marrow and transplant it into Alex.

  “You need to start the treatment, too.”

  “It’s only just started.”

  “The future’s bright.”

  Max turned to face her.

  “Excuse me.” Feldman bowed, and headed for the car, enjoying his ice cream on the way.

  “He’s going back to Israel,” Katya said, watching Feldman walk away.

  “He’s a hunter. I’m sure he’s got his next job lined up.”

  “And we ours.”

  When Max and Katya returned to Allon, the lab’s computers were filled with Gerhard’s research materials and the results. Telomeres, embryonic stem cells, clones . . . it was more than enough to revolutionize life science as they knew
it.

  “To think this was the legacy of the Nazis,” Katya said. “These findings could win Nobel prizes for the next ten years.”

  “That’s what you’ve always wanted.”

  “All I want is to continue my research alongside you.” Katya looked at Max, then at Aska. “Aska wants to be a doctor. Looks like she really loves how you look in that lab coat,” she added with a smile.

  Aska smiled at them, bashfully.

  “You’ll be a great doctor,” Max said. “Though you need to learn this country’s language first. There’s no rush. You’ve got more than enough time.”

  “How about Nancy?” Katya said, out of the blue. “For Joe, I mean. He’s looking for a woman, right?”

  “He’s looking for someone to spend the rest of his days with.”

  “She might be a good match for him.”

  “Then who’s going to look after me?”

  “You’re still scared?” Katya grabbed Max’s hand.

  “I told you, didn’t I? I’m a wuss.”

  “There’s nothing to be scared of. Holding down a home. Having kids.”

  Max didn’t answer.

  “You were chosen by God. I said it once, and I’ll say it again.”

  Max gave her a curious look. Before, the word “God” had always made him uncomfortable, but now he accepted it.

  “God knew you would overcome the trial he set before you.” Katya leaned her head on Max’s shoulder. Max inhaled her perfume.

  Aska smiled as she watched them.

  “Let’s go,” Katya said. “We need to fulfill our promise to your brother.”

  Max nodded, and together they walked off, Katya pulling him by the hand.

  Kids in roller skates zoomed past them. Max suddenly stopped. He felt as though he’d heard a voice. That strange echo whispered in his soul and spread across his whole body. It sounded like both a voice from high above the heavens, and a voice arising from within himself.

  “What’s wrong?” Katya was looking at him like he was crazy.

  Max didn’t answer. He pulled Katya and Aska toward him.

  To his right, the vast Pacific Ocean shone in the sunlight.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  History will remember 2020 and 2021.

  As of March 2021, COVID-19 has infected around 120 million people and precipitated the deaths of around 2.6 million worldwide. And the battle is ongoing.

  These years, marked as they are by both death and resilience, caused the preciousness of life to stand out in sharp relief the world over. Many of the world’s cities and towns have had to undergo lockdowns, with people no longer able to live as freely as before. Meanwhile, healthcare professionals, researchers in various fields, and we in the general public continue to combat this time of hardship as we all carry out our respective roles. Given these circumstances, I think 2020 and 2021 have caused humanity to contemplate the totality of life—which is to say, both life and death—on a deeper level.

  Publishing the English translation of The Gene of Life during such a time feels a bit like the hand of destiny at work. I wrote the novel in 2002, a year that gave rise to a fresh new sense of life’s essence through discoveries in genetics and clone science. I’m truly grateful and truly delighted that, nearly twenty years later, we can publish the English-language translation.

  I’d like to express my deep gratitude to the translator, Giuseppe di Martino, for providing an on-target translation, and to the editor, Janice Battiste, and proofing editor, Francis Lewis, for giving us a lot of suggestions; thanks in part to their efforts, the book turned out fantastic. I’m also deeply grateful to Akira Chiba, the head of Museyon, for affording me this opportunity, and I hope we continue to be of like minds. I thank Takaki Kondo for helping us with publicity. And I look forward to working further with film director Toshinari Yonishi, who made a heavy-hitting trailer for the book. Thank you all for your support.

  The publication of The Gene of Life in English follows last year’s publication of the English translation of my novel, The Wall. I thank everyone who was involved in making that happen.

  Lastly, allow me to end on a positive note by repeating the following aphorism from The Gene of Life:

  “Enjoy life, for it is both beautiful and short.”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  After working as a scientist for the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, Ted Takashima moved to California, where he studied at the University of California. He has published more than thirty books in the action/thriller/suspense/mystery genres in Japan. His novels include Intruder, which won the 1999 Suntory Mystery Award; Pandemic (2010), which foretold the global spread of COVID-19 in 2020; and The Wall (2020), a redemption story set against the backdrop of a refugee crisis at the Trump border wall with Mexico.

  Thank you for reading The Gene of Life. I hope you enjoyed it! If you did . . .

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  See you soon!

  Ted Takashima

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