2036 The Proof: A Thrilling Science Fiction Novel

by Speiser, Zvi

  This was the time for an extensive police investigation regarding the apartment and its recent resident. The investigation, as well as locating the killer, could now be made an official assignment. Lily would distribute the killer’s information, as well as his photo, among the detectives. The suspect was several steps ahead of them, but now there was no reason to conceal anything from him. Actually, he thought, he hadn’t seen the suspect’s photo either. Within moments, the assistant screen displayed a photo of the killer, a dark-skinned man in his late forties.

  His stomach reminded him that it was lunchtime, a conclusion confirmed by the time shown on his assistant. Why not go through the hospital and visit Will on his way back? That would work out well. Perhaps he would even meet Melissa there, and they could dine together. He would have an opportunity to get to know her better, and perhaps make some progress.

  The moment he spoke Will’s name, the assistant consulted a current traffic map, guiding the automatic driver along the optimal route in the maze of traffic jams within the big city.

  Melissa answered immediately. Yes, she was at the hospital, and had good news. Will was completely awake and doing well. Apparently, there was no brain damage. He was talking slowly and laboriously, but the doctors were certain that once the swelling in his face was reduced, he would resume speaking normally. He might also be discharged in the next few days. She would be happy to meet him there and have lunch with him.

  The automatic driving, which didn’t require any effort from him, flooded his mind with the type of thoughts he preferred to repress, sweeping him into the realm of paranoia, namely how he didn’t trust anyone, including those closest to him. It was true, he had been burned more than once by those near to him, whom he’d trusted unreservedly. And in this case, Melissa remained a suspect until her trustworthiness was proved. Were his suspicions excessive when it came to her? There was no way of knowing. Perhaps their shared lunch would provide an answer. Until then, he would maintain his suspicions.

  Up to this point, he had seen Melissa during the business meeting with Will, when she seemed assertive, pragmatic, and in full control. Later, he had met a frightened, tense, borderline hysterical woman when she had arrived at the hospital before seeing Will. When she had left his room, he had seen a broken woman on the verge of collapse. In the evening, she had been businesslike and sharp again. On the assistant, she sounded full of vitality. He wondered which Melissa he was about to meet.

  As he hurried down the hospital corridors, he recalled the sight of Will bandaged and sedated, with existential uncertainties hanging over his head. What would he see in a moment?

  In the waiting nook in the corridor was a different officer this time. He, too, was wearing a patient’s gown, and he also ignored Rick completely. Brad, his deputy, had indeed trained them well.

  Will was sitting up in his bed. His face was slightly swollen, but it lit up with a broad smile the moment he saw Rick.

  “Sit down,” he said. “Dad, vring a chair for Detective Rick flease,” he addressed the older man sitting next to an older woman, apparently his parents. “Flease meet my farents. Dad, Mom, this is Detective Rick I was just telling you avout.”

  Melissa, who had been sitting across from his bed, rose to warmly shake his hand. “I don’t need a chair. I can’t stay long,” Rick said. “I see resting has done you some good, and you’re back to running the world around you. Let your father be. How are you?”

  “Other than a few vandages and my face veing a little swollen, mostly my lifs, which is distorting my sfeech, I’m vack to my old self.”

  “When are you being discharged?”

  “Frovavly today or tomorrow,” he replied.

  “Great. I’m glad to see you on the mend so quickly, and I can’t wait for our next game. Don’t worry—I won’t go easy on you just because you’re injured.” Everyone smiled and nodded.

  Rick said goodbye to Will and his parents and left the room, along with Melissa. In the commercial floor of the hospital were various restaurants. Rick chose one that looked pricey, where it seemed most likely they could find a quiet, isolated place to sit, to the extent possible at such a busy hour.

  On their way there, he discovered a new Melissa, different than the ones he had seen so far. It seemed as if a major weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She was jolly and happy. The guilt that had been oppressing her had melted away. Will would recuperate and return to his old self. She was simply overjoyed and charming. How did Will let her get away, he wondered. Well, perhaps he had discovered something that Rick still didn’t know. I really am incorrigibly paranoid, he found himself thinking.

  Rick told her that they were proceeding with the murder investigation, and had found a suspect named Aaron Gorong. The name did not sound familiar to Melissa. But when he showed her the photo, her appealing face jerked briefly. She was no longer a happy, cheerful woman.

  “That’s Jack,” she blurted quickly, her expression becoming fearful. “How did you find him? Where is he? Do you have him under arrest?”

  “Don’t get upset, and don’t rush into anything. We found him as part of the murder investigation. He’s under considerable suspicion, but we don’t have him yet. Searching your computer didn’t help us. Aaron Gorong, or Jack, as you know him, was very good at concealing any ties he might have. How exactly is he paying you?” he asked.

  “Money transfers, of course.”

  “Have you ever checked where the money comes from?”

  “I really haven’t. I made sure the money came, and that was the only thing that interested me. It really is too bad that I didn’t bother to look into it, but you can. I’ll give you access to check out my bank account.”

  “We’ll look into it, although it’s also very easy to conceal the source of the funds. We’ll give it a try, anyway.”

  Rick connected Melissa to the precinct, and she relayed her bank account details and immediately instructed the bank to give the police access.

  “What’s happening with the assignment Jack gave you?” he asked.

  “I’ll finish it today and send it to him.”

  “Wait before you send it,” he interrupted her. “Our communication expert will give you instructions when the material is ready.”

  “What exactly are you going to do?” she burst out.

  His suspicions mounted instantly. She was wary regarding what the police could do to discover the route through which the material was conveyed. He had just told her they hadn’t caught Aaron, and obviously, this was now the focus of their efforts. He was not ready to relinquish his suspicions.

  On the other hand, she had told him that their suspect was also her contact person. She certainly could have chosen not to betray him. Or had it been a slip of the tongue that she had instantly regretted? The possibility that sophisticated Melissa, with her evident self-control, had acted so thoughtlessly did not fit in with the image he had constructed for her. Or perhaps she was preparing for the moment Aaron was caught, when she would have had a hard time explaining why she hadn’t recognized him? No, he would continue to consider her a suspect at this stage.

  “We’ll add a component to your reply that will relay all the intersections through which the material passes, which will allow us to instantly detect its final destination.”

  “Wow,” she exhaled, with an expression of wonder. “I didn’t know you could do that.”

  “It’s not simple, but we have Internet experts who can get to him.” He knew that in fact, they could only access the last intersection from which Aaron retrieved the reply, which could indicate quite a large area. But he was very interested in having her believe that this feat was indeed possible. Her fear of the possibility that Aaron would be caught soon would force her to tell him about the surveillance, thus allowing them to intercept the warning message she would send him.

  That’s great, he thought. She’s s
wallowed the bait. Her assistant communications were being monitored anyway. The only thing left was to locate the warning message.

  He found himself cheering internally. He wasn’t actually paranoid, he decided, but simply had sharp instincts when it came to detecting imposters. But what if sophistication wasn’t exclusively the domain of the police? Perhaps she had other means of communication other than the assistant and the Internet. The more he thought about it, the more he grew convinced that this was indeed true. And since he didn’t know what this additional method of communication was, his people would probably be unable to intercept her warning message. What a shame. It was a waste of a golden opportunity to trap her, or to ease his suspicions. He would now have to return to his office feeling even more uncertain about her.

  ***

  Will was engaged in a lively conversation with his parents when Melissa entered the room.

  “I’m sorry, I don’t want to interrupt you. I’ll try to come back this evening,” she said.

  “You’re not interrupting us,” his mother replied. “The doctor is ready to discharge him. We want him to come to New York with us so he can rest for a few days, but he insists on recuperating alone in his own home. He’s always been a stubborn boy.”

  “I feel a lot vetter, and more imfortantly, I feel stronger vy the hour, and my sfeech is imfroving, too. At this rate, I can go vack to work this week. There’s no foint in going to New York just to return immediately.”

  “I’ll keep an eye on him,” Melissa interfered in the familial argument. “We’ve known each other for a long time. I know him well, and I’ll be happy to come over and help him until he’s feeling better,” she continued, flashing her winning smile.

  Will’s nod confirmed that he had been won over by her line of reasoning.

  “I know how he likes his coffee, what he likes to eat during the day, and in general, we have a lot of common interests to talk about. I’m sure that resting in his own home, without the hassles of flying, would be better for him, and will bring him back to us quickly.”

  Apparently, her arguments had the desired effect. The parents exchanged knowing glances and removed their objections to allowing Will to stay home.

  Once they had left, Melissa stretched out in the only armchair in the room and asked with a mischievous smile, “Well, what can I do for you?”

  The two of us are finally in a room all by ourselves, Will thought. Too bad it’s under such harsh circumstances.

  “I see you’re in close contact with Rick,” he began. “I assume there’s veen some frogress in the murder investigation. And to answer your question, the only thing I can do in my current condition is study and think. How do you feel avout ufdating me on everything you’ve learned avout the investigation?”

  For a moment, it seemed to him as if Melissa hesitated. Her gaze, previously fixed upon him, was now averted. Something was preventing her from erupting in her usual fluent monologue, enumerating and elaborating on everything that had happened during the twenty-four hours in which he had been out of commission. Perhaps she had nothing to tell him. Perhaps nothing had happened.

  How odd, he thought.

  But then Melissa squirmed in her seat, her eyes focused upon him once more, and she let out a gradual sigh. “You have no idea what kind of Pandora’s box you’ve opened. I’m trying to structure what I’m about to say in a way that will sound logical, as much as possible, although I doubt I’ll succeed. I hope you’ve bounced back enough to process what I’m about to tell you.

  “I know the man who pushed you under the truck that hit you. It’s the same man you saw looking at us at the restaurant, the one who scared me. His real name is Aaron Gorong, although he introduced himself to me as Jack. He took photos of us at the restaurant, and then sent me the photos in the envelope during our meeting.

  “When I left the restaurant, and saw the photos, along with an old newspaper article you’d written, I understood that he’d recognized you and knew you were an investigative reporter, and most importantly, I realized you were in danger. I tried to warn you a few times, to no avail. I know you followed me to make sure I wasn’t hurt, and I’m grateful. I believe he pushed you to warn you not to mess with him. You set out to protect me from the unknown and put yourself at risk, while I, the person responsible for the entire mess in the first place, couldn’t even manage to warn you. I feel guilty about what happened to you, and I’ve barely slept since that night.

  “I wrote quite a few assessments for him about what’s happening at the forefront of research concerning various topics related to human DNA. He introduced himself to me as a member of an ancient sect attempting to prevent scientists from altering the human genome. I was frightened when I saw him watching us at the restaurant because, just a day before the murder, I’d given him my analysis of the research taking place in Dr. Thomas Lester’s lab, where the murder of the security guard happened.”

  Will’s lips parted in response, and his eyes gradually widened.

  “And that’s not the end of the story. Detective Rick and I met—you’re not going to believe where. At your old aunt’s house.”

  “I don’t velieve it,” he burst out. “Why? What haffened?”

  “Rick was concerned that Jack was listening in on us. He knew we’d met there on our first date, so we could set up a meeting without mentioning an address.”

  “Vut why did you meet?” he asked.

  “Despite your accident and all this chaos, Jack sent me more work. Maybe he wanted to continue the game, or maybe he had some other reason. We met to come up with an action plan and decide how to respond. Anyway, Rick was the one who recognized Jack as Aaron Gorong, apparently of East Asian descent, although he still hasn’t been arrested.”

  “Wow, what a convoluted affair,” he responded. “Now I understand why Rick was in such a good mood. He’s on to something vig here, way vigger than the random murder of a security guard.”

  The wealth of information Melissa had just provided him, in combination with the enforced rest, ignited his vivid imagination. The puzzle pieces began to hover in his consciousness, occasionally trying to come together, only to drift apart and recombine in new ways. He had no idea what the final picture was or how many pieces the puzzle had. It was also possible that he wouldn’t manage to obtain them all and might have to guess some, and, similarly to questions in a math test, speculate on the missing puzzle pieces based on clues or fragments of clues.

  Relatively well-secured biology labs dealing with human DNA research had been broken into lately, sometimes cleanly, with no apparent damage, nothing stolen or broken. The intruders weren’t common thieves or junkies. The profile seemed to fit that of an inside job, in which the intruders were aided by lab workers who might have supplied entry codes. One of the break-ins apparently had gone awry and ended with the murder of the security guard. The perpetrator’s fear of being caught had led to the murder.

  There was a promising suspect for the break-ins and the murder—Jack and his ancient religious cult, which monitored studies that might affect and alter human DNA. Or perhaps this was a cover story for a business group interested in studies that would result in longevity enhancement, or any other area with major commercial potential. This seemed much more convincing than the story of the ancient cult.

  There was also his own staged accident. A work-related accident while breaking into a university lab was one thing; it made sense to assume the murder had not been premeditated. But in his case, there had been a clear initiative to harm him, perhaps to kill him. Why? The killer was aware of his occupation, proving it with the photo he’d sent Melissa. He was probably afraid of a damning story about him and the activity of his organization.

  Now that he thought about it, perhaps the event involving the NASA astronomer hadn’t been an accident, either. But what was the link between astronomy—asteroids and comets—and biological research?
No, apparently, his house of cards had grown too tall. There was no connection between the events. But if the astronomer had discovered an asteroid made entirely of diamond or any metal, even iron or aluminum, its value would be unimaginable, and might well interest businesspeople, like a treatment to extend the human lifespan would. However, why hurt the person who had discovered it, instead of cooperating with him? Or perhaps they had gotten the information they needed, and since he was blackmailing them for an excessive finder’s fee, they decided to silence him in this manner?

  He had to meet the astronomer. Thinking about him and about NASA, his place of employment, brought back a recent memory about an investigation he had conducted about two years ago involving subterfuge, bribes, and embezzlement, all taking place at the renowned institution. The person who had given him the initial lead was Dan Auster, who had been forced out of NASA. After the exposure of the embezzlement and the firing of those responsible for it, Dan had promptly been reinstated and, ever since then, had felt as if he owed Will a personal debt. Why not talk to him? He would be happy to help.

  Should he wait until Melissa left, or share his suspicions and inquiries with her? He had to consider it carefully. Only at that moment did he notice that she had grown silent. She had probably noticed that he had become immersed in his own thoughts and drifted away from her. She knew him so well.

  “Sorry, I got distracted. I was trying to fut all the crumbs of information together into a coherent ficture, with very little success. I’m missing too many ingredients. Anyway, I interrufted you. Flease go on. You said the man who fushed me still hasn’t veen arrested?”

  “That’s right,” she continued. “I’m sure Rick will do anything he can to find and apprehend him.”

  “That means I’m still in danger and he might try to finish what he started when he fushed me into the road?”

  Her relaxed expression instantly became intimidated and frightened. “I didn’t think even for a moment that you might still be in danger. I was glad you weren’t too badly harmed in the accident, as we initially believed it to be, and I thought that was the end of it. I have to tell Rick about it, so he can consider what to do.”