by Alex Siegel
"Then tell them to come here," she said angrily. "I'll show them what we're doing and how important it is."
"It's too late for that." He shook his head.
She clenched her fists. "I can't believe you. I thought we were a team!"
"Please, Corrie." He tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but she jerked away. "It's already done."
"No! It's never done! I refuse to just walk away from my dreams like they don't matter. I'll fight you. I'll sue."
"Just calm down."
Corrie's brown face became redder. "Don't you dare tell me to calm down! We founded Perpetual Energy Technology so we could create technological miracles. It was never about the money."
"You make it sound like a religion," Richardson said.
"It was a religion to me, and this is my church. A church of science. They'll have to drag me out of here kicking and screaming."
Marina perked up. The team needs a scientist. "Excuse me," she said, "can we talk privately?"
"Who the hell are you?" Corrie barked at Marina.
"The woman who provided the money to clean up your financial disaster. You owe me. You can pay me back by having a conversation with me. Just stick around."
Corrie narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"Everybody else needs to go," Richardson said. "I'm going, too. Again, I'm sorry. I failed you."
The employees were quiet and moody as they gathered their personal possessions. They drifted out of the building.
As Richardson was leaving, Marina said, "I'll have a lawyer come by your house with paperwork to sign. We need to make this transaction official."
He waved in acknowledgement without looking at her. "Sure." He left.
Marina looked at Hanley and said, "Call the whole team. Tell them to come here. I want to start fixing up this place right away."
"Yes, ma'am." He nodded.
"Corrie, walk with me."
Corrie crossed her arms and stood her ground.
"We'll come back to your 'church'," Marina said. "I promise. I just want some fresh air."
She headed towards the door. Corrie grudgingly followed.
Marina stepped outside and took a deep breath. She couldn't get enough of the ocean breeze. She promised herself she would go sailing soon.
Her footsteps made no sound as she walked on the hard-packed dirt. It was definitely drier here than in Chicago. The vegetation was tough and thin. Tiny, yellow flowers decorated the side of a hill.
Corrie was still angry, and she wasn't trying to hide it. She was wearing a baggy, blue sweater and jeans. Her necklace was made of turquoise and leather.
"Who are you?"
"That's a good question," Marina said. "Perhaps you'll get an answer when we're done talking. You spoke about dreams and miracles back there. Do you believe in God?"
"That's none of your business."
Marina stopped and faced Corrie. "Let's be very clear about one thing. I'm the most dangerous person you've ever met in your entire life. When I ask questions, I get answers every time, so don't play tough with me."
"Is that some kind of joke?" Corrie smirked.
Marina just stared at her.
The smirk vanished.
Marina started walking again. "Do you believe in God?"
"Not really." Corrie's chubby legs hurried to keep up. "I'm a scientist."
"That doesn't matter. I know scientists who believe in God."
"Then I'm agnostic. I don't believe something until it's proven true."
"That's fine." Marina nodded. "Tell me more about yourself. I want to know your background."
"I'm not comfortable..."
Marina didn't have a gun, but she had purchased several knives in the morning. They could be obtained legally and without much trouble. She drew a six-inch blade from her sleeve and placed the sharp edge against Corrie's throat. The scientist froze.
"I thought I was very clear," Marina murmured.
Corrie swallowed. "You were," she squeaked.
"I wasn't kidding about being dangerous. Cooperation is in your best interests. Address me as 'ma'am'."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Are you going to answer my questions without any more backtalk?" Marina raised her eyebrows.
Corrie nodded slightly. "Yes, ma'am."
"Excellent. Stay close to me and follow my instructions to the letter. If you try to run, you won't get far." Marina put her knife away and continued walking.
Corrie stayed beside her and spoke softly. "You're pretty quick with that knife."
"I've had a lot of practice. Tell me about yourself."
Corrie paused before answering. "I grew up in the Navajo Nation. As you can probably tell, I'm a Native American. Getting off the reservation and into a good college was very tough. Being a woman didn't help."
"Your dedication is admirable."
"Eventually, I went to Caltech as a grad student. I got a doctorate in molecular physics."
They were passing small houses which stood at the base of the mountain. Many of the roofs were flat. Marina realized people didn't need to worry about heavy snow around here, so a flat roof was fine. Only a few houses had traditional grass lawns. Most had allowed native plants to grow all around the house, and she liked the variety.
"What attracted you to battery technology?" Marina said.
"It's something the world desperately needs. Better energy storage would make so many things easier. We'd be driving electric cars for one."
"Helping the world is important to you?"
"Yes," Corrie said, "of course. It should be important to everybody."
"It isn't. Do you have a boyfriend?"
"That's none of your business!"
"Do I have to pull out my knife again?" Marina said.
Corrie winced. "No, ma'am. No boyfriend."
"Why?"
"I never found a man who understood me. I've always been... different from other people."
"I used to have the same problem," Marina said.
"How did you solve it?"
"I found a man even more dangerous than me." Marina winked.
They came to a little coffee shop on the corner. She was thirsty, so she went inside. The menu was written in colored chalk above the counter, and it bewildered her. She had never heard of a "Mayan Mocha" or a "Vietnamese Iced Coffee." She had thought she was a sophisticated coffee drinker, but apparently, she was a newbie by California standards. She ordered a dark chocolate mocha because at least she knew what she would get.
Social media icons also decorated the menu, and Marina hardly knew what the cute symbols meant. They had become a cultural infestation. Every time she saw them, she felt less connected to ordinary people.
Corrie just stood in the shop. She kept glancing at the clerk behind the counter.
"Don't get any ideas," Marina whispered. "You're stuck with me until I dismiss you."
"You're very bossy."
"Extremely so."
Marina received her drink, and they left the shop. They continued to walk down the street.
"I'm trying to help the world, too," Marina said.
"Sure." Corrie gave her a dubious look.
"In fact, that's my mission. I need somebody like you on my team. Are you interested?"
"Why would I want to work for a woman who just threatened my life?"
"Because I can make your dreams come true," Marina said.
She sipped her drink, and it was delicious. The dark chocolate gave the coffee a rich, buttery texture without being too sweet. She would definitely visit that coffee shop again.
"What are you talking about?" Corrie said.
"Making a real difference in ways you can't imagine. Working real miracles. The best part is you won't have to leave Perpetual Energy Technology. If you want to experiment on batteries in your spare time, that's fine with me. Everybody needs a hobby."
"I don't believe you."
Marina gave Corrie a hard look.
"Ma'am," Corrie added.
"You shouldn't believe me. My team and I exist outside the reality you know."
Corrie walked in silence.
Marina glanced at her. "Listen, I'm the person you've been waiting to meet your whole life. I represent the destiny you were born to fulfill. Conversations like this are never accidental. All I need from you is unconditional acceptance and obedience."
"You're insane," Corrie said. "I don't know anything about you, and my first impression isn't good. I should be notifying the authorities that a knife wielding maniac is on the loose."
"That would be the rational response and not inappropriate. I've been called a maniac before. This is a question of faith. I'm one of the good guys. Listen to your heart, and you'll know I'm telling the truth."
Corrie frowned.
"I'll make a deal with you," Marina said. "If I can perform three miracles, will you join my team?"
"Are you kidding?"
"Not at all."
"Fine." Corrie snorted. "Three genuine miracles would certainly change my mind."
Marina smiled. "Let's start with the first one. Check your bank balance."
Corrie took out her phone and logged into her bank. "I have an extra two hundred thousand dollars!" Her eyes widened. "Where did this money come from?"
"Nowhere," Marina said.
"That's impossible."
Marina used her own phone to call Bethany.
"Ma'am?" the Chicago hacker said.
"I'm with Corrie Villegas. Make her have a billion dollars."
Bethany typed in the background. "Done."
Corrie narrowed her eyes. She checked her balance again and squealed. She began to hyperventilate.
"Now take the money away," Marina said.
"Yes, ma'am," Bethany said.
Corrie checked her balance a third time. Her face fell in an expression of crushing disappointment.
"Thank you." Marina hung up.
Corrie took a long moment before speaking. "OK. You know how to hack bank computers. I'm not sure if that qualifies as a miracle. It seems more like criminal activity."
"It was real money, well, real enough. You could've spent it. Nobody would've stopped you."
"If you can do stuff like that, why aren't you driving a gold-plated Cadillac?"
"Because we don't like to draw attention to ourselves," Marina said. "It disrupts the natural order. My people keep a very low profile. Here comes miracle number two."
She held up her hand to show off her long, sharp, black fingernails. Corrie stared at them. Marina forced clear drops of venom to emerge from the tips.
"What the hell?" Corrie's eyes widened.
Marina grabbed Corrie's hand and stabbed her in the wrist. Marina injected a very small dose of venom. Corrie screamed in pain and yanked her hand away.
"Sit down before you fall down," Marina said.
Corrie sucked on her wounded wrist. "What are you talking about?"
"That was venom."
Corrie blinked and wobbled. She abruptly sat on her plump butt. Her head nodded back and forth.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Marina said.
"Impossible," Corrie slurred. She drooled a little.
"Absolutely. No human can make venom come out of her fingernails. She'd have to be some kind of supernatural freak." Marina gave her an evil wink.
Corrie was silent.
She recovered after a few minutes and staggered back to her feet. She kept giving Marina fearful looks.
"Let's head back," Marina said.
She put her arm around Corrie's shoulders to help stabilize her. They walked slowly towards the new headquarters of the San Francisco cell.
"Can I see your hands?" Corrie murmured.
Marina let the scientist examine her fingernails. Corrie touched the razor sharp edges gently.
Finally, she said, "You had some kind of radical surgery."
"Of course. That must be what it is. I can't fool you."
Corrie frowned. "You promised three miracles, ma'am."
"Yes," Marina said. "You'll see the last after my team arrives."
Corrie was quiet and thoughtful during the walk back. Marina just listened to the breeze blowing through the leaves. She spotted a green lizard hiding in the weeds, and its flat eyes stared back at her.
They eventually returned to Perpetual Energy Technology. Marina took another look around her new home.
The layout was mostly open. Three offices were tucked into the north-west corner, and two conference rooms with glass walls occupied the south-west corner. The floor was built on two levels with a split running north-south in the middle and a short stairway in between. A railing prevented people from walking off the edge.
There was a kitchen area near the conference rooms, but it lacked a stove or oven. The appliances needed to be upgraded in general. She would be living here.
Marina walked around and opened doors. She found two storage rooms, one small and one very large. Another room held electrical breakers on one side and computers in racks on the other side. Lots of computers, she thought. My hackers will be happy. Restrooms were in the north-east corner. There was no real bathroom, a problem she would have to address before she could move in.
She faced the middle of the building again. She guessed it was about fifteen thousand square feet of floor space, smaller than she would've preferred, but it was good enough for a temporary headquarters. It would be cozy. She could already tell that finding room for a gun range would be challenging.
Hanley came over. He was wearing a gray nylon jacket over a black shirt and brown slacks.
"Why is that woman still here?" he murmured.
"I may recruit her as our scientist," Marina said, "but she's not a member yet. Did you call the team?"
"Yes, ma'am. They're on their way."
She pointed to the smaller storage closet. "That will be our armory. Start clearing it out."
Hanley hurried to comply.
"Armory?" Corrie raised her eyebrows.
Marina continued to explore. All the experimental electrical equipment was in a giant steel cage with a fine mesh screen. The door had a stiff spring to force it to stay closed.
"What's the cage for?" she asked.
"We work with high voltages," Corrie said. "The cage prevents discharges from escaping and injuring people."
Marina glared at her.
"Ma'am," Corrie added.
Marina nodded. "A wise precaution. How close were you to actually inventing a better battery?"
"We came up with some fantastic ideas. The problem was turning them into practical, commercial technology. Batteries have to be cheap and safe to manufacture. That's tough to do." Corrie lowered her gaze. "To be honest, we were still years away... and we needed millions more dollars."
"Still, it was a noble effort."
Marina wandered over to a set of overstuffed couches near the kitchen. She ran her hand across the soft, blue fabric. A large television faced the couches.
"This is comfy," she said.
Corrie nodded. "People needed a place where they could relax and take a break. We called this the living room."
Marina sat on the couch, and it was relaxing. She allowed herself to rest for a few minutes.
The rest of the team arrived all at once. Apparently, they had driven together from their homes in Oakland. Ipo, Katie, Jia, Min Ho, and Imelda spread out and looked around. Marina could already see approval on their faces.
Marina stood up and yelled, "Welcome! Everybody, I'd like you to meet Corrie. She was the chief scientist here, and I offered her a position on my team. She still hasn't accepted, so watch what you say."
Jia and Min Ho went straight to the computers as if nothing else mattered. Imelda went to the machine shop area with a delighted grin. Only Ipo and Katie came over to meet Corrie.
Ipo shook Corrie's hand. "Hello." His deep voice rumbled.
The Polynesian man was a foot taller than her and probably weighed twice as much. She looked up
at him anxiously.
"What's your name?" she said timidly.
"Sorry. We don't reveal our names to outsiders."
"I promised our recruit a genuine miracle," Marina said. "I'd like you to demonstrate your gift."
Ipo nodded. "Yes, ma'am. We need a scale for me to stand on."
Corrie found an industrial scale among the laboratory equipment. It had a maximum capacity of a thousand pounds. Ipo stood on it, and the electronic display showed 302.
"So?" Corrie said.
Ipo smiled. "Watch closely."
The number quickly went down to 105.
"What just happened?" Corrie said. "Did you break it?"
"No. I changed my mass."
The number spun up to 476. Marina saw strain on Ipo's face.
"I don't understand," Corrie said.
"I can make myself heavy or light," Ipo said.
"That's completely impossible. Conservation of mass is one of the basic laws of physics."
"I'm sure that's true."
The scale cycled back and forth between high numbers and low. It took him only a few seconds to go between extremes.
Corrie shook her head. "You did something to the scale when I wasn't looking. You're cheating."
"You think so?" Ipo said.
He abruptly leapt into the air, performed a double backflip, and landed on his feet with hardly a thump. Marina was impressed. She could barely do a single backflip from a standing start.
Corrie gaped. "How did you do that?"
"It's easy when you can make yourself weigh a third as much as normal," Ipo said.
He dropped to the floor and performed one-handed pushups with no apparent effort. His huge body bobbed up and down rapidly.
"Thanks," Marina said. "That's enough of a demonstration. Start clearing out that area." She pointed to some desks on the upper level near the offices. "We'll put exercise mats there." She faced Katie. "Help him."
"Yes, ma'am," she said.
Katie and Ipo walked away.
Corrie looked at the activity all around her. "What's going on?"
"We're moving in," Marina said. "This is our home now. You have to make a decision. Are you staying or going?"
"How am I supposed to decide? I don't know who you are. I don't even know your names!"
"I showed you three miracles as promised, and that's all you'll get. Sit on the couch and think about it."
Corrie shuffled over to the couch and sat down. She seemed to be thinking deeply.