Terminal Event

by Robert Vaughan

“Damien, what about using me as one of the surrogate mothers?”

  “You aren’t serious.”

  “I’m very serious,” she said. “My entire life has been one of curiosity and investigation. I really think that is what made me decide to go into television journalism in the first place. And nothing in my life has ever captured my fascination like these six embryos.”

  “Ava, do you want to do this, just so you can give yourself an edge in your reporting?” Damien asked.

  “I won’t lie to you, Damien that does play a part, yes. And it plays a very large part. But I can truly say that it isn’t the only reason I want to do this. As I said, I have never been more fascinated by anything in my life, so I would want to do it whether my TV career had anything to do with it or not. And, also, because of you.”

  “Because of me?”

  “Yes. It isn’t just the embryos that fascinate me, it’s you as well. I mean the way you have taken charge of this, one of the most important stories in humankind, and you have managed to do so while maintaining a professional detachment from all the hoopla going on around you. Believe me, from someone who has made a career of observing people in the limelight, how you are dealing with this is nothing short of amazing.

  “I want to help you, and I think that by becoming one of the surrogate mothers…and reporting on this story from that peculiar perspective, will help.

  “Also, consider this. There may come a time when your project will require more money than the university can provide. If that time comes, I can give you a window to that money, either by way of a government grant, or by a public subscription.” Ava smiled. “As a matter of fact, I have already done that.”

  “Oh?”

  “Did you, or did you not get a commitment from Marcus Worley?”

  “You’re the cause of that?”

  “Well, let’s just say that I called Mr. Worley and made a case for it.”

  “Let me ask you this, Ava. If I told you that the only way I would use you, would be if you resigned your position with the TV network, would you do it?”

  Ava stared at Damien for a long moment.

  “You would really make me do that?”

  “Are you still interested in being one of the surrogate mothers?”

  “Yes,” she finally said. “I very much want to do this. I think it’s very important that I do this. I’d rather not resign, because I think my position as a TV journalist could be most helpful. But if the only way I can become a surrogate mother is to give up my job, then yes, I’ll do it.”

  Damien smiled, then reached across the table to lay his hand on hers.

  “I think you’re right,” he said. “I think your position as a TV reporter might well prove helpful. If you want to do this, I’d be pleased to take you on.”

  “Great!” Ava said, happily. “How many surrogate mothers do you have, now?”

  “I have one.”

  “Oh, good, so I make two?”

  Damien laughed again. “No. You make one.”

  8

  Although Jefferson University was still sponsoring the project, and Damien Thornton was still in charge, the university had broadened its research team to include biologists, physicians, physicists, clergymen, and lawyers from outside the school. At first there was some question as to the need for lawyers, but McElwain pointed out that a major lawsuit could, possibly, result in bankrupting the college.

  McElwain had called a meeting of the entire Antarctic Six project, to get a progress report, and he asked Damien about the search for surrogate mothers.

  “How many applicants have we received?” McElwain asked.

  “Five thousand six hundred twelve, but we’re going through them now, eliminating the ones who are married,” Damien replied.

  “If you think we’re having problems with evangelical Christians now, you just wait and see what happens when they find out that the mothers are to be unmarried,” Joseph Presnell said. Joe Presnell was one of four lawyers on the committee.

  “Why are you eliminating the married applicants?” one of others asked.

  “We have secured a special home for the mothers, and we want to keep them confined to the home for the entire time of their pregnancy. If they are married, that may be a problem for them.”

  “Yes, I can see how that would be,” McElwain said.

  “Once the children are born, we’ll release the mothers, but we’ll keep the children under constant observation. Also, as they grow older, we will want to take personal charge of their education, and not just their education, but every aspect of their lives. They’ll have to be institutionalized for that.”

  “That’s where we’re going to run into some real difficulty I fear,” Presnell said. “No doubt when you do that, you’ll pick up protestors who haven’t even thought about demonstrating now.”

  “I’m sure you’re right, but I can’t see any other way of handling this.”

  “Have you made any selections?” Presnell asked.

  “Yes, we have made one selection. I have chosen Ava Glennon as the first surrogate mother.”

  “Ava Glennon? Surely, you aren’t speaking of the television personality, are you?” Presnell insisted.

  “I am.”

  “Do you think that’s wise?”

  “Miss Glennon fits the criteria. She is young, healthy, and unmarried.”

  “She is also well known.”

  “Joe, these six pregnancies will be the most famous pregnancies in all recorded history. Do you think, for one moment, that the women who are selected, won’t be well known?”

  “I beg to differ with you, sir, with regard to them being the most famous pregnancies in all recorded history,” the Reverend Bill Bass said. “I would think that honor belongs to the Blessed Virgin Mary.”

  “But you will agree, won’t you, Reverend, that they will be the most famous pregnancies in contemporary history?”

  “With that, I can agree.”

  “But that brings us back to Ava Glennon. How do we know she isn’t doing this just for the story?”

  “Suppose she is?” Damien replied. “That won’t detract from the fact that she meets all the guidelines for being a surrogate mother. And her position as a member of the national media, might well be of some benefit to us, down the line.”

  “Does she understand that she’s to be kept in confinement with the other mothers? Or, because of her position, do you intend to make an exception in her case?”

  “She understands the rules and has agreed to abide by them,” Damien said. “There will be no exception made.”

  “I should tell the rest of the committee that Professor Thornton discussed this with me before he made the appointment,” McElwain said. “I could find no objections to it.”

  “Thank you, President McElwain,” Damien said. He looked at the others. “Ava will be one of our surrogate mothers.”

  Ron Pittman brought his hand down and, with a smile, Ava began her show.

  “Good evening, this is Ava Glennon with America Tonight.

  Sitting just opposite of Ava was a very attractive young black woman.

  “My first guest this evening is Mary Beth Semmes,” Ava said. “Mary Beth, if you would, please tell us a little about yourself.”

  “I’m a graduate of Rhodes College in Memphis, and an ER nurse from Nazarene Memorial Hospital in the same city.”

  “I know it isn’t generally considered good form to give away a lady’s age, but I’m going to ask how old you are, and I’ll preface the question by saying that I am twenty-nine years old.” Ava looked back at the camera. “The reason for this politically incorrect question will be made obvious in a moment.”

  “I am twenty-five,” Mary Beth said.

  “Are you married?”

  “I am not.”

  “And now, the mystery revealed. Mary Beth, you have an announcement to make, I believe?”

  “Yes,” Mary Beth answered, with a broad smile. “I have been chosen to be one of the
surrogate mothers for the Antarctic Six.”

  “By Antarctic Six you, of course, are talking about the six embryos that were discovered from very deep under the ice at the South Pole.”

  “Yes.”

  “Why did you volunteer for such a thing? You are aware, are you not, that as soon as the baby is born it will be taken from you?”

  “Yes, I know.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  “As I think about this now, I appreciate the reason for surrendering the child. Because of the unique conditions under which these embryos were discovered the child, when it is born, would belong more to the world, than it would to me. However, because I am a nurse, I know the strong biological, and emotional connection a pregnant mother has to the baby she is carrying. So I’m sure that I won’t be able to do this without some emotional pain.”

  “The reason I gave my age a few minutes ago,” Ava said, “is because, like Mary Beth, I too, have been chosen to be one of the surrogate mothers. And as did Mary Beth, I signed an agreement in which I promised to surrender the child as soon as it is born.

  “Mary Beth, excuse the personal questions, but this is a subject that fascinates the world and, as I will be sharing this experience with you, the questions will affect me as well. You said that you are unmarried, but is there a man in your life?”

  Mary Beth smiled. “There is.”

  “And how does he feel about this?”

  “He’s a doctor, and he’ll take part in the pre-pregnancy preparation.”

  “Then, I take it, he agrees.”

  “Oh, yes, wholeheartedly. And of course, we discussed this before I submitted my application.”

  “And your family?”

  Mary Beth laughed. “One of my sisters thinks I’m crazy. She has two children, and she says she can’t understand anyone who would go through a pregnancy and not be able to enjoy the child. But my other sister says to look on the bright side, no feedings at two o’clock in the morning, no changing the diaper.”

  Ava laughed. “Yes, I hadn’t considered that, but your second sister may have a point. Mary Beth, thank you, so much, for being my guest tonight.”

  Ava looked back at the camera.

  “A suicide bomber kills ten in Baghdad in protest against bringing the Antarctic six to term. We’ll have that story when we return.”

  Muhammad Al Lacar had very strong feelings about the embryos being born. He believed, with all sincerity, that they had been placed on earth by Satan, for the sole purpose of destroying Islam.

  “Muhammad, that isn’t so,” Hussein Nyambui had said after Al Lacar shared his opinion about the embryos.

  “It is so. We must all heed the words of Imam Mehdi Jahmshidi,” Al Lacar replied.

  “Jahmshidi does not speak for all Muslims. The embryos are not the spawn of Satan; they are a window into our past, an opportunity to learn. Al Lacar, are you not aware of our faith’s rich heritage of learning? Why, it is said that Islam lifted the world from the dark ages. It is the books that we preserved that provide light into the history of all mankind. Jahmshidi would turn his back on that and pervert our religion with his evil thoughts.”

  “No, there is much heresy in the world today, and it is the heresy that would pervert our religion, not the righteousness of Iman Jahmshidi,” Al Lacar insisted.

  “Nothing perverts our religion more than the senseless killings perpetrated by the extremists who bring disfavor to the Prophet,” Nyambui replied.

  “They are martyrs for the faith,” Al Lacar said.

  That conversation had taken place soon after the word learned of the discovery of the embryos. Al Lacar’s mind had not been changed by the more rational view of Nyambui, and having just watched the television broadcast where the two whores had declared their intention to be the mothers of Satan, he was even more convinced of the evilness of such a thing.

  After a month of detailed background checks and in-depth interviews, the six surrogate mothers were chosen. Representatives from television networks the world over came to St. Louis for the introduction of the six young women. Outside the Jefferson University Theater almost two dozen trucks were encircled like wagon trains of old, all with uplinks which carried their signals to satellites to be rebroadcast around the world.

  Inside the theater every seat was filled, not merely with the curious, but with scholars, government officials from at least a dozen lands, as well as print and electronic journalists. There was a scattering of applause when Dr. Damien Thornton took the podium.

  “On behalf of Jefferson University, I extend greetings on the eve of what may be the most significant scientific and historical breakthrough in the history of the world.

  “As just about everyone in the world now knows, a recent expedition to Antarctica discovered six viable human embryos. As everyone also knows, we have decided to bring these embryos to term. We have discussed the medical, scientific, and historical aspects of it, and the reasons to do so far outweigh any possible negative consequences, such as the introduction of any, heretofore unknown pathogen.

  “But there are also ethical and religious considerations, and to this end we have had vigorous debates with humanists and religious leaders as to the morality of bringing these embryos to term. I am happy to say that the overwhelming consensus is that we should continue, and so we shall.”

  The last announcement was met with thunderous applause.

  “And now, let me introduce you to the six young women who are going to bridge one hundred melena.”

  Damien looked toward the wings, and a very attractive Asian woman walked out onto the stage.

  “This is Yukari Amano. Yukari is twenty-four years old, a librarian from Osaka, Japan.”

  The next young woman to come out onto the stage was black. “This is Zala Ibori, twenty-three, a laboratory assistant from Gambela, Ethiopia.”

  Adrienne Moreau was a young woman of twenty-five, a translator from France, and Lei Ngyuen was, at twenty-one, the youngest of the surrogate mothers. Lei was a college student from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

  “The last two ladies, have already been introduced to the world, but I will introduce them to you here, again. The first is Mary Beth Semmes, from Memphis, Tennesse.”

  Mary Beth came out onto the stage to the same generous applause as did the other young women.

  “And finally, Ava Glennon, who is from here in St. Louis. And if Ava had not been up here on stage, she would have been right out there with you, because, as many of you know, Ava is a most accomplished news anchor for DNN.”

  All six women stood in a row across the stage, and Damien stepped away from the podium, then held out his hand.

  “Here they are, ladies and gentlemen, six women who are going to make history.”

  The applause this time ended with a standing ovation.

  The women took their seats behind a long table, and began receiving questions from the floor.

  The question and answer period continued for about an hour before Damien finally called a halt to it. The women were then taken to a lecture hall on the campus where they were able to relax after the questioning session. Here, too, they began to get better acquainted with one another and they started to build friendships that would sustain them through the next nine months.

  A large house near the campus had been secured to provide quarters for the women during their impregnation and confinement. After the crowd left the theater, and the up-link trucks departed the campus, half a dozen policemen escorted the women to the mini-bus that would take them to what would be known as The Surrogate House.

  “You will not give birth to Satan’s children!” a man shouted. “Allahu Akbar!”

  The man darted out from behind a car with an assault rifle in his hand.

  “Get down!” a policeman shouted.

  There were several onlookers nearby, having gathered specifically to watch the women leave the hall. The assailant’s shout was met with screams and cries of alarm as many fell to
the ground.

  The man with the assault rifle continued to spew defiant challenges as he opened fire. Two policemen went down. The others drew their guns and returned fire. The assailant fell, and the danger was over, but not before the damage had been done.

  The newspapers carried the story the next morning.

  THREE KILLED, TWO HURT IN TERRORIST ATTACK

  AT JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY

  A terrorist, shouting, “Allahu Akbar” attacked the six young women who are to be surrogate mothers for the Antarctic Six. None of the young women were hurt, but one of the escorting policemen was killed, and another wounded. Also killed was a bystander, while another was wounded.

  The attacker, who has been identified as Muhammad Al Lacar was killed when the policemen returned fire.

  9

  The six surrogate mothers were gathered in the lecture hall of the biology laboratory of Jefferson University, it having been turned into a temporary and dedicated hospital. Doctor Taylor V. Scott was selected to be the physician in charge of the medical procedures necessary for the young women to carry the embryos.

  The lecture hall was crowded, because in addition to the selected women there were the remaining surgical staff, Professor Thornton and his university staff, three members of the clergy representing the three monotheistic religions, and at least a dozen armed security personnel.

  The young women hadn’t contemplated that they would be surrendering all aspects of their privacy. Ava, though she was still a member of the broadcast staff at DNN, had given up her responsibilities, except for the daily reports she would be filing from The Surrogate House.

  Doctor Scott stood at the podium, and though his words were meant, specifically for the surrogate mothers, they were listened to, attentively, by everyone present.

  “Some of what I am about to tell you may be considered as information too personal to share with others, but your situation, the situation you volunteered for, will, from time to time, require your total suspension of any modesty. And for that, I apologize.