by Kells, India
She answered through labored breaths, “I don’t know. The walls are crumbling right now, so I fear what will happen when it’s shaken to its core. Our chances of survival are grim.”
Lance snorted. “Gabrielle, I like your optimism. For a woman who came back from the dead, you absolutely have a positive streak.”
“Fuck you, Lance.”
The man laughed. “Sweetheart, watch your language, you’re such a bad example for the baby.”
Time ticked and Sully was impressed they could still laugh about anything at all. He heard Gabrielle stumble and curse a couple times behind him, but her voice stayed relatively close. The baby cried a little before falling asleep again. Even if little Junior cried his heart out, getting out alive was a priority over a dirty diaper.
They all remained silent for a while, covering as much distance as possible through the endless corridor until Lance shouted fifteen minutes before the explosion. Sully risked a glance back at Gabrielle, pale as a ghost, glistening with sweat. No time to say anything. He pushed himself a little more, only hoping to be far enough away. Just far enough.
Lance slowed down and stopped. “Brace yourselves! Explosion imminent!”
Sully crouched and was immediately surrounded by Gabrielle, Lance, and the men as a protective barrier.
The noise came as a low hum. The sound amplified, making the floor and walls shake. Dust started falling, followed by small crumbles and more substantial rocks. Another explosion reverberated. It was deafening, as if the whole mountain was screaming in agony. Gabrielle tightened her grip on him and pressed her cheek against his. Sully wished he could be the one shielding her from falling debris, but he remained immobile, waiting. It took a long time for the mountain to give a final sigh and stop trembling.
Nobody moved at first. They were all part of an intricate mass of bodies, tangled, protecting each other the best they could. Lance was the first one to risk a look around.
“Status, everyone, the ceiling has not collapsed onto us. Report.”
One by one, the men moved covered with a thick layer of yellowish dust. It seemed all of them now sport this new color, except Sully. Coughing, Gabrielle knelt beside him.
“How are you? And the baby?”
Without answering her, he peeked inside the makeshift baby carrier to see Junior still sound asleep, his little fists against Sully’s chest.
“Wow, we have to tell Alie her son has all the qualities to become a kick-ass SEAL someday. Nothing disturbs him.”
“I’m not sure about that, honey. If he loves sleeping so much, he might have trouble going through basic training.”
He covered the infant again and looked around. “Nobody is injured?”
Dust floated in the air, but Sully could see everybody on their feet. Lance helped him up.
“Let’s get going. We were lucky to be far enough away and that the walls stayed up. I don’t want to test for how long they will remain that way.”
Gabrielle shook some grime off her. “And maybe it hasn’t crumbled all the way. Let’s hope we can get out of here.”
They couldn’t run anymore as it was even more difficult for the flashlights to cut though the dust and darkness. From his own estimate, at this sluggish pace, Sully guessed they still had two hours to go before they were finally out.
As they walked, the shaft remained undamaged. So far. Apart for some rocks of various sizes that have detached from the walls, they could move easily.
The closer they got to the exit, the more the air cleared, making it easier to breathe.
Soon, dim light streamed through the tunnel. Sully stopped Lance.
“Go and see our status there. At this time of the day, there may be workers. Also, radio the admiral, give him our location.
Lance nodded and disappeared with one of his men. Sully risked a look inside the carrier to see Junior, alive and stinking like hell.
“Damn, that smell should be weaponized!”
After a quick glance at him, Gabrielle shook her head as she helped him remove his body armor. Once Junior was comfy on his body armor on the floor, he looked at Gabrielle.
“No way, I’m not changing him. Don’t even try those puppy eyes on me.”
Sully cursed and removed the dirty diaper, doing his best in the dim light. Once clean and dry, Junior smiled and wiggled.
“I’m repeating myself, but wow. If I ever have a baby, I want one as easy as this little guy.”
Sully liked the idea, having a baby with wild Gabrielle, but he kept this little fantasy to himself … for now at least.
“Lance has the milk; we need to wait for him.”
“If he gets fussy, we’ll have to go deeper inside the tunnel to muffle the sound.”
Sully nodded just as Lance came back with his man. The expression on his face wasn’t a sign of good news.
“The exit of the warehouse is full of employees, all on hold because of the explosion. They’re waiting to know if they’re going to work or not. The entrance is still hidden, but there’s no way we can exit without drawing attention.”
Sully pondered on it. “And the admiral?”
“Our transportation is nearby, ready to pick us up when we are.”
“At least it’s a given. But we need to find a way out without so many witnesses.”
Gabrielle inched closer. “Are there any cops? Any security?”
Lance shook his head. “No, not really. Not inside. As for the outside, the team handling transportation doesn’t see anything suspicious. They think that most effectives are deployed on the other side of the mountain, near the temple entrance.”
Sully grabbed a bottle of milk from one of Lance’s pockets. Little Junior latched to the bottle as if his life depended on it and remained still for a while.
Sully rocked a little as the baby fed, but his mind completely on their escape. “We need to find a way to force evacuation.”
Lance grimaced. “If an earthquake cannot make them go away, what will?”
“A fire.” Gabrielle smiled. “A fire will evacuate the complex in a flash.”
“And bring the police right in our face.”
“Not that quickly, if they’re already busy on the other side of town.”
Sully pondered on it. “Minimum risk, that’s for sure.”
Gabrielle nodded. “Our main concern is to get you out of here, you and the baby. If any one of us is captured, we only have to sit tight until the admiral gets us out.”
Lance knelt in front of them. “We’ll have to split. Sully and the baby go one way, one man with him. The other lights the fire and flee the other way. Bring attention to them until we get to the transport.”
Sully removed the almost empty bottle from Junior who was now more sleeping than feeding. Gabrielle helped him put the baby back into his body armor.
Lance got back to his feet. “The best escape route for you, Sully, is on the right side. It will require you to jump and dash twice, but it shouldn’t be a problem as your hands will be free. Me and the others will start the fire on the left; there are some suspicious drums that will work well. And plenty of woods to get it going. This scheme would allow you and Gabrielle to escape fast.”
Stepping in between the two men, she shook her head. “Lance, you will be the one covering Sully, not me.”
Sully’s gut clenched and his jaw tightened. “No way, you’re coming with me.”
Now she turned and he saw the steely determination in her eyes. “Sully, I know the jumps Lance is talking about. I’m beyond tired from running; my body is shaking from exhaustion. I wouldn’t be able to make it out, and even less protecting you from possible threats.”
Sully started untying his body armor when she put her hand over his. “So far, the baby is calm with you, you must continue.”
“I’m not leaving you alone. Not again.” The turmoil inside him overrode his logic and sanity.
“Sully, it’s not a sacrifice, but a logical choice. And the danger is minimal.
Worst case scenario, you will be the one getting me out of prison.”
“Gabrielle—” His throat closed shut when she cupped his cheek and kissed him. His free hand knotted in her dusty hair for a moment.
When she ended the connection, she winked at him. “You promised me a honeymoon, and I’m holding you to that, husband.”
“I still don’t think it’s a good idea.”
She took another step back and he was forced to release her. “What could go wrong? I will be surrounded by three handsome SEALs.”
One of the men chuckled when Sully growled.
Lance nodded at his men and Sully. “Now, let’s finish our mission.”
***
Gabrielle sat in the car as Bea walked around to the driver’s side, and thought all went well after all. That or extreme fatigue had made her serene, almost numb. Her throat was still sore from the fire and smoke, and her body felt like it had been trampled by a herd of elephants, but she was fine. She was only happy to be free again and going to see Sully soon.
Bea drove off and stayed silent for a while, but she knew her friend would give her some sort of speech.
“Well, it’s the first time I’ve had to bail you out of prison. Quite unusual I must say.”
Gabrielle kept her eyes on the busy street and colorful crowd. “Is this the reason why I had to wait forty-eight hours to get out of this cell?”
“Don’t start! I had enough of your stubborn husband and Lance on my back, threatening to go get you themselves. If James hadn’t drawn the line and put the court martial menace on the table, we would have ended with greater trouble on our hands.”
“Bea—”
“Don’t! James could avoid his men’s difficulties by weaving a tale about them helping with the fire. You, on the other hand, it was more difficult. At least you had the good sense of removing and hiding your gear before the police got involved. It had taken all my influence and might to convince them you were one of my employees at the wrong place at the wrong time. At least, your name remained clear.”
Bea stopped the car and waited for a cow to cross. Gabrielle risked an eye on Bea, who started driving again, making her way around the animal.
“How is James?”
Bea took a long time to answer, but her pale skin and tired eyes were telling. “He’s broken, Gab. Something has ruptured inside of his soul, of his heart. When Sullivan and Lance came back, they did a full report of what happened. He stood there, listening, but I knew him … Then, he took Alie’s baby and never let him go.”
“Did he say something to you?”
Bea shook her head. “He’s not speaking, not really. I fear what will happen when Alie and her father get here. I contacted them, and they’re on their way.”
“What a mess. And you? How are you holding on?”
Bea laughed a little, but it sounded a lot like a sob. “I told so many lies in the last two days, I can’t keep up. The local authorities are all over the place and the ambassador has flown in to help out. There is nothing that can link us up to the explosion and sudden collapse of the temple. So the laboratory, and everything in it, has gone up in flames before being buried forever.”
“Bea, there is something I don’t understand. When we got there, it was as if the laboratory had been deserted. Lance’s men found dead bodies, but not enough for the whole army that would have been needed to run this place, or any of the other laboratories for that matter.”
“I can explain. When we put together everything you helped us find, as well as what we could gather in Namibia and Belize, it lit up some dark spots. At the genesis of the project, before I was even born, or created, if you like, the cloning was in full swing, but not all clones were viable. The few who were got adopted and somehow disappeared. The cloning was of a standard type, I would say. Afterward, the men were divided and researches were done separately. Five years ago, Simon got approached by a small group of investors. They were interested in reviving the project, but none of them wanted to take the actual lead. That’s why they let Simon take the helm. He had the knowledge, the connection, and the father to have access to invaluable information. Unfortunately, the new laboratories didn’t produce viable clones at all this time. They perfected accelerated growth and improved the amnesia serum, but it wasn’t enough. As they saw they were heading for a wall, these cold-feet investors decided to back out. As money trickled off, Simon lost more and more collaborators. He seemed to come across more money, and we’re still searching for the source of it, but it could only feed his organization for a limited amount of time. Most of the staff he could pay at the end was his guards and some researchers, not many of them.”
Gabrielle focused on the road again but didn’t see anything as her mind was reeling with information. “But the laboratories, the dishes, the clones … We saw all that.”
“The entire organization was running on fumes. What you saw at the end was the fantasy of a deluded man who was chasing a dream. He may have seen it all, if not of Alie and her baby.”
“Another question mark. Why was he so obsessed with Junior?”
“Again, you had good instinct on that. We suspected more than knew, but we had confirmation only a few hours ago. But let’s go back a little. When the project began at first, clones were created in laboratories and then transplanted into women’s wombs so they could grow and be born. The babies were physical clones with similar characters and skills, but very much individuals depending on their upbringing.”
“That’s why you do what you do and Mother Brigit does what she does.”
Bea smiled. “Exactly. Each clone developed various characteristics, it seems. We cannot be sure as the program was dropped a few years later and all clones adopted by different families. When Simon and the investors resuscitated the programs, technology had improved and they decided to start the conception through the actual birth in laboratories. Where they could achieve full grown humans in less than six months.”
Gabrielle reluctantly thought about the clones of her she had seen, sleeping or dead, baby or adult. “From what I’ve seen, it didn’t work well.”
“Yes, in fact, it was a failure. With their protocol, the subjects were all adults, but brain dead. They never woke up or reacted to stimuli.”
“All but one … Alie’s baby.”
“That’s where the whole project failed even further. The more they worked at it, the more they saw technology couldn’t achieve a viable adult in less than six months. As the staff depleted, the research itself slowly died off, collapsed onto itself. Simon didn’t want any of that. His mind started to shatter as he lost grip on what he wanted, his ultimate goal. At that moment, he decided to revert to the old way of creating clones.”
“Natural births.”
“Precisely. But he was not a scientist and those surrounding him were more technicians than researchers. So when his fractured mind created a clone of himself using Alie as a carrier, he did something else.”
“Little Junior isn’t a clone, but Simon’s baby.”
Bea nodded. “Yes. Lance had asked to know the DNA of the baby and the results just came in. Simon is the father. No doubt about it.”
Exhaling, Gabrielle leaned back in her seat. “What a mess. There is no other word for it. No wonder James cannot let Junior go. It is all there is left of his own son. Maybe the only remaining piece of sanity of Simon.”
Bea nodded and swallowed hard. “I know, and it’s tearing me apart. I know Captain Thorne has talked to Alie yesterday before she took the plane, trying to soften the blow. He also put James into the mix. If Simon is the father, James wants a part in the boy’s life. Let’s hope it will be possible, that Alie will be able to forgive the Feander family for what she endured.”
Gabrielle closed her eyes. “And what about the mysterious investors? And the doctors and researchers?”
“Another phase starts, the one consisting of retracing the money, where it came from and where it went. It’s only a matter of time b
efore we unearth everything. But it won’t be ours to do. The US government has grabbed the file and isn’t letting it go. I can’t say that I’m not relieved.”
“I understand. You will have free reign to take care of James.”
Bea nodded. “I’ll make it my priority, if you don’t mind.”
Gabrielle laughed. “Mind? I would do the same thing in your shoes. And I guess it means that what is left of Purgatory will fall and die.”
Turning the car, Bea entered the consulate’s parking. After she braked near the guard, she handed him papers. The verification was quick and Bea found a place close to the entrance. She stopped the car and killed the engine. For a long time, Bea stayed immobile, her hands on the wheel, only looking forward.