He grabbed a beer and a cold slice of pizza from the fridge before heading to his room. It was always the same routine. Ten hours a day in the lab, three or four hours a night double checking the day’s results. By midnight, the headache that had been brewing all day began affecting his vision. Peter massaged his temples, squeezing his eyes shut. It didn’t help. He pulled out the flash drive, shut down the computer and swiveled his chair around to face the bed. The package that Kyle had left on his bed was still unopened.
Peter leaned forward, pulling the package closer. The return address was a law firm in Oakland, California. He’d never been to Oakland, didn’t know anyone there. Curious, he slit open the tape sealing it shut to reveal an object encased in bubble wrap. Peter carefully extricated a square box made of highly polished mahogany, deep red with streaks of black. He turned it around in his hands, noting the brass hinges lining the top and the ornate brass latch holding it closed. It had been expertly crafted. He looked for a letter, something to explain why he’d been sent this. There was nothing.
He examined the latch more closely, intrigued to see that it resembled a small hand clenched in a fist. A brass rod attached to a chain ran through the fist, keeping the box closed. Peter removed the rod and lifted the lid. “Brian Sanders,” spelled out in an old fashioned script, was burned into the underside of the lid. It didn’t trigger any recognition. An intricately carved design centered on the bottom of the box was flanked by the four cardinal points of the compass, North, South, East and West. The colorful design was shaped like a card but not one he recognized. Green mountains with a tiny white castle sitting on top of the highest peak ran across the bottom. Swirls of light grey that could be clouds reached out along the right. An oversized hand clutching a staff with offshoots of tiny branches and leaves jutted out onto a pale blue background.
A sudden stab of pain shot through his temple, blurring his vision. He closed his eyes, waiting for it to subside. Lack of sleep was catching up with him. This was the worst headache he’d had in recent weeks. When he opened his eyes a man stood by the window of his room, staring straight at him.
“Kyle? What’s going on?” No response. He couldn’t make out the man’s features in the shadowy darkness. The moment he realized it wasn’t Kyle, the man disappeared. Peter shut his eyes once again. When he reopened them the room was still empty. He really needed to get more sleep.
The box was still in his hands, lid open. He thought about giving the box to Kyle. It wasn’t Peter’s kind of thing. He was about to close the lid when he remembered the name burned inside. Maybe the law firm could tell him something about the box before he passed it on to Kyle. He pushed back the lid, dropping the box on the carpeted floor as if it had burned his hands.
The name burned inside the lid was his.
His hands shook slightly as he retrieved the box from the floor. Hallucinations were not a good sign. He set the box on his desk and went to bed.
Kyle wasn’t home when Peter left for work. He unlocked the laboratory door and headed down the hallway to his office. The previous night’s headache gone, Peter felt good, hopeful even. He’d made a decision to switch to another type of procedure known as affinity chromatography. It was both risky and more expensive than the methods they’d been using but he was willing to take the chance. If it worked it would be well worth it. He switched on the lights in his office, startled to see the mahogany box sitting on his desk. He shook his head, certain that Kyle was behind it. No one else had access to his room. It was a stupid practical joke. Peter immediately decided to keep the procedure change to himself. They already worked as two separate teams so Kyle didn’t need to know what his team was working on. He sat down at his desk and turned on his computer, glancing over at the box. In the light of his office the polished wood seemed to glow. He reached for it, examining it again, still impressed with the workmanship. It seemed very old, yet new, the brass gleaming, the wood perfect. Too good for Kyle, he thought. He decided to keep it, setting it on a small shelf next to his desk.
He emerged from his office a little after nine. He’d been so focused on prepping for the new method he’d lost track of time. When he passed by Kyle’s office the lights were still off. Andy, one of Kyle’s researchers, approached him as he returned from the break room with a cup of coffee.
“Hey Peter, got a sec?” Andy held a folder filled with papers.
“Sure Andy, what’s up? Peter took a sip of his coffee, burning the tip of his tongue. “Follow me to my office so I can set this down.”
“How’s the testing coming?” Andy asked as they walked down the hallway.
“Slow, but I have a feeling our luck is about to change for the better.”
Andy laughed. “Only in this field do years of trial and error equal luck.”
They’d reached Peter’s office. “Have a seat, Andy.” Peter set his coffee down and turned to face him. “What can I help you with?”
Andy leaned forward. “I was hoping you could sign some purchase orders for me. Kyle was supposed to sign them last week but he must have forgotten. I should’ve followed up but I’ve been sidetracked recalibrating that new instrument in Lab C. Anyway, we’re almost out of mice and I need to get this order down to purchasing by noon today.”
“Kyle isn’t in today?” Peter was not surprised. Of course everyone was entitled to days off but Kyle hadn’t mentioned it. Yesterday he would have been more than irritated. Right now he didn’t really care. He was too focused on his preparation.
“Not that I know of.” Andy shifted in his seat. “At least not yet. I have a meeting until 11:30, so I wanted to get this taken care of beforehand.” He hesitated. “I could give Kyle a little longer.”
“No, I can do it.” Peter took the papers, signed them and handed them back. “Let me know when the mice come in, I’ll be needing some soon myself.”
“You got it, thanks.” Andy gave Peter a curious look when he left the office, but Peter had already turned his attention back to his computer.
The next few weeks flew by. The new method was producing results far greater than he’d imagined. Peter barely noticed Kyle’s absences, in the office or at home. He’d begun to consider the project his own, the increasingly positive results as addicting as cocaine. By the end of the month, he’d achieved a breakthrough. He slipped the flashdrive into his pocket and headed home.
When he walked into the living room Kyle, was parked on the couch, beer in one hand and remote in the other. It was obvious from the way he was dressed that he’d been to the gym.
“How was your workout?” Peter kept his tone friendly. He grabbed a beer and joined Kyle on the couch.
“The usual How’s the research coming?”
Peter took a sip of his beer, one hand in his pocket fingering the flash drive. “No change,” he finally replied.
“Keep the faith man, I’m sure our luck will change soon enough. One day you and I will be famous.” He stretched and yawned. “By the way, I won’t be able to stay late again tomorrow. Hope you don’t mind.”
You haven’t been able to stay late for over a month, Peter thought. I’m not even sure why you bother to mention it anymore. “No worries, I can handle things.” He got up from the couch. “I brought some data home to review so I’ll be locked in my room for the night.”
“How is that different from any other night?” Kyle lifted his beer in a salute. “Going out with Melissa. Don’t be jealous.” Peter forced a smile as he left the room.
Melissa. The reason why Kyle had been blowing off all but the bare minimum project work. Kyle made a point to introduce himself after he saw her picture on the company website as Piedmont’s newest research assistant. They’d instantly hit it off. At first Peter had been happy for his roommate. Neither of them had been in a serious relationship since college. Peter hadn’t minded, but he knew that Kyle, the social half of their partnership, had been getting restless. It was easy to push aside his resentment of Kyle’s abandonment when he was imme
rsed in reviewing the increasingly promising test results. In person it was somewhat harder.
Three hours later, Peter sat back in his chair, rubbing his eyes as the possibilities raced through his mind. The affinity chromatography method was better than he’d anticipated. This could be a major breakthrough in the treatment of the cancer that had killed his mother. He wished she was still here to be proud of his success. He realized if she hadn’t died, he might have never pursued this type of career. It briefly crossed his mind that she’d made the ultimate sacrifice, however unintended.
Peter’s first thought the next morning was that he’d forgotten to lock his office door. Adrenaline had been substituted for sleep for a while now. When he tried the door, it was locked. A man stood by Peter’s desk, his back to the door, head bowed. He didn’t move when Peter tried the door. The lab was lit by the ambient light of the computers and instruments that filled the room outside his office, not enough for Peter to see him clearly. Curiosity gave way to panic. Someone was trying to steal his research. It wasn’t Kyle; the body type was all wrong. He unlocked the door, pushing it open as he turned on the lights. He stifled his challenge when he realized the room was empty. Peter swung his head left and right, thinking the man had hidden himself, but the office was too small for anyone to hide in. He looked back out on the lab floor. Nothing moved.
You’re being paranoid, he told himself. The man was simply an optical allusion, light reflecting through the window of his office door. There was no way Kyle knew anything. He’d been very careful.
He scanned his office. Nothing seemed out of place except the box. He hadn’t touched it since the day he’d found it in his office a few weeks ago. It was sitting by his keyboard, off the shelf where he’d left it. He touched the top with his fingers, then impulsively opened it. Something was off. His name was still inscribed on the underside of the lid. The card-like design was still colorful and exquisite, compass points marking each side. He studied it for a moment. The engraving had shifted, no longer perfectly centered but slightly off to the right. He ran his finger down the side. It was firmly attached to the bottom of the box. Shaking his head, he concluded that it had always been that way, he just didn’t notice during his initial, brief inspection. Peter returned the box to the shelf and turned his attention to his work.
“Hey, partner.” Peter quickly pulled up a spreadsheet when he heard Kyle’s voice. He’d been so absorbed for the past few hours that he hadn’t heard Kyle enter his office. The raw data displayed on his monitor was meaningless without context.
“Hey, Kyle, how’s it going?” Peter leaned back, hands clasped behind his head. “We haven’t caught up in a while.”
“Not so good, actually. All we’ve been getting are dead ends. How’s it going with your team?” Kyle sat in the chair next to Peter’s desk.
“About the same.” Peter shrugged. “But we’re not ready to give up just yet. I had lunch with Director Reyes last week and he’s still firmly behind us.”
“Good to hear,” Kyle said. “Speaking of that, I’ve been thinking. How would you feel about my team changing direction, using affinity chromatography instead.” Peter instinctively opened his mouth to protest but Kyle put up a hand. “I know, it’s risky and expensive and may destroy more of our samples than produce viable results. But I think we can leverage the success other labs have had using gentle elution buffers to reduce the risk. We’ve got a pretty liberal budget so what do you think if my team gives that a try?”
For once Peter was glad for Kyle’s propensity to talk over people. It gave him time to regroup. “Are you sure you want to abandon everything your team has done so far?”
Kyle stared at him for a moment, making Peter slightly uncomfortable. For a moment he was sure Kyle knew the truth, but unless he’d been hacking into Peter’s computer, there was no way he could. Peter hadn’t shared his work with anyone in the lab yet. “Yes, I’m sure.”
“Well, okay then.” He shifted his attention to his computer, hoping to end the conversation quickly. Kyle took the hint and got up from the chair. “Let me know if you need any help from my team.”
“Will do.” Kyle hesitated at the door. “And Peter, I just wanted to apologize for blowing off work lately. It was kind of intoxicating having an actual life for a change. Melissa understands how important this is to me and I’m ready to jump back in.”
“No worries,” Peter said, thinking too little too late buddy but keeping his face impassive.
“Whew.” Kyle wiped his hand across his forehead, smiling broadly. “She’s really a great girl, smart, funny, actually understands what I do for a living. Maybe you could join us for dinner this weekend. I think you’d really like her.”
“Sure, just let me know.”
After Kyle left, Peter struggled to keep his blood pressure down. He’d been positive that Kyle had no idea he’d already been using the affinity method. Now he wasn’t so sure. He’d lost his faith in Kyle a long time ago. Kyle couldn’t know he was ready to take the next step and start testing on human tissue. At this rate, he’d be moving on to human trials within a month, well before Kyle’s team began seeing significant results. He was still in awe of how much progress he was making, especially after so many years of failure.
*
Peter viewed the dinner invitation as hours he could be working. Kyle suggested having dinner at their place and Peter reluctantly agreed. He hadn’t realized how hungry he was until he opened his front door. The smells coming from the kitchen were amazing. Food hadn’t been much of a priority lately. There was too much to do to waste time on meals. He really hadn’t planned on coming home for dinner; he’d claim to have either forgotten or been in the middle of an important test. After Kyle’s third reminder he knew he wasn’t going to be let off the hook. He cut it as close as he could. Just enough time to wash his face, comb his hair and change.
Melissa had her back to him when he entered the kitchen. He’d been expecting to see Kyle helping but she was alone.
She turned and smiled. “You must be Peter. I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Likewise,” he replied, smiling. “It smells pretty good in here.”
“Thanks. It’s pot roast with the usual trimmings, my mom’s recipe. I hope you don’t mind that I’m using your kitchen. Kyle thought it would be easier.”
“As long as we get to keep the leftovers, it’s fine with me.” He glanced around. “Where is Kyle?”
“He went to pick up some wine. He thought he’d be back before you got home, although I’m pretty sure he was expecting you to be a no-show.”
Peter blushed slightly. “It did cross my mind. I’m glad I didn’t, no matter how buried I am.”
“Ah yes, the antibody project. It’s not my area of expertise, but I did research on it so I could keep up with Kyle’s conversations. It’s all he talks about.”
“Really?” Peter couldn’t keep the surprise out of his voice. He cleared his throat. “I mean, it’s been our life for so long I can understand that.”
She put a hand on his arm. “I was the one who insisted on this dinner. I feel responsible for side-tracking Kyle and I wanted to make it up to you.”
“No need, seriously. If someone like you wanted to side-track me, I’d be tempted.” That was stupid, he thought. Luckily she just laughed.
To his surprise he liked Melissa, as pretty in person as her picture promised. He’d met her briefly when Director Reyes brought her around for introductions. Kyle hadn’t brought her to the house, at least while he was around, so he hadn’t seen her since then. In spite of himself, he was attracted to her, although the fact that she was interested in Kyle put a slight damper on that attraction.
Peter enjoyed himself at dinner even though the urge to get back to work was hard to ignore. He missed the old days when he and Kyle shared the same goals, worked side by side. When he started to dwell on Kyle’s recent change of attitude his mood shifted. He politely excused himself and went back to work, reme
mbering to thank Melissa for a great dinner. After he went back to his room, Kyle and Melissa exchanged looks, neither one speaking until they heard Peter close his door.
Melissa put her hand on Kyle’s arm. “I don’t think this was much of a success.”
“Don’t worry, he’ll come around eventually.” Kyle shrugged. “I admit to being a bit of a slacker lately, but only when it comes to OT and weekends. And it’s not as if he’s had to take on extra work. Our teams function separately.”
“He looks pretty worn out. He obviously hasn’t noticed that his clothes are hanging off of him. And his eyes …” She paused, shaking her head. “I’ll bet he hasn’t had a decent night’s sleep in a while, and judging by the way he ate tonight food hasn’t been much of a priority either.”
“He does look pretty stretched,” Kyle agreed. “There must be something else going on. He’s been pretty evasive lately.” He put his arms around her. “Dinner was great. I’ll help you clean up and then we can retire to your house.”
*
The next six weeks were intense. Kyle had been true to his word, showing up to work early and staying late. He stopped by Peter’s office on an almost daily basis to keep him updated on the new process, something he hadn’t done since the early days of their partnership. At first Peter had been suspicious, then irritated. He was preparing for a meeting with the director that afternoon to present his case to the lab board for permission to begin human clinical trials and didn’t need Kyle’s constant interruptions.
Peter was pleased that the meeting went well. Director Reyes was impressed with the results, but insisted on getting external validation before supporting the clinical trials. Peter argued that the data reports were consistent in their findings, and the new antibody successfully triggered the immune response without any noticeable side effects. Because of the potential to Piedmont’s bottom line the Director gave in, warning Peter that the trials would be scrubbed at the first sign of inconsistencies.
Never Fear - The Tarot: Do You Really Want To Know? Page 52