When Randall returned to Jamie’s office, he found her nervously pacing. When he softly called her name, she flinched. After he apologized for startling her, he explained the plan and asked if she wanted to go on the boat with them. Jamie jumped at the offer, forgoing the chance to get dinner first.
Taking a cab to the landing, the two caught a late ferry back to the Maritime Museum. Thirty minutes later, they walked to the Keep and spotted the dive boat.
“Over this way. I see Rob,” Randall said.
“Are you sure we can trust your friend?”
“Absolutely. Rob and I go way back. We were roommates in college and worked together at the university for years. He knows this area better than anyone and he also knows about my past research. He’s probably one of the most open-minded people you’ll meet.”
“Okay, if you say so. This has all just happened so fast. I mean, this morning I didn’t even know you, but for some reason, I trust you.”
“Once I introduce you to Rob, I’m sure you’ll feel the same about him.”
The two trudged the final few feet to the dock and found Rob leaning over a small electrical device.
“Ready to shove off, Captain?” Randall asked.
“Oh hey Nick, glad to see you. I was just entering the coordinates into the GPS. Give me a minute,” Rob replied, punching the keys on the Garmin.
Finishing, he looked up at his guest. “Who do we have here?”
“Rob Hoffman, this is Jamie Edmunds.”
“Pleasure to meet you,” Rob said, tipping his ball cap.
“It’s nice to meet you, Dr. Hoffman. Thank you for your help.”
“Please, call me Rob, any friend of Nick’s is a friend of mine. Now if you two will excuse me, I need to finish storing some of the gear. We’ll be ready to go in a few minutes.”
Rob disappeared into the hold of the ship, leaving Randall and Jamie on the deck. The sun was slowly dipping toward the horizon, casting a beautiful pink hue across the western sky.
“Red skies at night, sailor’s delight,” came a voice from the stairs. Rob reappeared on the deck. “Are you two ready to do some exploring?”
“Ready as we’ll ever be,” Randall replied.
“Nick, untie the rope at the stern for me and I’ll get the rope at the bow.”
Rob slowly throttled the engine and the boat slipped away from the dock, smoothly gliding out to sea. Randall looked at Jamie and sensed her tension. She was standing at the rail of the boat, gazing out over the water. She looked stiff and her mind seemed far away—almost as if she was recounting some long lost memory. Randall decided to give her some space. Seeing Rob by the boat’s controls, he made his way over to his friend.
“Where are we going?”
“There’s a little spot northeast of here where I’ve taken my students to survey the wreckage of a galleon. It’s one of the most intact specimens I’ve ever seen. Just a perfect setting for these kids to get their feet wet surveying a site.”
“Why that particular site?”
Rob removed his cap and scratched his balding head. He seemed confused by the question, which seemed odd. After a long moment, he responded. “Nick, I wasn’t completely honest with you earlier today. Remember how I mentioned that I’d had one trip that was kind of rough and had to make some changes to my program afterward?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, it wasn’t the weather that was the problem.”
“Go on.”
“It was with the third group I had taken to this spot. The first two trips went perfectly. We had great weather and the ship was well preserved. Anyway, we had been at the site for about two hours and were setting up the grid lines for the salvage survey when something happened.”
Randall shifted, watching Rob’s eyes as he relayed the story.
“One of my students spotted something in the ocean off in the distance. At first it just looked like a small disturbance in the water.”
“Like an underwater structure causing water displacement, like a reef or submerged rock formation?” Randall asked.
“Exactly. I didn’t think much of it and we just kept working. The thing is, this disturbance was moving. It kept getting closer and closer to the boat. A couple of the students noticed it and started getting nervous, but I acted like it was no big deal. I was trying to keep them calm, but to tell you the truth, I had the worst feeling,” Rob said, moving his hands as he spoke.
“What was it?”
“I told the students we had gotten a weather update and were expecting a thunderstorm and needed to head back in. One of my graduate students, Gary, who’d been with me on the other trips, saw through my white lie. Once we got the students out of the water, he came over and asked what was wrong. That’s when it happened.”
“What happened?”
At first, Rob didn’t answer, but the look he wore told the whole story. His face was ashen and rigid, the normal twinkle in his brown eyes replaced by a cold, distant stare.
“Rob, tell me what happened. I won’t think you’re crazy.”
Rob shook his head. “The disturbance in the water … it started to move faster. I increased our speed and it adjusted as well. I made some quick turns to see if I could shake it, but it matched everything I did. It was following us.”
“Did you get a look at it?”
“At first it kept its distance, like it was tailing us. By now, everyone on the boat had seen it and they were starting to panic. Then the thing just closed in on us like we were standing still. Whatever it was, it moved quickly and silently and it was huge—the length of a football field. I could see pulsating, colored lights under the water as it got closer. It came within fifty feet of the boat and then suddenly dove straight down and disappeared.”
“What did you do?”
“I radioed the coastguard station and gave them the details. They said they would send someone out to meet me to get a full report.”
“Did they?”
“When we pulled back into the dock, there were three guys waiting to talk to us. Two of them pulled my students aside and the other one escorted me back to my office. I can’t be sure, but I think they were military.”
“Why do you say that?”
“All three of them had short-cropped hair and their demeanor was all business. The guy I spoke with was a tall, gray haired fella. He was an older guy, very full of himself. He told me that we had seen a secret submarine prototype and that I wasn’t to discuss the situation with anyone or I could face criminal charges. I tried asking questions, but he just cut me off. He was a real piece of work.”
“Did you get a name?”
Rob shook his head. “The next day, I was called into the provincial authority’s office and was told, in no uncertain terms, that if I wanted to keep coming back here to teach my class, I was never to go back to that place again. Hell, they wouldn’t even let me go back and get the equipment we had set around the shipwreck. We had some expensive gear down there.”
“Were you able to get any more information from anyone?”
“I asked a couple of guys I know, but when I brought it up with them, they became really uneasy and wouldn’t talk to me. They said they could lose their jobs or worse if they were even seen speaking to me. I’m a hardheaded man, you know that, but I eventually got the message. I had to either let this thing go or I could kiss my program goodbye and maybe even end up in the clink.”
“So when I visited you earlier today…”
“In a way, it was a relief, but at the same time, it was like reopening an old wound. Damn it, Nick, the whole thing didn’t sit right with me. Maybe it’s my age, but I don’t like people telling me its steak when I know it’s a shit sandwich. Something’s going on out there and some pretty powerful people don’t want anyone to know about it. That’s not right, and I’m not about to let sleeping dogs lie, especially when it affects some nice kid like her.” Rob nodded in Jamie’s direction. She was still gripping the side rail and staring o
ut to sea.
“That’s how I feel, too. Jamie has been through something terrible, and who knows how many other people are experiencing the same thing.”
“So what exactly happens to you when she has her visitors?”
Randall glanced over a Jamie, then looked back at Rob. “At first, it feels like a nightmare, but then it gets too real to just be a dream. I can feel what she’s feeling and I know what she’s thinking.”
Rob’s eyes went wide.
“After what I went through in Peru, I knew my life had changed, but I just didn’t know what I had to do next. Now I do and I’m glad you’re here to help,” Randall said.
Rob’s expression softened, and he cracked a smile. “God help you if you’re coming to an old dog like me for help.”
“Well, they say that the good Lord looks after fools and drunks. Guess we’re the former.”
Chapter Fourteen
John sat on the living room floor of Jacob’s empty apartment, his back pressed against the wall and the open folder between his legs. His heart was still racing from the car chase, so he breathed deeply, trying to calm his nerves. He had ditched his truck several blocks away on a small side street, away from the main areas used by commuters. After hearing the sirens, he decided it was safer to walk to get to the apartment instead of parking his truck in front of the building.
God, they’re looking for me! I’m wanted for murder!
The thought nearly caused him to wretch again, but John fought the urge to panic. He realized he couldn’t go down that rabbit hole if wanted to get out of this mess. He had to focus on the information in the folder and was certain that the answers lay before him.
The apartment was devoid of anything but the blinds he had drawn after letting himself in. It was the apartment he had shared with Jacob while the two were students at Georgetown. After they started working and could afford it, John moved to his own place closer to work. Jacob, however, had stayed at the apartment with his fiancée Beth while they planned their wedding. They had just purchased a three-bedroom home, closer to Alpha Genetics, and had moved all of their furniture. John was thankful he still had the key, knowing it would be a safe place to hide. Whoever was chasing him wouldn’t know about his connection to the apartment since it was in Jacob and Beth’s names now.
John closed his eyes, finally quieting the torrent of thoughts streaming through his mind. He opened the folder and began to read. It contained information about the patients he and Jacob had been working with at the lab. It also contained their research notes and, more troubling, a great deal of their personal information: checking accounts, addresses, names of friends and family members, and even restaurants they liked to frequent. It was information that only a few close people should have known. Whoever compiled this had clearly been studying Jacob and John for some time. But why?
Flipping deeper into the folder, John discovered a synopsis of a plan known as Project MK Ultra. A 1950s U.S. government covert operation, it involved experimenting with the behavioral engineering of humans through the CIA’s Scientific Intelligence Division. What John read seemed like the plot from a thriller movie. Apparently, the program involved government scientists conducting experiments on unwitting American and Canadian citizens. The program utilized multiple methodologies to alter the subject’s mental state including the use of LSD, sensory deprivation, hypnosis and, in some extreme cases, physical and mental abuse.
The scope of the project was breathtaking. Research occurred at 80 institutions, including 44 colleges and universities, hospitals, prisons, and pharmaceutical companies. The crux of Project MK Ultra, as outlined by the Supreme Court prior to the justices shutting it down, was “the research and development of chemical, biological, and radiological materials capable of employment in clandestine operations to control human behavior.”
Suddenly the clouds parted and John realized, with horror, that the government had been secretly funding his work. Still, he questioned how his father was involved.
Could this have something to do with what happened in Peru?
John pondered the situation further. His father had been very secretive about his research in Peru and what transpired on the expedition. He and Sam returned much closer than when they had left, resolving several years of conflict that had begun with the death of their mother. Sam had clearly forgiven their father during the trip, and it now appeared that the two of them were closer than John and his father.
A twinge of jealousy ran through John’s mind as he sat on the floor of the empty apartment, his face contorted in a frown. He had served as the only link between Sam and his father for a couple of years, struggling to get them to reconcile. Now, they had repaired their relationship and it seemed like John was the odd man out. He set the file down and rubbed his eyes.
John finished reading the file and realized that he didn’t have much time. He had to meet with his sister Samantha and find out what had really happened in Peru. He was hoping that the explanation would provide clues to explain his father’s connection to recent events and help him find a way out. Meeting Sam would mean leaving the relative safety of the apartment and risking an encounter with his pursuers again, and with the authorities. But he had no choice. If he wanted answers he had to go, and hope that his face wasn’t plastered on every news broadcast in town.
Forty-five minutes later, John arrived by taxi near his sister’s home. For most of the ride, the news station broadcast a story about the murder of a man near a construction zone on the freeway. Police were still searching for clues, but eyewitnesses had reported a blue FJ Cruiser leaving the scene.
John paid the driver in cash and hopped out. He decided to enter through the yard of the neighbor whose house backed up to Sam’s. That would prevent anyone staked out in front of her place from seeing him. John made his way down the quiet suburban street until he reached the fourth house from the corner. It was a brick colonial with white siding, black shutters, and a white wooden gate that provided access to the back yard. He decided that quick and confident was the best way to approach the situation. He strode quickly through the yard, grabbing the gate handle. It opened on the first try. John darted through the opening and into the side of the yard.
He followed the long, straight concrete path into the back yard, which opened into a fairly large green lawn. The landscaping was immaculate, with the grass abutting a large wooden porch with deep, brown rattan furniture, and a wrought-iron fire pit. John sprinted toward the wooden fence that separated the yard from Sam’s. As he reached it, he heard clinking metal and then barking. John turned and looked just in time to see an enormous, black Doberman charging in his direction.
John grabbed the top of the fence, pulled with all of his strength, and jumped, catapulting his body up the fence until his belt came to rest on the top of the cedar planks. John teetered over the top of the railing, his torso in his sister’s yard and his bottom half in the other yard. Suddenly, he felt a jerking pull on one pant leg—the dog had caught him. He struggled to pull his leg free, but the Doberman was too strong. John managed to wriggle his left leg over the fence, leaving only his right leg on the wrong side. The mass of the hound pulled his right leg down like a lead weight. John kicked at the dog, trying desperately to free himself.
When the dog opened its mouth, to get a better grip, John yanked his leg hard. Hearing the sound of ripping cloth, his leg came free and he fell into Sam’s backyard. He lay on the ground for a moment, the breath knocked out of him. Still winded, he scrambled to his feet, clambered over to a hedge, and collapsed on the ground behind it. Sweat poured down his face, as he lay there, hyperventilating. He was certain anyone watching Sam’s house had heard the ruckus and would be coming to check at any moment.
After waiting for what seemed an eternity, he decided that no one was coming. He was safe and just had to wait for Sam to get home. About an hour later, Sam came through the front door and walked over to the slider overlooking the backyard. Prior to knocking, he chec
ked to make sure that she was alone. She was.
The look on her face, after seeing her brother, was one of bemused wonder. Sam slid the door open. “John, what in the world are you doing in my backyard?”
“I know this looks weird, but I have to talk to you. Are you alone? Did you notice any strange cars parked out on the street?”
“Calm down. Yes, I’m alone, and no, I didn’t see anything strange out front. What’s going on and what happened to your pants?”
“Oh, that. Your neighbor’s dog ripped them when I was climbing over your fence.”
“Cupcake did that to you? Why were you climbing over my fence? Why didn’t you just call and meet me when I got home?”
John steadied his nerves. “I need to know what happened to you and Dad in Peru. I know you left out a lot of details. Something happened and Dad is in trouble and so am I.”
“Dad’s in trouble? What happened? We were supposed to meet for lunch today and I called him but he didn’t answer. His phone went straight to voicemail. Is he okay?”
“Slow down. Let’s sit and talk.”
John explained finding their father’s house ransacked and the panicked call asking John to leave. He also told Sam about Jacob’s disappearance and the incident at his work. Sam’s eyes went wide and she hung on every detail, her fingers nervously twirling her long brown hair.
“My God, John, you could have been killed! What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know, but I think there’s a connection between my research and Dad’s trouble. I need to know what really happened in Peru. You and Dad weren’t completely honest with me and I don’t know why. Maybe you were trying to protect me, but now I can’t afford to be in the dark.”
Sam shifted uncomfortably. John could tell that she was struggling to decide whether or not to fill him in on all of the details.
“Look, Sam. For a long time, I was your only connection to Dad and I always did my best to try and fix your relationship. Now that the two of you are close again, I feel like I’m being shut out.”
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