by M. A Casey
“Not a time machine obviously,” I said rolling me eyes at him. “But not far off.” I had their attention now so I continued.
“What if instead of restoring memories, I could isolate specific ones and delete them so to speak.”
I looked at my families expressions. Emin loved it, I knew he didn’t need any more convincing even though he had no idea how I would do it. Zeke looked proud he also would be on my side no matter what. Dad, on the other hand, hardly looked convinced. I had my work cut out for me there so I looked at Mum and she looked, well, confused.
“Is that even possible?” She asked, sounding a little frightened.
“Well that’s what I was doing this afternoon and then I got my inspiration point. Actually Zeke provided me with it,” I said smiling at him.
“That better not be something disgusting,” Emin said with a strange look on his face. I was about to thump him when Dad spoke.
“She means her vision about how to isolate and erase memories became clear, and she knows how to achieve it.” I looked in Dad’s eyes again, and I could see he was much more than a little interested in what I was saying now.
“That’s right, I was helping Zeke out of bed when we zapped each other with static electricity, and that’s when it dawned on me how to erase the memories permanently.” I looked at my family and thought I better keep the explanation of the next part as simple as possible.
“I perfected the serum this afternoon, once a patient is unconscious it can be injected in the part of the brain that stores memories. I can isolate the memories and once an electric current passes through the body it will make the deletion permanent. As the drug starts wearing off, you can then implant a replacement memory.”
“So we just get everybody here, ambush them and delete they’re memories – then it’s all over?” Emin said sounding positive but clearly over simplifying things.
“It will be a little more complicated than that,” I confirmed.
“Wait, how much of this have you been able to substantiate Hayln?” Dad asked, sounding more like a professor every minute.
“Everything up to the part where I use an electric current to make the deletion permanent. I couldn’t actually do that without you getting suspicious in the lab. But I know this will work Dad – I can feel it.”
“It has to be trialed Hayln, I won’t let you do this to people, even them, without more testing - it is too dangerous for everyone.”
“I know Dad, and I thought about that too. We have Patch, my rabbit,” I explained.
“A rabbit isn’t appropriate Hayln we can’t measure the results.”
“But over the last couple of days we have been teaching Patch a performance trick. If you hold food over his head, he will sit on his back legs and beg like a dog would for a treat. He couldn’t do that before, so we can test it on him and erase that memory.”
“It’s true Dad, that rabbit had no idea what to do a few days ago,” Emin said.
Everyone looked at Dad waiting for his recommendation. I knew whatever he decided would go for all of us.
“Tell us the rest,” Mum urged.
“Well I have asked Tyler to do some research. To find out how many people know about us, what information is being stored about it and where. If we're going to do this, we need to get rid of any evidence.”
“There are a lot of problems with this Hayln,” my father said shaking his head.
“Give her a chance Professor, look what she has accomplished today,” Zeke said defending me.
“If it works Dad we could all be safe,” Emin agreed.
“Ethan you know they won’t let us all walk out of here once you give them what they want. I don’t pretend to understand how this whole thing will work, but maybe we should at least think about it,” Mum said trying to reason with him.
“All I am asking for is some help,” I pleaded with him. “Firstly let’s see what Tyler finds out and how many people we are dealing with. And then Dad maybe you could help me with my tests on Patch, so you can see for yourself. And finally you guys need to find a way to keep our henchmen from asking too many questions about what we are up to. Then, we will see how we stand this time tomorrow – what do you think.” My voice was hopeful, but I could tell it all hinged on Dad’s opinion. He rubbed his temples like he always did when he was stressed and sighed deeply before he spoke again.
“Alright Hayln, tomorrow will be devoted to your plan and then tomorrow night we will decide how to proceed. But we have to be careful, all of us, I can’t bear to see anyone else hurt.”
Mum reached out and held Dad’s hand and then looked us all. “No one will take any silly risks, we promise.”
“Absolutely Dad, we promise nothing stupid, but don’t forget this could be the answer to our problems,” Emin urged, sounding positive.
“I truly hope so,” he said softly. “Now let’s all get some rest, we have another big day tomorrow.”
We all left Emin’s room as he went to the computer to get ready to stop our recording on the monitors. Dad left first, his mind obviously going over what might happen tomorrow. Mum walked past me, kissing me on the cheek.
“Good luck tomorrow,” she said smiling.
I smiled back at her and really hoped that I wouldn’t let them all down. No I thought to myself, I was confident I could make this work – I had too.
Zeke walked me down to my room, not taking his eyes off me. He had been fairly quiet in the meeting, only speaking once. I was hoping that wasn’t a bad sign.
“Do you have any idea how amazing you are?” He said quietly in my ear.
I relaxed immediately and turned to look into his beautiful eyes.
“You were quiet in there, I was worried I might have freaked you out,” I whispered.
“Hardly, I just knew it really had to be your family’s decision, so I let you guys work through it,” he said as he pulled me into his strong arms. “I know you can do this Hayln, I believe in you – we all do.” He leaned in and kissed me with his perfect lips, and I was in heaven, all be it just for a minute.
“I have to go, that meeting took a while,” he said with a pained look on his face.
“I know,” I said, completely frustrated. I mean was it that much to ask that I could spend maybe half an hour with my boyfriend without being interrupted. “But when this is over you owe me our first date and some alone time,” I reminded him.
That brought a smile to his face. “You won’t have to ask me twice Hayl’s,” he said as he kissed me one more time before letting me go. “You need your sleep now.” He held the medallion in his hand that he had given me. “Sweet dreams Hayl’s and don’t forget I love you.”
“I won’t,” I said, once again blown away with how strongly I felt for him. “And I love you too.”
We were both trapped, lost in each other’s eyes for a few more moments, then he went to his room and I closed the door to mine. I jumped back into my bed and told myself to go to sleep. If there ever was a day I would need to be brilliant, tomorrow was it.
Test Subject
When I woke I had to remind myself that I wasn’t in a dream. I really was going to try and erase someone’s memory today. When I say someone I’m not referring to a person of course, but Patch. But if I was successful today that would be the next step, and it was a little scary.
I had a shower and prepared myself before I saw my family. If this was going to work, I had to lead the way and show them I was strong enough to do this.
I headed downstairs to the kitchen where everyone, including Zeke was already eating. They all seemed to be in a pleasant mood which gave me another boost of confidence. All our hopes hung on what we could achieve today.
Mum was the first to leave the table, she went into the lounge to Davis and Ian. We all listened as she spoke to them. She told Davis she had taken the liberty of washing their clothes this morning. She must have gotten them off Ian while Davis was resting. She went on to say that they both must take ti
me today for a proper shower once their clothes were dry. Up until now both men were just freshening up each day with a few changes of clothes and a splash of water here and there. I could hear Davis start to object, but Mum spoke again. She said they could take turns to shower, just as they do in the evenings when they rest, and that surely we must have proved by now we could be trusted enough for that. Davis considered this for a moment and then agreed a little reluctantly. Mum thanked him and came back into the kitchen giving us a wink as she went past. Well, that would keep them a little distracted, which was a brilliant start.
Dad rushed me down to the lab where he had what felt like a million questions for me about my serum. He mustn’t have gotten much sleep I thought to myself if he was thinking these questions up all night. I answered his questions and then gave him my notes as I got prepared for today.
I had to move a few things around in the lab so the men upstairs wouldn’t be able to see everything we were doing. By the time I was organized, I looked over to Dad who was seemed impressed by what he read. I could tell he was feeling more positive about what we were trying to achieve. And after a few more questions he was ready to get started. He wanted to do a couple more tests before we brought Patch in.
Tyler arrived not long after that and quickly surveyed the lab. I had left the notes to my work near his seat, he picked them up. I smiled at him as he opened the folder to find out what we were working on. He was quiet while he read, it was hard to tell what he thought of my work although I noticed his jaw drop at least three times. When he finished he joined Dad and I as we finished with the serum.
‘You’ve outdone yourself this time Hayl’s,” he said lightheartedly. “So what are we doing today?”
“We’re going to test it on Patch, to make sure I’m right and go from there.”
“Patch?” Tyler asked a little confused.
“The rabbit,” I answered. “What about you, did you do your homework?”
He smiled and moved to put his back to the camera. “I told you I wouldn’t let you down, and I haven’t.”
This peaked both Dad and my attention. We were relying heavily on what he found out, so we could decide whether we could go ahead with this. We both continued to work while we listened to Tyler.
“I spoke to Aunt Maive last night, and I also went to Christian’s house where Spencer is staying to see what I could find. I think it’s fantastic news actually. There aren’t many people who know about this. Since Spencer was kicked out of the government, he's obviously become a little paranoid. So apart from his late brother, there is only Maive, Davis, Ian and me. I think his greed has definitely worked to our advantage.”
“Absolutely,” I said sounding a little more positive. The less people involved the more likely we could make this work.
“What about evidence of the project?” Dad said interrupting my positive thinking.
“That’s a little harder but not impossible, especially after seeing what you have planned. Everything is at his brother’s house. He has been staying there since he died. He has all the files on computer and backups obviously, and there are also hard copies of the work.” He spoke a little softer.
“I assume you will need everyone here for this plan of yours. So, while you are busy here, I can make sure everything disappears there.”
“What about people who might have wanted to purchase the strain, had he started contacting people?” Dad asked, but it was a good point.
“I can’t see any evidence of that. I went through his emails, and I couldn’t find anything. But once you have him here, I will have more time, and then I can be more thorough. I will look through his phone, and mail as well to be sure. I will probably also need to make a trip to Kings Valley and double check Spencer’s home in case he took anything there.”
“Did he ever bring anyone else around to study you in the time you have known him, you have to be sure Tyler,” Dad pushed.
“His brother did all the tests on me at his house Professor,” he said. I could tell he thought Dad doubted his research, he looked frustrated. “I will make sure I find everything Sir, I promise.”
“Tyler I don’t mean to offend you, but if we decide to do this my whole family is in danger if we can’t get this right. I won’t let anyone else get hurt from my mistakes.” I could tell how stressed he was from his tone, but from the outside he just looked passionate, nothing for Davis or Ian to worry about.
“No offence Professor, but my life is at stake too – I’m not going to stuff it up,” Tyler said confidently.
“Fair enough then,” my Dad sounded convinced. “You better go get Patch Hayln, it’s time.”
I suddenly was a bundle of nerves. This was what it all hinged on, but I was also excited to see if I was right, so I headed upstairs.
“I won’t be long,” I said.
As I neared the kitchen, I smelt baking again and knew that it would be Mum’s attempt to continue to keep the henchman occupied. I smiled at myself as I headed to the backyard. Once outside, I saw Emin and Zeke playing with the rabbits. They both looked up as I approached them.
“What are you guys up to?” I questioned.
“Just double checking your test subject,” Emin said. “He hasn’t missed a beat with the food. You definitely have him trained.”
“I had help,” I said smiling at Zeke. He looked so hot in his white shirt with some band logo on it. It clung in all the right places. With a sigh, I came back to reality. “Make sure you keep an eye on the henchmen when I head back down, we don’t want any trouble.”
“All under control Hayl’s, your Mum has taken the first shift, and we are up next, nothing to worry about.” Zeke said sounding confident. “How did Tyler go with his end of the deal?” He looked a little apprehensive, and I wondered whether he was still a little jealous and then I noticed Emin’s expression and I realized they probably didn’t trust him.
“Good news actually, but we can go over it tonight. I have to get back to the lab now.” I bent down to pick up Patch and turned back toward the house when I saw Spencer standing in the doorway.
“Shit,” I muttered to myself, I wondered if he heard us. I looked at his face carefully he didn’t look suspicious, smug or angry. He seemed thoughtful. I suddenly felt sick, why was he here – this could only mean trouble.
“Hayln, could I take five minutes of your time?” He asked politely, looking at the boys. They both looked at me before heading back inside, making sure I would be okay with Spencer on my own. He came out into the yard and shrugged off his suit jacket, folding it over his arm. I suddenly felt extremely warm too. The sun was almost directly overhead, and standing there with Spencer staring at me, definitely was making me sweat.
“Dad is waiting for me in the lab.” I was impressed how confident my voice sounded and hoped I looked confident too.
“It will only take a minute I promise, there were just a couple of things I wanted to talk about, and then I will leave you to your research.”
I was glad to hear this was a short visit. At least that was something. I waited in silence, to hear what he had to say.
"Well firstly Davis wanted me to pop around to see you. He seemed to think you might have had an epiphany yesterday.” He was standing directly in front of me now, eye to eye.
“Not an epiphany exactly, but it seems we have turned a corner. That’s why I came out to get a test subject actually. All going well we might have something for you to see tomorrow.” I sounded believable, after all it was mostly the truth. I was relieved to see that he didn’t seem to doubt me.
“That’s excellent news Hayln, hopefully it will go smoother than last time.” I knew this was his subtle way of warning me not to do anything foolish, so I just nodded.
“Was there something else, before I head inside?” I asked politely – really wanting to get out of there.
“Yes actually, I had an offer for you. Now, before I tell you what it is, I want you to think about this seriously. This is why I wo
n’t ask you for an answer until tomorrow. I know you don’t trust me Hayln, and that’s fine for now, but I sincerely hope that doesn’t cloud your judgment on this.”
Did he honestly think I would want anything he had to offer? Of course, I didn’t say that, instead I just prompted him, “I’m listening.”
“With the end of this project drawing near we have to consider how to - finalize all the details. I know your families opinion on the DNA strain so that leaves me with a problem – a big one.” My polite expression vanished – he was talking to me about how he was going to get rid of us. Assessing my sudden change of mood he continued quickly.
“I am not a cruel man by nature Hayln, which is why I have come to you today with a solution to what would otherwise be a grim scenario. You see I would like you to join me once this is done. I want to help you find your full potential and have you work with me as one of my scientists. In return for your loyalty, your family will remain unharmed. I am fairly sure that with you by my side they will not try to expose me, so it works out well for everybody don’t you think?”
“So I don’t get to see my family again?” I asked disbelievingly.
“Of course you do my dear, you will be allowed visits. And you will of course have Tyler with you on a daily basis. I know you both have formed a strong bond, so it's not as if you would be alone.”
I wanted to punch this man in the face, but I had to pretend to consider this option. And the truth was if my idea didn’t work this was probably our next best plan. So I hid my true feelings.
“That’s a lot to think about, thank you for giving me some time.” I really wanted him to leave, I didn’t need Spencer’s offer in my head today.
“Thank you for listening Hayln, hopefully this will be the start of a successful relationship.” He smiled at me as he put his jacket back on obviously pleased with himself. “I will leave you to your work in the lab now and look forward to hearing from you.”
I followed him inside, he went into the lounge, to talk to Davis and Ian. I stayed in the kitchen with Mum. I grabbed a handful of warm cookies to take back to the lab with me.