by Frank Perry
cafeteria flat screen. No bodies were shown. They flipped through other channels, trying to see if any more information was available but found nothing.
One of the early morning technicians came in for coffee and stood behind them. “Wow! Was that our shipment?”
Charlie looked at him. “We don’t know, but it could be.” He then looked back as Jules kept hopping through channels. The technician left. “You know, Jules, rumors will start to fly.”
Jules never stopped watching the screen. “I know, Charlie. I wish there was video of the inside of the truck. I just want to know if our crate was taken.”
Charlie shrugged. “What good would it do for someone to steal our medicines? They’re not worth anything to anyone else.”
Jules just nodded. He didn’t know what to say. He needed to check the manifest and inventories one more time to be sure there was no live virus shipped with the medical supplies. How could it possibly be? He needed to be absolutely sure. If there was a screw-up, he’d get to the bottom of it; but for now, he just needed to be sure that GHI value wasn’t hurt. Something was bothering him, but he couldn’t quite put a finger on it.
Away, the Porsche pulled quietly onto the vista parking lot above the Chesapeake as it had several times before. It was still early. He’d left before his wife and kids were up so that he could have time for the call to his contact then drive on to work. “You got it, right? I saw it on the news … Good, so I can get my money now … Yes, that is the account.” The line went dead. He would watch the wire transfer information. It was a good day in Baltimore, grey and gloomy, but a good day nevertheless. He was never going to get wealthy selling the Institute like the others, so he’d get his by other means. He loved GHI. Actually, he loved what GHI had given to him.
Suspicion
John had begun a ritual of leaving the apartment ahead of Kelly to scout around the area and get the car started. He would go out in the morning and drive to a nearby parking space in one of the covered areas near her door after others had departed for work. Sometimes he’d been lucky and parked in a good spot the night before, but it didn’t happen often. It would be difficult for anyone to get a clear shot from any distance this way, but he still liked to walk around the area, checking out the cars for anything suspicious. This morning, it was cold and damp, threatening to rain again. He hated the Maryland humidity that multiplied the cold effect in winter and would also make the summers unbearable. Except for the job and Kelly, he would think about moving somewhere more temperate, maybe even back to California. This would never happen. He knew it. Kelly meant everything to him now, and she wouldn’t move far away. In fact, with her credentials, she didn’t have many options, and her family was spread around the East Coast. She would be miserable even if he could convince her to move. He wouldn’t do that.
Caution
She watched from inside, then walked briskly to the car when John was in position, never lingering. He was already in reverse gear, ready to move as soon as her door closed. He behaved casually, but was alert for danger. As they left the lot onto the main road, he said, “I need to get a dark suit.”
“I’m sure that Lorne wouldn’t have minded if you showed up dressed casually. I just wonder if the coffin will be closed or open.”
He thought about his mentor. “Yeah, he wouldn’t mind, but I want to be invisible, just another guy in a mourning coat.” He added, “I plan to go to the wake on Wednesday night.”
She looked out the side window. “I’ll go too. I don’t want to be alone.”
He held her hand on the console between them. “It would make me feel better, too. I bet the coffin will be closed for health reasons. Some people have a tendency to touch, and sometimes even kiss a corpse. That wouldn’t be good with this bug.”
He was still feeling a little paranoid when they parked at the GHI and looked in all directions for anything suspicious.
As they walked together to the entrance, Kelly said, “I wonder if Jules is still going to act like an ass? Do you really think we’re too valuable to fire?”
He grinned slightly. “You’re more valuable, but I bet he wouldn’t shit-can me and risk losing you at the same time. He’s too hung up on selling GHI.”
“Yeah, but he was really weirded out on Friday. What was he accusing us of? You really put him in his place, by the way. Thank you for that.”
It worried him too. “Something put a bug up his ass. Of course, we were snooping where Lorne warned me not to go. I wonder what Lorne was hiding that got Jules so upset. He’s up to something, I’m sure of it. He had no reason to dress you down that way. If he tries it again, I could face an assault charge.”
“Look, John. I’m not that delicate. I can fight back, too. Maybe not physically, but I can take care of myself.”
He smiled, holding the door for her. “Oh, I’m sure of it.”
The rest of the morning went by normally. Kelly was inside the sealed chamber for most of the morning, and John entered data and formatted the tables. He thought about going into the secret files, but it wasn’t necessary; he had the hard copy at home.
Kelly was following the testing protocol inside the lab and scanning results into the system. She was still too nervous to go where Jules had ordered her to stay away. Having warned her, he would have the perfect excuse now for firing her if she provoked him.
The day went by normally, a blessing after everything that had happened recently. It was weird. One day, every move they make is followed, the next day, nothing. They left GHI after six in the evening. The night air was cool and clear. The wind had abated, and it was almost pleasant – almost. Their fears had subsided slightly after a peaceful day, but John kept his vigil nevertheless. They agreed to go straight to the mall for his suit and stopped at Pizza Uno for dinner. All in all, it was like any other normal night in suburban Baltimore.
The shock hit them when they returned to her apartment. It was trashed inside. She stood petrified in her doorway, not believing the damage done to everything. John was behind her and moved her gently aside before going in first. “Don’t move.” He went into the living room, carefully stepping over her things before entering her bedroom and bath, cautiously. No one was there.
Even the furniture was destroyed, completely broken apart, with stuffing everywhere. The bedroom was the same. The bed, mattress, and spring were disemboweled. Drawers were all pulled out and emptied on the floor. Clothing was everywhere. “John … why … why? Who did this … why?” She stood with her shoulders slumped, crying on his arm.
He held her. “It’s all part of the same thing, Kelly. Someone thinks we have something that can hurt them. It’s related to the Institute, to Lorne’s death. It’s in the data.” The data!
He stepped back into the living area, looking for his laptop. She joined him. Everything related to their computers and peripherals was gone. Their computer bags and storage drives were gone. When they couldn’t find the printed inventory report, it confirmed all of their suspicions.
He grabbed her hand. “Come on.”
They stepped over debris and closed the door with all the lights out and ran to his car. She protested. “Shouldn’t we call the police?”
“We can do that later; they’ll just take a report and ask a bunch of questions. Everyone will think we’re lunatics with everything else that’s been going on. We still need to find out what’s wrong at GHI; that’s the key to all of this.”
She knew he was right and also that the police were limited in the amount of supposition they could follow. They needed something solid and criminal in order to get involved. John went first and Kelly followed in shadows back to his car. It was only after they’d started moving that nerves began reacting. Kelly was shaking from a combination of anger and fear. She’d been violated. Her private domain had been destroyed. She cried. “Who could do this! John … I mean, who could do that to my home. I never hu
rt anyone.”
He thought about answering, but the sentences couldn’t form. It was all, in the final analysis, because of him. If he’d kept his nose out of the files as he should have, none of this would be happening. Does she blame me? Hell, it is my fault after all. “I don’t know Kell … I just don’t know.” He wanted to say more, but the words didn’t come. They drove in silence to his apartment.
Two days later, John wore his new suit and Kelly wore a simple black dress. The wake was held at Foster’s Funeral Home, near Lorne’s home. It was his wife’s choice. Everyone at GHI was in attendance. John introduced himself and Kelly to Mrs. Bridger, and she recognized his name, but there were many people crowded in the small room so conversation was difficult. There was an anteroom next to them with refreshments, where many of the staff, including Kelly’s lab technician Fred Cooper and his wife, were standing, alone. They spoke briefly and had some light refreshments before John signaled his wish to leave.
Outside, Kelly commented. “Did you notice how none of the senior managers talked to us. It’s like