Before Robbie replied, Kate realized the tracking device could be in her hands. She checked the phone settings: the device location feature was enabled. She disabled it. She looked at the list of apps he had installed once more, and most of them were pretty standard, except for one called “C.O.M.”
“What does that one do?” she asked, moving the screen so he could see the icon.
“Don’t know.”
Kate started the app. Black screen. No sound. Nothing.
“Maybe there’s a bug or compatibility issue. It doesn’t seem to work,” Kate said out loud, mostly for the people in the observation room.
She went through the rest of the apps again, but couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary, except for the C.O.M. app. Then, a thought occurred to her: maybe he had a time zone set for where the Colony was. She turned on the clock app and checked. No. Eastern Time showed, but this didn’t mean anything.
While in the clock app, she checked if he had alarms set up. He did: 6:00 a.m. daily. Because she was struggling with finding a decent alarm sound to wake up to, she pressed the sound name associated with his daily alarm, and a short clip started playing, way louder than the Beethoven piece they’d been listening to for hours. Some heavy metal/punk sound.
“That’s what gets you out of bed?” she asked, looking up, a smile on her face. “That’s a bit rough.”
Right before her, Robbie morphed into his other persona. His brow locked into a frown, and his gaze turned icy. Even the color of his eyes grew darker, as though a steely shade of metal was added to his irises. His jaw clenched as he reached across the table, snatched the phone out of Kate’s hands, and then smashed it against the edge of the table twice before hurling it at the one-sided mirror.
He growled at her. “I want out of here. You’ve got no right to keep me locked up.”
Agent Lack’s voice sounded in her ear again. “I’m coming in to retrieve the phone pieces before he destroys them even more. Try to calm him down.”
“Robbie—” she began.
“I’m not that fucking limp dick. He’s gone.” The man who’d just voiced those words wasn’t Robbie.
She swallowed hard, trying to remain in control. “And who are you?”
“Robert,” he said.
She held her hands up. “Calm down, Robert. We don’t want to hold you against your will. You’re here because you walked yourself in.”
He stood up and slammed his fists on the table. “Not me. The fucking wimp did. I want out. Now.”
“I understand,” Kate said, doing her best to stay composed. Her heart pounded hard against her chest. This man scared her to death. He could break her neck in a second if he wanted to.
Beethoven’s Fifth roared louder in the background. The door popped open, and Lack came in with two agents who, after being on the receiving—then giving—end of a few well-placed punches, got Robert into handcuffs.
“Stop wasting your time,” Robert said, his chest bloated and his eyes twitching with anger. “I’ve figured out your trick. Limp Dick doesn’t know what I’m up to, but I can recall most of what he says or does. I’ve been waiting for him to give me a chance to take over again, and I’m not going to let this stupid music take me away this time.”
“Murphy,” Lack said, taking her attention from Robert. Lack’s hands were filled with tiny pieces of plastic from the cellphone. He nodded toward the door.
“Time to go,” she mumbled before opening the door and leading the way out.
“And that’s the end of that,” Dr. Dobbins said when Kate and Lack walked in the observation room.
“Give me a container,” Lack ordered the agent in the corner.
The agent looked around and settled on his Tupperware bowl. He emptied out a half-eaten sandwich, wiped the bottom with a napkin, and placed it on the table, below Lack’s hands. The remnants of the phone fell in with a clatter. Lack brought his hand through his hair, shaking his head.
Pretty sure AppleCare won’t be able to help with that one.
“So, what have we got to keep him here now?” Kate asked.
“Senator Russell and the woman won’t press charges because they don’t want this story to leak to the press,” Lack replied. “We need something else. We’ve already had him for nearly twenty-four hours. Be original, folks. Anything.”
“False ID?” the agent in the corner suggested.
“As far as we know the ID is legit, but good thinking. Track it down. Track this guy’s official birth certificate. Someone must have falsified documents to get another copy of his birth documents, a driver’s license, and whatever else they got for each clone. Maybe that will lead us to the Colony,” Lack said.
Kate stared at her bruised wrist. “Violence against an officer?” she suggested.
“Sure,” Lack replied, tilting his head. “That should stick for a few hours. We’ll find other stuff to keep him in for as long as possible.”
Kate looked at the Tupperware bowl and the phone remnants it contained. “If your IT guy manages to get anything out of this junk, his code was 9-9-9-1. Doubt it’ll be useful, but who knows. That weird app didn’t do anything. At least I don’t think it did.”
“Let’s try to get a warrant to do a full physical exam on him,” Lack said. “And, guys, let’s not let this incident bring us down. At least we’re done with fucking Beethoven.”
“Yay, worsh shelebrating,” the agent in the corner said, his mouth full of food.
“Go and read him his rights. We’ll likely have to get him a lawyer,” Lack continued, talking to the agent in the corner. He then turned to the doctor. “Doc, do you still need Murphy here for anything?”
“Not at this moment,” he said. “She may come in handy again. The dominant persona probably won’t let Robbie out anytime soon, but maybe later, if he calms down.”
“Okay, Murphy. You’re off for now. I’ll talk to Fuller and your district commander. I’ll request to have you around tomorrow or... Fuck, today’s Friday, isn’t it?”
Kate checked her watch. “Yup.”
Four thirty, Friday afternoon.
She hadn’t seen the week go by at all.
“Go home,” Lack said. “We know how to get ahold of you.”
“Have a good weekend,” she said.
“You as well, dear. Cheerio,” Dr. Dobbins said.
Kate headed to the elevator, mixed emotions stirring inside of her. So much had happened this past week. So much new and unbelievable information had come out. Was Robbie yanking her chain with the fast-aging process? Would this information be helpful in freeing Kenny?
If courts were to publicly acknowledge that blood samples were no longer sufficient without telomere testing, how messed up would the system get? How many people were currently jailed based on DNA samples? How many of those people were innocent? And, how many were guilty but would use this loophole to get out of jail?
There was a reason why this was going to be a long process.
At least she’d be able to see Kenny tomorrow. She missed him. She was looking forward to telling him all of the stuff she’d learned this week and how much closer she was to proving his innocence.
But then again, she wouldn’t be able to share any of this with him. She’d signed that nondisclosure agreement. She’d risk going to jail herself if she spoke of her new-found knowledge.
Chapter Thirty-Two
July 31, 2015
Kate Murphy
Kate’s Apartment, Boston
Kate couldn’t get her mind out of overdrive. She knew what she needed to do to clear her head: go for a run, a long run.
She laced up, grabbed her water belt, money, ID, phone, and then headed out. Where? It didn’t matter. As long as she kept moving, as long as her feet were hitting the pavement, her mind would eventually wind down.
She ran. Whenever she hit a red light, she jogged around the block and crossed whatever road had a green light. She didn’t care where she ended up. With the GPS on her phone
, she’d be able to find her way home.
When her running playlist came to an end, she took a break. The heat was unbearable; hard to believe it was past 7 p.m. She spotted a 7-Eleven just a few buildings down. A Mr. Freeze or something like that would cool her down and give her more energy for the run home.
Once in the store, she looked at the selection of treats in the freezer and grabbed an ice cream bar.
Who cares if it gives me cramps or makes me want to puke? I could just walk home.
Back on the street, she discarded the wrapper in the garbage can next to a bus stop before looking for a place to relax and enjoy her treat. An old man was sitting at one end of the bench; she sat at the other.
The first bite of the ice cream was all that she had hoped for: creamy, cold, chocolate-covered goodness. Within seconds, Kate had gulped down the entire thing. She nabbed her water bottle and leaned back, taking in her surroundings. She had no idea where she was, but the neighborhood didn’t feel unsafe. She took out her phone and looked at the map. Most street names didn’t ring a bell, except one: Beacon Street. Wasn’t it where Luke and his mom lived? She could recognize the blue door if she ran by it. Better yet, she could look him up in her contacts to get his address.
Not a minute went by before she determined Luke lived just a couple of blocks away.
Why not pop by and say hi?
She returned the water bottle to her belt, got rid of the wooden stick she’d unknowingly been chewing on for the last minute, then headed toward Luke’s house.
A few minutes later, she walked up the steps, rang the bell, and Mrs. O’Brien answered the door.
“Katie! How nice to see you!” She hugged her before continuing. “Would you like to come in?”
“I’d love to. How are you?”
Mrs. O’Brien led Kate to the living room and apologized for its state of disarray. “I haven’t had time to clean up.” She moved a pink piece of crocheting work in progress to allow Kate to sit on the couch.
“I really shouldn’t sit down,” Kate said. “I’m all sweaty.”
“No need to worry. This couch’s seen much worse.”
Kate sat on the edge of the cushion, not wanting to lean her sweaty back against the hideous tapestry that covered the sofa. It wasn’t flowery, but it still didn’t qualify as acceptable living room furniture to Kate and her younger taste in home decor. It was an embroidered landscape featuring little cats and dogs running on a farm with tall mountains in the background.
“Is Luke around?” Kate asked.
“Not yet. I haven’t seen much of him lately. He’s been spending his evenings at work. He told me he discovered something amazing, something that could help him with his doctorate. When I asked, he shooed me away, said it was about things I wouldn’t understand. He’s probably right. My boy’s got quite a brain. I don’t have his smarts. Never liked school much, but at least I still got my head. I’m grateful for that. The lady next door keeps trying to come in here; she’s lost it. She doesn’t know where she lives anymore. Hope I won’t turn out that way. So, where were you running to?”
“Here and there. I just needed to clear my head. When I realized I was in your neck of the woods, I thought I’d drop by and talk to Luke. But seeing as he’s not around...”
“He shouldn’t be too long. He knows I make meatloaf for dinner on Fridays, and he never misses that.” She paused and looked at the time on the VCR. “He should be home shortly. Would you like to join us for dinner?”
While the idea sounded good, Kate felt the chills coming on, like they always did when she stayed in her sweaty clothes too long after a run. The cold air conditioning blowing on her right now didn’t help.
“I need to head back. I still have another hour or so of running before I get home.”
“That’s a shame. Would you like to take some meatloaf with you? I made lots of it.”
Kate wanted to, as she could smell it, and her stomach growled for it. Memories of her visiting Luke’s house as a kid flashed through her mind. She’d had Mrs. O’Brien’s meatloaf many times before, and it was delicious. “I’d really like to take you up on that, but I don’t want to run with it. It’d be awkward, and it’d end up a big pile of mush by the time I got home.”
“You’re probably right.”
Kate stood. “Well, I guess I should get going if I want to make it home before dark.”
“You take care and keep in touch, dear,” Mrs. O’Brien said, escorting Kate to the door.
“Will do. Take care, and please say hi to Luke for me.”
Kate headed back home. She knew she had to go southeast from here, so she did. She ran on unknown streets for a while, the setting sun guiding her like a compass until she reached a part of town she recognized. It was easy to make her way home from there.
All she needed now was a bubble bath. Hiking out on her secret trail by the ocean was her favorite thing to do in the whole world, but taking a bubble bath came a close second.
Once home, after rehydrating with a tall glass of water while pouring her bath, she stripped down to nothing, and then let her exhausted body sink into the vanilla-scented bubbles.
Now, this is a peaceful evening at home!
She grabbed a small hand towel, folded it in half, soaked it in the warm water, and then placed it behind her neck. She closed her eyes and tried to keep her mind still by focusing on her breath. Of course, thoughts came and went, like they always did, but she relaxed for a few minutes until her buzzer echoed in the living room.
Someone’s at the door.
She ignored it.
Whoever this is will go away.
She closed her eyes again, but her phone rang within seconds. She’d left it in the kitchen, so she couldn’t see who it was.
Fuck.
This person knew her cell number, too? Relaxation time was officially over. She stepped out of the tub and wrapped herself in an oversized bath towel.
Better not be Smitty.
She didn’t want to fight his advances tonight.
She walked to the intercom by the door, and answered, “Who is it?”
“Meatloaf delivery man.”
She couldn’t help but laugh when she realized it was Luke. “Come on up, and let yourself in, I have to get dressed.”
Kate buzzed him in, removed the deadbolt, and then cracked the door open before heading upstairs to dry off and find something to wear. She’d only had time to put on her panties when Luke knocked on the door below her.
“Hey, Katie!” he called out.
Hearing his voice without the intercom’s distortion made her smile. She liked how hunky he sounded.
“Hey, Luko. I’ll be just a minute. Make yourself at home.”
She heard him close the door and move into the kitchen. She didn’t know what to put on and now wasn’t the time to change her mind twenty times. If Luke hadn’t already seen her, he would any second. No time to put on a bra and find the perfect clothes. She grabbed a baby blue dress with spaghetti straps, slid it over her head and headed downstairs.
She heard the microwave’s hum when she reached the main floor.
“Special delivery from Mom,” he said with a smile when she walked into the kitchen.
“That’s so nice! Please thank her for me. And thank you for the home delivery. How much do I owe you?” she asked, teasing him.
“Oh, I don’t know. I had to drive out of my way to make it here,” he said, flashing her a grin. He opened his arms. “A hug should do.”
“Of course!”
She walked into his open embrace and wrapped her arms around his waist. He smelled nice. She tried to pull away, but he kept her close. “I’m taking my fifteen-percent tip.”
She laughed, and he let her go, then the microwave beeped, and he took out the warm plate.
“Here you go, Katie. Where would you like to eat?”
“Will you have some with me?”
“I’ve already had three servings.”
She laughed at him. “Who says you can’t have a fourth?”
“No, I’m full,” he said, his arm drawing a flat line. “Want to eat here? Living room?”
“Let’s go to the living room,” Kate said, before turning around to grab a drink. “You’ll at least have something to drink with me, right? Beer, water, coffee, wine?”
“What beer do you have?” he asked.
Kate opened the fridge. “Guinness or Sam Adams.”
“Guinness, please.”
Kate grabbed two cans and glasses, then brought them to the coffee table. Luke had already sat himself down.
He opened and poured the drinks, and Kate joined him on the love seat.
“Thank you again. This is really nice,” Kate said.
“No problem.”
Kate closed her eyes while savoring the first bite. Just as good as she remembered it.
“So, are you ready for tomorrow?” he asked as she continued to eat.
“What do you mean?”
His eyes widened. “Tomorrow’s my Saturday, remember?”
“Oh yeah! How could I forget?” she said, realizing she had indeed forgotten all about it. The cloning situation had been the only thing on her mind, but now that she was officially off the case until Monday, she was curious about Luke’s plans for tomorrow. “What is the mystery thing I have to do?”
“Finish eating, and I’ll show you.”
“Show me?”
“Yes, I brought something,” he said, pointing to a duffle bag sitting by the door.
Kate’s curiosity was piqued. “Are we going to a paintball place?”
Luke laughed. “No.”
“What is it, then?”
“I’ll give you two more guesses.”
“The stuff in there, is it for me, you, or both of us?”
“It’s for both of us.”
“Will it be just the two of us there, or will there be more people?”
“More people. Lots more people.”
Kate tried to figure this out in between bites. Weddings have lots of people, and they happen on Saturdays, but wouldn’t make sense for him to bring a duffel bag full of stuff for it. Some sort of outdoor stuff? Like fishing? Collapsible fishing rods and fishing gear... Maybe?
The Last Hope Page 22