by C. G Harris
Alex spun around in a creaky office chair, color, grey of course, and winced when she saw the condition of my ... well, everything.
“How in the world did you find me?” She leaned to one side and looked me over. “Did a pack of angry wolves drag you in here?”
“Ha ... ha,” I droned. “I used that ... black ... window ... thing. And I had a little accident on the Rusty Rocket, that’s all. Thanks for your concern.”
“Looks like someone pulled it out from under you while you were riding and then beat you with the handlebars.”
“Can we just focus on the fact that I found you in this maze of sorrow all on my own?”
Alex grinned and nodded her head. “Yes, you are a technical genius. Did you knock on the glass to see if anyone was home or just scream at it until somebody answered?”
I blinked at her. “Whatever. You think you’re so smart. Why don’t you try being out of the game for forty years and see how you fare?”
Alex tried to suppress a laugh and failed. “You yelled at it, didn’t you?”
I hung my head in defeat. “I did both.”
She snorted. “Well, at least you got it to work without breaking anything. I’m proud of you.”
“Gee, thanks.” I slumped into a rickety looking chair nestled between the fabric wall of the cubical and the end of her desk.
“Nice place you got here.” I nodded and looked around. “You really nailed the minimalist motif.”
“I went for a Postmodern Get-Me-Out-of-This-Cubicle-Hell look.”
“Oh, you definitely pulled it off.”
She laughed. “As soon as you stop screwing things up, I’m sure you’ll get one too.”
“A suicide inducer of my very own?” I clapped my hands like a 2-year-old. “Just what I always wanted. So, did you ever turn anything up on our buddy Nick?”
Alex turned back to something that resembled a picture frame on the wall of her cubicle and taped a few keys on a keyboard. The picture frame came to life with vibrant color and showed a photo of Nick next to something that looked like an arrest report or court recording.
I did my best not to appear flabbergasted at the incredible detail on the screen, and Alex almost kept from laughing when she caught me gawking at it. Having my own slice of cubicle hell might not be so bad after all.
“Actually, I found something just before you hobbled in.” She poked her finger at the image, and the report enlarged. I refused to let my hand reach out and try it for myself. “Looks like Nicky has been a little overzealous in the area of human trials in the past. There was a scandal several years ago in South America where he used a local indigenous tribe to test out one of his early prototypes. It did not go so well.”
“Are you serious?” I squinted at the article scanning through the words for myself. “I can’t believe Mr. Squeaky Clean would do something so nefarious.”
Alex shrugged. “He may have had a good reason.”
I finished scanning the article over Alex’s shoulder then said, “We should go ask him.”
Alex jerked her head around to stare at me. “What? I don’t want to go back up there. I hate dressing up in that monkey suit and acting all professional. Besides, Sabnack hasn’t assigned us to go up yet, so we have no reason to visit.”
I winced a little as I leaned back in my chair again. “I don’t know. There’s that suicide/murder attempt to follow up on. How can we ignore that?”
Alex glared at me. “Are you sure that was an assassination attempt or just you throwing some guy off a catwalk?”
“Whoa.” My eyebrows all but shot off my head. “Do I strike you as the cold-blooded murder type?”
Alex stared at me but didn’t say anything.
“Seriously?”
“All right.” She held up a hand to cut me off. “So, you didn’t throw the guy off the catwalk. That doesn’t mean he was up there trying to murder somebody.”
“I think the high-powered rifle in his hand might be a clue.”
Alex huffed. “Fine. But we are only going because we can’t afford to let anything happen to this assignment. I don’t want to end up out in the cold because of some stupid turf war between MiRACL and Big Pharma.”
“Great. We can find out about this trial scandal while we’re there too.” I shivered and rubbed my arms. “Don’t they ever turn up the heat in this place?”
Alex narrowed her eyes at me. “Why do you want to find dirt on this guy so bad? Maybe he is a good guy. That’s all. Let’s keep him safe, keep the assignment running smooth, and leave it at that.”
“Fine,” I held up my hands in surrender. “Forgive me for being curious.”
My eyes landed on an old, decorative horseshoe hanging on the divider across from me. It was rusted with worn paint and adorned with some beadwork. Long, black hair looped over the top through the nail holes and was tied at the bottom with a section of rough, red fabric. It was the only decoration in her personal grey space.
“Where did this come from?” I reached up and pulled it off the wall.
Alex spun her chair around to face me again. “I thought you could bring it to the autistic kid next time we went up. You seem to have a soft spot for him.”
I blinked.
“What? I feel bad for the poor guy too. I’ll bet he’s all alone in that building every day.”
I brushed the soft hair across my palm then gave Alex a gentle, little poke in the shoulder. “How did I get stuck with such a good partner?”
She grinned. “Whatever. I don’t even know where it came from. Some secret admirer creep probably snuck in here and hung it on the wall when I wasn’t looking. Happens all the time.”
“Really?” I cleared my throat. “You have secret admirers?”
My voice went all creaky, and I sat up straight. Why did I feel so uncomfortable all of a sudden?
It didn’t help that Alex stopped to look at me with a cat-got-your-favorite-canary grin on her face.
I sat there peering down at the horseshoe, refusing to meet her eyes. She stared at me, refusing to crack.
“Well, we should get going.” I stood up way too fast, knocking a stack of papers off her desk and nearly tearing a clock off her wall.
I managed to catch the clock and hung it back on its thumbtack mount. Alex still hadn’t moved a muscle, though her grin had grown into a full-on cheek to cheek smile.
“Why don’t I meet you out at the lockers?” I made a show of straightening my t-shirt and jeans then held up the horseshoe. “Thanks for this. I mean, I’m sure Ryan will like it.” I shook my head and pointed toward the way out. “I’m just going to go.”
Alex let out a little laugh that sounded like music. “I think that would be best.”
With that, I headed down the long expanse of cubicles.
“Hey, Gabe.” Alex’s voice pulled me up short, and I backed up a few steps to peer back into her cubicle.
“Yeah?”
“Exit’s the other way.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Nick’s face lit up when he walked around the corner to see us sitting in his waiting room. “Well, this is an unexpected surprise.”
Alex and I stood to meet him as he walked toward us. He bypassed the obligatory handshakes and dove straight in for hugs as if we were long lost relatives. His smile was so genuine I couldn’t help but be infected by his joy.
“You look like you had a rough day.” Nick motioned to the topographical map of injuries on my face. “What happened to you?”
“Saved a cat from a horrible ice-cream truck tragedy. There were cheers and accolades.”
Nick laughed. “I’m sure there were. Come on in.” He waved for us to follow him into his office and sit. “So, what brings you by? Do you have time to stay for lunch? I’m buying ...”
Alex and I glanced at one another, and she wore the same confused grin I must have had on my face.
“Forgive me for saying so,” Alex settled down in her chair next to me. “But you are in a
wfully good spirits considering someone committed suicide in the middle of your seminar the other day.”
Nick’s wide smile retreated back into a sympathetic grin. “That poor man’s plight was tragic, but no cloud is without its silver lining.”
I felt my own smile turn down as his words sunk in. “Are you saying his death was a good thing?”
Nick sat down in his own chair and shook his head. “Of course not. His death was a horrible tragedy. Losing anyone to the horrors of depression is one of the most heartbreaking and least understood misfortunes in our society today.”
“So where is the silver lining in that?” Alex tilted her head to the side in that way that said you better have the right answer, or the rest of this visit would go south in a hurry.
“There is no silver lining in that poor man’s death. I’m sorry. That’s not what I meant.” Nick shifted in his chair, and I read the discomfort in his eyes. “We held a smaller, more intimate press conference the next day, for obvious reasons. During my presentation, I was able to illustrate how eradicating cancer was only one of the medical breakthroughs we might achieve. Someday, we hope to cure all types of illness, including mental illness. Nanotechnology would allow us to help people like that man by stimulating key parts of the brain previously accessible only through dangerous surgery. Tragedies like his could soon be a thing of the past.”
Alex relaxed, and her eyes widened with wonder. “That’s hard to believe.”
Nick nodded and regained some of his smile from earlier. “I never meant to say that I was glad that poor man lost his life, but his action illustrated the need for a radical improvement in healthcare in a way mere words never could.”
I nodded in agreement. “Not the way I would have planned a press conference, but I see what you mean.”
“MiRACL’s stocks skyrocketed after our announcement, growing higher than anyone imagined. We’ll obtain the funding to go public much sooner than expected at this rate. Our technology will reach out and help so many; it’s difficult not to be excited.”
“I guess I can understand what you meant by a silver lining.” I nodded.
Alex moved to the edge of her seat as if she were ready to stand up and leave, but I ignored the cue and relaxed to make myself comfortable.
“So how have you felt lately? Not under the weather with all this stress? No sniffles, dizziness, blackouts, or homicidal thoughts—nothing like that?”
Alex snapped her head toward me and raised an eyebrow.
“What? I am concerned about his health. Sort of like the indigenous tribe in South America you experimented on. You must have been concerned about their health as well.”
Alex sighed and slid back in her chair again, turning her attention back to Nick. “Yes, we did turn up some information about a possible controversy. We just want to be sure the incident won’t cause a problem in the future.”
Nick stared down at his desk for several moments then took a breath and spoke.
“Yes, I offered my nanotechnology to an indigenous people in the South American Rain Forests. They were cut off from almost any advanced civilization, and without my treatment, they would have died from a rare disease they had contracted from their environment, wiping them out. My technology saved more than seventy percent of their population.”
“And what about the other thirty percent?” I asked.
Nick let out a long breath. “You must understand the mortality rate without my help would have been almost one-hundred percent.”
“But your tech still killed thirty percent of them,” Alex finished for him.
Nick hung his head and nodded. “Yes. My treatments saved the majority of their population, but that is not how the press chose to report the story. The trial was a foolish and premature attempt to use our medical technology. We have come lightyears ahead since then. Adverse reactions are all but nonexistent now. I even have nanobots in my bloodstream.”
That was enough to make me sit up. “What do you mean they’re in your bloodstream?”
Nick brightened a little at the question. “Doctors diagnosed me with pancreatic cancer last year. When I found out the prognosis was terminal, I admitted myself as a test subject.”
Nick all but beamed with pride as he spread his arms to open his body for display.
“You are looking at the first person to receive self-replicating nano meds for ongoing wellness.”
“You mean ...”
Nick nodded before I finished the statement. “They work! And they will continue to keep me healthy against any disease or infection within my body.”
“That would make you all but immortal.” Alex uttered almost under her breath.
“Not exactly.” He laughed. “They don’t protect against old age. Not yet anyway, and I am still as susceptible to trauma, the same as anyone else.”
“That’s still amazing.” I couldn’t help but stare at his chest as if I had microscopic x-ray vision to peer through his skin and examine the nanos working away like elves in Santa’s workshop.
A door opened behind us, breaking my Superman stare, and Alex and I turned to watch Ryan enter the room led by someone I recognized from the seminar yesterday. Coffee Guy. The big man I ran into at the refreshment cart. Or rather he had run into me. He had also stood on stage with Nick and Ryan during the seminar, soaking up his share of the spotlight.
“Ah, I am so glad you made it.” Nick stood up. “Gabe, Alex, this is Ian Daggett. He is Ryan’s guardian.”
Right on cue, Ryan shuffled out from behind Ian, eyes to the ground and fiddling with his hands.
“Ryan, do you remember Gabe and Alex?” Nick’s voice turned gentle and caring.
Ryan glanced up at us for the barest of moments as we stood to greet him and waved.
“Hello, Ryan. We brought something for you. I hope you like our little surprise.”
I reached for the gift bag we had picked up on the way over to Nick’s office and held it out to Ryan. For a moment, I didn’t think he would take it.
“Go on there. Don’t be rude.” Ian prodded and gave Ryan’s shoulder a little nudge. His voice came out deep and boisterous. Not at all like Nick’s. Ian had an air of cold impatience. Something I disliked in an instant when paired with Ryan’s vulnerability.
Ryan took the bag then reached in and pulled out the old, decorative horseshoe. His face lit up the moment he laid eyes on the ornate looking antique.
“I hope it’s the sort of thing you like.” I bent down a little, trying to catch his eye. He looked up at me and smiled. The expression turned my heart to mush. This young man appeared to be the same age as me on the outside, but I saw the child hiding within his eyes.
Ryan hurried out of the room, eager to play with his new toy, which widened the smile on my face even further.
“Looks like your little hunk of junk did the trick.” Ian offered a hand along with a salesmen’s grin. “My goodness, what happened to you? Get into a fight with the business end of a jackhammer?”
Everything about the man screamed two-faced shyster, from his yellow shooter’s glasses to his beige suit and brown tie. A dime store crook if I ever saw one.
“There was ice cream and a cat. You understand.”
I reached out and shook his hand, offering him a plastic smile. Alex did the same.
“So, you take care of Ryan when ...” She left the question open ended, and I looked at Ian, expecting an answer myself.
“I take care of him pretty much all the time.” He chuckled and jostled his weight around, looking a bit too energetic. “At least when he’s not here. Nick is a slave driver, I’ll tell ya.”
More jolly laughter.
I might be sick.
“I can assure you Ryan only works as much as he wants to. We offer him an outlet for his gifts. Soon, the world will benefit from his genius as well.”
“Well, his pocketbook better benefit from it too, if you know what I mean.” Ian laughed, and I took up the laughter behind him, going ov
er the top with the fakery.
“I’m sure you keep his wallet safe and sound.” Ian’s laughter cut off, but I kept laughing. “If you know what I mean.”
Ian let out a last uncomfortable chuckle and glanced around the room as if he wanted someone to throw him a lifeline. I tapered off my fake laugh and throttled down to a toothy grin. I looked around and saw that Alex and even Nick had taken up the same expression. It was as if the three of us were Scam-Jackals, and Ian had become the main course.
He buckled under the silent pressure within seconds.
“Well, I won’t keep you. I can see you’re in an important meeting.”
He headed out the door, but he turned to shot me a warning glare before he squeezed his presence all the way out of the room. Two-faced crook for sure.
“I apologize for the interruption.” Nick peered at us with a genuine smile again.
“No problem, we were just about to leave anyway,” Alex said, weaseling in her exit strategy before I sat back down.
“Are you sure? My offer for lunch is still open.”
I glanced over at Alex, but she shot me a smile that said, “If you accept, I will pull off your eyelids and shove them up your nose.”
“Maybe next time,” I said.
We headed for the door as well, but I turned to Nick before we got there.
“One last question, if you don’t mind?”
“Of course.”
“If anything were to happen to you, what would happen to the company here?”
Nick blinked, and I saw the wheels turning in his head. Something told me he knew the high dive at his seminar had been more than a suicide. Someone had told him about the rifle. He understood someone had been gunning for him.
“Ryan and I are equal partners in the company. If anything happens to me, my shares will go to him”.
And by proxy, Ian the terrible, I thought.
“The company would then be run by a board of directors at that point, for obvious reasons.”
I nodded and offered a smile. “I know, strange question. I was just curious. Have a great day and tell Ryan we said goodbye.”