2156

by C M Dancha

  "Mr. Ekstrom, Raul is here to see you." His assistant's announcement interrupted his thoughts about Claude and Rollie. He made a mental note to devote more time later to their new-found friendship.

  "Mrs. Brandt, get him a coffee or something to drink and send him in."

  Two minutes later, a broad-chested man of approximately 45 years-of-age entered Klaus's office. He sat down after exchanging "good mornings" with his boss. Raul rarely said more than six words at a time. He was what Klaus referred to as a good listener. At six feet, four inches tall with a body builder's physique, Raul didn't have to say much to be imposing. To many, his presence was threatening.

  Raul was one of the few direct-report employees Klaus kept after taking the top job at Phoenvartis. After reading his personnel file and interviewing him, it was evident Raul possessed the two major traits Klaus wanted in a security director. This man knew how to keep his mouth shut and was very loyal to his superior. In the past few years, Klaus's initial evaluation of Raul proved to be 100% accurate.

  Klaus wished all his top executives were as effective and professional as Raul. It was amazing how Raul could collect sensitive information from within and outside of the company. Klaus never asked how he did his job. If Raul produced what he asked for, Klaus was fine staying at arm's length from his Security Director's methods and personal life. As a matter of fact, Klaus was so uninvolved with this man he couldn't remember his last name.

  "Raul, I'll get right to the point. I want you to drop everything else and find out as much as you can about the company's ReLife project. You probably haven't heard anything about this project because..."

  "You mean the project to clone animals and humans?"

  That was the first time Klaus could remember Raul interrupting anyone who was speaking. But it wasn't as interesting as realizing Raul already possessed a basic understanding of the ReLife project. Klaus wondered how much more his security director knew about the project.

  "Did you read the Beobachter article this morning?"

  "Yes, but I've been hearing rumors and comments about it for quite some time. What do you want me to find out about ReLife, Mr. Ekstrom?"

  "Raul, I'm interested in everything you hear or see about ReLife. I'm specifically interested in the following questions." Raul took a note pad from inside his suit coat and began recording each of Ekstrom's key questions about ReLife.

  "First, I want to know who the unnamed sources are, quoted in the Beobachter article. Or, put another way, I want to know if the leak is a Phoenvartis employee, and if so, who is it? Secondly, where did the reference to military objectives for ReLife come from? Did the news reporter make this up or did it come from someone inside or outside of Phoenvartis? Any questions so far, Raul?"

  "No, sir. Continue."

  "The ReLife project is treading water now. There's been one delay after another. Currently, the CR47 machine is broken and it will be at least seven weeks before we can get replacement parts. I need that machine up and running as soon as possible. I told the executive committee weeks ago that we would be cloning humans by the end of this month. Each time there is another delay I must go back to the executive committee and fabricate excuses. My original timetable is in shambles. It's embarrassing, and to be honest, the executive committee is losing patience with me. If the project doesn't get back on track soon …" Klaus paused for a moment to select the words he was about to say to Raul.

  "Well, let's just say, I don't want to think about what the executive committee might do if ReLife doesn't show a major step forward soon."

  Raul knew exactly what the committee might do; throw Klaus out the front door. "What else do you want me to find out, Mr. Ekstrom?"

  "Raul, I want to know if these delays are real or someone sabotaging the project. And, I need you to find out if there is a way to get the CR47 working again in short order." For effect, Klaus stood up and pounded on his desk and shouted, "I need that damn machine up and running now! Do you understand, Raul?"

  Raul waited for Ekstrom to settle down before responding. "Yes sir, I understand perfectly."

  Raul understood Ekstrom's command to find out what was going on with the ReLife project. He also understood Ekstrom was an asshole. There were a lot of people Raul didn't care for but Ekstrom was at the top of the list. Without question, he had a lock on the title of number one jerk. Besides, he had worked for Ekstrom for several years and it was obvious the jerk-off didn't know his last name.

  This was going to be an interesting assignment. It could provide him with the ammunition he needed to see Ekstrom replaced as the CEO. Time would tell. For now, he had to concentrate on his assignments and see what information he uncovered.

  "Mr. Ekstrom, should I assume that Mr. Sweats oversees the ReLife project?"

  "That's correct, Raul. He's the supervisor for now. By the way, my nephew, Claude Ekstrom, is also involved in developing ReLife. Don't give him any special consideration because he's my nephew. Treat him like everyone else. Understand?"

  Raul ignored Klaus's comment about his nephew. He couldn't care less what Klaus thought about his relative. Personally, he didn't care for Claude but compared to Klaus, he was a knight in shining armor. Claude was a pathetic little nerd with an over-inflated ego. But at least he stopped short of treating people like scum.

  "Raul, I want daily updates. So if you don't have any further questions, please leave."

  Raul wanted to reach across the desk and smack Klaus in the face a few times. It took every bit of energy he could muster to stay calm and ignore Ekstrom's degrading dismissal.

  As he walked to the office door, he debated whether to drop a news bomb on Ekstrom. He had intended not to say anything but Ekstrom's last caustic remark made him reconsider. It was a good time to make his boss a little more miserable.

  As the door slid open, Raul turned around and said, "Mr. Ekstrom, a member of the World Council is coming to Phoenvartis next week."

  "What did you say, Raul?"

  "One of my sources let me know that a member of the World Council is coming to visit Phoenvartis next week. That's all my source told me. I don't know what day or which member is coming."

  Raul watched as Ekstrom melted into his desk chair. It was great fun watching this pompous ass completely fall apart.

  With a shaking hand, Ekstrom took a cigar from a wood box on his desk and tried to light it. Raul almost broke out laughing when Ekstrom finally put the cigar down because he couldn't fire it. His hands were shaking so violently the cigar and match never made contact.

  Raul decided to take one last punch before leaving the office. "Mr. Ekstrom, if I had to guess, I'd say the World Council member wants to discuss the ReLife project. I'm sure everyone at Council headquarters has read the Beobachter article. Raul saw the last remnants of ego and bravado leave Ekstrom's body. He wanted to dance out of the office but turned and walked away like a professional manager. He left Ekstrom a quaking, pathetic mass of human tissue.

  It took Klaus a half hour before he recovered enough to start thinking about what should be done. He knew the ReLife project was slipping away. If he couldn't find a way to make it a success, all the work and years of devotion to the project would go up in smoke. His entire future and career depended on this one project. He needed to be at the helm of Phoenvartis when ReLife became a reality. Otherwise, his replacement would reap the rewards and be known forever as the father of human cloning.

  ReLife was out of control and Klaus needed to put in place some type of damage control. But, what else could he do? He was trying to speed up the CR47 repair. Raul was looking for the information leaker within the corporation. And there was an all-out effort to determine if sabotage corrupted the project.

  Klaus decided to devote most of his mental energy to preparing for the visit by the World Council member. He wasn't sure how to do that because the World Council had not visited Phoenvartis while he was CEO. He guessed the least preparation would be to develop answers to possible questions the Cou
ncil member might ask. He had two days to prepare. It was imperative the Council representative left Zurich happy. He must be confident in the direction of the ReLife project and Klaus's leadership. For the time being, all the other problems would be in the hands of Rollie Sweats, Claude Ekstrom and Raul what's-his-name.

  Chapter Eleven

  A Morning of Sex and Positioning

  Rollie was about ready to ask his assistant to find Raul Hakala when the security director rounded a nearby hallway corner and headed his way.

  "Raul, I was just getting ready to contact you. Do you have a couple of minutes? I need to discuss something with you."

  The two men finished shaking hands and walked into Rollie's office. Of all the employees at Phoenvartis, Rollie considered Raul a friend even though they spent very little time together. The extent of their interaction outside of work was a couple of unplanned dinners. They were both bachelors who lived in the same neighborhood. It was inevitable they would run into each other at a tavern or bistro and decide to dine together.

  Although their backgrounds were vastly different, there was a natural bond from the first time they sat down and talked. Rollie was fascinated with Raul's military background. As a for-hire mercenary, Raul fought for whoever paid him the most world credits or under-the-table luxury items such as diamonds. He had Rollie laughing hard one night at dinner when he admitted fighting for a case of sturgeon caviar.

  Rollie probably knew more about Raul than the Employee Resource department at Phoenvartis. He knew his parents were an odd mix of Hawaiian and Western European. He was an only child given birth to by a mother in her early sixties after the FISS plague ended. His father was a descendant of Hawaiian royalty even though it netted the family nothing in inherited wealth or notoriety. Raul decided to become a soldier because tactics, misdirection, and fighting were the only things he excelled at as a young man.

  The two men were only two of the six executives retained by Klaus Ekstrom when he became CEO of Phoenvartis. They seemed to share a lot of thoughts about the company without saying a lot about their own responsibilities. And neither of them were fans of Klaus Ekstrom even though they never openly criticized the loser who ran the company.

  Raul always enjoyed speaking with Rollie. He found Rollie's background as a black athlete from the southern part of old America fascinating. He loved hearing about Rollie's extended family. Stories about the Sweats family were like attending a well-written play with an endless list of eccentric characters.

  "How have you been, Rollie? It's been quite a while since we got together, hasn't it?"

  "Yeah, it has, Raul. We should make plans to do something. Maybe hit the slopes for a ski weekend or at least go out to dinner. Why don't I contact you this weekend and let's see if we can arrange something?"

  "Sounds good, Rollie. So, what's going on?"

  "Raul, I have a favor to ask. I'd like you to do a sweep of my office and Claude Ekstrom's office looking for any type of eavesdropping devices. It can be visual, memory or sound type. And I'd like it done without anyone knowing other than you and me."

  "That shouldn't be a problem. But tell me why you think it's necessary. Your input may help me know what to look for."

  "Raul, there's no sense trying to bullshit you. I'm sure you've heard about the ReLife project which Claude and I are spearheading. It's a very sensitive project with immense potential for the company, providing we can make it work."

  "What does "make it work" mean, Rollie?"

  "In its simplest form, it means reproducing animals and humans from a donor's cell sample. Before you ask, we're not sure yet how much of a sample is needed. It could be as little as a single strand of hair or a dab of bone marrow, or as much as an arm or leg. That's one of the things we need to figure out."

  "Okay, Rollie, go ahead with why you think you need me to check out your offices."

  "In the Beobachter this morning there was an article about Phoenvartis creating human clones. Did you see the article, Raul?"

  "Yeah, I sure did. Quite interesting."

  "Yes it was, Raul. There was a lot of bullshit in the article but there were also a lot of facts which could have only come from someone within Phoenvartis. In other words, there is a leak within the company. That person is either intentionally or unintentionally leaking information about the ReLife project. I'd like to know who it is and think a good place to start is my office and Claude's office. I want to know if someone is eavesdropping on our conversations."

  This was the second time within an hour Raul had heard about ReLife and the Beobachter news release. Whoever planted the seed for the news story sure stirred up a hornet's nest. All the executives associated with the project were very upset.

  Raul thought it best to keep quiet about his meeting with Klaus Ekstrom. There was no reason for Rollie to know about the investigative assignment he was given by Klaus. He trusted Rollie more than Klaus, but his gut feeling was that both men were hiding vital information about the project. What it might be was anyone's guess. For whatever reason, both wanted to see if a nosy security director could unearth information to confirm their suspicions.

  "Rollie, let me see what I can do. Just so you know, the halo detector hasn't shown any eavesdropping activity in the building for quite some time. But I admit, it's not a fail-safe system."

  "Raul, refresh my memory, what is the halo detector again?"

  "Rollie, the entire building is set up to detect any type of electronic bugging. It's like having a giant net over the building that is looking for certain frequencies used by bugging equipment. If one of those frequencies is detected, an alarm condition transmits to my office showing the location and time."

  "Oh, yeah, I remember now. You told me about it one time at dinner. I'd say it's a pretty effective system."

  "It's good, Rollie, but not infallible. The more sophisticated bugging equipment can get around the halo detector system. As the old saying goes, there hasn't been a safe made yet that can't be broken into."

  "What's a safe, Raul?"

  Raul let out a chuckle before answering. "It's a large metal box used hundreds of years ago to store valuables in. There were locks on the doors so only the person with the combination to the lock could get into the safe."

  "It sounds like the large jar with a screw lid my Grandmother LeeLee keeps her valuables in. Believe me, no one has ever broken into her jar or even thought about trying. They know she'd figure out who it was and then there would be hell to pay."

  Both men laughed at Rollie's description of his grandmother's makeshift security container. Mentioning her name again made Rollie remember that the package she sent should be arriving soon.

  "Anyway, that's about all I can tell you, Raul. I want to make sure the leak isn't coming from our offices. If it isn't, then you might want to expand your investigation."

  "To tell you the truth, Rollie, I already decided to look into this after reading the Beobachter article. I agree, there's too much accurate information in the article to be a fluke made up by some reporter. Someone is feeding information to Beobachter and I better find out who it is before things get out of hand."

  "Well, I'll let you handle that, Raul. I've got enough problems of my own. Will you let me know if you find anything?"

  "If you don't hear from me, it means that your offices are clean. I should know one way or the other by tomorrow afternoon."

  "I hate seeing you work on the only day the company is closed, Raul."

  "No problem, Rollie. I usually work seven days a week anyhow. Besides, there's an important guest coming next week from the World Council. I want to make certain our physical and informational security systems are perfect. By the way, the tip about the important guest is not for publication. It's for your ears only, Rollie."

  "Thanks, Raul. I appreciate the inside info." Rollie stood up and escorted Raul to the office door. It opened automatically after scanning each man's facial features. The match of facial feature "reads" to authorized personn
el file was instantaneous.

  "Raul, I'll contact you tomorrow or the next day and we'll plan some type of get-together. Okay?"

  "Make sure you do, Rollie. I could use some relaxation and fun."

  Rollie gave Raul a slight pat on the back and both men headed to their offices.

  As Raul walked the aisles of Phoenvartis he replayed in his head the meetings with Klaus and Rollie. He wondered if he missed any obvious connections between them. Most importantly, he tried to guess what information each man was keeping under wraps. If he could figure out what wasn't being said, he had a chance determining why these guys were being so secretive. Possibly his upcoming leisure time with Rollie would net more pieces to the puzzle.

  When Raul got to the monitoring center for the building, he scrolled through several live video feeds. The images were from various locations throughout the building.

  "Looking for anything, in particular, sir?" The agent monitoring the video screens knew it wasn't his place to question what his boss was doing but decided to offer his help anyhow.

  "Nothing in particular, Jon. It's been a long time since I used this equipment, so I thought I'd see if it's working okay. Have you had any problems with it?"

  Jon began describing a few minor problems with the equipment, but Raul didn't hear a word coming out of his mouth. He was too focused on two of the twenty-four images on the monitoring console. One image was outside of Klaus Ekstrom's office. Ekstrom was standing next to his assistant's desk giving her either a chewing out or detailed instructions. Ekstrom was obviously agitated. There were sweat stains under his armpits, and he paced and fidgeted as he spoke. Raul wanted to turn on the audio, so he could listen in on this conversation. But, doing so would bring it to the attention of his employee. It was better not to give Jon any reason to believe that he was snooping on the CEO of the company.