Shatter Point

by Jeff Altabef

  “It’s enough for me to know he will never bother me or anyone else again.” She glanced through the open doorway at her two sons.

  I am a strong woman. Love makes me strong!

  Tom and Mary stood outside of Jack’s hospital room. She smiled. “It looks like he will be fine.”

  Sitting up in his hospital bed, Jack held a small bowl of rice pudding in his hand. Maggie sat in a chair by the window while David, Jack’s best friend and Mary’s brother, hovered close to his side with a spoon in his hand, trying to grab a spoonful of pudding as Jack shifted the bowl to dodge his efforts.

  Tom turned toward Mary, his face only inches away from hers. His head swam as if he had stuffed himself with mountains of cotton candy. He smelled cinnamon and roses and his heart skipped. Her emerald eyes shined brighter than usual. “I want to tell you something,” he said, his voice serious.

  “Yes?” She brushed her wavy red hair away from her face.

  “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.” He glanced into Jack’s room. Jack flashed him a thumb’s up sign. Tom had confessed to him what he intended last night. He thought it was about time.

  Tom turned back toward Mary, his face reddening and his voice husky. “I love you.”

  “Oh, that. I knew that already.”

  “Really?” This wasn’t going the way he had predicted or hoped. She smiled, but she didn’t say anything in return.

  Time slowed. He waited until he thought his head would burst. “Do you have anything you want to tell me?”

  “No.”

  “Nothing?” He frowned and looked toward the floor.

  She smiled, lifted his chin, and kissed him, her mouth and tongue melting into his. When they separated, he felt dizzy. “Was that clear enough?” She grabbed his hand and led him into Jack’s room.

  Jack winked at Tom and did his best to alleviate his brother’s awkwardness. “So, did Aunt Jackie really say I was her favorite?”

  Tom shrugged. “We always knew she was an odd bird.”

  Maggie chuckled. “I’m sure she loved you both in her way.”

  “Still, I was her favorite,” Jack persisted.

  “Can’t we talk about something else?” Maggie said.

  Tom draped his arm over Mary’s shoulder. David shot him a disapproving scowl. Tom removed his arm, and Jack laughed and shook his head.

  “Actually, there is something I want to discuss,” Tom said. He locked eyes with his mom for a moment. “What other family secrets do I need to know?”

  He lifted his hand and started ticking them off his fingers. “First, we had the Fourteenth Colony, then Cooper, and then Aunt Jackie’s colorful past. I don’t want any more surprises.”

  Darian strolled into the hospital room.

  “Saved by the good doctor,” Maggie said.

  “How are you feeling, Jack?” Darian carried a thin tablet to record his notes.

  “I have this irresistible urge to fetch a stick. Other than that, I’m doing fine.”

  “Good news on the medication front.” Darian pointed to the IV bag hanging on a stand beside Jack’s bed. It contained a saline solution with the three different prions he had found in the kibble. “We won’t need to give you all those prions anymore. We’ve isolated the one that inhibited EBF-202. We’ll be able to grind the prion into pill form once we determine the proper dosage.”

  “When can he leave?” Maggie asked.

  Darian scanned his notes. “Let’s keep him for a week to observe him.” He glanced at Jack. “Do you have any sensitivity to light or noise?”

  “Not anymore, Doc. I’m good to go.”

  Darian eyed Jack and checked the time projected on the wall. “I’ll be back in a few hours. I have an appointment.”

  ***

  Darian scooted to the elevator, taking it to the top floor. When it reached the top he turned left, and moved swiftly, his flip-flops flopping against the soft rug and reached Wickersham’s office in no time.

  Vanessa and Clair were chatting in Wickersham’s reception room. Clair looked up as he entered. “Doctor Beck, I didn’t realize you had a meeting with Doctor Wickersham.”

  “I need to talk to the Doctor about the latest breakthrough. We are ahead of schedule.”

  “I’m sure he will want to hear about that right away.” She lowered her voice. “He’s been crowing about your new discovery for the last couple of days. I’ve never seen him this happy.”

  Vanessa squeezed Clair’s arm. “We had better go. I don’t want to be late for our lunch reservation.” She pulled her toward the door.

  “Do you know that Doctor Beck is single? I think you two might make a nice couple,” Clair whispered.

  She smiled, glanced over her shoulder, and winked at Darian. “We’ll be back in an hour.”

  Darian marched into Wickersham’s office. The memory erasing gas had worked better on Wickersham than Steven had thought. The gas prevented the brain from converting short-term memories into long-term memories. Perhaps Wickersham’s frequent use of drugs or the combination of the gas with the electric jolt he gave himself with the taser enhanced its effectiveness, but he had lost two full days of memories.

  Upon seeing Darian, Wickersham shut off his video game and beckoned for him to approach. “Doctor Beck, what a pleasure to see you. How are you making out on isolating the prion?”

  Darian strolled toward Wickersham’s huge oak desk. “I’ve isolated the prion. We should be able to make it in pill form for Jack in the next day or so.”

  “That’s great news. I’m sure the tennis instructor’s family is pleased. Congratulations! We should be able to make a public announcement about EBF-202 by the end of the week. I’ve already had my assistant start the first draft.” Wickersham’s voice bounced with enthusiasm. In truth, he had already bought plane tickets for the next Noble Prize presentation in Stockholm.

  Darian stretched his arms as he approached Wickersham’s desk.

  “I think you owe me a debt of gratitude,” Wickersham said.

  “Why?”

  “It was my decision to change the dog food. In my own way, I provided you with the breakthrough you needed.”

  Darian smiled. “Actually, that’s why I decided to stop by. I want to thank you personally.” He reached across the desk and unplugged the intercom system.

  “What are you doing?” Wickersham reached for his pocket, but Darian grabbed his tailored wool suit jacket before he could retrieve the taser Darian knew he always carried with him.

  “It’s time you got exactly what you deserved.”

  Rachel and The Professor stood next to Jack’s hospital bed and watched him sleep peacefully. “Do you think he will be okay?” she asked, her brow creased with worry.

  “Doctor Beck believes his condition has stabilized. His brain has reversed some of the latest development. I’m not an expert on these things, but the brain scans seem conclusive.” He crossed his arms against his thin chest. “We should be past any immediate concerns.”

  “But you have reservations?” She eyed The Professor’s body language.

  He stroked his goatee as if it were an old stuffed toy that comforted him while he pondered her question. “We don’t understand much about brain function. According to Doctor Beck, Jack’s brain has been transformed, developed to an unnatural state. We don’t know how that will change him.”

  He uncrossed his arms. “Psychics and healers have been reported throughout time. I’ve studied them for years. It’s a hobby of mine. Most of the reports are easily dismissed, but others deserve consideration.”

  “So you think Jack might have become a psychic?”

  “Almost certainly. If we believe what Tom and Mary tell us happened in the boardroom, psychic behavior is the most obvious answer. However, I’m worried he might have a more serious condition.” He frowned, and worry lines rippled across his weathered face.

  “What could be more serious?”

  “The connection he had with Cooper
was intense. Tom described him as shaking violently. He even smelled electricity flowing between them. Mary described the event the same way. When Jack separated from Cooper, he knew things only the subject knew, like where Maggie was being held, for instance.”

  He paused and faced her. “It’s possible the subject’s personality downloaded into Jack’s brain in the same manner you might clone a computer.”

  “Downloaded?”

  “Yes, it is possible Cooper lives inside Jack’s mind. All his memories, thoughts, and impulses.”

  The newscaster sounded grave. “The manhunt for the vice president and his Chief of Staff continues into its second week. Homeland Security believes domestic terrorists may have abducted him. So far, no operative leads have been discovered.”

  Charles Sheppard shut off the television with a click from a remote.

  “It’s a real shame the Vice President has gone missing. I understand Ethel Simmens is spending a fortune to find him,” Jacob Benjamin said. “We certainly don’t want him found or any other evidence traced back to us.”

  “No, we don’t,” Charles said. “I don’t think we need to worry about that. The hospital’s security tapes have been wiped clean, and no one seems very interested in finding his butler.”

  Jacob wandered toward the balcony. “I still have a hard time believing those terrible things Peter did.” He shook his head. “How could he have fooled everyone for so long?”

  “Believe it, Jacob. The Originalists have complete power. No one watched him too closely. He had all the money and power in the world to do whatever he pleased. I have no doubt he committed these horrible murders.”

  “What about Project Qing? Have you decided what to do with it?” Jacob stood slightly stooped, but his eyes were bright, piercing, and youthful.

  “I’ve scuttled the research. Project Qing no longer exists, and as far as anyone else is concerned, there never was one.”

  “But Charles, imagine the good a drug like that could do. We could end warfare and bring peace to areas of the globe that have never known peace.”

  Charles stared at the New York City skyline for a long moment. “Project Qing would give unlimited power to whoever wielded it. Too much power, Jacob. Even with the best intentions, it would eventually end up enslaving humankind. We were created with free will. It’s not for us to take that away.”

  Charles thought of his mother. She thought God had a higher purpose for him, that his biological parents had been sacrificed in a divine tragedy so the Sheppards would adopt him. He would fulfill that purpose.

  Perhaps stopping Project Qing is my purpose.

  Jacob walked back to the chess table. “It’s a shame Steven has decided to work on his own. He’s a very talented individual.”

  Charles smiled. “I don’t think we’ve seen the last of him. For now, he’s decided to track down the families of the other victims to give them closure.”

  Jacob slid his castle along the chessboard. “With the vice president out of the picture, the Originalists are going to need a new candidate for President.”

  “I don’t like that gleam in your eye.”

  “Who better than the Secretary of Domestic Priorities, Charles? With you as President, we could accomplish much.”

  The sun shone bright and hot and the air hung heavy and crisp. They stood in a clearing in a remote forest in upstate New York. The grass underfoot was long, green, and inviting. Oak and maple trees ringed the open space. A hawk circled high overhead, caught in the air currents.

  Bound to an ash tree in the center of the clearing, Cooper’s arms forming a “Y” shape with the rest of his body.

  Gabriel, Moses, and Jack stood ten feet away from him with grim expressions on their faces. They had been waiting patiently all afternoon. Finally, Cooper’s brilliant Mediterranean blue eyes focused with lucidity. The Professor had given them a potent experimental drug to bring him back from his shattered state. The drug was extremely dangerous and would only last a short time. Still, they only needed a short time.

  ***

  Cooper’s face slowly contorted from madness to sanity, like a sunrise over the horizon. When reality fully dawned on him, he pulled against his restraints in vain. Fear clouded his face. “What are you doing? I’m important, superior. I’m Peter Simmens!”

  “We know who you are,” Gabriel said. “You’re Cooper, killer of women.”

  Cooper stopped struggling against the rope when he recognized Jack. “You’re Maggie’s boy.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Help me. Maggie is my special friend. Your mother loves me. She would want you to help me.”

  “My mother despises you! She always has. You’re not fit to wash her feet.”

  Cooper scowled as hazy memories returned to him. He remembered taking Maggie and even going to the boardroom. After that, he only recalled fragments and jagged impressions. “She is nothing! I was born superior. I am superior.”

  ***

  Jack stared at Cooper, feeling numb.

  Gabriel opened a thin file full of the gruesome photographs of the women Cooper had ravaged. He moved close to Cooper and lifted each photo to his face. He let the photo linger in front of his eyes until he replaced it with the next one. “Do you remember these women?”

  “They were nothing—just prostitutes—nobodies.”

  Gabriel lifted a photograph of Izzy and shoved it against Cooper’s face. “Her name was Isabella. She was an angel.”

  “You can’t blame me for that one. I offered her a deal. She could have been the queen of the ghettos, but she refused.” Cooper wrenched his body, swinging wildly, trying to free himself, but the bindings held. “Let me go! I can offer you a deal. I know you. You’re Gabriel. I’ll make you the king of the ghettos. I’ll give you everything, a better deal than I offered Isabella. You’ll be powerful beyond your imagination.”

  Gabriel glanced at Moses, who handed him a shiny new scalpel. Light sparkled off the surgical instrument’s clean lines.

  “No, no! I’ll give you anything. I have money and power. You can be rich!” Cooper squirmed away from the scalpel.

  Gabriel smiled. “There is only one thing I want.”

  He glanced at Moses and Jack, who both nodded in agreement.

  Jack heard a familiar voice in his head. It sounded raspy and weathered like an old saddle. “Good job, sonny boy!” He touched Excalibur tucked firmly in his waistband and grinned.

  ---THE END---

  Be sure to scroll down for extra content we’re sure you’re going to love.

  Book Club Guide

  1. Throughout the novel, Darian struggles with Wickersham’s decision to use Jack as a test subject for EBF-202. Who has the more persuasive argument: Wickersham or Darian? Would your opinion change if it were certain Jack would have died without the drug?

  ~~~

  2. One of the effects of EBF-202 is enhanced intelligence. Should we develop drugs to do this, or is that going too far?

  ~~~

  3. Cooper believes exceptional people must start with exceptional genes. What would Charles Sheppard say to that argument? What role does nurture play in human development?

  ~~~

  4. Who is to blame for Cooper’s actions? Does Ethel, as his domineering parent, share some of his guilt? How much do you think she knows? How far should a parent go to protect a child who does bad things?

  ~~~

  5. Maggie is constantly trying to convince herself that she is a strong woman. Is she? What examples show she is a strong woman? Did your opinion about her change throughout the book? Did she make the “right” decision not to tell the authorities about Cooper and protect her family?

  ~~~

  6. Abuse, whether mental or physical, changes someone. Maggie felt responsible for Cooper’s victims. Does she share some guilt? Would Maggie have tried to kill Cooper with the calligraphy pen if he didn’t threaten her sons?

  ~~~

  7. Romantic love is depicted from Tom’s poi
nt of view and Vanessa’s. How are the descriptions different? Is either one closer to a true version of “love?” What about Mary? How do you think she sees her relationship with Tom?

  ~~~

  8. The country’s economic climate is depicted as extreme. Who is to blame for poverty in our country? Should those in ghettos take the lion share of responsibility or, as Darian believes, do they just need opportunities and hope? What role does the government have in making sure poor people have opportunities?

  ~~~

  9. This dystopian view of America features extreme political power and wealth concentration in a small percentage of “winners.” Are we headed in that direction as a country? What measures could we take to prevent such an extreme version of the country from becoming a reality?

  ~~~

  10. Aunt Jackie has a violent past. Can one act of love redeem her from a lifetime of questionable choices?

  ~~~

  11. Jack, Gabriel, and Moses dispense their form of justice to Cooper in the end. Were they justified in doing so? Maggie obviously disagrees, but what would the other characters have done?

  ~~~

  12. The novel takes place in 2041. How would it differ if it took place today?

  SPECIAL SNEAK PREVIEW – FORGIVE ME, ALEX

  Two men... two methods... two motivations...one darkness—step inside the twisted mind of a killer, and of the man determined to end him at any cost. Please enjoy this Special 4-Chapter Sneak Preview we offer below, or just grab your copy now at this link:

  http://bit.ly/EP4FMAama

  ~~~

  PART 1 – JUSTICE SERVED, JUSTICE DENIED

  ~~~

  Chapter 1 – June 6, 1995: Tony Hooper

  “...that is the soul, and whether you are a soldier, a scholar, a cook, or an apprentice in a factory, your life and your work will eventually teach you that it exists. The difference between your flesh and the animate power within, which can feel, understand, and love, in that very descending order, will be clear to you in ten thousand ways, ten thousand times over.” – Mark Helprin, ‘A Soldier of the Great War’