The Perfect Clone

by M. L. Stephens

  As soon as the three were behind closed doors, exterior facades were tossed aside.

  “It’s good to see you.” Richard embraced his older brother.

  “It’s been too long.” Zachery agreed as the two released.

  Richard turned to his younger brother David. “You get better looking with age little brother.” The two hugged.

  Richard waved toward the couch and chairs by the bar, offering his siblings a seat. “How was your flight?”

  Zachery shrugged out of his jacket and laid it over the back of his chair before falling into the plush leather. “The older I get the more mundane travel becomes. I do find it the perfect time to catch up on my leisurely reading though.”

  David followed his older brother’s lead and removed his jacket as well, choosing to take a seat on the couch. “Don’t listen to him Richard. Our brother is becoming a snob in his old age.”

  Looking over at Zachery’s smile, David added, “There’s nothing mundane about that jet of yours Zach. The Queen of England would be ecstatic to have such luxurious transportation.”

  “You’re right of course, but I’d much rather travel by ground. I find it’s more visually rewarding, but never mind my eccentricities. I’ll continue to attribute my tastes to refinement of age. The more advanced we become, the more I appreciate the simplistic ways of doing things.”

  Richard listened to his two brother’s chat as he took a seat on the far end of the couch from David.

  Zachery and Richard were alike in many ways, they each preferred getting straight to the point. “Tell us Richard, has anything changed since we last spoke?”

  Richard smiled. “We are continuing to make progress. As you both know, our latest recruitment of girls produced what we were looking for. Our subject’s name is Sarah. She is currently being housed in the facility, as are the fertility doctor and the scientist. Everything is moving along according to plan. I have the utmost faith that we are about to see our family’s work come to fruition.”

  Zach crossed one leg over the other and patted his knee as he looked at his brother. “Yes, well you didn’t bring us here to discuss how well things were going, so let’s cut to the chase; why the urgency in bringing the three of us together?”

  Richard relaxed his posture, laying one arm on the back of the couch. His older brother looked more and more like their father every day. “I, or rather we, have a small problem. I didn’t want to discuss this using our traditional method, that’s why I called you here. I have reason to believe that there is at least one security guard within the Community that is working for the rebels. There could be more but it’s not clear at this point. Currently my top security officers are in the field assessing the situation. The officer in question is in confinement. My team is stretched thin. I brought the two of you here to ask if you can lend out additional guards until this problem is contained.”

  David asked, “Why not bring in guards from your other North American facilities? My units are running a minimum staff. I can’t possibly lend any to your cause.”

  “I had considered that, but I want new eyes and ears. Most of my guards have either relocated from other stateside locations or have worked a short time in some of the other locations. If I could get fresh faces here to assist, then it would benefit you as well.”

  “How would we benefit from losing staff?” The younger man didn’t see the logic behind Richard’s reasoning.

  “Because little brother,” Zach inserted, “he wants to find out how deep the river runs. Richard is thinking that the infiltration runs deeper than it appears. He requires reassurance that he’s taking the proper corrective measures to rid himself, and us, of the problem. It’s possible that his discovery is isolated to just this facility, but it could encompass all of North America. It’s also possible that it has tributaries branching out into our international facilities as well. Is the summarization correct, or did I exaggerate your assessment of our circumstances?”

  Richard continued to look at Zach. He respected his older brother’s opinion above all others. “No, you didn’t overstate the potential threat. It could be an isolated occurrence, but I don’t see any reason to gamble our entire life’s work on the off chance that it is.”

  David leaned forward, arms on his knees. “What do you suggest we do to replace the guards we send to you?”

  Richard confessed. “I’ll be perfectly honest, I don’t know. I don’t pretend to know the status of your facilities and staff, so I can’t make an uninformed suggestion. That’s why I called this meeting, so I could update you on the current state of affairs and gather your opinions on which actions we should take.”

  Zach patted Richard on the shoulder as he made his way to the bar. Standing behind the custom design, he leaned on the wood for support. “I’ll tell you what we should do. We downsize our active facilities. Our security is spread too thin as it is and as we get closer to achieving our goal, the more resistance we’re going to encounter from both the Order and the rebels. Factions of the Order are already nervous. They can’t comprehend our desire to remain separate from politics. Some of them believe we’ll have the upper hand once we clone the Christ and that we’ll use the creation to benefit our own agenda.”

  David was irritated as he cut in. “What’s that supposed to mean? The creation is our agenda, our only agenda, it always has been. Downsizing the Community is not a sign of strength—it’s a sign of weakness.”

  Richard could see the wisdom in his older brother’s words. “David, I don’t think Zach means that we should move the residents out of the Community, but relocate them to the facilities that aren’t at full capacity. The Order is not familiar with our locations, so they would not be aware of the downsizing. Moving the residents would strengthen our numbers per city, giving our security team, our residents, and us a more unified force.”

  Zach continued, “He’s right David. I’ve contemplated this for quite some time, actually. The Order has continually supported politicians that are in support of the New World Order. In doing so, they have also left room for greed to seep into the ranks. I’m afraid there will be attempts to procure the knowledge that we possess.”

  David wasn’t following. “That doesn’t make any sense. We intend on introducing the creation to the entire world via the Order. Why would they go through the trouble of trying to procure what has already been promised to them? The clone won’t be something that one group of people can keep to themselves. That defeats the entire purpose of the project.”

  Richard offered up an explanation. “As you know David, the Community has been given the task of the actual resurrection as well as the task of rearing the child into adulthood. Certain factions within the Order do not trust that our intentions are pure. They feel that if they have control over the clone, then they have control over everything. It’s the age old expression: “the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.”

  It was becoming clearer to the youngest of the three. “Well, I find it appalling that the Order would question our objectives.”

  Richard was becoming annoyed with his younger brother’s lack of insight. “With worldly power comes greed and distrust, David. It’s to be expected. That’s why our ancestors split from the Order and chose to go underground. It’s also why we continue to keep certain facts hidden from them. If they were to discover the grail and render their own resurrected Christ child, the outcome would be devastating. It is not for us to create the clone to benefit just one select group of people, but instead to benefit the entire world population.”

  David agreed. “So what are we going to do about the security issue then?”

  Zach picked up the subject where he’d left off. “We have security personnel working in the private sector, we can call them in. We also have men and women that have been trained for duty that aren’t being utilized. Since we haven’t had the need for an expanded security force, they’ve been housed at the facility in Australia, where they continue to train on a daily basis.
I think it’s time to activate our full resources and bring them in as well.”

  “I wasn’t aware that we had a training facility in Australia,” Richard replied. From the expression on David’s face, the youngest brother wasn’t aware of it either. Richard wasn’t surprised though, his older brother was a crafty bastard and had probably kept it a secret for the same reason he was the only one in the room that hadn’t removed his jacket. Self-preservation and brotherly love were two entirely different things. Richard understood and respected that.

  “Of course you weren’t aware of it Richard. Just like David, wasn’t aware that you’ve always felt the need to keep a gun on you when in the presence of your brothers.”

  David’s head twisted back in Richard’s direction. “Is that true Richard? You’re packing heat?”

  Richard laughed at his younger brother’s naivety. “Of course I am little brother. Old habits die hard I suppose.”

  Richard stood and removed his jacket, joining Zach at the bar for a drink. He could feel David’s eyes burning a hole in his back as he walked away. “Do you think it’s necessary to downsize the number of facilities when there’s an entire security force that we can bring in to assist?” Richard’s question was directed to Zach.

  “I do, for the same reasons I stated earlier. The more eyes and ears we have in a single location, the better advantage we have. Downsizing will provide each open facility with additional technicians which can be used to monitor the premises. With our current methods of security in place, I don’t view the residents as a threat. I do, however, see rogue guards and our topside employees as potential threats. The larger the security force of each location, the less likely a single officer has for extracurricular activities.”

  David overcame his semi shock at his brothers’ revelations. “Do we have the specifics on each facility?”

  Zach answered, “We each have the specifics on our own facilities. We’ll combine that information and determine which locations need to be closed. I would think that the closures would be temporary until the problem is rooted out but we can’t be sure. We’ll work under the assumption that it’s a permanent transfer. Richard, I’d like to activate two teams out of Australia and send them here to assist you, with your permission of course. That would provide you with the manpower to have any questionable employees followed. It would also provide you with an essential crew to assist the one you have in the field, or however else you see fit to use them.”

  Richard tilted his glass to his older brother. “I’ll gratefully take you up on that offer Zach and I’ll have Mr. Kincade gather the logistics on my facilities so that we can review them tomorrow. I trust that you can both have your information available by then as well?”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem,” David added.

  “Good, then it sounds like we’ve come to an agreement,” Zach replied as he carried his glass back over to the chair and sat down. “Richard, what do you intend to do with the guard you have in confinement?”

  Richard filled his brothers in on the events that had occurred over the last few days and how he’d come to the conclusion that Frank was working for the rebels.

  “So you don’t have substantiated proof that Frank is actually involved?”

  “Not yet. I have him in lock down to eliminate the danger he presents to the Community.”

  “It’s unlike you to act on a hunch, Richard. Might I offer a suggestion?” Much like Richard, when Zach offered a suggestion, it was his way of allowing a person to feel like they had some control over the choice. They didn’t.

  “Please.”

  “Based on the information you’ve given me, I suggest that Frank is handled with kid gloves. Act under the pretense that you have him in lockdown so that he has no choice but to rest and regain his health. Let him believe that you did it with his well-being in mind. Be on your best behavior and make sure he has everything he needs, at least until the additional forces arrive from Australia. Once they are in position, and the physician gives him an all clear, let him rejoin the guard unit, but without having access to the lab, Sarah’s room, or the fertility clinic. Have a few of the new guards follow him and trace his calls. This will give you the inside information you need, as well as providing you with the substantial proof that you now lack.”

  Richard considered the idea, not that he had any choice in the matter. Zach was had the final say in the Avery chain of command. “I can see how that would be useful. I admire your creative thinking brother. I’ll have his phone access restored with a tracer.”

  David leaned back and shook his head. “I still have a lot to learn from the two of you. I bet you play a mean hand of poker.”

  Zach replied, “We have a lot to learn from each other.” The older men smiled at the remark as they thought of their grandfather. Neither of them was convinced that their youngest sibling was as inexperienced in the art of deception as he let on. After all, he too was an Avery.

  Richard agreed, “Indeed we do.”

  Zach slapped the palm of his hand against the chair and looked directly at Richard. “Now that we have that official piece of business out of the way, let’s catch up on our family business.”

  David offered up stories about his two young children and the family’s latest vacation to New Zealand and then asked Zach about his own.

  “Both boys are learning the ins and outs of the family businesses. Quick learners those two, but my daughter Amy is outwitting them both. I swear she’ll be the death of me. The wife plans on retiring next year and insists on starting a book club. I’m afraid my family life is rather ordinary. How about you Richard, when did you intend on telling us about the Greggario/Avery merger?

  Richard returned to his place on the couch. “As I told you before, Mr. Greggario passed away just recently and by doing so, it left the Greggario family legacy in question. But, just like we thought, the legacy has changed. Mr. Greggario’s daughter, Laura, is our DNA specialist on this project. I believe we discussed and agreed upon this before I introduced her into the Community?”

  Zach’s eyes lit up with amusement as a mischievous smirk curled at the corner of his lips. “Yes. Yes we did. We did not however discuss the possibility that the two of you were romantic. It’s never a good idea to mix business with pleasure, Richard. You know what happens to people that betray us. I hope you’re absolutely certain that you can handle her both professionally and romantically. The private nature of our work comes first.”

  Richard knew where this was headed and wanted to make sure he was clear about his stand on the situation. “I can handle it. She won’t betray the Community—or me.”

  “And if she does?” Zach poked.

  “If she does, I’ll gladly get rid of her. Just like I would anyone else that betrays our family, including you.”

  Preview: The Perfect Clone 2

  Sarah walked into the theater lobby and scored a big tub of buttery popcorn with a side order of soda. She’d originally planned to watch the movie with Luke, but since he was out of town on business, she’d settle for going alone. She was prepared to do anything that would get her out of the apartment. She really needed to look into getting a job. Even though she didn’t need the money, boredom was her enemy. It made her wonder how people could sit around all day with nothing to do.

  As a teenager, she had fancied the idea of winning the lottery and spending her days filled with spa treatments or shopping. Now she knew that she wasn’t the kind to find that rewarding. She needed something more important to fill her days.

  Walking into the dark theater her eyes adjusted while she looked around. She pretty much had her choice of seating. Opting for a place in the middle, Sarah settled in for the show. Nothing like a good action movie to get her out of her hum drum mood. As the lights grew dimmer and the screen flared to life, she sank into the chair. Several more people made their way in as trailers for new upcoming movies played.

  Sarah watched a man enter the aisle she’d chosen and park hi
mself several seats down from her. Of all the available places, he’d selected to camp out on her row. Oh well, free country. She tossed more popcorn into her mouth, swallowing it down with the help of her soda. The popcorn had the perfect combination of salt and butter she thought as she palmed another helping.

  “Hey!”

  Sarah turned and looked at the seats next to her. She could have sworn she heard someone talking to her but the seats were empty. She looked behind her, it too was empty and the man sitting on her row was staring straight ahead. She must be hearing things.

  “Hey!”

  There it was again. Sarah turned all the way around to identify the person talking and found no one. She’d obviously been spending too much time alone and now her mind was playing tricks on her. That’s just wonderful, she thought.

  “I said, hey!”

  Sarah nearly jumped out of her skin when she turned back toward the front and saw him sitting in the chair directly to her left, stretched out with his feet propped up on the back of the seat in front of him. He was snuggled in the chair, ready to enjoy the show. The shit eating grin on his face was irritating as hell.

  Sarah ignored him.

  “What? You aren’t happy to see me?” Josh looked insulted. “I come all this way and you can’t even say hi? What kind of welcome is that? Do you know how much trouble it was to get here?”

  Sarah answered under her breath. “Shut up. You’re not real Josh, you’re dead, remember?” Maybe if she said it to herself, her brain would process the information and her hallucination would disappear. This was the first time she’d had this optical illusion and it was scary as hell. Insanity didn’t run in her family as far as she knew. Hearing his voice in her head was one thing, but actually seeing him was text book—straight jacket— crazy.

  “Yeah, I’m dead alright, but you still can’t seem to get rid of me. Why is that I wonder?” Josh clamped his hands behind his head. It didn’t look like he was leaving anytime soon.