“Hand me that blanket on the couch, please,” Kat asked Kevin.
“As high as his temperature is, I don’t think he needs a blanket,” Ramsey offered.
“I know, but it has my scent on it and I think it will comfort him to have it around him,” Kat said.
Sure enough, once Kevin wrapped the blanket over him, Angus quit shaking and panting and seemed to relax back against the pillow. Moments later, he was fast asleep.
“Good,” Kevin said. “The body heals best when sleeping.”
“Okay, everyone out,” Kat said, shooing them toward the door. “Check back on us after lunch, and we’ll see how he’s doing then.”
When they had left and the lab was again empty, she took the cushions off the couch, arranged them next to Angus’s bed, and lay there next to him, her hand on his flank.
“Sleep tight, big guy, and when you wake up maybe things will be different and the pain will just be a distant memory.”
* * *
Four hours later, Kat awoke to the feel of Angus’s tongue lathering her face.
She yawned, sat up, and blinked. Angus was standing before her, his hair fully an inch long now and coal black instead of streaked with gray. In addition, his flanks were slightly sunken, showing he’d lost his paunch. His eyes were clear and bright, and when he barked at her, the sound was higher and less gravelly than before. In short, he already looked years younger.
Kat’s eyes filled, and she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him to her. “Oh, my big, handsome fella, you look so good!”
He licked her cheek a couple of times, and then he shook loose from her and trotted over to the table holding his dog food and stood up with his two front paws on the edge of the table and barked at her.
She wiped the tears from her eyes and stood up. “Oh, are you telling me you’re hungry?” she asked as she moved to fill his bowl.
He watched her intently, barked again, and seemed to nod his head.
Kat stopped and stared at him, then she laughed and shook her head. “No, it can’t be that you understood that.”
He barked again and dropped down to nudge his food bowl with his nose, as if to say, “Hurry up, I’m starving.”
Kat chuckled and filled his bowl, enjoying the sight of him gulping down his food with apparent gusto. It had been years since he’d eaten with such enthusiasm.
Moments later, his bowl clean, he glanced up at her and again nudged his bowl.
“Oh, you want more?” she asked, reaching for the bag of food.
Again, he barked and seemed to nod his head.
“Jesus,” Kat murmured as she filled his bowl. “Could the serum have already increased his intelligence this much?”
He stopped eating for a moment and stared at her, then he lowered his head and began to eat more slowly.
Kat set the food bag down and moved over to the phone on her desk. She dialed and then said, “Burton, you and Kevin need to come to the lab. There is something you need to see.”
When the two men entered the lab, they both broke into wide grins at the sight of the new leaner, healthier Angus standing over his bowl gobbling down his food.
“Is that the same dog?” Ramsey exclaimed, his hands raised to his mouth.
“You bet it is,” Kat said. “His hair is already starting to grow back without any gray, and it looks as if he burned off at least two or three pounds while he was sleeping last night.”
“My God,” Kevin said, shaking his head. “What a difference, and in less than twenty-four hours.”
Angus finished his food, moved over to his water dish, and lapped greedily at the cool water.
“There’s something else I want you to see,” Kat said.
When she had the two men’s attention, she turned toward Angus and said, “Angus, do you need to go potty?”
He stopped drinking and trotted over to the table holding his leash. He stood up on his hind legs, grabbed the leash with his teeth, and trotted back over to Kat. He dropped the leash at her feet, looked into her eyes, and barked while nodding his head.
“Oh shit! Did that dog just understand what you asked and then answer you?” Ramsey asked in disbelief.
Kat slowly nodded. “I think so, Burton.”
He shook his head. “No, it is much too soon for that. It’s just that he knows the word potty, and that is not so unusual for a dog to respond to.”
Kat pursed her lips. “You may be right. Let’s try something harder.”
She leaned over to Angus and said, “No, not me, Angus. Kevin is going to take you out.”
Angus looked from her to Kevin and immediately trotted over to stand before the young man.
“Holy shit!” Kevin said, grinning widely. “What do you think now, Dr. Ramsey?”
“I think Kat is right,” he said, staring at Angus. “The dog is definitely smarter than any other dog I’ve ever seen.”
“Well, the serum definitely made the rats smarter, and they were pretty dumb to begin with,” Kevin said, looking at Angus with wonder. “And Angus was already smart, even for a dog, so there is no telling just how intelligent he is going to become.”
Kat noticed that Angus’s eyes tracked from person to person as they spoke, as if he was listening to the conversation.
Kevin picked up the leash and fastened it to Angus’s collar. “Come on, big boy. Let’s go do your business.”
Kat moved to take the leash from him. “That’s okay, Kevin. I just said you’d take him to see if he could understand me. I want to stay with him.”
She leaned over and patted Angus on the head. “I’m sorry I confused you, baby, but I’ll take you out.”
Over her shoulder as she walked out the door, she called, “Kevin, would you fix me some coffee, please? We’ll be right back.”
When they got outside, Angus led her straight toward the grassy area where he always pooped.
At first, he sniffed around the area as usual, looking for just the right spot. Kat watched him absently, her mind roving quickly over the events of the past few hours, until she suddenly noticed Angus was staring at her expectantly. He barked and turned away to face away from her, then he looked back over his shoulder at her.
“What is it, boy?” she asked, and then it came to her. “Oh, you want me to turn my back and not watch you go to the bathroom?”
He barked again and continued to watch her until she turned around to face the other way.
“Oh Jesus,” she said again, “I can’t believe he is embarrassed to go potty in front of me.”
She turned just in time to see him lower his leg after watering a nearby tree. He glanced at her, then he trotted back toward the building, evidently finished for a while.
She noticed he no longer moved like a geriatric dog, but more like a two-year-old puppy. He didn’t walk so much as he trotted and pranced, as if to say, Look at me, aren’t I a handsome boy?
As she followed him back to the lab, she briefly closed her eyes and gave a silent prayer of thanks to God that He’d allowed their serum to work on her best friend.
When they entered the lab and she took off his leash, Angus trotted over to Kevin, and when Kevin lowered his hand, he licked his palm a couple of times.
After allowing Kevin to pat him for a moment, Angus yawned widely and moved over to his bed to lie down. He took the blanket with Kat’s scent on it in his teeth and pulled it over him, lay back, and was almost immediately asleep.
Ramsey and Kevin looked at each other and then at Kat, their mouths hanging open.
She smiled. “And that’s not all, gentlemen,” she said. “When we were outside, he let me know he wouldn’t go to the bathroom until I turned my back. Evidently our formula has made him a bit shy.”
Ramsey looked unconvinced. “Are you sure you’re not just reading more into things than is really there?”
Kevin shook his head. “I don’t think she is, Dr. Ramsey. Remember, dogs are just below chimps in intelligence, and chimps and dolphins ar
e just below humans, and that’s without any artificial enhancement. If your serum does to Angus what it did to the rats, then I believe he will be right up there with an IQ about that of a young child.”
Ramsey frowned, “But—”
“No, Burton,” Kat interrupted. “I think Kevin is right. It has only been a few hours, and look at the differences we can already see in Angus. There is no telling how young and strong and intelligent he’ll be after another couple of days.”
Ramsey thought for a few minutes, pacing and rubbing his chin. Finally, he looked up. “I’ve got a camcorder in my office. It’s small and very portable. I’m going to get it and give it to you, Kat. I want you to video-document these changes in Angus’s behavior, especially the ones showing his increase in intelligence. Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, and I don’t think anyone would believe what is happening if we don’t have visual proof.”
He turned to Kevin. “And since you’re now a full partner, Kevin, I want you to take Kat’s notebook and fully document everything we’ve done over the past day and night, including dosages and times and the changes that we’ve all noticed, like the hair and weight loss and the increased appetite and intelligence, and even the increased temperature, indicating a marked increase in metabolic rate.” He shook his head. “Though I doubt if anyone will believe us unless they see for themselves what a miracle this serum has wrought.”
Kevin grinned at the term partner and nodded his head. “Yes, sir, I’ll get right on it.”
Kat asked, “What about the rats we have left, Burton? Are we going to continue the experiments on them?”
He shook his head. “We’re through with rats, Kat, except as a false lead for the BioTech snoops. From now on, we are on to bigger and better things.”
“You mean—?”
“Yes, I mean our next step is to find a down-and-out human who is need of our assistance to lead a meaningful life.” He paused. “Of course, we’ll still have to mess around with the rats for a while, essentially showing poor results to our injections.”
“And just how do you intend to find such a person?” Kat asked. “Are you going over to the Fifth Ward and wander the streets looking for a homeless bum to experiment on?”
He shook his head. “No, I’ve got a better idea. Sheila volunteers at the clinic at Ben Taub Hospital, where most of the indigent people go for their medical care. So, I’m going to follow your suggestion and fill her in on what we need and see if I can’t get her to find a ‘specimen’ for us.”
Kat smirked. “Good luck with that, Burton.”
He gave a wry smile. “Thank you, Kat. I’m gonna need it.”
* * *
Thirty minutes later, Captain Sohenshine sauntered into the lab without bothering to knock.
Kat looked up from where she was writing notes in her new notebook and frowned. She quickly shut the notebook and said, “Hello, Captain. To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit? I know the progress committee isn’t scheduled to meet for another two weeks.”
He didn’t answer, but continued to stroll around the lab, hands in his pockets, his beady eyes roving over everything with a suspicious glint in them.
Finally, when he got to the corner where Angus’s bed was, he stopped and stood there staring, stroking his chin. “Did your old dog die?” he asked.
Shit, Kat thought. “Uh, yes, I had to put him down. That is a rescue dog I got from the animal shelter.”
He looked over his shoulder at her and grunted, “Uh-huh,” with a skeptical expression on his face.
Moving over to stand in front of her desk, he said, “And how are your experiments going, Dr. Williams? Any progress to report?”
“Nothing earth-shattering, Captain. But you will have my full report prior to the progress committee meeting, and I will go into detail then.”
“Okay,” he said, moving around her desk and stroking his hand along her shoulders as he walked toward the door. “I do hope you have some good news for the committee.”
She stared at his back, openmouthed. Had he just come on to her?
Kevin walked into the lab from the dining room carrying sandwiches and chips for their lunch. “Was that Captain Sunshine I just saw leaving?” he asked, placing the sandwiches on her desk.
“Yeah, and he was acting kinda strange.”
“Oh, that reminds me. I was coming back from the dining room the other day after you and Dr. Ramsey had already left the lab, and I saw him sneaking out of your lab and locking the door behind him.”
“What?”
“And that’s not all. When I came into the lab, your laptop was still warm, like he might’ve had it turned on while he was in here.”
“That son of a bitch has been snooping around, trying to see what we’ve been working on,” she said. “I wonder how much he knows?”
“That depends on how much of what we’ve discovered you have in your computer,” Kevin said.
“Too damn much, I’m afraid.”
CHAPTER 17
Kat glanced at the camcorder Ramsey had left and then down at the sandwiches on her desk. She turned to Kevin. “Do you really want dry cafeteria sandwiches for lunch? It seems I have developed an appetite for something a little more elegant.”
“Almost anything is more elegant than BioTech sandwiches,” he answered with a smile.
She glanced over at Angus, still fast asleep under her blanket. “Then how about I treat you to the best deli in town . . . lunch at Antone’s?”
“That’s a deal! I love their tuna salad sandwiches with deviled eggs on the side.”
Kat laughed. “Their po-boys ain’t bad, either—especially with that chowchow they put on them.”
“Why are we still here? Let’s go.”
* * *
After they got back, Kat sat at her desk next to Angus’s bed and Kevin sat in the chair in front of the desk.
Kat yawned and then laughed. “Maybe we need to emulate Angus and take a long afternoon nap.”
“Hang on a minute while I fix us an after-lunch coffee.”
When he had done so, he handed a steaming cup to Kat and sat across from her. “Uh, Kat, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”
She stifled another yawn and quickly took a sip of her coffee. “Go ahead, but you’d better hurry while I’m still awake enough to listen.”
“I had initially planned on coming at this from a more oblique angle, but here goes. I made a mistake a few weeks ago and mentioned to my mom that we had had a breakthrough, and that the serum we were working on seemed to be working even better than we had hoped.”
Kat stopped with her cup halfway to her lips and frowned. “You talked to your mom about our research?”
His face flamed red. “Uh, yeah, but it was just kinda off-hand, and I didn’t give any specifics.”
Kat nodded slowly. “Uh-huh. Just what did you say?”
“Well, I said that our serum was performing better than expected and it seemed to make our rats act younger and smarter.”
Kat leaned her head back and sighed. “No specifics, my ass! You did everything but tell her the chemical formula of the serum.” She looked back down at him. “Kevin, you mean that after all those talks we’ve had about keeping our research a secret, you went and blabbed about it to your mother?”
“Uh . . . yeah, but then I told her to keep it secret and not to tell anyone.”
“And did she . . . keep it a secret, I mean?”
“Well, not exactly.”
“Oh Kevin . . .”
He held up his hands. “Hold on a minute, Kat. Remember I told you I had an uncle who is a famous heart doctor down at Corpus Christi?”
Kat’s eyes narrowed. She felt she knew where this was heading. “Yeah, I kinda remember.”
“Well, his name is Tom Alexander, and he visited her about a month ago and she just happened to mention it to him.”
“So, now there are two outsiders who know about our success with the formul
a?”
“Uh, again, not exactly.”
Kat shook her head and finished off her coffee in one long draught, then she slammed the cup down hard enough to crack it. “Come on, Kevin. Get to the point. Just how many people are we talking about who know all about our business?”
Again, he held up his hands. “Only three, I promise.”
“Three? Who is the other one?”
“Well, Uncle Tom has this really, really rich patient who is super-old and who has had a stroke and is partially paralyzed and who is going to die soon unless some miracle cure can be found.”
“Don’t tell me,” she said, dipping her head into her hands.
Kevin reached across the desk and put his hand on her arm. “Wait a minute, Kat. This is a tremendous opportunity. Uncle Tom said this guy offered not only to fund the rest of our research, but to give us millions of dollars to use the formula on him if we can prove it works.”
She looked up, her mouth agape. “This patient of your uncle’s offered to buy our formula for a million dollars?”
Kevin grinned and shook his head. “No, Kat. That’s the best part. He doesn’t want to buy or even control the formula. All he wants is for us to use it on him to make him younger and healthier. He says we never have to let the formula out of our control. All we have to do is inject him with it—and the amount is not a million dollars, it’s many millions of dollars.”
Her eyes narrowed in thought for a moment. “Are there any other conditions?”
“Just that we use it on at least one other human before we use it on him. If it works on our test case, then he will transfer whatever fee we negotiate to any bank account in the world that we want before we inject him.”
“Are you sure this is legit, Kevin? Millions of dollars is a lot . . . no, it’s a hell of a lot of money.”
“My uncle says this man’s net worth is over twenty billion dollars, and that a small percent of your assets isn’t so much to spend to prolong your life and end your suffering.”
Kat stood up and began to pace around the lab, talking to herself as much as to Kevin. “Well, several old proverbs or clichés come to mind . . . never cry over spilt milk, every cloud has a silver lining, it’s always darkest just before dawn.”
Dust to Dust Page 14
