Hector shook it, followed by Susan, and both said, “Good morning, Mr. Williams.”
Mr. Williams looked down at me next. “Hello! You must be Charlie. Nice to meet you.”
I replied with an awkward nod and waved.
Hector and Susan sat down on the two chairs, and she pulled me onto her lap.
Mr. Williams cleared his throat as he sat down behind his desk. “First, thank you for making the trip to our downtown office. I know it’s not close to your home.”
“No problem,” Hector replied with a smile.
Mr. Williams took a short breath. “Next, I want you to know that I tried as hard as I could to push your application through in its current state.”
Hector nodded in anticipation. “Yes, go on.”
“I’m sorry, but there are some questions about your legal status, Mr. Rios.”
Shock came over both Hector and Susan’s faces.
Mr. Williams seemed legitimately concerned. “Now, since there’re only questions about his status and no proof of illegality, the authorities have not been alerted. However, we will need you to start the process over and have the Department of Immigration send the documentation digitally.”
Susan trembled and stiffened, then took the folder from Hector and slammed it on Mr. Williams’s desk. “This is ridiculous! We filled out all the papers. He’s passed all the tests. Why do you people keep putting roadblocks in front of a man who has done everything by the book?”
Mr. Williams nodded as if he was expecting that kind of response. “Mrs. Rios, I promise you that we’re only following protocol, and we have nothing personal against your husband.”
Susan shook her head and replied calmly, “Mr. Williams, we’re being evicted from the current place because we don’t have enough money to afford it.”
“I know, and I’m very sorry.”
Hector and Susan looked like they’d had the wind knocked out of them. As much as I wanted to see how the rest of the conversation played out, there was a more pressing need.
“I need to go to the baño.”
Neither Hector nor Susan responded, so I repeated myself. “Mom, Dad, I have to go to the…”
“Bathroom, mijo, uh, son. It’s over there. Go ahead.” Hector pointed to the restroom area across the building, and I got down from Susan’s lap.
As I wandered out of the office, Hector and Susan continued talking to Mr. Williams with hints of frustration in their voices. I walked through the small building, glancing back at the main entrance. A man in a green trench coat marched across the vestibule, seeming to be in quite a bit of distress. His pale face had bright red blotches, and his long black hair looked wet. His head turned back and forth from the outer and inner doors a couple times and then he looked down at his coat. The police officer guarding the entry held a newspaper in front of him, and I heard him snickering at something he was reading.
I turned back to the restrooms as I reached the doors, expecting to see the universal sign for restroom. All I saw were figures and letters. The figure without a triangular middle section made me feel the most comfortable, so I went for it. I opened the door to a dank space and passed the urinal, heading to the only stall there. With nothing else to do after I settled in to do my business, I stared at a square of paint on the stall wall. Someone had tried and failed to cover up what had to be graffiti. I squinted, trying to make out the vandalism, and it appeared to be a man urinating on a word. But again, the word didn’t make any sense to me, so all I could do was try to make out the letters.
“M-E-X-I—”
Bang! Bang!
The loud noises from the main area of the building were followed by bloodcurdling screams. Even in my terrified state, I mindlessly reached for the toilet paper and wiped. Furiously pulling my pants up, I huddled down as far I could in the corner of the stall. I could hear yelling from a single, masculine voice, and as curious as I was, I had the all-too-familiar feeling of being paralyzed. I just held myself tightly, hoping Hector or Susan would come get me. I waited for several moments before the yelling stopped and it was deadly quiet, then shook my head to snap out of my stupor. Dread overtook me as I attempted to piece together what had happened. All I could think about was that Hector and Susan would be worried about me, so I needed to get back to them. With trepidation, I got up, left the stall, and slowly made my way toward the restroom door, feeling with each step like I was getting closer to something very awful.
Through the door, I heard a man’s voice yell, “You two! Get by the doors!”
I was shaking when I cracked the door and looked out at Hector and Susan walking terrified toward the exit.
Bang!
The loud noise sent me diving to the restroom floor with my eyes closed, and a shooting pain came from my head.
Ow!
When I opened my eyes, it was to pure blackness. I looked around, and at first, saw nothing. I spun in a circle, then stopped when I saw something off in the distance. It was a white blob. In that moment, it felt new to me, but once it began to speak, I realized I had encountered this entity in Charlie’s memories before.
“I will save you from yourself, Charlie. Your enemies will pay.”
The gravelly bellow should have shaken me to the core. Instead, it seemed sincere, and it was as if the figure’s presence filled a void within me.
“Charlie…Charlie…”
I heard another voice, and I knew immediately that it wasn’t from the nether. My eyes opened for real and looked up at a police officer standing over me. My head hurt something fierce, and I whimpered.
“Charlie, are you hurt?”
Even in pain, I detected a tremble in the officer’s voice. “I knocked my head. But I think I’m okay.”
“I’m glad.” His lips quivered, and he looked away.
Remembering the commotion from earlier, I asked, “What happened out there?”
The officer couldn’t even look me in the eye as he said the words that would change my life forever.
“I’m afraid I have some bad news.”
Chapter 4:
On the Cusp of Greatness
“I’m afraid I have some bad news.” Dr. Campbell had a serious look on her face as she spoke to the well-dressed people in the leather chairs around the conference table in the boardroom. She pointed to the projection of a chart on the wall as she elaborated on her comment. “As you can see here, at their current gestation rate, our artificial human hosts won’t be ready for twelve months or longer.”
She clicked to the next slide in her presentation, and a new chart appeared. “But the good news is that the simulations with our new sedative are much more optimistic. The survival rate is just over ninety percent, and of that, eight-seven percent make it through the procedure unscathed. We’re close.”
A murmur came from the suits watching the presentation.
Campbell continued. “Fortunately, we have a contingency while we wait for our human hosts to mature.”
She pressed the button on her slideshow again. A picture of a massive killer whale jumping out of an enormous pool appeared on the screen. The picture then became animated and the impressive creature splashed down. Its trainers rushed into the picture.
“This is Billy. He’s the main attraction at Ocean Land on the West Coast. Every year for the last fifteen years, hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to Ocean Land to see him do his tricks. The amusement park has grown exponentially as a result.”
Campbell squeezed the device in her hand, and the image changed to that of a Border collie. Like the whale, the dog came to life in the projection and started running through an elaborate obstacle course. It didn’t make a single mistake. Next, the dog is seen bringing various objects from one room to another.
“This is Sassy. She’s known as the world’s smartest dog. Breaking over twenty world records, her intell
igence is comparable to that of a three-year-old human. In her lifetime, she’s won over three-hundred competitions making her owners more than one million dollars in earnings and endorsements.”
With another click, the projection changed to more charts. “So, what do these two seemingly different animals have in common?” Campbell looked across the room at blank faces. “They’re both dying. And with them, major sources of income for their respective owners.”
She pointed at the charts. “As you can see here though, the host gestation for animals as large as elephants can be as short as four months. The success rate of cryo-freezing is over ninety-five percent. The overall success rate of transferring minds into medium to large mammals is at an impressive ninety-three percent.”
Clicking one last time, the slideshow went black. Campbell flipped the lights on.
“The obvious question: Why the discrepancy between humans and animals? Our brains are much more complex than those of any other animal on the planet. That complexity makes the brain that much more delicate, and therefore, the hosts take much longer to develop successfully.”
She cleared her throat. “That’s why these animals are a silver lining in all of this, something we hadn’t anticipated. If we can bring the owners of these animals into our program, we can begin monetizing all the research and development we’ve done in the last two years. We can solve the problems that these types of organizations and individuals are facing. We can further our research on subjects that haven’t been grown in a sterile environment, and we can move forward confidently as we take on our first human subjects. Let’s get these unbelievably incredible animals into youthful hosts that won’t betray them like their current bodies. And while we’re at it, let’s prepare the world for history.”
The stoic crowd seemed unfazed by Dr. Campbell’s presentation as they began chattering amongst themselves.
Finally, Mr. Grant stood up, silencing the rest. “Thank you, Dr. Campbell. Obviously, this is a big disappointment considering we’ve already limited our human candidate pool down to ten. The board will meet on Monday to review the direction of the program. We’ll let you know our decision then.”
The people in the room began standing up and filing out.
Campbell was gathering her things when someone walked up behind her. “Here I am, slowing you down again.”
With her hands full, she turned around, rolled her eyes, and smiled. “Stop it, Dr. Martin. If any Joe with a biology degree could grow an adult human in a medical tube, it would have been done already. Besides, I like the progress that I’ve seen since you joined that team. Your knowledge in both areas is going to be invaluable moving forward.”
The rest of the attendees had left, and it was just the two of them. Martin leaned in closely to Campbell. “It’s a shame that they’re leaving your name out of everything until after the first human. The world should know your name. If they knew just how talented the director of this lab was, the outside funding for this thing would be through the roof.”
Campbell shook her head. “I don’t know. There are a lot of powerful people rooting for us to fail. Hospitals. Big pharma. Hell, the hospice and funeral home lobbies are even flinching at the idea. And that doesn’t even include the sizable population of religious folks who would think we’re doing Satan’s work. None of that would change if they knew who was running it all. They might even try to use the fact that I’m a woman against us.”
Martin pleaded. “Yes, but the biggest problem people have is that they think it’s all voodoo. By putting your face on it, we could show them that it’s pure science. That’s why I was impressed when you found the two animal owners. Once people see that the process works, there will be no holding us back.”
Dr. Campbell dropped her things on the table with a thud. “They still haven’t signed the paperwork. I’m not sure if it’s because of the price tag, the forty-page NDA, or the two-hundred-page waiver. And honestly, that wasn’t the intent of today’s presentation. I was trying to calm the nerves of the investors and remind them that ROI is still the goal. I know it’s part of the job, but dammit if I don’t feel like taking a shower after pandering for money.”
Dr. Martin nodded. “You said it in the presentation. The sedative I brought back from Pakistan has the simulations looking better and better. Hell, in six months, we may not need the cryo-lab at all. I know anything could happen between now and then, but once we eliminate freezing, even our existing investors won’t be able to help themselves from throwing money at us. It would be amazing to see what you could do with another two or three times the funding.”
She sighed and showed defeat. “I used to get excited about more funding. But it seems like it’s directly correlated to more work and more stress. Like, right now, I have to go and finalize the”—she made air quotes—“Laws of Neural Transfer.” She shook her head. “There’s no way the public will accept that title. It sounds too sterile. I’m thinking about calling the procedure Mind Migration. What do you think?”
Martin took a deep breath and then exhaled. “Dr. Campbell, give yourself a break. In a year or two, you’ll probably be offloading all the hard work to scientists whose names you’ll have to read off their lab coats.”
Dr. Martin’s sweet comment made Campbell genuinely smile for the first time all day. It reminded her that they had had a couple careful rendezvous since they had technically split, and she thought it might be a good time for another. It would ease the tension from work as well as the sexual tension that had been building between the two of them over the months.
“Thanks, Rex. I know it’s Friday, but did you want to meet later and go over those simulations?” She gave an exaggerated wink.
A warmth instantly came over Martin. “Yes. I’ll run them under red conditions and bring fresh data to you.” Not to be outdone, Martin gave an even more exaggerated wink to signify that he’d be bringing a bottle of red wine and salad.
Campbell knew that meant she’d be making the main course, and it was fine by her since he was a terrible cook. “Great. See you then.”
With silly grins on their faces, they parted ways to finish the work day.
Around 7 PM, Martin arrived at Campbell’s door holding a sophisticated looking contraption. He pressed the doorbell and his mind instantly began to wander to his relationship with Campbell. While it had been difficult keeping their feelings a secret even more so than before, he also felt it would eventually be his crowning achievement. He would unveil to the world that the most brilliant mind of their time loved him for who he was. It was the only thing in his life that kept the specter of being a fraud at bay. Still, he knew that everything needed to be right for the big reveal, so he was content with being limited to periodic escapades for the foreseeable future. Though, he did wonder how Campbell felt.
After checking the Beef Wellington in the oven, Campbell heard the doorbell and headed that way. The shower she’d taken hadn’t been sufficient to wash away the wretched feelings from the presentation, so she’d gotten a little more gussied up than usual for a home date. She hoped Rex would notice her tightly-fitting red dress.
“Wow! You look amazing.”
That he always wore his emotions on his sleeve was a big reason why Campbell loved him. She always knew where he stood on something. Even if he wasn’t in the best of moods, he was still pleasant to be around. It made the secrecy of their relationship that much more difficult for her, but she appreciated that he gave her the professional and personal space she needed to tap into her potential.
“Thanks, Rex. You’re looking handsome yourself. I’ll take that.” Dr. Campbell grabbed the contraption, and together they walked into the kitchen.
As always, Martin was impressed with Campbell’s culinary expertise. “Smells delicious!”
“Thanks. I got a couple good cuts of meat from the butcher.” She began deconstructing the contraption, which contained a bo
ttle of Pinot Noir and a salad mixer filled with greens. She quickly popped the cork out of the bottle and filled two stemless glasses, pouring generous amounts into each.
She handed one to Martin and raised hers. “To advancing science, one mind at a time.”
Martin’s face glowed, and he nodded. “To advancing science, one mind at a time.”
They clinked their glasses together and took big drinks. On cue, they both put down their glasses and embraced, their eager hands groping while they passionately kissed. Things were quickly progressing.
Beep!
Dinner interrupted, and they both pulled away.
Campbell snuck in another smooch right before checking the oven. “Perfect!” she said as she took the mitts from the counter and pulled the dish out.
“Dinner’s ready.”
They ate their fill and opened another bottle of wine. Over their third respective glass, Martin finally had enough courage to ask Campbell about something he’d wondered lately. “You ever think about the future?”
Campbell looked into Martin’s eyes, seeing just how smitten he was with her. She had never felt so loved in her life. Her career was the only reservation she’d ever had about being with him. She’d been so preoccupied with establishing herself in the field that she never really had time to think about where things were going with him. “You mean our future?”
Martin smiled and nodded.
Campbell grinned back, but it wasn’t nearly as confident. “It’s tough to think about anything other than the Neural Transfer project. But I do love our time together.”
Martin let out a nervous giggle. “What am I saying?” He turned red; his body itched. “Of course, you’ve been engrossed in work. I’m sorry I asked.”
She put her hand on his and shook her head. “Don’t be sorry, Rex. I can honestly say I don’t just see us as a workplace affair.”
He mustered a tapered grin, and the corner of his eyes crinkled. “Yes, but you have your whole life ahead of you. You don’t need to worry about a silly old man who overthinks everything.” He sighed. “You’re the lover I need, but not the one I deserve.”
Between Two Minds: Revelation Page 7
