THE ALCATRAZ OPTION

by Jay Begler

  “Tell him to come.”

  They began to jog and Rebecca said, “Chip. Come!” The dog ran beside her. When she stopped, he stopped and sat. “I like this guy,” she said.”

  “Good, because he is now yours. You can think of him as a gift, but he’s really assigned to you for your own protection. Though he’s docile and affectionate with you, if he senses you are in danger, he will turn into a killing machine.”

  “Why would I need that?”

  “We are not without enemies. The Cartel represents a unification of most, but not all of Mexico’s cartels. There are still interlopers and splinter groups that are quite dangerous. Occasionally, they enter our grounds. The Rottweilers are trained to protect us. In a few weeks, you and Chip will get special training.”

  Rebecca responded confidently, “I won’t be here that long.”

  A mile short of the guest house, Rebecca said, “Let’s sit over on the bench and talk for a while.”

  “Sure. Want some coffee?”

  “Yes, but how?”

  Without answering, Louisa took out her iPhone, hit two buttons, and said, “Hi Maria. I’m at bench 156. Hold on, Rebecca would you like regular coffee, iced coffee?”

  “Iced cappuccino?”

  “Perfect.”

  “Two iced cappuccinos, Maria and some pastries. Five minutes is fine.”

  Within three minutes, a man on a motor scooter arrived, set up a small aluminum table and placed a table cloth and two large baccarat crystal glasses on it. With the finesse of a sommelier, he poured perfectly made iced cappuccino. The man straddled his scooter and said, “Don’t worry about the glasses. Someone will pick them up later.”

  “You run quite a resort here,” Louisa.

  “It’s far from a resort; it’s a complex, labor intensive, operation.”

  Intending it as sarcasm, Rebecca said, “I guess it takes a bureaucracy to kill people.”

  Straight faced, Louisa replied, “Actually, it does.”

  “Tell me Louisa, who are you? I know you’re not assigned to me as my assistant. Yesterday you came into my room wearing a Timex. Today, you are wearing a jeweled Rolex worth about what, $40,000?”

  “$49,000 to be exact; a birthday gift from my lover.”

  “I assume that would be someone in the Cartel?”

  “It’s from Isabella.” Surprise registered on Rebecca’s face. “I know your next question. Hector and Isabella are married, but not in the conjugal sense.”

  “She’s gay?”

  “Obviously. We both are. If you are finished with your cappuccino we can continue.”

  “First tell me what your role is in all of this. “

  “My full name is Doctor Louisa Martinez. I hold a PHD in psychology from Georgetown. Prior to taking a position here, five years ago, I was with the CIA and my job assignment was to help turn prisoners into operatives for us. I was assigned to have you turn into a willing participant in the development of a wonder drug.”

  Rebecca said, “Chip, come,” and he was by her side immediately. The trio began to run slowly.

  “Most people are incredulous when I tell them that Isabella and I are lovers, but my view of life and things is often quite different from the views of most people. I was almost thrown out of high-school because I was such a contrarian. I just think differently than most people. To me, Isabella is quite beautiful. Isabella recruited me and from the moment we met five years ago, we’ve been together. Hector is fine with that.”

  “You know your attempt to turn me is not going to work?”

  “We all do. Once you killed those thugs you seemed to become another person.”

  Rebecca thought about that and replied, “I was another person after the Event; now I’m my old pre-Event self. So, tell me, does Hector have a special lover?”

  “Well, actually not a lover but someone he still yearns for.”

  Rebecca didn’t know why but she felt the slightest pang of disappointment; possibly jealousy. “Is it someone at the ranch?”

  Louisa smiled coyly as if telling herself a joke, but remained mute.

  “Who?”

  “It’s you Rebecca. And before you say that’s crazy or it can’t be, let me explain.”

  “Don’t! It’s beyond ridiculous. First and foremost, the feeling is not mutual, especially now. Frankly, I think you’re all crazy. Second, I don’t love him. I’m married. I have a husband that I love. I have a family. I have a life. And, kidnapping me to help you develop a so-called wonder drug is so stupid and naive that it’s mind-boggling. One of your gangsters with no clue about pharmacology gets the idea that my molecule if modified might work pretty much across the board, despite the fact that five years of clinical trials showed the reverse was true. I’m sure you were all aware that Actalmar, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, put billions into developing the drug so it would be commercially viable, and failed. So, how do you expect your amateur scientists to succeed? “

  “You’re probably right on the likelihood of success in this undertaking. I’m not qualified to speak to that, but your assumption that the idea of bringing you here was conceived without any thought process by a bunch of uncivilized and unknowing gangsters is completely wrong.” Louisa described the research and development team of the Cartel, in particular the credentials of Johnson as well as some of the key players on his staff. As best as she could, she described their efforts to determine the feasibility of converting the molecule.

  Louisa sensed that Rebecca was impressed. “I never met Johnson but I went to a series of his lectures. I will give you that the man is brilliant. Did you kidnap him as well?

  “Not at all. We recruited him and made him a monetary offer he couldn’t refuse. He’s a very happy camper. He’s not working alone, however. For this project we’ve recruited Rachel McLeay a professor of Pharmacology at Northwestern, and Dr. Anthony Clarke. I believe you and Rachel served on a committee at one time. Clarke was formerly in charge of all drug testing for Merck. Last, but clearly not least, there is, Sanford Lemay.”

  Lemay was a brilliant bio-chemist and previously Rebecca’s chief of staff, a man who she admired and genuinely liked, particularly for his often-self-effacing humor.

  “And they came willingly and knowing that the altered molecule will be the key component of what you hope will be a highly addictive drug? It’s hard to believe.”

  “Well, you can talk to them yourself. They are all at the research center. They rationalized that if they could create a drug that would eliminate Alzheimer’s and related diseases, that accomplishment largely outweighed the fact that a segment of the population would become addicted. In other words, pharmaceutical companies could manufacture the drug without the addictive portion. So, I suppose weighing the pros and cons, and rationalizing, they decided that working on the project was an acceptable choice.”

  “Bear in mind that you would not be responsible for the super drug as a whole, not the part that made it addictive. You would have nothing to do with that. What we do with the drug is our business. Your portion would still exist independently and be a wonder drug in its own right.”

  “I’m sure that the millions that you paid them influenced their so-called moral decision.”

  “To be sure, but at the end of the day, they are on board. Can I show you something? “

  “What?”

  “A couple of floors at your father’s research center.”

  “To whet my appetite?”

  “You can say that but your visit will prove to you that what we are attempting is a serious undertaking. More importantly, you will see that the people involved and the technology they use are at a level which at least gives them a slight chance of success.”

  Rebecca, cut her off. “OK you have a team of talented scientists, but you are not Actalmar and the time frame, six months, is a joke.”

  “I can assure you that above everything else, we are realists. We wouldn’t be where we are today if the contra
ry were true. If we truly didn’t think we had a chance or at least a ghost of a chance of fixing your molecule we would have never abducted you. So, any interest in seeing the laboratory?”

  “Since I’m essentially a prisoner, and have nothing to do and nowhere to go, I don’t particularly care, but I am feeling a bit tired.”

  “No worries.” Louisa picked up a cell phone punched in two numbers, waited a beat and said, we are at G36 and want to go to the Meyer Shapiro building; two people and a dog. Two minutes? Great. Thanks. Where is Chip?”

  Louisa handed Rebecca a dog whistle and said, “This is yours. It’s customized so that only Chip can hear it. You should wear it around your neck at all times. Chip is a great dog and I think you’ll get to like him and vice-versa, but as I said he’s really assigned to you for your protection. If you ever are in trouble, just blow the whistle and he will get to you in seconds. If you choose to stay, one of our dog trainers will tutor you on various commands for you to give him.”

  A small jitney pulled up; Rebecca blew on the dog whistle. Almost instantly, Chip came running towards the jitney and jumped into the back seat. Rebecca gave him a few more snacks and he showed his appreciation by licking her face.

  The building, named after her father, was starkly different from the one she worked in as a teenager. While the original building still existed, it was connected by an overpass to a large, ten-story, glass building.

  “The old building in which you and Hector worked is now for administration. Two of the floors consist of a library and a series of conference rooms.” They walked towards the library and Chip, eager to go with them, seemed disappointed when Rebecca said, “Stay Chip.” Chip stopped in his tracks.

  Louisa said, “Good Rebecca. Looks like you two are connecting.” Rebecca responded with a shrug of the shoulders as if saying, “Who cares?”

  After clearing security, they were met by a man who looked like the prototypical college professor. He extended his hand and said, “Rebecca, I’m very pleased to meet you. I’m Clive Ableman. Louisa, I’ll be happy to show Rebecca around and we’ll have a jitney take her back to the guest house.”

  The lab which Rebecca toured had some of the most sophisticated and expensive equipment she had ever seen. Despite years of laboratory work, she was unfamiliar with some of the equipment. Ableman stopped periodically to explain function and origin of a few that piqued her interest. At a large device that had a grinder at top, he said, “There are only two of these in the world. It’s used to evaluate the cell structure and DNA of plants. We use it to try to develop more sophisticated and cheaper marijuana. MIT owned both of them, but we stole this one, so now they only have one.”

  He smiled slightly at his last remark. The casualness of his comment led Rebecca to ask, “Don’t you think that stealing this machine is wrong?”

  “Not at all” he responded, prompting Rebecca to shake her head and think, “Everyone is crazy here. I’m a prisoner in a lunatic asylum.”

  After exploring the three floors comprising the research center, they walked through the overpass to the older administration building and entered a large conference room. Rachel McLeay, Anthony Clarke, and Sanford Lemay rose to greet her.

  Ableman said, “Why don’t you all get reacquainted while I step out for a moment.”

  When they sat and the trio looked expectantly at Rebecca with Lemay finally saying, “So?”

  She said sternly. “You all know that I’ve been kidnapped and I’m here against my will.”

  They all appeared embarrassed. McLeay said, “We actually only learned this earlier today and are so sorry. If you don’t want to work on the project, we fully understand.”

  “But don’t you feel that what you are doing is wrong, a crime?”

  Clarke spoke for the group. “We really can’t debate that point. You’re absolutely right. Each of us was recruited to work on an Alzheimer’s drug. Initially, the recruiters told us that a large drug company wanted to perfect your drug so it would be effective in at least thirty percent of its users. They offered each us five million dollars and a bonus of another five million if our efforts succeeded. We had to work for six months, at which time, regardless of success or failure of the project, we’d be flown back to the States. Given the secrecy of the project, all communication with the outside world would be prohibited until we finished.”

  “We were flown by private plane to Mexico City, and from there by helicopter to the Hacienda. No one back in the States knew of our whereabouts, who we working for or the nature of our task. When we arrived, Johnson, the head of research, assured us that the addictive part of the drug would not be our responsibility. That element would be created in another city.”

  “Johnson said, ‘If you feel you can’t work for us under any circumstances, we can fly you back whenever you like. However, I need to warn you that if you disclose anything about this, there will be the severest of consequences.’ To underscore the point, he showed us a photo of three dead men hanging from a bridge with signs nailed to their chests and inscribed with ‘traidores,’ traitors. He added, ‘If you get my drift.’”

  “We spent a great deal of time discussing whether or not we should proceed. In the end, we agreed that if we succeeded it would do more good than harm. Candidly, the possibility of five to ten million was effective in helping us rationalize.”

  Stannie said, “You know Rebecca, we will respect and understand any decision you make. For a while there we were all pretty worried about you.”

  She was grinning as if holding back a delicious secret. “Putting aside my abduction, I’m feeling terrific. I’m no longer haunted by the men that assaulted me and Daniel. They are dead.”

  “How?” Clarke asked.

  Without emotion she said, “I killed them yesterday.”

  As the trio looked at each other in disbelief, Johnson entered the room. After some initial pleasantries, he said, “I know you are not committed to our project Rebecca, but wonder if we can all have a little chat about what we are doing and whether our direction is right or wrong.”

  Their discussion lasted four hours. When Rebecca left the conference room, she thought that the challenge of succeeding was, from a scientific standpoint, fascinating. She knew that the true intent behind the meeting was to tempt her, and, in that regard, it succeeded. When Johnson reported back to Morales, Isabella, and Louisa, Isabella said, “I think it’s now or never.” Isabella picked up the phone and hit 48. Rebecca picked up on the second ring and said, not too warmly, “Yes.”

  “Rebecca, this is Isabella. I think just the two of us should talk about your situation and our mutual needs, ours for your help, and yours, for your freedom. Please come over for lunch tomorrow.”

  They sat on the veranda in back of the hacienda. Isabella said, “I hope you like poached lobster salad.”

  “It’s fine Isabella. I’m assuming that you are here to negotiate a deal of sorts with me.”

  “True. I must say Rebecca, your transformation after killing those two men is amazing.”

  Rebecca was pleased to hear this because it confirmed how she was feeling. “Yes” she said, “I’m a bit surprised myself, but it’s so good to be back to my real self. So, what’s your offer?”

  “We may never succeed modifying your drug, though we have little choice but to try. You would be very valuable to us in this effort, because we won’t waste time pursuing avenues that you already know will fail. If we have not achieved our goal within six months, you will be free to go. We will approach Daniel through an investment company and start negotiations to purchase 30 percent of the company for five million dollars. We want the investment in your company to seem like an arm’s length transaction. We will also transfer ten million dollars into a Swiss bank account which you will fully control.”

  “How do I know you will keep your word?”

  Isabella described the digital heroin phenomenon and its ramifications for the Cartel. “It’s pretty clear to all of us that if we
are not successful in six months it’s going to be too late for us. Within a year, maybe two, we’ll be out of the drug business. We will have no interest in keeping you and we know that you wouldn’t ever reveal the truth about us given the consequences for you and your family.”

  “Before we go any further Isabella, I want to speak with my husband. If you don’t let me do that, I won’t accept any offer you make, though even if I speak with him, I probably will say no.”

  “We’ll set that up for the day after tomorrow. We expected you’d insist on that and I already have a team in place in Manhattan to handle it. Here’s the way it’s going to work: we will intercept Daniel on his way to work, take him to a van and give him a smart phone. When he has it, you will call him. You will have two minutes to talk with him. You understand that if you tell him where you are, it will put Daniel at risk.”

  She didn’t want to imagine what those consequences would be and said, “I understand. After I speak with him, I’ll give you my answer.”

  After four agonizing days of searching for Rebecca and interfacing with the police, for his own sanity, and also because of the immutable rule that “life goes on,” Daniel decided that he had to return to his office. As he stepped off the train that had carried him from Sands Point into Penn Station, two men in suits stepped up next to him and one put a gun in his back.

  “Daniel” the man with the gun said. “We mean you no harm. This is about your wife. Be calm; she’s fine. Come with us and we’ll allow you to have a short conversation with her. Don’t ask us any questions; we are just following instructions. Do not look at us.”

  The trio walked towards a dingy street which paralleled the exit from the Lincoln Tunnel. At its far end, they stopped at a black van bearing a large chef’s hat and the words “Antonio’s Caterers.” Daniel made a mental note of the logo and name as well as the New York license plate, “TZ189C3.” He sat on the back seat of the van. Two other men sat in the front; both were wearing ski masks; one of them handed Daniel a phone. Another man sent a text and a moment later the phone that Daniel was holding rang. One of the men said, “Answer it. It’s your wife.”