by Gayle Katz
“You need to deactivate her, or whatever it is you do with clones to turn them off.”
“She’s perfect, right? Your husband couldn’t even tell the difference. In the beginning, I thought she would do something out of step, not in line with your personality, but she proved me wrong. She might be a better you than you are. Just flawless. She’s a perfect copy! Our best work yet!”
“Enough.”
“It’s a shame you can’t appreciate the remarkable beauty behind the clone. It’s really quite fascinating.”
“Sorry if I don’t pat you on the back. All I see is some other woman with my husband.”
“Such a narrow view. You should really learn to open your mind.”
“Can we stop talking about this? You didn’t answer my question.”
“Ah! Yes! Getting rid of her, that might prove to be a little tough, but we’ll work something out. Keep in mind that while she’s not the original you, she’s still you. She’s a flesh and blood person, a human, if that makes sense. We’ll have to figure out what to do with her.”
“Fine. I guess. Whatever. Get her a clone boyfriend for all I care, just get her away from Jack.”
“Jealous she’ll be a better wife than you?”
“Not at all. I’m confident Jack will see her for who she really is – a copy, a fraud.”
“We’ll see. Anyway, ready to get started? You help us with our experiments and we’ll help you get back to Jack. Deal?”
“I can’t tell whether or not you’re being honest, but I’ll be curious to see if you live up to your word. It’s a deal.”
“So you’ll help us?”
“Yes. One thing. You already know my name. What’s yours?”
“My name is Brie,” she says nonchalantly as she pulls out her keys and jangles them in her hand. Eventually, after finding the right key, she opens the door to my cage.
Once open, a couple of men in white lab coats rush into the room, grab me by my arms, and forcefully escort me out of the zombie room. “Get off of me,” I say as I try to shrug them off. Ignoring my wishes, they hold on tighter as I attempt to wiggle out of their grasp. I turn around and see Brie following us.
“What’s going on?” I ask. “I thought this was supposed to be voluntary, but you’re carting me off like a prisoner!”
“Just relax. We need some samples of your blood. We need to get a baseline,” she says as they drag me into the lab and strap me down onto a cold, silver exam table.
“A baseline? For what?” I struggle against my restraints.
“You were cured of the original zombie virus with I-481.”
“How do you know that?”
“As I mentioned earlier, we know your history.”
“What? How? How did you get ahold of my medical records?” I’m still pulling against the restraints.
“Don’t worry about it. Everything is going to be OK. And that’s of no concern right now.”
“It’s my life! Of course it’s my concern.”
“Meet Malik. You’re in good hands. He’s our lead scientist and is doing everything possible to find a cure that’ll work for everyone.”
He nods his head in my direction and doesn’t say a word. Instead, he walks over to his tray of instruments and unwraps a needle. He pulls out a tourniquet and wraps it tight around my arm. “Just calm down. It’s just like being at a blood drive,” he finally says.
“Stop fighting us, Jane. You agreed to help us. And you can’t escape, so I suggest you conserve your energy. You’re going to need it,” Brie pleads.
I watch as the extra large needle pierces my skin. The pain it inflicts is burning through my veins. I let out an anguished scream.
“Take a couple of extra vials,” I hear her say to Malik as I stare up at the ceiling. The feeling goes away momentarily, but then the stinging starts again.
As they drain the blood from my body, I stop fighting them. I feel weak, sleepy even. I see her look down at me.
“How are you feeling?”
“Tired.”
“That’s normal. We took a lot of blood.”
“Why so much?”
“We also need it as a comparison.”
“Comparison?”
“Yes, of course. Your blood composition will change after the experiments.”
“Tell me about these experiments.”
“It’s pretty simple. We’re going to have zombies infected with the newer, mutated virus bite you.”
“W-What? What are you talking about?”
“Don’t worry about that yet. We’re not monsters. We’re not just going to throw you to the zombies right now. We’re gonna get you some food. Allow you to rest. We want everything to be as realistic as possible, but we also want you to have a fighting chance. How’s your vision?” She waves her hand in front of my face.
“Blurry,” I whisper, feeling empty, fatigued, and slightly dizzy. The world seems to be spinning. I close my eyes. I hear what she’s saying, but I don’t have the energy to react.
“I’m delighted you’re helping us, but it concerns me that your husband can’t tell the difference between you and your clone when they’re intimate.”
A few tears fall from my eyes. I know she’s playing with me, but I can’t help but react.
“No matter, though. Buck up! We’ll get you back by his side as quickly as possible,” she says as she pats my shoulder. “She’s burnt out. Let her get some rest,” I hear her say to her team.
Still strapped to the table, I fall asleep.
***
I feel movement. As the table bends and curves into a sitting position, I wake up after a rest that only seems like it lasted a few measly minutes. Still exhausted and bleary-eyed, I try to get my bearings.
“Are you hungry?” Brie asks.
“Yes,” I whisper.
With my body still strapped down, her lackeys free my hands so I can grab onto the food they brought me. I’m ravenous. I attack my food and devour it in only a few bites.
“Slow down. Enjoy it.”
I don’t hear her as I’m feverishly stuffing food into my face.
“Feeling better?”
I stop eating for a moment to let what I’ve consumed make it to my stomach. “No. Not really. My back is killing me because I’m strapped to a table. My head is pounding. And soon, you’re gonna feed me to zombies. How is any of that supposed to make me feel better?”
“It should. Your sacrifice will help further our cause of curing the plague for everyone. That should give you some satisfaction.”
“Well, forgive me if it doesn’t. I didn’t realize I agreed to be your lab rat. Who else have you used like this? Did you do this to Cate – make the same deal with her? Getting her hopes up until zombies eat her alive?”
“Whether you like it or not, progress forward requires scientific research, study, and testing, and that’s exactly what we’re doing here. Plus, you agreed to help us,” she says as she waves over the medtech twosome who manhandled me before. “You can’t back out now.”
“Please don’t do this. Please,” I plead. “There has to be another way.”
“It’s for the greater good, Jane. You’ll be helping to pave the way for a new cure, one that works for everyone. Most people die in vain, without a purpose. Your death – your sacrifice – will mean more.”
“My sacrifice? Greater good? So you lied to me. You said you’d let me go.”
“No. I promise you I’m not lying. If you make it through these experiments alive, we’ll see what we can do about getting you back together with Jack.”
As one of the men approaches, I use my free hand to make a fist and punch him in the face.
“Grab ahold of her!” Brie shouts.
The man I punched in the face grabs my wrists and holds them over my head while the other one unstraps my legs. Finally free from my shackles, I’m kicking and screaming, trying to break loose from their grip. They drag me out of the lab and, within minutes, I’m back in my cell. Still ye
lling and screaming, the zombie chorus joins in and the noise level rises to a deafening pitch.
“We can’t put you in the test scenario like this. You have to calm down a bit.” Brie raises her voice to be heard over the commotion.
“Calm down? You expect me to calm down?”
“Yes. I do.”
“You’re going to throw me in with the zombies. I’m probably gonna die, and you want me to calm down?”
“Maybe this will help you cooperate.” She pulls the monitor close to the bars of my cell. “I’ll leave the equipment here. All you have to do is click the enter button and you’ll connect to the live video feed. It might help you remember why you’re doing all of this.”
With Brie gone and the yelling over, the zombie screeching sounds die down. Dejected, I sit down on the bench and glance over to the empty cell. Still no Cate.
Chapter 6
________________________________________
Staring at the computer screen, I wonder what Jack is doing right now. For a moment, I daydream about the two of us waking up in bed together, facing the day as a team. And then I stop. What am I thinking? I can’t watch Jack with the fake me. I won’t torture myself like that. He can’t possibly believe that thing is me. He just can’t. I don’t care what happened before. I don’t believe it.
After a few short minutes, curiosity gets the best of me. I stand up and walk over to the computer keyboard. I eyeball the enter key, inhale deeply, exhale slowly, and click the button, not knowing what I’m going to see. Immediately, the screen pops on and I spot Jack. He’s looking right at me. I miss him so much. Just seeing his face makes me smile.
It’s still dark out at home and Jack is having breakfast. As he stabs his scrambled eggs with his fork and slowly brings them closer to his mouth, he’s intently looking at his phone. Jack is in the news business and, as a result, is addicted to the constant barrage of news that he gets via feeds from the news bureaus and social media.
“I almost forgot how much I miss reading and reporting the news,” he says.
“I’m just glad you aren’t the news anymore,” the Jane clone replies.
“Yeah, tell me about it. It changes everything, ya know?”
“What do you mean?”
“It means that I love my job, but I’m smart enough to realize now that I love you more.” Quickly finishing his eggs, he stands up and walks over to the Jane clone. He takes her hands and helps her stand up, wrapping his arms around her. “And I’ll never forget what happened to me and how much you did to bring me home. I’ll never be that careless with our lives ever again. That’s a promise.”
I drop my eyes from the video screen as they continue to embrace. I’m elated that Jack has finally had an epiphany, but it’s killing me that he’s talking to a goddamn clone. This copy of me who’s done absolutely nothing for him. That should be me with him right now. I hear him start talking again so I look back up.
“I have to get to work, but I won’t be late tonight, OK?” Jack says as he kisses the Jane clone.
“That’s music to my ears.”
“No more working late nights, either.”
“Jack,” I whisper to myself as I touch the screen. “Can’t you tell that isn’t me?”
“So early in the morning?” the Jane clone says. “Save some lovin’ for later.”
“Don’t you worry, gorgeous, there’ll be plenty more where that came from after I get home tonight.”
For a second, I get excited, but then I remember that he’s not looking at me. He’s looking at the clone. He’s not talking to me. He’s talking to the clone. What the hell am I doing? I’m watching them together like it’s a romantic movie when it’s really a horror flick. What’s wrong with me? I need to find a way out of here. I have to get home. Anger is surging through my veins. Screw this!
“AHHHHHH!”
My frustration is off the charts when I throw the keyboard to the ground. The zombies around me go nuts when they hear me scream and the crash of the plastic keyboard crack against the floor. The monitor screen flickers and the video of Jack and the clone is replaced with a long list of video files. Are these all of the videos they’ve recorded of Jack?
I stoop down and pick up the keyboard. Miraculously, only the plastic is cracked, but the rest of the keyboard is still intact and working properly. I use the up and down arrows to move the cursor from one video file to another. Not knowing their labeling nomenclature, I pick the first one on the list and hit enter. The video pops on the screen.
Jack and the clone are at home, our home.
“How are you feeling this morning?” he asks.
“A little off. I have this headache that just won’t go away.”
“Didja take something for it?”
“At first, no. But then the pain got worse so I had no choice. Unfortunately, nothing seems to help. My head is still pounding.”
I see the fake Jane drinking tea and talking with Jack like she’s known him all of his life.
“How long have these headaches been going on?” Jack stands up and grabs his briefcase, getting ready for work.
“A while. Maybe a week or so?”
“You’ve had this headache for a week straight?”
“Yeah.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t want to worry you. Plus, you just got back and things are going so well,” her hand stretches across her face, partially covering her eyes and obscuring Jack from my view.
“Babe, I know you mean well, but if you’re in pain, you have to tell me so I can help you,” he says as he stoops down, takes her hands away from her face, and holds them between his.
“I know.”
“OK, well, we should make an appointment at the doctor as soon as possible. Get you checked out and make sure everything is cool.”
“I’ll call today.”
“Good girl,” Jack says as he kisses the fake me for much too long on the lips.
She stands up and starts to walk him to the door to see him off to work, but then the camera abruptly falls to the floor. The video feed is cut off. What happened? Are we having connection problems?
“Jane?” I hear Jack say. “Jane!” he yells as he tries to open her eyes. He looks down into the camera.
She doesn’t respond, but, out of habit, I do. “I’m right here, Jack.” The video is gone again, but I can still hear the audio.
“Crap!” I hear Jack shout as I hear the front door open and close and the car ignition turn on. “Hold on, baby. I’m getting you help as fast as I can. Jane? Jane! Stay with me, OK?”
She doesn’t respond.
“Talk to me! Jane!”
Still no response.
The audio ends. Is the clone having issues? Anxious to see more, I click on the next video in the list.
I see Jack staring at the screen. He looks worried. From the camera angle, my clone is lying in a hospital bed.
“How are you feeling?” he asks.
“Better, now that they’re done with their poking and prodding.”
“Maybe for now, but I’m sure they’ll be back to run more tests.”
“No more tests. I feel like a pincushion.”
“Don’t worry about that. Listen, what happened back at the house?”
“I don’t know. I had that pounding headache and I guess I passed out.”
“Well, you were going to make an appointment with the doctor so here we are.”
“Yeah.”
“Do you have any clue what’s wrong?”
“No. I just know I haven’t been feeling well lately.”
“That’s not good. With all the blood they took and all the tests they performed, I hope they’re able to figure it out.”
“Me too.”
“Just get some rest, all right?”
“Are you going to stay?”
“Of course! I’m not leaving your side. I promise I’ll be here when you wake up.”
The video cuts off. S
omething is definitely wrong with her. Maybe her wiring is faulty? Maybe she isn’t as perfect as Brie thinks she is? I don’t know. You’d think she’d do whatever she could to stay out of hospitals. Wouldn’t she be afraid of Jack and others finding out she’s not who she says she is? It’s strange that she seems just as concerned as they are to find out what’s wrong. This doesn’t make sense.
Just like reality TV or a soap opera addiction, I can’t stop watching. I click on another video link further down in the list. Maybe these additional videos will give me some answers.
They’re back at the house.
“Good morning, beautiful,” Jack sings, bringing a tray of food into the bedroom.
“You didn’t have to go to all this trouble.”
“Of course I did. You’re my wife. I want to take care of you. Don’t worry though, there’s enough food here for two.”
The camera moves to the left and I see Jack hop into bed. The camera keeps alternating between Jack and the food on the tray.
“There’s that smile I love to see,” Jack says.
“I love you,” the Jane clone replies.
“You don’t love him,” I mumble to myself. “I’m the one who loves him. You don’t even know him. You’re just a fake. A copy.”
“Right back at ya. I love you, too.”
“Of course he thinks he loves you. He still thinks you’re me!” My voice grows louder. The frustration boiling inside of me is seething from listening to their conversation. I pause the video for a moment until I can compose myself. There’s no point in getting angry here. Besides beating up the keyboard, there’s absolutely nothing I can do about the situation, at least not yet.
I click the PLAY button to watch the rest of the clip. The camera is pointing down.
“What’s wrong?” Jack asks.
“More headaches?”
“Yeah. Worse than before.”
“Let’s get you back to the hospital. Maybe now they’ll be able to figure out what’s happening.”
I wonder if this is the reason why Brie says we don’t have much time. If they sent a defective clone home with Jack, it’s just a matter of time before Jack figures out what’s going on. I can’t tell when these videos were recorded, but it seems as if she’s deteriorating pretty fast. “Jack, please wake up and realize that isn’t me,” I say, closing my eyes, on the verge of praying.
