The Delta Chain (34 page)

‘I agree,
’
Asquith had said,
‘
but we
’
ve had this discussion before…
’

‘Now we
’
re both in positions to do something about it.
’

‘You want to set up a unit to bypass accredited approvals?
’

‘Yes. And I want you to run it, reporting only to me.
’

‘Without the knowledge of the Joint Chiefs?
’

‘Yes.
’

‘Bob…it would take…God, I don
’
t know…millions, and resources in land, buildings, people-
’

‘You will have all that,
’
the rock-faced Commander replied,
‘
creative book-keeping will enable us to siphon off the budget needed. We then use it to fund external contractors to undertake research assignments. We simply ensure that the true nature of those contractors
’
work is kept hidden
’

And so fifteen years after he
’
d been a captain in the Mekong Delta, under the command of Fraser, Asquith set up the Nexus unit.

Only the select members of the Nexus board knew of the shortcuts taken by their specialist contractors.

Most of those contractors had been given assistance in setting up by the Nexus Group, and the Westmeyer Research Centre was one of them.

‘I
’
ve always meant to ask you the actual specifics,
’
Renshaw said to Asquith after they
’
d settled in for the long flight to Australia,
‘
how and why Operation Babel, and these relocations, came about.
’

‘Babel was my initiative. You
’
re familiar with the Biblical story of the Tower, I presume?
’

‘God scattered the people of Babel all over the earth, speaking different languages, to hinder their progress because of their arrogance…
’

‘Something like that. The idea behind our Babel was to contract different, seemingly independent research firms around the world, to camouflage the fact they
’
re controlled by us, and working on our projects. We ensure they have a range of assignments from various clients and investors.

‘Should any one of them ever be exposed, then that exposure won
’
t lead to the other projects. Those projects are with our supposedly unrelated other contractors. We appear only as one of many clients.

‘And it
’
s always possible to shut down and “relocate” any individual project, should it be in danger of exposure, without affecting the others. Just as we did in Florida.
’

Westmeyer paced the corridor of the Institute
’
s top level, a man both lost and possessed at the same time. As always, he was uncomfortable with the measures he knew would be taken by Donnelly, where Melanie Cail was concerned.

Usually, he blotted these things from his mind.

Westmeyer
’
s role was to stay focused on the Institute
’
s work, but tonight the dark thoughts invaded.

It was late, and he and Hunter and his team were working long hours as they readied for the final breakthrough.

He wandered the connecting labs of the Blood Research Division. As he had so many times before he looked along the glass cages containing the mice used in the experiments. They darted about their cages, up and down straw covered scaffolding, furiously turning tiny treadmills. Further along there were canisters and tubes housing litres and litres of blood.

Heavily tinted glass doors separated the labs from a larger room where cryo-preservation tanks stored more blood, this time at a specially prepared temperature of minus 180 degrees Celsius.

Hunter was in his private office. He was huddled over his PC, checking data. Westmeyer noticed uncharacteristic signs of stress.

The on screen data was an endless sea of coding sequences. TGA- TAG- ATG
–
AAT…

‘It
’
s one thing,
’
Hunter said, without looking up,
‘
to rely on email reports from the sub-level, but now that we
’
re
this
close, under
this
much pressure…this
ridiculous
race to a new deadline, I need those reports continually. Instead, William, I
’
m seeing them only every few hours if at all…
’

‘It
’
s hard for Donnelly to rush through the final trials and to keep sending the reports simultaneously. Perhaps, under the circumstances, if you went down and personally-
’

‘You
won
’
t go anywhere near the Goddamned sub-level, you don
’
t want to
know
, so what makes you think I
’
d just truck on down? Do you think I approve-
’

‘You approve and you turn a blind eye, same as me, because you
are
me-
’

‘Bullshit. I
’
m
nothing
like you. I turn a blind eye but only because that
’
s the whole structure, the whole damn culture you
’
ve created. Our staff don
’
t know any more than they need to, just their little part of the project, and those of us who do know pretend it isn
’
t really happening down there. We leave it to your henchmen to do the dirty work.
’

‘There
’
s been a lot of crap these past few weeks and you
’
re stressed out, Stephen. And yes you
’
re under a lot of pressure to make the breakthrough. But try to stay focused. Don
’
t forget how much you
’
ve contributed, or the position it will put you in.
The achievement
, Stephen, the extraordinary achievement. Yours and mine.
’

Westmeyer paused, allowing his words to sink in. The two men stared at each other through tired, obsessed eyes.
‘
Remember, you
’
ve come all this way, solid as a rock, without dropping the ball. Don
’
t stress out now. Just…stay…focused.
’

Hunter didn
’
t acknowledge having heard a word.
‘
And what the hell is Donnelly doing snooping around here every hour or so anyway. I
’
m not the one he
’
s supposed to be keeping his eyes on. I
’
m hampered by slow feedback from his precious sub-level but he
’
s constantly up here, hovering, glowering, snooping. I know he
’
s your pathetic odd job man but we had an agreement when you lured me into all this, that your morons would stay clear of me and my labs.
’

Westmeyer strained to keep his composure. Hunter was infuriating when his arrogance spun out of control.
‘
Don
’
t worry about Donnelly right now. Just…put some trust in me, Stephen. We
’
re almost there. I can promise you won
’
t have any of these annoyances again, after we
’
re done here. The breakthrough with Delta Chain is equally yours. It
’
s going to put us into orbit with Nexus, and ultimately with the scientific community. The world will be your oyster, Stephen…unlimited funds, your own projects, your own research centres.
’

Hunter sighed deeply, letting his fatigue sink deeper into his sunken features. He
’
d succumbed to Westmeyer
’
s pep talks more times than he could remember.
‘
Just keep Donnelly and his goons away from me. They
’
re neanderthals, they
’
ve no place in the world of science.
’

‘A necessary evil.
’

‘It sickens me.
’

‘You
’
re forgetting what I told you when you came on board. Don
’
t think about what
’
s happening on the sub-level. Focus on your work in here. There
’
s an underbelly to everything in life, and that underbelly will advance this project to be of enormous benefit to the world. Focus on that. Leave the underbelly to the ones who were made for it.
’

from Daniel
’
s journal

If there is one thing I
’
d like to tell my brothers and sisters at The Com, it
’
s that I
’
ve tonight seen television
–
the great, mysterious, much talked about evil
–
for the first time. Of course, we
’
d always known of its existence, and that of rock music and film, but we
’
d never been exposed to them. The media of the outside world has always been banned, as instruments of the devil.

When I was younger I was scared of the outside world. But in recent years I
’
ve been not so much scared as curious.

I
’
ve been out here a few days now. I
’
ve survived. In the homeless persons refuge, I
’
ve seen people sit and eat, talking quietly, watching the screen in the background. I watched and listened as a man told us the news, showing the picture of a drowned girl whose face I recognised.

A girl who
’
d been sent away from The Com, years ago.

It looks odd, all those pictures moving in that little box. The news they report can be disturbing. But I wonder: is this any more evil than the beatings and the loneliness and the horror of The Darkness, which are just part of our lives at The Com.

Close to midnight and Adam hadn
’
t been back in his apartment for long. After dropping Harrison off, he
’
d spoken again on his cell with O
’
Malley. The puzzle of what lay within the Institute sub-level was like a giant shadow looming. Coffee would only add to the buzz in his head so he poured orange juice.

The doorbell rang and he knew it would be Kate.

She breezed in and melted into his arms. She held him tight and he responded, squeezing her closer, ruffling her blonde hair.
‘
I think they must be right,
’
she said,
‘
absence does make the heart grow fonder.
’

‘In this case, yes.
’
He pulled back, appraising her, and steered her to the lounge.
‘
You must be exhausted.
’

She allowed a dramatic slump of her shoulders.
‘
Well, now that you mention it.
’

‘I
’
ll get you a drink.
’

‘Something cold and sweet. A Coke?
’

She sank onto the sofa and he returned with the drink. Glad to have her back, but feeling a reserve, a black spot he wished wasn
’
t there. He wondered if she sensed it.
‘
I
’
ve been going crazy.
’
He was still standing.
‘
Why on earth didn
’
t you tell me what you were up to?
’

‘It was a nutty, spur of the moment thing. I…just did it, practically without thinking.
’

‘You couldn
’
t have phoned me?
’

‘Like I said, it was
so
spur of the moment, no thinking.
’
She gave him one of her daffy, impetuous expressions.

‘But Kate, you flew all the way to the Territory from Sydney, found this Coolawirra guy, organised for digital tracking equipment to be delivered…
’
His voice trailed off.

She waited.

‘…
and you couldn’
t be bothered, or couldn
’
t spare two minutes, to phone me?
’
His frustration grew deeper as he confronted her. This wasn
’
t the way he wanted to feel but the emotion had taken on a life of its own.

‘You know, Adam, I was really busting to get back here and see you, even though it
’
s the middle of the night, even though I
’
m totally whacked. I thought you
’
d be pleased, impressed even, that I
’
d tracked down the bastards who killed my brother-
’

‘I am-
’

‘And maybe I was wrong, maybe I should
’
ve called, but I
’
ve already explained my head was all over the place. For God
’
s sake I
’
d just buried Greg and my Mum and Dad are devastated and I just…
reacted
, had this idea, and one thing led to another…
’
her voice rose,
‘…but all you care about is your male pride. Why weren’
t
you
told, why weren
’
t
you
consulted…
’
She slammed her glass down on the low set coffee table, spilling Coke, jumping to her feet.
‘
I guess I trod on those great big policeman toes but bugger me, bugger what I
’
ve been going through-
’