The Perfect Clone (21 page)

Laura shook her head. “I doubt it, but if it’ll make you more comfortable, I’ll promise to think it over.”

Cara laughed at the woman’s wit. “You’ve got balls, I’ll give you that.”

Richard smiled. He hadn’t doubted for one minute that Laura would stand her ground. She’d always been quick with verbal retorts. “Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, shall we move on?”

Richard led the way, halting at a steel door.

“I take it my work area is behind mysterious door number one. So what are we waiting for?” Laura was yearning to get inside.

Richard took the initiative to introduce the procedure. “The security’s already been set to open with your iris scan and fingerprint. We can’t go in until you open the door.”

“In that case, let’s see what we’ve got.” Laura took a deep breath and turned the handle. The four of them walked inside the lab. The door clicked shut behind them.

Richard removed his jacket and hung it on a hanger next to a lab coat. He was prepared for Laura to claim ‘time out’ and wanted to be ready to help if she became besieged with the reality of her new circumstances. Everyone that had ever been introduced underground had needed time to consider the vastness of it all. He didn’t really expect her to react any differently.

Matt glanced around to reassure himself that everything had been as he’d left it. He hoped nothing had been forgotten. Mr. Avery had secured this employee himself and he didn’t want anything to go wrong during her initial introduction to the space.

Unimpressed with yet another work area, Cara leaned against a vacant spot on the wall and waited for the ‘oohhs’ and ‘aahhs’ to start. She would be disappointed.

Laura glanced around for a few moments before stepping further into the lab. Taking quick stock of the space, Laura turned to the group and took a deep breath before saying everything she had to say. She was ready to take complete charge of this new environment and had a deadline to meet.

“I’ll want to get started immediately. Matt, I’ll need sample DNA to play with, it doesn’t matter who it’s from as long as it’s male. I’ll also need fertile eggs to recreate my process. I don’t want to proceed with the actual project until I’ve reassured myself that there won’t be any oversights on my end. Cara, I’ll need a device that can verbally and visually record my work. Based on the importance of this project, I don’t want to leave any room for doubt when we are successful. For prosperity’s sake, everything will need to be documented. Richard, I’ll need living quarters here at the facility. The trivial commute will be a waste of precious time that can be spent here, doing my work.”

Not receiving a reply, Laura raised her eyebrows and jutted her head forward, hands opened in front of her. Had they gone deaf? All three of them were just standing around with slack jawed expressions. “I’m sorry. Is there a problem?”

Matt and Cara exchanged confused glances as Richard was again reminded of how tough the Greggario family was. Laura was perfect. She was a trooper when it came to her work.

Cara pushed herself away from the wall. “I’ll be damned. The woman does have balls,” she blurted out, saying what the two men were still too astounded and too polite to say. As far as Cara was concerned, Ms. Greggario’s approval rating had just gone up.

“My sentiments exactly,” Matt patted Richard on the shoulder. “Damn good find Richard, damn good.”

He directed his next words to the latest member of the community. “Welcome aboard Ms. Greggario. We’ll see that you have everything you need.”

Laura moved over to the door and held it open. “If the two of you don’t mind, I’d like a few minutes alone with Mr. Avery. There are a few minor details I’d like to discuss—privately.”

Matt wasn’t about to ask questions. If things weren’t up to par, Mr. Avery would let him know later. “The meet and greet with Dr. Hamstein is scheduled within a half hour. Cara and I will head to his office and wait for the two of you there.”

As soon as the door shut Laura moved away from Richard and exploded with pent up emotion. Weaving around the work table, she ran her hands along the cool, smooth surface. “This is absolutely incredible Richard.”

Richard snapped a mental photo. He never wanted to forget the way Laura looked at that moment. She was radiant. “I’m glad you like it.”

“Like it? I’m floored! I had no idea such things existed. How could you not have told me about this? Never mind, I know why. All this time I worked upstairs and never knew. The time and energy that your family has put into this place is unbelievable. I feel like my entire world has been remapped and I’ve just stepped onto planet ‘Avery’. Is there more that you haven’t told me? I want to see everything. I want to understand the context of your life’s work, your family’s work. Did my dad know about all of this? Did he come here?”

“Yes, he came here a lot before the Alzheimer’s set in. It was his little diversion. He would be so proud of you Laura, in regards to the work you‘re doing; the work you’re about to do.”

“I miss him Richard.”

“I know I miss him too.”

Shaking her head to dismiss the sad thoughts starting to take over, Laura moved to stand in front of her employer, her lover. “It’s going to be very difficult not to fall in love with you.”

“You’re already in love with me. You just haven’t admitted it to yourself yet.”

“You think so?” Laura giggled.

“I know so.”

“What was that back there in the hall? You told Matt that I was your woman. Am I?”

The sensuality in her eyes didn’t go unnoticed. Richard pulled her against his body. “Do you want to be?”

Laura tilted her face up. She was glowing with delight. “I’d like that.”

Richard kissed her hard. “Good because I claimed you as mine that first night. Do you remember Laura?”

Passion coursed through her body. Now it made sense. She’d thought he’d meant just sexually, but he’d meant as a couple.  That’s why he hadn’t left her side. He’d promised to be there for her during her father’s funeral arrangements, but he’d hardly left her alone at all. He was going to stick around and she couldn’t be happier about it. “Yes, I do. But know this Richard Avery; I won’t jeopardize this project, regardless of our relationship status. If you slept with me just to get me here—”

“I slept with you because I’ve wanted to since we you were a teenager and finally the opportunity presented itself.” Using her previous words to make his point stick, he concluded. “Know this Laura Greggario, I don’t default on anything. I meant what I said. You’re mine.”

Laura cocked an eyebrow as she reached for the door handle. “Now that those minor details have been worked out, I believe we have a meeting to attend.”

Chapter 19

The apartment was roomy enough to serve her needs. From what she could tell, it had everything deemed essential for day to day living. The space was equipped with a small cooking area, fridge, microwave, coffee pot, bathroom, cable T.V., small table with two chairs, dresser, closet, cabinets, and a bed.

There was also a small washer and dryer stack behind a door when you first entered the bathroom. The marble tile floors in the bathroom were squared off with half inch tiles that acted as floor trim and another piece that you had to step over to get into the bathroom. There was a drain in both the bathroom floor and the laundry closet. It was safe to assume that this was to protect against any overflows that might occur, minimizing water damage. The engineers had thought of everything.

The floor around the tiny kitchen area hosted the same tiles. The rest of the flooring was carpet. There wasn’t any need for drapes since there weren’t any windows underground. Instead there were framed pictures of outdoor seasonal shots, which beat the heck out of the floral print back at the hotel. She’d never been a high maintenance kind of girl, so she found it sufficient.

The neutral color décor was easy on the eyes, but she’d probably paint the walls with muted beach colors if allowed.

Since room and board were free, she’d make sure to ask Luke about food. She had seen a cafeteria on the ground level, but she’d want to cook some things of her own, especially once she was pregnant. She’d always heard that late night snacks were at the top of every pregnant woman’s list and she wanted to be stocked and ready.

Plopping down on the queen sized bed, Sarah thought about everything she’d seen on her way into the compound. She’d found comfort in the fact that Luke had been there with her. If he hadn’t been she probably would have high tailed it out of there. The security alone was enough to make her head spin. NWL obviously didn’t do anything half-assed.

Sarah was thrilled that she’d been chosen as the main subject of one of NWL’s many research projects. She was about to become a part of science, scratch that, she was a part of science.

A doctor by the name of Hamstein had retrieved eggs from her ovaries via abdominal scope six days ago. As far as she knew, abdominal scoping wasn’t a typical retrieval method. Sarah pulled up her shirt and looked at her stomach. The small entry wound above her belly button had almost healed. She’d taken a dose of antibiotics after the surgery, but had not been given pain medication, which was fine with her, she hadn’t needed them.

The ringing phone on the night stand startled her. Picking up the receiver she answered, “Hello?”

“Sarah, it’s me, Luke.”

“Hey. You sound cheerful.” His voice was comforting.

“It must be because you answered the phone. How’s the unpacking coming along?”

“When you travel as lightly as I do, it doesn’t take long. I’ve been finished for a while now.”

“Good. That means you’re not busy.”

“Not unless you consider staring at the wall busy.”

“Listen, I was thinking about grabbing a bite to eat and wondered if you’d like to come with me.” Luke had been directed to keep Sarah occupied and out of trouble, so this was as good an excuse as any he thought.

“Actually, that sounds great. I was just wondering how I’d go about getting something to eat. Is there a grocery store in this city of yours?”

“As a matter of fact, we do have a market. It’s not a Wal-Mart super store by any means, but it carries the essentials.  Rumor has it that if you request certain items, they’ll stock it for you.”

“If I eat with you, will you take me to it? There are a few things I’d like to pick up. A girl can never have too many snack foods.”

“No problem. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“I’ll be here.” Sarah placed the receiver down and picked up the list of contacts lying by the phone. She ran a finger over Luke’s name. He was a nice guy. She wished she’d met him sooner though. Her future was pretty much cut and dry from here on out and she didn’t think having boyfriends was on that agenda.

Standing at the cafeteria cash register, the clerk rang up their items and handed over a receipt. Luke signed both their names, adding their room numbers beside it and handed the receipt back to the clerk.

Choosing a small table against the wall, he sat down facing the lobby, a residual by-product of his training. He liked to keep a visual on his surroundings. It minimized the possibility of sneak attacks and allowed him to prepare for any potential problems. Not that anything would ever happen here, it was just habit.

“Why didn’t we have to pay for this? Are they billing it to our rooms?” Information she needed to know.

“I guess you could call it that.” Punching a straw through the lid hole on his soda, Luke took a draw of the carbonated liquid. He only allowed himself one soda per day. This was that one. He intended to get a mouth full of flavor before breaking into an explanation of any sorts.

After he downed the liquid, he explained. “All the workers that you’ll come across down here also live here. Most of the residents clock in and out of their jobs just like they would on the outside. Some of the residents, probably you included, are salaried. Room and board is deducted from that wage and you receive the remaining amount as your pay.”

Luke tossed a curly fry into his mouth. The crunch was his favorite part. It made him think back to simpler days, when nothing else mattered except how much noise you could make while chewing your food.

“But what if their pay doesn’t cover the cost of their room and board? Are they evicted?” Sarah knew the way room service worked in a hotel. You ordered what you wanted and it was billed to your room. You still had to pay for everything when checking out. What he was talking about was a concept she was unfamiliar with. This might affect her stay here, so she needed to understand.

“No, at least not that I’ve ever heard of. See that clerk over there?” Luke pointed to the cashier. “Let’s say he makes ten bucks an hour and clocks forty hours per week. That’s four hundred bucks a week which makes his earnings sixteen hundred a month. Since rent is the same for everyone here, regardless of the job, I know that it runs nine hundred a month. That includes all the utilities. That leaves our clerk with seven hundred a month left over for food, entertainment, or whatever else he wants. Down here, you’ll find that seven hundred dollars goes a long way, being that its tax free.”

“How can it be tax free? Don’t they have to report to the I.R.S. like everyone else?” She’d heard of people working ‘under the table’ for cash, but this was practically an entire city full of workers.

“Well, most of the residents here don’t technically exist. If you don’t exist, why would you pay taxes?”

“I’m not following. How can they not exist, they’re here?”