The Catalyst: (Book One) Read online

  “Dr. Harmin,” she said in a too bright tone.

  His eyes moved from her to Addar and back.

  “Dr. Kay,” he acknowledged.

  Addar watched the man closely, ready to act at any sign of curiosity. There could be nothing to jeopardize the situation.

  “I thought everyone else had classes today,” Robin said.

  The man, Dr. Harmin, glanced at Addar.

  “I had work to do in my lab. I’m heading to the classroom now.”

  “Oh.”

  The silence stretched, until Addar itched to kill the man just to end it.

  “Okay,” Robin finally said. “Have a nice day, Dr. Harmin.”

  “You as well, Dr. Kay.”

  Addar watched him walk away, waiting until the door at the top of the stairwell closed, to turn to Robin. Their eyes met and he could see it in her eyes. They were in a dangerous situation.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “May I help you?”

  Robin looked up from her purse to send the maître de a brief smile.

  “Dr. Robin Kay. My mother is expecting me.”

  “Ah, yes. Please follow me, Dr. Kay.”

  Robin kept her eyes on the man’s back as he led her to the dining room of her parent’s country club. There, by the window that looked out on the ninth hole, sat her mother. She was sipping white wine and watching the golfers outside. The maître de cleared his throat as they approached, drawing Vivian’s eyes to hers.

  “Mrs. Kay,” the man said with a short bow.

  Her mother smiled and nodded her dismissal. Before he was out of earshot, she called for more wine.

  “Hello, mother,” Robin said, as she pressed a quick kiss to Vivian’s cheek.

  “I spoke with Ken.”

  Robin dropped into her chair.

  “Did you?”

  “You started a new project today, correct?”

  Robin licked her lips and reached for her water glass.

  “I can’t actually speak about it, mother.”

  “Of course not, dear.”

  Her mother took a sip of her wine and savored it for a moment before swallowing.

  “Your father received some news yesterday.”

  “Good news?”

  Vivian set her glass down and smiled. “Yes.”

  “About the board?”

  “Correct.”

  Robin sat back in her seat. “That’s wonderful.”

  Her mother frowned. “You do not sound pleased.”

  “Don’t I?” Robin forced a smile. “It is wonderful news, mother. I know how long he has wanted this.”

  Vivian nodded. “Yes. The Ethics Board has always been the ultimate goal.”

  “I know.” Robin let the smile fade. “I’m happy for him. We should have dinner to celebrate.”

  “Yes, but not tonight. I have a dinner party I’ve been planning for weeks.” She picked up the menu. “Perhaps next week? This weekend is already full.”

  “Of course.” Robin cleared her throat. “I already have plans, as well.”

  Her mother glanced up.

  “With Ken?”

  Robin internally winced. “No.”

  “Hm. Pity.”

  “What did you say dad was doing?”

  “Paperwork. Preparing for the move.”

  The move. Right.

  “When do you plan to go?”

  “Well, the position is available in two weeks. I will be making the arrangements next week.”

  “And the move?”

  Robin watched her mother run her finger along the edge of the wine glass.

  “Tuesday or Wednesday. I would like to have the house ready by the time your father arrives.”

  “Yes. Of course.”

  “Are you alright?” Her mother’s concerned tone pulled Robin’s attention from the golf course to their table.

  Robin coughed lightly. “Yes.”

  Vivian gave her a small smile.

  “Wonderful. I invited Ken to dinner tomorrow. Will you be able to make it?”

  “I think I have plans.”

  Before her mother could ask any questions, the waiter approached the table and took their orders. The break in conversation seemed to end the conversation. After he left, her mother began to speak about a committee. Robin nodded along, but her gaze was drawn to the green beyond the window.

  Her parents were leaving. Moving halfway across the country to Boston. She was not sure if she felt relieved or not. On the one hand, her parents would not be present if her actions ever came to light. On the other hand, they would not be present to lend aid either. Robin mechanically ate her salad, barely tasting it.

  It was only when the waiter cleared the table that she realized her mother had fallen silent. She looked across the table to see Vivian frowning at her.

  “What is it?”

  For one insane moment, Robin considered confessing. Everything. The theft of the zygote, the lies to her team and supervisor and worst of all, the violation of international ethics law. The moment passed.

  “I’m a little tired. Stress, I believe.”

  “It’ll give you wrinkles, dear.”

  Easy as that, her mother launched into a dialogue on all natural skin care. Robin sipped at her water. After another twenty minutes, she made her apologies.

  “Express my congratulations to dad, would you?”

  Robin kissed her mother’s cheek and left the restaurant. A black, late model BMW sat at the curb waiting for her. Ken’s car. The doorman opened the passenger side door for her and she pasted a smile on her face, sliding into the seat beside her boss.

  “How was lunch, Birdy?”

  Robin looked straight ahead to keep from throwing him a dark look. Her family nickname sounded wrong from his mouth. As if he was in a position of trust. Never again.

  “Fine.”

  “Good. Did she tell you about dinner tomorrow?” His dark eyes left the road long enough to glance at her face.

  “Yes. I have plans.”

  Ken smirked.

  “Did you have plans before she asked you?”

  Robin fought not to bristle. “Yes.”

  “I’d hate to think you were avoiding me.”

  “Impossible. We work together.”

  He turned his head to look at her. “Correct.”

  Robin looked away to stare out the window.

  “I’ve been meaning to ask you…” Ken trailed off, as he turned into the heavier traffic of downtown.

  “Yes?”

  “What are your thoughts on the organism?”

  The organism. Not long ago she had called Addar that. Before he was a person. She frowned. A very dangerous person. Robin looked away from the window to watch Ken pull the car off the main road into the staff parking area.

  “The viability of our cloning venture?”

  Ken parked and turned off the ignition. “No.”

  Robin licked her lips.

  “The organism is obviously not terrestrial. It will probably breathe air without negative consequences, as it is primarily nitrogen. Beyond that, I would be speculating.”

  Ken stepped out of the car and met her at the back of the vehicle. For a moment they stood in silence, only a few feet apart. As a strong wind blew past, she caught a whiff of his familiar cologne. The same she always bought him when they were together.

  “Robin.”

  He took a step toward her and she found herself unable to move away. He was just over six feet tall, the perfect height for lips to meet his without stretching. He had joked about the convenience of her height many times over the course of their three year relationship. Even mentioned how good they would look together in their wedding photos.

  “We’re late.” She turned away and walked toward the science complex.

  Renon’s research and development facility sat on three, pristine acres. It was all landscaped hedges and rolling lawns. At the center of the nest of twenty-story buildings, was the thirty-story crown jewel. Th
e cloning labs. Her lab at Renon was on the twenty-third floor and commandeered nearly half of the space.

  She raised her chin as she approached the security guards at the front entrance. A cursory check of her badge got her into the building to the security station in the lobby. Ken stood behind her and she could nearly hear him fuming over her sudden departure from the earlier conversation. She ignored him.

  “Dr. Kay,” one of the guards said, as he waved her through the metal detector.

  The guard on the other side gave her a quick nod. She walked to the elevators without waiting for Ken. Robin heard his footsteps approach just as the door slid open. She sighed. He would no doubt want to talk on the ride to the twenty-third floor. She was proven correct as soon as they stepped onto the elevator and the doors closed behind them.

  “I think we should discuss a few things if we are going to be working together.”

  Robin glanced at him, but did not comment. Supervisor or not, she was not speaking about their past relationship.

  “I want you to know there are no hard feelings on my part.”

  She stared hard at the elevator doors to keep from glaring at him.

  “I forgive you.”

  The elevator let out a soft ding and Robin rushed away. She had to get away from him before the ball of fury in her stomach made its way to her vocal chords. Robin quickly scanned herself into the lab and set her bag down in the cabinet under her work station. With the rest of the Renon team in her lab for the project, she could not leave it out as she normally would.

  She had just closed the cabinet door when Ken entered the lab. He headed straight for her.

  “Dr. Kay!”

  Robin looked over her shoulder at the four other scientists on the team. They were hovering around one of the processing machines. She walked toward them without giving Ken another look.

  “Problem?” she asked.

  Of course. There should be. With Addar already in existence, a second zygote would not form.

  “Have a look,” the same scientist urged.

  Robin stepped around him and peered into the microscope. She frowned.

  “This is the sample I started this morning?”

  “Yes.”

  Robin turned back to the microscope to look again. To confirm the impossible. A second zygote was growing.

  …

  Addar looked up from the platter in his hands when the door opened. Robin’s elderly neighbor answered the door, looking tired and drawn. The stench of the dying was strong in the air. The woman, the man’s wife, was nearly dead. She had hours left. He could feel her energy fading like water escaping from cupped hands. She was not long with the living.

  “Addar, wasn’t it?” the man asked.

  Addar nodded. “Yes. Robin asked me to check on you. I brought lasagna.”

  The man managed a weak smile. “Thank you. Please come in.”

  Addar followed the man into the apartment and past the living room where the woman was slouched in an armchair.

  “How is she?” he asked.

  “Weak,” the man said.

  He busied himself removing the plastic wrap from the platter and cutting a small piece for himself. Addar watched him place it in the microwave and put the rest in the refrigerator.

  “She doesn’t eat. Not anymore.”

  The sadness in the man’s tone made Addar stare at him. Interesting.

  “How long have you been together?”

  “Met her through friends just about seventy years ago. Prettiest girl I had ever seen.”

  The man gave him a surprisingly bright smile and removed the plate from the microwave. He made to sit down at the table and paused.

  “Did you want any?”

  Addar shook his head. “No, thank you.”

  He watched the man eat. His hand shook with each bite, age making it difficult for him to get the food in his mouth.

  “Hate seeing her like this,” the man said after a few bites.

  His watery, blue eyes raised to meet Addar’s.

  “How long have you known our Robin?”

  Addar raised an eyebrow at the wording. “Not long. We met at the university.”

  “I was a professor, you know. English. Forty years.” The man pushed the plate away, still mostly full. “She’s a fine woman, that Dr. Kay.”

  Addar nodded silently.

  The smell of death grew stronger.

  “She’s been ready for a long time.” The man opened the refrigerator and placed his plate on the top shelf.

  “Your wife?”

  The man nodded and let out a loud yawn.

  “Sorry about that. I’ve been tired lately.”

  “I know.”

  The man either did not hear him or thought nothing of it.

  “Can I get you anything to drink?”

  Addar shook his head. “No, thank you.”

  He watched the old man totter past the table toward the living room. Addar slowly stood from his chair and followed. His footsteps made very little noise on the paisley carpet runner. He paused in the doorway to the living room and watched the couple. The man sat in the chair beside the woman, as she drew in ragged breaths.

  “Should she go to a hospital?” Addar asked, already knowing the answer.

  “No,” the man sighed, weariness in his face. “She wants to go here at home. With me.”

  Addar sat on the sofa across from the couple and watched them. The woman’s life energy grew fainter. Just a candle’s flame. So easy to snuff out.

  “I just don’t want her to hurt anymore,” the man said, as he stroked his wife’s hand.

  The man’s pained grimace was a mirror of his wife’s. Addar considered for only a moment before he acted. Keeping an eye on the two of them, he allowed his power to unfurl like dark tentacles until it filled the room. Then, focusing on the woman, he reached for her.

  His power wrapped around her in a mockery of an embrace. The darkness slipped into her skin, deep below the physical to the very heart of her life. And snuffed it out. For the first time in weeks, he gorged himself. It was almost a physical pleasure to be satisfied at last. After days of snatching sips of energy from Robin’s assistant and anyone else they encountered, finally he was replete.

  Addar pulled his power back into his body and refocused on the scene in front of him. The man patted the woman’s lax hand one more time and let it rest on the arm of the chair.

  “She’s gone.”

  “I apologize for your loss,” Addar said, an unfamiliar tug of remorse adding weight to his words.

  “She’s at rest. I’m just glad she went at home with me near her.”

  Addar looked from the old man’s solemn face to the peaceful countenance of the woman. He frowned.

  “What will you do?”

  The man looked over at him, his eyes free of tears. “Tell the children. Move away, perhaps.”

  “Would you like me to call someone?” Addar asked.

  “No. Thank you, but no.”

  The two of them sat in silence for several minutes, Addar considering the old man’s changing expressions. He saw sadness, but also a sort of relief. When he looked away, his gaze caught on the grandfather clock near the hallway.

  “Robin will be home soon. Would you like me to send her over here?”

  The man blinked, as if leaving a daze, and nodded. “Please.”

  Addar stood and left. The door was already unlocked when he reached Robin’s apartment. He stepped inside and closed the door quietly. His gaze immediately landed on Robin’s back. She stood in the kitchen with the refrigerator door open, simply staring at the contents.

  “The woman next door is dead.”

  Robin visibly jumped.

  “When?” she asked, turning to face him.

  “Just now.”

  She frowned. “Why were you over there?”

  “You went to the lab today. To start the new project?”

  Robin’s frown deepened. “Yes. Please answer my qu
estion.”

  “Dinner. You should go check on him. I’ll start the meal.”

  She gave him a long look, the distrust clear in her eyes. “Alright.”

  As he watched her pass him, he smiled. Two weeks. In two weeks’ time, the other would be fully matured. Then, she would know the truth.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Robin stayed with Mr. Peterson until the coroner came to take his wife’s body away. He said very little as they waited. Every so often he would glance at his wife’s still body and sigh.

  “If there is anything I can do…” Robin said.

  He shook his head. “I’m alright.”

  After so long together, she sincerely doubted it. She kept her thoughts to herself.

  “The gentleman staying with you was kind enough to bring dinner.”

  Robin raised her eyebrow. “How nice of him.”

  Mr. Peterson nodded.

  When someone knocked, Robin rose to answer the door. Two men from the funeral home stood in the hallway with dark blue uniforms and a gurney. They gave her polite nods.

  “Mr. Peterson,” Robin called over her shoulder. “They’re here.”

  The two men were very efficient, moving Mrs. Peterson’s body to a bag on the gurney and zipping the bag closed.

  “We’re ready,” one of the men announced.

  Mr. Peterson stood beside Robin staring at the outline of his wife’s body.

  “Sir?” the man tried again.

  Finally, Mr. Peterson nodded. “Alright.”

  The men wheeled Mrs. Peterson away.

  After the door closed behind them, Robin turned to face her neighbor.

  “Do you want to come to my apartment? Stay over until your children arrive?”

  He shook his head. “Thank you, but no. You go ahead.”

  Robin fought with herself, but when he announced that he was going to bed, she left for her apartment. Addar was sitting at the computer when she arrived. She took her time closing the door and locking it, before she approached him.

  “You took Mr. Peterson dinner.”

  His eyes moved from the computer screen to her face. “Yes.”