The Dystopian Gene Read online

  “You think there's something to this?”

  “All the victims are the same age, within weeks. It makes sense they all may have been part of a trial.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I'm going to pay a visit to Gentech.”

  ◆◆◆

  Anna sat at the end of a long meeting table on the top floor of Gentech's headquarters. She was alone in the cold boardroom staring at the snowflakes floating across the large windows at the room's end.

  Anna sighed.

  Winter's coming.

  Adjusting her wool coat at the thought, Anna heard footsteps in the hallway.

  The door opened and a stocky gray-haired woman entered the room.

  Anna stood up, extending her hand. “Agent Wool.”

  The woman eyed her through thin framed glasses before taking Anna's hand. “Gina Thorp,” the woman replied, sitting down across from Anna. “Please sit,” Gina urged, gesturing with an open palm. “Would you like anything? Water, tea or coffee, perhaps?”

  Anna shook her head. “No thank you, I'm fine.”

  “So what can I do for you, Agent Wool?”

  Anna sat down and placed her hands on the table. “I'm investigating a string of deaths.”

  “Murders?”

  “That‘s what I'm trying to determine.”

  “I'm the CEO of a large corporation Agent Wool. I have little time, so please get to the point.”

  “Please, call me Anna. I spoke with a victim's family today, Joan and Frank Anderson.”

  Gina raised an eyebrow. “I've never heard of them.”

  “Are you sure? Joan told me that their son, Jacob, was part of a trial performed here at Gentech.”

  “I'm not directly involved in the daily workings of the labs and facilities. We run dozens of trials every year, all over the country,” Gina glanced down at the table and then back to Anna.

  She's hiding something.

  Anna leaned in over the table, boring her eyes into Gina's “I was hoping I wouldn‘t have to get a warrant Mrs. Thorp.”

  “Call me Gina, and it's Miss, not Mrs., I don't have time for relationships.”

  “Do you really want me to involve this corporation in a major investigation? Warrants, subpoenas, private e-mails being read in court?”

  “You're over your head, Anna. My lawyers would bury your department in motions.”

  “The best thing here, Gina, is for you to cooperate,” Anna maintained unwavering eye contact.

  Gina stood up. “I will look into it and get back to you. That's the best I can do for now.” Gina looked at her phone. “I have a meeting, Leave your contact information and the family's name with my receptionist. I'll get back to you as soon as time will allow,” she explained, extending her hand.

  Anna rose from her chair and shook Gina's sweaty palm. “I look forward to hearing from you.”

  “I'll be in touch.”

  CHAPTER 22

  Jax walked into the formal dining room, followed by Isabelle. Anna looked up from the table, raising her eyebrows. “Had a sleepover, Jax?” she asked.

  “I wish,” Jax replied, smiling. “No, this is Isabelle. Damarion's daughter.”

  Anna stood, extending her hand. “I didn't know Damarion had a daughter.”

  Isabelle shook Anna's hand.

  “Cornelius had her locked up for years,” Jax explained, running his hand over his mud-brown mop of hair.

  Anna's jaw slacked. “That explains a lot.” she made eye contact with Isabelle. “Your father betrayed us. Now I know why.”

  Isabelle winced. “He told me he waited as long as he could to make sure you had enough lead time to get Atticus out.”

  “Barely. We're lucky he got out at all, and I took a bullet. Many people died because of what he did.”

  “Well, at least you got Atticus out and you're okay,” Isabelle replied.

  “Tell that to my rib. Where is Damarion anyway?”

  “He's spending most of his time at the office, surrounded by city security personnel. He's worried Cornelius will do something crazy. Kill him, or put him in the Chamber.”

  “He has good reason to worry. So what are you doing here Isabelle?” Anna asked.

  “My father thought I would be safe here and I could help the resistance.”

  Anna nodded through pursed lips.

  “She's been a big help Anna. She's helping me sift through your mother's hard drive. We're still sorting all the information.”

  “Anything new?” Anna asked.

  “We're piecing it together.” Jax made eye contact with Anna. “This goes all the way back to 2018. It was the catalyst that started a wave of mergers. In 2018, Dayer, the largest pharmaceutical company in the world, bought Manplanto, the largest seed, GMO, and pesticide company in the world. It begs the question; why would a pharmaceutical giant like Dayer, want to own and operate a GMO, seed, and chemical company? It makes little sense. I'm having Isabelle sort through all of that data because of her background.”

  “Her background?” Anna asked.

  “Yes, Isabelle worked at Manplanto before Cornelius locked her up. She holds a doctorate in biomedical engineering.”

  Isabelle nodded. “I worked at the lab in their GMO division.”

  “I see. Anything from Atticus?” Anna asked Jax

  Jax shook his head. “Nothing yet.”

  “Let me know as soon as you hear anything.” Anna turned to Isabelle. “And as far as your father goes, what's done is done, but trusting him will be difficult after what he did. I need to go, I have this award thing that everyone thinks is so important,” Anna said through gritted teeth. She wrapped her face with a scarf at the door and headed out into the ally.

  Anna made her way to the car four blocks away in no kind of hurry. She didn't care about the award and never had a propensity for heading towards the lime light. As she got in the car Anna saw the man with the bowler hat out of the corner of her eye. He was standing between two parked vehicles and staring at her from behind his cold, dark eyes.

  Anna shuddered.

  He is following me, she concluded.

  She started the car and hit the gas pedal hard.

  It’s just creepy.

  There was a large platform set up in front of the police station and a crowd was already gathering. Anna parked in the back lot and headed for the door, running into Charlie in the stairwell. “You all set for your big morning?” he asked.

  “No, I would rather not do this at all, but I guess I need to keep up appearances and let people think want they want about what happened. Did you find anything out on our case?”

  Charlie shook his head. “Dead end, after dead end. I can't find any connection other than they were all born around the same time. Did you learn anything at Gentech?”

  “I met the CEO, Gina Thorp. She said she'd look into it, but I think she's hiding something.”

  “Anna!” Captain Jack said, hobbling down the stairs.

  Anna spun around to see Jack's broad grin. “How are you feeling? You ready?” He took a breath on the last step and peered out the front doors. “Looks like quite a crowd. They're all here to see you, Anna.”

  Two plain clothes security guards walked up to Jack, followed by two more men with dogs on leashes. “The Governor has arrived. We'll escort him out once we're done with the security sweep.”

  Jack nodded and turned to Anna. “All right then. Let's go.”

  The crowd erupted into a thunderous roar of adulation as Anna emerged from the building and out onto the temporary platform. She lifted an arm and waved, making the cheers grow louder.

  Jack made it to the podium with Anna on his right. He leaned into the microphone. “Citizens of Easton.” Jack raised his hands, quieting the crowd. “Thank you for coming out for this occasion. It is in celebration we gather today. A victory for the safety of our city and all of you, it's citizens. Thanks to this woman.” Jack lifted Anna's arm skyward. “Agent Montana Wool!”


  The crowd exploded into another round of cheers. Jack waited several minutes for the crowd noise to subside. Out of the corner of her eye, Anna saw two men appear at the small set of stairs to the left of the platform. Someone had erected a partition as a stage screen that blocked off the stairs and the edge of the platform. The two men leading dogs to the top of the stairs made the animals sit at either side. Cornelius came into view in Anna's peripheral and the dog on his left barked.

  Anna swallowed hard.

  The tyrant that tortured my mother. Odds are, the one who killed her too.

  No one could hear the dog over the noise of the crowd, but it was ill tempered towards Cornelius. It growled and clacked its jaws as Cornelius made the last step.

  A good judge of character.

  The crowd noise died down and Jack spoke again. “Citizens. Here to present the award to Agent Wool is your Governor, Cornelius Cromwell!”

  A quiet murmur went through the crowd, still unable to see Cornelius behind the partition. Anna watched out of the corner of her eye as Cornelius walked towards her. She was still the only one who could see him, other than the bodyguards and Jack. As Cornelius passed the barking dog, it snapped at his shin and Cornelius kicked the animal hard in the ribs. The dog cried out and turned away, but resumed its focus on Cornelius with a low grumbling growl.

  The crowd noise rose as Cornelius appeared from behind the partition and Jack handed him a large medal attached to a lanyard. Cornelius shook Jack's hand and then moved in front of Anna. The dog continued to growl in their direction as Cornelius placed the medal around her neck, leaning in close to Anna's ear.

  “It never ceases to amaze me how annoying one little bitch can be,” he whispered.

  The pungent odor of liquor and cigarettes filled Anna's nostrils.

  “Yes, I got the Lonewolf out,” she whispered back. “I guess Cromwell's don't always get what they want.”

  The vein in Cornelius's temple throbbed. He shook Anna's hand, squeezing it as hard as his arthritis would allow. “Be careful Miss Wool,” he said from behind bloodshot eyes.

  “Your move, sir,” Anna added, letting go of Cornelius's hand as the crowd roared.

  “Watch your back,” Cornelius replied. “The only reason I haven’t killed you yet is because you're about to become part of the family. I hear there are wedding bells in your future,”

  “Never!“ Anna replied through a continued smile for the onlookers.

  “We’ll see,” Cornelius finished and then sported a broad grin of his own before turning to face the crowd. He waved, and the crowd chanted as he neared the podium.

  “Anna, Anna, Anna.”

  Cornelius raised his wrinkled hands, quieting the crowd.

  “As your Governor, I am pleased to present this award to one of our finest Agents. Under my direction, one of the worst terrorists in our history was brought to justice. My unwavering commitment to the safety of our city will not falter. It will not fail. Through my leadership, we have sent a clear message to those trying to undermine authority and your safety. I am confident you will continue to allow me to be your humble and devoted servant in the next election.” Cornelius raised his thumb. “Bode well with Cromwell! Two fat chickens in every pot and two new cars in every garage!”

  The crowd cheered and Cornelius exited the stage.

  ◆◆◆

  Strolling through the front door of her parent's home, Anna struggled with the large box in her arms. She set the box on the kitchen table. “Dad, where are you?” she called.

  Steven came running into the kitchen. “Anna, oh my God, it's good to see you.” He gave Anna a long hug and pulled away, brushing a ringlet from Anna's cheek. “I missed you,” he said gazing into her eyes. “I'm sorry I didn't make it to the hospital, they had me on double shifts all week so I only had a couple hours in the middle of the night to sleep.”

  “It's okay Dad.”

  Steven's eyes widened. “So you're a celebrity now? I saw you on TV this morning.”

  Anna nodded. “I guess so. That's not why I'm here though. I'm glad I caught you at home.” Anna emptied the box's contents onto the kitchen table. “I brought some food for you guys. It’s fresh produce.”

  Steven leaned over the box. “Mm, that smells good. Reminds me of when your Grandma used to grow a garden.”

  “Dad, I need to talk to you about why everyone is sick. I've found out some things about Cromwell and what has been going on, not just in this city, but all the walled cities across the country and around the world.”

  “The Governor?” Steven raised an eyebrow. “What does everyone being sick have to do with him?”

  “Dad, he's the one responsible. His food companies are poisoning us in order for his healthcare companies to rake in record profits from treating our symptoms. Stop eating the food. You, Aunt Dee and Sara, you all have to stop.”

  Steven lowered his eyebrows. “Sounds like some kind of conspiracy. Everyone knows that there is a lot of food out there that isn't healthy, but poisoning us? Come on, that sounds ridiculous.”

  “That’s the thing Dad, the bigger the lie and the more disgusting the truth, the less likely anyone will believe it. That's not done by accident. That's so the assholes raking every dime out of us can hide behind so called laughable conspiracies, knowing they're true.”

  Steven shook his head. “Even if this was all true, what is everyone supposed to do? The only food available to us is what's on the shelves, right? We're not allowed to grow it ourselves. What other options do we have? What am I supposed to do?”

  Anna could tell her father wasn't buying a word of what she was selling. “I can't fix the problem for everyone Dad. Not yet, anyway. I'm worried about you guys. I'll bring more food.”

  “I don't know Anna. It sounds like you’ll get into some kind of trouble. Where did this food come from, anyway? Some kind of illegal grow op? You know citizens can’t grow their own food. It’s against the law because it wastes too many resources. I don't want you bringing trouble here, into this house. You should take the food with you.”

  “No, Dad, look. I'm just trying to help you here.”

  “I don't need the hassle or the trouble of someone finding out. Then I have the city police banging down my door. It's not worth the risk, Anna. I'm not doing it. Everything is going well around here right now. Dee is back to work, everyone is current on their treatments. I'm not willing to put a target on this family's back.”

  Anna let out a long breath. “Fine. Just think about it at least okay?”

  Anna glanced at the television through the kitchen doorway. “What are you watching?”

  “Oh, just the news.”

  Anna moved closer to the television. Video footage was playing of the incident at Atticus's wall ceremony. She read the headline.

  'Members of the terrorist group known as The Resistance murder dozens in an attempt to recover their leader.'

  Anna shook her head. “You know that's not what happened, right Dad?”

  “What do you mean? I can see it with my own eyes. The Resistance must be stopped. Now they're killing people in the street.” Steven faced Anna. “What you did was a great thing, getting rid of their leader.”

  “Dad, those were Cromwell's own men.”

  Steven shook his head. “What? Why would the Governor murder innocent people in the street. That doesn't make any sense. I'm worried about you, Peanut. The things you're saying sound like trouble. Are you in trouble?”

  “No, Dad, I'm fine. I'm just saying you can't believe what you see on the news, okay?”

  “I only watch ENN, the Easton News Network, they're just and impartial.”

  Anna groaned, rolling her eyes. “It doesn't matter what you watch, Dad. They are all owned by the same person.”

  The news anchor began speaking. 'Due to the activities of The Resistance, Governor Cromwell has passed a new law. Any head covering, face mask or clothing that obscures a citizens face is now illegal and will prompt immediate arrest.
Other than a few religious groups, the citizens of Easton are in full support.'

  That could be a problem.

  The screen changed to a street interview scene. A younger man with a microphone being held to his mouth was stating his opinion. 'I think the new law will be good for everyone. Winter's coming, so not having a scarf around my chin might be chilly, but I think we have to do whatever it takes to stop these murderers.'

  Anna's phone rang. She looked down at the screen. “I have to take this,” she said, giving her father another hug.

  “It was nice to see you. Stay out of trouble.”

  Anna saw the concern in her father's eyes. She answered the call and walked out the door.

  “Hello?”

  “Anna, this is Gina Thorp calling. Do you have a minute?”

  “Yes.”

  “I looked into the name you left me and I found out that there was a trial that ran about twenty years ago. I'm sending you a scanned copy of the original list of names of the patients involved.”

  Anna pulled the phone from her ear and reviewed the document. “I see there's twelve names on the list, but why is one redacted?”

  “For protection and privacy reasons, I can only release eleven of the twelve names.”

  “What was the purpose of the trial?”

  Anna heard Gina take a long breath. “It was to see if we could genetically enhance a subject to become immune to Fleishman's. Similar to in utero gene vaccinations we've been doing for years for other common diseases.”

  “It obviously wasn't successful,” Anna replied, still annoyed by the conversation with her father.

  “No.”

  “These are all woman's names. I don't recognize them from the list of deaths.”

  “That's because this was an in utero trial. Most of the parents had not come up with names yet. The list I sent you are the mother's names. You may have to do some research to cross reference with your list as some mothers may have married or divorced and changed their last names.”

  “Thank you Gina,” Anna finished, ending the call.

  CHAPTER 23

  “Charlie, I have a list of names from Gentech,” Anna said, ducking her head into Charlie's office. “I just sent it to you. We need to cross reference the list with ours and see what names match up.” Anna set her tablet down across from Charlie and sat down in the chair facing his desk. Her and Charlie set their tablets up side by side. “There!” Anna said, pointing at the screen. The top three all have the same names as these three.