Growth (GAIA Trilogy Book 2) Page 4

  "I'm thinking that rejuvenation is not such a good idea," said Harrison.

  Helene was practical as ever, "Too late to turn back that clock. We've got it and I mean to use it to the maximum. But as a general rule it bears scrutiny and contemplation, which I leave to you."

  Harrison nodded ruefully.

  "What are the limits, I wonder?," asked Helene. "Just how long will the body respond to this treatment?"

  "And just how crazy might it make us?" asked Harrison.

  "There is that," said Helene very thoughtfully. She paused to mull that over momentarily then said, "Okay. I've got to get back to work."

  Chapter 10

  Lucas was reading the growing file on the Director with fading disbelief and increasing dismay. From his early life as a brilliant student he had rapidly climbed in the medical hierarchy in Brasil to positions of greater and greater influence which culminated with him founding and leading the Institute of Rejuvenation. He was thirty-two at the time.

  Ever since then the Institute had grown and flourished. Based on the fees charged but waived to Harrison and Helene and the number of rooms in Rejuvenation City Lucas calculated the ocean of money that flowed through the Director's hands. The sums, checked and rechecked, made his head spin.

  There were also many mysteries connected with the Director's life. He had been married young and sired several children but the whereabouts of that family was not to be found. Early in his Directorship there had been rumors in the scientific world of experiments in directed evolution with pigs, monkeys and, some were sure, humans. It was said that the human subjects were embryos created in vitro and discarded by the parents. No proof of human experimentation was ever produced but the results embodied in certain treatments seemed to support that hypothesis.

  Lucas was of the opinion that the man was clearly a psychopath, indifferent to other people except as they suited his ends, and quite capable of immense destruction if it suited him. One aspect of the Director's life was oddly comforting to Lucas as it applied to him and Maeve.

  The past twelve years had been filled with a constantly growing workload and combined with three constantly growing children. The combination, which effectively was the same for him and Maeve, had, over time gradually reduced their intimacy. The loss might have been relieved by occasional bouts of straying but in their positions it was just not possible as they were under scrutiny at all times.

  The situation had grown frustrating to the extreme for Lucas. Reading the file on the Director subtly changed his perspective on the matter. The idea of decades long concentration on a very large project began to seem more bearable and promised to eventually provide more time for a return to the close relationship of life before Gaia.

  It wasn't conscious, he didn't plan on rejuvenation therapy for himself necessarily, but doubling the effective work life and its attendant benefits made a kind of emotional sense to him. "Some psychopathic ways of looking at things might not be so bad," he thought.

  When he finished reading the file he sent for its author, one of his personal squad of information engineers. "Are you still learning new items about his life?"

  "There's certainly more to be learned," she said. She was Serena, an ethnic Brasilian chosen for this project because of her fluency in the language and doggedness as a researcher.

  "The early years of the Institute have been systematically expunged so I'm sure there's more to be learned there, but the important information is happening now. What exactly are they planning, who and what exactly are the women in the cavern, what are the facts of their births? Those are the important questions, in my opinion," she added.

  Lucas nodded. "Keep after it, ask for any help you need and keep me informed."

  When she left he checked Maeve's schedule and saw that she would be free in just a few minutes and on impulse went to her reception room. She saw him come in and wrapped up her meeting quickly.

  "Let's have lunch at my desk," said Lucas "fewer interruptions."

  Maeve smiled and rose to go with him wondering about his mood. When the door closed behind them he took her in his arms and kissed her soundly and after a shocked instant she melted more closely against his body and passionately returned the kiss. They parted slightly at the chime that announced that the robo-kitchen had prepared their lunches.

  "That was lovely," murmured Maeve still holding him close. "What brought it on?"

  He squeezed her against him again and said, "I'll explain later. Can we make time for sex tonight?"

  "Tonight and in the morning," she answered with a dash of their early sexual hunger.

  "Good. I don't want us to forget the important stuff."

  Maeve grew serious. "I'm glad. I've been worried about how hard it's been for us to find personal time. We're even missing a lot of time with the kids."

  "Is it still worth it to you?" he asked.

  "Oh, yes!" she said. "More than ever. But you're still important as well. We'll just have to be more conscious about scheduling. Maybe time for a visit to the Sky Cabin?"

  Lucas smiled.

  Chapter 11

  Sam sent a message to Lucas asking him to come to his office. This was enough out of the ordinary that Lucas quickly wrapped up his current task and rode the elevator down to Sam's secure stronghold. When he arrived he found the big man staring morosely at items on his desk.

  "What is it?" asked Lucas.

  "Look at this."

  "This" was a blood spattered sheet of artist's paper with a block printed message, "The High Priestess Will Die!"

  The blood had soaked through the paper and obscured some of the letters but the message was clear. Lucas looked at the envelope it had come in which was also soaked in blood and addressed to GAIA.

  "How did this get here?" he asked trying to keep his fear and anger response under control.

  Sam shook his head, "Found on the floor of the main vestibule this morning. No one knows how it got there."

  "What did your analysts find?" asked Lucas, sure that Sam's first moves were to seek fingerprints and DNA matches.

  "Not much. No prints, no body oils. The blood is from a cat."

  "A cat?"

  "Yeah. Our terrorist may also be a sadist."

  "What do you think?"

  "Well, somebody dropped it there."

  "Video?"

  "No. It was dropped from a hidden corner and pushed out to where it was visible."

  "One of our people?" Lucas asked incredulously.

  "Could be. Could have been a visitor."

  "Would a visitor know where all the surveillance cameras are?"

  "Not likely," rumbled the big man, "but possible."

  They stared at the missive together with worried looks.

  Sam said, "I've sent help to Cindy so all visitors will be x-rayed and searched before entering the Reception Room. I'd like to close down the Room entirely for a while but Maeve won't let me. We're reviewing everyone with access to the building including the visitors but so far we've found nothing."

  Lucas felt a tremor of anxiety. Someone from their own staff might be responsible and that brought with it a constellation of worries.

  "The children need to be safeguarded," he said.

  "They are. I sent two extra guards and they're staying behind locked doors until this is over."

  "We have to suspend the visits to see Maeve. At least temporarily."

  "Good. You tell her," said Sam.

  Lucas grimaced, "Okay, I will." A thought crossed his mind. "How about checking those school board people against the visitor's list to see if there's any overlap."

  Sam smiled at him. "We're doing that and I'm including anyone from that area."

  Lucas nodded. "We'll talk later."

  He hurried back to the Reception Room and burst in to find Maeve speaking with an ambassador from Nepal who was delivering a prayer mat woven especially for Maeve with the image of the Earth against a black, starry background. The globe was turned so that Nepal w
as at its center and written below it in Nepalese was the word for Peace.

  His entrance startled them all but he smiled at the ambassador and waited until she was ushered out before saying, "We have to suspend these audiences until we get to the bottom of this."

  Maeve saw the deep concern on his face and turned to Cindy, "Is there anyone too important to turn away out there?"

  Cindy checked her list, "No. And for what it's worth I agree with Lucas."

  Accepting the inevitable Maeve turned to him, "What do you want me to do?"

  "Stay safe. Work in your office if you must or go to our apartment. Give us the time to either find this nut or make fool-proof preparations."

  "I thought we had those in place," said Maeve.

  "So did I, but obviously not." He turned to Cindy, "Use everyone you need to. No mistakes."

  Cindy indicated the other two guards in the room and said, "We'll be with her at all times and the squad will be in the corridors and around the building."

  Mai Ling said, "I'll deal with the visitors and smooth them down and I'll postpone audiences for an indefinite time. Do you have any leads?"

  "Not yet, but we're on it. Sam's on it."

  Mai Ling nodded, "You'll find him. Or her."

  As the women cleared the Reception Room Lucas chided himself. The note had screamed "terrorist" to him and his model of a terrorist was a crazed young man with a head stuffed with propaganda, but of course it could be a woman.

  He passed through his own office to direct his information engineers to start a background search on all the visitors of the past two days looking for any suspicious connections. He then hurried back to Sam's office where he found him conferencing with Helene. She was staring at the letter Sam was holding in front of the screen very intently.

  "That looks like specialty paper," she said. "Where does it come from?"

  Sam set it down, "Don't know yet but that sounds like a good avenue to explore."

  "Is anyone there from Anarchic Artists? They might have an idea."

  She saw Lucas come into view. "Is Maeve all right?" she asked.

  "Oh yes. Safe and sound and heavily guarded. As are the children."

  Helene looked thoughtful. "No media," she said. "Not yet. Tell Mai Ling. Tell her to call me. This will need sensitive handling. It will get out and we'll want to control it. And Sam," she looked intensely at him through the screen, "don't let anything happen to her."

  "Don't worry, between me and Lucas and Cindy and two squads of guards we'll make sure she's safe."

  The screen went black and Sam said, "I'm putting the house on lockdown. No one in, no one out and I'm instituting a thorough search, room by room and person by person."

  Lucas nodded, "I'll come with you."

  Chapter 12

  Harrison was alone in his office staring at the closed door and drumming his fingers on the desktop. He was worried about Maeve and his great-grandchildren, worried about the Director and worried by Helene's inexorable drive to expand and strengthen Gaia. She had instituted an outreach program enlisting all Gaians to become proselytizers who sought to nullify opposition as much as gain adherents.

  Helene kept meticulous track of the efficacy of her programs and quickly dropped any that weren't achieving her goals. Recently she had been concentrating on the loose confederation of floating cities that ringed the continents. Several of the cities rode the Southern Gyre, a circulation of cold water from the Antarctic that had replaced the Gulf Stream when the melting of the arctic glaciers flooded the north Atlantic and turned the Gulf Stream off.

  The "floaters", as the cities and their inhabitants were called, ran on power generated by the waters beneath them, grew their food in Grow Towers, and made most of their foreign exchange funds by serving as off-shore addresses for businesses that wanted to avoid taxes. Their banking systems paid interest rates above the norm and lent it out to marine based enterprises for correspondingly higher rates. It was specialized niche banking best done by experts able to evaluate risk, so land based banks virtually conceded the field to them.

  Harrison was waiting for a visit from the titular President of the Southern Gyre Confederacy. It was a ceremonial position with no power at home, though Harrison was aware that this personage had the ability to strike many sorts of deals on his own. The Confederacy had gained conditional acceptance into the Gaian network and the President was coming to cement the deal.

  When the knock came on his door he rose to open it and usher in a well tanned man of late middle age. "Ah, Professor Barnes, so pleased to meet you. I am John Quixote."

  Harrison was suddenly all smiles and was pumping the President's hand warmly. "I thought I recognized your name but seeing you made me remember. You wrote "History of the Floating Cities". A wonderfully informative piece of work."

  The President looked pleased, "And I, for my part, was thoroughly excited to meet the author of the "Rise of the Urbanite".

  The two historians spent the next hour pleasantly talking shop and parsing fine points of development with each other. At noon they walked across to Helene's office where a lunch buffet had been set out for the three of them.

  "This is the only time I can give you, I'm afraid," said Helene, "but if we can agree on the last few points Harrison will be able to carry on without me."

  "I know how busy you are, Madam, and I appreciate the courtesy."

  Between bites they discussed what parts of the network would be necessary to open to them and how access would be paid for. With the details settled the President asked mildly, "Do you know the Director of Rejuvenao?"

  The question made Harrison and Helene look up warily. "Yes," said Harrison. "We've been there and met him. Why do you ask?"

  "He's sending a delegation to meet with me and our executive board about an experiment he wants to conduct. It sounds outrageous so I'm looking for background on him."

  "What sort of experiment?" asked Helene.

  "He wants to produce mermen," said the President.

  The remark left them flabbergasted.

  "Isn't that against the Convention on Human Rights?" asked Harrison.

  "I'm sure it is, but the Floating Cities are not covered by it, as I'm sure he knows."

  The three sat in silence for a long minute.

  "What will you do?" asked Harrison.

  "I don't know. It seems monstrous to me but I have no idea how the Board will see it. We'll certainly have to hear the details."

  "It is monstrous," said Helene. "It's playing dolls with people, embryos with no voice in the matter. What good can come out of it?"

  When the two men left Helene it was with the agreement to give the Confederacy access to the network and for Harrison to visit the President's home city sometime in the next year.

  "Please keep us informed about the Director and his work," said Harrison. "We're very interested."

  "I will. How soon do you think we can have access to your school system?"

  "That's done already. Helene included that as a priority in the order to let you in. You can start it up immediately. A message with instructions is probably on your system now."

  When they parted Harrison went back to Helene's office.

  "Mermen," he said, "space wanderers. Only a psychopath would think of doing these things."

  "Watch and wait," said Helene.

  "Your Free School For All program is the best thing you've done, I think," Harrison said sincerely. "The outliers find it a lifeline to the world that lets them live as they like but with access to the technology and philosophy of the globe. It was the most important item on the President's agenda."

  Helene nodded her thanks for the compliment.

  "Quixote. That's not his given name I don't think," she said. "Why do you think he chose it?"

  "Idealism," replied Harrison.

  Chapter 13

  Chipping was now nearly universal. Congress had passed the law making it mandatory eight years previously but it turned out to be ratifyi
ng the people's choice. For many reasons, most importantly medical, but for feelings of security as well, the majority of urbanites chose to join the herd and be chipped.

  Those who felt the need to escape what they saw as means of population control fled to the wild lands to join groups of like minded believers. More and more people in the cubes, meanwhile, became confirmed Insiders, never leaving the interiors of the buildings for the outside, traveling through the underground connections and generally avoiding direct exposure to the sun.

  Interestingly the Insiders formed the fastest growing segment of the Gaian movement. The less they went outside the more they supported Gaia. Gaian groups had been organized in nearly every cube in every city in the United States, many begun by emissaries from Maeve but many more arose spontaneously among people who were drawn to the idea and eager to take action.

  Much of Helene's attention was focused on integrating those groups into the over-arching organization and using their growing numbers to ongoing political effect. She needed political heft to carry out her long term aims of rewilding and reclaiming as much of the world as possible for Gaia. Her underlying mantra had become "Leave the animals alone."

  She and Harrison shared a deep worry about the threats to Maeve and the children. They felt sure that Lucas and Sam could provide the necessary security for them at the ranch but there were several public appearances scheduled and those loomed as major problems. One was the annual Gaia Gathering held on the anniversary weekend celebrating Moms' life and passing where tens of thousands of attendees wanted to mingle with each other and perhaps figuratively kiss the hem of Maeve's robes.

  Planning and preparation for the Gathering went on all year but it seemed particularly fraught under threat. Helene insisted on reviewing all aspects of the security plans and was obsessive about the details.

  "I don't know how the terrorists can live with themselves after the horrors they inflict," said Harrison.

  Helene looked at him fondly, "Well, half the time they blow themselves up so the question is moot. The other half...," she paused. "You agonize over the idea that you somehow insulted someone or hurt their feelings - you feel bad imagining the hurt - it's no wonder you don't understand. You have empathy, perhaps a bit too much at times. They have none. Their targets are not human in their minds and when they are human they enjoy the horrors they inflict."