The Golden Couple (The Samantha Project Series, # 2) Read online

  “I talked to the medical examiner who did Dan’s autopsy. He said there was a drug in Dan’s body that’s not even on the market yet. It’s in clinical trials at GlobalLife Pharmaceuticals. If administered in very high doses, it burns the skin from the inside out. You feel like your body is on fire. And then paralysis follows. So Dan must have jumped in the water trying to relieve the burning and then the paralysis hit and he drowned.”

  “Are you sure about that?” Jack kept his voice down.

  “I talked to the medical examiner myself. I tried contacting him later to ask him more about it, but it’s like he disappeared. I don’t know if he went into hiding or if GlobalLife got him, too.”

  “How would GlobalLife know that Dan had this file?”

  “I don’t know, Jack. Maybe they could see that the file was copied from their server. Dan’s house was burglarized soon after he died. Nothing was taken, but they tore the place apart. They had to have been looking for that CD.”

  “So the information in that file is worth killing for.” Jack said it slowly, as if something had just occurred to him.

  “Yes. And I can’t believe I’m still alive with that in my possession all these years. I’m guessing GlobalLife figured it didn’t exist after all. Either that, or they didn’t know where to look next.”

  There was silence for a minute. Then Jack finally spoke. “Paul, what you’re saying is that—”

  “I’m saying that what you found on that disk is the real deal. That’s the answer you’ve been looking for, Jack. Although I know it’s the last answer you expected. Or wanted.”

  Jack lowered his voice. “If this is true, then I don’t know what to do now. This changes everything.”

  “Are you going to tell Sam and Erik?”

  “Yes, I have to. They need to know.”

  Jack stood up and I snuck back outside. Erik, Colin, and Brittany were laughing and kicking a soccer ball around in the back yard.

  “Hey, come inside,” Jack called from the kitchen. “We need to talk.”

  “Aww, do we have to, Dad?” Erik called back, using a child’s voice. “But you told us to play outside.”

  Colin laughed. “Yeah, come on. Just a few more minutes.”

  “This is serious,” Jack said. “Get inside.”

  Everyone filed into the house and sat at the table, where Paul was already seated.

  “I got the file open,” Jack announced.

  “Yeah, so what did it say?” Erik asked.

  Jack sighed. “I don’t know how to tell you this. I can’t even find the right words.”

  “We’ve heard just about everything by now, Dad. I don’t think you can shock us anymore.”

  “That code you figured out, Erik, was right. This file identifies the source of those unique nucleobases in your genes. The ones that we need in order to repair that section of your DNA and stop the timer.”

  I was getting impatient. “Yeah, we know all that. So what are they? Where did they come from?”

  Jack hesitated. “Well, they’re uh, they’re not from Earth.” He paused for a moment. “What I’m trying to say is that they’re not human. The base pairs came from alien DNA.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  Options

  Erik laughed. “That’s real funny, Dad. So what does it really say?”

  Jack’s tone darkened. “I’m not kidding, Erik.”

  “I get it, Jack,” I said. “You heard us talking about aliens earlier, so now you’re making a joke about it.” I turned to Paul. “We were looking at some of your books, Paul. Hope that’s okay.”

  Paul didn’t answer. He kept his eyes on Jack.

  “I wouldn’t joke about something like this,” Jack said. “I can’t believe it myself. In a million years I wouldn’t consider this to be a possibility. I never even believed in aliens. Well, I believe other life forms exist in some far off galaxy but not—”

  “Wait a minute,” Erik stopped him. “So this isn’t some stupid joke you’re playing on us? Because now I’m almost starting to think that you’re serious.”

  Jack sighed. “I don’t know how else to say this to make you believe me. According to this file, those nucleobases in your DNA—the ones that I’ve never been able to identify—are from an alien life form.”

  “Then the file is fake,” I insisted. “You can’t trust anything it says.”

  “She’s right,” Erik agreed. “This is a hoax, probably to get us to go on some off-beat path looking for something that doesn’t exist.”

  “But nobody knew we would open it,” Jack pointed out. “Anyone could have opened that file.”

  “Well, it found us. So is that just a coincidence?” I asked.

  “It was given to Paul, not us,” Jack corrected.

  Erik and I shot a suspicious glance at Paul.

  “Don’t start making accusations that aren’t true,” Jack warned. “I knew Dan, the guy who made this file. And like Paul was saying earlier, Dan wouldn’t steal this information from GlobalLife and preserve it on a disk if it wasn’t of utmost importance. And he wouldn’t have given it to just anyone.”

  “If this shit were true, then he would have emailed the file to the news media,” Erik said. “You don’t hide something like that in some bank deposit box.”

  “GlobalLife owns stakes in the major news outlets, Erik. This would never get out. And if it ended up at some reporter’s desk, do you think they would even believe this? Only a handful of people would take this seriously.”

  “I had no idea that’s what was on the disk,” Paul admitted. “I thought it was just backup files from some old GlobalLife research. As you can tell from my books, I love a good conspiracy, but even I never would have guessed this could be true.”

  Colin leaned over to see the laptop screen. “What else is on the disk? Is there information on how they got these base pairs?”

  “Yes,” Jack said. “I was getting to that. The file describes an archeological site in northern Greece. The site was discovered in the 1980s. I remember hearing news stories about that. When they began uncovering the site, they found tombs filled with ancient artifacts. It was really amazing how well things had been preserved.”

  “So what does that have to do with the base pairs?” I demanded. I didn’t mean to yell at Jack, but I needed him to get to the point.

  “In one of the tombs, there were drawings on the wall. Some of them showed stick figures coming down from a circular shape in the sky. Here’s a photo of one of the drawings.” Jack turned the laptop so we could all see. The drawing did look like a man coming from a spaceship.

  Jack continued. “The tomb had all kinds of pottery, gold, a few jewels. But they also found a stone box that contained remains of something that didn’t appear to come from an animal or a human. When it was analyzed, they found the remains were made of elements not found on Earth. According to this file, further analysis revealed that the remains contained an alien form of DNA.”

  “So who’s ‘they’ that you keep talking about? Who discovered this?” Erik asked.

  “GlobalLife. Their agricultural division was trying to buy up land in Greece for years because of its moderate climate. The country has excellent growing conditions, making it perfect for their seed testing. Some of the land they wanted to buy was in and around a rural village. The Greek people would only approve the land purchase if GlobalLife Ag agreed to build some basic infrastructure in the area. In the process of doing that, they had to dig up and level the ground in some spots. One day, they dug right into the top of this buried tomb.”

  Jack brought up some photos of the excavation site and showed them to us.

  “The Greek people were outraged because they said the excavation work should be done by local archeologists,” Paul added.

  “But GlobalLife used their power to get that shot down,” Jack explained. “So nobody really knew what they found in the tomb, other than what they gave to a local museum, which wasn’t much.”

  Erik and I d
idn’t respond, so Jack kept talking. “Going back to the file, it says that GlobalLife Genetics isolated the alien genes and began experiments in which they inserted the genes into lab mice. But it didn’t work so well. The mouse DNA wasn’t sure what to do with foreign material. So GlobalLife told it what to do, using microscopic computers and software. And it worked. That led them to the idea to use software to control what the genetic material did once it was in the cells. And that’s how we ended up here.”

  I still refused to believe it. The scientist in me wanted more proof. “How detailed is that file? Does it include a breakdown of the base pairs’ composition? Does it show sequencing?”

  Jack pointed to the laptop. “Yes, that’s all in here; the history of the base pairs and the science behind them. Honestly, I don’t know how Dan even got this information out of the building. He was in IT security, but they watch those guys like you wouldn’t believe.”

  “Does it say if this alien thing had special abilities?” Erik asked.

  “Some of the drawings from the tomb did show what appeared to be superhuman abilities. One showed a man lifting a huge rock over his head to indicate great strength. Another showed a line between the minds of two stick figures, probably to show telepathy. These are all in here.” Jack scrolled down the file, showing us the images.

  I ignored the drawings. “What about the software that controls it. Is that described, Jack?”

  “No, not the type that was used in the human experiments. This file doesn’t even mention the human trials.”

  Jack closed the laptop, then sat back in his chair. “I have to admit that I thought this was a hoax at first, too.” Jack hesitated. “But Paul has reason to believe that Dan was killed because of what was in this file. And I’m starting to think that he’s right. GlobalLife wouldn’t want anyone to know about this.”

  The room got silent. “Also, there’s so much detail in this file that I have to believe this is real,” Jack said. “And just to verify that this originally came from GlobalLife, I did check for the GlobalLife seal that’s built into every file. I had to hunt for it, but it was there.”

  “I need to get some fresh air.” I raced outside, feeling like I might throw up.

  It was dark out now and I could hear the sounds of an owl close by in a tree. I sat down and focused on its call, trying to calm myself. “It’s crazy,” I said aloud to myself. “There’s no way. It’s gotta be some type of joke.”

  I heard the screen door squeak open. It was Colin. He came and sat down next to me. “Do you want to talk about it?”

  Tears began running down my face. “This can’t be true, Colin. And if it is, then I can’t deal with it. I can’t. I don’t want to.”

  Colin put his arm around me but didn’t say anything. He didn’t get upset about the news because he knew I was upset enough for the both of us. We made a good couple that way. Whenever one of us was stressed, the other person remained calm. It had always been that way and I loved that about us.

  “Why is this happening to me? It’s too much. I still haven’t gotten over what they did to my parents.” The tears flowed even more when I thought of my parents. I had tried so hard to get over their deaths. I had come to accept that I would never see them again, but my grief for them still lingered.

  Colin held me closer. He kissed my forehead as I rested my head on his shoulder.

  “I’m barely keeping it together, Colin. I mean, I keep telling myself that I’ve moved on, that I’m okay now, but the truth is, I’m not at all. I miss them so much, especially now, when I need them more than ever.”

  “Then tell me that, Sam. You don’t have to hide that stuff from me. I don’t ask you about it because you always act like you’re fine.”

  “Well, I’m not fine. I feel so alone without them.”

  “You’re not alone. I’ll always be here for you.”

  I pushed him away. “Why? Why would you want to be with me, Colin? Didn’t you hear what Jack said? I’m not even human! Part of me is alien! Like little green men alien!” I couldn’t believe what I was saying.

  “Sam, I don’t care what’s in your cells.” Colin laced his hand in mine. “I love you. You know that.”

  “Then you’re crazy. Or you must have a thing for aliens.” I said it seriously, but the silliness of the words helped put a stop to my tears. “This whole alien thing. It can’t be real, right? Do you think it’s true?”

  “I don’t know. That was the last thing I expected Jack to say. But he seems pretty confident that it’s true and that the file is legit.”

  “I can’t believe that a company like GlobalLife would be able to just take the remains of an alien as their own property. That’s assuming the story is true, which I’m not convinced that it is. But still, how could the world’s leaders or the world’s top scientists allow something like that to go to a corporation?”

  “It just shows you how powerful GlobalLife is. And how connected they are.”

  “Come on, Colin. An alien? Found in a tomb? That would be the biggest discovery of all time. Even if nobody knew what to do with it, a discovery like that belongs to everyone, not to some corporation. It should be in a museum.”

  “Maybe the world leaders, scientists, or whoever thought the remains were useless. And then GlobalLife found out that they weren’t. Or maybe they allowed GlobalLife to have the alien remains hoping for an even bigger discovery like—” Colin stopped.

  “What bigger discovery? What were you gonna say?”

  “Nothing. I was just thinking out loud.”

  “No. What’s the bigger discovery that everyone is waiting for?”

  But before he could answer, it hit me. “Erik and me. That’s what you mean, right? We’re an even bigger discovery than the alien?”

  “I don’t know. I guess. I mean, finding the alien would be huge news. But then what? People would lose interest. The real story would be finding out how we could use the alien remains to improve life on Earth, right? Something like that would get attention. And could change life as we know it.”

  “You’re right. The people who know about this would want to keep it a secret. Because if it did turn out to be some life-changing discovery, GlobalLife and whoever else is involved in this would make billions.” I paused to think about it. “Erik and I are proof that the alien genes can live in humans. We’re proof that the genes can give people these powers. That’s why GlobalLife will do anything to get us back.”

  “Sam, can I talk to you?” Erik was standing at the screen door behind us.

  Colin got up. “I’ll leave you two alone.”

  “Thanks, Colin.”

  Erik came outside and stared into the dark woods. “Look. No fireflies. Makes me miss home. Before all this happened.”

  “Yeah. That seems so long ago.” It was hard to believe how much had changed in just a week. “So how are you feeling? Because I’m a total mess.”

  Erik sighed as he sat down next to me. “I’m right there with you.”

  “What have they been talking about inside?”

  “My dad was showing me the file. Paul was talking about the gene sequences a little. He thinks that GlobalLife is trying to create different gene sequences using these base pairs so they can patent and sell them along with the software that goes with them.”

  “Great. Just what the world needs.” I said sarcastically. “And these are the same sequences that are in us?”

  “Yeah. Well, Paul says that you probably have more of them since you’re younger than me. He said that GlobalLife probably tried some new sequences in you that they didn’t put in me in order to give you even more abilities.”

  “So what are you saying, Erik? That you believe this now?”

  “If you see what’s in that file, Sam, it’s pretty convincing.”

  “I still don’t believe it.”

  “If it is true, what do you think?”

  “It makes me hate GlobalLife even more! I just want to annihilate them. And everyone in
volved with this project. And I’m not a violent person.”

  “I know you’re not. I feel the same way.”

  “I already hated GlobalLife for messing with our DNA. But this is so much worse. Putting nonhuman substances into our cells? Making us into, I don’t know what we are—alien-human hybrids? It makes me sick just saying it.”

  “I guess my dad shouldn’t have got you those alien earrings,” Erik joked.

  I jabbed his arm. “Erik, this isn’t funny.”

  “I know. Sorry. When I can’t deal with shit, I turn to humor.”

  “It’s okay. I can’t deal with it either. I already had enough to worry about. This alien thing was the last straw. It’s more than I could handle. And now you’re saying that GlobalLife put some proprietary genetic cocktail inside of us that they hope to mass produce some day?”

  “It’s just Paul’s theory, Sam. We don’t know if he’s right.”

  “Why else would GlobalLife be doing this? They want power and profits. Selling superhuman genes to the highest bidder seems pretty profitable to me.”

  “Well, as long as they never catch us, then they’ll never be able to test what the genes can do.”

  “But as long as it’s in us, they’ll be hunting us down for the rest of our lives.” I realized after I said it that the rest of our lives wasn’t really that long.

  “Erik, you know what it means if these base pairs really did come from alien genes?”

  He stared at the ground. “It means that my dad won’t be able to shut the timer off.”

  “So we have two options. We either go back to GlobalLife or—” I stopped, not wanting to say it.

  Erik looked up at me. “Or we die.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Waiting

  “Sam? Erik?” Jack called from the door behind us. “I need you two to come inside. We have to talk next steps. Plans have changed a little.”

  Erik and I got up and went to the living room. Colin, Brittany, and Paul were sitting there waiting for us. Erik sat in a chair next to his dad. I took a seat next to Colin.

  “This latest, um, discovery,” Jack began, “does not change the fact that we need to slow the timer function in the two of you.”