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“Where are you going?”
“I’m outta here. I don’t know what you’re trying to prove, but I don’t want any part of it. Those are just kids over there, but those men coming in the boats were anything but kids. They’re gonna fucking kill us both.”
“You’re so dramatic! Could you be any more baby-like?”
“Baby-like? You and your father are both stark raving mad. Go to hell!” He walked toward his car, and Shaw screamed at him.
“You’ll never get into another program!”
“Good. I think I’ll change my major anyway. And if you attempt to stop that, I have copies of everything you’ve done. Everything!” Shaw stared at him, open-mouthed in shock.
“That’s right. Doctor. I’m not just some idiot grad student. I’m a tech wizard, and while you were trying to figure out how to make the fucking camera work, I was recording it all. You, your father, the kids, everything. Every fucking thing. You attempt to come after me, and I will make sure that they torture and kill you.”
He couldn’t even think of anything to say as the young man sped away in his old Corolla. Peering through the trees, he saw two boats pull up to the old fort, more than a dozen men stepping off. They were all quite large and did look a bit intimidating. Time for a quick exit.
His little Volkswagen Beetle wasn’t a sports car, but it was a Turbo. He sped off as quickly as he could, headed to the only place he felt safe. Their family lake house.
The experiments had started quite accidentally. With his mother undergoing treatments for breast cancer, she was on a strict regimen of medications and chemotherapy. Because his father was a medical professional, at the time he was still in undergraduate school, the doctors allowed the treatments to be given at home.
After working diligently one day, his father looked up to see that it was hours past her treatment time. When he entered the bedroom, her face was filled with fear, panic, and pain. That’s when it hit them. What if they could make that disappear?
It took a while to find someone willing to fund the experiment. The equipment had all been a gift from the North Koreans.
“Consider it an advance on your study,” smiled General Cao.
“We appreciate that,” said his father, “but cash is what we need to sustain the study right now. We have to hire additional help.”
“No more than three people must know about this,” said the general.
They’d hired more than three people, but the general was in North Korea. How would he ever know that? Their work would change the world. Soldiers, sailors, airmen who never felt fear, never backed down. They would be invincible!
Those that came before them would pale in comparison. Their studies would prove that the amygdala could be trained to no longer have fear. Only fight.
Picking up his cell phone, he dialed his father’s number once again. This time, it went to voicemail as well.
“Dad! Where the hell are you? I’m at the house on the lake. We had a problem at the fort. Christina, the last girl, was taken. That idiot grad student of yours ran off. Just call me back so we can make a plan. General Cao is expected here tomorrow.”
Busying himself around the house, he thought he heard a soft hum, like that of a radio. He walked from room to room, but as he approached the living room, he realized it was coming from outside. He opened the door, not seeing anything in the small front yard. His closest neighbor was several hundred yards away.
A muffled sound of thunder fired through the sky, causing him to look up. A drone. A drone fired at his car, taking out all four tires before he could even move.
“Cao. It must be Cao!” he cursed under his breath.
“Not Cao,” said Nine. “But you’re going to wish it were by the time I’m done with you.”
Turning, he thought to run back into the house, but it was blocked by three very large, very angry-looking men.
“Wh-who are you?” he stammered. “I’ll call the police!”
“Please,” laughed Ghost. “I’ll even let you use my cell phone. I’d love for you to explain to them all the experiments you did on kids. Teenagers. You branded them with a tattoo, instilled fear in them, then exposed them to their ultimate fear. You’re a real piece of work, Bobby.”
“Don’t call me that!”
“Sorry, I thought Bobby was your name. I mean, your father is Bob, so typically, the junior is Bobby.”
“I’m Bob!”
“Wow, are you sure?” smirked Ian. “You’re acting an awful lot like a Bobby.”
