Mirrored Man: The Rob Tyler Chronicles Book 1 (24 page)

Don smiled with reassurance. “He probably
won't remember anything from more than the past day or two.”

“But it will have memories. How is that even
possible? I mean, I kind of understand the cloning stuff. Well, I
thought I did before you said that it's going to be an exact copy
of me, all grown up and everything
.
But cloned
memories?”

“Everything within the human body is either
chemical or electrical.” Don dumbed it down. “There are over a
hundred elements in us.” He pointed at the tank again. “See those
hoses that are connected to the ports on the wall?”

“Yeah.”

“Each one of them is ready to feed the
necessary raw materials to an umbilical that you can't see inside
the tank. It's the same process we used to produce the fluid and
grow the umbilical.”

“You've got an umbilical cord in there?”
Rob’s concern was replaced with fascination.

“We
grew
an umbilical in there, but
it's not a
cord
. Your clone will start out attached to the
umbilical and then grow from there, to put it much too simply. When
his body is complete, it will detach itself, leaving an exact
replica of your navel as it is now. The umbilical is ready to start
the process of clone building any time now.”

“But, I've only been here a little over two
weeks. You haven't scanned me yet.” Rob’s confusion was growing
again.

“We grew it yesterday in a matter of hours
using one of the DNA samples that we collected,” Don replied.

“Then, why can't you do the whole thing like
that? Why the scan?”

“Because amniotic fluid and umbilicals are
infinitely less complex than, oh, say your brain and nervous system
and other organs.”

Rob sighed again. “Makes sense I guess. If
you grew the umbilical in hours, how long will it take to grow the
clone?”

“Like he said earlier, just under a week,”
Jimmy answered. “Thanks to me.”

“Thanks to you?” Rob asked doubtfully.

“Believe it or not,” Don said with a smile,
“Jimmy wrote and applied the program that integrated all of the
computer systems, making the whole project possible.”

Jimmy pulled his surgical mask down, then
breathed on his gloved fingertips and pretended to polish his nails
on the front of his plastic suit.

“He even figured out a way to create this
fog of computers—”

“It's a cloud of computers. Not a fog,”
Jimmy corrected. “And I didn’t create it, I just found a
brilliant way to use it.”

“This
cloud
of computers that draws
on the computing power of the Internet to speed up the process. I
don't understand it. But that’s what makes it all possible.”

“Greater minds than yours have tried and
failed, Doctor Cook. So don’t feel bad,” Jimmy chided him.

“I knew that they must've had a reason for
you being here other than comic relief,” Rob said, feeling a bit
more like his old self again. “It's a good thing you have a real
job, Bennett. Because if you tried to make a living on stage, you'd
starve.”

“Buh dum chi.” Jimmy timed the rim shot
impeccably. He had to admit that there was something about Rob that
he liked.

“Without Jimmy, the professor might never
have seen his work completed,” Don said appreciatively.

Rob saw in Don a satisfaction in the
knowledge that Yeoum would be rewarded for his decades of effort.
He had noticed the father-son relationship the professor had with
Don, and with the rest of the team as well. Including Doctors Juan
Tiong and June Phillips, whose purpose in the facility precluded
Rob from having an occasion to speak with since introductions were
made.

“That's about it,” Don concluded. “After we
wake him up, the professor will interview him there”—he pointed to
the recliners—“ to find out what he knows, whether he has any
memories, if he can speak, that sort of thing.” Don patted Rob on
the back and said with more than a little excitement, “Just think,
Commander Robert Tyler. One week from tomorrow, you will be able to
see yourself in a way that no other human being in history ever
has, God willing.”

God willing.
To Don, it was just an
expression, like saying “good luck.” A hopeful verbalization, meant
only to invoke success in a particular undertaking.

But Rob knew one thing beyond certainty. No
matter what plans humans concoct, God's sovereign will always comes
through.

ROB SPENT THE NEXT
few hours of his
time exploring the complex. To his disappointment, he found no
signs of life. The cloning team was busily making preparations for
the coming day’s activities, and June and Tiong were tending to the
chimps. Even the rotating pair of NCIS agents had made themselves
scarce.

The facility had a cold sterile feel to it,
similar to the atmosphere of an old hospital. He was about to give
up and retire to his quarters when he happily stumbled upon the
parlor and the computer center. And more importantly, the
basketball goal, exercise equipment, and entertainment venues
within the center.

After working up a sweat shooting baskets,
he toweled off and headed to the parlor. The room was half the size
of the computer center, but its ceiling was lower at a standard
eight feet. The walls were of cherry-colored wood paneling on the
northern half, which was the living area. Stainless steel was on
the south walls, which contained a well-equipped kitchen, including
a cappuccino maker, popcorn machine, bread maker, and even a pizza
oven. The stainless steel counter wrapped around the perimeter,
where a wide variety of foods rested or were stored underneath. All
of the appliances were stainless steel, as was the island in the
center of the workspace where a six-burner stove and grill were
located. Over it, surrounding the hood fan, was a frame where every
kind of cooking utensil that Rob could imagine was hanging.

Rob's eyes came to rest on the oversized,
stacked refrigerator-freezer that beckoned to him. He was trying
hard to maintain his discipline, remembering Yeoum's promise of
“anything you want” after tomorrow’s scan.

He turned his attention to the other half of
the room. The focal point was hanging on the far wall above a
narrow eight-foot-long table, which was decorated with an
arrangement of flowers. From the 65-inch television, a news anchor
cheerfully reported the day’s topics of interest, though the sound
was muted. The floor was carpeted in a thick chocolate brown. Four
brown leather loveseats and six matching recliners were spaced out
to allow their occupants to have an unobstructed view of the
screen. There were small, plain, dark wooden tables interspaced
between them, one of which had a remote control resting on it. On
either side of the tv were three six-and-a-half-foot high
bookcases, each containing a wide variety of fiction and nonfiction
titles by some of today’s most popular authors. On the floor was a
plethora of gaming consoles, their controllers strewn about. The
entire area was lit by recessed ceiling fixtures, which bathed it
in a warm yellow light that completed the homey feel.

“The only other thing this room needs is a
fireplace. Don't you think?” He turned to face June and Don who had
quietly entered the room.

June nearly jumped out of her skin when Rob
spoke, unaware that he was there. She closed her eyes and folded
her arms over her chest in order to gather her composure.

“We weren't trying to sneak up on you,
Commander,” Don said.

“It's after hours, Doctor. You can call me
Rob.”

“Have you met Doctor June Phillips?”

“Like two ships passing in the night. When I
arrived.” He nodded toward June. “Doctor.”

“I thought we were dropping the titles,” she
admonished him. “Call me June.”

“June, then.”

“I think it would look good under the tv,”
she added, smiling.

“What would?” Don asked.

“The fireplace,” Rob explained. “There’s a
decided lack of a woman's touch in here, June. Some art work would
really spruce the place up.”

June took a few steps toward Rob as Don
turned on the lights in the kitchen and headed to the refrigerator.
“Anybody want a water?”

“Sure,” Rob said.

“Yeah, I'll take one, too,” replied June.
She turned back to Rob. “I don't plan on being around long enough
to have any further influence on the decor.”

“'
Further
influence?” Rob asked.

“Yeah. My contribution was the basketball
goal.”

“Nice, Doc. Maybe we can play a round of
horse sometime,” Rob suggested.

“Careful, Rob,” Don warned. “She's a
ringer.”

“Well, what's the point if there's no
challenge?”

“I may just take you up on that,” June
replied, smiling widely.

“Maybe we can recruit Jimmy and play some
two-on-two,” Don said.

Rob smirked. “I'll take June. Jimmy will be
picking himself up off of the floor too much to be of any use to
me.”

The other two chuckled at the implied
threat, and June asked, “Aww, has he been that bad?”

“Worse,” Don confirmed.

“He's nothing I can’t handle,” Rob said.

Don joined them in the living room. He
handed one of the bottles to June and tossed the other to Rob
before plopping down into one of the loveseats nearest the table
with the remote. As he reached for the controller, he munched on a
handful of grapes and began flipping channels, but he left the
sound muted.

“I know how to handle Jimmy,” June stated
with assurance.

“So do I,” Rob grinned.

Deciding to break the ice in some way other
than discussing Jimmy’s demise, June asked, “What hoops did you
have to jump through to get furloughed from the labs?”

“I had to promise not to break my promise,”
Rob answered slyly.

“What promise?”

“My diet.”

June cocked her head questioningly.

“It seems the professor thinks I'm one of
your chimps. He's had me on nothing but fruits, vegetables, and
vitamin supplements. With a heavy emphasis on bananas.”

“For potassium,” Don chimed in. “Because we
don't want you cramping up during the scan tomorrow. And don't
forget plenty of water, too.”

June looked at Don as he popped another
grape into his mouth. “Tomorrow? I thought it was going to be
another week.”

“You can give the credit to super stud over
there. This man," he gestured toward Rob with a grape, "is in
excellent physical condition for a man
my
age, let alone
his.” He added with a wink.

“Please, Doctor,” Rob said in mock
embarrassment. “You're gonna make me blush.”

June furrowed her brow and pursed her lips.
“Ooh, a regular Arnold Schwarzenegger macho man, huh?”

“I prefer to think of myself as an Audie
Murphy type.”

“I used to watch his movies with my parents
when I was a kid,” she said, nodding approvingly.

“What’s your favorite?”

“
The Red Badge of Courage
.”

“
To Hell and Back
.”

Don frowned. “Who?”

Rob's smile vanished, drawing laughter from
June as she sat on the arm of the loveseat opposite Don. Realizing
he would get no answer, he went back to his channel surfing.

“So, do you work out a lot?” June asked.

“Well, being in the military, I have to
maintain myself physically. And over the past few months, I had
occasion to put in a little extra time.” His smile returned as he
remembered the excruciating five-day-a-week routine he had punished
Danny Carter with.

“Has Juan taken you to see the babies?”

“Babies? Oh, you mean the chimps? No, I'm
sorry to say that visiting with
the babies
hasn't been high
on my list of priorities since I got here. I've been … busy.”

“You've got some time tonight. I'd be happy
to introduce you,” June suggested.

“Maybe after I have dinner.” He started
toward the kitchen. “Can't eat anything after six o'clock.”

“That stinks,” June sympathized. “’Til
when?”

“Tomorrow night. Then it's party time,” Rob
said, clapping and then rubbing his hands together. “There’s
gonna be steak and a baked potato and—”

“At the
earliest
, tomorrow night,”
reminded Don. “So long as the scan is successful.”

Rob stopped in his tracks. “What?”

Don grimaced, “Didn't the professor tell
you?”

“Tell me what?”

“Well, if anything goes wrong with the
scan—”

“What could go wrong with the scan?” June
and Rob asked simultaneously.

June looked from Don to Rob and back again.
“I thought you only needed to do the scan once. That's all it took
with Paris and Charlie.”

Don looked threateningly at June. “Thank
you,” he mouthed.

“Did we leave something out during my
orientation, Doctor?” Rob asked turning toward him.

Don had strict orders not to discuss the
side effect with Rob under any circumstances. Don had protested at
first, believing that the commander had a right to know. But Yeoum
had reminded him that the unwanted effect had only manifested
itself in the chimps. None of the other test animals had shown any
sign of it. Even if the effect presented itself in the “human test
subject,” as the professor had referred to Rob, they needed only to
keep the donor and clone apart. Yeoum had emphasized that if it was
made known to the powers-that-be that this “little wrinkle” exists,
it could spell the end of their work and ruin them both. Once the
human was cloned, they could revisit the issue of the side effect,
if necessary.

“The other subjects were under anesthesia
during the scanning process.”

“Why? Why them and not me?”

Don needed an answer that would satisfy Rob
but not send any red flags June's way. Before she and Tiong had
arrived, Don and the professor had used some questionable
techniques to advance their work. He wouldn't risk not being able
to complete the project. At any cost. Finally, with an exasperated
look, he said, “Did you ever try to make a chimp lay still for six
hours?”