Page 18 of Sinner
Eight
Flint sensedthe boss-man was in a mood the minute he waltzed into the lab. Cut from steel, Julius’s face was stern, harsh and prepared for battle. Except, what was he fighting for?
Two men followed Julius into the room. One was brown-skinned and wore an official military uniform. A decorated officer. Older, graying on top, sharp lines around his shrewd eyes. The second man was a Japanese businessman, shorter, but no less imposing. He wore a suit that shouted money, and an aura that screamed importance.
Julius barely glanced at Flint and Mary, but followed Gloria to the viewing window. The other two men joined him. They must assume Flint had clearance to be in there.
When Mary touched his arm in a way that suggested they don’t move, he realized he’d been holding his breath.
“As you can see, they’re in perfect health,” Julius said, waving his arm at the window.
“Yes,” said the Japanese man, heavily accented. “But we’re not interested in perfect health.”
“We want results,” the military man concluded.
“Results take time,” Gloria said. “We’ve discussed this.”
“And I think we have had enough time,” Julius said, his voice eerily calm, as though he knew things no one else did. “We’ve had eight years of time and all you’ve got to show are some screaming shit factories who rarely get sick and heal fast. But all we’ve seen are minor scratches and grazes. You promised more, Gloria. It’s time to deliver on that promise.”
“We’ve demonstrated their ability to sense their particular sin with a hundred percent accuracy. You’ve seen them heal. They’re stronger than the average child. They’re brighter, smarter… what more do you want?”
“In your investment proposal, you promised they would develop special abilities from the moment they were born,” the military man said, dark eyes darting as he recalled. “You sited borrowing skills such as shapeshifting from other creatures. Potential invulnerability. Possible psychic powers, poison production, camouflage and there was another animal sampled… what was it again?”
“Electric Eel,” Julius offered.
“Yes. That’s right. Electrical powers. As far as I can see, none of that is there.”
“I know what I promised.” Gloria’s shoulders pulled up tight and her head shook from side to side in a nervous tick. “I’m well aware what was in the proposal.”
“So, what evidence can you demonstrate?”
“It’s not something we can turn on like a tap.” Gloria’s head kept shaking, trembling from side to side. “It’s not on demand. They’re not machines.”
“Gloria, focus,” Julius said, pursing his lips.
She made a strained sound and squeezed her eyes shut. She took deep breaths and calmed herself. When she met Julius’s eyes, her own were unreadable. “The powers will grow with the children. You don’t arm a child with a gun, so we don’t arm them with deadly powers until they’re old enough to handle them. There are protocols. Rules.”
“Cut off one of their limbs,” declared the Japanese man. “If what you say is true, it will grow back. I want to see this fabled regeneration.”
The air solidified in Flint’s lungs, and Mary gasped beside him. Gloria’s face turned a sickly yellow and for the first time since the men had arrived, she looked to Mary for guidance.
Mary’s eyes darkened in a way that Flint had never seen before. Danger thundered in the atmosphere. Her posture stiffened. For the first time, Flint truly believed she wasn’t a nun, and something else entirely. What did she call herself? Like a CIA agent?
Who was this woman he had fallen in love with?
Uncertainty swam in his gut, but she’d told him the truth when he’d asked. That wouldn’t have been easy. For all she knew, he could have exposed her truth the before Flint wearing a suit and tie.
Mary gave Gloria an almost imperceptible nod.
The fear faded from Gloria’s eyes and she jutted out her chin. “I’m not torturing these children.”
“They’re not children. They’re experiments. And we own them,” Julius clipped. “You’ll do as you’re told, otherwise we’ll end this all right now. They have wasted enough resources. We can start again, assess your research, work out what went wrong and… Gloria. Are you listening?”
But Gloria was bending over, clutching her stomach, groaning. Her face had screwed up, and she developed a labored breathing pattern.
“Contraction,” she bit out.
Mary launched from Flint’s side and went to Gloria, smoothly nabbing something from a lab countertop. Nobody else saw, but Flint did. She hid it behind her back in a stealthy move.
