Chapter 66 Sixty Seconds
Flora
"How many of these do we have?" I asked.
"Four," Catherine said, handing me three more. "Place them strategically near the artificial wombs if possible. Near any servers or computers containing research data."
"We are really doing this?" I asked.
"We are really doing this," Rafael confirmed.
The drive to the airfield was tense. Marco came with us, along with two of Vittorio's men who would pose as our security detail. The private plane was sleek and modern. The flight attendant greeted us with professional courtesy.
"Mr. Kask is looking forward to meeting you," she said.
The flight took three hours. I sat by the window, staring out at the clouds. Rafael held my hand the entire time.
"What are you thinking?" he asked.
"I am thinking about my twin," I said. "About what she will be like. If she will be like me. If she will hate me for what we are about to do."
"We are trying to save her," he reminded me.
"Are we?" I asked. "Or are we making her an orphan before she is even born?"
Rafael didn't respond.
We landed at a private airfield in the Swiss mountains. The scenery was beautiful, snow-capped peaks, pristine lakes, but I could not appreciate any of it. A black Mercedes with tinted windows was waiting. The driver was massive with the build of a professional bodyguard.
"Miss Marino. Mr. Valserro," he said in accented English. "Please, come with me."
We drove through winding mountain roads for thirty minutes. Finally, we turned through iron gates. Kask's estate sprawled before us. It was massive. Modern architecture. Glass and steel. Surrounded by high walls and security cameras.
The car stopped at the front entrance. Victor Kask himself was waiting. He was older than his photos suggested. Late sixties, gray hair perfectly styled, wearing an expensive suit. But his eyes were sharp.
"Flora," he said, stepping forward. "Welcome. I am so glad you came."
"Where are the children?" I asked immediately. "Where is my twin?"
"All in good time," Kask said smoothly. "First, let me show you around."
"We are not here for a tour," Rafael said. "We are here to see the embryos. That was the deal."
Kask's smile did not waver. "And you will. But first, I insist you see the scope of our operation. Otherwise, you will not truly understand what Project Genesis has become."
He gestured toward the entrance. "Please. After you."
Rafael and I exchanged a glance. This was it. The point of no return. We followed Kask inside.
The interior was stunning. Marble floors. Modern art. Floor-to-ceiling windows with mountain views. But I noticed the security. Cameras everywhere. Guards stationed at every door. This was not just an estate. It was a fortress.
Kask led us through hallways, talking the entire time about genetic research and the future of humanity. I tried to focus on his words, but my mind was racing, looking for opportunities, counting guards, memorizing exits.
Finally, we reached a door that required both a keycard and a fingerprint scan. "This is the medical wing," Kask said. "Where the real work happens."
The door opened. Beyond it was a corridor. White walls. Fluorescent lights. The smell of disinfectant. We walked down the corridor. Through another door. Into a large room filled with medical equipment.
And in the center of the room were six glass chambers. Artificial wombs. Each one contained a small form. Tiny. Fragile. Six fetuses. Six versions of me. All growing in machines instead of mothers.
"My God," I breathed.
Kask walked to the nearest chamber. "This is your twin. Subject L-02. Extracted from Sophia three days ago. Currently at eighteen weeks development. Healthy. Thriving."
I approached slowly, staring at the tiny form floating in artificial amniotic fluid. She had my DNA. My genetic code. She was my sister in every way that mattered.
"She has your DNA," Kask continued. "Your genetic potential. But unlike you, she will be raised from birth knowing her purpose. She will be perfection realized."
"She will be a prisoner," I said.
"She will be free from the limitations of normal humanity," Kask corrected. "As will her five siblings."
He gestured to the other chambers. "Each one represents a different genetic enhancement. Increased intelligence. Enhanced physical capabilities. Disease resistance. Together, they represent the next step in human evolution."
"They represent children," Rafael said. "Six children who deserve real families. Real lives."
"They will have better," Kask said. "They will have purpose. Direction. They will be the foundation of a new world order."
"You are insane," I said.
Kask's expression hardened. "I am the only one willing to do what is necessary. The only one with the vision to see past conventional morality to the greater good."
"There is no greater good in this," I said. "Only your ego and your god complex."
"Perhaps," Kask said. "But that does not change the facts. These children exist. They are growing. And in four months, they will be born. With or without your cooperation."
"We will never cooperate," Rafael said.
"Then you will die," a voice said from behind us.
We turned. Standing in the doorway, holding a gun, was Sophia Kask. But she looked different. Her eyes were cold. Her expression hard.
"Hello, Flora," she said. "I have been waiting to meet you."
"Sophia?" I said. "I thought, I thought your father betrayed you. I thought."
"You thought I was a victim?" Sophia laughed. It was a bitter sound. "I was. For about twenty-four hours. Then I realized something. My father was right. This is bigger than me. Bigger than any of us. And if I could not be the mother of the new humanity, I could still be part of creating it."
She raised the gun, pointing it directly at me.
"So thank you for coming," Sophia said. "Thank you for walking right into our trap. Because you see, we do not actually need your cooperation. We just need your body."
"What?" I breathed.
Kask smiled. "The serum Dr. Chen was developing. It requires fresh genetic material. Living tissue from the source. We were hoping you would join us willingly. But if not, we will simply take what we need."
"And then kill us," Rafael said.
"Eventually," Kask agreed. "But first, we will harvest everything we can. Bone marrow. Tissue samples. Eggs. Everything necessary to create hundreds more just like you."
"You will never get away with this," Rafael said.
"We already have," Sophia said. "No one knows you are here. No one is coming to save you. And by the time anyone realizes you are missing, you will be dead and dissected."
She cocked the gun.
"Any last words?" she asked me.
I looked at Rafael. At the man I loved. At the man who had stood by me through everything. I smiled sadly.
"I love you, Rafael."
"I love you too," he said.
And then I saw his hand move to his watch. He pressed the crown three times. I knew what that meant. The detonator was armed.
"What are you doing?" Kask demanded.
"Ending this," Rafael said.
And he pressed the crown one more time. Sixty seconds until everything exploded.