Chapter 64 Invitation to Switzerland
Flora
The next morning, I woke up to find Rafael standing by the window, staring out at the city. He had not slept. I could tell by the tension in his shoulders, the dark circles under his eyes.
"Rafael," I said softly.
He turned. "You should rest more. We have a long day ahead."
"So do you," I pointed out. "But you have been up all night, haven't you?"
He did not deny it. "I was thinking."
"About?"
"About how to keep you safe," he said. "About how insane this plan is. About how much I hate every part of it."
I got out of bed and walked over to him. "I know you are scared. I am scared too."
"Then do not do this," Rafael said, taking my hands. "We can disappear. New identities. New country. We could—"
"Run for the rest of our lives?" I finished. "Always looking over our shoulders? Always wondering when Kask will find us? That is not living, Rafael. That is just surviving."
"Surviving is better than dying," he said bluntly.
"Is it?" I asked. "Because right now, six children are being carried by women who probably do not understand what they are part of. Six versions of me are going to be born into Kask's control. And if I run, if I hide, I will spend every day knowing I could have stopped it."
Rafael's jaw clenched. "This is not your responsibility."
"Yes, it is," I said. "They are my genetic siblings. They share my DNA. They are being created because of me, because of what I am. If I do not try to help them, who will?"
He pulled me into his arms, holding me tight. "I cannot lose you. Not like I lost Eva. I cannot go through that again."
"You will not," I promised, even though I was not sure I could keep that promise.
There was a knock on the door. Catherine entered, carrying a laptop.
"We have a problem," she said.
"Another one?" Rafael asked bitterly.
Catherine set the laptop on the table, pulling up a news website. The headline made my stomach drop. Billionaire Victor Kask Announces Revolutionary Genetic Therapy Program.
Below it was a photo of Kask at a press conference, smiling confidently.
"He went public," I breathed.
"Twenty minutes ago," Catherine said. "He is claiming he has developed a cure for genetic diseases. Says he has been funding research for decades and is finally ready to share it with the world."
Rafael scanned the article. "This is a cover. He is legitimizing his operation before we can expose him."
"Exactly," Catherine said. "If we go to the authorities now and say he is illegally implanting genetically modified embryos, he will just say we are trying to sabotage his legitimate research."
"So he is untouchable," I said.
"Not untouchable," Marco said, entering behind Catherine. "But protected. Very protected. He has the Swiss government backing him. Medical ethics boards praisinghim. Half the scientific community calling him a genius."
"Because they do not know the truth," Rafael said.
"And we cannot prove the truth," Vittorio added, joining us. "Not without access to those surrogates. Not without proof that the embryos came from the Moscow facility."
I sat down heavily. "So meeting him is our only option."
"It is the fastest option," Catherine corrected. "We could spend months, maybe years, building a case. But by then, those six children will be born. And Kask will have complete control over them."
"What about the surrogates?" I asked. "Can we find them? Talk to them directly?"
"We are trying," Marco said. "But they are well hidden. Probably in private clinics. Probably under guard."
"One of them is his daughter," I reminded them. "Sophia Kask. She is carrying my twin. Can we find her?"
Catherine pulled up another file. A photo of a young woman, maybe twenty-five, with blonde hair and sharp features.
"Sophia Kask," Catherine said. "Twenty-six years old. Graduated from Oxford. Works in her father's company. And according to our sources, she is sixteen weeks pregnant."
I stared at the photo. This woman was carrying my twin. A version of me that would be born in less than six months.
"Have you contacted her?" I asked.
"We tried," Marco said. "She is not answering calls. Her social media went dark three weeks ago. We think her father has her completely isolated."
"She is a prisoner," I said.
"Or a willing participant," Vittorio suggested. "Some people believe in their family's cause, no matter how twisted."
"We need to know which," I said. "If she is being forced, maybe we can help her. Maybe she will help us."
Rafael was shaking his head. "This is getting too complicated. Too many variables."
"It was always complicated," I said. "But we have to try."
My phone buzzed. Unknown number. Again. I looked at Rafael. He nodded. I answered.
"Hello?"
"Flora," Victor Kask's smooth voice came through. "I hope you have had time to consider my offer."
I put it on speaker so everyone could hear. "I have questions," I said.
"I expected you would," Kask said. "That is why I am inviting you to visit me. Switzerland. My private estate. You will have a chance to see everything. Ask anything. Meet the mothers carrying your genetic siblings."
"Including your daughter?" I asked.
A pause. "Including Sophia, yes. She is very excited to meet you."
"Why her?" I asked. "Why is your daughter carrying my twin?"
"Because she understands the importance of this work," Kask said. "Because she believes, as I do, that Project Genesis represents humanity's future. And because she wanted to be part of something greater than herself."
"Or because you manipulated her into it," I said.
Kask laughed. "You can ask her yourself. Come to Switzerland. See the truth with your own eyes."
"And if I refuse?"
"Then we will never speak again," Kask said. "And those six children will grow up never knowing their genetic sister. Never understanding where they came from. Is that what you want, Flora? To abandon your family?"
The word family made my skin crawl.
"When?" I asked.
"Tomorrow," Kask said. "I will send a private plane. You and Mr. Valserro are both welcome. And Miss Morelli, if she wishes to join."
"How generous," Rafael said sarcastically.
"I am not your enemy," Kask said. "The sooner you understand that, the better. I will send the details within the hour."
He hung up. We all looked at each other.
"It is a trap," Marco said immediately.
"Of course it is a trap," I agreed. "But it is also our only chance to see what he is really doing. To find those women. To gather evidence."
"We will be on his territory," Vittorio warned. "His security. His rules."
"Then we make sure we have backup," Catherine said. "I have contacts in Switzerland. People who can be nearby, just in case."
"Just in case of what?" Rafael asked. "Just in case he decides to kill us and make it look like an accident?"
"He will not kill us," I said, though I was not entirely sure. "He wants me alive. He wants me to join him. He will not risk that by murdering me the moment I arrive."
"But after you refuse?" Rafael countered. "What happens then?"
I did not have an answer for that.
An email arrived on Catherine's laptop. The travel details from Kask. A private airfield. Tomorrow at noon.
"We have less than twenty-four hours to prepare," Catherine said.