Tripple Chronicles 1: Eternity Rising (7 page)

Camden’s
phone rang in his coat pocket and he and Aldretti both jumped at the break in
the silence.
 
They stared at each
other waiting for the other to respond.
 
Finally after four rings, Camden reached in to his inner jacket pocket
and pulled out his phone.
 
He
looked at the display and saw ‘Lee Tripple’.
 
He rejected the call just as Aldretti snatched the phone
from his hand.

“No phone
calls today, Professor.” Aldretti said as he tried to gain access to Camden’s
phone.
 
Camden chuckled as he
watched Aldretti fumble with his code-protected technology.
  
After several more attempts, he
gave up and placed the phone in a black satchel that was obviously intended to
hold any confiscated items from this mission.
 
Camden supposed that his phone would somehow fall short of
Mace Magner’s expectations of this satchel.
 
They rode for the next twenty minutes in silence.
 
Camden turned his head to look out of
the window as they approached the government building discreetly placed on the
outskirts of the posh side of the city of
Ambern
.
 
There was a large perimeter fence
hidden behind a wall of lush landscape.
 
From the air, he could see the front of the building clearly marked with
a logo stretched across the painted iron double door entrance.
 
This logo was a large, blue, six
petaled
flower with a rose colored model of electrons
zooming around an atom at the center. It was designed to create a sense of
peace to onlookers who were afraid of or intimidated by the TRU Building.
 
On the roof in giant red letters, it
read, ‘UNAUTHORIZED LANDING IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. VIOLATORS WILL BE HANDLED
SEVERLY.’ On each corner of the roof was an armed guard standing in a small
tower.
 
They were there to give
authorization to landing government transports…and to handle the violators.
  
Camden had been here many times
over the years and smiled in spite of himself as he had many pleasant memories
of his projects here.
 
Aldretti
took notice of his pleasant expression, folded his arms, and grumbled something
unintelligible under his breath.
 

When the
transport landed, Aldretti exited the vehicle first and motioned for Camden to
get out.
 
He grabbed him by the
elbow and led him forward to the rooftop elevator.
 
He leaned in and whispered to Camden.

“Don’t try
anything or I will be forced to take you down.”
 

Camden
realized that his recognizable face and public standing were the only things
keeping him out of handcuffs and away from humiliation.
 
He could run, probably evade his inept
captor and walk out of the front door with a smile and a wave.
 
He could hide in a nearby place of
business and call Lee.
 
It wouldn’t
be hard, unrestrained.
 
His
curiosity of the situation though, kept him at Aldretti’s side.
 
He wanted to see what was going on in
this building, he wanted to meet this despicable Mace Magner, and, he wanted to
talk with Ganesh.

Lee finished
his lunch in silence.
 
His brow was
scrunched up with worry and agitation.
 
He was mad at Camden for not showing up, mostly because he was going to
assist with the interviews he would be conducting in just under an hour.
 
And by assist, he implied, handle
completely. Enira, who had been watching Lee, noticed that he was getting up
from the table and went to fetch his coat and hat.
 
Again, she took his arm and escorted him to the elevator as
was customary for her at least three times a week.
 
She looked up at Lee for a moment and hesitated,

“I hope
Camden is all right, Dr. Tripple. When he didn’t call today,” she paused with
her wide eyes staring straight into his, “I became concerned.”
 

Lee, caught
off guard by such a personal statement, momentarily was caught in her
stare.
 
He turned his head sharply
to look straight ahead again and stumbled over his words.

“Yes, um,
agreeably, this is not a typical pattern for Professor Riles.”
 
He scratched his head with one hand and
Enira could see that he wasn’t sure how to react to this personal
exchange.
 
Being a compassionate
woman who cared for all of her guests, one maybe a little too much, went
on,
 
“You know, it would be no
bother for me to call him for you and make sure he is okay…only if you think
that would be appropriate, of course.
 
I know how terribly busy you are with your work.”
 
She was genuinely concerned.
 
Lee wondered why.
 

“Yes,” he
answered, “I suppose that is a practical and acceptable offer.”
 
He paused, thinking of how Camden might
handle this uncomfortable situation with this aesthetically pleasing woman
offering her help. “I would be…um…much obliged.”
 

She smiled
warmly and leaned and gave Lee a little squeeze. Lee’s body automatically
tensed up and contracted away from her.
 
Enira released his arm and dropped her head a little as if embarrassed
she had offended him.
 

“I will call
your lab the second I find out anything.”
 
Enira reassured him.

Lee nodded,
took his hat from her and put it on his head as he stepped into the elevator
backward, all the while looking awkwardly at Enira.
 
She lifted her hand waist high in a small wave.
 
Lee took notice of the deep concern in
her eyes once again as the elevator doors closed.

When Lee
walked into the lobby of the building that held his lab, there were several
young people who immediately broke into whispers at his arrival.
 
Lee kept his eyes straight and
hurriedly walked to his private entrance.
 
He heard one of the louder whispered conversations as he fumbled for his
key card.
 

“See, I told
you, he doesn’t even look human, much less act it.
 
You would think he might pay us a glance at the very least.”
There were some soft giggles that followed, then another voice.

“It doesn’t
matter, he is the most amazing man on the planet and I can’t believe that I am
about to meet him!”

Lee knew
that he was somewhat of a celebrity in scientific circles, but still, this
comment surprised him.
 
He always
avoided contact, as much as he could, with his so-called fans.

Lee walked
through his newly cleaned lab straight to his office and sat at his desk.
 
He stared blankly out of the window
that faced the main work area and tried to mentally prepare himself for the
interviewing process with Camden’s finesse.
 
He wanted someone young, smart, and healthy for certain, but
he also wanted that someone to share his ethical and moral opinions as well as
willingly donate their own DNA to his experiments.
 
He imagined himself asking the interview questions.
 

“Where did
you study?
 
Can you pass a government
level physical?
 
Are you willing to
use your own DNA to create embryonic clones of yourself that will likely die on
a bi-monthly basis?”
 
He put his
head in his hands, shook it from side to side and mumbled to himself.

“I should
probably rephrase that last question.”
 
He sighed a defeated sigh and decided to use a more scientific approach
to narrow the selection.
 
Then he
would rely on his intuition.

Lee picked
up the phone and dialed the lady at the front desk.
 
She answered sweetly, secretly encouraged by this day when
the cold Lee Tripple would expand his work circle and willingly interact with
new people.

“Good
afternoon, Dr. Tripple, I trust you had an enjoyable lunch.
 
Are you ready for your first
candidate?”

“Um, no, not
hardly.
 
I am sending you a list of
physical and genetic standards.
 
Pass the list on to the lab technicians.
 
The candidates that meet these qualifications will be
interviewed.
 
The rest are
excused.”
 

The lady’s
jaw dropped, as she could not believe her ears.
 
She softly cleared her throat and timidly replied.

“Okay, Dr.
Tripple.
 
I will pass the list
along to the technicians and have an exam room prepared for the
physicals.”
 
She looked across the
lobby at the eager young candidates and her heart sank a little.
 
Lee hung up the phone feeling satisfied
that he had bought himself some more time before any face-to-face contact.
                                               

Camden sat
at an oval shaped silver desk with his hands folded.
 
He seemed surprisingly calm to Aldretti. He even had a
pleasant smile on his face.
 
Aldretti stood in the corner of the small interrogation room with his
arms crossed.
 
He was pleased with
himself for successfully bringing his man in.
 
Major Magner would arrive within the hour and Aldretti looked
forward to the praise he would receive for capturing Professor Riles so
quickly. He hoped that between his phone and the small notebook found in his
jacket there would be some incriminating evidence against him.
 
If not, Major Magner would crack him.

Details.
He thought, smirking back at
Camden, letting his mind continue to fantasize about the rest of the
afternoon.
 
Whatever the Major is looking for will surely turn up in the property
search that should be taking place at Camden’s loft any time now.
If it’s not in this room.
Even though Aldretti had no
idea what they were looking for, he loved a good chase and hoped to be present
when the Major made his arrest on the snide and arrogant Professor Riles.
 

Major Magner will wipe that disgusting smirk
off his face!
He grinned and Camden rolled his eyes.

Camden was
unconventionally eager to meet Mace Magner.
 
He wondered how long he would have to wait here and how long
it would take before Ganesh knew he was in government custody.
 
Camden had done so much work here that
he felt completely at ease in this dull institutional environment.
 
He clearly wasn’t taking the situation
seriously as most men in his position would.
 
The look on Aldretti’s face told him that, but Camden was
only amused at Aldretti’s serious posture and his attempt at evil, intimidating
smiles.
 

Ten minutes
passed and Camden glanced back and forth around the room at the blank walls
that were confining him. A thought suddenly crossed his mind.
What if I should take this with more
seriousness?
 
I could really be in
over my head here.
 
Ganesh could be
implicated, if he hasn’t been already.
 
He definitely isn’t here releasing me.
 

Aldretti
seemed to sense Camden’s negative thoughts and adjusted his feet to stand
taller and smiled more broadly.
 
Camden
sighed and rolled his eyes again.
 

“You know,”
he said to Aldretti, “I could really use a glass of water…with crushed
ice.”
 

Aldretti’s
smile dropped.
 

“I’m not
your damned servant.”
 

Camden
raised one eyebrow at his response.
 

“You’ll get
nothing,” he added. “Be glad for that chair. I could make you sit on the
floor!”

Camden
doubted that and smiled back at him.

“And here I
thought we were both gentlemen,” his tone was sarcastic and cool. “It’s odd
that you have so much ill will when you really have no idea what I’ve done, if
anything at all.”
 

“Oh, it’s
something,” Aldretti said. “The Major don’t personally visit with the common
criminals, so I know it’s gotta be something big.”

“Perhaps,”
Camden mused. “Or one big mistake.”

“Hah! The
Major don’t make mistakes with people.
 
You can bet that he knows something.”

Was it true?
Camden had never been through an interrogation before and if they did know what
was hidden in his transport, would there be any point in him enduring pain over
it?
 
He had no way of knowing for
sure, without seeing Ganesh.
 
He
wished for just two minutes alone with his phone.
 

If Ari keeps his cool and doesn’t lead the
surveillance team to the compartment in the transport, then they have no hard
evidence.
Camden worked out in his head.
 
If Ganesh and I were being
watched or followed during our breakfast meeting on that dreary rain soaked
morning…
.no
, no,…we were definitely not saying
anything suspicious during breakfast.
 
He tried very hard to recall if there were any noticeable transports
flying near during their meeting in the sky.
 
Of course, he could not remember.
 
He had been too intrigued and captivated by the content of
the meeting to notice anything else.
 
His one-track mind was usually a helpful distraction to him, but in this
case…

Well, how could I have known what Ganesh had
done,
Camden thought, suddenly frustrated with his friend.
 
He would just have to hope for the best
and endure whatever was coming to him.
 
Camden did feel confident enough in his brainpower and his past work
with the government to not fear for his life.
 
He was too important to kill.

Just then,
the door handle turned and clicked.
 
Aldretti stood at attention and Camden let out a long sigh and dropped
his eyes down to his hands on the table for a moment.

Major Mace
Magner stepped into the room with a commanding presence.
 
He stood at least six feet three
inches, had a sharp muscular build and hawk eyes that were an icy pale blue.
 
Two young sergeants, who appeared to be
there for security purposes, accompanied him.
 
Camden felt oddly flattered by their presence.
 
Aldretti spoke.

“Sir…I mean
Major…as you can see, the capture mission was a great success.”
 
He looked nervous.
 
The Major barely threw Aldretti a
glance and walked past him. Camden saw Aldretti deflate at this lack of
acknowledgement.
 
Instead, Mace
gave a hard look at Camden who was now sitting crossed legged with his hands
folded on his knee.
 
Once again, he
looked entirely too relaxed for the situation he was in.
 
Normally, Camden would stand and offer
his hand for a proper introduction, but the way Mace was standing with his arms
folded across his chest, he suspected that there would be no pleasantries
exchanged here.
 

The Major
spoke first.

“Well, well,
well, the infamous Professor Camden Riles. How
nice
to meet you,” he said with as much hate in his voice that he
could muster.

“Do you know
who I am?”
 
Mace continued.

Camden
planted his feet firmly on the floor and stood up.
 
A confused expression flashed across Mace’s face at this
bold gesture.
 
He was in no way
afraid, but he was not going to let this criminal professor think for a moment
that he had any authority here.

“Of course,”
Camden replied and offered his hand in spite of himself.
 
Damn!
Camden thought to himself.
This is not
the way to approach this man. What am I doing?
 
He realized that he was, in fact, a little scared.
 
He pressed on with his friendly gesture
though, so as not to look weak.

“You must be
Major Mace Magner.
 
I have heard so
much about you.”

“Sit down!”
Mace boomed.

Camden put
his hands in his pockets and sat down slowly.

“Hands on
the table!”

Camden
obeyed.

Mace cleared
his throat and took a deep breath.
 
He had planned to control his temper during this meeting, even if he did
deeply loath men like Camden Riles.
 
Men who were happy to charge his respected government piles of money for
their services, but who didn’t have the balls to join in the ranks.
 
He put his hands on the table and with
an intimidating stance, leaned toward Camden.

“This is not
a game professor. You’ve stepped in a pile of deep shit and I can smell it all
over you. So why don’t you make this easy on all of us and admit what you’ve
done.”

Camden
looked at him with steady eyes and did not say a word.

“Tell me
what you know!” Mace yelled.

“That could
take a while Major, I happen to know a lot of things,” Camden said.

Mace lost
it. He picked up the metal chair opposite the one Camden was sitting in, hurled
it against the wall and made a frustrated guttural sound. Camden backed up and
ducked instinctively. Aldretti’s eyes widened with delight at the sight of
Camden flinching away.

“Maybe it
would be useful if you gave me a hint about the information you are looking
for, Major, then I can tell you if I know something about it,” Camden suggested,
trying to reel the situation back to where he felt more in control. Mace turned
back to him, took two deep breaths, and tugged on the bottom of the front of
his uniform jacket. After the vein in his forehead stopped throbbing, he spoke
again.

“Perhaps you
are right, professor, maybe if I jog your memory a bit you will be more
agreeable. And if not, we can resort to pain.”

“Sounds
fair,” Camden said feeling confident that his celebrity was the only reason
pain wasn’t the first option for this vile man.

Mace
motioned to one of the soldiers with him to bring the now dented chair back
over to the table. He sat across from Camden and the two stared at each other
for a moment, not making a sound. Perhaps Mace was deciding how best to get
what he wanted from Camden without beating him senseless.

“There is a
bit of a mystery here in the unit, Professor,” Mace said finally. “It seems
that there is a traitor among us.”

“And you
think I have something to do with that?” Camden asked.

“I didn’t at
first. But I should have. People like you think you are entitled to whatever
you want.”

“What is it
that you think I want, Major?”

“The biomer
of course. I’ve read the files. I know it was your research that paved the way
for our team to harness the possibilities of the stuff. So when the lab was
breeched and material stolen, I could see a clear motive for you to steal from
us. The problem with that theory, though, was
how
you did it.”

He stood
back up and put his hands behind his back and started pacing around the room as
he spoke.
 

“But there I
was, walking through the main science atrium this morning when I heard your
name mentioned.
 
Then I remembered
hearing somewhere of your friendship with our very own Colonel Ganesh,” he
paused, waiting for some sort of reaction at the mention of Ganesh’s name.
 
There was none.
 
Camden remained cool as the Major
finished.

“Well, we
thought it in our best interest to bring you in.”
 

Camden’s
face remained calm and a smile slowly emerged on his face.
 
He spoke with almost an undetectable
amount of sarcasm.
 

“Well,
Major, I can assure you that I know nothing of a theft. But, I am always happy
to reopen my research from the past,” he nodded slightly at Mace. “I will
assume that the real reason I am here is because you’ve hit a bump in the
research and you need my help. So, what
can
I help our fine government with today?”
 

Mace was
impressed with his coolness.
 
He so
enjoyed these cat and mouse games.

“You can
start by telling me when you last spoke to the Colonel.”

“Of course,
may I assume Ganesh will be joining us?
 
It’s always so nice to catch up when we can.”

“
You
may not assume anything, Professor.”

With the
tone of Mace’s voice, Camden guessed that Ganesh either was not coming to his
assistance or had already been accused and dealt with.

“Do you know
the real reason you are sitting in this room?” Mace asked him.

“I can’t say
that I do,” Camden responded intelligently.
 
“Usually, I receive a formal invitation with a project
briefing before I arrive at a government building.
 
I am
also
usually
offered something to drink, coffee, tea, water…
.with
ice.”
 
He stressed this last one
and cut his eyes over to Aldretti for the briefest of moments.

“Well, I am
sorry to disappoint you, Professor, but today, you are not a guest and you are
not here because we need your help, so, you can let that fantasy go. You are my
prime suspect in the biomer theft and you will be held here until I get some
answers, so, I will ask you one last time professor.
 
Is there anything you would like to tell me?”

“Wow,” Camden
replied, “Surprisingly Major, there is nothing that I would like to tell
you.
 
I would however very much
like to speak with the Colonel, now.
 
I am correct in that he is your superior here, aren’t I?”

“This has
nothing to do with him now.
 
Not
yet anyway,” he mumbled a little too loud. This comment of Mace’s told Camden
that Ganesh had yet to be implicated.
 
There was hope.

“That’s odd,
because from what you just told me, it has everything to do with him.
 
How else would you connect me with this
little crime of yours?” Camden asked.
 
“In fact, I will not speak to you or anyone else again until I see
him.”
 
He sat back and crossed his
arms over his chest, rocked back a little in his chair and stared at the
ceiling.