~Chapter 7:

The Fate of Steele Labs~

At a local gymnasium, Ryan spent the next morning jabbing to a free standing punching bag. With a series of left and right hooks, he continued to train while simultaneously equipped with his red training gloves. Traces of sweat swelled throughout his body. The more intense he became, the more exhausted he would become. J.B approached the mat taking this moment to check up on his friend.

"Well would you take a look at that intensity," said J.B. "All joking aside, you should conserve some of that energy for our sparring later."

The instant he overheard the sound of his voice, Ryan's training came to a screeching halt.

"There is so much fire within me I can't help it," Ryan confessed as he turned his focus on J.B. "Thank you for allowing me to crash in for the night. This is what happens when you don't pay your bills on time. Next thing you know the landlord kicks you out of your home."

J.B responded in a serious tone. "Other than some of your clothes you brought from your trunk, did they happen to toss out all of your personal belongings?"

Ryan replied. "Luckily, even though I got evicted, I managed to keep my family frame intact. I don't know how they thought of leaving it behind, but I guess they must have realized how meaningful of a valuable it had to be."

"Well that's a relief," said J.B with the belief that there had to been a silver lining in the matter. "I can honestly say you've been through far enough. Just don't let all of that anxiety get the better of you."

"It's not that easy when you lose someone close in your life," Ryan pointed out.

"Have you thought about moving back in with your mother?" J.B asked.

"We discussed about that for a little bit," Ryan informed. "I've also been trying to look at other apartments around the area but so far nothing."

"I feel you," J.B empathized. "When I was attending college, it was hard for me to live inside a rusty and cramped condo. Even as cheap of a rent it was, I had a rough time adapting. The rooms were filthy, leaked water pipes from the restroom I couldn't fix, and a stove that doesn't light up whenever I'm trying to cook some food. It just got to a point where it felt impossible for me to live there. So I moved back in with my parents."

Ryan began to take in a sense of shared feeling. It was that range of emotion in which he seemed intrigued to learn more about his companion's structure of independent living.

"Have you tried other places? Perhaps finding a townhouse that you thought about scoping for?" He asked.

"Living in a town house is far too costly. I looked at another apartment close by and it was just an uncomfortable experience as the previous," J.B told him.

"What do you suppose my next course of action should be? Do you think I start packing up and move back in with my mother?" He intended to clarify.

"There is nothing embarrassing to have a grown adult living at their parents' place," said J.B. "The economy is nothing like it has been in the past. No matter which age we're at in our adulthood, we're all going to support each other one way or the other. It's up for you to decide which path will be beneficial in the long haul."

Ryan removed his gloves placing them on a bench next to his Gatorade bottle.

"Thanks bro. Now that you mention it, I could sure use guidance from Tao," he said taking a sip of orange Gatorade in replenishing his stamina.

"How far have you gotten in your dad's journal?" J.B wondered.

"I've only read a few pages before I slept," he told him. "I know his job was strenuous but I never thought how much dedication he poured out to the project. The last couple of months before the incident, he would be working overtime to make sure the suits were functioning properly. Every time Mom and I planned to have family dinner, he would come up with some excuse to opt out of our get together. Sometimes I wonder if his work somehow alienated the both of us."

J.B contemplated on behalf of Ryan's comment before giving out a response. "Based from what we gathered from the professor, your father must have been pretty passionate in the project," he speculated.

"Yeah but passionate to the point that he forgot we existed in his life? I don't know man," Ryan said leaving up to him to ponder of the mystery surrounding his father's work load.

"I'm sure whatever went down that night, your father loved you just as much," J.B provided with his moral support.

"Thanks J.B," Ryan acknowledged his friend's intention.

"Have you thought about showing his journal to your mother?" He asked him.

"Eventually but right now I need a little more time reading before I'm ready to hand it over," said Ryan.

"Not a problem man. I thought I share you with some piece of advice. Like I said it's up to you to decide if you want to move back with your mother," J.B encouraged. "But take it from me. If I was in your shoes, I wouldn't hesitate not for one second."

Ryan sighed. By training at the gym, it was his intention to release the stress hormones circulating throughout his body.

"You're breaking a sweat. Tell you what. How about you take fifteen? Hopefully we could start practicing along the mat just like old times," J.B advised.

"Now you're making me cry out onions," Ryan joked. "All kidding aside, thanks for your support J.B. I'll go ahead and get myself replenished."

"Anything to help a brother out," J.B said signifying their friendship with a fist bump.

"Then I guess it's settled. I'll meet you back here in a jiff," said Ryan. As they came to terms, he sat along the bench in the sidelines grabbing his orange bottled Gatorade by his rucksack. In the meantime, J.B started performing some basic warm up exercises in preparation for their upcoming spar.

Over at Crossworld Cafe, Rebecca stood by the checkout line waiting for her latte to be finished. In completing her transaction, she swiped her credit card by the magnet stripe of the pin pad. With the card repeatedly gets declined, the frustration building within Rebecca began to fume. Before she could snap, Karl Ziktor arrived from behind swiping his own card to help her complete her order.

"I can't stand to witness a customer who can't pay their coffee," said Ziktor. "At some point in life, you're going to have to collaborate with your coworkers even if the two parties don't get along. That's the struggle I went through when I first opened up my business."

Without a single word, Rebecca allowed her temper to subside. Given her personal grudge towards the businessman, never mind in a public area, she could not afford to let it get the better of her.

"I suppose you're headed off to work today?" He assumed.

"I took an extended leave. I figured it was best to reflect on my life and settle down for a little awhile," answered Rebecca. "How is it going over there? At Ziktor Industries that is?"

"If I could describe it in one word, it would be hectic," Ziktor said. "As chairman and founding father, it shouldn't come to any surprise how active I am with the day-to-day operations."

Rebecca and Ziktor continued to socialize carrying the rest of their conversation over outside of the Cafe. Approaching one of the many patio tables, Rebecca leaned against the window all of while taking a sip of her coffee.

"Look, I didn't come here to apologize or make excuses on why I couldn't make it that day. I know I've burned bridges between your husband and I, and I wish things didn't turn out so hasty in the end. It must be painful to witness being drown in a sea of sorrow that you can hardly breathe in," he continued.

"I don't understand," Rebecca wondered.

"You said to yourself you recently took some personal time off," Ziktor pointed out. "I know it's going to sound quite peculiar to you. Every once in awhile, a workaholic such as you could use some free time to do something they call, fun. I can't imagine how strenuous your job must be."

"I'm sorry but this is not getting us anywhere," she scolded. As Rebecca prepared to leave the cafe, Ziktor made an attempt to convince her to reconsider.

"Rebecca, wait," Ziktor insisted her.

"I appreciate what you did back in there. All I came here is to grab a cup of coffee. You don't have to do me any more favors," Rebecca said. Somewhat agitated by his antics, Rebecca didn't feel comfortable complying with the businessman's proposals.

"Please just hear me out," Ziktor pleaded. The widowed wife of Tyler Steele turned around taking it upon her to listen to his comment. "I don't know how many times I need to stress this out. I will admit that I can be a bit asinine at times," he confessed. "I have no personal issue with you. All I'm asking is not necessarily forgiveness but a will to empathize with people to those who feel the need of comfort. Even with my best set of employees coming in and performing their tasks at hand, I know how unbearable it can be working independently in my office at times."

Rebecca took part in addressing comments in regards to his speech.

"I lost Tyler in the midst of a fire that took an entire team of firefighters to extinguish it. As painful as it was to hear what happened, I know somewhere deep down his spirit lives on in here," she said placing a hand on her chest. "I appreciate the comfort and maybe you have good intentions. No matter how much I deny this but it's not going to change the fact that my husband is gone."

"I understand," spoke the businessman. "When it comes to opening new businesses, I have done my part to continue improving poverty here in Crossworld City. The economy is steadily well and stock shares are soaring through the roof. People are finally finding places to work. No matter what happened between Tyler and me, if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have gotten to where I am today."

Rebecca folded her arms unsure where she stood in this never ending dispute between her and Ziktor.

"All I am offering to him is nothing but sincere gratitude. Why would you interrogate me over an incident I had no involvement in?" He wondered. As he felt the vibration coming from his phone, Ziktor spotted a text message indicating the arrival of his limo. "Before I leave, there is one thing I would like for you to have."

Subsequently, Ziktor pulled out his contact card straight out from the pocket of his business suit. By handing it over to Rebecca, she took a glimpse at the contact information provided which list his full name, work address, and cell phone number along with his email as cited.

"I should've handed a copy back at the cemetery. Anyhow here is my way of reaching out to me. In case you need financial support or any sort of pep talk, you're more than welcome to contact me anytime including non work hours," he insisted. "It's a freedom of choice Rebecca, and the choice is yours alone. Take a moment to think about what I said."

A black limousine pulled over by the curb of the sidewalk that Ziktor and Rebecca were standing on.

"I have a big announcement to make at City Hall. I suggest you tune in later in the afternoon for what I have to address," he encouraged. "It's been great seeing you Rebecca. I'm sure you'll pull through."

The limo driver escorted the businessman inside the passenger's seat before closing the door. Rebecca watched as the limousine drove off from the parking zone. Rebecca continued to glance at the business card contemplating on the decision.

Woody spent the middle of his shift crafting a gingerbread house on the desk of his office. A pack of honey graham crackers were used as walls to help construct his model. Products such as candy canes and white Hershey kisses were implemented to add decoration. Sheets of newspapers covered the entire perimeter of the table to prevent the mess from scattering around.

In the middle of his activity, he overheard a knock coming from his door.

"Come in," Woody instructed.

"Woody, did you wanted to see me?" Kaitlin wondered as the door creaked open."

"Absolutely, just the reporter I was looking for," said Woody. Placing aside his decorations, his focus turned towards his notable employee.

"This office smells like I just entered a bakery store," Kaitlin complimented.

"I'm just making a nice and hopefully a colorful looking gingerbread house," Woody told her.

"It looks really great and all. But we're not even close to Christmas, at least here in the states," said Kaitlin judging from the holiday themed decorations she observed.

"I know," Woody acknowledged. "I made it that way on purpose since my daughter's birthday is coming up. It's her favorite time of the year. Luckily, these seasonal candies haven't even expired yet."

With an awkward expression veiled on her face, Kaitlin nodded her head while maintaining a sense of class act.

"Listen Woody if you're curious to know, I obtained some information that I gathered during my meeting with the professor," said Kaitlin carrying a file folder of documents compiled inside.

"I'm listening." Woody circled out of his desk straightening his body posture as he gave Kaitlin his undivided attention.

"Tyler and Horatio started up a bio engineering project funded by Karl Ziktor and his company Ziktor Industries. Their goal was to devise a high tech bulletproof armor utilized to protect police agents and military soldiers from enduring severe gunshot wounds," she explained handing the information over to her boss to read. "The team over at Steele Labs spent the past few years testing out the armor in determining how reliable it can be."

"Were there any setbacks that may have caused any potential delays?" Woody questioned.

"Even before the fire, Steele Labs have been receiving a number of breach attempts. Most of the folks without an obtained pass key ended up getting escorted by Security before they could trespass," Kaitlin continued. "But there would be one intruder that somehow sneaked pass the guards. It was believed they somehow hacked into the security's system that caused a malfunction when it came to the alarm from triggering."

"You can't claim the speculation to be a fact unless you provide evidence," said Woody.

Kaitlin nodded. "True but the CCPD managed to obtain surveillance footage of that breach prior to the destruction of the lab. After the breach, the company increased their security measures by constructing a defensive mechanism to prevent non-licensed professions from entering the facility. Think of it like a barricade of sorts," she elaborated.

"Did they ever found out the identity behind the intruder involved?" He wondered.

"If that were the case then the police would have captured them by now," Kaitlin tries to reason. "There is little evidence to suggest the person involved in the breach may have been affiliated with the fire that destroyed the lab. The surveillance footage went static before they could detect the intruder responsible for what happened. All we know is that they managed to escape in time."

"I take 'they' as in more than one suspect?" Woody flipped through a number of photos while continuing to interrogate on the subject.

"When I spoke with one of the employees, no one could detect whether it was a male or female," said Kaitlin. "I did, however, obtain a sketch of the intruder's appearance at the time of the crime scene. Lord knows if they happen to be still lurking around the city."

Woody paused momentarily to examine the drawing in detail.

"So with the little detail I could gather, a person dressed up in a black parka with a hockey mask," he observed. "I must admit this is quite a sketch. But it still doesn't answer the question to who had been behind all of this. If you find any more leads, let us know ASAP."

As Kaitlin nodded in firm agreement, a coworker of the Chronicle barged in on the conversation.

"Excuse me Woody. I think you might want to take a look at what's on the news," he informed to the chief editor. Kaitlin followed Woody along with the coworker who directed them over to the television kiosk.

We have breaking news in our latest update. Karl Ziktor, Chairman and founder of Ziktor Industries has made a major announcement in regards to the remains of Tyler Steele's laboratory. A gulf of flames sent fumes ascending from the building that left dozens of scientists wounded. As firefighters successfully extinguished the fire, the lab would not be without the loss of its founder. Tyler Steele was pronounced dead at 9:47 PM leaving no traces of his body found," spoke the news reporter. "At this time, I'm here at the Crossworld City Hall where thousands of citizens are gathered at this time to hear what the chairman has to say. Joining me live at this time is none other than the Chairman himself, Karl Ziktor.

Accompanied by his secretary Juliet as well as hired Security, Ziktor stood next to the podium attached with a microphone. A sense of curiosity led to a wave of concern that illuminated from Kaitlin's face.

"What are you up to now?" She whispered.

In the middle of a friendly spar, Ryan and J.B resumed their exercise on an open blue mat utilizing their years of Martial Arts training into good use. A hard fought mix of Karate techniques and counters led to an exchanging set of moves performed by the two. As it came down to the wire, not even Ryan could sustain J.B's quick agility. The seasonal veteran and co-instructor of Tao Dojo grabbed Ryan's arm, flipping him over back first to the ground.

"You have a lot of guts man. But I hate to admit, you seem to be a little rusty on the moves," J.B said extending out a hand for his friend to accept. A friendly smirk on Ryan's face caused him to retaliate, executing a leg sweep that sent J.B down to the mat.

"...And you were saying?" Ryan rebutted on the comment addressed to him. As he came to control his humility, Ryan and J.B helped each other up to their feet. Admiring their sportsmanship, the duo appreciated one another on their performances.

"Whew that was a hell of a work out," said Ryan. "Takes me all the way back to those exhibition tournaments we used to compete in. That smell of nostalgia is brewing I tell you."

J.B sparkled with overwhelming joy. "I haven't felt that rush of energy in awhile. You see, this is what Martial Arts are about. It neutralizes all the stress hormones building in your body and brings out the positivity in you. It's a matter of escaping from your personal problems while maintaining your sanity."

Ryan panted momentarily as he responded, "Wow reading those books must have educated you a lot. You're already sounding like a philosopher yourself."

J.B snickered. Upon concluding their exercise, they replenish themselves with the use of their water bottles. They continued to reflect over their recent training by the time they approached the men's locker room. While sitting on the bench, they began to overhear the ringtone of a mobile phone echoing from his locker door.

"I wonder who may be calling," said Ryan. By twisting the knob to a set of combination numbers, Ryan unlocked his locker door before reaching inside to retrieve his bag. With full access to his belongings, he managed to obtain his phone which indicated a caller ID from Kaitlin.

"Hey Kaitlin, how is it going?" Ryan asked.

"You're not going to believe this. Turn on to channel nine. There is a live simulcast going on in the news bulletin," Kaitlin instructed to him. Ryan glanced to J.B leaving to wonder what the conversation was.

"J.B and I are at the gym," he said with no way of gaining access to a nearby television kiosk. "Wait, um, just a second." Ryan advised to J.B to grab the iPad from his bag that had been stored from his locker. Scrolling through the tabs from his internet browser, he went onto their local news website to catch the news feed captured in progress. Their eyes remained glue to the screen in which cues to Karl Ziktor stood along the podium continuing to address his speech.

I know these past few weeks have been quite difficult for the folks involved during the fire breach at Steele Labs. My thoughts and prayers go out to each of the employees' family members and to continue to support each other at this time. But the point of me coming out here this afternoon concerns the fate surrounding his workplace. Prior to the tragedy surrounding Tyler Steele's absence, he and I have been under negotiations that would overhaul Steele Labs into the powerhouse science facility in the country. By teaming up with Ziktor Industries, we've worked on constructing a new set of power lines to better generate electricity throughout our city. For that to happen though, we had to make some sacrifices. With the circumstance surrounding his absence, our company and I have reached a decision to discontinue funding behind Project Psycon. It was a difficult move to make. As much as we would've liked to carry on the legacy that Tyler left behind, this was a cost cutting measure on our behalf to pull the plug on this development.

Ryan and J.B continued to monitor the coverage in progress.

With the current state of Steele Labs as a result of the fire, some steps must be taken before we can proceed. For this to work, we must rebuild from the bottom up. The decision has been made to initiate a detonation sequence that will deconstruct the remains of the laboratory. Out of respect for Tyler Steele, he would want to keep his company up and running. In doing so, I have placed a bid in attempt to buy out Steele Labs. I have another announcement to make in regards to his employees. Ziktor Industries will be more than grateful enough to provide them with an extensive coverage to ensure that their health and safety matters. We will succeed one way or the other. Thank you very much everyone.

By concluding his speech, Ziktor stepped down from the podium with Security escorting the chairman to his limo. A crowd of people including the press as well as local citizens hoped to look for word in the fall out of his announcement.

"It's not every day you hear Ziktor sound openly honest when it comes to his speeches," said J.B. On the other hand, Ryan had a different stance in regards to his view towards the businessman.

"I don't know. Something about him doesn't feel right. I'm beginning to wonder what kind of long term plan he has in mind. You know whether he'll live up to that promise," Ryan rebutted.

"Guys I can still here you," Kaitlin continued to have her phone on the dial.

"Sorry Kate. We had you over on speaker phone," J.B chuckled subsequently.

"I figured for sure that Ziktor would've continued the project that Tyler and Horatio were working on. Given how much money his company invested in funding for all of that protection gear," said Ryan.

"With Tyler gone and Horatio dropping out of the project early on, I wouldn't see any reason why they would," Kaitlin rebutted. "Let's not forget the professor still has those suits up in his display case."

"Good point," J.B replied.

During their discussion, the men overheard the grunt of Woody's voice from the loudspeaker of Ryan's phone.

"My boss needs me in the conference room. It will be awhile before I can get in touch with you two," said Kaitlin. "I know it's pretty hard on you Ryan just having to listen through all of this. How about we meet this Friday night at the Café? Just grab a drink and play some darts while we're at it?"

Ryan attempted to respond but J.B cleared his throat before interrupting the conversation.

"Okay but what about your partner in crime?" He asked.

"I meant to include you J.B. I wouldn't neglect my Prince Charming in our social gathering," Kaitlin answered. In response to the latter sentence of her comment, Ryan rolled his eyes as he cringed to hear those words based on her tone of voice.

"Sounds like you've been reading too many romance novels," J.B chimed in.

"Ha-ha very funny," Kaitlin replied. "Anyhow I better get back to work. Talk to you guys later. Take care."

"Later," J.B and Ryan spoke in unison. As their communication signal faded, Ryan bursts out laughing as a result of their phone conversation.

"Prince Charming," Ryan wondered.

"Hey don't look at me. I didn't insist she refer to me by that nickname," J.B told him begging for his friend not to throw a hissy fit.

"Dude I'm not easy to offend. Besides I wouldn't want to get in the way of your relationship," Ryan assured to his friend.

"Ryan," J.B said, "I'm glad we had a chance to spar back there. I think you could make a great Karate instructor as long as you keep yourself in tip top shape."

"Thanks but I'm pretty content with my day job," he appreciated the compliment. "I rather call it a day. I'm going to hit the showers and check to see how my mother is doing."

"Right on," J.B told him. To that end, Ryan removed his workout clothes while leaving on his black boxer shorts. He grabbed a bathing towel from his bag before setting off into the men's shower room.

Rebecca spent some quality time on her laptop surfing through photos she posted on her Face Book page. It was that moment in which she scrolled through another memorabilia that involved her and Tyler's early years as a wedded couple. A notable photo includes a more recent gathering of the two. Once more the feeling of nostalgia sent a wave of uplifting energy she hadn't felt in quite some time. As she continued to gloss over her collection, she came across a photo of the day of their wedding; Rebecca stood all dressed in her white gown alongside her soon to be husband sporting a black tuxedo suit. Together they leaned a kiss on the altar signifying the beginning of their love and commitment as a wedded couple.

The Police Chief of the CCPD wiped the teardrop from her eye. Beneath her facial expression lurked a smile that reminded her of the positives she experienced in her life. It was then in which Rebecca thought of another important figure she and Tyler were close towards. She typed up Tao Chung's profile on the search engine, their Karate instructor who they trained with from long ago. Scrolling through his album, she came across a screenshot of Tao and the couple sharing a toast outside from their backyard deck. It had been a long period of time since she met with the instructor and founder of his dojo.

Using her mouse, she took a glimpse of photos along with a tutorial video that had been taken while sharing his expertise to his students. Rebecca smiled with enthrallment. Martial Arts had been a form of recreation she had been studying since she was a teenager. In this case with Karate, it was that particular form of art of which served as her introduction. All of that effort and dedication traces back to her time training under the guidance of Tao Chung.

While continuing to visit Face Book, Rebecca scrolled through the site's recommendations list. Of the many user accounts, she came across an alias that felt somewhat familiar to her. Rebecca clicked the link that led to Horatio Hart's profile page. She glossed over at his most recent activity including an image of Tyler standing by the podium presenting the professor with a certificate award. While lacking knowledge behind her husband's connection with Horatio, she was aware of their long time companionship both professionally and personally.

Lying beside her laptop contained a log book filled with contact information of close friends in their neighborhood as well as professional colleagues from work. By flipping through the pages, she stumbled into Horatio Hart's list of contact including his phone number, email account, and work address. Rebecca manually dialed his phone number indicated from the handwriting.

"This is Professor Horatio Hart. Who is this?" He asked.

"Hi Professor this is Rebecca Steele, Crossworld City's Chief Police. I'm a husband of your colleague. How are you doing?"

"I've been busy with all the class lectures and paper work," Horatio answered. "Rebecca, I am deeply sorry for your loss. Tyler must have meant so much to you that even as a friend I can't imagine the pain you're going through."

"I just wish he was here right now," she replied. "I just thought I call by and have a bit of a pep talk. I could definitely use one if that's alright."

"I'm currently on my lunch break at this time," said Horatio. "Is there anything I could do for you?"

"Well..." Rebecca stammered struggling to come up with a fluid sentence to convey her message. "Do you remember what you were doing the night that the lab caught on fire?"

Horatio came clean with his response. "I met up with Tyler to collect some materials we needed to proceed with our assignment. I left something over from my place, so I hurried back to retrieve it," he explained. "By the time I returned, there had been a breach in the laboratory. A non licensed worker had the nerve to toss bottles of Molotov that had the building up in flames. Tyler and I escorted everyone out of the lab while we did our best to help each other out. Before we could approach the stairwell, there was all of this rubble piling all over us to the point where we couldn't escape. Luckily I made it out there alive. But Tyler, on the other hand, was a whole other different story."

"Did you see anything unusual along the way? Did you trace an employee you didn't recognize who was working at the lab that night?" Rebecca interrogated.

"No, unfortunately," Horatio provided with a straight answer. "My mind's a bit fuzzy. The flames were so humid all I could think about was finding a way out. I was coughing up smoke like crazy. If anything it's a night I would rather forget."

"It must be devastating to witness going through all of that," the chief empathized.

"All I could say is during my time working with him, your husband was a gifted man devoted to his assignment at hand. But he didn't let his job alienate his loved ones as opposed to what popular belief will tell you," Horatio said. "Tyler told me how much he admired you in helping people around the community, ensuring their safety and righting some injustice that may have been done to them. He couldn't be any more proud than to tell how much he loved you."

Rebecca struggled to fight the tears coming to her. She took a brief pause to control her emotions before following up with a response.

"I don't know how to explain it, and it may sound cliché but it's like I'm standing in-between these booby trap walls. Next thing they start closing in on me like a ham sandwich," Rebecca let out a weak chuckle. "Silly as it may seem. I just wish things turned out differently, and that Tyler would still be here."

After hearing out her confession, Horatio provided Rebecca with a piece of uplifting advice. "I feel the same way as much about him too. Wherever it is, I'm sure he wouldn't want you to feel insecure about his absence. Don't let grief consume the way you control your life. Make the most of what you have and treasure it with all of your heart," he told her.

By acknowledging the professor's comments, it was that moment in which Rebecca took those words to heart.

"I appreciate you taking the time to have this call. This house has been so quiet and my son lives in his own apartment now," Rebecca complimented to Horatio. "Listen whenever you have some free time, we could get a cup of coffee or maybe have lunch together sometime?"

Horatio soon responded. "Yeah-yeah, I like that. Whenever the time is right, I could definitely use someone to talk to."

"Absolutely," said Rebecca. "I appreciate your words of wisdom Horatio. I hope you have a good rest of your day."

"Likewise Rebecca, it's been a pleasure we had this chat. Take care of yourself while you're out there," Horatio assured.

"You do the same Horatio." Following Rebecca's reply, the two callers hung up their phones simultaneously. A sign of relief ensues from the police chief of Crossworld City.

With the television remaining in the background, Rebecca began to overhear the news bulletin concerning Ziktor's speech from City Hall earlier that afternoon. This breaking news update sparked her attention towards the screen. Rebecca took this time to process every bit of information that includes his announcement to discontinue funding of Project Psycon as well as the deconstruction of his Steele Labs. Having come to a conclusion behind the businessman's announcements, Rebecca couldn't help but feel somewhat skeptical. Was Ziktor sincere in looking to honor her husband's legacy? Even so, could she go the distance in making amends with him? Such questions created suspicion looming inside her head.

Karl Ziktor monitored the slideshow footage of Steele Labs on his desktop computer. This includes a series of captions that pertains to its development under the helm of its founder Tyler Steele. Scrolling from left to right, each image displayed the early construction process of the building including how it came to be. In addition, numerous photos were taken with Tyler alongside Professor Hart and his team. The very last image shown in the slideshow catches Ziktor off guard as he finds a photo of him and Tyler standing in front of the entrance to the laboratory.

"You've got to love the smell of nostalgia. For as much envy I had when it came to your inventions, I fully admire your creative input," Ziktor mumbled. Continuing to glance at the screenshot, Juliet stood by the door leading into his main office.

"Mister Ziktor, do you have a moment?" She wondered.

"Of all the time in the world, I am thirsting for good memories," Ziktor obligated to the request. Given her signal, Juliet directed a pair of female secretaries to his office carrying an immersion helmet device which had been previously used during the Metal Fighters panel.

"We've managed to make repairs to the device Strickland and his game developers brought over from the trade show," said Juliet. "We can test it out if you are not busy."

"The news outlets like to believe a hardware malfunction in that machine was some matter of a freak accident," Ziktor provided with a bit of recap. "What they don't realize is that with the reality barrier weakened, we can safely bring over our mutant robots to the living world."

"I figured for sure that the barrier was destroyed completely," one of the paired secretary ladies wondered.

"Only the Skug soldiers and our key lieutenants managed to crossover with no trouble," Ziktor said. "I can assure you all that our mutant migration from our world and the living will come at a greater percentage. The days of robotic factions fighting each other over for land will be a thing of the past. When we deliver our message to our fellow humans, it'll come to a point where our kind will triumph and the existence of humanity falls under our reign."

"Even though they aren't aware of our plot, we're going to do all we can what we can to ensure our cover isn't blown," Juliet told him.

"Anything else you would like to share before I close out for the night?" Ziktor provided with a question.

"I forgot to mention. As a matter of fact, this brings me to another thing Strickland forgot to inform me." Juliet demonstrated the mechanic features implemented in the immersion helmet. "The helmet also includes the feature to alter the mind inside of the human brain. If we can alter a person's amygdala from their temporal lobe, not only would it affect the way humans handle their emotions. But by extracting their soul, they will lose their ability to empathize with others in times of grief and loneliness."

The instant he overheard Juliet's comment, this gave Ziktor the fueling desire to come up with an idea.

"So I take it that they would become nothing but mindless slaves. Is that right?" He assumed.

"Affirmative Mister Ziktor," she confirmed.

"Now that you mention it, I just bumped into Tyler's wife this morning. She looked like she didn't get enough sleep," the chairman said letting her in on his encounter with the scientist's wife.

"She's been through so much. Have you never thought to put yourself in someone's shoes and imagine the emotional trauma when it comes to losing a loved one?" Juliet lectured in front of the chairman to hear.

"May we excuse you two out of the office at this time? This calls for a private conversation between Juliet and I," Ziktor advised to his secretaries. Complying with their boss, they each nodded their heads while exiting through the double doors behind them.

"Oh I've been there. I once told myself that it's better not to grieve when you have folks around you to care for," he continued. "But then I realize that feeling grief is a sign of weakness. They don't know what I've experienced when I lost my wife one night, and I sure as Hell don't expect anyone around here to understand that."

Juliet took some offense based from her boss's opinion and his opinion alone.

"Mister Ziktor with all due respect, I understand the stress that has caused you even with the responsibilities you have. But coming from a widow wife, I also raise two kids who I care very deeply," she confessed. "I wouldn't want to see someone suffer loneliness or misery of some kind."

"It's been a long day Juliet. Even when you disagree with my beliefs, you've stayed loyal and continue to do business with me," said Ziktor taking a glance at a picture frame that contained an image of him and his wife in arms. "She may be gone but I still think of her every day."

Juliet took empathy on the approach. "All I can say is I'm sure somewhere above this planet, your wife loves you no matter what," she said.

"Very well," he concluded. As Ziktor thought about the piece of advice Juliet provided to him, he put aside the picture frame back on his desk. He pulled a drawer from underneath to obtain a white smart phone in which appeared to be a crack displayed on its touch screen.

"On another subject, I was lucky enough to keep a copy of Tyler's password he gave to me years ago. Boy how naïve were we to trust each other when it came to sharing our privacy," he snickered. As Ziktor keyed in the password correctly, he scrolled over to the keypad menu from the contacts page. From there, he dialed Tyler's cell phone number before proceeding to re-enter the scientist's pin code. When hitting the pound key, Ziktor listened to the last recorded messages quoted from Tyler.

Message #1: Honey, it's me. Listen work has been getting pretty hectic and I'm flooded with all of this paper work. The team is working very hard by the hour. I wanted to finish my shift as scheduled but whew. I'm afraid I'm going to miss out on dinner tonight. Please don't take this as growing apathy. I love you, Rebecca.

Message #2: Hi Rebecca. Oh man, I wish I could stop reiterating this time and again. There is so much pressure and it feels like everyone is depending on me to carry out the task. Granted I shouldn't be one to complain since I had a hand in devising this project. But I pledged an oath to finish what Horatio and I started and complete engineering on this newly enhanced body armor. There have been so many soldiers and police agents that suffer long term physical damage in their bones. With the introduction of these advanced metallic suits, this will greatly reduce the chances of enduring severe injuries while on duty. In this case, the CCPD could use some much needed protection. If there ever came a time when they need you to chase down a criminal, it couldn't come at a better time than this. Love you honey. Stay safe out there.

Having overheard the messages via speaker mode, Juliet chimed in to give out her response to the voicemail.

"Somehow you've managed to retrieve Tyler Steele's cell phone from the wreckage. You're a person full of surprises aren't you?" She stated.

"I am a lot of things but surprises? Now that you mention it, I won't rule that one out." An evil smirk lurked from Ziktor's face. As the sun prepared to fade from outside of the window, Juliet looked at her watch to find that her shift would be over.

"Well it looks like I've had quite a day. I better pick up my kids from the daycare. They could sure use this leisure to spend time with their loving mother," she concluded.

"Thank you for your hard work as always Juliet. Have a wonderful rest of your evening," Ziktor bid her with a goodbye. As she exited from his office, the chairman of Ziktor Industries turned his focus back to his desktop that displays Rebecca's avatar from her profile.

"Oh Rebecca just wait what I have in store for you," he mumbled.