Justin

I was ready for the meeting with MedGen in the morning. It was the first time that I had seen Winters and Daily since the reading of the will and I was in a mood to get this done and over with once and for all. I had been thinking a lot that night about everything and a few things had really made an impact on me. But I was in a position to make things different. It wasn't going to stop it all, but each piece counted in a way. And I was in the power position, so screw them all.

I walked in the room like a triumphant general, Steiner trailing behind me. I didn't bother to sit down. Instead I pointed to Winters and Daily. "You, me, no lawyers, ten minutes and this will all be over," I said firmly and then got myself a cup of coffee. There was a small room to the side of the conference room and I walked right into that, ignoring the fact that Steiner was having a stroke by the door. I had a feeling I was going to need a new lawyer after this. His heart wasn't going to be able to make it much longer at the rate I was going.

I plopped down in a chair and leaned back. I knew they weren't going to run in there. They wanted me to sweat. But curiosity was going to get the better of them and I could be patient. I was in the power position, and I had to admit that it felt good. Three minutes later, Winters and Daily came in. Both of them elected to stand, glaring at me suspiciously as I sipped some rather good coffee.

"I'm going back to LA tonight and I want this cleared up before I leave," I said rather arrogantly. "Please forgive me for wasting your lawyers' time but all they do is slow down the process. And once BioTech regroups, you're not going to have time to waste."

Neither of them said a word, but I knew they were very uncomfortable with me knowing how vulnerable they were. I smiled. "So what if I just sell you the patents and get it done and over with?"

Daily regained his ability to speak first. "Blackmail, Mr. Carter? Is that what this is? You know that we are in some difficulty so you think you can demand some outrageous price?"

Winters seemed to be much more rational than his partner. "Even though we still stand by the fact that the patents belong to MedGen, for hypothetical purposes, what would you want for them?" Cool lawyer-speak there. He knew that giving me the money they would spend on lawyers was the better option. It would save them the time they so desperately needed.

I shrugged. "How much you two got on you right now?"

Winters blinked. "Is this some kind of joke?"

I sat up in my chair. "After the last forty-eight hours, I am not in a joking mood." Both of them must have known the gist of what had gone on because they exchanged nervous glances. "I had time to talk with Winston before he was killed and he told me some more about the project him and my uncle were working on. Quite simply, that line of research sickens me." It did, but not for reasons they could suspect.

I stood. "So, here's the deal. You empty your pockets and that's what the selling price of the patents is monetarily. The real price is that your line of transgenic human-animal crossbreeding research gets killed ASAP. It's immoral and sick and if I can keep one company from doing it, then I've got a good start there."

"You can't tell us what to research," Daily snapped. "Free market enterprise, Mr. Carter."

"I can tell you what to research," I replied with enough arrogance to sicken even myself. "Because if I tell you to kiss my ass and then I walk out of here, you're going to be clearing out your desk pretty soon while the BioTech logos are being put up around the building. You don't have a choice in the matter anymore." I stopped talking then and just smirked. I normally despised people that acted like I was at the moment, but after everything I had been through, it was actually feeling kind of good to be the one in control of the situation.

"We need a moment to discuss this if you don't mind," Winters said

"Of course," I replied, holding up my coffee cup. "I need a refill anyway. Good stuff, by the way." I almost laughed at the look of disgust that broke the carefully controlled expressions just for a second. They were fighting for their company, and the way I was acting, the coffee was the most important thing.

It was funny as hell to walk out of there and have four pairs of eyes staring at me. I didn't say anything as I refilled my cup and then leaned against the wall, waiting for them. Steiner was sitting casually in his seat, cool as can be. He had no idea what I had been planning on pulling but he wasn't going to let the other lawyers know that he was still in the dark as much as they were. Several minutes ticked by and then Daily beckoned me back in there. I threw away the paper cup and headed back in.

"We have a product line that is about six months from going to market," Daily said when I got back in there. "The blood screener is what we need to keep everything afloat until we get that to market and we believe that it will become the dominant product line."

I shrugged, understanding what he was saying. They were going to cave for now, but I hadn't won. They were going to become solvent again and then do whatever the hell they wanted. "You breach the contract, and the lawyers are going to drain you dry when I sue you. And then we're back to where we started. I have a feeling that BioTech is rather persistent. They're never going to leave you alone and you both know it."

What they didn't know was that dropping the transgenic line was the only way to protect their company from takeover. I could have been wrong though. There was something in Winters' face that said he knew more than what he was saying in front of Daily. Interesting. "I will insist," Winters said, "that all of these proceedings are going to be sealed. I'm sure you can understand why."

"I have no objections to that," I replied amicably. "Then we have a deal?" I held out my hand.

Winters took it and we shook. "I have no idea if you are a genius or a lunatic," he remarked casually.

I couldn't help a smile at that. "You might be surprised at how often I wonder that myself."

And so it came to pass that the patents that had been fought and schemed over were transferred to MedGen for one hundred eighty-six dollars fifty- two cents and a card good for a free appetizer or dessert at a local restaurant. I figured that looked like a good place for lunch. Especially since Steiner nearly gave birth to a kitten when the three of us walked out, and true to their word, they pooled their money and handed it over. Then I told Steiner to draw up whatever papers were needed, which was basically the point where the near birthing occurred. I told him to send me anything that I needed to sign and left to get Dad and grab an early lunch.

Dad knew what I had planned on doing. He thought the transgenic thing had something to do with Eye's Only and I wasn't going to disabuse him on that notion. We had come to an agreement that he wouldn't try and interrogate me on what I was doing, but that I would keep him a little better apprised on what was going on. He would know then when to worry and when not to. I could deal with that. But we both agreed that the twins were not to know, and I managed to talk him into not telling Jhondie's mother. It was up to her to let her mother know when she felt the time was right and Dad didn't have the right to interfere in that. He just wondered in what way she was going to kill him when she did find out. I grinned and told him that we would put him under protective custody.

I was glad to be going home that evening. I was tired and ready to go home, start looking for a place of my own, get ready for the upcoming semester and spend as much time with Jhondie as humanly possible. Sounded like a plan to me. Especially getting my own place. Dad and I hadn't talked about it, but he knew that I had already been thinking about trying to get out on my own. Now that was going to be quite easy to do. And I would feel better knowing that it would be more difficult for sensitive information to end up in the hands of my brother and sister. As intelligent as they were, they were still too young for common sense to have sunk in deeply enough to let them know when they should leave things alone. Come to think of it, it hadn't yet for me either.

I was packing up my stuff, getting ready for my flight back when every hair on my neck stood up and I knew that I wasn't alone. "She called me last night from LA," I said, not bothering to turn around as I put my toothbrush and razor in my bag. "Everything's fine, no problems getting out or getting there."

If Zack was surprised that I knew he was there or who it was, he didn't show it. I knew it had to be him. There were only two people that I knew that could come into a room with absolute silence and the other one was in Los Angeles. However, she was also the one that would keep this one from killing me if he decided right then that I was too much of a risk to his sister. I was on thin ice and I knew it. But then again, he had saved my life. That's what I was wondering about as I turned to face him.

For a long moment, neither of us said anything. Puzzle pieces started to come together in my mind and things began to make sense. Why had he kept me from being shot? To him, that would lessen the danger to Jhondie. One less person would know about Manticore and there would be one less tie to LA for Jhondie. So why then? And then I remembered that person high on the building. Was it that he didn't want his sister to go ballistic and go after those guys in a city where Lydecker was hanging around, or was it that a gunshot might attract attention from someone else? I remembered Zack when Jhondie innocently asked me if I wanted her to go to Seattle with me. And Lydecker was in the city. Maybe this was a base of operations. Or maybe it was a hunting ground.

"Everything's fine this time," Zack finally said. "Next time she goes off because someone she's attached to might be in trouble, it could be different. Every tie slows her down. Makes her vulnerable. She would have come after you even knowing Lydecker was here."

I nodded slowly. "Probably. And if she thought someone else that she cared for was in trouble here, she'd be back in a heartbeat. That's the way she is. It's just a slightly warmer version of you." I wanted to see his reaction to confirm my suspicions. He didn't even blink. I would hate playing poker with this guy. "Of course," I continued, "that's why you keep them all separated. She'd kill me if she heard me say it, but I'm glad you do. If she thought someone was here in Seattle and Lydecker was closing in on him or her, she'd be back here ready to do battle no matter how scared of him she is."

That got a slight change in his expression. I don't think he even suspected that there would ever be anything that we could agree on, but I did agree with his separation policy. Jhondie wanted to see her missing siblings terribly, but it was too dangerous. They were much more likely to break the surface of Lydecker's radar in a pack then they were individually. Maybe it was pure selfishness, but I didn't want her in a position where she was with the others and as a group they decided to leave. With more than one of them asking, she probably would just to be able to take care of them. I loved her for how she put others above herself, but I didn't want to lose her for that as well.

"LA's safe for her right now," Zack said. "But that will change eventually. You going to let her go then?" The question was sarcastic as if he didn't think I was capable of making a sacrifice like that.

"I know that I have some rather deep resources now," I replied. "Enough to make sure she's got a good set up in Mexico." I thought about it for a second. "I think now I could get a dozen people to Mexico or Canada or wherever with no questions asked by anyone.including me." The offer was there, and it was standing for if he ever needed it. If I didn't ask what it was for, I wouldn't be morally obligated to tell Jhondie that I knew where one of her brothers or sisters was.

He gave me a curt nod and turned to the window. Something else hit me, and I called his name, making him pause for a moment, waiting for what I had to say. I picked up a folder from my bag. It was the one we had nabbed from BioTech. I had been thinking long and hard about it. Here was all of the proof that Brinks knew about my uncle's murder and was part of it himself. I could edit out the Manticore stuff and give it to the cops. I could make up a lot and get out of explaining how we broke in. Hell, it would have come anonymously for all they knew. I could have justice. Or.I could give Jhondie a gift that she would never know about.

"The people that tried to kill me," I explained, "we found out that they were trying to build their own transgenics. They were trying to get information from Manticore so that they could make it work." I held out the folder. "If by any chance Lydecker should make it to a city where an X- 5 was and get way too close to him or her, then I'm willing to bet that you could get this to him. He'd probably have to lay off the search for a little while and get all of the holes in his security plugged up and make sure that this guy wouldn't be able to succeed. I doubt Manticore wants their monopoly broken, so this would have to take top priority over a ten- year-old search. And if that gave the hypothetical X-5 time to escape, then that's just the breaks."

I would have sworn there was a flash of gratitude on his face and I knew that I was right. Someone was in a bad situation and needed help. Maybe they wouldn't take it and Zack was having more problems then he would care to admit. But he took the folder and then was just gone. I let out a breath that I didn't realize that I had been holding. Two solo meetings with Zack and I was still alive. I wondered how many other non-X-5's that knew about them could make that same claim.

And I was serious about Jhondie and Mexico if it ever came down to it. I needed to talk to her when I got home. There might come a time when she had to run. And that was okay. I would encourage her to run just as far and fast as she could go. I wanted her to be safe more than anything. And she wouldn't have to worry because eventually she would slow down, and when she did, it would just give me a chance to catch up to her. Life was crazy and I knew that. Anything was possible. As long as we stayed strong and stuck together, I had no doubt that anything could be accomplished if we put our minds to it. I wanted to be with her forever. There was no doubt to that. Life could change in an instant with just a few decisions. I would do what I could to protect her and our life in LA. But if it came to it, yeah, I'd leave with her.

Dad knocked and then came into my room. I was just finishing packing. "Ready to go?"

I smiled. "You have no idea." He smiled back and in a matter of less than three hours I was watching Seattle disappear far below me as we headed south towards LA and my life.