Chapter 12
Ed sat on the beach watching the waves roll in. He took a long drink of his beer while two bottles were already empty and sat in the carton next to him. He turned his head around when he sensed someone coming up from behind him. He looked up at the tall silhouette standing next to him, "How'd you know?"
"You have a gland in your head that makes you go insane if you don't get a shot," Darien sat down next to Ed with a six pack in his hand, "And since I know the whole routine, I figured that by now, you had a nightmare."
Ed smiled sheepishly, "Yeah, I did, a bad one too."
"So ends the dreams of being naked standing in front of women throwing little pickles at you," Darien unscrewed the cap off of a beer and held it up to Ed, "Here's to quicksilver glands."
Ed tapped his beer to Darien's and they drank. Ed chuckled, "You know in college I was called 'Chris Knight'."
"Welcome to Pacific Tech's smart people on ice!"
"Although, we never turned a hallway into an ice rink," Ed smiled. "I wasn't like that character," Ed caught Darien's glance, "well, okay maybe I was a little like him. I didn't wear bunny slippers or things on my head or was as open with the girls like he was. But I guess in the sense of his attitude I was like that, didn't have to study hard, dressed different from everyone else, no 'I'm smarter than you' type ego…I was pretty much a loner. I didn't belong to any certain clique you know. Even in High School, I was always the odd man out. I wasn't stuffed in garbage cans or anything like that. I was too tall and athletic for that. Laguna Beach High was the only high school in the district, in fact it still is. It has a college preparatory program so a lot of the kids that go there are smart to begin with. But still, I intimated the kids in the 'normal' classes and couldn't stand the ones in the AP classes. Even the girls were kind of odd in the AP classes I took. But in the regular classes, they didn't click with me. Most had the material attitude, like 'when I graduate I want to find a doctor or lawyer,' you know?"
"So, you never brought any girls up to your room is what you're saying?"
Ed blushed, "I did, I wasn't completely a geek you know." Ed took a sip of his beer and stared off at the ocean.
"She was pretty, huh?"
"Who?"
"The girl you brought up to your room," Darien said as he stared at Ed.
Ed smiled, "Yeah, she was pretty and a cheerleader too."
Darien held up his beer, "Congratulations, you the man!" They tapped beer bottles, "Hey, did Laguna Beach have a surfing team?"
Ed shook his head, "No, just swimming and water polo, although the school's nickname at one point was the 'Breakers' it was changed the following year to the 'Artists' because the area was founded as an artist's colony."
Darien got a disgusted look on his face, "'Artists' man, you guys were better off with the 'Breakers' nickname."
"I know, it really doesn't sound menacing does it, 'Dude, the Artists are gonna kick your butt tonight!'" Ed shook his head, "It seriously lacks doesn't it?"
"Totally," Darien smirked.
Ed laughed, "Yeah, people picture Picasso or someone like that as our school mascot with a paint brush as a weapon. It didn't help that our school colors are like burgundy and white…not good. We did get teased a lot from the kids at other schools."
"I can see why." Darien studied Ed for a moment, he saw so much of Kevin in him, "So, you were smart then too, huh?"
"Yeah, school was hard though. It's like in the top 10% of California schools so the curriculum is tough."
"What kind of courses did you take?"
Ed gazed at Darien, his brow creased quizzically, "Do you really want to know?"
"Yeah, I'm interested. What kind of courses do smart people take?" Darien looked at Ed like he was an interviewer asking someone a very important question.
Ed chuckled, "Okay, here goes. Because I wanted to go on to med school, I had to take, not in any specific order, Government and Economics. English, very boring and most of my History and English classes were AP. I took pre-calculus, calculus, and geometry. For Laboratory Science, it was biology, chemistry and physics," Ed took a quick glance over at Darien and laughed, "What's the matter? You did ask."
"I'm with ya, kind of, well, you lost me at pre-calculus." Darien was lost and if it wasn't dark, Ed would have seen the smoke coming out of his ears as his brain just suffered a major melt down.
"You're smarter than you think you are, Darien," Ed said looking at Darien with a smile.
"That's what Kevin said to me before he died." Darien took a long hard drink of his beer.
Ed looked down at the sand, "I'm sorry, I uh…I didn't mean to bring up a bad memory."
"Not your fault. I have a constant reminder anyway," Darien pointed to his head. "Okay, so tell me more about high school, but not your classes."
Ed chuckled as he tried to peel the label off the beer bottle, "Well, okay, the surfers didn't like me cause to them I was a geek and since I didn't compete, they didn't like that either."
"You didn't compete? Why?" Darien asked.
"Didn't want to," Ed chuckled, "I was more of what they call the 'soul surfer', I was in it for the joy." Ed held up his hand and made the 'shaka' sign, "Brah, it's about being in the green womb of the Big Mama, to go to church and pray in the whirling cathedral," Ed said in the typical surfer tone.
Darien shook his head and chuckled softly, "Okay, so what does all that mean?"
Ed smiled, "Basically, it means that I just enjoy surfing because of the love for the ocean and not for the money and advertisers. Surfing was a way of life for the Polynesians when they started back in 400 A.D. But, I did model surfing gear while in college, from clothes to boards. It was an easy way for me to earn some extra money."
"Really, that's funny, I was a head model for local salons," Darien said.
Ed laughed, "I can picture that," Ed took a sip of his beer, "Do you believe in fate?"
"Depends, why?"
"One of the companies I modeled clothes for was called 'Quiksilver' but without the 'c'."
"You're kidding me?"
"Nope, I swear. It's true. They're still around and in fact I still wear their trunks."
"How come you didn't say anything before?"
"It had occurred to me when I first heard about the gland, but with everything that was going on, it slipped my mind. Until now." Ed took another sip. "I didn't change much in college either. I was the same shy guy who didn't fit any mold, just my own. I met Sloan in college; we took a course together when we were studying bio-anthropology. It was our junior year. We were in the same class that Ann Coulter taught,"
"You mean, the lady that was killed?" Darien asked.
"Yeah, that's her. She was a great teacher. She really saw a lot of potential in Sloan and confided in her a lot. But anyway, about Sloan, I now know since falling in love with Claire that the chemistry between Sloan and me wasn't there. I had hoped it would develop, but it never did. We just developed a friendship and I didn't want just that. I wanted more. She showed no signs of wanting to go further and since she was one of very few friends I had, I didn't push it until we both landed jobs at the lab."
"How did you get those jobs?"
"Ann recommended us. I thought she was going to make me wear dress shirts and ties, but she didn't, she just told me to shave, not wear cut offs and my hair had to stay off my shoulders."
Darien chuckled.
"You know the odd thing about all this is, when you became a dominant, you entered my world, now I'm in yours. I'm in love with Claire and you're in love with Darcy. It's like we trade off something in the worlds we live in," Ed furrowed his brow in confusion, "did that make sense or is it the beer talking now?"
"Nah, I understand, Darcy came from your world and Claire came from mine. So it makes sense," Darien said as he leaned back on the sand. "We were both thrown into something we didn't ask for and for some reason it all came together."
"We both work for fat men, even though he has his own short comings, I would pick Walter any day, it's his superior I don't trust. That bitch." Ed took a sip of beer.
Darien looked at Ed for a moment, "I don't need to look at your tattoo to know that you're not anywhere near QSM, so where did that come from?"
Ed held up his empty beer bottle, "From the three beers I've had so far." Ed reached over and grabbed another one.
Darien looked up at the house and then back at Ed, "Good thing you're already home, I don't think you should be driving." Darien finished off his beer and grabbed another one also. He wasn't about to tell Ed that he's had enough, he knew what Ed was going through and for right now, this was how Ed was handling it. Darien would stay to make sure Ed made it back up to the house and didn't wind up in the ocean. Ed had made some progress earlier when they first talked, but he knew that once Ed had his first nightmare, it would all unravel, and it did.
Darien knew that Ed was about to crash and crash hard. He could feel the emotion building up inside. Ed nearly downed the beer in one gulp. "Hey, easy there," he put his hand on Ed's shoulder, "Why don't you just let it out, it'll help, I know."
Ed looked at Darien, fear overtaking his expression. His breathing became heavy and his chest rose and fell deeply. "Darien, I…I…can't go through that again…it hurt so bad…I remember…I remembered every thing I did!" Ed stood up and ran to the shore line; the waves crashed in but didn't overpower his cries.
Darien got up and ran after him, he saw Ed stop short of the shoreline as the waves rolled in over his feet.
"Damn you, Arnaud!!! You bastard, how could you do this to me?!!!" Ed tossed his beer into the ocean, "You bastard!" Ed fell to his knees; he picked up some sand and threw that back into the ocean, "ARNAUD!!!" Ed yelled at the top of his lungs.
Darien turned around and saw Claire standing on the porch, her hands covering her mouth. He turned his attention back to Ed who was now pounding the ground with his fists. He knelt down beside him, "Go on…keep going."
"Damn him…damn him…bastard…that bastard…" Ed looked up at Darien, tears streamed down his face, his body broke out in a sweat. "I can't …Darien…oh God…I can't…why…why did he do this…" Ed lowered his head so it touched the sand and cried, "I can't…I can't…"
Darien wrapped his arm around Ed, "Let it all out, you'll feel better." Darien looked at Claire as she made her way down to the shore line. Darien felt Ed's body shake and he held him tighter. Darien didn't have any one to turn to, at least he could be there for Ed. Darien maybe the younger one between them, but right now, he was Ed's protector.
Ed felt another hand on his back, he looked up and saw Claire, fear gripped him and he jumped to his feet, "NO…get away from me…don't come near me!" He took off running down the beach.
"ED!!" Claire called out to him, but he didn't stop.
"Oh crap," Darien got up and ran after Ed.
Claire stood there and watched Darien chase after Ed. Soon they both disappeared into the darkness. All she could do was hope that he wouldn't do anything foolish and that Darien would be able to stop him if he did.
Ed was fast, faster than Darien thought. He knew that jogging was part of Ed's exercise routine, but he didn't expect this burst of energy with three beers in his system. "Ed, stop!"
"No…I have to stay away from her!"
"Damn it, will you stop!"
Ed stopped and turned to face Darien, he was barely huffing. Darien shook his head and put his hands on his hips, "Damn, you're fast."
"What do you want, Darien, to talk, to drink, to tell me it's going to be alright! It's not, okay? I'm a walking ID waiting to explode! You should know how that feels!"
"I do, Ed, why the hell do you think I'm here chasing your ass down the beach?! Cause I do know! I know what's going through your mind, the uncertainty, the fear, the fear that you'll kill the ones you love, that's part of it, it sucks I know, but that's how it is!" Darien walked towards Ed. "Just don't run anymore okay. You can't escape it."
"I don't want to end up a permanent resident in the nut hatch. I don't want to kill Claire."
"Tell me your dream, Ed, what happened?"
"No, I can't, don't you understand? I don't want to remember, so that if I go crazy I won't do…" Ed stopped the images of his dream filled his mind. "My God, Darien you have to stop me…"
Darien walked closer, "Stop you from what?"
"From raping her," Ed looked at his hands, "The blood, so much blood," Ed moved his hands like he was trying to get something off, "I can't get it off me," he sprinted off and dove into the ocean.
"ED!" Darien chased after him, but didn't see him, "Damn it, Ed, if you die, I'll kill you myself!" Darien stopped, "What am I doing…focus…focus…" Darien looked in the direction where he sensed Ed, "Got you." He kicked off his shoes and ran into the surf just as Ed resurfaced. "Ed, come on, get out of the ocean," Darien said as he approached Ed.
"I can't wash it off, Darien, why won't it come off?" Ed went under again.
"Aww…damn!" Darien reached the spot wear Ed was. Ed resurfaced and he grabbed him by his shirt, "What the hell are you doing?"
"It won't come off," Ed said in a frightened tone.
Darien helped Ed to the shore and they stood there. Darien had a grip on Ed's arms, "Damn it, don't you ever pull a stunt like that again."
"I wasn't trying to kill myself…the blood, I was trying to get it off, it's all over me," Ed said as he looked at himself.
Darien looked sadly at him, "Ed, you can't let it control you, don't quit."
"I can't beat this, Darien, I can't."
"Yes, you can."
"No, this is different," Ed shrugged Darien's hands off him, "You didn't have the pain I did. You're…you're stronger than me." Ed walked away from Darien.
"It doesn't matter; it's the same dreams, the same fear."
Ed turned around to face Darien again, "Okay, you want to know what I dreamed? I'll tell you. I raped her over and over, and then I killed her with my bare hands like some wild animal. Satisfied?"
"It's a dream, Ed, not real, you won't kill her."
Ed held his arms out, "How do you know that I won't, huh?" Ed walked towards Darien, "Can you promise me I won't kill her?"
"Yes. I can promise you that because there are people around you who do care and will watch over you. That's why I know that you won't kill her."
Ed looked into Darien's eyes. He saw sincerity in them. Ed looked back at the ocean and then back to Darien and ran his hand through his wet hair, "I'm sorry."
Darien put a hand on his hip and put the other one on Ed's shoulder, "It happens, just don't do that again. Come on, Claire is probably worried." Darien walked with Ed, "And when she sees us soaking wet, then she'll be pissed."
Ed smiled, "Can't say that I won't blame her. I don't know what came over me."
"Like I've been tellin' you, the fear, it grabs you and takes hold. I know. I freaked out too when I had a dream about killing Hobbes…"
"Only a dream, huh?" Ed smirked.
Darien hit him on the back of his head. "Oww! Hey, I was kidding," Ed said as he rubbed his head.
"Look, this thing, it makes you act irrational and do strange things. I had a fear of donuts for a long time."
Ed looked at Darien oddly, "Okay, I have a fear of killing Claire and you're fear was donuts…somewhere in there is logic. What a donut told you to kill Hobbes? Was it like in that 'Young Sherlock Holmes' movie where the pastries attacked young Watson?"
Darien smiled as he remembered the scene, "Something like that," he stopped walking and faced Ed, "Ed, you're right, I didn't experience the pain you had, you're getting what was meant for me, but you're just as strong as I am. Everything else is the same though, the unknown, the knowledge that you might become immune to the counteragent somehow and then someone is digging for gold inside your head. That never goes away, even for me now, there's always fear, fear that it'll come back, that there's still people out there who want what's inside my head. I may go to sleep one night and never wake up. It's there with me 24/7." Darien started to walk and Ed followed. "You're a tough dude, I've seen you stand up to people, hell you stood up to Lewis and the Council, you kidnapped me…"
Ed rolled his eyes, "Yeah, well…"
Darien continued, "Fought dominants, stood up to Tom, got the Spanish flu and survived…"
Ed pursed his lips together, "I know but…"
"But nothin'…you've been shot, frozen, injected with that weird drug from Lewis, kidnapped more times than you count on one hand…"
"Please don't remind me, I feel like the poster boy for bad luck. Guess I'm making up for all those quiet days I had before this whole thing started."
Darien stopped and tapped him on the shoulder, "You surfed the Pipeline on Oahu and those waves are like three times your height, not to mention the dangerous lava reefs…Ed, that is not a place for beginners, it's for pros and those who are like kamikazes, even I know that." Darien pointed his finger at Ed, "Now that, my friend, is showing no fear."
Ed smiled and looked down, "Well…"
"Look, you made it through those times and you'll make it through this…I did and I still am trying to make it through."
"Yeah, but…I guess this is just another mountain to climb."
"Yeah, and speaking of mountains to climb, there's Claire."
"Oh crap."
"Bro, this is beyond crap. This is sleep on the couch kind of crap."
"Terrific."
"Hold on, don't run away again. I'll talk to her," Darien walked towards Claire leaving Ed standing by himself. He turned to make sure that Ed was still there and he waved to him to stay put. Ed kicked the sand with his bare feet and put his hands in his pockets. He looked like the kid who broke the neighbor's window.
Claire looked at Darien confused, "Darien, thank God you found him, is he okay?" Claire paused, "You're all wet…did he jump in the water?" Claire sounded frantic.
"Yes, but he's going to be fine. He wasn't trying to kill himself, just trying to wash the dream away. Look, he had a nightmare and it really freaked him out…"
Claire went to go to Ed when Darien stopped her. "No, Claire, the dream was about you and he's still a little freaked about it. I'm sure you can understand that?" Darien hinted at the dream that Claire had weeks ago before this happened, she nodded. "Good, look, uhmm…I'm going to sit him down so we can talk some more. I'll keep my eye on him, I promise."
"Okay, I understand," Claire glanced down at the empty beer bottles; she knew he threw one in the ocean. Claire looked back up at Darien with a worried look.
"I doubt he's going to become an alcoholic, look, he's trying to deal with this the best way he knows how at the moment. I did the same thing. We'll talk, we'll drink, we'll pass out…that's what guys do. Go back up to the house, you can watch us if you want. I promise no more swimming tonight."
"You promise, because if anything happens to him I'll personally hold you responsible," Claire shook her finger at Darien.
Darien shook his head and raised his hands, he shot her his puppy dog eye look, "I promise, Scout's honor."
"Yeah, well that normally would work, but you were not a Scout." Claire looked at Ed who looked back at her and then back to the sand. She gave Darien another stern look before heading back to the house.
"Oh, Claire, can you bring us out a couple of blankets," Darien asked. But the reply was the same look she gave him when he broke the beaker full of oral counteragent, cut his finger and then asked for a band aid. "Okay, then, Ed and I will get blankets."
Darien and Ed grabbed their beer and headed up to the house. Ed got some blankets and the two men sat down on the porch. They each had a blanket wrapped around them to keep them warm. Darien popped opened another beer and handed it to Ed, "Go on, tell me more about Sloan."
"Uhhmm…yeah…okay…you know the first time I looked in Claire's eyes, I knew it, I knew that I had to get to know her. It was like all those years of chasing Sloan and the jealousy over Tom washed away in that moment. I got that feeling in my gut and the pounding in my chest when I saw her for the very first time."
"Well, I know what you mean about the pounding in your chest, with Claire though, it was a dart and not Cupid's arrow."
Ed laughed, "I remember you telling me that. That's funny."
"Yeah, I can look back on that now and laugh."
Ed became serious, "Darien, I think I may have found a way to cure your gland once and for all. But I'll need to run extensive tests before I know for sure."
"What?"
Ed shook his head, "Yeah, I did get a good look at the gland and Arnaud's notes from his own gland. I think I can do gene therapy using retroviral vectors and fix it so that it's normal."
"What about the gland in your head? Can't you fix that too? I know that you don't have Claire's research but can't you use Arnaud's gland as a model to help you?"
"Eventually, but I didn't know what Arnaud was going to do at the time. So, I concentrated on finding the cure for you. If I can get her research, pinpoint how the mutation works, then yes, I can probably find a cure for me. But in the meantime, I may have found the way to help you. Then I can give you the genogenesis therapy." Ed noticed that Darien had turned his gaze away from him, "What's wrong?"
"I'm glad that you might be able to fix the gland, but…"
"But returning you back to human is the issue?"
"Yes, I don't know if you know this, but there's a Senator in Washington who is pushing for a bill to be passed that will force dominants to reveal themselves and register, Darcy knows more about it than I do."
"What? You've got to be kidding me?" Ed was shocked at what Darien told him.
"Yeah, I know, hard to believe. But that's not the main reason, Darcy's pregnant."
Ed's eyes lit up, "Whoa…great news, congratulations! When did you find out?"
"Thanks. I found out about it nearly two weeks ago. I guess dominant women show signs of pregnancy earlier. "
Ed frowned, "I was still with Arnaud." Ed thought for a moment, "That would be consistent with what we know about dominant women. Hmmm…since Darcy was human and she does have only one uterus, I would imagine that she's only having one child, unless of course…"
Darien raised his hands, "Whoa…hold on there, don't you ever shut your scientific mind off?"
Ed smiled, "Sorry, Darien, that's why I didn't have too many friends. I was always in the scientist mode, except when I surfed."
"It's okay. Actually, Claire and Sloan have the same theory that she may have released multiple eggs or something like that." Darien paused and took a long deep breath, "I have to do what's best for the kid you know."
"Hmm…you know after the baby is born I might be able to give the three of you the therapy."
"I don't know, Ed…It's not that I don't want it, I don't know what's going to happen if this bill passes." Darien sounded disheartened.
"Wait, you don't think that they'll round up dominants do you?" Ed asked in disbelief. It had suddenly occurred to him that five years ago this would have come as great news, but now, it didn't seem right. He's met far too many dominants who risked their own lives to save his and most of them had become friends, close friends. But then, isn't that why he developed the genogenesis therapy, to wipe out a species? Ed remembered what he had said to Walter so long ago, 'If they can turn us into them, why can't we turn them into us?'
Darien knew what Ed was thinking and he shied away from Ed. He didn't blame Ed for this, he only did what he thought was best at the time. Ed had just been kidnapped and nearly killed by Copeland. They had discovered the fatal plans of Copeland to destroy the immune systems of children and to release the Spanish Influenza on an unsuspecting world. Ed had every right to be angry and want revenge for what happened to Kelly. Ed was in a struggle for survival, if he was in Ed's shoes, he would have done the same thing.
Darien gazed at Ed with concern, "I don't know, Ed. I don't know what they plan on doing."
~*~
Claire woke up and Ed wasn't there. She sighed and grabbed for her robe. She went down the stairs and saw Pavlov wagging his tail at the glass doors. "Need to go outside?" She asked and opened the door, she stepped outside and that's when she saw them. Her hand covered her mouth as she stifled a laugh. "I've got to get a camera," she commented to herself. The sight of Darien and Ed passed out on the porch kept her from getting angry with them. Darien was right though; they did drink and pass out. They each had finished off their six pack. She wondered how long they had stayed up talking. But at least they were able get to the lounge chairs.
Ed was on his stomach with one arm hanging over the side and a foot sticking out from the blanket. Darien was on his back, head tilted to one side and snoring like a banshee. Their shirts and pants were hanging over the railing and she hoped they had at least left their underwear on. She shook her head back and forth as she pictured these two stripping on the porch drunk or at least close to it. It must have been a sight and now she was sorry she missed it.
Claire walked back inside and called Darcy to let her know that Darien was okay. She quickly got her camera and snapped off a few pictures before any of them woke up. Pavlov scampered back in and Claire went upstairs to get ready for work.
Darien stirred a short time later and he looked around trying to get his bearings. Then he remembered and looked over at Ed, "Good, you're still there." Darien sat up and rubbed his head, "Oh man, this is going to be a long day…" he stopped and he perked up, "Coffee…I smell coffee," he got up slowly, grabbed his pants to put them on and walked into the kitchen. There was a fresh pot of coffee waiting for them. Darien smiled, "Thanks, Claire, just what the doctor ordered." He fixed himself a cup and sat down to read the paper.
Claire came down stairs and stopped; at first she couldn't tell if it was Darien or Ed. Darien looked up and smiled, "I'm Darien."
Claire smiled and blushed, "I couldn't tell at first." She walked towards Darien, "I guess he's still sleeping."
"Yeah, it's best to just let him sleep it off. He won't have a bad hangover, but he'll have one…like me."
Claire leaned down and kissed him on his cheek, "Thanks for being here for him."
"Hey, no problem."
"Well, I'm off to work," she looked outside; Ed was still asleep on the lounge. She turned and had a worried look on her face.
Darien saw it and looked at his watch, "I'll wait until he wakes up to make sure he's okay and then I'll be in."
Claire smiled, "Okay, I'll see you later."
Darien nodded and watched Claire leave. He went back to reading the paper and saw the article on Senator Allen. He debated about reading it but it did concern him and he started to read it.
~*~
Ed woke about an hour later with a horrible taste in his mouth. "Oh man…" he covered his eyes with a hand and moaned, "Why'd you do this to yourself?" He slowly got up and walked inside the house.
"Hmm, you're up at last," Darien remarked.
Ed squinted as he walked, his hand shot out to touch the wall to support himself, "Whoa…too fast, must take baby steps."
Darien smiled, "It's been awhile since you drank like that hasn't it?" Darien got up to help Ed. "Here just have a seat and I'll get you some water and some Tylenol, aspirins will kill your stomach," he helped Ed to the couch.
"Thanks, so did you see Claire this morning?" Ed asked.
"Yep, don't worry, she's not mad at you. But I wouldn't make a habit of it," Darien returned with a glass of water and some Tylenol.
"I don't think that'll be a problem," Ed said as he downed the pills.
"Hey, do you have any tomato juice and Worcestershire sauce?" Darien asked.
Ed looked up at him disgusted, "God, Darien, did you have to mention that? And the answer is no. Why?"
"Okay, then I'll be right back," Darien headed for the door. Ed looked over the couch, "You're not going to get that stuff are you?"
"Hey, it's like the cure for hangovers, trust me on this." Darien was out the door.
"He actually thinks I'm going to drink that?" Ed shook off the sick feeling in his stomach and slowly made his way to the kitchen to get some more water.
Darien returned a short time later and had made sure that Ed drank every bit of the tomato juice before he left for work. Ed was surprised that it actually helped him feel better. Ed lay down on the couch and went to sleep for a couple of hours.
~*~
Darien sat with Hobbes, Tom and Sloan in the lab. They sat in quiet for a few moments thinking about yesterday's events.
"Something isn't kosher about all this," Hobbes said breaking the silence.
"Tell me about it. Arnaud can be complex in his ways but even for him, this was way too overboard for him." Darien stated.
Tom and Sloan stared at each other and then back at Darien. "What do you mean?" Tom asked.
"Well, Arnaud has a way of coming up with grand schemes to try and get a hold of the gland in my head. He pretended that my brother was still alive just to lure me to my uncle's cabin. Another time he made me sick just to get the gland but ended up making the gland sick also. He's not one to just come up from behind me and hit me over the head with a baseball bat. There's no style in that." Darien paused and then continued, "But this goes beyond him, I can't see how putting a gland in Ed could lead to something else he wants, unless he wants to control Ed, but then why give up the counteragent formula so easily?"
"But why control Ed?" Sloan asked.
"His background. That's why Copeland wanted Ed too." Tom added.
"There's something that goes deeper than Arnaud at work here," Darien said.
"Well, first let's look at Tate. What exactly is his background?" Hobbes asked.
Darien looked over at Sloan. She thought for a moment, "Well, he's a bio-anthropologist with a background in genetics and immunology."
"I thought you were the bio-anthropologist?" Hobbes asked.
"We both are and so is Walter. The field is called Biological or Physical Anthropology, but it's easier just to say bio-anthropologist. We actually study neontology" Sloan said.
"Neo, bio? I thought he said he was an immunologist?" Darien asked as he remembered the conversation that he and Ed had in his apartment. With everything that has gone on, it seems like ages ago.
Sloan smiled, "Ed is modest, immunology is just a part of his doctorate. Ed doesn't like to give complete details because he's afraid he'll intimidate someone, he has always been like that. Bio-Anthropology is divided into two areas. Paleontology is the study of fossil evidence of primate evolution. Neontology is the relative biology study of living primates and humans. It's a diverse science of the human species and it includes past and modern populations. That's what we do; study both the past and present evolution of man."
"After he told me about the classes he had to take just to go to med school, I was intimidated already," Darien said shaking his head.
"He mainly researched the genetics aspect of bio-anthropology…uhmm…and the forensic science part of it. Ed usually was the one that performed autopsies." Sloan added.
Hobbes' shoulders shuddered at the thought, "You mean like on mummies?"
Sloan smiled, "Yeah, you might say that. Then he would study their DNA, immune system, organs, tissues, blood, things like that."
"Bet he would love to get his hands on the Ice Mummy," Darien commented. Hobbes looked at him confused. "What you don't watch the Discovery Channel? Yeah, some German tourists found this 5,000 year old mummy in some snow covered mountain."
"Exactly, that's right up Ed's alley. By the way, the mummy's name is Oetzi." Sloan said with a smile. "Ed would have loved to have been a part of that forensic team. In fact, I remember him frothing at the mouth when he read about it."
"Who would benefit from Ed having a gland in his head?" Tom asked.
"Not sure, but that's what I'm going to find out. Arnaud gave up the formula too easily. Not to mention he knew where Ed was going to be." Darien said.
Hobbes thought for a moment and then he had the look like a light bulb went on inside his head, "Oh…hello…it was also the same time when we went on that wild goose chase, remember?"
Tom looked at Sloan, "We were sent to Canada."
"And Walter was sent to Hong Kong. We were all out of town when Arnaud took Ed." Sloan added.
"A coincidence, even Darcy was sent out of town and Ray and Alex weren't around either." Darien hit the table, "Someone needed a geneticist…" Darien paused as he looked around, "…damn it, this was all a set up."
"Arnaud?" Sloan asked.
"No, even this was way too complicated for him to do on his own. Someone helped him who had connections and lots of 'em." Darien stated.
"Walter?" Sloan asked.
"No, this goes beyond what Walter and even the fat man can cook up. This is way up on the government's food chain of command here, my friends," Hobbes said.
"Walter's boss." Tom was sure it had to be her.
Sloan shook her head, "She did say at one time that we weren't doing enough to stop the dominant threat. That's when Ed came up with the idea for the gene therapy. But why would a gland be beneficial to her?"
"Because while invisible I can spot a dominant," Darien said. All eyes turned to him as he continued, "Look, even with the dominant senses, Lewis or Lynch couldn't tell where I was, they knew I was around but that's all. Wouldn't that be one hell of a weapon?"
"Yes, and with the sensory weapon they have, they could get close enough or spot dominants easily. The weapon has no effect on humans and while invisible, someone could render a dominant unconscious or even kill them without being seen." Tom said with concern in his voice.
"Ed is the likely candidate because of his background and if he got close enough to the genetic design of the gland…" Sloan stopped.
"That information could be used to make other glands," Hobbes added.
Darien stood up, "Kevin designed the gland to stop terrorists, not to eliminate a species."
"How do you know that's her plan?" Hobbes asked.
"Because she doesn't believe that co-existence is possible between our two species. She will fight dominants in anyway she can." Tom added as he looked at Sloan. "To her, everyone is expendable, even Ed."
"This is all just speculation, we have to find hard evidence," Sloan said.
"We'll get it somehow, someway, we'll get it," Darien said.
TBC…
Ed sat on the beach watching the waves roll in. He took a long drink of his beer while two bottles were already empty and sat in the carton next to him. He turned his head around when he sensed someone coming up from behind him. He looked up at the tall silhouette standing next to him, "How'd you know?"
"You have a gland in your head that makes you go insane if you don't get a shot," Darien sat down next to Ed with a six pack in his hand, "And since I know the whole routine, I figured that by now, you had a nightmare."
Ed smiled sheepishly, "Yeah, I did, a bad one too."
"So ends the dreams of being naked standing in front of women throwing little pickles at you," Darien unscrewed the cap off of a beer and held it up to Ed, "Here's to quicksilver glands."
Ed tapped his beer to Darien's and they drank. Ed chuckled, "You know in college I was called 'Chris Knight'."
"Welcome to Pacific Tech's smart people on ice!"
"Although, we never turned a hallway into an ice rink," Ed smiled. "I wasn't like that character," Ed caught Darien's glance, "well, okay maybe I was a little like him. I didn't wear bunny slippers or things on my head or was as open with the girls like he was. But I guess in the sense of his attitude I was like that, didn't have to study hard, dressed different from everyone else, no 'I'm smarter than you' type ego…I was pretty much a loner. I didn't belong to any certain clique you know. Even in High School, I was always the odd man out. I wasn't stuffed in garbage cans or anything like that. I was too tall and athletic for that. Laguna Beach High was the only high school in the district, in fact it still is. It has a college preparatory program so a lot of the kids that go there are smart to begin with. But still, I intimated the kids in the 'normal' classes and couldn't stand the ones in the AP classes. Even the girls were kind of odd in the AP classes I took. But in the regular classes, they didn't click with me. Most had the material attitude, like 'when I graduate I want to find a doctor or lawyer,' you know?"
"So, you never brought any girls up to your room is what you're saying?"
Ed blushed, "I did, I wasn't completely a geek you know." Ed took a sip of his beer and stared off at the ocean.
"She was pretty, huh?"
"Who?"
"The girl you brought up to your room," Darien said as he stared at Ed.
Ed smiled, "Yeah, she was pretty and a cheerleader too."
Darien held up his beer, "Congratulations, you the man!" They tapped beer bottles, "Hey, did Laguna Beach have a surfing team?"
Ed shook his head, "No, just swimming and water polo, although the school's nickname at one point was the 'Breakers' it was changed the following year to the 'Artists' because the area was founded as an artist's colony."
Darien got a disgusted look on his face, "'Artists' man, you guys were better off with the 'Breakers' nickname."
"I know, it really doesn't sound menacing does it, 'Dude, the Artists are gonna kick your butt tonight!'" Ed shook his head, "It seriously lacks doesn't it?"
"Totally," Darien smirked.
Ed laughed, "Yeah, people picture Picasso or someone like that as our school mascot with a paint brush as a weapon. It didn't help that our school colors are like burgundy and white…not good. We did get teased a lot from the kids at other schools."
"I can see why." Darien studied Ed for a moment, he saw so much of Kevin in him, "So, you were smart then too, huh?"
"Yeah, school was hard though. It's like in the top 10% of California schools so the curriculum is tough."
"What kind of courses did you take?"
Ed gazed at Darien, his brow creased quizzically, "Do you really want to know?"
"Yeah, I'm interested. What kind of courses do smart people take?" Darien looked at Ed like he was an interviewer asking someone a very important question.
Ed chuckled, "Okay, here goes. Because I wanted to go on to med school, I had to take, not in any specific order, Government and Economics. English, very boring and most of my History and English classes were AP. I took pre-calculus, calculus, and geometry. For Laboratory Science, it was biology, chemistry and physics," Ed took a quick glance over at Darien and laughed, "What's the matter? You did ask."
"I'm with ya, kind of, well, you lost me at pre-calculus." Darien was lost and if it wasn't dark, Ed would have seen the smoke coming out of his ears as his brain just suffered a major melt down.
"You're smarter than you think you are, Darien," Ed said looking at Darien with a smile.
"That's what Kevin said to me before he died." Darien took a long hard drink of his beer.
Ed looked down at the sand, "I'm sorry, I uh…I didn't mean to bring up a bad memory."
"Not your fault. I have a constant reminder anyway," Darien pointed to his head. "Okay, so tell me more about high school, but not your classes."
Ed chuckled as he tried to peel the label off the beer bottle, "Well, okay, the surfers didn't like me cause to them I was a geek and since I didn't compete, they didn't like that either."
"You didn't compete? Why?" Darien asked.
"Didn't want to," Ed chuckled, "I was more of what they call the 'soul surfer', I was in it for the joy." Ed held up his hand and made the 'shaka' sign, "Brah, it's about being in the green womb of the Big Mama, to go to church and pray in the whirling cathedral," Ed said in the typical surfer tone.
Darien shook his head and chuckled softly, "Okay, so what does all that mean?"
Ed smiled, "Basically, it means that I just enjoy surfing because of the love for the ocean and not for the money and advertisers. Surfing was a way of life for the Polynesians when they started back in 400 A.D. But, I did model surfing gear while in college, from clothes to boards. It was an easy way for me to earn some extra money."
"Really, that's funny, I was a head model for local salons," Darien said.
Ed laughed, "I can picture that," Ed took a sip of his beer, "Do you believe in fate?"
"Depends, why?"
"One of the companies I modeled clothes for was called 'Quiksilver' but without the 'c'."
"You're kidding me?"
"Nope, I swear. It's true. They're still around and in fact I still wear their trunks."
"How come you didn't say anything before?"
"It had occurred to me when I first heard about the gland, but with everything that was going on, it slipped my mind. Until now." Ed took another sip. "I didn't change much in college either. I was the same shy guy who didn't fit any mold, just my own. I met Sloan in college; we took a course together when we were studying bio-anthropology. It was our junior year. We were in the same class that Ann Coulter taught,"
"You mean, the lady that was killed?" Darien asked.
"Yeah, that's her. She was a great teacher. She really saw a lot of potential in Sloan and confided in her a lot. But anyway, about Sloan, I now know since falling in love with Claire that the chemistry between Sloan and me wasn't there. I had hoped it would develop, but it never did. We just developed a friendship and I didn't want just that. I wanted more. She showed no signs of wanting to go further and since she was one of very few friends I had, I didn't push it until we both landed jobs at the lab."
"How did you get those jobs?"
"Ann recommended us. I thought she was going to make me wear dress shirts and ties, but she didn't, she just told me to shave, not wear cut offs and my hair had to stay off my shoulders."
Darien chuckled.
"You know the odd thing about all this is, when you became a dominant, you entered my world, now I'm in yours. I'm in love with Claire and you're in love with Darcy. It's like we trade off something in the worlds we live in," Ed furrowed his brow in confusion, "did that make sense or is it the beer talking now?"
"Nah, I understand, Darcy came from your world and Claire came from mine. So it makes sense," Darien said as he leaned back on the sand. "We were both thrown into something we didn't ask for and for some reason it all came together."
"We both work for fat men, even though he has his own short comings, I would pick Walter any day, it's his superior I don't trust. That bitch." Ed took a sip of beer.
Darien looked at Ed for a moment, "I don't need to look at your tattoo to know that you're not anywhere near QSM, so where did that come from?"
Ed held up his empty beer bottle, "From the three beers I've had so far." Ed reached over and grabbed another one.
Darien looked up at the house and then back at Ed, "Good thing you're already home, I don't think you should be driving." Darien finished off his beer and grabbed another one also. He wasn't about to tell Ed that he's had enough, he knew what Ed was going through and for right now, this was how Ed was handling it. Darien would stay to make sure Ed made it back up to the house and didn't wind up in the ocean. Ed had made some progress earlier when they first talked, but he knew that once Ed had his first nightmare, it would all unravel, and it did.
Darien knew that Ed was about to crash and crash hard. He could feel the emotion building up inside. Ed nearly downed the beer in one gulp. "Hey, easy there," he put his hand on Ed's shoulder, "Why don't you just let it out, it'll help, I know."
Ed looked at Darien, fear overtaking his expression. His breathing became heavy and his chest rose and fell deeply. "Darien, I…I…can't go through that again…it hurt so bad…I remember…I remembered every thing I did!" Ed stood up and ran to the shore line; the waves crashed in but didn't overpower his cries.
Darien got up and ran after him, he saw Ed stop short of the shoreline as the waves rolled in over his feet.
"Damn you, Arnaud!!! You bastard, how could you do this to me?!!!" Ed tossed his beer into the ocean, "You bastard!" Ed fell to his knees; he picked up some sand and threw that back into the ocean, "ARNAUD!!!" Ed yelled at the top of his lungs.
Darien turned around and saw Claire standing on the porch, her hands covering her mouth. He turned his attention back to Ed who was now pounding the ground with his fists. He knelt down beside him, "Go on…keep going."
"Damn him…damn him…bastard…that bastard…" Ed looked up at Darien, tears streamed down his face, his body broke out in a sweat. "I can't …Darien…oh God…I can't…why…why did he do this…" Ed lowered his head so it touched the sand and cried, "I can't…I can't…"
Darien wrapped his arm around Ed, "Let it all out, you'll feel better." Darien looked at Claire as she made her way down to the shore line. Darien felt Ed's body shake and he held him tighter. Darien didn't have any one to turn to, at least he could be there for Ed. Darien maybe the younger one between them, but right now, he was Ed's protector.
Ed felt another hand on his back, he looked up and saw Claire, fear gripped him and he jumped to his feet, "NO…get away from me…don't come near me!" He took off running down the beach.
"ED!!" Claire called out to him, but he didn't stop.
"Oh crap," Darien got up and ran after Ed.
Claire stood there and watched Darien chase after Ed. Soon they both disappeared into the darkness. All she could do was hope that he wouldn't do anything foolish and that Darien would be able to stop him if he did.
Ed was fast, faster than Darien thought. He knew that jogging was part of Ed's exercise routine, but he didn't expect this burst of energy with three beers in his system. "Ed, stop!"
"No…I have to stay away from her!"
"Damn it, will you stop!"
Ed stopped and turned to face Darien, he was barely huffing. Darien shook his head and put his hands on his hips, "Damn, you're fast."
"What do you want, Darien, to talk, to drink, to tell me it's going to be alright! It's not, okay? I'm a walking ID waiting to explode! You should know how that feels!"
"I do, Ed, why the hell do you think I'm here chasing your ass down the beach?! Cause I do know! I know what's going through your mind, the uncertainty, the fear, the fear that you'll kill the ones you love, that's part of it, it sucks I know, but that's how it is!" Darien walked towards Ed. "Just don't run anymore okay. You can't escape it."
"I don't want to end up a permanent resident in the nut hatch. I don't want to kill Claire."
"Tell me your dream, Ed, what happened?"
"No, I can't, don't you understand? I don't want to remember, so that if I go crazy I won't do…" Ed stopped the images of his dream filled his mind. "My God, Darien you have to stop me…"
Darien walked closer, "Stop you from what?"
"From raping her," Ed looked at his hands, "The blood, so much blood," Ed moved his hands like he was trying to get something off, "I can't get it off me," he sprinted off and dove into the ocean.
"ED!" Darien chased after him, but didn't see him, "Damn it, Ed, if you die, I'll kill you myself!" Darien stopped, "What am I doing…focus…focus…" Darien looked in the direction where he sensed Ed, "Got you." He kicked off his shoes and ran into the surf just as Ed resurfaced. "Ed, come on, get out of the ocean," Darien said as he approached Ed.
"I can't wash it off, Darien, why won't it come off?" Ed went under again.
"Aww…damn!" Darien reached the spot wear Ed was. Ed resurfaced and he grabbed him by his shirt, "What the hell are you doing?"
"It won't come off," Ed said in a frightened tone.
Darien helped Ed to the shore and they stood there. Darien had a grip on Ed's arms, "Damn it, don't you ever pull a stunt like that again."
"I wasn't trying to kill myself…the blood, I was trying to get it off, it's all over me," Ed said as he looked at himself.
Darien looked sadly at him, "Ed, you can't let it control you, don't quit."
"I can't beat this, Darien, I can't."
"Yes, you can."
"No, this is different," Ed shrugged Darien's hands off him, "You didn't have the pain I did. You're…you're stronger than me." Ed walked away from Darien.
"It doesn't matter; it's the same dreams, the same fear."
Ed turned around to face Darien again, "Okay, you want to know what I dreamed? I'll tell you. I raped her over and over, and then I killed her with my bare hands like some wild animal. Satisfied?"
"It's a dream, Ed, not real, you won't kill her."
Ed held his arms out, "How do you know that I won't, huh?" Ed walked towards Darien, "Can you promise me I won't kill her?"
"Yes. I can promise you that because there are people around you who do care and will watch over you. That's why I know that you won't kill her."
Ed looked into Darien's eyes. He saw sincerity in them. Ed looked back at the ocean and then back to Darien and ran his hand through his wet hair, "I'm sorry."
Darien put a hand on his hip and put the other one on Ed's shoulder, "It happens, just don't do that again. Come on, Claire is probably worried." Darien walked with Ed, "And when she sees us soaking wet, then she'll be pissed."
Ed smiled, "Can't say that I won't blame her. I don't know what came over me."
"Like I've been tellin' you, the fear, it grabs you and takes hold. I know. I freaked out too when I had a dream about killing Hobbes…"
"Only a dream, huh?" Ed smirked.
Darien hit him on the back of his head. "Oww! Hey, I was kidding," Ed said as he rubbed his head.
"Look, this thing, it makes you act irrational and do strange things. I had a fear of donuts for a long time."
Ed looked at Darien oddly, "Okay, I have a fear of killing Claire and you're fear was donuts…somewhere in there is logic. What a donut told you to kill Hobbes? Was it like in that 'Young Sherlock Holmes' movie where the pastries attacked young Watson?"
Darien smiled as he remembered the scene, "Something like that," he stopped walking and faced Ed, "Ed, you're right, I didn't experience the pain you had, you're getting what was meant for me, but you're just as strong as I am. Everything else is the same though, the unknown, the knowledge that you might become immune to the counteragent somehow and then someone is digging for gold inside your head. That never goes away, even for me now, there's always fear, fear that it'll come back, that there's still people out there who want what's inside my head. I may go to sleep one night and never wake up. It's there with me 24/7." Darien started to walk and Ed followed. "You're a tough dude, I've seen you stand up to people, hell you stood up to Lewis and the Council, you kidnapped me…"
Ed rolled his eyes, "Yeah, well…"
Darien continued, "Fought dominants, stood up to Tom, got the Spanish flu and survived…"
Ed pursed his lips together, "I know but…"
"But nothin'…you've been shot, frozen, injected with that weird drug from Lewis, kidnapped more times than you count on one hand…"
"Please don't remind me, I feel like the poster boy for bad luck. Guess I'm making up for all those quiet days I had before this whole thing started."
Darien stopped and tapped him on the shoulder, "You surfed the Pipeline on Oahu and those waves are like three times your height, not to mention the dangerous lava reefs…Ed, that is not a place for beginners, it's for pros and those who are like kamikazes, even I know that." Darien pointed his finger at Ed, "Now that, my friend, is showing no fear."
Ed smiled and looked down, "Well…"
"Look, you made it through those times and you'll make it through this…I did and I still am trying to make it through."
"Yeah, but…I guess this is just another mountain to climb."
"Yeah, and speaking of mountains to climb, there's Claire."
"Oh crap."
"Bro, this is beyond crap. This is sleep on the couch kind of crap."
"Terrific."
"Hold on, don't run away again. I'll talk to her," Darien walked towards Claire leaving Ed standing by himself. He turned to make sure that Ed was still there and he waved to him to stay put. Ed kicked the sand with his bare feet and put his hands in his pockets. He looked like the kid who broke the neighbor's window.
Claire looked at Darien confused, "Darien, thank God you found him, is he okay?" Claire paused, "You're all wet…did he jump in the water?" Claire sounded frantic.
"Yes, but he's going to be fine. He wasn't trying to kill himself, just trying to wash the dream away. Look, he had a nightmare and it really freaked him out…"
Claire went to go to Ed when Darien stopped her. "No, Claire, the dream was about you and he's still a little freaked about it. I'm sure you can understand that?" Darien hinted at the dream that Claire had weeks ago before this happened, she nodded. "Good, look, uhmm…I'm going to sit him down so we can talk some more. I'll keep my eye on him, I promise."
"Okay, I understand," Claire glanced down at the empty beer bottles; she knew he threw one in the ocean. Claire looked back up at Darien with a worried look.
"I doubt he's going to become an alcoholic, look, he's trying to deal with this the best way he knows how at the moment. I did the same thing. We'll talk, we'll drink, we'll pass out…that's what guys do. Go back up to the house, you can watch us if you want. I promise no more swimming tonight."
"You promise, because if anything happens to him I'll personally hold you responsible," Claire shook her finger at Darien.
Darien shook his head and raised his hands, he shot her his puppy dog eye look, "I promise, Scout's honor."
"Yeah, well that normally would work, but you were not a Scout." Claire looked at Ed who looked back at her and then back to the sand. She gave Darien another stern look before heading back to the house.
"Oh, Claire, can you bring us out a couple of blankets," Darien asked. But the reply was the same look she gave him when he broke the beaker full of oral counteragent, cut his finger and then asked for a band aid. "Okay, then, Ed and I will get blankets."
Darien and Ed grabbed their beer and headed up to the house. Ed got some blankets and the two men sat down on the porch. They each had a blanket wrapped around them to keep them warm. Darien popped opened another beer and handed it to Ed, "Go on, tell me more about Sloan."
"Uhhmm…yeah…okay…you know the first time I looked in Claire's eyes, I knew it, I knew that I had to get to know her. It was like all those years of chasing Sloan and the jealousy over Tom washed away in that moment. I got that feeling in my gut and the pounding in my chest when I saw her for the very first time."
"Well, I know what you mean about the pounding in your chest, with Claire though, it was a dart and not Cupid's arrow."
Ed laughed, "I remember you telling me that. That's funny."
"Yeah, I can look back on that now and laugh."
Ed became serious, "Darien, I think I may have found a way to cure your gland once and for all. But I'll need to run extensive tests before I know for sure."
"What?"
Ed shook his head, "Yeah, I did get a good look at the gland and Arnaud's notes from his own gland. I think I can do gene therapy using retroviral vectors and fix it so that it's normal."
"What about the gland in your head? Can't you fix that too? I know that you don't have Claire's research but can't you use Arnaud's gland as a model to help you?"
"Eventually, but I didn't know what Arnaud was going to do at the time. So, I concentrated on finding the cure for you. If I can get her research, pinpoint how the mutation works, then yes, I can probably find a cure for me. But in the meantime, I may have found the way to help you. Then I can give you the genogenesis therapy." Ed noticed that Darien had turned his gaze away from him, "What's wrong?"
"I'm glad that you might be able to fix the gland, but…"
"But returning you back to human is the issue?"
"Yes, I don't know if you know this, but there's a Senator in Washington who is pushing for a bill to be passed that will force dominants to reveal themselves and register, Darcy knows more about it than I do."
"What? You've got to be kidding me?" Ed was shocked at what Darien told him.
"Yeah, I know, hard to believe. But that's not the main reason, Darcy's pregnant."
Ed's eyes lit up, "Whoa…great news, congratulations! When did you find out?"
"Thanks. I found out about it nearly two weeks ago. I guess dominant women show signs of pregnancy earlier. "
Ed frowned, "I was still with Arnaud." Ed thought for a moment, "That would be consistent with what we know about dominant women. Hmmm…since Darcy was human and she does have only one uterus, I would imagine that she's only having one child, unless of course…"
Darien raised his hands, "Whoa…hold on there, don't you ever shut your scientific mind off?"
Ed smiled, "Sorry, Darien, that's why I didn't have too many friends. I was always in the scientist mode, except when I surfed."
"It's okay. Actually, Claire and Sloan have the same theory that she may have released multiple eggs or something like that." Darien paused and took a long deep breath, "I have to do what's best for the kid you know."
"Hmm…you know after the baby is born I might be able to give the three of you the therapy."
"I don't know, Ed…It's not that I don't want it, I don't know what's going to happen if this bill passes." Darien sounded disheartened.
"Wait, you don't think that they'll round up dominants do you?" Ed asked in disbelief. It had suddenly occurred to him that five years ago this would have come as great news, but now, it didn't seem right. He's met far too many dominants who risked their own lives to save his and most of them had become friends, close friends. But then, isn't that why he developed the genogenesis therapy, to wipe out a species? Ed remembered what he had said to Walter so long ago, 'If they can turn us into them, why can't we turn them into us?'
Darien knew what Ed was thinking and he shied away from Ed. He didn't blame Ed for this, he only did what he thought was best at the time. Ed had just been kidnapped and nearly killed by Copeland. They had discovered the fatal plans of Copeland to destroy the immune systems of children and to release the Spanish Influenza on an unsuspecting world. Ed had every right to be angry and want revenge for what happened to Kelly. Ed was in a struggle for survival, if he was in Ed's shoes, he would have done the same thing.
Darien gazed at Ed with concern, "I don't know, Ed. I don't know what they plan on doing."
~*~
Claire woke up and Ed wasn't there. She sighed and grabbed for her robe. She went down the stairs and saw Pavlov wagging his tail at the glass doors. "Need to go outside?" She asked and opened the door, she stepped outside and that's when she saw them. Her hand covered her mouth as she stifled a laugh. "I've got to get a camera," she commented to herself. The sight of Darien and Ed passed out on the porch kept her from getting angry with them. Darien was right though; they did drink and pass out. They each had finished off their six pack. She wondered how long they had stayed up talking. But at least they were able get to the lounge chairs.
Ed was on his stomach with one arm hanging over the side and a foot sticking out from the blanket. Darien was on his back, head tilted to one side and snoring like a banshee. Their shirts and pants were hanging over the railing and she hoped they had at least left their underwear on. She shook her head back and forth as she pictured these two stripping on the porch drunk or at least close to it. It must have been a sight and now she was sorry she missed it.
Claire walked back inside and called Darcy to let her know that Darien was okay. She quickly got her camera and snapped off a few pictures before any of them woke up. Pavlov scampered back in and Claire went upstairs to get ready for work.
Darien stirred a short time later and he looked around trying to get his bearings. Then he remembered and looked over at Ed, "Good, you're still there." Darien sat up and rubbed his head, "Oh man, this is going to be a long day…" he stopped and he perked up, "Coffee…I smell coffee," he got up slowly, grabbed his pants to put them on and walked into the kitchen. There was a fresh pot of coffee waiting for them. Darien smiled, "Thanks, Claire, just what the doctor ordered." He fixed himself a cup and sat down to read the paper.
Claire came down stairs and stopped; at first she couldn't tell if it was Darien or Ed. Darien looked up and smiled, "I'm Darien."
Claire smiled and blushed, "I couldn't tell at first." She walked towards Darien, "I guess he's still sleeping."
"Yeah, it's best to just let him sleep it off. He won't have a bad hangover, but he'll have one…like me."
Claire leaned down and kissed him on his cheek, "Thanks for being here for him."
"Hey, no problem."
"Well, I'm off to work," she looked outside; Ed was still asleep on the lounge. She turned and had a worried look on her face.
Darien saw it and looked at his watch, "I'll wait until he wakes up to make sure he's okay and then I'll be in."
Claire smiled, "Okay, I'll see you later."
Darien nodded and watched Claire leave. He went back to reading the paper and saw the article on Senator Allen. He debated about reading it but it did concern him and he started to read it.
~*~
Ed woke about an hour later with a horrible taste in his mouth. "Oh man…" he covered his eyes with a hand and moaned, "Why'd you do this to yourself?" He slowly got up and walked inside the house.
"Hmm, you're up at last," Darien remarked.
Ed squinted as he walked, his hand shot out to touch the wall to support himself, "Whoa…too fast, must take baby steps."
Darien smiled, "It's been awhile since you drank like that hasn't it?" Darien got up to help Ed. "Here just have a seat and I'll get you some water and some Tylenol, aspirins will kill your stomach," he helped Ed to the couch.
"Thanks, so did you see Claire this morning?" Ed asked.
"Yep, don't worry, she's not mad at you. But I wouldn't make a habit of it," Darien returned with a glass of water and some Tylenol.
"I don't think that'll be a problem," Ed said as he downed the pills.
"Hey, do you have any tomato juice and Worcestershire sauce?" Darien asked.
Ed looked up at him disgusted, "God, Darien, did you have to mention that? And the answer is no. Why?"
"Okay, then I'll be right back," Darien headed for the door. Ed looked over the couch, "You're not going to get that stuff are you?"
"Hey, it's like the cure for hangovers, trust me on this." Darien was out the door.
"He actually thinks I'm going to drink that?" Ed shook off the sick feeling in his stomach and slowly made his way to the kitchen to get some more water.
Darien returned a short time later and had made sure that Ed drank every bit of the tomato juice before he left for work. Ed was surprised that it actually helped him feel better. Ed lay down on the couch and went to sleep for a couple of hours.
~*~
Darien sat with Hobbes, Tom and Sloan in the lab. They sat in quiet for a few moments thinking about yesterday's events.
"Something isn't kosher about all this," Hobbes said breaking the silence.
"Tell me about it. Arnaud can be complex in his ways but even for him, this was way too overboard for him." Darien stated.
Tom and Sloan stared at each other and then back at Darien. "What do you mean?" Tom asked.
"Well, Arnaud has a way of coming up with grand schemes to try and get a hold of the gland in my head. He pretended that my brother was still alive just to lure me to my uncle's cabin. Another time he made me sick just to get the gland but ended up making the gland sick also. He's not one to just come up from behind me and hit me over the head with a baseball bat. There's no style in that." Darien paused and then continued, "But this goes beyond him, I can't see how putting a gland in Ed could lead to something else he wants, unless he wants to control Ed, but then why give up the counteragent formula so easily?"
"But why control Ed?" Sloan asked.
"His background. That's why Copeland wanted Ed too." Tom added.
"There's something that goes deeper than Arnaud at work here," Darien said.
"Well, first let's look at Tate. What exactly is his background?" Hobbes asked.
Darien looked over at Sloan. She thought for a moment, "Well, he's a bio-anthropologist with a background in genetics and immunology."
"I thought you were the bio-anthropologist?" Hobbes asked.
"We both are and so is Walter. The field is called Biological or Physical Anthropology, but it's easier just to say bio-anthropologist. We actually study neontology" Sloan said.
"Neo, bio? I thought he said he was an immunologist?" Darien asked as he remembered the conversation that he and Ed had in his apartment. With everything that has gone on, it seems like ages ago.
Sloan smiled, "Ed is modest, immunology is just a part of his doctorate. Ed doesn't like to give complete details because he's afraid he'll intimidate someone, he has always been like that. Bio-Anthropology is divided into two areas. Paleontology is the study of fossil evidence of primate evolution. Neontology is the relative biology study of living primates and humans. It's a diverse science of the human species and it includes past and modern populations. That's what we do; study both the past and present evolution of man."
"After he told me about the classes he had to take just to go to med school, I was intimidated already," Darien said shaking his head.
"He mainly researched the genetics aspect of bio-anthropology…uhmm…and the forensic science part of it. Ed usually was the one that performed autopsies." Sloan added.
Hobbes' shoulders shuddered at the thought, "You mean like on mummies?"
Sloan smiled, "Yeah, you might say that. Then he would study their DNA, immune system, organs, tissues, blood, things like that."
"Bet he would love to get his hands on the Ice Mummy," Darien commented. Hobbes looked at him confused. "What you don't watch the Discovery Channel? Yeah, some German tourists found this 5,000 year old mummy in some snow covered mountain."
"Exactly, that's right up Ed's alley. By the way, the mummy's name is Oetzi." Sloan said with a smile. "Ed would have loved to have been a part of that forensic team. In fact, I remember him frothing at the mouth when he read about it."
"Who would benefit from Ed having a gland in his head?" Tom asked.
"Not sure, but that's what I'm going to find out. Arnaud gave up the formula too easily. Not to mention he knew where Ed was going to be." Darien said.
Hobbes thought for a moment and then he had the look like a light bulb went on inside his head, "Oh…hello…it was also the same time when we went on that wild goose chase, remember?"
Tom looked at Sloan, "We were sent to Canada."
"And Walter was sent to Hong Kong. We were all out of town when Arnaud took Ed." Sloan added.
"A coincidence, even Darcy was sent out of town and Ray and Alex weren't around either." Darien hit the table, "Someone needed a geneticist…" Darien paused as he looked around, "…damn it, this was all a set up."
"Arnaud?" Sloan asked.
"No, even this was way too complicated for him to do on his own. Someone helped him who had connections and lots of 'em." Darien stated.
"Walter?" Sloan asked.
"No, this goes beyond what Walter and even the fat man can cook up. This is way up on the government's food chain of command here, my friends," Hobbes said.
"Walter's boss." Tom was sure it had to be her.
Sloan shook her head, "She did say at one time that we weren't doing enough to stop the dominant threat. That's when Ed came up with the idea for the gene therapy. But why would a gland be beneficial to her?"
"Because while invisible I can spot a dominant," Darien said. All eyes turned to him as he continued, "Look, even with the dominant senses, Lewis or Lynch couldn't tell where I was, they knew I was around but that's all. Wouldn't that be one hell of a weapon?"
"Yes, and with the sensory weapon they have, they could get close enough or spot dominants easily. The weapon has no effect on humans and while invisible, someone could render a dominant unconscious or even kill them without being seen." Tom said with concern in his voice.
"Ed is the likely candidate because of his background and if he got close enough to the genetic design of the gland…" Sloan stopped.
"That information could be used to make other glands," Hobbes added.
Darien stood up, "Kevin designed the gland to stop terrorists, not to eliminate a species."
"How do you know that's her plan?" Hobbes asked.
"Because she doesn't believe that co-existence is possible between our two species. She will fight dominants in anyway she can." Tom added as he looked at Sloan. "To her, everyone is expendable, even Ed."
"This is all just speculation, we have to find hard evidence," Sloan said.
"We'll get it somehow, someway, we'll get it," Darien said.
TBC…