"Shalimar, what…" Emma paused looking around her unfamiliar surroundings. "Where are we?" she asked turning her face back to Shalimar's.
"We're in a lab. I'm gonna take you home now ok," the feral informed easing the woman's worry.
"Um, may I speak with you in the other room?" the doctor asked looking at the smiling feral.
"I'll be right back," Shalimar informed smiling at the red head and following the doctor into the a joining room.
"As far as I can tell the procedure was a complete success. You have a genuine living, breathing Emma DeLauro clone. The DNA samples you provided were fabulous. She'll walk, talk, smell, and sound just like the real woman did. Now, I've made her as genetically close to the real thing as I can but there are no guarantees she'll think, feel, and act exactly like your host did and of course, she has no soul, but as far as she's concerned she is Emma deLauro."
Shalimar remained silent at the knowledge she already knew. Emma's soul wasn't with her, but Emma was…in a way.
"Wait," Shalimar intervened. "She doesn't know what she is?"
"No. She thinks she's human, and she is. She thinks she's this Emma person and of course she is but she thinks she's the genuine real deal. I've programmed all the memories you brought me into her and they all took as far as I can tell. Of course, everything else is fill in the blanks for her. The memories you couldn't provide yourself will not be inside her memory, but I did program the appropriate information from your knowledge of her, say for example her childhood. She'll have that knowledge just no memories to go along with it."
Shalimar sighed knowing she was going to have to work with Emma if she wanted her to work with her.
"She thinks and feels?" Shalimar asked.
"Yes. She thinks and feels extremely close to the way Emma herself would have."
Shalimar nodded, reached into her pocket, and removed another envelope to hand to the man.
"Here's the rest of your payment," Shalimar informed and turned to rejoin Emma inside the lab.
"Shalimar," Emma called to the approaching feral. "What's going on?" she asked confused as ever at the suspicious events.
"Come on," Shalimar said helping the woman out of the chair. "We're gonna go home. I explain there."
Emma pulled herself up with the assistance of the feral and followed her friend back to the Helix on the roof.
The ride home was quiet and Shalimar began to worry about how she was going to sneak the red head into Sanctuary unnoticed. Jesse was sure to be a problem obstacle.
Pulling the Helix into the hanger Shalimar landed the craft and turned to the woman, unable to keep from smiling at the mere sight of her. She stood up and walked over to the confused woman placing a soft, comforting hand on her shoulder.
"We're home," she informed. "Come on."
"I feel like I haven't been here in ages," Emma said taking the feral's hand and stand up, surprised as to why she felt a little wobbly.
"You haven't," the feral informed regretting the words instantly as she wasn't quite ready to break the news to the woman just yet.
"What?"
"You've been…away. "
"I…I don't remember. Everything's a little hazy right now."
"I know. We'll talk about it later ok. I wanna take you to my room. I want you to stay quiet ok. Don't let anyone see or hear you."
"Why?" Emma asked questioning the unusual requests of her friend.
"I can explain right now but I need you to trust me ok. "
Sighing and feeling a little lost Emma saw no other option than to trust the word of her friend that she would explain everything to her soon after.
"Alright," she agreed letting the feral help her off the Helix.
"Jesse," Shalimar called wanting to get a heads up on his location before she proceeded any further with the red head.
"Shal, yeah what's up?"
"Where are you?"
"I'm in the lab with Adam. Why what's going on?"
"Nothing I just wanted to say I'm home. Are Brennan and Lexa back yet?"
"No they're still out."
"I'm gonna go take a shower ok. I'll talk to you later," Shalimar informed and continued to help Emma down the hall and into her room before anyone could catch a glimpse of her.
"I think she's up to something, Adam" Jesse informed. "I don't like what's going on here."
"Well, I trust Shalimar to make the right decisions. I think if she needs help she'll come to us."
"I traced a call she made earlier. It was to a underground scientific lab. She's in talks with someone there, Adam," Jesse informed letting his worry get the best of him.
"I know Shalimar's been going through a tough time lately," Adam agreed. "But I don't think we should jump to conclusions. I'll talk to her."
Jesse sighed and stood from his chair.
"I think I will too," he explained and left the scientist alone in the lab.
Shalimar sat the red head down on her bed and Emma felt relieved to finally be somewhere comfortable.
"You sit here. I'll go get you something to drink ok."
Emma nodded and Shalimar walked over and opened her door, nearly jumping out of her skin as she saw Jesse standing on the other side. She quickly slammed the door in hopes he hadn't already seen too much and the molecular raised a questing eye at her peculiar actions.
"Shal, I was hoping we could talk."
"I'm kinda busy right now, Jess," she informed. As much as she loved the man she wanted nothing more than for him to go away. Far away and for a good amount of time too.
"Are you hiding something from me?"
"What? Of course not, Jess, I told you I just have a lot on my mind right now."
"I traced your call earlier and-"
"You did what?" she asked suddenly more angry than worried at his news.
"I wanted to know what you were-"
"Jesse, what I do is my business you have no right to go behind my back like that. I told you everything was fine."
"Well I don't believe that."
"Well that's your problem, Jesse. I don't wanna talk about this anymore I have things to do," she barked and began to head for the kitchen remembering her promise to Emma.
Proving he didn't give up that easy Jesse was quick to follow her and leaned in the doorway as she began to prepare a glass of water and a plate.
"Jesse, why don't you just let this go?"
"Because I think you need some help. Why were you calling a place like that, Shal?"
Shalimar merely ignored him and kept to her business hoping he'd give up and walk away.
"What could you possibly want with..." Jesse stopped himself as the ideas came into his head. He refused to believe them at first but couldn't find any way around what seemed like the obvious. "Oh no," he finally stated looking let down and put off.
Shalimar looked up at the statement feeling her jig was up.
"I hafta go," she informed and left the kitchen for her room. She didn't make it too far however as Jesse's hand was quick to pull her around as he joined up with her in the hall.
"Tell me you didn't, Shal," he pleaded hoping beyond hope his acquisitions were wrong. "Please, Shal, you didn't. How could you?" he asked his voice a little higher now.
Knowing she was going to have to address this matter Shalimar set the plate and glass down on the table against the wall and turned back to her friend.
"No, Jesse, you don't understand. I had to. I needed-"
"No, Shal, you didn't have to do anything. You should've come to me I wanted to help you."
"It's not what you think. Not the way you think. It's her, Jesse, she's just not exactly the same. I needed to do this for myself."
"And you're that selfish?" he snapped back. "Oh my god, Shal, I never would've thought you could do this."
"I know but please don't tell anyone, Jesse."
"Where is it?" he asked looking around. "Did you bring it here?" he took a step forward and wanting to prevent him from searching the place Shalimar placed a hand to his chest to hold him back and he only glared disapprovingly at her.
"Jesse, don't."
"How…" he tried to get the words out at such a loss for them at the shock. "How could you do this? How?"
"I know, I know. When you first made that simulation I was disgusted remember. I didn't even wanna talk to it but it helped, Jesse. It took some of the hurt away and I needed it."
"That's nothing like what you've done, Shal. That simulation was a therapeutic healing device designed to help you cope with the loss."
Jesse pulled himself from the feral's grip and brought his hand up to his mouth to cover how stunned he was.
"The dreams have started again," Shalimar flatly stated, frozen in her spot.
Jesse paced back in forth in front of her trying to figure out what to do in the situation.
"What dreams?" he asked nearly throwing his hands up in anger.
"The ones I told you about. They started after she died and when you made me the simulation they stopped, then they came back, and now they're back again. There's something different about them, Jesse. Something important but I don't know what."
"So this is your solution? What are you gonna do when Adam finds out? Did you even think about how this would effect everyone else?"
"You weren't supposed to know," she shouted back turning as Adam entered the room. All the yelling from the hall had distracted him from his work and he'd come to investigate only to find two now silent mutants refusing to face each other.
"Hey, what's all the yelling about?" he asked, looking back and forth between each of them.
Jesse flashed an angry and upset look at the feral and each of them turned away from each other and Adam neither wanting to tell him what was happening.
"So is someone going to tell me what this is about?" Adam asked again not happy with being given the silent treatment.
Interrupting their awkward silence the three of them turned as laughter echoed down the hall and Brennan and Lexa walked towards them.
"I'll never forget that one," Lexa said laughing again along with Brennan who did some kind of impression as they made their way closer, each of them busting out in laughter once more. When they finally reached the others they picked up on the tense moment enrapturing the room and stood still joining them in their silence for a moment.
"What's goin' on?" Brennan finally asked looking to Jesse and Shalimar and finally Adam.
"I don't know. That's what I'm trying to find out," Adam replied crossing his arms to show how fed up he was.
"Tell 'em, Shal, they have a right to know," Jesse said too upset to care what it meant to her.
"No," she denied.
"She's not real!" he yelled back, far too hurt with the reality that Emma was gone to entertain any notion she might be in Sanctuary that very moment. "She's not the real Emma," he reminded.
The name got the immediate attention of Lexa, Brennan, and Adam and all eyes were soon on Shalimar.
"Emma?" Adam questioned. "What about Emma?"
"I don't want that thing here, Shal," Jesse told her firmly.
"She's not a thing she's a human being!" the feral combated.
"With no soul?" the molecular yelled back not liking it however she tried to explain it.
"What's going on here?" Adam asked. "What did you do, Shalimar?"
"I didn't-"
"She made a fake Emma and she's harboring her here in Sanctuary," Jesse answered for her.
"Wait, Emma's here?" Brennan asked his jaw nearly on the floor.
"No she's not. She's a fake," Jesse explained.
"She's not like that she's also-"
"What?" Emma asked standing at the end of the hallway with her mouth hung open in shock.
All eyes turned to the red head and speechless mutants stared at what they would swear was Emma DeLauro.
"What am I?" Emma asked looking over each of her friends and finally Shalimar.
"A clone," Jesse answered fighting not to look at her, his voice now softer and not so angry but mad at the feral for her actions.
Emma's eyes took on a new hurt at the realization and she quickly turned running from the room.
"Nice job, Jess," Shalimar snapped in sarcasm before taking off down the hall following the salty scent of Emma's tears until reaching her bedroom.