That said Prof. Doyle walked out of the lab and walked to Dr. Wright’s room. He knew he would have loved to be woken up by such great news. If this one works, we might test it on both Abraham and Mr. Mendoza, after all, we already have our victims, Prof. Doyle considered. He increased the pace of his steps like he couldn’t even wait for a second more to have the opinion of his colleague.

  Dr. Wright was still sleeping in his room when he heard someone knocking insistently at his door.

  “What is going on? Is the place on fire?”

  He stood up from the bed and walked to the door, he wasn’t surprised to see Prof. Doyle there, but what surprised him was the excited expression in his face. He thought that he’d never seen his colleague in that state in the entire time they’ve known each other.

  “What is going on?” Dr. Wright wondered inviting Prof. Doyle to come inside his room.

  “You won’t believe it!” Prof. Doyle replied closing the door behind him. “We might have reached the final formulation. This means that we need to test it immediately, and we need a test subject. If this works, we might avoid continuing the test on Mr. Mendoza and Abraham.”

  Dr. Wright looked at him and felt speechless. “Do you realize that this could mean the end of this madness?”

  Dr. Wright started to walk around the room, trying to find a patient who could be fit for the test. “Do you think we might still use Abraham instead of Mr. Mendoza?” He wondered pausing in the middle of the room.

  “We need to have blood samples of both. In the line of principle, the doses we have given to Abraham and Mr. Mendoza were designed to prepare the patient gradually until they would have reached the final stage. However, since we have given Abraham the already modified formulation, but only for a couple of days, we might suspend it and make a trial tomorrow evening. We might also test this evening the new formulation with Mr. Mendoza, who has received so far the original formulation, which is milder and should not interfere with this new formulation if we interrupt it for a day or two and then test it.”

  “We need to be sure; everything hinges on the failure or the success of the entire project. You know what’s at stake!” Dr. Wright warned.

  “Of course, I am fully aware of it, but unless you have a patient to call in right away, I guess we need to work with what we got. Perhaps it might also be one of us…”

  Dr. Wright didn’t know what to say, they needed indeed to perform the test, and time was something they might not have at their availability. “Fine, let’s do this way, tomorrow we will test Mr. Mendoza, and on Saturday we will also test Abraham, with two different results we might have a better idea whether we should need some recalibrations and we will have to test someone else, or we can consider the formulation ready. In this fortunate case, as soon as I get the money, I will be leaving this country, at record speed. Finally, Samantha and I will be able to live our lives in peace focusing only on each other.”

  “Well, good luck with that and let’s hope for the best. By the way, how is Mr. Mendoza’s therapy going? Has he found the way to get rid of his addiction?” Prof. Doyle wondered.

  “Better than I could have ever forecasted. On Sunday, he will leave this place a new man, a man who isn’t addicted to nicotine anymore, and who is not going to flee in face of his problems or other people who potentially are going to oppose him,” Dr. Wright replied satisfied.

  “That is another reason to celebrate, then,” Prof. Doyle smiled. “Well, I am going to go to take a nap, Dr. Eckstein and I have been awake the whole night, and I am dead on my feet, so it is time to rest and then to have a shower before we start with the production of the drug.”

  “And I will head for a shower and get ready for the therapy with Mr. Mendoza, which this time won’t include any drug, just plain and simple hypnotherapy,” Dr. Wright replied as he walked to the en suite and turned the shower on.

  Jonas reached his office a bit later that morning, for some reason, the lack of sleep accumulated during that period was starting to take its toll, and his body refused to wake up when the alarm clock started to ring. He walked to Detective Malloy’s office to be updated with the situation at the resort.

  “Good morning,” he greeted, still feeling like a zombie before his morning coffee.

  “Are you sure it is a good morning? You look like you just dug yourself up from the grave,” she noticed with a giggle.

  “Yeah, just give me the time to have some coffee, and I will be back running on all cylinders. I just dropped by to ask whether there has been any suspicious movement at the resort. Since I haven’t heard anything from you, I might suppose that either nothing worth mentioning has happened or that you forgot to report it to me,” Jonas replied sarcastically.

  “I haven’t forgotten it, and the fact is just like you said, nothing has happened there. Nobody came in or out, and there hasn’t been any particular or suspicious movement.”

  “Fine, don’t stop keeping a close eye on them, we might have found some new clues that will tie Dr. Wright and his team of researchers to the disappearance of at least four people,” Jonas replied.

  “Of course, I will let you know as soon as anything happens.”

  Jonas sighed and walked away towards the kitchen where he hoped to find the strongest coffee in the world to make his brain and body start working at least until the end of that case, so to be able to return to a normal sleep pattern that used to have before he got involved into that intricated case.

  Dr. Wright was taking some notes after the psychotherapy session he had with Julius, and found it very difficult to concentrate, knowing that the week was almost over and with it also the end of that project.

  Nevertheless, these last few days required his full attention. He closed his eyes and tried to marshal all his focus on the project, when suddenly, almost unexpectedly, his telephone started to ring.

  “Bernard Wright,” he answered.

  “Good morning, Dr. Wright,” Mr. M. greeted.

  “Good morning, I suppose you are calling to be updated about the formulation,” Dr. Wright guessed. “Well, I can finally tell you that we have reached the final formula, and tomorrow we are going to test it on Mr. Mendoza. However, we are also planning to test the same drug on Dr. Whiterfeld.”

  “That is great news, so I guess you will be ready to submit the formula on Sunday afternoon?” Mr. M. replied.

  Dr. Wright recalled the doubts he had about Mr. M.’s reliability, and suddenly he didn’t feel like he wanted to risk anything, “You will have the formula when we have our money in the bank.”

  “Are you trying to blackmail me?” Mr. M.’s tone became suddenly menacing.

  “No, I just want to play straight. Who is going to ensure that you will pay us once you have your formula? At that time, you won’t need us anymore, so sorry, but I’m going to need some reassurances before I turn over our research and formulas,” Dr. Wright replied steadily. He hadn’t risked everything he had for nothing.

  “I don’t think you understand that you might be the next victim. I am not trying to scare you; I am just trying to make you see the whole picture. You have no idea whom you are talking to, and perhaps you should think twice before you even think to put any additional conditions to the deal that I made with you.”

  Mr. M.’s voice was calm, or at least that’s it would have been interpreted by whomever. However, Dr. Wright was not a common person, and his deep knowledge of human nature allowed him to see the wrath lurking underneath the slight changes in Mr. M.’s voice.

  He knew that he was playing with the devil himself, but he thought he had an ace up his sleeve, and that was the formula for the drug.

  Mr. M. grinned, “we will figure out a solution that will keep everybody satisfied.”

  That said, he hung up the phone, livid with anger.

  So, it seems like we have something against you, Mr. M., and that gives us a little advantage to plan the conditions of giving our formula to you. He stood up from the chair he was seating in and hurried to the lab, where he was sure to find the rest of the team.

  “I have talked with our client,” Dr. Wright began as he quietly closed the door behind himself.

  “Was he satisfied with the possibility to deliver the final formula this weekend?” Prof. Doyle wondered, confident about the positive feedback.

  “Well, you might remember that I told you once that I don’t trust him, so I told him that if he wants to have the final formula, he needs to show us his goodwill and pay us. He might get the formula and send the police to chase us for all we know. He has all the evidence he wants; he has everything against us, but we do not have anything, not even his name,” Dr. Wright explained. “I think we need to have this game played in a way that is fair for everyone. I am not going to give up anything without any guarantee.”

  Prof Doyle cringed, feeling already in danger after that confession, “that was a brave act… or a very stupid one. Nevertheless, I agree, and we all need to feel confident about dealing with this final stage of the project. We all need to have our part, and meanwhile, for him, the end game is to have the final formula, for us, it’s the final compensation.”

  “What did he say after you laid out your demands?” Klaus wondered.

  “He said that he will think about it, and he abruptly hung up the phone. I suggest you save the formula somewhere where only you have access,” Dr. Wright proposed.

  “That is something I have already thought about it, and it is saved in a safe place,” Prof. Doyle chuckled.

  Once again, Dr. Wright’s telephone started to ring, so he sat the telephone down on the table and answered with the speakerphone on.

  “Hello,” Dr. Wright replied giving a quick glance to all the other people in the room.

  “Dr. Wright, I have to presume that at this moment, you are already in the laboratory and I have the attention of all the people involved in this project.” Mr. M. said seriously.

  “Yes, we are all here,” replied Prof. Doyle.

  “Good. As you all already know, Dr. Wright seems to not trust the fact that I am going to honor the contract between us. At this point, I would like to understand if this is only his own feeling or if it is a general mood that was caused by Dr. Wright.”

  Prof. Doyle took a deep breath and walked closer to the telephone, so as to make sure that his client would hear what he had to say. “Sir, with all the due respect, this is not a question of trust, it is a question of being fair. You have everything against us, and considering the nature of the project, and that we do not even know your true identity, we would appreciate if the payment would arrive in advance, or at least 80% of it, after which you can be more than certain that we will deliver what was agreed upon since the beginning, the final formula.”

  Mr. M. was silent for a moment pondering about the proposed solution, “that seems reasonable, if you have a positive result by the end of this week, you will receive the 80% of the promised sum, then once I have received the formula, I will finalize the payment for the service,” he replied. “I would like you to understand that hiding my identity, has mostly to do with the confidentiality of the project. I need to protect what is mine from business rivals ready to do everything to get their hands on this formula. You understand yourself the practically limitless potential of this drug. It can revolutionize the world as we know it, and that is the reason why you accepted in the first place. Because you could see the potential in it.”

  Dr. Wright nodded, and after an understanding glance he shared with the other members of the team, he smiled, “That’s right, we all understand the potential uses and how it will revolutionize the field of hypnotherapy as we currently know it. We accept your proposal, and we expect to receive the payment this evening, as the final formulation will be ready to be delivered to you within a couple of days.”

  Mr. M smiled, “I am glad we reached an agreement; I will get in touch with you tomorrow evening. Have a good day, gentlemen.”

  Dr. Wright hung up the phone and smiled, “It seems like we got what we were asking for. I really hope it is not a trick just to fool us.”

  “You are starting to be really paranoid, let’s see if we have received our money by this evening, at that point, we will know whether we are going to continue this formulation, or if we need to contact Officer Sheen...” Prof. Doyle replied. “You might think we do not have anything against him, I say instead that we have quite a lot in our hands, and the fact that he agreed to pay us confirmed it.”

  “I wish I were as confident as you are, people like him do not have any trouble in eliminating whoever is standing in their way of what they want, and you of all people know that extremely well,” Klaus protested.

  At that moment, Abraham arrived in the lab, and looked around suspiciously, as all of a sudden everybody went deathly silent. “Am I interrupting something?”

  “No, sorry, we were just discussing the project, and you surprised us. It seems like the final formulation for the drug is almost ready to be delivered to the client,” Dr. Wright explained.

  “If everything works as it should, this evening we will receive the first part of the compensation for our work. The rest will be delivered together with the formula,” Klaus explained.

  “Did the client call?” Abraham wondered.

  “Yes, a few minutes ago,” added Prof. Doyle. “But let’s go on with whatever we need to do. Dr. Eckstein and I will produce the first batch for testing. Meanwhile, you and Prof. Doyle will be taking care of our patient, and his therapy, together with the finalization of the routine.”

  Chapter 16.

  Gabriel was driving from his home to the resort, to check on the situation with the test and when he should prepare to bring in the victims. At the moment he had only two people he’d chosen, but he needed to know for sure whether they needed a third one or not. His phone started to ring with a known telephone number.

  “Look, I was just on my way to the resort, you must have been reading my mind,” Gabriel replied sarcastically.

  “I guessed as much, that is the reason why I was calling you.” Mr. M. replied.

  “Any problem?”

  “Not really, I had an argument with the researchers, it seemed like they didn’t trust me to pay them once I receive the final formula, so I had to agree to give them a portion of the fee now and another after the delivery of the formula,” Mr. M. growled.

  Gabriel laughed heartily, “They know you pretty well, even though they never met you. But you have to admit that they have done an excellent job, and they do deserve ample compensation for their efforts, not to mention that they can still be helpful later on.”

  “That is the reason why I agreed, I might need them in the future, regardless whether they will decide to move to another country for safety reasons,” Mr. M. acknowledged.

  “So, you need to make sure that whatever happens, your assets are protected, now and after.”

  “Yes, and I might have a surprise partner for this project,” Mr. M. explained victoriously. “A partner who will take care of many of the legal aspects of the deal.”

  “So, we have to guess that you are becoming untouchable?” Gabriel wondered.

  “You could say something like that. However, I would like you to stay there and keep an eye on them, trying to understand whether it is true, and they have the final formulation, or if it was just a hoax to get the money.”

  Gabriel smiled, amused, “I will take care of this detail and report back to you in a timely matter.”

  He reached the resort within another half an hour of driving; knowing that this process would all be over within a couple of days put him in a good mood.

  As he got out of the car, he took a deep inhale of that fresh winter morning air and looked around. Everything seemed to be under control, and there wasn’t any suspicious movement around the premises, as the officers who were keeping the area under strict surveillance took their place on a building just in front of the resort.

  He smiled and walked inside to reach either the lab or the office of Dr. Wright, the therapy session should be finished by now, he observed as he glanced at the clock.

  “Mr. Mendez, this is a surprise. To what do I owe the pleasure of your impromptu visit?” Dr. Wright asked with a light inflection of sarcasm in his tone.

  “I came to understand how things are proceeding here. I have two victims ready, but I have no idea whether you need a third as well or if they will be enough for the testing.”

  “They will be enough, since we could reach the final formulation, we decided to make a test on a couple of patients, so as to make sure that we have the right calibration and we do not need to make any changes to the final formula,” Dr. Wright explained.

  “Sounds great, I cannot wait for the time that this project would end. I have my life to take care of, and this has been taking me away from it for too long now. I need to get back at it until I can,” Gabriel replied. “I also came to stay until the final period, I will just go and get the two victims and return here; you might need help to get rid of the bodies.”

  “Yes, we will definitely need help in that aspect. However, we will not need the two victims at the same time,” Dr. Wright amended, “The first one should arrive tomorrow evening and the other on Saturday evening. We might get rid of them at the same time so as not to raise any suspicion.”

  “Yes, that would be a better way to deal with the problem. So, are there any good restaurants around here?” Gabriel wondered, abruptly changing the subject of the conversation.

  “Yes, just walk a few hundred meters in that direction,” replied Dr. Wright, gesturing with his hand the direction he should walk in. “There is a nice little restaurant, the food is good, and the atmosphere is cozy. A bit further, there is fast food, but I strongly advise you to check the restaurant as the freshness of the food can be somewhat questionable.”

  “I will then follow your advice and go to the restaurant. What’s your schedule look like for today?” he asked before leaving.

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28