“But there are still some abilities I have that he doesn’t,” I noted. “Like telepathy.”
“What’s your point?” Mouse asked.
“It sort of begs the question,” I said. “What powers does he possess that I don’t have?”
Mouse and BT exchanged a glance, and I could tell from their expressions that my question wasn’t one that they had previously considered. However, before either of them could comment, my phone rang.
I glanced at it, and then became immediately annoyed when I saw who was trying to reach me: an anonymous caller.
Gray.
Chapter 65
“First, let me say thanks for meeting with me,” Gray began. “You took off yesterday before we actually had a chance to finish our conversation.”
“No thanks necessary,” I said. “Just get to the point, Gray.”
We were in the back seat of the SUV again. After taking his call, we had agreed to meet up as we had last time, and I had immediately teleported from Mouse’s lab to the appropriate street corner, where Gray’s vehicle had been waiting for me.
“Well, I know that you’ve crossed paths with Jack a couple of times,” Gray began. “I just wanted to tell you to be careful in dealing with him.”
I didn’t respond. Instead, I simply waited, sure that there was more to come, but after a few seconds it became clear that Gray had said his piece.
“Wait – that’s it?” I asked in surprise. “You had me come all the way across town just to tell me that? As if I didn’t know after the things he’s done?”
“You act as though you had to take a taxi, the subway, and two metro buses to get here,” Gray countered, chuckling. “And yes, I had you come so I could give you a warning, because I thought it was necessary.”
“And why is that?”
“Because – even though you know what Jack’s capable of – you’re not likely to see that side of him. Generally, he’s going to be on his best behavior around you.”
“What’s so special about me?”
“You mean other than the fact that he’s basically a clone of you?” Gray asked sardonically. “In essence, he wants you to like him. It’s important to him.”
I frowned. Gray’s words had a ring of truth to them, and Jack’s demeanor did comport with what I was hearing.
“That’s a tall order, considering the things he’s done,” I finally said.
“Paramount did things that were just as bad – maybe worse. You’re best buds with him now.”
“That’s an entirely different situation, but I will say this: I don’t blame Jack for being the way he is. I saw the things that he was put through. It was enough to unhinge anybody, let alone a kid.”
Gray nodded. “I know what you’re talking about, and yes – what happened to him was horrible. If I’d known about it, I would have stopped it. Putting a halt to those kinds of things is part of the reason why I got involved.”
“Oh, come off it, Gray!” I snapped. “You don’t get to say that you inserted yourself into the process as a way to keep bad things from happening, then turn your back and let them shoot this guy out of a cannon. Either you’re a good guy or you’re not. You can’t have it both ways.”
“It must be great to be young and idealistic,” Gray shot back. “To see everything in simple black-and-white terms. Given everything you’ve experienced, I would think by now you’d realize that the world simply isn’t that clear-cut. The lines between right and wrong get blurred a lot more often than you might think.”
“Blurred lines?” I repeated, eyebrows raised. “You’re the draftsman here. If there are any blurred lines, it’s because you drew them that way. But you know what? If it makes you sleep better at night to tell yourself a pack of lies, go right ahead.”
“It’s not lies,” Gray said defensively. “And you can vilify me all you want, but as I stated before, none of this was my idea. That said, I can follow the logic of the people who authorized Jack’s creation. They saw a potential threat and looked for a way to neutralize it, if that ever became necessary. From that standpoint, their actions are justifiable.”
“And the end justifies the means, right?” I intoned mockingly. “You know, Jack said the exact same thing to me. It’s starting to become clear to me where he gets his values.”
Gray simply sat there silently, staring at me, but I could sense that my comment had irritated him.
“So today you justify cloning,” I continued. “What’s tomorrow – human-alien hybrids? Cyborgs?”
Gray unexpectedly gave me a look of surprise, but quickly recovered. However, his expression – despite being brief – indicated that my offhand comment had hit pretty close to home.
“Unbelievable,” I muttered, shaking my head. “You people are just unbelievable.”
“Maybe,” Gray admitted, “but the job I’ve been tasked with is the most important work I’ll ever do. Believe it or not, I’ve saved this planet a dozen times over, but no one will ever know. I’ll never get any medals, my name won’t appear in any history books, they won’t be erecting any statues in my honor. And I’m fine with all that – I didn’t sign up for any accolades. But at the end of the day, all this job will have left me with is three failed marriages, children who won’t speak to me, and grandkids who don’t know me.”
His face took on a slightly pained expression as he spoke, and I sensed remorse and regret in him – emotions I would have doubted he had just moments earlier.
“You know,” he went on, with a faraway look in his eyes, “I went to see my granddaughter play a talking tulip in a school play a few months back. She’s just five, but she did a wonderful job. Afterwards, I went
