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Early the next morning, Chester and Andrew walked down the hallway to their suite. Andrew had the case with him and a bag full of the equipment stolen from the hospital. They were both worn and tired; neither had slept, and they were both paranoid after the gunfight and chase down the highway the day before. Chester almost wrecked the SUV when it shifted back to normal time dragging them with it. They figured it was because Sellers had shifted back and the SUV was in sync with him. They got to the door and heard a commotion inside the room when they entered.
Sellers was lounging on the couch typing on his laptop, smoking a cigar, and enjoying the show before him. Nadjia was on her back as Tammy had her head between Nadjia's legs, licking away. Susan and Brittainy were each sucking Nadjia's tits while Nadjia fingered them off. Leaving Alisson squatting down on Nadjia's face as she licked away at her. Alisson pulled and milked her tits for her own enjoyment.
"Gentlemen, excellent!" He smiled exuberantly. "Here, I'll take that."
Sellers took the bag and case from Andrew. He opened the case and with both hands pulled out an ingot of what looked like silver. The weight of the ingot was evident by the strain on Sellers face. He placed the ingot on the countertop and heard it strain.
"Chester, bring me that case over there," Sellers said pointing to a rollaway case.
Chester passed it along. Sellers got out a fluorescent lamp with a magnifying lens in the middle and a Dremel kit. From the bag he pulled out the pacemaker components and three 2-way radio cellphones. He worked at the counter for close to an hour. With the Dremel, he sliced off two tiny square bits off the ingot and placed then inside the tiny pace makers, which were then wired and placed inside the phones.
"Chester, Andrew, come here."
The two complied. "What's that you got there, doc?"
"Your means of normalcy." He tossed each one a cellphone. "These will help the both of you to transition independently. The ingot is actually a fuel component to a reactor I helped design. I had to replace the timing component of the pacemaker with a fuel chip and rewire the pacemaker to use the timing quartz in the cellphone. Long story short, it should permit you to stay in real-time indefinitely."
They looked at the cellphones, feeling the extra weight. "So how do we shift?"
"As long as you're wearing those, just think it. Go on and give it a try."
"Okay, doc."
Chester thought. He felt the energy rush as did Andrew and Sellers. The wall clock stopped, as did everything and everyone else in the room, save the three.
"Now transition back."
And as easily as before, the three shifted back to real-time.
"Excellent. Now, gentlemen." Sellers relit his cigar "I have someone you should meet. Janice, come here."
Janice crawled across the room with her arms pulling her. Her legs, unable to move dragged behind her like dead weight. Her face was stained with tears, which began to well up again in her eyes. Sellers reached down and lifted her face.
"What happened to her doc?" asked Andrew.
"Oh nothing. I was just testing to see if it was possible to inhibit certain voluntary motor functions using suggestions. Apparently it does work."
"Chester, Andrew, this is Dr. Janice Cheng." Looking at her with a hurt face. "Oh I'm sorry Janice, I meant to say Dr. Janice Gonzalez." Sellers reached inside his shirt collar and pulled out the end of a gold necklace with a woman's wedding ring on it. With a big smile, he said, "Say hello, Janice."
Janice struggled to say her name. She clutched at her throat with her left hand but was only squeaked out. "Help me, p-p-please."
"Now Janice, we'll save that for later." Sellers placed his hands on both sides of her head. " I want you to relax, you can talk now. I want you to remember back when you were six. Can you see it?
Her eyes closed at the sound of his words. Janice felt a warmth envelop her. "Yes."
In her mind, Janice was back in her room when she was a little girl. She got up from her bed and looked around. She saw all the things she had as a little girl. All of her dolls, her legos, and her tinker toys were all over the floor. On the walls were her posters of the Banana Splits, Shawn Cassidy and Andy Gibb. And sleeping on her pillow was Twinkles, her Siamese cat. Janice looked at the mirror mounted on the door and saw herself as she was back then. A short, pudgy little girl with straight long black hair and chubby cheeks and those thick-rimmed glasses her mother made her wear.
"I bet you like it here."
She heard Sellers voice and out of the corner of her eye, Janice saw her favorite clown doll, sitting in the middle of her doll pile, turn its head.
"Uh huh."
Good, now lets play 'Answer the question'. Who were the FBI Agents involved in Bone Dry."
"I don't remember Mr. Flibley but they were nice ladies."
Not please with the answer, Sellers placed a hand on top of her head. "Janice, open your eyes and look at me."
She opened her eyes. Sellers lit his Zippo lighter in front of her face.
Mr. Flibley exploded in a ball of flames, instantly igniting everything in the room. The flames sprang up from all around her, burning her as she screamed for her daddy. She felt the heat sear her skin. Looking around in panic, Janice ran past her melting dolls for the door. The doorknob turned bright red at her touch, burning itself into her palm.
Sellers heard Janice's scream as she grabbed her wrist. Janice thrashed herself around the floor, trying to put out the imaginary flames burning her. "Who were the FBI agents involved with your husband?" He asked calmly.
Trying to get away from the fire, Janice ran to the other side of her room. Twinkles howled as the flames engulfed it. Janice saw her cat running around in circles until it finally dropped to the floor motionless. The flesh began to blacken; the sick smell of burnt flesh joined the smell of melted plastics.
Mr. Flibley's was still standing in the midst of all the fire. The doll's face had melted away, leaving a grotesquely twisted plastic skull sneering at her. "Who were the FBI agents involved with your husband?"
Janice screamed. "DeWitt, Agent Elizabeth DeWitt!"
Sellers put away the Zippo and stroked Janice's cheek. "There, there, the fire is out." Huddling at his feet, Janice wept incoherently, staring outward. "You see, she was in a fire when she was six."
"Yeah, doc, but why did you do that?"
"I needed to know who was involved with our adversary. I have to find out what and how much they know. And what better way than to find out through a childhood fear." Sellers continued stroking Janice's cheek. "The fire is out, dear girl."
At the sound of the last two words, Janice straightened up. She had a pleasurable smile across her face when she got up and sat on Sellers' lap. She wrapped both her arms around his neck and shoulders and began to French kiss him passionately.
"Boys, do me a favor and order me breakfast." Sellers got up from the couch with Janice in his arms. "Have it here in an hour or so. We have to meet with this Agent DeWitt and pick her mind, so to speak." Sellers walked into the separate bedroom, with Janice squirming in his arms trying her best to take off her clothing, and shut the door behind them.
"And now we switch you over to our Action 8 reporter, Vickie Newton, on scene at St. Vincent's Hospital, Vickie."
"Thanks, Mark, so far local police and the FBI have been unable to explain or ascertain as to what exactly happened here yesterday. So far the count remains at 12 dead, 34 wounded with four still in critical condition. Both sides of a five-mile stretch of I-25 have been shutdown for investigation. Unconfirmed reports say that conventional explosives were used. The trail of the damage extends from about five miles from here at the front of St. Vincent's Hospital. There are also reports of a robbery and gunfight inside the hospital yesterday, but that remains unconfirmed. A nurse has also been found outside the hospital apparently assaulted like so many other women in the Santa Fe region these past few weeks, Mark."
"Yes, has there been any word from the police or the FBI?"
"No, Mark, they are keeping everything under a news blackout for the time being."
"Will someone shut that damn TV off! Thank you."
Madeline Byrne sat by a technician in front of a video editing station. Sliding a bar, the surveillance tape played backwards.
"There, did you see that. One second that SUV was there and look, it disappeared. I'll bet you anything the paint matches the scrapings off the cars that were hit. Can you zoom up on the driver's face? Like you did with the last tape?"
"Sorry, this isn't one of those casino surveillance systems. The inside camera had a fixed location and was easier to lock on to the profile. This parking lot system is crap to begin with."
With a pissed off look, Agent Beth DeWitt entered the room.
"Maddy, you're not going to believe this; the face we got from the internal hospital video raised a flag somewhere, and Mosley wants us in his office now."
"What for?"
"I don't know, but he was pissed. More so than usual."
The two agents made their way past the other desks to their supervisor's office. Mosley sat behind his desk, and from the look on his face, he wasn't in the mood for anything.
"Take a seat." He motioned with his hand to another suit standing by the door. "The two of you already know Agent Hasert from the DOE Los Alamos.
Madeline and Beth knew Hasert. He was the one responsible for pulling the both of them from the Bone Dry investigation. Madeline shot an icy stare towards Hasert.
Mosley continued. "The face you tried to have identified belongs to a suspect this man is looking for. Any and all material you have on that person is to be turned over to Agent Hasert immediately."
"This is bullshit! That man is possibly a suspect somehow tied up with what happened yesterday and maybe to what's been happening around here lately. We have clear jurisdiction here."
Mosley's face twisted, as well as the knot in his stomach. "Not anymore, and the both of you are to cooperate with Agent Hasert with everything you know and find."
Sensing her boss's resignation, Madeline grudgingly let out a, "Yes sir."
Madeline got up and motioned to Agent Hasert. "This way."
Byrne and Hasert left for the video room. DeWitt turned towards the other way and spotted Janice waving at her with someone else standing by her side.
"Is that Agent DeWitt?" Asked Sellers.
Janice replied in a dreamy voice. "Yes."
"Good."
Sellers shifted with his hand on Janice's shoulder. The world around him came to a crashing halt. Janice laughed and pranced around the room. Spilling papers and coffee cups into the air. Sellers hung the mini-tape recorder nearby Beth's ear and pressed play, implanting his instructions into her subconscious mind. Sellers looked Beth over for a while.
"Hmm, not bad." He said. Checking out the pert soft bobbed blonde in her charcoal gray skirt suit.
Resisting temptation for the moment and making sure the tape played its message long enough. Sellers placed his hand on Beth's shoulder.
And in that instant Beth felt her senses screaming and then she felt the hand on her shoulder. Beth spun around, pulling away from the hand.
"You are Agent Elizabeth DeWitt I presume."
"Who are... wait a minute. You were at the hospital on the video." Beth drew her sidearm. "Hold it right there or..."
"Or what?! You'll shoot me?! Go ahead!" Sellers screamed and charged Beth.
Beth aimed and at the last instant her arm aimed her pistol went towards the ground and fired right through her foot. Beth fell to the floor, mute with pain as the blood poured out of her shattered foot until she finally howled in pain. It was then that she realized no one else was moving around. Everyone in her line of sight stood as they were, frozen.
Sellers propped himself on top of a desk. "See what you did? And I wanted this to be a nice quiet chit-chat between us." His eyes turned to slits, as his voice grew colder. "Do it again and I guarantee you're going to shoot yourself again. Now tell me everything you know about the investigation at Bone Dry and anything else related to it including Gonzalez."
Beth stammered. "NO!"
Sellers just looked at her. "Dear girl."
Beth's right arm and hand moved on its own volition. Her hand picked up her pistol and placed the barrel up against her calf muscle. Beth struggled against her own hand but it wouldn't budge. "No!" Her hand squeezed the trigger. The bullet cut through her thigh, shattering her femur bone, and went into the floor below. Beth fell flat on the floor looking at the ceiling, settling into shock. "How is it possible?"
Sellers dropped down to one knee and whispered. "Because my dear." Then yelled. "I fucked with your mind!" He reached into his pocket and flashed Beth's own badge at her and whispered. "You think this piece of brass means shit. You have no idea what I am capable of doing, but since you are bleeding to death. I do need you to tell me everything you know on the investigation at Bone Dry and anything related to it before you die."
Beth whimpered at the pain. She could feel herself growing cold as her blood spilled out of her wounds. "The files and videos were turned over to Los Alamos. We were taken off the case." Beth's face went pale from the blood loss.
"Oh very well. Janice, my love, could you please help. Janice leapt to Sellers' side, eager to please him. Using Beth's blouse after tearing it to strips; she applied pressure to Beth's wounds before fastening a makeshift tourniquet to control the bleeding.
Sellers gently twisted Janice's head and kissed her lightly. "Remember none of this but know what you have to do. Now stay here and just be yourself." Sellers placed a hand on Janice and Beth and thought. Beth and Janice froze where they were, like everyone else. Sellers got up and spoke into the mini-tape recorder. "Make a note in the research journal, it is possible to compel someone to self-inflict an injury."
He got outside the building where Andrew and Chester waited as they were told. "Gentlemen, things have gotten a little more complicated." The three men walked down the street and shifted back to real-time.
The floor panels exploded and the sight of papers and cups flying around surprised everyone.
Janice screamed. "OMIGOD! She's been shot!"
The other agents scrambled to secure the place. Janice did her best to stabilize Beth's bleeding until the paramedics had arrived. Madeline and Agent Hasert went in their car following the ambulance. Janice rode with Beth and ran with the gurney into the ER.
"Double GSW to the left foot and thigh! Left Femur is shattered! BP 90 over 60! Pulse is thready! She's lost a lot of blood!" Yelled Janice.
The trauma team took over leaving Janice, Madeline and Hasert looking through the windows of the trauma room as they did their best to save Beth.
Melissa came around from a corner and stopped dead in her tracks. "Janice, where have you been!"
Looking confused and puzzled. "Uh, I don't remember."
"You ran out of here and then all hell broke loose. They brought Joel in, he was in an accident."
"He's here?"
"He's okay for now. He had a bad accident. The paramedics said they found him off the highway all scraped up but Jerry said he was here for treatment."
"Where is he?"
"Upstairs, 3024, but he... Janice!"
Janice turned away towards the elevator. She walked in, pressed the button and calmly waited in the back of the car until it reached her floor.
"That was Dr. Janice Cheng?" Agent Hasert asked Madeline.
"Yeah, why?"
"She was a hostage at Bone Dry. She has a relation to Gonzalez, doesn't she?"
"They just got married. What the hell does this have to do with anything?"
Janice quietly walked into Joel's room, where a nurse was getting ready to change his bandages.
"Oh Dr. Cheng." The nurse looked back at Joel. "He's sleeping. I gave him a sedative to help him sleep three hours ago."
Janice placed her hand on the nurse's shoulder. "You go on Julia. I'll change his bandages."
"You sure?" Janice nodded. "Thanks."
Julia left Janice alone with her husband as he slept. She held his hand and looked at him lovingly until she felt the muscles of her neck tense up. Janice pulled the privacy curtain closed and pulled out a large blade No. 21 scalpel from a nearby ready kit. Janice raised up the scalpel high with both hands. They quivered for an instant. Her face looked uncertain as a tear began to form. Then her face sneered in anger and the scalpel bit deep into his chest, again and again.
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