Chapter 18
Cohen called the Colonel on the secure line and told him that she recommended the start of the next phase of the project. The boy’s adoptive father was breaking his conditioning and asking questions. She had placed Gaines in a suggestive state and reinforced the old parameters, but wasn’t sure how long it would last.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “We’re taking Daniel anyway. He’s graduated, and has applied for several colleges. I’ve approved his application to CalPoly, we can monitor him there easily enough and recruit him out of second year.”
“He’s brilliant, Colonel, if a little quirky. He’s extremely adaptable to languages, he knows all the Romance, Russian, German, Arabic, Farsi, and is working on Mandarin. Some Japanese too. Put him in any station and within a month, he’ll be speaking the language like a native.”
“No girlfriends?”
“No. His posthypnotic block is still in effect. When he has urges, he masturbates, he’s told me in therapy his sex urge is negligible. At his age, he should be a randy jackrabbit. To blow off the excess testosterone, so he doesn’t implode, I’ve arranged for a professional to teach him techniques for future use.”
“He’s not going to be a Nightingale,” he retorted, referring to the sex pot bait and trap agents.
“Yes, Sir. He’s one hot hunk of 6’2” eyes of blue when he is not tamped down.”
“Any sign of his esper?”
“No. Not one whiff. It’s dormant, the anomaly is still in his brain, has neither grown nor shrunk. The ganglia are exactly the same.”
“Still on his meds?”
“Administered time release under the skin before he leaves my clinic.”
“Is Mitch going to be a problem, doctor?” The Colonel demanded.
“If he is, he’ll just revert back to his HS persona. He’ll be confused, he’ll remember the scene in your office and that he’s been working undercover for the NSA all this time. Shouldn’t pose any risk as long as he doesn’t travel east or have contact with acquaintances from his previous life.”
“What about Daniel?”
Doctor Cohen laughed. “There is no more Dantan De Rosier, Colonel. We destroyed that person once and for all. What we have now is an eighteen-year-old French adopted American with the memories, emotions and attitude we programmed onto his blank slate. There’s nothing for him to remember.”
“I want him ready to go as soon as possible. Rickover’s second term is coming up and I need to know what’s going on inside the Oval Office.”
“I can start backing off the espirine,” she offered. “I’m curious to see if it still works, his Espermeld.”
“Espermeld?”
“We had to give what he can do a name, that was the closest Everett and I came up with.”
“God rest his soul,” the Colonel laughed and she was quiet. Offered a choice of switch sides or lose the project, she’d gone over. Hawthorne had not and she’d not seen or heard from him since. Now, in the Colonel’s few words, she knew the programmer’s fate.
“You’re up for another raise, Doctor Cohen. How does another 45K sound?”
She swallowed, calculated that allowed her to balloon her escape fund offshore and afford a new condo on Mustang Island. “Great,” she enthused. “I’ll up Daniel’s sessions to two a week.”
“Thank you, doctor.” The Colonel hung up.
*****
Jasmine and Mitchell flew out to California to check out the college. Both of them had wanted Daniel to go closer, the University of Houston or UT at Austin. Both schools had accepted him, but his choice was CalPoly, a full scholarship with living expenses and all he had to do was participate in a trial study partnered with Rand and a company out of Cyberdynetics, a division out of Mitch’s work. Rumor had it was a think tank for DARPA.
He was awkward around the dorms, both Gaines could see that sharing a room upset him, and they offered to get him his own apartment and pay the difference. He said that Doctor Cohen had suggested he learn to deal with the concept of close living quarters. He’d come back from the last session with the therapist exhausted and drained, smelling of sweat and sex.
Mitch questioned him and Daniel had stared blankly at him denying any inappropriate behavior on her part or his. The only genuine emotion he expressed was when he said goodbye to Sassy. He kissed both of them goodbye, promised to call at least once a week and disappeared into the massive dorm building on the campus. Named for the famous World War II General Hiram Rickover, it housed nearly 10,000 students, the cream of American intellectual society.
Daniel reached his room and sat on the bed. Doctor Cohen had given him specific instructions and he could no more disobey them than he could cease breathing.
His new roommate entered the room, threw the two suitcases on the bed and studied his charge. He was there solely to babysit, a twenty-six-year-old freshly minted agent, who still looked young enough to blend in on campus and protect the teenager. He noted the teen’s lack of affect, and triggered the conditioning code.
“Daniel, winter’s ice has broken the ice jam.”
Daniel’s eyes blinked and slowly, his body relaxed as a major change came over his entire personality. His face lightened, he smiled, his shoulders relaxed as he sat straight and his eyes brightened.
“Hey,” he said, turning to the bodyguard/roommate. He stood up, extended his hand. “I’m Daniel Gaines. Freshman. I’m majoring in languages.”
“Parker Ames. Chemistry major, bio-sciences. Sophomore but I’m skipping a year, did some clinicals the Board gave me credit for.”
“Cool. Which bunk you want?” The room was big enough for two beds, two desks and two bookshelves, one large closet and their own private bath with shower, commode and sink. A dorm sized fridge, and an equally tiny kitchen.
“You cook?” Parker asked casually.
“I’m French,” Daniel laughed. “Of course I cook. I’ll take the bed near the window. You smoke?”
He eyed Parker’s fingers stained dark.
“No. Iodine from my last lab experiment. Takes forever to wear off.”
“You got any allergies?”
“Like what?”
“Peanuts, shellfish, MSG?”
“Nope.”
“Cool. I’m going out for dinner with my parents, say goodbye,” Daniel said easily. “Want to come?”
“They won’t mind?”
“No. They’ll be glad to meet you.”
When he called them, they’d already caught the flight back as it had been pushed forward so Parker took him to the local hangout for pizza and wings.