“`
Arthur Caldwell’s entire world collapsed into an absolute, apocalyptic void.
The unlit Cuban cigar slipped from his fingers, tumbling onto the concrete dock, rolling into the dark water of the bay.
The blood drained from his face until his skin looked like wet chalk. His jaw unhinged, hanging open in a slack, trembling oval; his eyes darted frantically across the glowing green screens, reading the thirty-year trap that had just clamped shut around his throat.
“No…” Caldwell choked out, his voice cracking into a high, ruined wail that sounded like dry leaves tearing in half. “No, no, no! THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE! The bio-cipher was supposed to be passive! Kane swore to me that the stem cells required laboratory extraction!”
“Dr. Kane was arrested at Fort Detrick three hours ago, Arthur,” Special Agent Marcus Vance announced, stepping forward with his gold federal badge gleaming in the setting sun.
“And the ciphers inside Laura’s child do not belong to you.”
