Dark Genesis: The Birth of the Psi Corps by J. Gregory Keyes Read Free Book Online

to a stop, and unexpectedly, their door slid open.
    “Excuse me,” Lee told the man who stood framed in the entry. “This is a private car, and as you can see=’ Then it hit him. The door shouldn’t even have opened. He was bolting up from his seat when the man stepped quickly in, a nine-millimeter pistol trained on his heart.
    “Sit back down, Senator,” the man said, softly.

CHAPTER 3
    “Don’t point that at me, son,” Lee said. “In fact, don’t point it at anything. Do you understand what will happen if you rupture the coach wall?”
    The young man nodded solemnly. He had a softly rounded face and a thin mustache, very black hair. A faint accent-Eastern European?
    “Yes,” he said, “the train will stop and emergency membranes will close the tube so they can pump air in. That will make things tricky for me, but I can deal with it. Did you expect I thought the car would explode, or something?”
    “What do you want with me, son?”
    “It’s not really important that you know that, Senator, only that you do what I say. Right now, we’re going to change our destination , but you have to do it. If you don’t, I will shoot Dr. Kimbrell, and if you still refuse, I will shoot you, too.”
    “Why can’t you do it yourself? You faked my personal code, so= Then he understood.
    He leaned up to the retinal scanner.
    “Fine. Train, personal code Crawford-“
    “Stop,” the man snapped, stepping quickly to Lee and placing the muzzle of the weapon against his head. “Don’t do that.”
    “I was doing what you said.”
    “No you weren’t, you were going to order an emergency stop. If you do that, I’ll shoot you.”
    “You’re going to kill us anyway!” Lee retorted. “That’s why you want me to make the destination change, so it’ll go on record.” He paused a moment, and then said, “Why me, son? I’m only trying to help your kind.”
    The man smiled indulgently.
    “Yes, of course you are. Change the destination.”
    “To where?”
    “Not far different. Malibu Station. And now that you know what I am, you know not to try and trick me.”
    Lee changed the destination, and eyed the man speculatively.
    “What’s it like?” he asked. “Can you hear all of my thoughts? Can you feel my emotions? How will it feel to you when you kill us?”
    The young man’s face changed, then, quite without his consent.
    “Shut up,” he demanded.
    “You see, you do intend to kill us, but you want to make it look like an accident, am I right? So you aren’t a terrorist.”
    “He was in the restaurant,” Alice said. “Across the room.”
    Lee nodded.
    “He’s been following me for months. I thought he was a reporter.”
    “So you `overheard’ us,” Alice said. “You know about the genetic marker.”
    “Yes.”
    “Then surely you know this information can’t be suppressed for long.”
    “Oh, but it can, Dr. Kimbrell. The people I work for can do it, and they will. I already know from you who the authors were. They will be dealt with, and the paper will quietly vanish.”
    “Nonsense. Even if you succeed, someone else will come up with the same results any day now.”
    “Yes,” Lee said, nodding thoughtfully, “And I think I know who. Am I right?”
    “Sorry, Senator. Go fish.”
    “Sure, son. Sure I’m wrong. You can read my mind, so you know how much you’ve convinced me.”
    “I know you’re bluffing.” But his face was pinched in irritation. He sat back against the wall, the gun quite level. “I know you still hope to escape by upsetting me. But here we are.” The doors slid open. “Get out.”
    Lee looked around hopefully as they exited the car, but the man and woman waiting for them did not look like ice miners-they looked like Vikings. Lee mentally dubbed them Hans and Greta. Their captor-one of the newcomers called him Piotr-spoke to the two in a language Lee did not know, then motioned them down the corridor toward one of the industrial-sized air locks.
    “You’re gonna