The Frankenstein Factory by Edward D. Hoch Read Free Book Online Page B

there?”
    “How about a four-hour shift?” Freddy suggested. “That’ll make it noon, and we’ll draw again to see who relieves you.”
    As Whalen started downstairs he caught Earl’s eye. “Want to have a little talk?”
    “Sure.”
    Earl followed him down through the sloping amphitheater to the brightly lit operating room itself. Both of them avoided looking at the tube where MacKenzie’s body still rested. They hadn’t quite decided what to do with it yet.
    Frank’s breathing was still deep and regular. It seemed impossible to believe that he was anything but a young man asleep, one who might awaken at any moment. “You saw me on the beach Sunday, didn’t you?” Whalen asked, coming right to the point.
    “Of course. We spoke.”
    “I mean you saw me with the gun.”
    “Yes,” Earl admitted.
    Whalen pulled up his pants leg a bit to show the tiny automatic pistol strapped to his calf. “See—it’s still there. That’s why I’m not afraid to stand guard duty.”
    “Oh, I hardly think there’s any reason to be afraid.”
    “Look, I want to make a deal with you, Jazine.”
    “What sort of deal?”
    “You’ve got film and tape of the entire operation—right?”
    “Yes.”
    “I want to buy a copy of it.”
    “What for?”
    “Personal use. It’s not every day I’m involved in an operation to create a new person.”
    “And it’s not every day I meet a surgeon who carries a gun strapped to his leg, so that makes us even.”
    “I’d read a great deal about Mexican bandits.”
    “There haven’t been any Mexican bandits in fifty years.”
    Whalen was growing impatient. “Let’s skip all the talk. Can I buy a copy of the film?”
    “I suppose so, if Hobbes approves.”
    “I don’t want him to know about it.”
    “I see.”
    “Well?”
    “Let me think about it. I’ll let you know later.”
    “Does twenty thousand dollars seem like a fair price?”
    Earl raised his eyebrows. “Very fair.”
    “Well?”
    “Let me think about it,” Earl repeated.

FIVE
    E ARL FOUND LAWRENCE HOBBES down by the boathouse, checking over his single-engine inboard. He was frowning when he glanced up. “Oh, hello, Jazine. Come on in.”
    “You look worried.”
    Hobbes pointed to the hull of the boat, below the waterline. “Someone took an ax to it during the night.”
    “Why would they do that?”
    “To cut us off from the mainland.”
    “But you’ve got the radio and telephones. …”
    “When he took the cord from the alarm system he also ruined the communications gear. I didn’t mention it in there because I didn’t want to worry the others needlessly.”
    “You’re telling me we’re cut off from the mainland?”
    “Well, yes—but it’s only a temporary matter. The hovercraft brings the week’s supplies every Wednesday morning, so we’re only cut off till tomorrow. I don’t think it need alarm us.”
    “We could all be dead by tomorrow morning.”
    “Oh, I doubt that very much.”
    “Do you know that Dr. Whalen carries a pistol strapped to his leg?”
    Hobbes gave a wave of his hand. “Yes, yes—but he’s a damn good back-up surgeon anyway. MacKenzie was my first choice, of course, but I needed a good man to assist him.”
    “And you needed Freddy for the brain.”
    “Yes.”
    “Why did you need Tony Cooper?”
    “Why?”
    “You knew there’d be no bone work.”
    “There could have been.”
    “Doubtful. You hired Tony because you knew he’d bring Vera along. Isn’t that right?”
    “She was a great help during the operation.”
    “Tell me about Tony and Vera and Freddy.”
    Hobbes shrugged. “There was some talk a few years back.”
    “What sort of talk?”
    Before he could answer there was a sound behind them. Earl turned to see Dr. Armstrong coming across the sand toward the boathouse. He was calling to them.
    “What’s the trouble?” Earl asked.
    “I thought you should know,” he said, addressing Hobbes. “Our patient seems to be regaining