“And we need to have the same idea in place. What was Straus’s plan?”
“Sketchy at best. Seems Alexander is highly sensitive to electricity. Straus wrote about subduing Alexander with a stun gun, then dropping his body into Piseco Lake with enough weight so that he never floats to the surface.”
“Good enough of a plan for me,” Ken said. “I always believed that the best business plans are either stolen or borrowed from someone else. Make sure we have whatever we need when the time comes to dispose of Alexander.”
“Can I assume that you have decided that killing him is really your best option?”
“If you are thinking that killing my son is a horrible idea,” Ken replied, “then either I made a poor choice in hiring you or you have underestimated my resolve.”
The following Tuesday, Ken and his team of two hired “specialists” made easy entry into the lodge. As planned, the locking mechanism securing the door leading to a hallway was picked open, and the code stolen from the network breach released the latch. Once in the hallway, Ken turned to one member of his team and instructed them to “standby.”
“I want to have this conversation alone. You stay here just outside this door. If I need help, I’ll call for you. If Alexander is agreeable, I’ll give you a sign to proceed. Understood?”
“Understood.”
Ken, usually confident in his approaches to all things, found his steps measured and deliberate as he approached to heavy steel door on the right hand side of the hallway. The hallway was dimly lit and ran the thirty foot length of Alexander’s suite of rooms.
When he reached the door, Ken saw a winch and pulley system next to the door. He then noticed a small, thick glass window pane was cut into the steel door. A filtered light radiated through the window pane.
Ken paused before positioning himself where he could see through the window and into the suite. He drew a deep breath, checked over his shoulder to be certain his per diem employee was where he was instructed to be, then took two steps and faced the steel door.
“An unexpected and unknown visitor,” Alexander said. “How very unusual.”
“Alexander,” Ken said, his voice shaky with nerves, “my name is Kenneth O’Connell. I believe that I am your father.”
Alexander was standing in his reading room, as if he fully expected someone to grace his doorstep. Though the room was dimly lit, his pale, gray skin and pale blue eyes were easy for Ken to see.
Ken could see a change in Alexander’s eyes. A longing mixed with anger and fear. Alexander stepped closer to the door, his smooth, unblemished skin now no more than six inches from the window pane.
“I don’t see the resemblance,” he said, his body held perfectly still, and then he smiled.
It was the smile that charged Ken’s soul with terror. Toothless and vacant of any color. There was no laugh to accompany Alexander’s smile, but somehow, Ken felt that the smile was genuine.
“A joke,” Alexander said, sensing his father’s discomfort. “I am well aware of my appearance and how unsettling I make others. I must say, however, that I do see that we share a common hairline.”
Ken breathed deeply and ran his hand over his balding head.
“Looks like I haven’t given you any good genes,” he said.
“But I have to believe,” Alexander said, moving even closer to the window pane, “that your visit is a gift and that I am to expect additional benefits.”
“Alexander,” Ken continued, “I know what they’ve done to you, and I am going to make them pay. I came here to see if you would be willing to participate in a little plan I’ve been working on for the last several weeks.”
“Does this plan of yours involve me remaining in this comfortable prison?”
“No. It includes you being free and, hopefully, becoming part of my family.”
“You plan on making me a part of a family that I was born into?”
“Alexander, you have to understand that my wife and I had no idea what those doctors in Chicago did.”
“I do understand. And I know that you and Mom had absolutely no involvement or knowledge. My question was more geared to the fact that despite you wanting to include me in your family, you’ve yet to unlock this door.”
“I’ve read plenty of Straus’s reports about you, Alexander. They suggest that you may be very dangerous. I’m taking precautions which, if the roles were reversed, I’m certain you would take as well.”
“You read the reports of the man who has kept me as his lab rat for twenty-two years, who subjected me to countless tests all in the name of science, and you wonder why he may feel that I am dangerous?”
“If I unlock this door, Alexander, and you attempt to harm me or to escape, my men will put you down. Understood?”
“Why would I want to harm or escape from my own father?” Alexander said, again through his empty smile.
“I need time to get the key.”
“I have one,” Alexander said, holding a brass key up to the windowpane. “Straus keeps his key somewhere and gave me this one in case of emergency.”
Alexander bent down slowly and slid the key under the small gap of the door. The key sat inches from Ken O’Connell’s feet. He reached down, picked up the key, turned, and nodded to his armed assistant who was dutifully at his post.
“I am trusting you, Alexander and hope that you trust me as well.”
“You will not be disappointed… Dad.”
As Ken lifted his hand holding the key closer to the lock, Alexander moved a few steps away from the door.
“In case you change your mind and choose to close the door, my increased distance should afford you more time to do so,” Alexander whispered.
Ken slid the key into the lock, turned it quickly and heard the bolt slide into its home. Ken O’Connell was not a man who approached anything from a place of fear, but as he pushed the door open, he felt his legs grow weak.
“I will sit if that makes you more comfortable, dad.”
“No need,” Ken said, stepping into the room. “I think we understand each other just fine.”
Ken could easily remember how willing a partner Alexander agreed to be. How quickly he was to offer suggestions and make corrections when the information that Ken had regarding Straus was incorrect. He recalled how quickly Alexander learned how to use and to understand the Smartphone that he gave him. And how patient Alexander was when he told him the plan needed to be executed only when the timing was perfect.