"But did eugenics really cause all of those things? I'd say no. Consider the case of Lysenkoism."
"Never heard of it."
"It was a system embraced by the Soviet Union. It came about because Stalin had no use for genetics. He considered it a bourgeois science. Instead, he favored Marx's theory that people were infinitely malleable. So, when a biologist named Trofim Lysenko proposed a similar theory for plants, he found a ready audience in Stalin."
I narrowed my eyes. "So, Lysenkoism ignored the whole concept of inheritability."
"Only as far as genes were concerned. Lysenko thought acquired characteristics were inherited by future generations. He proposed exposing wheat seeds to high humidity and lower temperature. The wheat would internalize the changes and thus, produce better seeds."
"So, he was an idiot."
"More like a fraud. But he had Stalin's ear. His ideas provided a sort of scientific credibility to Stain's belief that people could be bred over generations to create the New Soviet Man. Such a man would be selfless and obedient, willing to do whatever was best for society rather than for himself." Jenner sighed. "By 1950, the Soviet Union had completely embraced Lysenkoism. Genes were declared nonexistent."
"There's at least one difference between Lysenko and the Nazis. Lysenko didn't commit mass murder."
"Don't be too sure about that. Lysenko was hungry for power. Hundreds of his critics were ostracized, imprisoned, and even executed. Even worse, his ideas destroyed agriculture in the Soviet Union and China. Millions died from starvation."
I fell silent.
"One ideology embraced genetics while the other shunned it. Yet they both led to massive death." Jenner shrugged. "Science doesn’t kill people. People kill people."
"Aren't you worried this softer eugenics will do the same thing?"
"I've considered the possibility."
"And you still support it?"
"I'm a technocrat at heart." Jenner grinned. "Call it bad genetics."
I didn't laugh. "Have you seen Holly or Rupert?"
"No. I imagine they're in their lab."
As I stood up, a slight scuffling noise caught my attention. I shifted my gaze just in time to see Dan Trotter retreat into the Residential hallway. A bunch of questions came to mind, questions I'd been trying to avoid for the last twenty-four hours.
Just who were Dan Trotter and Ted Ayers? Why were they really in Antarctica?
And most importantly, why were they eavesdropping on me?
Chapter 31
"Hello Cy." Holly's voice was soft and sweet.
I froze halfway through the door. "What gave me away?"
She spun around in her chair. Her legs were crossed and she leaned casually to one side. She held a wine glass near her face. I couldn't help but look at her lips. "Your footsteps."
"You recognized me by my footsteps?"
"I'm a microscope girl," she replied. "So, I tend to notice the little things."
She blinked and I turned my attention to her doe eyes. My gaze drifted downward, drinking her in. She was hot. Not slutty hot, but innocent hot. She looked like the kind of girl who cried at sappy movies and shrieked at bumps in the night. Ten to one she wore boy shorts and t-shirts to bed. One to one she looked sexy as hell in them.
"Drinking while you work?" I said.
"I only work when I'm drinking." She twisted her fingers, causing red wine to whirl around the glass. "So, what can I do for you?"
"I have a favor to ask."
"Oh?
I walked across the laboratory, weaving through the maze of tables and whirring machinery. The lab was surprisingly high tech and I couldn't help but wonder how much energy it consumed.
I stopped next to her desktop. Her computer screen showed a dizzying array of charts, graphs, and numbers. "Why do you study microorganisms?"
"Because they can't run away."
"I'm serious."
A curious look appeared in her eyes. "They're a means to an end."
"Oh?"
"I'm not interested in microorganisms. At least not directly. I'm interested in something they do, something that's going to change the very nature of humanity."
"I bet no one ever accused you of being low on ambition."
She laughed. "Let me explain. Rupert and I study tardigrades or if you prefer, waterbears. They're little chubby segmented creatures with eight legs. And I do mean little. On average, they measure one millimeter long. But they're quite complex for polyextremophiles."
"Poly-what?"
"Polyextremophiles. That means they can survive a variety of extreme conditions — conditions that would kill most other organisms."
"Like below-freezing temperatures?"
"Exactly."
I looked at Holly and saw her in a different light. She still looked good. Her red shirt with ruffled sleeves clung tightly to her toned body. And those jeans brought out the wolf in me. But a bit of mad scientist was beginning to creep into her girl-next-door image. "Where do you find tardigrades? In the ice?"
"They tend to gather in algal mats. We used to import them from lakes and ponds across the continent. Then we discovered a colony not far from here. That's been the focus of our research for the last few years."
"How do tardigrades survive below-freezing temperatures?"
"They're tough, plain and simple. But if things get too cold, they undergo cryobiosis. In other words, their metabolic functions cease but they don't die. Instead, they become dormant and enter a state of suspended animation."
"Sort of like hibernation?"
"Actually, hibernation is probably a better way to put it. Suspended animation implies there's some kind of artificial mechanism at work."
"How long can they stay in that state?"
"A long time." She sipped her wine. "Indefinitely, perhaps."
I gaped at her. "They're immortal?"
"Theoretically, yes." She curled her legs onto the swivel chair. "That's the crux of our research. Tardigrades are able to maintain structural continuity throughout cryobiosis. They also have the ability to restart metabolism. Rupert and I hope to figure out how they do those things. Our ultimate goal is to transfer the knowledge to people. We hope to eventually induce a living person into suspended animation and then bring them back out of it with no structural loss."
"Wow." Apparently, I wasn't the only one at Kirby who hoped to achieve a lasting legacy. "You really are going to change the nature of humanity. If it works, future generations will owe you big time."
"Actually, I hope to live side by side with those future generations." She stared at me, gazing deep into my eyes. "You know, you're an interesting man, Cy Reed."
"I do my best."
"Most people pepper me with life and death questions when I talk about my research. They know life extension technologies are right around the corner and they're petrified they won't live long enough to reap the benefits."
I shrugged. "Everyone's afraid of death to some degree."
"Not you."
"What makes you say that?"
"You haven't asked a single question about your own mortality."
"I've got no interest in dying."
"But you don't fear it either. That's a rare quality."
I suddenly felt very uneasy. "About that favor …"
"What do you need?"
I extracted a small bundle from my satchel. "Could you put these things under a microscope for me?"
"What are they?"
"Bits of bone." I hesitated. "Human bone."
I waited for alarm to register on her face. But instead, her gaze intensified. "Where'd you get them?"
"About twenty miles from here." I picked my words carefully. "They look pretty old. I thought they might belong to a long lost hiker."