Jack Kilborn - Disturb

Rothchilde idly wondered if France was for sale. He’d have his secretary make a few calls.

But first things first.

Someone was trying to sabotage the N-Som project, and Rothchilde needed to find out who.

There was a chance, however slight, that Dr. Nikos’s murder had nothing to do with N-Som. Perhaps the doctor had personal enemies. Or perhaps it was just some unfortunate random lunatic. Rothchilde hoped that was the case, but he had to plan for the worst.

Besides the CPD, Rothchilde had enlisted his friends in the government for help. He also sent feelers out to all of the families he supported, to see if anyone in the underworld had issues with him. So far, nothing had come up.

“Could be anyone. Anyone at all.”

In his more creative moments, sipping hundred year old port and snorting coke off a call girl’s welted backside, Rothchilde imagined he was being challenged by another pharmaceutical company. Sleeping pills were a billion dollar industry. Perhaps the manufacturer of Dalmane or Halcion was trying to keep their bread and butter.

It could even be the Sealy Mattress company, afraid of losing long-term sales. Soon, the bedroom would be a thing of the past. The same with pajamas, hotels, night lights, caffeinated beverages, and a slew of other products related to the sleep/wake cycle.

Rothchilde delegated it to the back of his mind. All the wheels were in motion. Manny would be found, and his attacker would be dealt with. The important thing now was Dr. Bill May and FDA approval.

He opened a side drawer in his desk and took out Bill’s file. The doctor had been a medical officer with CDER for over ten years. During that time, he’d overseen clinical trials on forty-eight different drugs. Only eight of these had gone on to receive FDA approval. Bill was responsible for killing the other forty.

Like most governmental offices, the FDA worked by committee. Besides the clinical review, new drugs must submit to Toxicology and Chemistry panels. Rothchilde had been able to pass these already-the chemistry reviewer had children. It was easy to coerce her into approval without having to reveal the secret manufacturing process. As far as pharmacology went, N-Som wasn’t toxic. The way it was made didn’t negate the fact that it worked, and worked well.

Unfortunately, the previous clinical reviewer asked too many questions. Rothchilde stared at Bill’s file and hoped this wouldn’t end up the same way. The doctor’s history showed him to be smart, ethical, and stubborn. Three times in the past, companies had attempted to bribe him. Those companies were no longer in business. Even if Rothchilde threw an obscene amount of money at him, he knew Bill wouldn’t take it.

Especially after the unfortunate occurrence with Bill’s wife.

Perhaps there was a way to work that angle. It warranted some thought. Unfortunately, there was no other person in Bill’s life that they could use to squeeze him.

Rothchilde wondered if the video tape was having its desired effect. Was Bill terrified and eager to please?

Doubtful. But that wasn’t Rothchilde’s plan. He hoped to unhinge Bill just enough to keep his full concentration off the review process. A scared man might miss the things his predecessor had uncovered.

Rothchilde predicted Bill’s course of action. He’d call the police, who wouldn’t help-Halloran would see to that. Bill might look closer at N-Som to find out its secret, but Rothchilde had disposed of all the risky paperwork. Another threat or two, maybe an actual physical encounter, and Bill would have no evidence that N-Som was dangerous, but every incentive in the world to approve it.

In a way, it was lucky that Dr. Nikos was murdered. He would have had to be dealt with sooner or later. The same as his daughter, and the rest of the team.

The grandfather clock in the corner of the den chimed four times. Rothchilde smiled. He was fully awake and alert, and would be for another eighteen hours. And the total cost? Only eighty cents a pill.

“I’m going to be the wealthiest man in the world.”

Rothchilde’s mirth disappeared when he remembered how N-Som was made. He couldn’t get the antacids out of his pocket quick enough.

“Chemicals. That’s all. Nothing more than chemicals.”

But it took the whole roll to calm his stomach down.

Jack Kilborn

Disturb

Manny looked around Townsend’s apartment. The first thing he saw was a heap of bloody clothing, stacked in the middle of the living room carpet.

Upon closer examination, he realized it wasn’t clothing at all.

Manny turned quickly to get out of there, slipping on a wet spot. He fell forward, covering himself in gore. The scream grew in his lungs, and Manny squeezed his eyes shut and clamped a hand over his mouth to squelch it.

Don’t attract attention, he thought. Stay calm.

He forced himself to carefully get off the floor. His clothes were soaked. He needed to change. Townsend’s clothes? Doubtful. The man was half his size. Maybe he had a large sweater, but pants would be impossible.

After a focused search he found the laundry room behind some double closet doors. Manny quickly stripped and threw his bloody clothes into the machine, adding half a box of detergent. He left red hand prints on the lid and the knob.

There was some underwear folded neatly on top of the dryer. Manny took them and wiped the entire surface of the washer. Careful not to touch anything else, he walked naked through the condo, looking for the bathroom.

“Hello, Manny.”

Manny yelped.

David was stretched out in the bathtub, the water a bright pink. He frowned at Manny. “Quit acting like a baby, and see if there’s another bar of soap in that cabinet.”

Manny couldn’t move his feet. He stared down at his brother, who was picking bits of something out of his fingernails.

“Did you hear me, bro? Soap!”

Manny recoiled at the shout. He tore open the vanity and found a bar of soap.

“Thank you.” David unwrapped the bar and rubbed it onto a rag, making red bubbles. “Want to come in? Water’s fine.”

Manny took a breath and found his voice. “Do you… do you feel better now?”

“Now? You mean, now that I’ve killed?” David thought it over, eventually grinning. “Yeah. Yeah, I do.”

“You’re a monster.”

“Sure I am. We both are. Created in a lab, just like Frankenstein. It’s the N-Som, Manny. You know it as much as I do. I don’t see how you can stand the dreams without cracking.”

Manny bit his knuckle, drew blood.

“They’re only dreams, David.”

“Sure they are. Here.”

David searched through the bath water and came up with a scalpel. He held it out to Manny.

“I don’t want it.”

“You promised. You promised if I killed again, you’d end it for me.”

Manny stepped back.

“I can’t, David.”

“Kill me, Manny.”

Manny shook his head.

“Kill me, or I’ll skin you like I did Townsend.”

Manny reached behind him, trying to find the door knob. David stood up, bloody water cascading off his naked body.

“It was hard, Manny. Like pulling the upholstery off a couch. You really have to put some muscle into it.”

David climbed out of the tub. He held the blade in front of him.

“I’ll hurt you, Manny.”

“Please, David. I don’t want to kill you.”

David frowned. The scalpel caught the light and glinted.

“Too bad. Well, I guess I don’t have any choice then. You broke your promise, and I have to punish you.”

Manny began to cry.

The cries quickly became screams.

Jack Kilborn

Disturb

The phone was ringing when Bill walked in the door. He was exhausted and scared, but his prevailing emotion was anger. This was insane.