Part 29 (2/2)
Dennis sat straight, his eyebrows arching. ”You took a patented protein from our lab and cloned it. That's not acting as a private citizen, that's theft.” He took an audible breath. ”Unless, is that postdoc exaggerating?”
”Depends,” Shane said, ”on what he's saying.”
Dennis rumbled, ”He's a p.r.i.c.k.”
”We can agree on that.”
”Jon brought him in to talk. And as soon as he was finished telling us about you and Prajuk Acharn, do you know what he did?”
”What?”
”He asked for a job.”
Shane smiled. ”Really? He did that?”
Dennis shook his head in disbelief, and for a moment they almost shared a laugh. The moment pa.s.sed. ”Jon told him we don't have any postdoc positions available. And the kid said then he wouldn't give an affidavit about what you guys were doing.” Dennis rubbed a large hand through his thick gray hair. ”Do you know why?”
”I don't.”
”Because he doesn't want to hurt his reputation. He says no one will hire a postdoc they can't trust.”
”Smart kid.”
Dennis's eyes darted to the others, who sat together on a tan couch behind Shane like spectators at a ball game.
Tonya spoke.
”Did you and Doctor Prajuk Acharn isolate, clone, and humanize a therapeutic IgE antibody patented by Helixia?”
”I'm fired, right?” Shane asked Dennis.
”You were fired Friday.”
Shane nodded. ”I did some of those things. But I worked alone. I asked Doctor Acharn a bunch of questions, tricked him kind of. He didn't know what I was doing. As for the antibody, I can a.s.sure you that no protein created at this company was used for the purpose for which it has been patented.”
He watched Dennis's dark eyebrows arch curiously at that.
From behind him the lawyer interjected angrily, ”You removed a vector with patented material from our premises and copied it.”
”I broke no law.”
”You broke corporate policy.”
”That,” Shane agreed, ”may be a different matter.”
Dennis leaned forward, watching him intently. ”Your postdoc said you're giving what you made to a baby?”
”He's all 'roided out. It's messing with his brain.”
”You mentioned a baby to me, and to Anthony. A baby you knew.”
A security guard appeared in the doorway.
”Hey, Jose,” Shane nodded to him.
”Shane,” he replied uncomfortably.
”What about Prajuk?” Shane asked them.
Tonya Jackson took that one. ”Doctor Acharn is one of our most important scientists, and a trusted colleague of Steven Poulos.”
A cool stream of relief flooded his chest. He turned back to Dennis. ”I really loved working here. I think you guys are geniuses.”
”It sounds like you've seen counsel. Whoever you saw, make sure you get even better.”
Tanya stood and handed him a manila folder full of doc.u.ments and began to speak about the immediate termination of all benefits. When she finished, Jose followed him out of the room.
”Sorry, but I got to escort you straight out the building.”
”Sure.” Shane headed down to the lobby. Standing by the elevator, he smiled. ”I've got a picture of my family on my desk.”
”I'll get it to you, man.”
Shane shook Jose's hand and walked into the cool day. He got into his car and without a second's pause drove out of the lot, past the McDonald's where Prajuk had first told him about closed and open doors, the Thai Orchid, where he had snuck quick dinners with Janelle before they were married. He took the short road to Greenway Plaza, stopped in the lot he had grown to love, and called her. He realized with a sharp pain deep in his side that he had just obliterated any chance she had of ever going back to her job.
She picked up frantically. ”Why haven't you answered your phone?”
”I had it off during my . . .” It hit him then. ”What happened to Nicholas?”
”Caleb's here.”
He sat up straight, as some force lurched from the ground and slammed into his body.
”Put him on.”
”Not here in the house. He's up in Yosemite.”
”Yosemite Park?” Shane squeezed his eyes closed, trying to orient himself.
”He wants you to get him. He's at a hotel. The Groveland Hotel.”
”You spoke to him?”
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