Fantopia

6

Lucy sat across from Don Alcento's desk, tapping her foot impatiently. "Why won't you sell the medicine to me?" she asked. "I've offered enough money to let you retire."

"I haven't completed enough tests on animals, let alone humans. I have to make sure it doesn't have any negative side effects on the human body," Don said, crossing his arms and frowning at her. "You just want to use it to make money. I want to use it to help others."

"You just want to be famous. You want to go down in history like Philip Johnson did for curing cancer." Lucy laughed, sounding like an evil witch. She leaned forward. "I promise that if you sell it to me, I'll have my people test it on humans before they send it out to the public."

Don considered this but shook his head. "I'm the creator of this and I should see it through to the end."

Lucy's brow furrowed in anger but she covered it up with a fake smile. "So you really DO want all the credit," she said, trying to rile him up.

Alcento frowned. "Do you think I'd lie?" he yelled.

Lucy smiled. "I've seen how you treat your daughter," she said, making him angrier. "You only care about yourself."

Don glared at her, snatched the contract that would hand the new medicine over to her and signed it. "There!" He slammed it down in front of her, breathing heavily from his anger.

"Thank you," Lucy said in a sing-song voice. "I'll have my son and his assistants pick up everything tonight. It's been nice doing business with you." She walked out the door, grinning, and headed out of the building. Her son, Max, followed her.

"Did you get it?" he asked quietly. All she'd ever talked about was getting that medicine and he hoped now she'd stop being so obsessed with it.

"Right here." She waved it in front of his face. "I practically had to beg that idiot for it. He's been such a pain to work with."

"Well, at least we got it," Max said. "I'll go get the--"

"I want to get back at Alcento somehow," Lucy said, ignoring him. She thought for a moment, then snapped her fingers. "I've got it. His daughter!"

Max froze. "Cindy? What about her?"

"He hates her anyway so I'll be doing him a favor."

"Do what?"

"Why don't we take Cindy to your lab and make her our first human test subject." Lucy whispered, grinning evilly.

"What? We don't know if it's safe," Max said.

"She'll be fine. I've seen what the medicine does. It'll make her stronger." Lucy nodded. "Go get her. I've decided to use her first."

Max knew that his mother had made up her mind and wouldn't change it. He sighed.

00

Cindy was having a tea party with Papa and her stuffed animals. She was handing out plastic cookies as the cleaning woman vacuumed the kitchen. "These are cookies," Cindy said to Papa, handing him one. "But you can't eat them because they're just there for decoration," she whispered, telling the great secret of the cookies.

Papa looked down at the cookie in his hand and turned its head to the side in confusion. It put the pastry down on the table so the teddy bear could take it.

"We have to do this every Wednesday," Cindy said, pouring the tea (which was just water, sugar, and milk). "Because tea is good for you."

Papa nodded.

"Miss Cindy." The cleaning woman knocked on the bedroom door. "You have a guest."

"Who is it?" Cindy asked, putting down her cup.