The house stood in darkness but the barbers below Mike's house was still open. Lexi snuck round the back and checked the BBQ. "Yes. Thanks dad." Mike had always left a key in the old BBQ. Lexi knew that if she was ever in trouble or needed a place to crash, dad's place was always a safe haven.
Ryan saw the living room light switch on and made a dash across the road. The laughter coming from the barbershop warmed him. He wished he could just sit down, relax and talk. About the weather. About his holidays. The usual barber-client smalltalk.
The door swung open and Lexi ushered him inside. Immediately, Ryan felt at ease.
"God, I remember the last time I was here. Feels like only yesterday. My 'interrogation' pre-BioChem. Your dad had requested we get together prior to my interview. He had been a regular lecturer at New Jersey City University and we bonded over our love of the Nets. A Bachelor of Science and a basketball nut. How could he fail to love me?!" Ryan swallowed hard. "I loved him Lex. I miss him."
"Me too. But he'll always be with us, in spirit if not in body."
Ryan nodded slowly. The conversation stopped. Lexi sensed his mood change. "I know Ryan. I miss her too. But I swear to God, they'll pay. Every last one of them. Now, what to do with you?"
She walked through into the kitchen and opened the door to the basement. She flicked the switch and headed down the old wooden staircase. Ryan followed close behind. It was what you'd expect. Shelves of rusted old bike parts, tools, magazines. This was Mike's long-standing and arduous restoration project. The Indian 1950 Chief was his baby. One day me and her will just hit the road and carry on until we can't carry on no more. Ryan remembered laughing at Mike's obsession. "Hey Lexi. Maybe we should get this thing finished. For Your dad."
She laughed. "If you touch those parts, he'll haunt you forever. Nobody touched his Indian!" Then a more serious tone. "Ryan. The bike was his relief. I knew he was into some crazy stuff. At BioChem. But here. Nobody spends that amount of time alone with nothing to show but a few rusty bike parts and the odd pipe dream. He was working on several side projects that he didn't want to share, not at least until he knew who to share them with. You were the only one he truly trusted at the company. Did he say anything?"
"Er, no. We were so wrapped up in MRG-241."
As Ryan looked up at the moth circling the naked bulb, he tripped backwards over a carburettor and crashed into a pile of old tyres.
"Hey, you ok?"
"Sure." As Ryan attempted to stand up, he felt something strange. Looking down, he saw a old wooden trapdoor where the carburettor had clearly been placed to conceal it.
The lock was securely fastened but a few swings of the lump hammer took care of it. Ryan grabbed the torch from the shelf and shone it down into the black space. A series of concrete steps descending about twenty-feet.
"Lexi. Care to explain."
She looked perplexed. "I have never seen this before!"
Ryan climbed down several stairs and shone the torch. He was gobsmacked. A smooth concrete walled room, about the size of a basketball court.
"What can you see?"
Ryan popped his head up. "Lexi. You're not gonna believe this. Your genius of a father had constructed his very own lab down here! That's why the Indian was on hold. C'mon."
YOU ARE READING
The Ghost
Ficção CientíficaA cure to save millions. Or a tool to create devastation. If only Junior Researcher Ryan Elliot could have known what dangers he would place all of those around him in upon revealing his big breakthrough, maybe he'd have thought twice about it. But...
