Chapter 7
“Mom, I just need one of the doctor-scientist-people’s names. That's all.” Sadie repeated for the 50th time over the phone. It felt like they had been on the phone for hours.
“Looking…. I found one. Mary Sommes. One of the doctor's that helped perform your trial.” She paused.
“Why do you need this again?” she asked.
“Thanks mom!” She smiled, jotting down the name in a notebook.
“Love you.” she hung up, and started dialing Samuel’s number. He picked up.
“Hey, come over. I found a scientist who might have something to do with the trial.”
--
Fifteen minutes later, she had a boy in her bedroom.
“So, how do we even find her? She supposedly fell of the side of the Earth!” She paced the floor. He sat on her bed awkwardly.
“Well, I do have a tiny confession. At first I didn’t mention it because I wasn’t totally sure it was helpful,” he took a deep breath.
“This company used to work with the FMD. They needed our computer tech for the transplants. This was all before I worked there, of course.” he finished up, crossing his legs. Sadie stopped, shocked.
“So that means one of our coworkers might have worked with them.” She gasped.
“Well, even if we interrogated them, they would’ve been sworn to secrecy,” he paused.
“Though, I could always peer pressure one of them…” he grinned.
--
“I swear, I don’t know anything!” Linda, an older employee, put her hands up defensively. Sadie crossed her arms and turned to Samuel. They met eyes, and he shook his head slightly. They were in an empty meeting office, sitting at a long wooden table.
“Sadie, can I have a word with Linda alone?” he asked, not taking his eyes off of the old woman.
She agreed, walking out of the office room. She could hear muffled voices through the glass windows. Two minutes later, Sadie and Samuel had their information.
“They were… old friends?” Sadie asked, once they had gotten to her cubicle. Samuel shrugged.
“How else would she have all of her information?” he smiled.
“Alright, so, now what?” she sat down at her chair.
“Leave it to me. I’m what you’d call a hacker- techie sort of guy,” he laughed, slipping out of the cubicle.
--
One week later, the two stood at the bright red retirement home, contrasting with the cool colors of New York City. Inside, somewhere was an old woman named Mary Sommes, a doctor who helped with her trial.
“Samuel, you are a scary man.” Sadie laughed at their situation.
“It was easy. The woman’s not a good hider.”
“So, you think she might be the murderer?”
“Only one way to find out.” He opened the small door, allowing her to pass through. The opening room was very clean, with flowers in pots, light yellow walls, and floral couches and chairs everywhere. At the end was a front desk, where a friendly looking young woman sat.
“We’re here to see Mary Sommes, we’re family.” Samuel smiled kindly at her. The woman’s eyes lit up.
“Oh, Mary! She hasn’t had visitors in quite a while,” she grinned.
“Follow me.” the two were lead down a wide hallway with doors on both sides that seemed almost endless. They stopped at room 287. The woman knocked softly on the door.
“Mary? You have some visitors.” she smiled, opening the door slowly. In a small blue bed sat a tiny, pale woman with fragile looking bones and thin bushy white hair. The room had a floral wall and tan carpets and a huge window with long white curtains that touched the floor. The small woman looked up, surprised. The young woman smiled.
“I’ll leave you three to catch up.” she smiled warmly. They walked in, closing the door softly behind them.
“Hello?” the old woman, Mary, asked cautiously. Sadie sat in a chair across from her bed and Samuel stood at the door.
“Hello, Miss Sommes. I’m…” she looked up at Samuel to see if it was safe to use real names. He nodded.
“Sadie Miller,” she finished.
“I’m sure you don’t remember me.” she smiled.
“Well, who could forget? I can recall my doctor days. How is your family, Sadie?” she asked softly, sitting up a little bit. Just the effort she put into adjusting herself made her bones look like they might break.
“They’re well, Miss Sommes.” she leaned back, crossing her legs.
“I sure hope so. So, to what do I owe the pleasure?” she smiled.
“We’d like to ask you some questions,” Samuel stepped forward. The lady turned quickly, as if she was just noticing his presence.
“Well of course. I have nothing to hide.” she smiled at him warmly.
“What did you do during the trials?” he continued, looking down at the woman.
“Well, I worked with the children, mostly. There were 4 children experiments, all went very well.” she said.
“Did you work with anybody?” he asked, coming over to stand next to a silent Sadie.
“Well, I had an assistant who was a new member, a young man, very intelligent, I believe his name was Mason? Yes, yes, Mason Grey.” The woman smiled brightly, taking a tea mug from the bedside counter and sipping it. Samuel looked down at Sadie. She nodded, making a mental note of his name.
“Did he ever do anything… suspicious?” he worded his question carefully.
“Why, no. He was very kind. He even offered to figure out some data with the donated memories from Sadie, here, and the other young mans. We had to make sure that Sadie’s memories would fit well with him. The poor man… he escaped war, you know.” She put down her mug as she talked. He looked at Sadie again, this time nodding. They found their murder suspect.
They said thank you and goodbye to Mary, then exited the home quickly.
“We need to get the police. This is serious, we found him. I’m sure of it.” she turned to him as they walked.
“If you’re sure. But what evidence do we have?” he argued.
“Well, we have a witness, me, a friend of his, who said he collected data on my memories, or maybe tinkered with them,” she thought for a second.
“And it makes sense! He was new, probably lost his old job, and had memories of killing somebody! If that isn’t a reason to not try to get rid of your memories, then I don’t know what is.” she continued. Samuel nodded.
“You’re right. Next Sunday, we go to the police.”
“Next Sunday?” she raised an eyebrow.
“Sure. We gather as much evidence as we can, so that the police can’t turn us down.” he smiled. She grinned, turning back towards the crowd.
Chapter 8
Thursday night was a quiet one. It had been two days since she had fought with Alex, so god knew where she was. Probably partying. That’s what she did when she was angry or stressed. Sadie decided to go out and get some hot chocolate from Starbucks, just around the corner. She slipped on a fuzzy brown coat and tall green winter boots. Before she left, she wrapped a Ravenclaw scarf around her neck.
The streets were busy, surprise, and the sun was going down quickly. She shivered, pressing the cold crosswalk button with her cold bare hand. When the sign changed, she hurried across the street, followed by a crowd of people going the same way. When she got to Starbucks, she opened the door, letting a wave of warmth cover her freezing face. She ordered a tall hot chocolate with whipped cream and sat at a tiny round table near a window. She was scrolling through her work emails on her phone when the chair across from her pulled out.
“Anyone sitting here?” the short man asked. Sadie shook her head, taking a sip of her hot chocolate. She studied the man. He was of average height, a round man, with shoulder length light brown hair and a black cap covering his head. He was wearing all black.
“Getting colder, eh? You been holding up?” he smiled, folding his arms on the table. She smiled politely.
“Yeah, as long as my apartment has heating,” she laughed.
“You?” she took a sip.
“Doing well, doing well. Actually, I was thinking I could ask you something.” he moved his chair closer to the table. She leaned back a little, picking up her hot chocolate.
“Have you been doing any research, or finding anything lately?...” he talked softly now, his voice like grain and sand. She shook her head again, looking down. She looked up, shocked when his fist hit the table. Nobody in the cafe seemed to notice.
“Listen here, you little rat. I know what you and your friend is up to. I’m just warning you… keep digging… and you’ll be next.” he stood up, stomping out the door. Sadie sat in shock.
They had to go to the police. Now.
“Mom, I just need one of the doctor-scientist-people’s names. That's all.” Sadie repeated for the 50th time over the phone. It felt like they had been on the phone for hours.
“Looking…. I found one. Mary Sommes. One of the doctor's that helped perform your trial.” She paused.
“Why do you need this again?” she asked.
“Thanks mom!” She smiled, jotting down the name in a notebook.
“Love you.” she hung up, and started dialing Samuel’s number. He picked up.
“Hey, come over. I found a scientist who might have something to do with the trial.”
--
Fifteen minutes later, she had a boy in her bedroom.
“So, how do we even find her? She supposedly fell of the side of the Earth!” She paced the floor. He sat on her bed awkwardly.
“Well, I do have a tiny confession. At first I didn’t mention it because I wasn’t totally sure it was helpful,” he took a deep breath.
“This company used to work with the FMD. They needed our computer tech for the transplants. This was all before I worked there, of course.” he finished up, crossing his legs. Sadie stopped, shocked.
“So that means one of our coworkers might have worked with them.” She gasped.
“Well, even if we interrogated them, they would’ve been sworn to secrecy,” he paused.
“Though, I could always peer pressure one of them…” he grinned.
--
“I swear, I don’t know anything!” Linda, an older employee, put her hands up defensively. Sadie crossed her arms and turned to Samuel. They met eyes, and he shook his head slightly. They were in an empty meeting office, sitting at a long wooden table.
“Sadie, can I have a word with Linda alone?” he asked, not taking his eyes off of the old woman.
She agreed, walking out of the office room. She could hear muffled voices through the glass windows. Two minutes later, Sadie and Samuel had their information.
“They were… old friends?” Sadie asked, once they had gotten to her cubicle. Samuel shrugged.
“How else would she have all of her information?” he smiled.
“Alright, so, now what?” she sat down at her chair.
“Leave it to me. I’m what you’d call a hacker- techie sort of guy,” he laughed, slipping out of the cubicle.
--
One week later, the two stood at the bright red retirement home, contrasting with the cool colors of New York City. Inside, somewhere was an old woman named Mary Sommes, a doctor who helped with her trial.
“Samuel, you are a scary man.” Sadie laughed at their situation.
“It was easy. The woman’s not a good hider.”
“So, you think she might be the murderer?”
“Only one way to find out.” He opened the small door, allowing her to pass through. The opening room was very clean, with flowers in pots, light yellow walls, and floral couches and chairs everywhere. At the end was a front desk, where a friendly looking young woman sat.
“We’re here to see Mary Sommes, we’re family.” Samuel smiled kindly at her. The woman’s eyes lit up.
“Oh, Mary! She hasn’t had visitors in quite a while,” she grinned.
“Follow me.” the two were lead down a wide hallway with doors on both sides that seemed almost endless. They stopped at room 287. The woman knocked softly on the door.
“Mary? You have some visitors.” she smiled, opening the door slowly. In a small blue bed sat a tiny, pale woman with fragile looking bones and thin bushy white hair. The room had a floral wall and tan carpets and a huge window with long white curtains that touched the floor. The small woman looked up, surprised. The young woman smiled.
“I’ll leave you three to catch up.” she smiled warmly. They walked in, closing the door softly behind them.
“Hello?” the old woman, Mary, asked cautiously. Sadie sat in a chair across from her bed and Samuel stood at the door.
“Hello, Miss Sommes. I’m…” she looked up at Samuel to see if it was safe to use real names. He nodded.
“Sadie Miller,” she finished.
“I’m sure you don’t remember me.” she smiled.
“Well, who could forget? I can recall my doctor days. How is your family, Sadie?” she asked softly, sitting up a little bit. Just the effort she put into adjusting herself made her bones look like they might break.
“They’re well, Miss Sommes.” she leaned back, crossing her legs.
“I sure hope so. So, to what do I owe the pleasure?” she smiled.
“We’d like to ask you some questions,” Samuel stepped forward. The lady turned quickly, as if she was just noticing his presence.
“Well of course. I have nothing to hide.” she smiled at him warmly.
“What did you do during the trials?” he continued, looking down at the woman.
“Well, I worked with the children, mostly. There were 4 children experiments, all went very well.” she said.
“Did you work with anybody?” he asked, coming over to stand next to a silent Sadie.
“Well, I had an assistant who was a new member, a young man, very intelligent, I believe his name was Mason? Yes, yes, Mason Grey.” The woman smiled brightly, taking a tea mug from the bedside counter and sipping it. Samuel looked down at Sadie. She nodded, making a mental note of his name.
“Did he ever do anything… suspicious?” he worded his question carefully.
“Why, no. He was very kind. He even offered to figure out some data with the donated memories from Sadie, here, and the other young mans. We had to make sure that Sadie’s memories would fit well with him. The poor man… he escaped war, you know.” She put down her mug as she talked. He looked at Sadie again, this time nodding. They found their murder suspect.
They said thank you and goodbye to Mary, then exited the home quickly.
“We need to get the police. This is serious, we found him. I’m sure of it.” she turned to him as they walked.
“If you’re sure. But what evidence do we have?” he argued.
“Well, we have a witness, me, a friend of his, who said he collected data on my memories, or maybe tinkered with them,” she thought for a second.
“And it makes sense! He was new, probably lost his old job, and had memories of killing somebody! If that isn’t a reason to not try to get rid of your memories, then I don’t know what is.” she continued. Samuel nodded.
“You’re right. Next Sunday, we go to the police.”
“Next Sunday?” she raised an eyebrow.
“Sure. We gather as much evidence as we can, so that the police can’t turn us down.” he smiled. She grinned, turning back towards the crowd.
Chapter 8
Thursday night was a quiet one. It had been two days since she had fought with Alex, so god knew where she was. Probably partying. That’s what she did when she was angry or stressed. Sadie decided to go out and get some hot chocolate from Starbucks, just around the corner. She slipped on a fuzzy brown coat and tall green winter boots. Before she left, she wrapped a Ravenclaw scarf around her neck.
The streets were busy, surprise, and the sun was going down quickly. She shivered, pressing the cold crosswalk button with her cold bare hand. When the sign changed, she hurried across the street, followed by a crowd of people going the same way. When she got to Starbucks, she opened the door, letting a wave of warmth cover her freezing face. She ordered a tall hot chocolate with whipped cream and sat at a tiny round table near a window. She was scrolling through her work emails on her phone when the chair across from her pulled out.
“Anyone sitting here?” the short man asked. Sadie shook her head, taking a sip of her hot chocolate. She studied the man. He was of average height, a round man, with shoulder length light brown hair and a black cap covering his head. He was wearing all black.
“Getting colder, eh? You been holding up?” he smiled, folding his arms on the table. She smiled politely.
“Yeah, as long as my apartment has heating,” she laughed.
“You?” she took a sip.
“Doing well, doing well. Actually, I was thinking I could ask you something.” he moved his chair closer to the table. She leaned back a little, picking up her hot chocolate.
“Have you been doing any research, or finding anything lately?...” he talked softly now, his voice like grain and sand. She shook her head again, looking down. She looked up, shocked when his fist hit the table. Nobody in the cafe seemed to notice.
“Listen here, you little rat. I know what you and your friend is up to. I’m just warning you… keep digging… and you’ll be next.” he stood up, stomping out the door. Sadie sat in shock.
They had to go to the police. Now.