Chapter 7 - The Third Faction
Thomas stepped completely over the bodies of David's dead mercenaries without a second glance.
His unmarked tactical team quickly secured the perimeter of the smoking observation room.
David was cowering behind the medical console, his pristine white lab coat covered in gray dust.
I pushed myself off the floor, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the pristine tiles.
"Thomas?" I asked, utterly confused by the sudden, violent rescue.
"I told you in the car that it was strictly business, Mr. Whitman," Thomas said smoothly.
He holstered his weapon and walked over to Sarah, quickly cutting her heavy leather restraints with a combat knife.
Sarah collapsed into my arms, sobbing heavily into my chest as I held her incredibly tight.
"Who are you actually working for?" I demanded, glaring at the driver who had tried to kill me hours earlier.
Thomas smiled a cold, completely unapologetic smile.
"I don't work for your corrupt board of directors, and I certainly don't work for David," Thomas explained.
"I work directly for the United States Department of Defense."
I stared at him in absolute shock as the massive puzzle finally began to make sense.
My technology company held billions of dollars in highly classified government defense contracts.
The government had secretly planted Thomas inside my life ten years ago to protect their investments.
"The government knew about the illegal cloning facility?" I asked, my voice rising in anger.
"We suspected David was misusing federal funds, but we needed hard proof before we raided the tower," Thomas answered calmly.
Thomas walked over to the terrified David and violently dragged the scientist out from behind the console.
"You are going to spend the rest of your miserable life in a dark federal black site," Thomas told David.
I felt a massive wave of profound relief wash over my exhausted body.
The nightmare was finally over.
My treacherous business partner was captured, and my wife was finally safe in my arms.
I looked over at Ethan, who was standing quietly near the shattered doorway.
The boy was completely unharmed, and he would finally get a chance to live a normal life with us.
I walked over to Ethan and knelt down, placing my hands gently on his small shoulders.
"We are going home now, buddy," I promised him with a genuine smile.
Thomas cleared his throat loudly behind me, his voice suddenly sounding incredibly tense.
"I am afraid that is not going to happen, Mr. Whitman," Thomas stated firmly.
I turned around slowly, my protective instincts instantly flaring up again.
Thomas and his entire tactical squad had raised their assault rifles, pointing them directly at me and my wife.
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"The Department of Defense considers unauthorized human cloning to be a massive threat to national security," Thomas announced coldly.
"We have strict orders to secure the clone for federal testing and completely eliminate all civilian witnesses."
