Read "Chain Reaction" Power Failure Book I Page 14
Chapter Ten
The clock on the desk reminded Jenny she had a dinner date. Turning away from the glowing screen of her laptop, she yawned and stretched. Rising from her chair she reined in her disconcerted thoughts. She knew she wasn't going to turn over her project to anyone, for any reason, and mentally practiced what she would say to her friend and mentor.
It’s too vulnerable to abuse, and it’s not open for discussion. That should work…it’s gotta work.
She cringed in fear that her project might be confiscated by the military and she couldn't allow that. The memory of the nameless solider she passed earlier in the day returned to haunt her, sending an arctic chill down her spine.
I won’t willingly put a potential weapon like this into anyone’s hands.
She knew that when she perfected this technology people would have a virtually unlimited power supply at almost no cost.
In addition to the free power, it would solve the problem of what to do with all the nuclear waste that’s already scattered throughout the world.
She’d finished a second test of the updated design and discovered it put out enough energy to run almost indefinitely. With the modifications she made to the grid, it generated more power than even she ever imagined. The success of this new test made her tingle with both excitement and trepidation in equal proportion.
Her heart swelled in pride and vindication to know that she was right about particle manipulation, but that excitement was tempered by the reality of her discovery’s potential consequences. She struggled to control her mounting apprehension, wracking her brain for a way to insure the secrets wouldn't fall into the wrong hands.
A sharp bolt of alarm raced through her body, causing her forehead to break out in tiny beads of sweat. Jack…our dinner.
She wiped her palms, suddenly damp and clammy, on her lab coat.
If this discovery becomes public knowledge, I’ll loose any ability to control its implementation. I can’t let that happen. The fact a working prototype exists must be kept secret.
She went to her computer and encrypted the data for the design. She unplugged the external hard drive and put it in her purse. I’ll put it somewhere safe after I meet with Jack.
That took care of the plans, now she hurried to secure the battery itself as Jack was already ten minutes late. She was so preoccupied with her own thoughts that she didn't hear the soft swish of the door behind her.
Completely undetected, Murphy hid behind the file cabinet, eyes following Jenny until she hung her white coat and headed for the door.
Watching the door swing shut, he made his move. Sitting in her chair, he tapped away at the keyboard.
Jenny was half way to the elevators when she suddenly stopped. My keys! Crap, I left them in my coat. She turned on her heel and headed back down the hall. She pushed the door open and made a beeline for her coat, finding her keys in the pocket, right where she’d left them.
She reached for the door and fireworks burst before her eyes as a hard, sharp blow fell on the back of her neck. The pain in her head exploded like a grenade. Flashes of light popped and danced across her vision like camera strobes. The sudden shock triggered an animal panic that enveloped her while another blow fell, and then another.
Uncontrolled terror burned like a flash-fire across her senses as she clawed the air, trying to escape the horrific onslaught. Dropping to her knees, she raised her arms above her head, trying to protect herself, but the futile gesture was too little, too late. Another wrenching crash against her skull and the room began to spin, turning her world into a sick montage of fragmented images.
She sagged to the floor as her vision dimmed to a gray haze. In a last, feeble attempt to fight back, she threw a blind kick and felt it connect. She registered a scream of shock and pain before a final, devastating blow landed on her head, imploding her world like a ball of crushed tinfoil.