“On Monday, she got the call that they were being shut down.”

The call came deep into my night shift at the Lab. The panic was evident in the voice on the other end of the phone. The lab had long been working under the table but I never realized the extent of the corruption. My lab director Lou came into my room and delivered the news in a cold professional way.

“The FBI has taken our CEO into custody under the suspicion of domestic terrorism.”

The shock and tension in the air was palpable. First it was the curfew and the CISs being put up all around the country. The Centers for Indentured Servitude were the government’s new prison and execution system for those who rebelled after the military takeover.

“We were assured that we were safe,” whispered my lab partner from somewhere behind me. The government had apparently been cracking down on the anti-militaristic factions that have slowly sprung up in the past two years. The rights of citizens have been cut down to the bare minimum for us to be labeled a “Free” country. Even other nations began to realize the extent of the crimes the government has committed. The most recent UN vote was in favor of not recognizing us as a country if the policies were not lifted. The new addendum that was enacted included getting rid of the Second Amendment which stripped citizens of their right to bear arms. The riots after that were some of the most violent in history, regardless of time or place.

“What does this mean for us?” I quickly panicked while thinking about my family back home.

“Some of us have families, Lou.”

Lou was calm as ever which always freaks me out, because she is a diagnosed sociopath. Lou had a difficult childhood and was always struggling growing up around her father with PTSD from the war and a promiscuous, often absent mother. Lou became very successful after getting into the industry. Because of her lack of empathy, she became very successful and willing to gain at the expense of others. She has always been a little frightening because of her overly calm demeanor.

The most recent project we have been focusing on has been developing a bioweapon to threaten the government to back down. I can’t deny that working on this project troubles me. The lethality of this work makes me think twice every time I step into our lab. The direction of our goals has become slightly more worrisome because we have been trying to make it airborne. I had many long nights arguing with Lou because I can’t produce an airborne bio-weapon while having a clear conscience. Lou will not let me leave because I am the lead researcher and know more about biology and chemistry than almost anyone else. I graduated top of my class from ETH Zurich while having an undergraduate degree from Harvard and a masters from MIT. If anyone is qualified to be working on this project, I am. Lou knows this and understands the value that I bring to the table. As lead researcher naturally I am terrified that the government will now come for me as I’ve been the lead for almost two years now.

“Brad, come with me.” Lou says to me in a way that I have no choice but to obey. To describe the shiver that went all throughout my body would be impossible. The evenness in her voice, the way she looked at me, not like a friend for once and not just a co-worker made me even more uncomfortable. Lou is brilliant and understands people in a way that no one else does. I know not to argue so I follow her as we take a walk to her private office on the floor above. The look she gave me when she first walked into the room is still stuck in my mind because it was so different from her norm which is cold and even and professional. When she walked into the main lab there was fear on her face.

While Lou shuts the large wooden door I speak up

“Lou, level with me please, what exactly is going on?”

I get one of those looks from her that is obvious: she is scanning and reading me to develop a mental image of what I’m thinking. She often does this so that she can better direct a conversation. She obviously understands how this must be a shock to me and is trying to be as helpful as possible and least triggering as possible.

“Brad the whole operation is being shut down. But I’m not letting my life’s work end like this so we must let them come in and shut down the facility with everyone in it.”

“We have to make it look like all of our staff was taken so they think we are finished.”

I stare in disbelief at her. I can not believe the words that just came out of her mouth. “Absolutely not!” I say to her because “I’m not letting my friends and coworkers be sent to those awful camps. They will die if we let that happen.” Lou then looks at me and says “They are already on their way to shut it down.” I freeze as an overwhelming sense of dread washes over me.

“What?”

“Brad we have about an hour before they arrive according to my sources within the bureau. We, along with one of your co-workers of your choosing, will meet in the loading bay in 30 minutes to move to a new location far away from here.”

I sat in shock. The weight of what just happened hits me like a ton of bricks. I now have to make a decision about whose life I want to save. That burden is unimaginable to say the least. I sit in awe while reflecting on each and every one of the people in the building. My mind lingers on Julio who I’ve known since we were young. We went to high school together back when the world was “normal”.

I get up to use the bathroom, but it is more about the walk and to clear my head. I splash some water on my face from the sink once I enter the lavatory. I look up at my reflection in the metal trimmed mirror and greyscale bathroom stares back at me.

“This whole thing makes me sick” I murmured to myself. “I can’t believe where my life has taken me too.”

“Who are you talking to?” I heard from my left, apparently I was too focused on my internal monologue that I did not hear the door open or Jeremy walk in behind me. “Oh I was just …”

Suddenly the lights go out and a shrill piercing alarm is blaring while emergency lights flash. The bathroom is pitch black with just the flashing white emergency lights providing brief illumination to see. The door opens just a crack and something rolls in. I catch only a glimpse of a small metal canister before I hit the floor.