|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:18 pm
Aubrey had to resist the urge to throw the cel phone out of the Jeep. She rushed into the facility and immediately went to the camera room, nearly tossing the lab tech in charge of camera duty out of his chair so she could scan the monitors, looking for Moreau.
He wasn't in any of the labs, or any of the room that had cameras in them. Which significantly lowered the chances of where he was; most likely his private office.
She pulled on the door handle finding it, not surprisingly, locked. She knocked with determination. "Doctor, I need to speak with you!!"
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:25 pm
Moreau poured over the notes that Sabin had gathered. Facinating, maybe a bit extreme, even for him. But still, he had gathered invaluable data.
He'd been reading through and taking notes completely quietly when a loud knock startled him.
"Doctor, I need to speak with you!!" he heard from the other side in a very familar voice. Moreau knew this was going to come, still he had to give Aubrey credit for being so fast about it.
He put the notes into an open desk drawer, then he fliped a switch so the drawer would lock to anyone but himself. He then hit another button from his desk so the door would unlock.
"Come in Aubrey."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:30 pm
Aubrey took a breath and opened the door, flooding in with a definately aura of urgency. "Nick, do you have any idea what happened when we were gone?!?" She looked in a near panic. She made sure the door closed behind her then approached the desk, putting her hands on it and learning over toward's Moreau, expecting him to share her outrage when he learned of what happened. "Dr. Duvert he...he completely... took advantage of our absence!! He tortured the subject... locked them out of their facilities - he conducted unauthorized experiments and...and.. and he changed Colche!! Nicholas only you and I are even supposed to have access to her files!" She was motioning quite vividly with her hands, her voice shaking with incredularity.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:36 pm
"Aubrey... I know." Moreau walked up to her trying to be comforting.
"Sabin conducted an experiment while I was gone, one that I requested he take care of." Moreau tried to take it slow and sensative, sounding regretful as possible.
"The subjects were locked out, but they were secretly cared for, they didn't starve, if they were hurt antibiotics were applied. I wanted to see how they'd respond in the wild." Moreau attempted to put it as analitcal as possible.
Moreau stared at the ground, feigning shame. "I should have told you... but I didn't want it to color your trip. I wanted you to... enjoy yourself."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:40 pm
Aubrey stopped, donning an expression that looked as if she just got slapped in the face. She took a few paces back, shaking her head. "You... you... knew about it?"
But no, it was worse that than that, and the peices began to fall together in her mind. "You... PLANNED this? From the beginning, didn't you? Thats why... thats why....not to visit my family..?" She was stuttering, trying to spit out a complete sentence (and failing) as the realization came to her.
She looked hurt. Truely, hurt. Moreau didn't want to take her on vacation. He wanted to distract her. Her eyes were glazed over, in shock, the tears not coming (yet) as she begged for him to give her a better explaination.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:45 pm
"No... no it was never that. I mearly decided to do it while we were gone. I thought it would be a perfect opportunity." Moreau rested his hands on Aubrey's shoulders.
Moreau sighed. "I just... wanted you to enjoy yourself. For us to be able to spend time together. I also figured it would be... easier on you. It wasn't like we really threw them to the dogs, we just wanted them to think we had. And I took the trip with you because I love you. I would have probably waited a few more months had we not gne."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:54 pm
Aubrey clentched her jaw and took a resolute step back, wrenching her shoulder's from his hands.
"Nicholas..." she took a breath, trying to keep her voice even, calm. She was both incrediably angry and betrayed, but she didn't want to fall into any emotion just yet. "You.. you should have told me... I mean... for many reasons. For one, I'm your girlfriend. But even more insulting is I'm supposed to be your colleauge. This is my life's work, too, now!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:59 pm
"But Aubrey... I know this is important to you as well. But frankly, I can't say you always have the stomach for it." Moreau turned and sighed in the direction of the desk.
Moreau collected himself after a moment. "You try so hard to make them like you... if you'd known, it would have destroyed the experiment. Worse though, it would have destroyed their opinion of you."
He continued. "You've tried to make them like me even, something I don't care about. It's easier to not be emotionally attached. Can you honestly tell me you wouldn't have warned, or alouded to Colche?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:05 pm
Aubrey crossed her arms and shifted the weight on her feet, jutting out her right hip. "Perhaps had you consulted me I would have had a say on how just... horrendous and cruel this little experiment would have been! Esepcially for someone as emotionally unstable as Colche." She felt the anger rising in her again.
"Colche, at the least, was susposed to be MINE. That was the condition on which she came here at all.. was under my direction. You gave Duvert access to my private files on her! Behind my back! Had you insisted you gone on with that experiment at the vertleast you could have removed Colche from it. She could have stayed in the labs, or wherever the hell you hid all the employees."
She moved one hand to rest defiantly on her hip. "And furthormore, Dr. Moreau, I obtained this position because you felt me qualified. That means you have to accept my methods and respect me enough as a scientist to hear my opinions on these procedures. Or does my scientific merit not mean anything anymore since you got me into your bedroom?" She lifted an eyebrow accusingly, peering over her glasses at him.
Moreau... well, hald the reason she supsected he captured her heart in the first place was because he valued her as a scientist. She didn't want to lose that. At her core, thats why she was. And this just made her feel professionally belittled.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:13 pm
"Cruel yes, but necessary. As far as Colche went I waited till she had become independant enough that I felt the experiment could go ahead." Moreau sighed. "I didn't know Sabin was going to inject Colche a second time. I can only imagine that benevolently he was helping to give her more unique abilities so that she would have nothing to fear.
"It's not fair to remove her from them and ask the staff to care for her. Furthermore despite everything Aubrey this is my project." He rested his hands on her again.
"I value you as a scientist, but this was something that in a way I was content to not be a part of. The data is invaluable." Moreau finished.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:15 pm
Aubrey just narrowed her eyes at him, shaking her head. "I'm insulted," she said simply, dissapointment in her eyes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:20 pm
"Aubrey, I don't think I could do this without you. Your my conscience and I love you for it. I couldn't ask for anyone more qualified in the lab." he looked at her.
"But honestly, would you have wanted a part in this? I could not have imagined so, nor could I have imagined you enjoying yourself while we were gone." Moreau was trying to be as sweet as possible.
"And it was wonderful spending those months with you, in France you seemed to enjoy yourself so much." he tried to half smile, trying to cheer her up.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:23 pm
"Honestly? No, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed myself as much as I did. But knowing... just coming back and feeling like a fool. To learn that ... that you of all people had just been lying to me the whole time. Knowing what was going on while I was just...making a fool of myself in ignorance?" She downcast her eyes and shook her head. "Nothing could be worse than feeling that way."
She shifted her feet. "I feel so.. belittled. Personally and professionally. From the person I respect most on both accounts."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:31 pm
Didn't this used to be much easier? Moreau questioned to himself, as she'd grown more attatched to him she'd grown more bold. He was honestly scared of his own reliance on her.
"I didn't intend that. I just... " Moreau felt like he was pulling teeth to say this. It didn't matter whether or not he felt it was true, he knew it was what should be said.
"I should have told you... I was wrong." he said and sighed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 8:33 pm
Aubrey blinked, surprised. She had never heard Moreau admit he was wrong. Ever.
Ever.
"Yes. You should have," she said, in a lowered voice, the words not sounding as resolute or scolding as they should have. She was too taken aback.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
