and he stared at the ceiling. His mind was racing. He began to develop a radical hypothesis—that perhaps killer sperm could indeed impregnate a woman. The scientists had said no, but he thought, Does anyone really track all those little sperm? How could they? In his mind, he questioned whether these killer sperm could generate children. But his thoughts began to revolve around the question: “What if those children grew up to be serial killers or just killers in general?” In his mind, this made sense as a hypothesis since killer sperm was simply designed for the purpose of hunting and killing.
He reached for his smartphone, placed it on his desk, and hit the voice-activated function. “Call Parker.” The phone rang three or four times.
Parker was a slim and fit Asian man in his early thirties. He answered on the other end.
“Hello?” Sage said. “It’s me. How’s it going, my man? How’s business?”
“Business is good. Dang, bro, it’s been a minute. How the heck are you? I haven’t heard from you for a while…How are you holding up?” said Parker.
“I’m good, man. I think I’ve stumbled onto something. But you are going to think I’m crazy…my bad, bro. Apologies.”
Parker paused. “Okay. Try me, bro. You know I’ve dealt with my fair share of being called names and people questioning my mental stability.”
Reluctantly, Sage said, “So you know I’ve been going through a lot and dealing with this situation…and it has been one hell of a struggle. But I stumbled across something that got my brain thinking. I’ve got this idea about killer sperm.”
“Oh, geez, I’m listening…There’s part of me that wants to laugh, but you are brotha from anotha mutha and one of my best friends.” He paused. “I’m awfully short of those these days. I’ll humor you. Let’s hear it.” Parker fell silent.
“Okay, so it’s a little bit nutty…” Sage emitted slowly.
“Easy, Sage,” mumbled Parker.
Sage’s tone immediately went to an apologetic one. “Sorry…What if people were destined to be who they are?”
“What do you mean? Aren’t we all destined to be someone?” Parker questioned.
“What if other forces were at work?” Sage stated.
“Other forces? Bro, I have said there were other forces for years.”
“I know, bro. I am taking a page out of your book.”
Parker laughed and said, “Don’t read that book before bed.” Parker continued to chuckle but tried to control it. “Okay, but what does this have to do with killer sperm? What the heck is killer sperm anyway? I have heard of sperm killer—”
Sage interrupted, and his irritation was apparent in his tone. “Hey, man, I thought you said you’re going to humor me. I know where I’m going with this, and it is going to be a bit radical…Just hear me out.” He paused ever so briefly. “So I was checking out this special about sex—”
Parker interrupted, “Man, it’s about time you get back out there. How long has it been anyway?”
Sage was thoroughly irritated, and he did not hold back. His tone became defensive sprinkled with a touch of aggression. Parker had hit a sore spot. “Come on, man, you know Vickie was my girl. I would never…”
Parker, in an attempt to mollify the situation, said, “Bro, you know I’m just giving you a hard time. I just want to see you get back out there.”
Sage let his annoyance show just a bit more. “When was the last time you got some…Wait, we’re getting off topic,” he said. Sage hesitated briefly; he attempted to return the conversation to the original track. “So I was watching this special about sex, and it talked about killer sperm—”
Parker interjected, “Yeah, yeah, you said that. While you were going on, I was looking up some data on killer sperm. Did you know that it can’t fertilize an egg?”
“Yeah, I read that,” Sage said, still a bit annoyed. Sage paused for a few seconds, leaned back in his chair, and interlaced his fingers on top of his head. The chair squeaked just a bit. Sage said, “But what if, just in some weird instances, it could? What do you think would be the result?”
“Can’t happen…”
Sage plead his case, “But if it could?”
Parker paused a bit longer than would be normal in a conversation between brothers ribbing each other. Sage believed that he had Parker’s full attention and waited patiently.
“Oh, shit,” said Parker.
Sage, knowing that Parker was finally focused, said, “Right?”
Parker changed his tone. “This could change everything that everyone thinks they know. Let’s dig into it.”
“My fear is that no one is going to believe us, or they’re going to think we’re craz…uh…” He paused to correct his wording. “My research background is not in the medical field,” said Sage as he rocked in his chair. The chair squeaked gently.
Parker took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Parker explained, “I’ve had my fair share of having been called crazy. I’m an old pro. Well, my man, let’s check it out first and see if the hypotheses are right or if we are even on the right path. Then they will have to believe us—eventually.”
Taking note of Parker’s paralanguage, Sage said, “Funny how you say ‘they.’ You gonna do your Dark Web thing?”
Parker fought back a laugh and followed with “Man, you know there is no such thing as the Dark Web.”
“A couple of minutes ago, there was no such thing as killer sperm—”
Parker interrupted, “You gonna do your dodgin’ hot chicks thing?”
Sage was hit with this mild gutshot by his brother but took the ribbing without complaining. “Catch you later, Parker,” he said.
Parker joked, “Bye…hey, Sage, what about that one lady from…”
Sage ended the call on his smartphone, then grinned to himself at Parker’s words. He lifted himself from his captain’s chair, walked to a cabinet, and opened it. Inside were a few small items and an electronic safe. The buttons emitted a high-pitched beep for each key as Sage punched in his code. He twisted the handle; it clanked with a more-massive-than-would-be-expected metallic thud, and he pulled it open. There was a small suction that indicated a pressure change. The result was a breeze that fluttered some official-looking papers inside of the metal body of the safe.
He stared into the safe for several seconds. He reached in slowly, deliberately and pulled out a pistol and its magazine. Holding the gun in one hand and the magazine in the other, Sage visually inspected both items. He paused for a brief while and pondered his time in the Marine Corps. Semper fi.
He missed the esprit de corps that the Marines offered. But he had Parker. Parker was and always had been his brother. They had gone through hell together, and though Parker was not a Marine, Sage knew that Parker had his back and he had Parker’s.
Sage utilized his thumb to press on the top round in the magazine. Engraved on the side of the magazine was the numeral 10. Sage knew this to be the capacity of the weapon’s magazine, but for Sage, 7 was the magic number. Sage had a different perspective and always wanted to be prepared. He chose seven rounds, so the pressure on the spring was never too much, and his weapon would never jam. After a quick inspection of the pistol, it was paired with the magazine and gently placed in the safe. He removed a small digital camera and slammed and locked the door.
Chapter 7
Sage had busied himself in his office. Research materials, pens, papers, and small notepads were strewn across his desk. Through the window, daylight waned, and darkness approached. He paused momentarily