Lewis was occupied at one of the library's many computer terminals, completely absorbed. A notebook containing several pages of notes lay beside him. He'd come to the library alone, so he was slightly startled when someone came up behind him and gently put their hands over his eyes.

Soft, feminine, dainty hands. He smiled and said, "Suddenly, I'm blinded by love."

Cleo removed her hands and leaned down to look at him. The huge grin on her face made Lewis's heart soar. "You're certainly blinded by something," she said.

Lewis just beamed, enraptured by Cleo's beauty and joy.

Then her words registered. He looked mildly horrified. "Did I miss our study session again?"

"Amazingly, no. That's tonight."

"Ah."

"But I have a strong feeling you were headed in that direction."

"I resemble that remark."

Cleo looked at the screen and at his notes. "Your mom said you were here, and you've been kind of absent lately." The terminals on either side of Lewis were unoccupied, so Cleo pulled a chair over and sat.

"Sorry. I guess I'm all caught up in..." Lewis waved his hand at the terminal. "...this."

"That's fine. I know my boyfriend. I know you'll dive into something for days, and I know you'll come up occasionally for air or for a sandwich." She took his hand. "I was just curious to know what's grabbed your attention so much. I actually miss you irritating me. Just this morning, I got really peeved that you weren't nattering around my room. I wanted so badly to scream, 'Lewis! Leave me alone!' But you weren't there."

"Wow. That's a lot to unpack. Do you need a therapist?"

"No therapist could help me. So whatcha doing?"

Lewis pursed his lips for a moment, then said, "Don't be mad."

Cleo gave him a playful warning look.

Lewis didn't, and would never, hide anything from Cleo. His philosophy was: you either shared and trusted, or you didn't pretend you were a couple. It was that simple. So he hesitated only a moment before taking the plunge.

"I'm composing a letter to Dr. Denman."

Cleo's face fell. "Why?"

"Two reasons. She hurt me, my friends, and the girl I love, and she needs to answer for that. She also acted unethically, and science has no place for such people. I'm genuinely hoping to teach her to be a better person."

Cleo shook her head in consternation. "Just let it go."

"I figured that would be your reaction, and I'm sorry, but I can't. This is important. As the only other scientist in the world who's aware of what she did, I have a responsibility to the scientific community, and perhaps to humanity itself, to do what I can to correct a scientist who's lost their way."

"Lewis, I never want to see her, think about her, or hear her name ever again."

Lewis looked pained. "I know, but I'm asking you to trust me." He squeezed her hand. "At least proofread the letter. I'm hoping that when you read it, you'll understand my point of view a lot better. And after reading it, if you still really don't like the idea, we can discuss it further. Does that sound like a plan?"

Cleo looked crestfallen.

"Please?" Lewis asked, giving her a smile. "Give me a chance, and believe in me. Like I said, if you still think I'm doing the wrong thing after reading it, you can tell me."

Cleo's expression softened. "Okay. Let me read it."

"Well, I haven't written it, yet. I'm still researching."

"What's to research?"

"The subject of ethics in science is a huge topic, and has been for years. Many organizations have written about it. I don't want to just write a letter of complaint, I want to back it up with some real weight. It's an important letter, so I'm putting a lot of thought into it."

"All right." She sounded resigned and dejected.

Lewis hated the fact that her sunshine smile of a minute ago was gone, so he said, "I'm also not in a hurry. If you want me to pause this to spend time with you, I will. Gladly." He smiled at her.

This brought back a little of her own smile, as she appreciated his attention. Still, she said, "Nah. I think I'll just go for a swim. As long as you keep track of the time –" she tapped his watch with each emphasized word "– and don't miss our study session."

His smile grew wider. "Deal."

"All right." She leaned forward for a quick kiss. "Have fun with your research, bookworm."

"As long as you have fun with your swim, mermaid. See you tonight."

 

Harrison was sitting in his home office when his business phone rang. He glanced at it. Unknown caller. Not a big deal. He answered and said, "Harrison Bennett."

"Good morning, Dr. Bennett. This is Rikki Chadwick."

Harrison felt like his heart skipped several beats. A wave of emotions rolled through him, none of them good. His most recent contact with Rikki was four days previously. A captive mermaid, she'd been floating in a pool on Mako Island, glaring daggers at him. Daggers he deserved.

"It's no longer morning, but good day to you, too, Miss Chadwick."

"My morning starts around noon, so it's all good to me."

"Fair enough. What can I do for you?" He felt like he'd never asked a more loaded question.

"I'd like to meet with you alone, at your convenience. School's out for the year, so that's not a problem. Just let me know when's a good time to come over."

"May I ask what this is about?"

"Restitution."

"Ah."

"Don't say 'Ah.' It's not what it sounds like. I have a proposal for you, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by what I have to say. I don't want to say any more over the phone. Can we meet?"

"You available right now?"

"I am."

"Come over. This...doesn't involve Zane, does it?"

"Nah. We're no longer dating, but we're on good terms. This doesn't need to be a secret from him, but I won't go out of my way to tell him about this, either. If you tell him, it's no never mind to me."

"Understood. I'll see you in a few minutes."

The call ended. Harrison sat looking at the phone, pondering. He was still pondering when the knock came ten minutes later.

He answered the door. Rikki Chadwick stood on his porch with a tight smile. Whether the smile was genuine, sarcastic, or sinister was hard to say. Perhaps a little of all three.

"Come in, Miss Chadwick."

"Just call me Rikki."

"And you can just call me Harrison. Anything to drink?"

"No thanks."

They sat in the living room, he on a recliner and she on the sofa. They faced each other over the coffee table.

"You mentioned a proposal," Harrison said.

"I think it perfectly fair to say that kidnapping me and threatening me are horrible things for which I am owed something."

Knowing he was treading a minefield, Harrison still couldn't resist disputing this. He answered carefully. "Weeeeeee...didn't exactly kidnap you."

"I recall a cage."

Harrison considered this a moment, then said, "Fair. I concede the point."

"I would like a load of money."

Harrison nodded. "That's what I figured you'd say. Yet you said I'd be surprised."

"I don't want you to just give me a load of money, though God, I admit it's tempting. Somehow, that would seem cheap and lazy, to both of us. It's so common, isn't it? Get caught doing the wrong thing, casually write a check to get out of trouble and erase the guilt, have a brandy, forget it ever happened, move on to the next wrong thing. Wash, rinse, repeat."

"Is that what you think of me?"

"Am I wrong?"

He gave the tiniest shrug and opted not to pursue that. She may not have been wrong.

Rikki said, "So, if you're willing, I'd like you to do the next best thing."

"If I'm willing?"

"I have no power to make you do anything. You could kick me out and tell me to get stuffed." She gave him a meaningful look. "This entirely depends on your humanity. Perhaps your guilt, but I'd really like it to be based on your humanity."

Harrison regarded her appraisingly. "I believe...I believe I may have underestimated you, Rikki."

"Most people do. It's usually the poverty, but sometimes it's the pigtails."

He gave a tiny snort of amusement. "What's your proposal?"

"You have multiple careers. Surgeon, real estate, stocks."

"Stocks isn't a career, per se, but yes, a lot of my money comes from investments."

"Teach me."

He gave her a puzzled look.

"And I don't mean that garbage you shovel down people's throats at your stupid seminars. I mean teach me for real. I want you to loan me a sum of money. I don't know how much, yet, because I don't know what a good starting sum would be, but it needs to be reasonably large. And I want this loan to be at zero interest and with no fixed repayment date.

"I'll put this money in a new bank account, and you teach me to invest that money and make it grow. I literally know nothing. I don't even know where to begin. So I want you to tell me what to do with that money. Do I buy stock? Put it in a CD? Both? Something else? Is there a land deal I can get in on? Which companies do I invest in, and which do I avoid? And how can I make that distinction? Get me to a point at which I can make my money make money. Get me to a point where I can stand on my own two feet and do it myself.

"When I have ten times the money I started with, I'll repay your loan. The faster and better you train me, the sooner you get your money back.

"I only have one requirement, at least so far. My investments must be ethical. Anyone uses child labor in a third-world country, anyone pollutes the environment, even if they do it legally...no. Those people don't get my money and I don't take theirs, I don't care how lucrative they are.

"Does this sound like something you'd be willing to do?"

Harrison thought a few moments, then said, "No, because what you propose would take about 25 years."

Rikki's face fell. "Oh."

"Using the stock market alone, it takes about seven years to double your principal, on average. The other methods you mentioned wouldn't be any better. There are no shortcuts."

Rikki looked frustrated. "I see. But you understand the prize I'm after, right?"

"Oh, quite well. It's admirable. But lower your sights. Let's look for a more reasonable set of figures."

"Does this mean you'll help me?"

"If I do, will this clear my debt with you?"

"Zane vouches for you. He says you have remorse for what you and Dr. Baywatch Babe did, and he thinks your remorse is genuine. I choose to believe him. So, unless I ever learn otherwise, yes...you do this for me, I'll consider your crimes against me repaid, and we can shake hands and move on."

"What about Cleo and Emma?"

"I'll gladly tell them I'm doing this. Again, I have no real reason to keep this a secret, though I won't advertise it. Anyone else finds out we're doing this, you're just helping your son's poor friend out of kindness. You wanted to help, I don't take charity, so we compromised with the loan and the training. If Cleo and Emma want to do something similar, or if they just flat wanna shake you down for some cash, I'll leave that to them. Something tells me they won't, though. They don't seem the type."

"Fair enough. I accept your proposal, though I warn you, your ethical restraints may slow the process a little."

"That's fine."

"I suggest a starting sum of twenty thousand dollars."

"Fifty."

He shook his head. "I've yet to be convinced you're committed. You're fifteen, and forgive me for saying so, but at that age, you could just be following a whim which you'll forget, or change your mind about, at any moment, in which case, I'm out my loan. You say you have no power over me, but the reverse is also true: I have no power over you, and despite your lovely speech earlier, you could take the money and wave good-bye. This is a verbal contract, what we call a gentlemen's agreement. I doubt either of us wants to formalize this, considering the secrets which led us here. So, under those circumstances, I insist on twenty thousand. And, if you're sincere about all this, I think you'll find that amount will be more than enough to get you on your way."

"All right, fair enough. And I am sincere. I've wanted an opportunity like this for years."

"Very well. I'll write the check today, and you can set up your account. Make it a checking account; you'll be making frequent withdrawals, and a bank won't like that if it's a savings account.

"I don't have a lot of free time, so if it's okay with you, I suggest we meet for a couple of hours each Thursday evening. The process will be painfully slow at first, so you'll need to trust it. Once you finally climb the learning curve, it will get a lot faster."

"How long, do you think?"

"How long until what?"

Rikki shrugged. "Until...I get rich, I guess?"

"Rich is relative, and you're a long way from independently wealthy. But whatever you meant, it doesn't matter. I'll only train you for one year. If you're not standing on your own two feet by then, you never will be, or you were never serious about this exercise in the first place. During that year, if we do well, I anticipate your principal will grow three to four thousand. I know it doesn't sound like much, but for a fifteen-year-old who still lives at home and has almost nothing, it's a helluva start.

"After our year is over, I'll be happy to continue answering any questions you have for the rest of time, but you should be well on your way.

"As for the loan, let's say...repay it when you quadruple it, which will probably take about fifteen years. Repay it earlier if you become comfortably wealthy enough to do so. I'll trust your judgment and honesty, as much as you're trusting mine. I have no problem with the zero interest. If I die before you quadruple it, keep it. If you lose it entirely or fail to make it grow, I'll just write off both it and you. Does this sound like a plan?"

Slowly, Rikki smiled. "I am so ready to begin!"

 

From: Lewis McCartney

To: Linda Denman, PhD;
and those in Dr. Denman's employ aboard her science vessel

I'm writing to express my anger, hurt, and deep misgivings concerning your recent treatment of me and three of my friends.

In the pursuit of scientific glory and financial greed, you held the four of us against our will, and attempted to invade the bodies and privacy of my three friends against their will. These acts are not only blatantly illegal, they are violations of our human rights, our free agency, our autonomy, our dignity, and violations of common human decency.

Worse, you did this despite the fact that we are minors, which means we can add child abuse, child endangerment, and abuse of authority to the list.

These utterly despicable and outrageous acts hurt us deeply, and you should be thoroughly ashamed.

Ethical behavior has long been the standard among scientists the world over. Many organizations have published treatises and declarations urging and reaffirming ethical standards for all scientists. The vast majority of scientists are good people who gladly adhere to these standards.

At the opposite end of the scale sits perhaps the most infamous "scientist" of all time, Josef Mengele (and it disgusts me to use word scientist even in quotation marks with regard to that monster). I trust I need not remind you who he was, and what he represented: not just pure evil on Earth, but, for the purpose of this letter, a complete void of ethical behavior in any form.

In short: a scientist with no ethics is no scientist.

Among the many organizations which have affirmed ethical standards among scientists, arguably the most prestigious and important is UNESCO, of which Australia is a founding member. A mere six years ago, UNESCO published their Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights.

Among many other things, UNESCO's declaration states:

• Human dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms are to be fully respected. (Emphasis mine.)
• The interests and welfare of the individual should have priority over the sole interest of science or society. (Emphasis mine.)
• Scientific research should only be carried out with the prior, free, express and informed consent of the person concerned. (Emphasis mine.)
• The privacy of the persons concerned and the confidentiality of their personal information should be respected. To the greatest extent possible, such information should not be used or disclosed for purposes other than those for which it was collected or consented to, consistent with international law, in particular international human rights law.

These are just a few statements out of many. The entire declaration is most informative. I strongly suggest you read it, and even more strongly do I suggest you adhere to it.

At the very least, you owe the four of us a massive and profound apology. At most, you should be arrested and face severe criminal charges. If it were possible to pursue such charges without compromising our own lives, we would do so.

Even though we will never get the satisfaction of your punishment, and even if we never receive any apology, I still implore you to change your behavior so that you perform your work ethically, in accordance with UNESCO's declaration, in accordance with international and Australian law, and in accordance with common human decency.

This no doubt entails changing your very mindset and your values. If you can accomplish this, then you can become the real scientist you have the potential to be. Until then, with no ethics and with no moral compass, you are no scientist, and do not deserve to be called one, and your title of Dr. is a fraud.

I hope to receive an apology personally addressed to me and to my three friends. You know their names. If you want to send correspondence directly to them, use my address, not theirs, for the sake of their privacy. If no apology is forthcoming, we would appreciate no response at all.

 

Cordially,

Lewis McCartney

 

Lewis, sitting on the floor near the door, kept quiet as each girl read a copy of his letter. Emma and Cleo lay on Cleo's bed. Rikki sat in a chair next to Hector. The silence in the room stretched on, even after Lewis was sure they had finished reading.

Rikki finally spoke. "What's the purpose of this?" For once, she was missing the acerbic tone she usually took with people.

Lewis shrugged. "I thought that was self-evident. An apology would be great."

To Lewis's surprise, the girls were silent again, as if they didn't know how to tell him something.

After a few moments, Cleo spoke up. "I think what Rikki's asking is, what would that change?"

Lewis looked puzzled. "An apology is...a perfectly legitimate thing to ask for when one has been hurt."

"First of all, any apology would be suspect," Emma said. "I wouldn't trust it. Second, even if I did believe an apology, so what? It won't alter the course of our lives in the slightest."

"Thank you, Emma," Rikki said, and looked at Lewis. "Yes. That's what I'm trying to say."

Lewis looked confounded. "I guess that's true. I...just look at it differently. I want satisfaction, even partially. I want-"

"To hurt her," Cleo said softly.

Lewis gave her a sour look, but didn't deny it. "I guess. But there's more. When I say I implore her to change, I'm not just saying that to sound self-righteous or to be spiteful. I mean it. I truly want her, and the men she employs, to become better people. For themselves, but also because the scientific community needs as few rotten apples as possible! That's a huge reason I want to confront her. Why I need to confront her. Science, and the scientific community, matter to me. A lot."

They gave him sympathetic looks.

"Yeah, I get it," Emma said. "I just hope she doesn't hurt you further."

"Does that mean I have your permission to send it?" Lewis asked.

"You don't need our permission!" Rikki said, her acerbic tone returning. She'd been restrained for an entire minute, which Lewis took as progress.

"I'm writing on your behalf," he said. "The letter clearly sounds as if I'm speaking for all four of us. So, yes, I need your permission. If even one of you strongly objects, I'll tear this letter up and write one only for myself."

"I don't object," Emma said. "I'm just not gonna hold my breath for a good response."

Cleo shrugged. "I don't object. And you're right, Lewis; after reading the letter, I do see what you're trying to do, and why." She smiled at him.

"I don't object," Rikki said. "But it's not something I need. The world is full of people who hurt you. You say it's outrageous, I say it's just Tuesday. If you spend time pursuing them all, you never get to live. Baywatch Babe's gone, and it better be for good. That's all I need to know."

Lewis nodded. "Thanks guys."

"All right," Cleo said to Emma and Rikki. "Lewis is gonna help me study biology now. You're welcome to stay-"

"Nope!" Rikki said, and was up before Cleo could draw another breath.

Emma smiled and told Cleo, "We'll get out of your hair." To everyone, she said, "Juicenet at ten?"

Rikki made a goofy sour face and offered an alternative. "Eleven?"

Emma gave her a mock scowl. "Ten. But join us whenever you drag yourself out of bed."

Rikki gave two thumbs up. "Deal!"