Chapter 345: Threat

President Lee had been staring at Mina for most of the time she was interacting with the men and women who isolated themselves to the third level. Each person had its own cubicle that was made of blast resistant glass. They also had doors that could be opened and closed at will, but many of the third level natives did not close them, allowing themself a small opportunity to escape if something with their invention went wrong.

"Doctor Rebecca, take Mina to section three. You men stay here," President Lee said. Mina was afraid that he would give the men orders to do something foul to her, but that was his department, and she did not believe he could convince men smarter than him to go against their nature.

When Mina was well out of ear shot, President Lee turned to the men who were still discussing how they planned to woo Mina. He cleared his throat, but neither man paid any attention until he clapped loudly; startling his scientists, many of whom cursed in agitation.

"President Lee, that was extremely dangerous," said one of the men he ordered to stay behind, and he felt his boss's eyes stab at him like daggers.

"Did we do something wrong?" Doctor Witt asked, he was the most sensitive to fluctuating emotions, although he had difficulty interpreting them.

"What makes you think Mina is single?" President Lee asked, and the men looked at each other before answering.

"Is she married?" Doctor Witt asked, and Ian rubbed his brow. "Oh no, is she dating Dom? We have to get rid of him. It's a complete waste of genetic material."

"Stop talking about her that way. She doesn't like it, and no she is not dating Dom, but she is dating someone, who has an IQ of one-forty-eight."

"But are they married?"

"Jeremy-" Ian said in a warning tone. "Mina is off limits to any of you. You may test her IQ level if she agrees, but do not pressure her into it. Mina is different from other people. If you push her too much, she will shut down." Jeremy understood his boss's warning, but he could tell his colleagues were not heeding his boss's words as not just a warning but a threat.

"What if Mina chooses one of us voluntarily?" President Lee grabbed the man in front of him by the collar.

"Then I kill you with my bare hands." The man scowled at his boss.

Part of the reason President Lee's scientists were so good at what they did was because they were not afraid of him. They had been trained much in the way he had been, and could hold their own against any typical Lee soldier, but Ian was no typical Lee soldier. He released the scientist's shirt and ordered the man to meet him on the ground level, which meant he was challenging him to a fight.

The last scientist who had fought with President Lee, ended up unable to use his hands in the way he needed, even after multiple surgeries. The man eventually killed himself, but not before burning down an entire section of the old laboratory. Much arduous work had been lost due to that spat, and since then many of the scientists and researchers went above and beyond to avoid angering President Lee.

To them, Ian was the bringer of calamity. Anytime he became involved in a project, the scientist would either go mad, or end their own life from the stress. It was why Doctor Witt was put in charge of the scientist. He was able to speak to the men at their level, and he was able to speak to President Lee on his. The female scientists were less troublesome, as they tended to keep mostly to themselves; afraid their male colleagues would steal their ideas.

----

Mina and Rebecca walked deeper into the lab. Gone were the glass cubicles and in its place were full sized work environments that housed two or three individuals working on the same project. There were a few rooms that had a one man or woman crew, but those individuals were dressed in hazmat suits, and Mina was uninterested in getting up close and personal with whatever it was they were working with.

"Where are you taking me?" Mina asked.

"To my project," she replied, and Mina rolled her eyes.

"I rather go back," Mina said, but Rebecca had to prove to Mina who was the smartest of them, so she lied to the girl.

"If you try to get back without me you will be shot on sight." Mina's mouth hung open. She did not believe Rebecca, but she also did not want to tempt fate without helping Dom first.

"Fine. What are you working on?" Rebecca stopped in front of two doors and used her badge to get into the room. Inside, there were a few other men and women who did not speak at all. When Mina tried to engage them, they flatly ignored her, and most of them rambled to themselves clearly engrossed in their work.

"These are bioelectrical blood monitors," Rebecca said smugly. "If perfected, they could be implanted into children at birth, and as they grow, their doctors can monitor their dietary needs. If I can get the science right, we may even be able to detect illness before it becomes apparent." Mina was impressed, but she was unenthused.

"That only benefits the rich, and it is tormenting for the poor."

"What do you mean?" Rebecca asked. "Implants would be free, they would make healthcare work less stressful, and time efficient."

"Sure, but you forget that poor people don't visit the doctor's office. Social medicine is available in Pan, but the wait for an appointment is so long that by the time you go in, you either feel better or are beyond the stage of treatment."

"Everyone has to wait at a doctor's office," Rebecca said, and Mina shook her head.

"You waited what? Forty-Five minutes for a flu test result? I have waited a week for my father's MRI report."

"That's insane, imaging is out minutes after the MRI is completed, and the reading should take no more than half an hour."

"Maybe at a private hospital, but in public hospitals the wait can be deadly. The only reason I was able to get them in such a short amount of time was because I drained my summer savings. It wasn't much, but money talks." Rebecca followed Mina with her eyes. As the woman spoke, she sauntered around the room, looking at the different workstations. Mina was unaware, but the people who worked under Doctor Rebecca had all stopped their work to listen to Mina's story.

"That doesn't mean my invention is useless," Rebecca quipped. She had begun to feel threatened by the woman in front of her.

"I never said it would be useless. I said it was an invention for the rich, but even then; your target audience would not go for this technology."

"Care to tell me why?" Rebecca asked sarcastically.

"The threat of having your personal health information accessed with a simple scan is too great of a risk for the ruling class."