Docile Hunger
Copyright© 2026 by TMax
Chapter 3: Horrible Success
Cliff walked back and forth in front of the room, like the classic general delivering an inspirational speech to his soldiers before a suicide mission.
“If we buckle down and give a good, honest push, we can have the prototype ready for transport by next week. Once they see what we have, they will make this project our top priority.”
It sounded rehearsed to Lara’s ears. He must have ten or twelve different projects under his command, and likely said the same at each. Lara’s heart thumped in her ears as she realized that he treated this project like any other weapons project. Her gut burned as the coffee attacked her stomach lining.
Lem, behind her, sat up straighter, while Stephan smiled. They believed him. For them, they could ignore the ethics of the situation. They could stay focused on the science. Lara couldn’t do that. Her position demanded that she look after everyone in the facility. All the young faces, most in their first position, because anyone with seniority transferred out or knew how to avoid this place.
“Everyone will be on double shifts until we reach that milestone,” Cliff said as he paced the front of the room.
A few people groaned, but Lem and Stephan almost clapped. They already pulled double shifts, much to the dismay of Lara. She constantly chastised them for not getting enough sleep. This would make it worse.
“I have a special treat for everyone, because I know how hard you will need to work,” Cliff said as he pulled a bottle out of his pocket. Lara sat up straighter. The bottle had a red sticker that said, “Experimental, not fit for human consumption.’
Cliff then broke protocol as he said, “One of my projects has come up with a non addictive no side effect amphetamine that will allow you to skip sleep for up to a month.” He never should have said anything about any other project. But who could Lara complain to? Cliff, the next level up in command, broke the protocol. And she didn’t have access to anyone else that she trusted if she hoped to get transferred out.
Cliff continued to talk, inspirational stuff, while Lara looked out the large bay window at the downtown of the small town. She thought she would like working here, the reason she accepted the promotion and transfer. She could live in a real house, shop at real stores, and have real friends outside of the building. And she did like Lem and Stephan and called them friends. Most of the rest of the personnel didn’t stay more than six months. Only the head of security, Brianna, had stayed in her position longer than she, Lem, or Stephan. But she refused to talk to anyone, and while Lara knew her name, she knew almost nothing else about her.
Cliff finished to applause from most of the staff. Only a few, like Lara, didn’t clap. She had heard it all before. Worse, when he referenced the Manhattan Project, her mind went to Louis Slotin, who died a slow and painful death when the beryllium spheres touched because a cleaner had removed the washers. She envied the scientists of that era. They made something that could destroy the world, but it still needed someone to press the button. Her facility worked on something that could wipe out humanity, and all it took was a simple mistake to make it happen.
Simple, but stupid, mistakes cost people their lives. She decided to apply for any other transfer, and if that didn’t happen by the end of the week, she would quit and go into the private service. She didn’t trust Cliff.
“That’s so cool that we get to have the latest in sleep suppressants. I wonder what it will taste like,” Lem said as he watched Cliff walk away. Cliff waved to the group, then closed his office door with a small thump.
As soon as it closed, everyone talked, most excited, but a few whispered. Lara glanced at the head of security, an older woman with grey hair and a broken nose. The lady frowned and wrote in a small black book. Every week she had a new book, labeled with Monday’s date.
Stephan nodded, yawned, and returned to his computer. Lara’s phone beeped with a summons to meet Cliff in his office.
Somehow, Cliff had installed a large mahogany desk in the small room, which left only enough space for two wooden chairs. Cliff sat in a leather throne-like chair as he stared out the window at a red boat that sailed down the river. He had removed the filing cabinets. A new white Apple laptop lay closed in the middle of the otherwise spotless desk.
“We are going to focus on the electronic controls. Steve believes that we can have any bugs worked out within a month,” Cliff said.
Stephan always believed that given a month, he could get anything working. Lem usually had the better estimate. In fact, Lem had insisted that they explore the organic control system because the subjects’ brains kept corrupting the electronic ones. Subject 1217 had lasted the longest so far at forty-six hours. The previous subject, who lay strapped to the bed, had only lasted ten hours.
“What did Lem project as a timeline?” Lara asked as she glared at Cliff. The knuckles of her left hand on the chair back had turned a deep red as they tried to crush the wood.
“He didn’t, or at least, his estimate was unusable,” Cliff said as he rocked back and forth in his chair. Classically handsome, with a square jaw, prominent nose, squinty eyes, and a beard that almost covered the scar along his jaw. While he had manicured fingers, he didn’t have the pointer or the index finger on his left hand.
Lara opened her mouth, but Cliff cut her off before she could say anything. “I don’t like you, but I’m stuck with you, and the geeks like you, so let’s get this project moved along to something useful. Then we can get out of this little facility and someplace bigger. Then I will move you to someplace else when I have the resources. A win-win situation. Of course, you could also choose the win-lose situation, because I don’t need this project to succeed as much as you or your geeks need it to. I have at least four good projects near usable status. This one ranks near the bottom.”
Lara ground her teeth, something that had become so problematic that she had to wear a mouth guard at night.
“You cannot make me work more than ten hours, even under emergency conditions,” Lara said as she wished that she could smash the laptop over Cliff’s head. She knew the regulations, and she knew that Cliff would get in trouble for forcing an administrator to work too long.
“True, but win-win. Your choice.” Cliff said as he waved his hand in dismissal.
Lara wanted to yell and scream, but she blanked her face, vowed to get properly drunk tonight, and left the office.
“Close the door,” Cliff shouted as he put his hands behind his head.
The worst part, Cliff made sense. They had exceeded their budget for the past five years. While the cool technology promised to create unstoppable soldiers out of enemy combatants, the danger of the virus ever escaping could destroy the world. Not unlike the nuclear program back in the day. What had Oppenheimer said when he saw the first nuclear explosion? “I have become death.” Lara felt that.
She smiled at Stephan as he gave her a thumbs up, and she resisted the temptation to slam her door. Instead, she slipped behind her small desk, covered in three computer monitors, mounds of paper, and a couple of empty and half-empty coffee cups.
‘Maybe I should reach out to that contact who wanted the file on the virus,’ Lara thought. They had offered enough money to retire, but she didn’t trust that the contact actually represented a foreign power. Rather, she figured they worked in counterintelligence and wanted to entrap her. However, even prison for life sounded better than what they planned to do to that family.
That night Lara sat on her sofa, put on a nature documentary and finished twenty ounces of whiskey.
Lara’s alarm woke her at five am, after only four hours of drunk sleep. She yawned the whole way to work, thankful for empty roads. In the office, she grabbed black coffee, threw her purse in her office, and went to find Lem or Stephan to get a verbal update. Cliff stepped out of his office with a smile.
“The father took to the virus easily and the electronic operation perfectly. Better than the others. Healthy subjects made a difference,” Cliff said as he rushed past Lara towards the facility elevator.
Lara nodded as she cringed. Of course he did. Another win for Cliff. Saved money. Better subject. But another loss for humanity.
“They are doing the young child now. Join me. Steve thinks that she will be the most successful because of her age and health.”
They entered the internal elevator, both pressed their thumbs to the up button, and glanced up at the camera so the guard could authorize the activation. With a jerk, the elevator ascended to the top floor.
Cliff walked fast, faster than Lara normally would walk as he navigated the hallways till he arrived at the operating room. The janitorial staff had stored more supplies in the hallway again. Against protocol, Lara also knew that they had almost run out of space.