Mark of the Beast Read Online Free

Bond. I’m the senior project manager for Pfizer for the Midwest district.”
    â€œNice to meet you, Ms. Bond.”
    â€œAnd you?” Abramhoff asked of the gentleman accompanying the woman to the office.
    â€œI’m Roger Ezra. I’m the national grant specialist, what you may call the overseer.”
    â€œSo you are Ms. Bond’s … boss?” Abramhoff asked.
    â€œYes and no,” Mr. Ezra said. “She has the authority to approve, but in complex projects, it comes through me for referral to headquarters.”
    â€œSo I’m talking to the right people?” Abramhoff asked.
    â€œI would say you are,” Ms. Bond replied.
    â€œOkay, then,” Dr. Abramhoff said, balancing himself in the middle of his black leather cushioned chair, “what we are trying to do at the Kankakee Federal Prison is to study all hard-core criminals, especially those who have committed heinous criminal acts.” Abramhoff used both hands to emphasize his points.
    â€œWe believe that these individuals have an HLA marker, like a genetic stamp, that predisposes them to criminality, just like HLA B27 predisposes someone to get ankylosing spondylitis, you know, the disease of the spinal joints. As with the diseases associated with HLA markers, we do not know yet the trigger mechanism for manifestation. If we can research these people and find a common marker, could you imagine the potential? Drugs for early identification, gene therapy, and so on and so forth?”
    â€œThat’s something new,” Ms. Bond said.
    â€œI’ll agree with that,” Mr. Ezra added.
    â€œSo are you guys on board?” Abramhoff asked.
    â€œWell, how much money do you think you will need?” Ms. Bond responded.
    â€œWell,” Abramhoff said, “you know I have to initiate a laboratory for genetic isolation and identifications. We’ll have to recruit inmates, even if we might have to pay the institution, medical assistants, research technicians, equipment, office computers.… I think twenty to thirty million dollars might be appropriate.”
    â€œTwenty to thirty?” Ms. Bond said hesitantly.
    â€œWhat Ms. Bonds is trying to say,” Mr. Ezra clarified, “is that … for an amount like that, it definitely must go to the corporate office in New York for final consideration.”
    â€œYes,” Ms. Bond said. She finally composed herself. “Even if we approve that amount, the company will not issue that kind of check without corporate input.”
    â€œSo what do you think our chances are?” Abramhoff asked.
    â€œGood, I would dare to say,” Mr. Ezra said, looking at Ms. Bond.
    â€œHow about excellent? Then I’ll be happy,” Abramhoff joked.
    â€œWith a little push, I think it will go a long way,” Ms. Bonds said, still noncommittal.
    â€œSo will you guys push it, then?” Abramhoff asked.
    â€œI’ll get to work as soon as I receive the proposal from you,” Ms. Bond answered.
    â€œWhen can I hear from you all?” Abramhoff asked.
    â€œGive us about a week or two after we receive the proposal to be able to make all the necessary contacts,” Ezra replied.
    â€œThat’s fine,” Abramhoff said, rising from his chair.
    â€œGood-bye, sir,” Ms. Bond said, as she and Mr. Ezra picked up their bags and headed toward the door.

 
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    D RIVING CAUTIOUSLY BETWEEN FIFTY and sixty miles per hour on Route 21, Stella felt exhausted. She had just disembarked in Savannah International Airport from a United Airlines flight that was delayed in Chicago.
    Stella Montgomery had already figured out what to prepare for dinner when she got home, counting on the fact that she would be home before her husband.
    Here it was, 7:30 P.M. , and she had quite a distance to drive to get to her home on Ogeechee Road. Because of the traffic jam on Route 95, Stella sat in her motionless car and reflected on her trip to