The Chimera Vector (The Fifth Column #1)

Chapter 8: The Smart School

15 years ago

Kamýk, Czech Republic

Sophia peeked around the corner into the living room. The man with the shaved head from the Argus Foundation stood there, briefcase in one hand. There was another man who stayed outside the apartment. He had red cheeks and thick, dark hair. The bald man called him Major.

The bald man handed the briefcase to Mama. She placed it on a chair, then tucked wisps of hair under her shawl.

'Welcome,' she said. 'I am sorry for this heat. The pipes are very hot and we have to open the windows even in—' She spotted Sophia and a smile appeared under her squashed nose. 'Sophia! The lovely man from the Argus is here to see you.'

Reluctantly, Sophia stepped out where he could see her.

He smiled. 'Hello, Sophia. It's good to see you again.'

Sophia blinked. Surely it was a mistake and her test results were mixed up with someone else much better.

'You can call me Denton.' He mopped sweat from his shiny forehead with a handkerchief.

'Are you excited?' Mama said. 'Today you go to the smart school.'

'It's not called the smart school, Mama.' Sophia rolled her eyes. 'It's the Argus Foundation.'

She pronounced it slowly and carefully to impress Denton. He nodded but didn't seem to be paying attention. She didn't know what to do with her hands, so she clasped them in front of her and fidgeted. Her stomach was spinning with butterflies: pink butterflies of excitement and blue ones of nerves. The blue ones were winning.

Some of the tests had been on paper, to see how well she could solve problems; others involved running, jumping, dodging foam balls—she thought she'd been clumsy in those tests, but he didn't think so. Maybe he hadn't been looking at her when she was tripping or falling. And there were the tests with doctors that used complicated machines and strange computers to measure things like her heart and her brain, and even a few needles—she didn't like that part. She'd been quite proud for not crying though. But Denton was really impressed with something inside her body, so tiny no one could see it without special machines.

'All the children at your new school are looking forward to meeting you, Sophia,' Denton said. 'Have you packed your suitcase?'

'Oh yes,' Mama said. 'We have everything ready, don't we, Sophia?' She turned to Sophia. 'Sophia? Do you have your suitcase?'

Sophia nodded, then went to her room to fetch it. But when she walked in, she realized it would be a while before she would see her room again. Of course, there would be visits. They would fly Mama and her brother and sister to see her, and sometimes she would be able to come home on semester break. But once school was over, she could do anything she wanted, and her schooling would all be paid for. Most importantly, her family would have enough money to buy what they needed. It was a dream come true.

She picked up her suitcase. It was Mama's, big and clunky, even though she hadn't filled it with much. She didn't have teddy bears or dolls like her sister. She didn't have many things actually, so she'd filled it with her clock radio, hairbrush, toothbrush, cassette player and her tapes of David Bowie—Papa's favorites—and her favorite clothes and her pillow with the purple pillowcase.

Sophia's little sister, Tereza, lunged at her from behind, hugging her and pinning her to the suitcase.

'It's not fair!' Tereza yelled. 'Why can't you take me with you?'

Sophia tickled her until she squealed and leapt away.

'They won't let me,' Sophia said. 'But you have the big bed now.'