The Black Silent Read Online Free PDF Page B

by eliminating these two big killers, cancer and heart disease, we're only talking a little over a decade of extra life? The real miracle, if someone could pull it off, would be 'youth retention.'"
    Sam raised his eyebrows in question.
    "Youth retention," Haley explained, "would be truly slowing aging, not just extending life and being old for a heck of a long time."
    Sam nodded.
    "It's a hot area in biology these days, and the fundamental problem is that so many bodily systems deteriorate with age," Haley said.
    "I think he's discovered something about energy, and something about aging," Sarah said. "But it's complicated— I don't understand it, and I'll feel very guilty if I speculate. I think he might have a secret lab and that's all I'm saying. Period." She sat back.
    "That's a shocker. What on earth do you mean by a 'secret lab'?" Haley sighed, obviously frustrated that she hadn't gotten much out of Sarah, but Sarah had obviously zipped her lip.
    "He's spending time with a lot of different people, I think," Sam said.
    "What people?"
    "Science people?" Sam speculated.
    "Yeah. That's all I know as well. Strange goings-on— people coming into town at night, and Ben hustling off to meetings," Haley said. "He's mum as a mummy about it all."
    "To me too," Sarah said.
    "Well," said Sam, "we all agree that he's leaving Sanker. It's just a matter of time, right?
    Distance from Frick and the corporation has to be a good thing."
    "Absolutely a good thing," Haley said. "If they let him leave."

CHAPTER 3
    A fter Sarah left, Haley locked up the bikes, deep in thought. In the ocean when the fmgerlings or the herring were jumping and roiling at the surface, you knew there was something having dinner down below. She couldn't shake the feeling that Sanker was having dinner. Her worry over Ben was incessant. As with Ben's work, she had questions about Sam. After a fashion she had known him for twenty-three years, since she was nine. At that time he was nineteen and an impressive college jock.
    Sam's father—a difficult, macho-type guy, to hear Ben tell it—had all the empathy of a wooden wall, but he had a sister who was the opposite. Her name was Helen, and she married Ben. Because of the rogue-male lifestyle led by Sam's dad, Sam would sometimes come to stay with Ben and Helen. That was mostly before Haley's time, and then after her time, he came out of gratitude and affection for Ben and Helen. Sam had a little of that family feeling in him despite the tough upbringing.
    As far as Haley and everybody else was concerned, Sam's life after graduate school had been mostly secret; so when he came to visit, it was as if he walked right out of a dark closet and into these idyllic islands. As far as his life and his persona in the islands, she knew a lot. He was very strong and athletic, a good listener, never bragged, and didn't mind going unnoticed, although it was hard not to notice him.
    She looked down toward the water and saw a big black man and some white guys walking down the waterfront street. They did not have the look of people from the island. Then they were gone.
    A few moments later, Sam came along, headed for his chair. She developed the familiar nervous knot in her belly whenever they were alone.
    She smiled at Sam, hoping it wasn't brittle. He smiled. Although he had been here first with his chair, starting nine months ago, somehow she felt he should move, since she had taken over the shop.
    Apparently he wasn't moving and neither was she. She glanced up. Sam had gone back to his book, sitting only about twenty feet away.
    Her phone rang and she jumped, casting about for the cordless contraption.
    "It's in your back pocket," Sam said without even looking up.
    Seeing it was Ben calling, she came back around the building to get better reception, but the call died. Then it came again.
    "Haley," came a staticky voice, "this is Ben. Can you hear me?"
    "Hey, how's it going?" The static worsened, and then it sounded like they were