Free The Jericho Deception: A Novel by Jeffrey Small

modification of a Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation protocol.” He shrugged as if the procedure were no big deal.
    “You’re going to microwave my monkeys’ brains?”
    Chris jumped in. “Hospitals use TMS technology all the time. The FDA has approved it for the treatment of depression.”
    She frowned. “I know that neurons are like tiny electrical circuits, firing small charges across their synapses, but you’re telling me that these circuits can be influenced by magnetic fields from outside the skull?
    Ethan nodded. “Studies have shown that TMS can be more effective on depression than medication, with no side effects.”
    “But my monkeys aren’t depressed.”
    “Of course not.” Chris smiled. “We’ve just tweaked the programming of the machine for our experiment.”
    “For what purpose?”
    She caught the men exchanging a glance.
    “Because you know the monkeys so well,” Ethan explained, “we want you to observe them to see if you notice any behavior changes during the test. Although we didn’t design the experiment as a double blind one, we didn’t want to tell you too much and risk coloring your report to us afterward.”
    She held his gaze. He’s telling the truth , she thought, but he’s nervous . His hands were clasped behind his back. From the tension in his shoulders, she could tell that he was trying not to fidget. Well, Laura did authorize the tests . Professor Sanchez was the only one who cared about the monkeys more than she did.
    She dropped her arms, walked over to a mini-fridge in the corner of the room, and removed a bowl with sliced green apples and oranges, a small vial of clear liquid, and a syringe.
    “Ketamine,” she said, answering the men’s curious looks. “In case you’re wrong about your machine.” Ketamine was a tranquilizer that would immediately paralyze the monkey. The forms they had to fill out to get it were endless because the drug was often abused by ravers who referred to it as Special K.
    She pulled a chunk of orange from the bowl. “We can only test one at a time. How many are we going to run?”
    “Three, please.”
    She held up the slice so that the monkeys could see it. Anakin, who was still the closest to her, began to chatter. She slid open a mesh door that closed off the wire tunnel from the main cage. Anakin leaped toward the tunnel, but just before he entered Obi Wan swung down from a higher branch and pushed him out of the way.
    “Wow, aggressive,” Chris said.
    “Not at all, just hierarchical.” She closed the tunnel door after Obi Wan entered and held the orange where he could see it as he scooted toward the wire box at the end. “Food, toys, and attention are divvied up according to the hierarchy of the group. Typically the older and larger males eat first and get the most.” She looked up at Ethan, who was at least a foot taller than her, and grinned. “Fortunately, some of us have evolved beyond those instincts.”
    When the monkey poked his head up through the small hole in the top of the box, she gave him the orange while snapping the foam collar around his neck, securing him in the position. The first time she’d done this for other experiments, she and the monkeys were nervous, but now it was routine. Ethan nodded to Chris, who lowered the headset so that the two black solenoids were positioned on either side of Obi Wan’s head. Eating his orange, Obi Wan paid no attention. Chris then stepped behind the Logos. When the graduate student hit a switch, a low hum emerged from the metal box. Rachel felt her pulse increase in time with the vibration. She hoped she was making the right decision by allowing them to proceed with their tests.

    Ethan’s heart pounded against his sternum as if it were knocking on a heavy door. He had to remind himself to breathe. All of our work , he thought. If a monkey had a seizure, their project was over. He pushed the thought from his head, but then another more disturbing one intruded: What if the