After work I went straight to my apartment. I was still disturbed by the project Dominic had revealed to me. The idea that people could be grown in a vat was beyond the pale. Not because it could be done, but because I knew there were people out there who would do it!

I had heard it said somewhere that when a new technology comes along, we must always consider how it can be abused, because that is the first thing that will probably be done with it. I had no doubts about it. Allowing human cloning was going to cause a lot of trouble and yet it was going to happen. It was inevitable. It could not be stopped. Once corporate greed was behind it, it was inevitable.

While my thoughts were making me despair for mankind, it took me a minute to realize that the walls in the hallway leading to my place had changed colour again! Now they were a bright orange. Earlier that day they had been a mustard yellow and last week they were a bright yellow! What the hell was going on here!? Why did the colour keep changing? They couldn’t be repainting them every week!? I had never seen a worker in here doing anything and there was never any odour of fresh paint lingering. Besides there was hardly any wear and tear on the walls, why would they need to do it every week?

I needed to know if I was crazy. I went over a knocked on Jacob’s door. Okay, I admit it. It was not the soundest move I could make, but it was worth a shot. Instead of answering the door, Jacob stepped off the elevator and greeted me.

“What up, dude?” He was cheerful as always.

“The colour of the walls!” I said exasperated.

He looked around assessing them. “They’re orange,” he stated and gave me a strange look.

“Yes!?” I said waiting for him to say something more, but he just stared at me like I was crazy. Already this was not going well for me. So I said. “But earlier today they were a dark yellow.”

He squinted at me. “Are you sure man? I always thought they were orange.”

“How high are you!?” I demanded.

“I was going to ask you the same question!?” He laughed. “You can’t remember when you were born and now your paranoid about the wall colour!? And you think I’m high!? Man, you need to get laid more often!”

Jacob was infuriating. I said. “You’re the second person to tell me that today!”

“Then it must be true, dude!” He said gleefully. The whole thing was some joke to him. He took out the key to his apartment and opened the door.

“You going to the club tomorrow?” I asked him.

“Dude, tomorrow is Friday night. I’m always there!” He beamed that classic stoner smile at me.

Why did Jacob always sound like a surfer from California? Was he even from California? I guess I never asked him these questions before. I suppose I could be a better friend… Starting tomorrow, maybe. I told him. “Well, I will see you there then.”

Without any prompting he said. “You want to come in and get high?”

“Are you kidding me!? I’d thought you’d never ask!” I sounded more like a junky then I liked but fuck it, when in Rome, right?

Ten minutes later, we had passed the bong around twice before Jacob asked. “Do you have a mask?”

That was a hell of a question to come out of the blue like that! “What the fuck are you talking about!?” I questioned. Every word had a puff of smoke come out with it. It made me laugh to see it. Then that made me choke. I passed the bong back to him before I spilt the water.

“For the club tomorrow. Friday nights are always the Masquerade Ball. Everyone has to have a mask or they won’t let you in,” Jacob explained. He reloaded the chamber and took another hit. The man was a machine. He could just keep going!

I said. “You’ve got to be kidding!?”

He shook his head. Letting out his breath he said. “It’s actually quite popular. There will be a lot of people there. Most like to use the same masks all the time, so you know who is who.”

He stood up (don’t ask me how given the number of times he had just hit that bong!) and walked over to a cabinet next to the TV. He pulled out a mask. “I always go as V from that movie.” He put the mask on.

“It’s Guy Fawkes,” I told him.

“No, it’s V for Vendetta, or some shit,” he replied.

“No, the mask,” I said. “It’s Guy… You know what, never mind!” I realized that arguing with Jacob was an act of futility.

He pulled out a second mask and came back to the couch. He was wearing the Guy Fawkes mask. He handed me the other one. “If you don’t have a mask, you can wear this. It’s the mask Tom Cruise wore in Vanilla Sky.”

“You wear this at all?” I questioned. I would have to disinfect it first if he did.

“Not usually. I like this one,” he explained. “Plus, people know me if I wear it.” I pondered if that was a good thing or not.

His voice was a bit muffled, but I could still tell who it was. Maybe this would be alright after all. The mask had an eerie quality to it, but I kind of liked it. It was just generic enough without being totally anonymous. I had a nice designer suit I hadn’t worn yet. I thought about putting on for tomorrow night and trying it out. I tried to convince myself that it will be fun. I took the mask and stumbled back to my place down the hall. How the hell could Jacob walk straight after all that pot!? I wondered. That strange orange hallway kept nagging at the back of my mind. It unnerved me. It told me that something was rotten in the state of Denmark! It made the world seem unreal. Or maybe I really was high! Who knows, right!?

I dragged myself through eight hours of work on Friday. Then I went back to my place showered, ate dinner and put the new suit on. I donned the mask and waited. At eight o’clock sharp Dominic knocked on my door.

Dominic wore a Zorro mask. He pointed it out saying. “You like?”

“Oh, that’s awesome!” I said truthfully. A mask you could wear while still drinking!? It was brilliant! And he had a cape that went with it. He spun around letting it twirl. “I wish I had thought of that one!”

“Wait until you see everyone there! All the different masks!” Dominic was like a kid on Christmas. “I love it! You know I have over twenty different personas. I’m so sorry JR… When I invited you out, I never thought to ask if you had a mask!”

“That’s alright. I just borrowed this from Jacob,” I said. He complimented me on it just the same. We left my apartment and headed upstairs to the fourth floor.

“That guy always wears the same mask,” Dominic complained about Jacob. “I don’t know why you hang around with him. He’s like, the least creative person I know!”

“You guys have lunch together almost every day,” I pointed out.

“Yeah, but that’s just lunch,” Dominic explained. “I don’t usually hang around with him after work, you know?”

“That’s because you don’t get high,” I countered.

Dominic shrugged and pulled out his vape. “I got bettering things to do then be wasted all the time. Besides I like to keep a clear head.”

I pulled out my vape and we were puffing away when we went to the party. I don’t know what it was, but the place had a peculiar sense to foreboding about it.

The interior of the restaurant had not changed. The tables had been cleared away to create a giant dance floor. A couple of large, but portable bars had been set up on the opposite side from the real bar and a DJ was playing music over by the famous painting on the back wall. There were strobing lights, black lights and whirling colored lights which all contributed to making me even more agitated.

Abruptly, Dominic left saying he saw some people he just had to talk to. How he knew who they were, I do not know, since everyone was wearing a bloody mask. I only knew to look for Guy Fawkes. I finally found Jacob after going once around the room. He had a booth with a bunch of other people. He squeezed over so I could get a seat next to him.

“Hey dude,” Jacob said merrily. “Nice of you to join us!”

I heard Tammy Tyson say “Hello,” from behind a catwoman mask. She sat on the other side of Jacob and saluted me with a glass of beer.

Sitting across was Jaz. He lifted the Hannibal Lector mask briefly and gave me a wink.

“Pretty cool, huh?” I remember him saying. It was hard to tell over the music. It was that annoying rave-type music. It gave me a headache.

“I think I need a drink,” Everyone else already had one. I felt naked without a drink in front of me.

“You have to go get one at the bar, there is no table service at The Adrenochrome,” I heard one of them say.

“Hey where’s Sheila?” I enquired.

“She never comes out to the club,” Jacob said rolling his eyes.

“Only on Sunday’s, when it’s staff only,” Jaz added. Of course, Jaz would know her schedule!

I turned the mask around, so it was on the back of my head just like Tom Cruise did in the movie. The rule was I had to wear the mask, but it did not say I had to wear it on my face! I got up and wandered over to the closest bar. Two guys were working the bar, but the staff was also wearing masks so I couldn’t tell who they were. All I knew was that they probably worked for the company. They both wore the mask from the Scream movie series.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Suddenly, there was a tap on my shoulder. I looked to see the mask of Alex from A Clockwork Orange staring back at me. The mask suddenly flipped up and I was staring at Frank!

“Oh my God! Frank! What are you doing here!? I didn’t expect to see you!?” I exclaimed startled.

“I know,” he said. He looked around like he was afraid he might be found out. “This place is for the younger generation.”

“Are we still meeting tomorrow for dinner?” I queried hoping we would keep our Saturday night tradition.

“Yes, of course,” he said, but it looked like he had something he wanted to get off his chest. “Listen JR, I came here looking for you.”

“Really!?” I said surprised. “What for?”

“I’ve been hearing some strange rumors and I don’t know what to think about them. You’re the only one I fully trust here, so I needed to talk to you.”

“Strange how? What have you been hearing?” I questioned. Finally I got my beer and began to drink.

Frank said. “The other day, there was this chemical that we were getting low on. I won’t bore you with the details, but I asked my boss to get us so more. So he said, Alright, our usual supplier can’t make a shipment this week so I’ll call down to the Mexico branch to see if they have some they can ship it up here. Apparently they usually have a large supply on hand. So he comes back later that day and says. I couldn’t contact Mexico, but I got a couple of drums coming in from LA, so don’t worry about it.”

“Okay,” I said. “You’re getting your chemical. So where’s the problem?”

“Well just let me finish,” Frank continued. “So I said well, what’s the problem with Mexico? He just shrugs and says I couldn’t get anyone to answer the phone I tried for over an hour before giving up and just calling LA. I thought this was pretty strange. And then this morning I overheard a manager talking to the receptionist on my way in. Apparently the Mexico branch has gone completely silent. No one can contact them!”

“So?” I questioned.

“So!?” Frank repeated as if he did not hear me correctly. “There has been no word out of Mexico for three days now. Remember what happen to our old lab!? You know, New York?”

“Yeah,” I replied. “It was on the news within an hour of it happening. Mexico hasn’t been. If it was busted we would already know I would think. Busting a corporation in Mexico City for making drugs… that would make the world news within hours. Hell, the feds would probably raid us just on principal as soon as they heard!”

“I’m not disagreeing,” Frank conceded. “But what if something else has happened. Something more sinister…?”

“I think you’re reaching here,” I told him. I get what he was trying to imply, but it seemed unlikely.

“Am I!?” He questioned. “It’s Mexico!?”

“I know. Mexico is a weird place. If you ask me, it’s more corrupt than Chicago,” I said implying that The High Castle Corporation would have bribed all the right people to the hilt! Frank did not look totally convinced. So I added. “Come on Frank, it’s just Mexico! It’s like America only with fewer laws and regulations. For all we know the power grid went down or the phone system isn’t working. These things happen all the time down there!”

“I really hope you’re right,” he did not sound convinced, but he didn’t want to argue with me either. “Because I’m getting a bad feeling about this. Something is wrong here. Something bad happened to one of this company’s branches.”

“Well,” I said looking at him with utter surprise. “Isn’t this a complete reversal of opinions!?”

“What!?” He looked a bit confused.

“You spent a lot of time trying to convince me when we first started here that the place is safe and now, you’re the one worried…”

“I’m just a bit concerned right now,” Frank clarified, but he picked his words carefully. He seemed suddenly older. His face had more lines. His eyes had deeper creases. “That’s all.”

“Well, I’m not overly concerned about it,” I quipped. “I’m sure that there is a reasonable explanation for what happened and we will find out about it soon enough. In the meantime, enjoy all your money and your penthouse you rich bastard!” I saluted him with my glass of beer.

I sat at the bar for a while. Frank went off to explore the room. I had half my beer drunk when catwoman, I mean Tammy, approached me taking an empty seat next to me.

“Hey,” she said. “What going on? You didn’t come back to the table?”

This normally aloof and quiet woman was a little less reserved now that she had a few drinks inside her.

“I don’t know. I’m not feeling it tonight, you know?” I told her. “I came here with Dominic and he ditches me as soon as we are in the door.” I could see Zorro working over two girls in Mardi Gras masks on the other side of the room. I continued. “Then Frank finds me to tell me how he’s worried about the Mexico branch.”

“Huh?”

“Exactly,” I replied. “Don’t worry about it, you don’t want to know. Say, did you know they are conducting cloning experiments on the second floor?”

“Yeah, of course. There was that court ruling or something like a month ago,” Tammy replied. Her memory seemed vague, just like her personality.

“Would you like to dance?” She asked.

“No, this isn’t my kind of music,” I replied.

“We can request something,” Tammy replied. “The DJ works in HR.”

“Doesn’t that strike you as weird?” I questioned her.

“What do you mean?” Tammy did not understand me. Yeah, big surprise, right?

“Well, that everybody who works for the corporation during the day also works at these other places in their off hours? It’s like everyone’s a workaholic!” I explained.

“Oh,” she said blithely. “I never really thought about it.”

I wondered if she thought about anything, but I keep my mouth shut and drank the rest of my beer.

Finally she said. “What do you think about the painting on the wall over there?”

Obviously, she meant the Pollock. I could tell she was reaching for conversation now. I don’t know if she realized that we had nothing in common. I replied. “I think it looks like a bunch of paint thrown at the wall!”

“It’s a Jackson Pollock,” Tammy pointed out.

“So they claim,” I said dismissively.

“You don’t like it?” She seemed surprised.

“I could paint better than that!” I replied. “Hell, a monkey could have painted it and no one would have known the difference!”

“Oh, are you an artist?” She asked it like she really meant it. No sarcasm at all, but as if I was really claiming to be a better artist.

“Okay,” I said. “This conversation is just getting too strange for me. I need another drink.”

I got up and left. As I crossed the dance floor, I decided to take a bit of Tammy’s advice. I went over to the DJ and requested a song. Something that wasn’t rave crap and a little slower, but had some lyrics that packed a punch, Gasoline by Halsey. After that, I worked my way across the dance floor until I got to the main bar on the other side. It was not too busy, so I took a seat on one of the fancy leather stools they had set up.

A tall blonde woman who was working the bar came over. She seemed familiar, but I could not put my finger on it. She was wearing a mask of Venice, like in the movie Eyes Wide Shut. She seemed to recognize me. She flipped up the mask and leaned in for a closer look at me. “JR!? Is that you!?”

I was stunned. It was Ms. Williams, the young woman I worked with! “Oh my God!” I stammered. “You work bar here!?”

She shrugged. It was her alright. She still had the same old stern expression and her hair was still pulled back in the same tight bun. But now she wore the same clothes, same bow tie that all the other bartenders at the club wore. “Why not!?” She replied with a shrug.

“It doesn’t seem like you,” I commented.

“You don’t know me,” she replied dismissively. It was also the truth. I guess I really hadn’t made any effort to get to know her. “Now, are you looking for a drink?”

“Yes,” I said. “And for the record, you have been very cold towards me. You never gave me a chance to get to know you.”

“What are you drinking?” She asked. He scowl dropped for the first time and she actually smiled. It nearly knocked me off my feet! It was such a beautiful smile!

“Scotch, straight up,” I said.

“What brand?”

“You have a lot of brands?”

“This is the Adrenachrome my friend,” she said. “All things are possible here!”

“Do they pay you to say that!?” I joked.

She laughed! I shit you not, she laughed! I had never heard her laugh before! It was so light and airy.

“Are you for real!?” I wondered aloud. “I mean, did I just step into the Twilight Zone. Because this is not the Ms. Williams that I know!?”

“I’m sorry,” she said. “At work, in the lab, I’m constantly learning new things and I struggle to keep up. There’s so much there and I heard you were a natural at it. I have to work hard to keep my position. I forget myself. That’s just who I am. And it’s Natalie Williams, by the way. Now, that scotch brand?”

“Well Natalie Williams,” I said. “Johnny Walker. And what makes you think I’m a natural?”

“What label?” She asked. And then said. “You arrived a few months ago with Frank, right?”

“What do you have?” I asked. Then replying to the second questioned I said. “Yeah.”

“All of them!” She said. Then added. “I heard Frank was the best meth producer in North America. You had been his assistance. So I figured you were some kind of whiz kid.”

“You are kidding me!?” I answered both of her statements at once. I said. “I’m no whiz. Meth is easier than you think.”

“Nope, not kidding!” She said shaking her head. “We have every label.”

“Whatever is the best,” I said.

“How about blue label, on the house,” she suggested.

“You can’t do that, can you!?” I retorted. I had so much money I didn’t know what to do with it all. It easily could have been charged to my account.

“I’m the bartender,” she replied with a sly wink. “I can do whatever I want.”

She grabbed the blue label hidden under the bar and poured a shot for me. And to my surprise she poured one for herself. She held it up and with a playful smile she simply said. “Salute.”

She downed it in one gulp. I sipped on mine. I did not want to waste anything this fine.

“If you will excuse me,” she said after a few beats. It was as if she had been waiting for me to say something further, but really, I was just enjoying the scotch. Eventually she said. “Enjoy. If you’ll excuse me I have other customers.” She replaced the mask on her face and moved down the bar to serve someone else.

Still sitting on the bar stood, drink in hand, I swiveled around so I was facing the dance floor. From across the room, I final saw Dominic. He was talking to two women. One was black and one was Asian. When he saw me he waved me over. I was not interested. I tried to ignore him. The women looked like hookers. They wore skirts too short and tops cut too low. They had no class. They wore Mardi Gras masks. Dominic came over and he brought the two with him. Great, I thought. Now I have to talk to them and just when I was starting to have a good time! First Frank tries to lay a bad trip on me, then Tammy hit on me (I think!?) and now I have to deal with two women who look like the only thing they care about is getting another crack hit! This party was getting a little ridiculous!

“Hey, JR,” Dominic yelled as they approached. “I want you to meet these too lovely ladies.”

Ladies!? I thought. That was a stretch. “Hey,” I said as my only greeting to them. I finished the scotch and set the glass down on the counter.

“This is Tasha,” he said indicating the black one. “And that’s Joy!”

Was that her street name!? I wondered. Dominic had his arm around Tasha clearing claiming her as his own. She was short had a big ass and her hair was completely fake. I surmised that my job was to entertain Joy for him. She sat down next to me. Great! She smelled of cheap perfume. She lifted up her mask and her face was caked with makeup to cover up some bad acne.

“What are you drinking?” She asked. Dominic was already turning away, moving down the bar to make out with the other woman.

“Scotch,” I said.

“She wrinkled up her nose at the thought of it. “Really!?” She said. “Don’t they have Smirnoff or something? I like that raspberry flavor one.”

“They don’t server that crap here!” I was irritated that she was so generic and dim, like a movie extra with a one line speaking role. “This place has class.”

“Huh?” She replied. She seemed a little offended, but I didn’t care, I wasn’t in the mood for this. “Whatever!? Anyway, Dominic says you work on the top floor. Is that true?”

I nodded.

“Is it really a drug lab like I heard?” She talked low in a clandestine voice.

“And how would you know about that!?” I said more than a bit startled. I did not like a lot of people knowing about this, even if the company was aggressive when it came to keeping the law on our side.

She shrugged. “Dominic may have let it slip,” she said casually. She wore large loopy earrings that jingled when she moved. She had a smug expression that I just wanted to smack off her face.

“Dominic should keep his mouth shut!” I growled.

“Hey,” she said completely ignoring anything I had to say. “Can you get us some of that blue meth, like they had in that TV show? I heard it was the best.”

Crystal Methamphetamine can be made into any color, you just had to add it in during the process. Because of some stupid TV show everybody thought that the blue color was a sign of purity. It was bullshit! We could make it any color we wanted.

I made some excuse about have to use the restroom. Instead, I headed straight for the door. I went out of the club and got into the elevator. I was alone. I thought about going straight back to my apartment, but I had a terrible vision of Dominic showing up there with both women and demanding to know what was going on with me. He probably wouldn’t, but did I want to take that chance? So instead I took the elevator down to the lobby and walked out the front doors. I needed a bit of fresh air and some time to think.