The Experiment Ch. 02

(The story so far...Chloe is a student nurse who is looking to earn some extra cash. A relatively inexperienced young woman she has submitted her application to become part of a scientific research program under the guidance of a world leader in biology. The following is not strictly speaking erotic so please keep this in mind...the hopefully good stuff is coming...)

*

At 7.45am the next morning Chloe's mobile phone buzzed, waking the sleeping student and ending what had been a very vivid dream. Rubbing her eyes she reached for the phone, hitting the right button to stop the increasingly annoying sound. Chloe's reverie was gone now, and although her dream was still much to the forefront of her mind, she had to focus on the display of her cell.

There was an SMS recorded on the screen, and scrolling through the options she finally found the correct key sequence to open the message. It was short and to the point, and read as follows:

"back in 2days...off wth new bf....Mel"

Chloe looked over to the rumpled yet vacant bed of her dorm mate Melinda, and could see it hadn't been slept in all night. Obviously the oversexed and under-achieving drama student that Chloe shared the room with was off bed-hopping with some guy who shared Melinda's appetite for screwing, partying and doing not much else. Chloe didn't really care; it was a free world and hell if you can't enjoy the good life at university then there weren't too many other places or times when you could. Still, it was a little depressing to be alone in the morning and not to be able to share her dream.

Chloe threw back the blanket and bed sheet that had covered her during the night. The memory of the dream was still damned strong. Disturbing too, but not in a bad way. Flicking her blond hair away from her eyes Chloe took stock of the situation, then lay back and tried to recall the greater details of her dream.

She recalled vague memories that were like wisps of smoke; disappearing as she tried to mentally grab the, She briefly recalled unconscious sensations in her tummy, and there was a fragmentary moment of recognition that there'd been a man in her dream. Musing on this thought Chloe also remembered that she'd felt constricted, trapped in her dream, but not so bad as to hurt or scare her. "Must have watched too many scary movies." Chloe said rhetorically to the empty bed of her dorm mate.

The second year nursing student would have loved to have spent more time in bed, picking at the strands of her unconscious memories. The bed was warm and with no one else in the room it was very seductive to be utterly lazy. No one was telling her to rise and shine, like her mother used to do when Chloe was still at high school. She wasn't that hungry as she usually only had fruit and yoghurt for breakfast and like most girls on campus tried to keep slim so as to meet both peer expectations and maybe catch the eye of some handsome post-grad guy. But it was a new day and she had a lecture to attend in a few hours. So putting aside the fantasies of last night, Chloe Jones got herself ready for another day's university life.

Padding barefoot across the carpeted floor of her dorm room Chloe first went to her closet where she selected a simple summery dress for today. It was mostly white, but at the bottom of the skirt hem there was a band of pink. Other girls seemed to wear anything and everything, from jeans and t-shirts to old army shirts and shorts through to pastel coloured pants and stomach revealing tops. Getting dressed was like playing 100 questions! However Chloe wasn't too obsessed with wearing what was de rigeur for the usual university student, and after all when she became a qualified nurse she'd have to wear some kind of uniform. So on this particularly warm day she felt that a feminine slightly plain summery dress was her preferred option.

Next Chloe went to her dresser where she found a clean thong that wasn't going to show through her dress, a white bra and a thin purple barrette for her hair. Whilst her honey blond locks weren't that long, Chloe found it easier when she was taking notes in lectures or going through practical lessons in the mock-ward of the nursing faculty to wear a barrette to make sure her hair didn't fall into her eyes. The barrette also had a sentimental value for her, as she'd worn it on the first date she'd had with her now ex-boyfriend Alan. So it was put with her clothes and was going to form an integral part of Chloe's look for the day.

Having selected her clothes Chloe pulled on her robe, grabbed her toiletries and towel, and went outside into the hallway of her dorm. The women's bathroom was at the eastern end of the corridor, the men's to the west. Thankfully the separation of facilities plus the proximity of her room to the girls' shower meant that Chloe didn't have to put up with any ribald b-s from any of the guys. They weren't a bad bunch and most of the boys were usually either not up at this time because they'd been at a kegger the night before or were at practice (depending on the season that could be anything from football to wrestling to swimming). This morning was no exception, and so Chloe had the luxury of a quiet walk to the bathroom.

After taking a pee and having a shower, including a long relaxing shampoo and condition, drying herself and exiting the women's bathroom, Chloe went back to her room. Her lecture wasn't scheduled until 10 am, so she had plenty of time to change into her dress, grab something to eat from the cafeteria across the way from the dorms and walk over to the teaching halls, which were about 15 minutes away. Opening the window curtains bathed the room in a pale glow of yellow, the sun only now hitting the glass with the beginnings of a force expected for a mid-summer's day. No one could see into her room thank goodness, so Chloe stripped down out of her robe and wet towel. A cursory look at herself in the mirror made Chloe smile. "Not bad Miss Jones...not bad at all. If only you knew what you were missing boys!" she giggled to herself. Then with a minimum of fuss she dressed in the panties, bra, summer dress and barrette she had laid out for herself before her shower.

"Wait a minute...Professor Dalkeith!" Chloe said to herself. She remembered that last night she'd submitted her application for the research work that would hopefully pay for her university expenses. Was it too early to see if he'd at least acknowledged its receipt? "Okay, I'll skip breakfast...and still make my lecture if I hurry" Chloe said and then turned to her PC. A few minutes later as she made herself comfy at her desk the PC was powered up and connecting to the university's intranet. With two or three mouse clicks her online profile and message files were accessible, and there with some surprise for Chloe was a new email. Dated today and filed at 2.27 am it was from Professor Dalkeith. Chloe hit the 'open message' button and read;

Dear Miss Jones

Thank you for your application to assist me with my research on cross-hybrid mitosis genetic manipulation and stem cell resilience. I have reviewed your profile and would like you to come to my lab at 11.30 am for some initial questions regarding your participation in my research. At that time I will be happy to discuss arranging the payments as outlined in my online notice, but please be aware the first meeting we have may be rather frank and at times personal. If you have any questions or issues please don't hesitate to call me on my extension before the appointed time. The same goes for any reason if you are unwilling to go ahead with the work. If all is acceptable then I look forward to meeting with you at my lab, Room 101 West Wing, Ripley Biology Block.

Regards

Professor Andrew Dalkieth

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!" Chloe chirped happily. Last night she was unsure if she stood a chance. Maybe her pessimism developed from years of not quite having things the way she wanted was unwarranted; she was going to score some serious money for what seemed like a fairly simple research survey. Plus who knew; maybe the professor would assist with getting some additional academic credits for her work with him. Chloe wondered how personal the questions Professor Dalkeith may ask, but she put aside her small worries by remembering the dollars she could get from the session. Now her mood was as sunny as the day outside, and so Chloe wasn't motivated to go to her lecture. Checking the lecture timetable on her web browser bookmarks she saw that it was on the federal/provincial financial modelling of the Canadian health system. Stifling a mock-yawn Chloe couldn't help but think how boring that sounded. "I think I'll pass on that opportunity and get ready for the professor." Chloe decided there and then to forgo the 60 minutes sitting in the lecture theatre being numbed with facts and figures about something she cared nothing for. Instead she typed up a quick SMS to a friend who was far more diligent asking her to take notes, and then went back to browsing more of the same site for Professor Dalkeith she saw last night.

Looking again at the homepage Chloe tried to make sense of some of the academic references cited at the bottom of the site. There was a note that said he had been attached to the USAAF Medical Division based at Nellis Air Force Base in 2006. There was also a link (which when Chloe clicked on it said 'access prohibited to non-accredited users') to the Royal Canadian Air Force's R&D unit. Putting aside this probably irrelevant stuff to what she was going to be talking to the professor about, Chloe couldn't help looking again at his picture. The eyes looking back at her had a strange intensity, as if he was staring into something only he knew about. For some reason Chloe felt a shiver run down her spine. "Cool breeze maybe?" she asked herself, knowing that the room was closed up to the outside. "Oh well, maybe I can have a late breakfast after all." With that thought Chloe shut down her PC and got herself organised for the day ahead. Grabbing her shoulder bag, purse and a notepad and pen Chloe left her room, locking the door as she strode out.

After breakfast and some lazing around the campus commercial area Chloe stalked through the dark corridors of the Ripley Biology Block. It was turning into a really hot day outside and the cool shadows inside the hallway were rather pleasant. It was close to her appointed time to meet with Professor Dalkeith, but before she arrived at his office door she pulled a compact out of her shoulder bag. "Doesn't hurt if I look at my best for the Prof" she said to herself. Applying a little blush to her high cheekbones and then grabbing some lipstick as well, the young nursing student applied just enough make up to highlight her fresh face and rather pretty looks. Chloe was old enough to understand that getting what you wanted when you were a girl sometimes meant playing up the girlish charms, and if she could find an additional way to influence the academic's decision to include her in his well paid research program then so be it.

Standing at the heavy wooden door that kept intruders out of the Professor's lab Chloe made one last check of her appearance, pulled the hem of her dress down to make sure no more than her knees peeked out from underneath, and checked her watch. "11.29 am...on time...let's see if the Professor is in" Chloe said rhetorically. She knocked on the door, just below the label that gave details of Professor's name, position (Emeritus Professor Biology & Recombinant DNA) and room number. There was no response for a good twenty to thirty seconds. Chloe looked around, thought about whether she should knock louder, or maybe even get her cell phone out and try Dalkieth's extension when suddenly she heard a lock open.

Then another.

Then a third. And a pause followed. Chloe was a little unsure what was going on. Yet she stayed put, waiting for the door to open. After one final click it did, and to her surprise there was even less light inside the entry to the lab than outside in the corridor. Chloe peered in and to her bafflement there wasn't anyone to greet her. She then nervously licked her lips and stuttered out a strained "Hello...Professor Dalkeith?" No response came, so Chloe spoke again, a little more loudly.

"Professor Dalkeith...it's me, Chloe Jones. It's 11.30 and I'm here because..."

A strongly accented Scottish voice came out of nowhere. "Yes I know Miss Jones...my prospective assistant I believe. Can ye look to your right please?" Chloe turned in that direction and she saw another door set into the interior wall of the lab, and above that was a camera. A red light flickered on and off above the device, and it was obvious to her that the Professor was viewing her on some kind of internal monitor.

"Ah yes...very good...very good indeed. As I had hoped." The disembodied voice came again, and it took a little concentration on Chloe's behalf to understand what was exactly being said. Looking down towards the door handle it was then that the young woman saw a speaker and some kind of electronic multi-key lock. The portal that the device was built to keep secure was on the surface even more solid than the door to the biology block hallway. Chloe was not sure what the hell was going on, and it spooked her just a tad. But a voice inside her head reminded her of the $600 payment she'd score if she got the job. She needed the money badly, so quelling any worries she leaned into the speaker at the door.

"Professor Dalkeith...can I come in please?" Chloe stood back from the door and without a thought adjusted her barrette. "I guess you have some serious research going on her hmmm?" she speculated, trying to make some small chat whilst she was locked out, observed by the video camera.

"Aye lassie...I do indeed have some serious research...", at which point the scientist's voice paused and the camera whirred, refocusing on Chloe, "...now I want ye to key in this sequence exactly. Can ye do that Miss Jones?"

"I'll try sir." Chloe put her slender fingers near the keypad and waited for the numbers.

"8...7....1...2...1...4...9" the Scottish voice spoke slowly and assuredly. After each number Chloe hit the appropriate key, and when she entered the final digit the lock buzzed, releasing the catch. The Professor spoke again "Come inside my dear, please," and so Chloe followed his instruction. This part of the laboratory was drastically different to the outer section. Bright lights beamed down on antiseptically clean bench tops. All types of scientific equipment sat on any flat surface, and even in places were stored on the hard tiled floor. Three computer terminals stood on a desk nearest to a huge bookcase, and opposite to that were half a dozen shelves filled with jars holding a bizarre and grotesque collection of biological samples. Looking at the closest container Chloe could see on the label that it was the uterus of an adult female Sirian Xenomorph (whatever the hell that was she thought to herself). Before Chloe could get closer to the specimen jars she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. As she jumped in fright she heard the familiar brogue of the Professor's accent.

"Aye, Miss Jones...you find my little empire quite interesting hmmm?"

"Oh...yes...yes I do," Chloe stuttered partly from nerves and partly because she wanted to make a good impression, "You have a lot of stuff here sir. You use this in your research?"

"Hmmm, yes I do have a lot of 'stuff', as your delightful American vernacular would put it. I have spent almost all my adult life working towards my scientific goals, and thanks to some diligence and governmental support I've been able to build up quite a storehouse of samples. Plus with the help of certain interested parties," at which point Professor Dalkieth smiled like a Cheshire Cat, "I am sure my studies will vindicate not just my scientific theories, but perhaps improve the lot of every human being on this planet."

Chloe stood there and listened to this slightly egotistical speech from the Professor and tried to give the right signals. She noticed as she nodded in mute agreement that the Professor was relatively short, probably under 6 foot tall, with penetrating green eyes, a trimmed beard and moustache and greying hair which was receding slightly from his forehead. Like almost every science academic on campus Professor Dalkeith was wearing a white lab coat, much like the various physiologists, chemists and pharmacists she'd encountered as part of the hard science part of her nursing studies. He wasn't what you would call attractive, but there was a gravitas to him that calmed Chloe down from the shock of his initial contact.

"Would you like some tea whilst we get ready for your interview Miss Jones?" The scientist indicated a cubicle that was about 10 feet away from the instruments, computers, beakers, burners and specimen jars in the lab. "I have a few comfort items there, a kettle and some shortbread biscuits...may I tempt you my dear?"

"Um...sure...I mean yes please...sir." Chloe's answer betrayed her uncertainty about what she should do when given what some would consider deference from a learned scientist years older than her. Most of the tutors, lecturers and other teachers at her college called her Chloe, and she'd never been offered anything more than a chair when she called on their offices to talk about an assignment or collect notes. Taking stock of her earlier answer Chloe spoke again, more assuredly. "I would quite like some tea please Professor."

"That's the ticket," Dalkeith laughed "many an onerous task has been made more pleasurable with a cup of Darjeeling Miss Jones...and my late mother's recipe for shortbread is dare I say the best in the world. Come...come and sit ye down and I'll make us a fresh brew." Turning with military precision on his silent shoe heels the biologist walked away from Chloe and entered his personal area in the lab. The young woman followed and watched as he boiled the kettle, fished out a tray of home-made biscuits from a cupboard and then took a wooden box, opened it and pulled out a tea-laden spoon. The aroma was strong but in no way unpleasant.

"One for you," and the Professor dropped in the first spoonful of tea into the white porcelain tea pot, "one for me" and in went the second "and one for the pot," and the third spoonful joined the first two. "Please...take a seat Miss Jones," the Scotsman said, indicating a chair that had a tubular frame and leather covering. Chloe lowered herself into the chair and sat quietly whilst the kettle boiled. Professor Dalkieth hummed some unrecognizable tune as the kettle's whistle indicated that the water was ready for pouring into the teapot, and then with a flourish he took two fine bone china tea cups out of his top desk drawer, placing one near Chloe. "Let's give the tea time to brew a little, and whilst it does we can start on those questions I mentioned. Is that okay Miss Jones?"

"Um...yeah...sure. But before we start, could you please confirm that if I do become your research assistant I'll get paid?"

"Oh yes my avaricious lassie," Professor Dalkieth chortled as he said this "I can assure you that this research is well funded. In fact you could earn a bonus if you exceed both mine and my sponsor's expectations."

Chloe smiled with a hint of self-congratulation, and her first thought was about the promise of extra money. "If you don't mind me asking, are there any other candidates sir?"

"Well I don't mind assuring you that so far you are the only candidate I am considering Miss Jones," at which point the biologist gave the teapot a little shake, helping the leaves to dispense their flavours into the brew. "And in fact because of the nature of my research, the urgent requirements of my backers and the eagerness I have to get the results I've long hypothesized...well, perhaps you may be the only candidate I'll interview. But I warn you; be honest and frank with your answers and I will look extremely kindly on your candidature. Lie and I'll make sure that this position is filled by someone else. Do we understand each other Miss Jones?"