Read Online Rollback by Robert J. Sawyer - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Robert J. Sawyer
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I don't..."
She trailed off, but he knew what she'd been about to say: "I don't want to waste what little time I have left on a lawsuit." He stroked her shoulder reassuringly. "All right," he said. "All right. But can't we try again? Maybe another round of treatments? Another attempt at rolling back?"
"We have been trying again," said Petra, "with tissue samples taken from your wife. But nothing is working."
He felt bile climbing his throat. God damn—God damn everyone . Cody McGavin, for bringing this crazy idea into their lives. The people at Rejuvenex. The bloody aliens on Sigma Draconis II. They could all go to hell.
"This is ridiculous," said Don, shaking his head back and forth. He lifted his hand from Sarah's shoulder, and then clasped both his hands behind his back and started pacing the length of the narrow living room, the room that had been home to him and his wife, the room his children had first learned to crawl in, the room that held so much history, so many memories—memories that he and Sarah had shared, decade after decade, good times and bad, thick and thin.
He took a deep breath, let it out. "I want you to stop the process for me, then," he said, his back briefly to the two women.
"Dear, no," said Sarah. "Don't do that."
He turned around and started pacing toward them. "It's the only thing that makes sense. I never wanted this in the first place, and I sure as hell don't want it if you're not getting it, too."
"But it's a blessing," said Sarah. "It's everything we talked about: seeing our grandchildren grow up; seeing their children. I can't—I won't —let you give that up."
He shook his head. "No. I don't want it. Not anymore." He stopped walking, and looked directly at Petra. "Undo it."
Petra's brown eyes were wide. "I can't. We can't."
"What do you mean, you can't?" said Don.
"Your treatment has been done ," Petra said. "Your telomeres are lengthened, your free radicals are flushed, your DNA has been repaired, and on and on. There's no way to undo it."
"There must be," he said.
Petra lifted her shoulders philosophically. "There hasn't been a lot of research funding for finding ways to shorten the human lifespan."
"But you must be able to arrest the rejuvenation, no? I mean, right, I understand that I can't go back to being eighty-seven physically. Okay, fine. I'm—what?—I suppose I look about seventy now, right? Just stop the rollback here." He pointed his index finger straight down, as if marking a spot. Seventy he could live with; that wouldn't be so bad, wouldn't be an insurmountable gulf. Why, old Ivan Krehmer, he was married to a woman fifteen years younger than himself. Offhand, Don couldn't think of a case in their social circle where the woman was a decade and a half older than the man, but surely these days that was common, too.
"There's no way to stop it early," said Petra. "We hard-coded into the gene therapy how far back the rollback will go. It's inexorable once begun. Each time your cells divide, you'll get physically younger and more robust until the target is reached."
"Do another round of gene therapy, then," Don said. "You know, to countermand—"
"We've tried that with lab animals," Petra said, "just to see what happens."
"And?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "It kills them. Cell division comes to a complete halt. No, you have to let the rollback play out. Oh, we could cancel the planned follow-up surgeries—fixing your teeth, your knee joints, getting you that new kidney once you're strong enough to stand going under the knife. But what would be the point of that?"
Don felt his pulse racing. "So I'm still going to end up physically twenty-five?"
Petra nodded. "It'll take a couple of months for the rejuvenation to finish, but when it does, that'll be your biological age, and then you'll start aging forward again from that point, at the normal rate."
"Jesus," he said. Twenty-five. With Sarah staying eighty-seven. "Good Jesus Christ."
Petra was looking
She trailed off, but he knew what she'd been about to say: "I don't want to waste what little time I have left on a lawsuit." He stroked her shoulder reassuringly. "All right," he said. "All right. But can't we try again? Maybe another round of treatments? Another attempt at rolling back?"
"We have been trying again," said Petra, "with tissue samples taken from your wife. But nothing is working."
He felt bile climbing his throat. God damn—God damn everyone . Cody McGavin, for bringing this crazy idea into their lives. The people at Rejuvenex. The bloody aliens on Sigma Draconis II. They could all go to hell.
"This is ridiculous," said Don, shaking his head back and forth. He lifted his hand from Sarah's shoulder, and then clasped both his hands behind his back and started pacing the length of the narrow living room, the room that had been home to him and his wife, the room his children had first learned to crawl in, the room that held so much history, so many memories—memories that he and Sarah had shared, decade after decade, good times and bad, thick and thin.
He took a deep breath, let it out. "I want you to stop the process for me, then," he said, his back briefly to the two women.
"Dear, no," said Sarah. "Don't do that."
He turned around and started pacing toward them. "It's the only thing that makes sense. I never wanted this in the first place, and I sure as hell don't want it if you're not getting it, too."
"But it's a blessing," said Sarah. "It's everything we talked about: seeing our grandchildren grow up; seeing their children. I can't—I won't —let you give that up."
He shook his head. "No. I don't want it. Not anymore." He stopped walking, and looked directly at Petra. "Undo it."
Petra's brown eyes were wide. "I can't. We can't."
"What do you mean, you can't?" said Don.
"Your treatment has been done ," Petra said. "Your telomeres are lengthened, your free radicals are flushed, your DNA has been repaired, and on and on. There's no way to undo it."
"There must be," he said.
Petra lifted her shoulders philosophically. "There hasn't been a lot of research funding for finding ways to shorten the human lifespan."
"But you must be able to arrest the rejuvenation, no? I mean, right, I understand that I can't go back to being eighty-seven physically. Okay, fine. I'm—what?—I suppose I look about seventy now, right? Just stop the rollback here." He pointed his index finger straight down, as if marking a spot. Seventy he could live with; that wouldn't be so bad, wouldn't be an insurmountable gulf. Why, old Ivan Krehmer, he was married to a woman fifteen years younger than himself. Offhand, Don couldn't think of a case in their social circle where the woman was a decade and a half older than the man, but surely these days that was common, too.
"There's no way to stop it early," said Petra. "We hard-coded into the gene therapy how far back the rollback will go. It's inexorable once begun. Each time your cells divide, you'll get physically younger and more robust until the target is reached."
"Do another round of gene therapy, then," Don said. "You know, to countermand—"
"We've tried that with lab animals," Petra said, "just to see what happens."
"And?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "It kills them. Cell division comes to a complete halt. No, you have to let the rollback play out. Oh, we could cancel the planned follow-up surgeries—fixing your teeth, your knee joints, getting you that new kidney once you're strong enough to stand going under the knife. But what would be the point of that?"
Don felt his pulse racing. "So I'm still going to end up physically twenty-five?"
Petra nodded. "It'll take a couple of months for the rejuvenation to finish, but when it does, that'll be your biological age, and then you'll start aging forward again from that point, at the normal rate."
"Jesus," he said. Twenty-five. With Sarah staying eighty-seven. "Good Jesus Christ."
Petra was looking
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