INVISIBLE REVENGE: An Invisible Man 2.0 Political Thriller

By GERALD L MATLIN

An Invisible Man 2.0 Political Thriller

A massive, nuclear laboratory explosion doesn't kill John Shelton, it makes him invisible. Terrified, John soon discovers how to switch between being visible and invisible. Using his invisibl

• Language: English
• Publisher: GERALD L. MATLIN
• Release date: Jun 1, 2022
• ISBN: 9798986108414

GERALD L MATLIN

Gerald Matlin has a varied career as an Astrophysicist and businessman. During college and following his service in the U.S. Navy, Gerald conducted Astrodynamics research in the aerospace industry. He was the senior scientist on the installation of the first earth satellite tracking system for the U.S. Air Force. His career turned to business, where he became an executive officer in three Fortune 500 corporations. Nearing the age of retirement, he turned to entrepreneurship and created and operated a computer sales and service company serving advertising agencies and retail businesses. Recently he has been writing and speaking on Metaphysics. Invisible Revenge is his first work of fiction.

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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To My Family

Who have always encouraged me and believed in my being able to finish this book.

1

____________

As the University bell tower struck eleven on a cool May evening in Los Angeles, physicist John Shelton bent his thin frame over the Super-conducting Quantum Aura Detector (SQUAD) in the basement laboratory.

A protective plastic suit enshrouded his body, and a bubble helmet protected his face and eyes. He pushed a fold of plastic aside to read a dial. Lights blinked and dimmed. Wow. Am I pulling too much energy? Is the quantum energy gauge right? Over seven thousand, twice the best results so far. Maybe I can get more. I tested the parts for ten thousand quants. I sure hope they work together at this high level. The team and I need this success.

His PhD in molecular physics fit a need in the university’s search for new medicines to fight pandemics. John’s recent entry to the biology team and his excitement had energized the research. Results of this test run would be crucial for getting permanent funding for the project. That would be good news for John. Since his ex-wife’s investment disaster had wiped out their savings, he had been living paycheck to paycheck.

John watched the gauge, adjusted the intensity knob, and recited the results. Eight thousand quants, 8200. Let’s go for 8500. That’s what we need, SQUAD!

Steam spurted across the vibrating work surface. Fluorescent ceiling lights blinked and recovered at a dimmer illumination. Shelton twisted to peer around the SQUAD equipment. He reached around the equipment to feel for a broken connection.

Ouch! Hot steam! Where’s the leak? What a sour smell. Too much vibration and shaking. This damn helmet. I can’t see the source of the leak.

Steam and vibrations stopped. Ceiling lights returned to steady brilliance. John watched the quantum energy gauge: 8300, 8375, 8410.

An ear-piercing tone, accompanied by multiple waves of energy, blasted through the laboratory. Overhead, fluorescent lights flashed and then shattered. Glass rained from the ceiling. In total darkness, an emergency light over the door came on and illuminated part of the laboratory. A violent tremor shook the room. The quantum energy gauge rocketed across the room, punching a hole in a blackboard. A retaining bolt sheared. Flying metal fragments shredded glass vials. The room filled with steam. Intense shock waves careened off the walls, creating devastating patterns that blasted equipment off surfaces.

John felt a unique form of quantum energy envelope and penetrate his body. His plastic covering and helmet disintegrated. Adrenalin flooded his body, setting his heart racing and muscles flexing. He leaped for the safety of the space under his desk.

He never made it.

The SQUAD exploded. The powerful force lifted John and threw him across the room. He caromed off a desktop, crashed into a chair, and hit the floor, unconscious.

Laboratory equipment, tools, papers, and notebooks blasted around the room. Tables and chairs overturned and slammed into walls. Bookcases tumbled, and books soared across the laboratory. A jumble of broken furniture buried John’s crumpled body.

Emergency alarms sounded as the building rocked on its earthquake rollers and supports. Building windows shattered.

#

Two floors above the basement laboratory, Professor Henry Turpinski toppled off his laboratory stool. His glasses skittered across the floor.

A lab assistant dashed to him. Let me help you. He hoisted up Turpinski’s rotund body. Are you hurt?

Thanks, Sam. Help me to a chair. I’m just shaken.

It felt like an earthquake but sounded like something exploded below us.

Shelton’s lab is under us. He works late. Turpinski collected his cane and rushed to the door. We should check on him.

Alarms continued to blast through the building. A few late-night lab students followed Turpinski and Sam to the basement. Shattered ceiling panels littered the hall floor. The dust of pulverized panels floated in the air. Light fixtures hung from wires. Glass, wall, and ceiling debris covered the floor. An emergency light illuminated a smoky, acrid haze.

Everyone, get out! Turpinski said. There might be another explosion or fire. Sam, let’s look into the lab before we leave. We’ve got to check on Shelton.

Sam tugged the mangled laboratory door out of the way and flashed his cell phone light around the lab. Look at the damage. What a disaster.

Professor Shelton! Turpinski shouted. John, John Shelton, can you hear my voice?

It’s a mess. Let’s get out. Sam turned to the stairs.

Turpinski grabbed his arm. Wait a minute. If John’s still alive, we’ve got to help him.

Sam hesitated. OK, I’ll search.

As he waded through debris, he yelled, Shelton! Shelton!

The blast had swept every surface clean, but a mass of twisted metal remained attached to the center work station. He ducked under hanging light fixtures and stumbled over fallen ceiling tiles.

I can’t find him. Maybe he got out before the explosion. Sam brushed dust off his pants.

Let’s get out of here. I hear sirens, Turpinski said. Shelton’s SQUAD equipment exploded. I warned him to stop over producing quantum energy.

#

A fire truck and ambulance careened into the parking lot as Turpinski and Sam left the building. Uniformed men and women leaped into action.

Is anyone hurt? the incident commander asked Turpinski. What can you tell me?

A basement laboratory explosion. Be careful. There’s debris everywhere. A foul smell is coming from the lab. I didn’t see fire. Professor Shelton was working there when it blew. I called for him, and Sam looked around, but we couldn’t find him. I don’t know where he is.

OK. The Commander turned to the small crowd of people. Everyone, get away from the building.

He called to the fire crew, Ken, suit up for hazmat. Tony, look in the windows and let me know what you see. Everyone, use channel five. George, check the hallways and see if any rooms are on fire. Look right above the exploded basement room.

#

Firefighter Ken reported an hour later: The building’s safe, boss.

The incident commander and Ken combed Shelton’s laboratory, looking for the professor. Furniture toppled, and debris crunched underfoot as they pushed aside tables and made their way through the shattered laboratory. They poked high-intensity flashlight beams into dark areas under intertwined furniture.

There’s no immediate danger of fire or structural failure, the commander said. We can leave this to campus security. Let’s go talk to them.

They went outside and met Security Director Pete Hawker.

No fire, the commander said. Something blew with tremendous force. We couldn’t find any sign of Professor Shelton. 

Maybe he got out, said Hawker. But how could he survive that explosion? Where the hell is he? Security will watch the building until morning. Then we’ll clean the hallway and board up windows and lab door.

Telephone calls to Shelton’s residence and mobile phone yielded nothing. Hawker left messages urging him to call the university. No one matching Shelton’s description had been admitted to or treated at nearby hospitals. No one responded when police knocked on his condo door, and none of the other residents had seen him since the explosion.

Someone remembered to call John’s emergency contact, his twin sister, Elena Canaletto, but she did not answer.

Dawn came, but no one knew what had happened to Professor John Shelton.

#

Five hours after the explosion, John Shelton groaned.

Oh, my head. My leg is pinned under something. What’s on my face? Grime all over my face, eyes burning. What happened? He rubbed his eyes and opened them into slits. The room was dark except for a small, hazy glimmer around an emergency light.

Awareness grew. I’m in the lab, hurt, an explosion.

John raised his head and bumped into a table. He pushed the table up, heard the noise of falling debris, freed his leg, and wiggled his long body out from under pieces of furniture.

I’m covered in debris. No lights. Everything hurts. What is this metal thing around my neck? Part of the helmet? What happened to the rest of it?

He removed what was left of his helmet and felt his cotton bodysuit. The plastic covering was gone. At least I’m not naked. Spasms wracked his body. He rubbed his head and found sticky dirt on his face and hair. I can’t see. Have to wash my eyes.

He lay still, gathering his strength. His mind went to his injury received in Afghanistan. Taliban fighters ambushed his intelligence team and blew them up in a building. He then recalled the death of his older brother, Aldo. An Iranian bomb in Iraq had killed him. Something strange is happening to Shelton men.

John rolled over, got to his knees, and stood. Intense pain in his right leg reminded him of his early days of recovery ten years ago.

He staggered over the wreckage in the lab, feeling his way along the wall toward the hall door. Then he stumbled through debris in the dark hallway and lurched into the dimly lit restroom. Reeling across the room, he jammed his hip against a sink.

He scrubbed his hands and face and cleaned around his eyes. Everything hurts. Sight’s blurred. Ouch! My chin’s cut and bleeding. After flooding his eyes with water, he leaned close to the mirror and stared into it. He blinked several times.

John could not see his face.

2

____________

John awoke, naked, tangled in a bedsheet in his own bed. He groaned from aches and soreness. His headache exceeded his body pains, making it hard to think. He remembered the lab explosion and dragging himself out of the rubble.

How did I get home? Did I drive? How bad are my injuries?

He rolled over, sat up, and held his throbbing head. What the hell happened when I looked in the mirror? I thought I couldn’t see my head.

Groaning with each step, he limped into the bathroom and peered into the mirror. What’s clouding the mirror? I can’t... I can’t see my face. Then he realized the mirror showed the wall behind him. A shock of fear ran through his body. My head! What’s happening? John looked down at himself. Nothing visible. He rubbed his shaking hands over his body. Though he could feel it, he could see nothing. In disbelief, he looked into the mirror again, but no face looked back.

His heart raced, and he broke out in a sweat as panic swept through him. Stumbling out of the bathroom, he threw himself on the bed. He felt sick, and his mind was spinning. Am I dreaming? What a nightmare. This is too real to be a dream. He pulled the sheet over his head.

The SQUAD must have exploded. Those quantum energy waves bouncing around the lab at the speed of light destroyed everything.

He sat up and ran his hands over his unseen body. Then the truth hit him. I’m invisible! The quantum effect made me invisible. It didn’t kill me; it just made me disappear. Oh, my God! What am I going to do? I can’t think straight. I’ve got to get ahold of my sister. She’s the only one I can trust.

John rushed into the living room. Unable to see himself, he stumbled over furniture. Finally, with sore toes, he found his landline phone and tapped the speed number for his twin sister. The phone handset disappeared where he held it.

Elena Canaletto is not available. Please leave a message.

Elena, I’m desperate to talk to you. Call me at home. ASAP!

John repeated the call every ten minutes. Finally, his phone rang.

Elena, thank God you called.

Giovanni, what’s going on? As usual, she used his Italian name. My phone has been ringing all morning. Your college left a message. I’ve been in a meeting, or I would have called you sooner.

Listen, I had a problem last night. It... well, it exploded. I’m... I’m OK, but I need to talk to you. Can you come over right away? I’m desperate.

Sure. Are you hurt? Did you go to a hospital? Why didn’t you call me last night?

I’ll tell you everything when you get here. Elena, please don’t talk to anyone about me, including the university. I have to see you first. Just get over here fast.

You’re panicking, Gio. Take it easy. I’ll be there in thirty minutes. I won’t call anyone.

Great, and when you get here, don’t be confused by the way I’m dressed. I’ll explain everything. Don’t bother ringing. Just let yourself in.

They had traded house keys three years earlier when John had moved to LA and took the university job.

As children, John, his twin sister, Elena, and Aldo used their American father’s last name, Shelton. When their father died, the family moved to Venice to be with their mother’s family. She arranged for dual citizenship and Italian passports under their Italian names.

#

Elena entered John’s condominium building and dashed up the stairs. Daily running kept her tall, lithe figure in shape, and her intense black hair had been cut to frame her attractive face. She muttered to herself as she retrieved John’s key from her purse. Giovanni sounded odd. He better have a good story. I’m getting scared.

Elena entered the condo and walked into the living room. Giovanni... Gio, I’m here.

John stood at the end of the hallway, dressed in a tight bodysuit, long hoodie, face-covering scarf, and sunglasses. Gloves, sweatpants, and slippers covered everything else. Hi.

Elena rushed toward him but stopped upon seeing his weird outfit. Oh, Giovanni, are you injured? Are you in pain? Can I hug you? How terrible! Let me see what happened to you.

I will in a minute, Elena, he said as they embraced. I’m not in severe pain. I’m bruised but not injured.

I’m so glad you’re not hurt, but what’s with the get-up?

Late last night, a piece of equipment at the lab overloaded and exploded. The explosion destroyed the lab, knocked me unconscious, and dumped a table on me. I woke up in the middle of the night, found my way home, and collapsed.

It’s afternoon now. Didn’t anyone call you?

No. The blast destroyed my mobile phone. I called you on my landline.

Didn’t you call the college? Aren’t you curious? Giovanni, this is not like you. Are you sure you’re OK?

Well, I’m sore, stiff, and have a headache, but aspirin is helping. You said the university contacted you?

Yes, a security officer called during my meeting. Stop beating around the bush, Giovanni. She drew closer to him and tried to get a glimpse of his face under the scarf and sunglasses. What’s wrong? Talk to me!

Well, Elena, I don’t know how to say this, but... I’m invisible.

Elena stared at him, trying to comprehend what he had said. C’mon, Giovanni. You brought me here and scared me just to play games?

Elena, it’s true. I am invisible. Here, I’ll show you. He extended his gloved hand. Pull.

She tugged the soft glove off his hand. Oh, my God! Where is your hand? I felt it. She paused, frowning. Oh, no! Are you invisible all over?

Unfortunately, yes.

John slowly peeled off his clothes, and Elena looked on in horror as parts of his body disappeared.

He took her hand. Touch my chest,

I can feel you and something like cloth. Has your skin changed?

No, I’m wearing a bodysuit. Anything that clings to my skin disappears. See these thin rubber gloves? Now, watch them disappear as I put them on.

She stared, wide-eyed, as the gloves gyrated in midair and disappeared. What’s happening? Does it hurt to be invisible?

No, I feel normal except for the aches and pains. The explosion tossed me across the room. I wound up buried under a table. I think the intensity of the quantum waves from the explosion interacted with my body’s energy field. It changed my quantum field to cloak me. I don’t know how, but the result is that I’m invisible.

She shook her head. I don’t understand. Use normal words.

Our bodies create measurable electromagnetic coverings, energy fields. The explosion did something to my energy field.

Is this permanent?

John collapsed into a soft chair. I don’t have the slightest idea.

Did you sit? I saw the chair move. This is horrible. Let’s go to the hospital. Maybe doctors can find a cure.

No, Elena. Imagine the uproar, the publicity, if this gets out. Television crews and reporters camped outside. The FBI taking me away and putting me under a microscope. We have to keep this quiet until I can handle it or come up with a way to reverse it. Let’s take care of the college first, calm them so they don’t create a problem before I’m ready. Here’s what I want you to do.

#

Mr. Hawker’s office.

This is Elena Canaletto. I’m John Shelton’s sister.

Ms. Canaletto, I’ll connect you.

Hawker came on the line. Thank you for calling, Ms. Canaletto. Do you know where Shelton is?

Yes, I’m with him. He’s OK but groggy, bruised, and shaken. He’s asleep now and asked me to call you. I’m taking care of him over the weekend. He wants you to wait on working on the lab until he salvages papers and evaluates what happened.

This is very disturbing. We must find out what happened. Of course, I’m glad to hear he survived.

I’ll tell him to call you as soon as possible. I want him to rest and not worry.

Thanks for calling.

As she hung up, she saw a notebook and pencil floating through the air. Parts of them faded in and out as the pencil glided over the pages.

What are you doing to that notebook? Part of it just disappeared. Elena pointed to the irregular paper edges.

Making notes. I wouldn’t be much of a scientist if I didn’t document what was happening.

No, I mean, how do you make parts of the pencil and notebook disappear?

The pencil stopped moving. Anything that comes near me becomes invisible. That’s why the body-suit is invisible. But look. When I pull the body suit cloth away from my body, you can see part of it. Same thing with the pencil and paper. Remember the hand drawings we made as kids by tracing the outline of our hands? The paper under my invisible hand disappeared.

Elena stared at the paper. The paper looks like parts have been cut away but with ragged edges.

That’s where my envelope of invisibility ends. I’ll show you more. Bring me a glass of water.

She went into the kitchen. Can you eat and drink?

Yes, I drank some water, and it was no different than usual. I haven’t eaten, though, and I’m hungry.

Elena returned with a glass of water. Here. She held it out to the empty chair. This is strange. I don’t know how to hand it to you. Are you still in the chair?

Yes, just rest it on the arm. I’ve got it. His invisible hand touched hers, and then the glass floated into the air.

Elena jumped back. Did you see that? she shrieked. Part of my hand disappeared!

Our hands touched. We didn’t notice earlier. Come here. Let’s try it again.

No, I don’t want to be invisible. I’m sorry, Giovanni.

I’m not contagious. It happened.... Oh, well. I understand. Look at the glass of water. It floated in the air and tipped. A stream of water poured out, but it disappeared in midair.

It’s weird when you drink, she said.

Let’s try food. Bring me a box of crackers.

Elena went to the kitchen and returned with the crackers. She jerked her hand back when he took the box from her to avoid touching him. As the box hovered, irregular shapes appeared where John held it. The box top opened, and crackers floated through the air and then disappeared.

Do they taste normal?

They taste good. I can even smell them. All my senses are intact and working.

I can hear you crunch them, but I can’t see them. The crackers and the water just disappear into nowhere. What a great magic trick. You make things disappear, and I’ll be a famous magician. She managed a smile.

Hilarious. I’d laugh, but my side is hurting. I wish I could see it. Must be a big bruise. I’m getting the heating pad from the hall closet.

I hear your steps and see the closet door opening. Speaking about weird, here comes a heating pad floating in the air.

Elena helped him place the pad on his ribs. It disappeared when it touched his body. Then the edges of the pad and the bodysuit material near them came into view.

She caught her breath. Gio, material is showing around the pad.

So it is.... The electric current is resetting my quantum energy. It must interfere with the field of invisibility. Look. When I remove the pad, the cloth is invisible again.

Try it around your head. She held the pad against him. You’re reappearing! I see you! Oh, terrible bruises. You’ve got a cut on your jaw that needs washing and bandaging, and your hair is a mess. Go shower, and we’ll get the pad on you again. I’ll bandage that wound.

#

John had difficulty keeping the heating pad steady as Elena worked on the cut. The wound disappeared every time the pad slipped away.

Finally, she stepped back. I got it now. Wow. The bandage disappeared, too. What’s it like, shifting in and out of invisibility?

I don’t feel anything. I’m completely normal. But I’m afraid I can’t become visible again. I don’t want to be invisible all my life. That would be terrible. He paused and got control of rising panic. I keep wondering: why does my quantum field create an invisible envelope? My body doesn’t change; it’s just invisible. That’s why you can touch me.

His analytical mind raced through the physics of the situation. My distorted quantum field cloaks me. The pad’s electricity acts like an off switch. It doesn’t take much current to interfere with the invisibility. Maybe there’s a way to make me normal.

Yeah, just dangle a cord from your body and plug it into the wall. Nobody will notice. Hey, let’s try my phone.

She picked up her cellphone and rubbed it on his invisible hand. Blotches of skin appeared as she moved it around, while irregular parts of the phone disappeared.

Well, that’s interesting, John said as he examined the phenomena. "The battery causes my skin to appear, but areas