good morning, gentlemen.
well when henry called me i got the sense it wasn't for a social visit.
i understand there was an incident?
we're on the same team, mr. merrick. just give me the facts down-and-dirty.
how exactly did this happen?
do we expect more products to escape?
i'm sorry, henry, but you asked me here to assess our liabilities.
containment is one of the terms of our state health license. the fact it was compromised could put us in violation.
henry , it was a bloody battle getting our license through in the first place.
i'm not sure we can rely on that.
first, i need you to level with me. what are our chances of finding them?
i don't see how that's in our favor.
so they might return to the trough?
and if not? how long could they last?
let's take the drastic case. what then?
we haven't even touched on the worst. if these products reach a populated area, there's the problem of scrutiny.
we slipped through a loophole in the clone laws, henry. and they only let u s through because they smelt money. and they gave us a government basement to cover their own a s s e s not ours. it's at the core of our license - why we screen potential sponsors, why we make them sign discretion agreements, why containment is such a critical factor - to limit the extent of public scrutiny.
something to add, mr. merrick?
gentlemen, whatever happens we need t o keep one thing clearly in mind. as far as the world at large goes, we are just another medical services company. anything that alters that perception puts us at risk. and we cannot rely on the sanction of the law to protect us. whenever and wherever and in whatever condition we recover these products, we have to stay beyond reproach. all it takes is one nudge to put us in the spotlight. then you'll see how fast politicians can run for cover.
i take it you've heard the news.
unfortunate? we're way past unfortunate, henry.
the police won't connect the bond agents to us. but that's not the problem. it's the sponsor.
his name's thomas lincoln. it seems they had a genetic reunion. not a h a p p y one. it was all i could do to stop him going to the authorities.
he may not want a police involvement but he's already threatened to file suit. and he's one of the biggest litigation attorneys in the city.
that's why i asked bernard to come out here. to find out how it happened.
that's not the point. whether or not it's a factor in this instance, it puts us in breach of the clone laws.
i'm talking about self-awareness. the virtual humanity statutes require us t o give them consciousness to the l e v e l of functionality. but not beyond.
l e g a l l y , we are naked on every level. federal legislature, state licensing, sponsorship contract.  but even if we did manage to weather the legal storm, we'd never survive the public scrutiny.
you remember cryogenics? at the outset, people dismissed it as a rich man's folly. eccentric millionaires freezing their brains, hoping to wake up in a new body.
o u r security chief - i've been looking at his file. ex-marine, served in south china - do we think he still has it in him?
` you ever wondered why henry takes those pills, bernard? why he doesn't avail himself of his own technology?
b u l l s h i t , henry. bullshit. you don't want to deal with reality. only with concept. i may not have been there at the start but i heard the stories. you wanted in on every aspect of construction, from environmental design right down to the classical playlists. i t wasn't enough just to make it work, was it? no, you wanted your own little utopia.
e v e n god has blood on his hands, henry. are you going to watch it all go up in flames or are you going to deal with it?
what's your point?
m r s . ester? my name is ellen crowne.
l e g a l issues must seem trivial at this time. but the sponsorship agreement has certain conditions relating to confident- i a l i t y . d e s p i t e this tragic t u r n of events, those conditions remain binding. we want to be sure you understand that.
t h a t said, the institute is likewise bound by the terms of sponsorship and while we reserve every right.
l e g a l l y , human rights don't apply.
we do have other issues to discuss.
we l l , i don't know about the two of you but i'd say we got off lightly.
don't start getting maudlin, henry. it's a little too late in the game.