Chapter 16
“Please calm down, Ms. Yeager,” Reuben said as he wiped the sweat from his brow. “I understand your feelings, but you’ve misunderstood what I meant. When I said thaw, I wasn’t referring to the present but many years from now
“Our current technology can only freeze a person quicldy without damaging their cells. As for thawing I’m sorry, but we can’t do that yet.”
“Why can’t you?” Cassandra snapped. “Shouldn’t freezing and thawing go hand in hand? If you can’t thaw, why even offer cryogenic services to
volunteers?
“Calm down, Ms. Yeager. Let me explain. Freezing and thawing are completely different processes. When freezing, as long as the cooling happens quickly enough to freeze the body in an instant, the cells remain unharmed.
“The person may be frozen, but their cells remain intact. They’re alive, just suspended. The cells are frozen and inactive, so the person doesn’t age
“But thawing is a different story. It’s much more complicated. Ice melts quickly when heated, but imagine a tiny hamster frozen inside a block of ice. How do you thaw the lee without harming the hamster?
“Do you put it in warm water? That might seem gentle, but you have to consider how unevenly the ice melts. The outer layers will thaw first, while the inner layers remain frozen, potentially leaving the hamster’s brain thawed but its internal organs still frozen.”
Reuben continued explaining, “Humans are the same. When the surface thaws, blood circulation resumes. But what if the organs or lower body are still frozen? Can you imagine the damage to the body? The blood won’t reach the organs, and circulation would stop. Can anyone survive that?
“The challenge in thawing lies in warming each cell in the body at the same time. Current technology can’t achieve that yet. But Ms. Yeager, I assure you, everyone here is worlding tirelessly to find the perfect method.
“I believe that soon, we’ll overcome these challenges and safely awaken all those who have been frozen.”
Reuben paused for a moment. He adjusted his gold–rimmed glasses and gave a bitter smile. “Even if we could thaw Mr. Lowell right now, what’s the point?
“He’s suffering from stage four of lymphoma. There’s no way to cure him with today’s medical technology. Even if you woke him up, you’d just watch
him suffer.”
Those words hit Cassandra like a bolt of lightning.
Reuben was right. Even if she woke Sebastian up now, what good would it do?
He was dying from a terminal illness. No amount of wealth could cure him.
But she just wanted to see him again. She wanted to tell him that everything he saw before he entered the cryogenic chamber was a lie. She hadn’t married Keith, and she didn’t love Keith.
From the very beginning, she had always loved Sebastian. He was the only person who truly mattered in her world.
“W–Where is Seb now?” After a long silence, Cassandra’s voice broke as she spoke, “I–I want to see him.”
