Luis took the seat across from her, ate one bite of food, and caught her expression. “What’s the matter?”

“I got a nasty message from my Synaxel project manager about the queries I ran for Welga’s condition.”

“What are you talking about? What condition?”

“Oh no, she didn’t tell you? You didn’t see our conversations about it?”

Luis shook his head.

Nithya tried to keep the explanation simple. “Something is wrong with Welga’s motor system, possibly related to her use of zips. She posted her data for specialist review, but she didn’t offer money. No one took it up, so I looked at it. Some of the zips she’s used are Synaxel designs, but every detailed query I make about the possible failure mechanism gets blocked. I’ve never had a query blocked.”

“And what did Peter say?”

“That he’ll drop my contract unless I stop digging.”

Luis smacked the table with his left hand. “He’s threatening you! That’s bullsh—”

“Okay, okay! I agree. I was suspicious already. Now I’m sure they’re hiding something.”

“You need a lawyer. When Mama got sick, we had multiple law firms ask to represent her case.”

“That was pre-regulation. It’s much harder to litigate this kind of thing today. If it’s something unique to Welga’s biochemistry, there might not be anything truly illegal here. And it’s not likely to draw enough money to attract lawyers.”

Luis returned his empty plate to the kitchen. “And what if Synaxel cancels your contract or comes after you? It’s worth a retainer fee to protect ourselves.”

“From what? We hardly have any money.” And I’ve done nothing wrong. Nithya toyed with the food on her plate. When had innocence ever prevented those with money and power from destroying those without? “I’ll contact someone.”

The list of bioethics lawyers in Chennai overwhelmed Nithya with its length. She avoided the problem by reading up on the Asian Biogenetics Administration’s regulations. And the American BGA laws, for completeness. ABGA had far fewer restrictions than USBGA on designs and almost no requirements on testing. They had no teeth, either. Every country had its own enforcement agency. India had prosecuted fewer than fifty cases against pill and drug funders in the past decade. Singapore had sixty-seven. China had none, since their government controlled all domestic funding.

The USBGA had a better record: over a thousand cases in the same time period; but the EU was the winner at five digits. Maybe she should contact someone at the USBGA, since Welga resided in America. Synaxel’s board members lived around the globe, but two were in New York. Conveniently, the main USBGA office was there, too.

“Sita, what’s the procedure to file a complaint with the United States Biogenetics Administration?”

“You can file a nonemergency complaint at any time. You must choose from a list of subtopics.”