The Evolution Trilogy: Hybrid, Complications & Return

by Vanessa Wester

  Caitlin turned to face Lucy, her face impossible to read, then sat down and started to feed the baby.

  Lucy wanted to ask what was wrong, but Caitlin seemed focused. She waited for her to speak.

  Once the bottle was empty, and both sons were satisfied and asleep, Lucy led Caitlin out of the room.

  ‘Would you like a drink?’ Lucy asked.

  Caitlin still seemed lost in thought.

  ‘Caitlin?’

  Caitlin looked up, her expression sad, lost. ‘Yes, I’d love a glass of water.’

  ‘What about tea? I have to be honest you don’t look so good.’

  ‘Tea would be lovely.’

  Lucy made herself busy, and put the kettle on to boil. ‘It’s nice to see you tonight, Caitlin. I was not expecting any…’

  ‘Are you the one that slept with Steven?’ Caitlin blurted.

  Lucy’s cheeks flushed and she remained silent.

  Caitlin continued, ‘When Steven came back to find me he told me he had been with someone else. He said it did not mean anything, it had just happened. So far, I have seen no-one that could have happened with, until now.’

  ‘Why now?’

  ‘Your son just looked at me and showed me a set of sparkling amber eyes,’ Caitlin smiled, ‘eyes just like his father, his mother and his aunt.’

  Lucy was taken aback by the smile. ‘You don’t mind?’

  Caitlin relaxed, ‘I’m shocked to find out that Steven has three children. Although, when he finds out he’ll be speechless. But, I don’t mind. Steven deserves to be a father. He’ll be a great father. I’m also glad he gave you children. From what he told me you were pretty lost when it happened. You don’t look lost anymore, you look radiant.’

  Lucy grinned, ‘Hmm, radiant. I’d like to believe that.’ She handed Caitlin the mug of tea. ‘Sugar?’

  ‘No thanks,’ Caitlin said. ‘Steven proposed tonight.’

  Lucy nearly choked on the tea she had just drank. ‘Congratulations.’

  ‘I didn’t say yes,’ Caitlin frowned, apologetic. ‘Lucy, I know your secret and now you can know mine.’

  ‘You don’t have to tell…’ Lucy began.

  Caitlin pursed her lips. ‘I can’t have children.’

  ‘Oh,’ Lucy swallowed. ‘Is that why you said no?’

  ‘No, I do care about him a lot, but I don’t want to get married, not yet,’ Caitlin replied.

  Lucy glanced over and said, ‘Marriage is not meant to be a chore and Steven obviously doesn’t mind if he asked you?’

  ‘He says he doesn’t mind, but what does he really know? In time, he might change his point of view. I don’t want him to marry me and then realise it was a mistake.’

  ‘Can I ask you something?’

  Caitlin shrugged her shoulders. ‘Sure.’

  ‘How did you change? I’m very curious about how a normal human became one of us.’ Lucy leaned forward, her head tilted to the side.

  ‘I can’t tell you how, I promised not to tell anyone how it happened. I can tell you Steven made me one of you, but as you can tell I am not like you. It appears my blood is pure, like a human. I am told I will not age, time will tell on that one. But, we know my reproductive organs no longer function. So, I’m glad I saved you. You’re the mother of Steven’s children,’ Caitlin gulped, ‘I’m proud to have been the one to save the mother of his children.’

  Lucy put her mug down, and threw her arms around Caitlin. ‘I’ll never be able to repay the debt.’

  Caitlin returned the embrace before she broke down in tears.

  Lucy could not hold back on her emotions and she followed suit. She had no idea how long they sat there, a blubbering wreck.

  Finally, they both calmed down and Lucy let Caitlin go. She wiped her eyes and gave a nervous laugh.

  Caitlin sniffled, ‘I need a tissue.’

  Lucy picked up the cloth she had used with the babies and handed it over. ‘Use this.’

  Caitlin blew her nose in the cloth, and then started laughing. ‘It smells of milk!’

  ‘Sorry,’ Lucy said, now smiling.

  ‘It’s okay, it made me laugh.’

  Lucy knew she was out of line, but she felt bad and had to ask, ‘Do you love Steven?’

  Caitlin shook her head, ‘I think so, but it doesn’t matter. I just don’t want to settle down, I don’t want him to settle for me. Not unless I really know whether what we have is the real thing. My mum and dad were never happy when I was growing up. I know they love each other, in some strange way, but I don’t want to just marry Steven because he’s the first man I fell in love with. I want to marry Steven because he is the only man I want to be with.’

  ‘And right now, you just don’t know for sure,’ Lucy added.

  ‘Exactly. Since he changed me, I don’t know, I see things differently. I’m not blinded by love, or lust,’ she giggled. ‘I feel empowered by the change, stronger than I’ve ever been, I want more than just to be with Steven,’ Caitlin paused. ‘It sounds terrible, selfish even. When I found out I could not have children I was in complete shock. But then as the shock wore off I wondered if it was a sign. A sign telling me that there was more to my life than settling down and having a family. I’m so sorry, I’m rambling…’

  ‘No, no, I think I understand. You want to find out who you are before you commit to being with someone else. You’re a very smart girl.’ Lucy was impressed by Caitlin’s maturity.

  ‘I’m glad you think so. I feel very stupid for running out on Steven right now. I mean, he is what every girl wants. A handsome, intelligent man who is apparently madly in love with me. I must be an idiot to walk away. I just don’t want to be driven by love. I want, I mean, I would like to live and make mistakes of my own, to discover what I’m made of. Oh, I’m doing it again… rambling.’

  Lucy chuckled. ‘You know, listening to you I feel like the fool. My parents brought me up to believe that marriage was everything. I was madly in love with Ian, Steven’s uncle, but as it turned out he loved someone else.’

  ‘Carmen?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Caitlin gave an apologetic smile, ‘She’s very nice.’

  ‘I know,’ Lucy sighed, ‘Thing is I hid away from the community, I hid away from Ian. My heart was broken. Steven was the first… I’m sorry can I tell you this?’

  ‘Sure,’ Caitlin nodded.

  ‘Steven was the first man I ever allowed to get close to me. It was an accident, and we were both on the rebound, mine a longer-term one. He really missed you, it was obvious he was thinking of someone else when he was with me. Now I realise, I could’ve been happy with someone else, I just didn’t let anyone else in.’

  ‘What happened with Steven was meant to be. Look at your lovely babies,’ Caitlin said.

  Lucy got up, looked through the glass window in the door, and stared at the three domes keeping her babies safe. ‘I know. Of course, if my family finds out they’ll disown me. I am a disgrace.’

  ‘Really?’ Caitlin moved next to Lucy.

  ‘I don’t want to think about it. At the moment, Catherine has told them I’m exploring the island of Borneo. Do you know we plan to create a settlement there?’

  ‘Yes, I heard.’

  ‘My father has no intention of going, it’s lucky.’

  Caitlin gave a low gasp. ‘So, you’re not telling them about your children? You plan to go there without his knowledge. Wouldn’t someone tell him?’

  ‘I guess,’ Lucy said, ‘but once I’m there he can’t do anything about it. And I figure everyone will be too busy there to care about what I’ve done.’

  ‘Steven has to know. Are you going to tell him?’

  ‘Tell me what?’ Steven said, his voice low.

  Lucy turned to face the voice, then held her hand to her mouth. ‘What are you doing here?’

  ‘It took a long time to track Caitlin down, trust me. But, I managed,’ Steven said. His eyes had a crazed look, his hair dishevelled. ‘Lucy, it’s been a while.’<
br />
  ‘It has.’ Lucy stood straight in front of the door. ‘How much did you hear?’

  ‘Enough,’ Steven replied. ‘Is it true? Am I a father? Is that what you were both saying?’

  ‘It’s true,’ Caitlin said. ‘They have your eyes.’

  Steven’s face was impossible to read. Lucy did not know what to do or say.

  ‘You should see them,’ Caitlin continued, ‘children need their parents.’

  Steven fixed her with an icy stare. ‘They do.’

  Lucy could tell by his expression he was hurt. ‘Perhaps tonight is not the best night for this.’

  ‘No, it’s fine,’ Steven said. ‘I can handle this. After tonight, I can handle anything.’ He walked towards Lucy.

  Lucy held up her right hand, ‘Steven, no, not like this. Come back tomorrow.’

  ‘I’ll leave,’ Caitlin said.

  Steven faced Caitlin, and snapped, ‘You will stay here. You owe me that much.’

  Caitlin nodded, her eyes to the floor. ‘I’ll wait here then.’

  Steven placed his hand on Lucy’s shoulder, and in a gentler voice said, ‘Please. Let me see.’

  The contact made Lucy shudder slightly. She had run out of options. ‘Be quiet, they’re sleeping.’

  ‘Sure,’ Steven whispered.

  Lucy slowly turned the door handle, and held the door open for Steven. She glanced at Caitlin as she shut the door, but Caitlin had sat down, her head now in her hands.

  Steven remained frozen as he looked from one incubator to the next. ‘Three?’

  Lucy gave an awkward grin, and smiled, ‘Congratulations.’

  Steven walked over to each incubator and stared for a few moments before he moved to the next. At the last one, he turned and faced Lucy. His eyes were brimming with tears.

  Back to Table of Contents

  Chapter 41

  Destiny

  Caitlin had never felt as confused as she did right now. Her head was a mess. She wanted to walk away, to leave, but Steven was right she owed him. She had just walked out on him and now he had found out he had three children. It was a lot for anyone to take. She had no idea what he could be thinking.

  After a few more minutes had passed, she lifted her head out of her hands and got up. She tentatively peered through the glass and saw Steven talking to Lucy as they watched over their children. The pit of her stomach sank deeper at that thought. She would never have Steven’s children. Yet, here was a beautiful, really nice woman who had given Steven three children in need of a father and love. It made sense to Caitlin that they should have a go of it. Especially since she could not decide what she wanted.

  She started to back away slowly. She should just leave. Steven probably hated her anyway. She had embarrassed him for sure.

  She started to walk down the corridor, then upped her pace into a jog, before she started running as fast as she could. She knew where to go. She needed to swim, to pound the water as hard as she could, to lose herself in the depths. To escape. To scream.

  As she neared the place, she started to unfasten her hair and let her red, curly locks hang loose. She shook out her hair, wiped furiously at her eyes and tried to ignore her moist cheeks. Once in the desolate cavern, the only sound the roaring waterfall, she stripped off her clothes quickly and dived off the edge. When she surfaced, she swam a smooth front crawl to the other side, her legs pounding as fast as she could. Once she reached the rock she stopped then let out a primeval scream.

  This was not her life.

  She had lost all control.

  She dived down to the bottom of the water and allowed the near silence to engulf, to take over her senses. She would be happy to end it all here, in the water, the place she felt most at home. She always wanted to be a mermaid when she was younger. As the minutes stretched, she wondered why they had adapted to survive underwater. Had she really evolved into something stronger? She did not think she was special by being what she was. It had brought nothing but trauma, compared to the promise it had shown at the beginning.

  She did not consider herself to be any better than her family or her friends back home, just because she had changed. She was stronger, faster, would supposedly look the same for years, and yet, it all meant nothing. What was the point? What was her purpose?

  She screamed underwater, the bubbles oozing up to the surface.

  As she released air, she felt the urge to breathe again and she kicked up. She did not want to die. She wanted to know why. As much as she had never been that religious, regardless of her upbringing, she did firmly believe there was a God, a power stronger than everyone. A force driving life, driving humanity to a point, a purpose. She had studied religion, she had searched for answers. Yet, she could not see them clearly. It would be so much easier if Jesus existed now, if there was someone guiding her in her life. A life where she could have a purpose.

  She broke the surface and swam back to the waterfall. All the time thinking back to her youth and the times she had fought for the rights of animals by being an avid WWF member. Had her parents not instilled in her the need to consider others before herself? If she was youthful and strong could she not use her gifts for good? There had to be a way. A life where she could find her calling, find her peace and help others. There were many places in the world where someone like her could do a lot of good. She could be the perpetual student, going from place to place, helping, learning, encouraging growth.

  It made sense to her.

  Staying in the community did not.

  The problem remained. She had to find a way to leave. It was her only hope.

  As she climbed out of the water, she saw Steven sat down next to her clothes, head down. She was not embarrassed to be naked in front of him, he had seen her before, but she still tensed as she made her way over. She slipped the dress on quickly, even though she was soaking wet, and sat down.

  ‘Sorry I left.’

  Steven raised his head. ‘It’s okay, I would have left too. Sorry I snapped at you.’

  ‘It’s okay. I deserved it,’ she gave a weak smile.

  ‘No, you didn’t. I was an idiot to ask you to marry me like that. It was not the right time or place. I just wanted to, impulsive I guess, and, as usual, you were the wise one. You make a lot of sense.’

  ‘Do I?’ Caitlin chuckled, ‘that would be a first.’

  ‘You always made sense to me,’ he gave her a determined stare.

  Caitlin nodded. ‘So, how do you feel about being a dad?’

  ‘I am freaking out… that’s the truth. But, I don’t know,’ Steven paused, ‘Lucy seems really happy. So, I’m glad for her sake. I just have no idea what to do about it. She explained that it has to be a secret. Truth is, I’m all out. Can I do anything else that is wrong or out of line? I think I’ve broken every rule so far. I should not exist, you should not exist, and those innocent babies should not exist. And yet, here we all are – existing! It’s crazy.’ He ran both his hands through his hair.

  ‘I want to believe there’s a point to all of this. I’ve been thinking about it and I just have to find a reason for all of it to make sense. You know me, my logical brain just can’t help itself.’

  Steven placed his hand over hers. ‘For your sake, I wish there was a point. I wish there was a reason for our existence. But, as the history of mankind has shown, man is not the most useful animal on the planet and now we’re here to add flavour to the party. I sometimes wonder what destiny is all about – we must be a huge source of entertainment or disappointment.’

  ‘And yet, here we are. I can’t help thinking… oh, I don’t know what I’m thinking. This is a disaster. A tragedy,’ Caitlin sighed.

  ‘It doesn’t have to be. I love you, Caitlin. I have from the moment I met you. You know, don’t you?’

  Caitlin gave a weak nod. ‘The truth is, I know you tell me this and you have shown it by everything that’s happened, but I don’t really get why you do. You could have anyone you want, you have lots of girls that
are interested, and now you have children with another woman. I really am not that special.’

  ‘You are to me,’ Steven said, his hand reached for her chin and pulled it in his direction. ‘You do not see yourself the way I do. You are kind, loving, thoughtful, considerate, beautiful… I could go on forever. There is no reason why I love you specifically. It’s everything. I love you for who you are, how you make me feel. I am a better man with you in my life. But…’ he dropped his hand.

  ‘But what?’ Caitlin asked.

  Steven looked into the distance. After a minute of silence, he continued, ‘I know I do not make you better. I have changed your life and made it worse. I’m the one who is not good enough for you. This is why I know you were right to refuse me. You should not marry me.’

  Caitlin’s jaw dropped. She could not say another word. It was true. It was all true.

  Steven stood up. ‘Caitlin, I’m going to give you a week to yourself. I’ll find another place to stay. You need to think about what you want from your life. You’re right, there has to be a point to all of this,’ he smiled, ‘I might even pray about it for a change. I’ll see you around, and maybe we’ll talk in a week. I never lied about the fact that I love you. I do. But, right now the right thing to do is to walk away. It’s what I should’ve done all along. I should never have gone back for you. I’m really sorry. I just hope,’ he paused, slightly choked, ‘I just hope you do find a purpose. It would make me happy to know you had.’

  As he walked away, Caitlin burst into tears again. It was pathetic to cry at the drop of a hat, yet she could not help it. She knew he was right to walk away, she knew she needed some space right now. Even so, it took everything she had to stay rooted to the spot and not run after him.

  It was a good five minutes before she calmed down, her breathing ragged and slow. She stood up, slightly shaky and realised she was really thirsty. She wanted blood more than she had done in days. There was only one place she could go.

  When she approached the laboratory, a wave of memories engulfed her. She tried to open the door but saw it was secured. She looked for signs of anyone, but no-one was there. Of course, they were all still at the wedding. She was about to head back to the wedding, against her better judgement, when she saw Ingrid approaching.