Parahuman (Parahuman Series)

by S. L. Hess

  The vibration of Devan’s phone as it danced on the kitchen table tore through the air like a knife; he actually felt pain as it severed the connection that seemed to bind them together. He stumbled away from Laney in bemusement, noticing that her face exhibited the same.

  Turning swiftly he snatched the phone off the table. “Hello.” His voice came out as a croak.

  It was Brett of course. “Sorry, did I wake you up?”

  Devan cleared his throat, “No.” His tone was more level this time. Laney shuffled behind him but Devan kept his back to her. He wasn’t feeling composed at the moment.

  “I was just checking in to make sure that everything was alright?”

  “Everything’s good, I just had some dinner.” He reported, not elaborating that Laney had it with him…too many questions.

  “I work until eight tonight, so I will see you later. If you feel up to it you should probably change the dressing on your arm if you haven’t already.” He directed before hanging up.

  Feeling he could have used several additional minutes to get more control Devan turned to face Laney. She had her back to him gazing out the window which allocated him more time.

  “Do your names change each place you go?”

  Laney’s out of the blue question surprised him. “Yes.”

  She turned from the window, her expression confused and sad. “How can you guys remember so many name changes and not screw up?”

  “Brett forgets occasionally, but we’re around so few people that it hasn’t become a problem.”

  Laney stared thoughtfully at him. “Can I ask what your real name is?”

  Devan frowned. “My real name?”

  She mimicked his frown. “The name you were born with.”

  Devan’s frown cleared understanding her question. “I wasn’t given a name like you. My number was ten-thirteen.”

  Laney’s frown amplified. “You had a number for a name?”

  “I was an experiment. Test subjects aren’t given names. I was sometimes referred to as ‘boy’, but that was just an expression some used because of my gender.”

  Laney’s frown turned fierce and she shook her head angrily. She tilted her head heavenward for a few seconds and then bent it down toward the floor. He watched her actions in fascination. Her eyes eventually lifted to his and there was a sad gravity to them.

  “Do you have any resentment towards Brett, in regards to everything?”

  “Can you clarify that?” Devan needed a little more elaboration on that ‘everything’.

  “Well, he’s the scientist who made you and got you into this whole mess. Do you feel any kind of bitterness because of this fact?” She asked, curiously.

  Devan considered her question.

  “Certainly, if not for Brett I wouldn’t be in this…mess, but if not for him I wouldn’t be standing here at all. He’s always been good to me, and he risked his life to get me out of the facility. I can only be grateful that he took that chance and didn’t just succumb to The Company’s plans.” He paused, remembering his time sequesters inside the facility. “When I was at the facility I was never allowed to go outside. Brett made it possible for me to finally run free and breathe fresh air; I’ll always be thankful for that.”

  Her eyes went wide. “You weren’t allowed outside for ten years,” she gasped. Then her eyes lowered and narrowed in thought. “That’s what you meant before, when you said you were stuck inside for a long time, wasn’t it?”

  Devan thoughts drifted back to those years trapped inside with no opportunity for true sunlight, or a breath of real fresh air, of not being able to run free. He could never go back to that again, would never go back to that again.

  “Yes, that is what I was alluding to.” He said grimly.

  “The outside world must have been a real shock to you.”

  “I don’t know what I would have done without Brett when we first escaped. Setting my foot outdoors for the first time was disorientating and alarming. It was a completely different world. I probably would have settled for living off the land like the animal I am.”

  Annoyance covered her face. “Just because you have some animal DNA that doesn’t make you an animal; anyway we’re all classified as animals.” She waved her hand in general implication.

  “I’m not classified as just animal, or mammal, I’m also bird and reptile. My precise classification is parahuman, or transhuman, which means mostly human, but not quite. Not quite anything.”

  “Reptile too?” She blurted out surprised. She recovered quickly and scowled severely. “You always seem to be putting yourself down. It’s not what you are; it’s how you act that’s important, and you’ve saved two lives in the little time I’ve known you. That puts you in a higher species classification than many other so called humans.”

  “I did what anyone would have done.” Devan protested, uncomfortable with her acclamation

  “I can’t say whether that’s true or not for anyone else, but you did do what any decent, brave person would have done.” She stressed the word ‘person’, looking him in the eyes as she did.

  Devan had tried to be as honest with Laney as possible, but he couldn’t go into his apprehension about the potential changes that could develop in his body; changes that could make him more animal than human…that was between him and his paranoia.

  Uncomfortable with the subject he decided to try a tack that Laney often threw at him…subject change. “I can’t believe your father is still out looking for those wolves.” His comment, pulled out nowhere, had her smiling dryly. She allowed herself to be diverted though.

  “He called right before I came here and told me he was going to the vet’s to find out more about the dead wolf. He wants to know if this one was sick and if the others may be also.”

  “It’s not sick,” Devan stated.

  His words had her eyebrows flying upwards in astonishment. “So you said before, but how can you be sure of that?” She asked.

  Devan waved for her to follow him. “The samples I took; I’ve already tested them for all manners of disease and they’re clean, very clean.”

  Stepping into the office he motioned her toward the microscope and samples on the desk. “I’ve been through everything, and I don’t have a clue as to why those wolves attacked in such a way. The only weird thing about it is its overly healthy.” Devan remained silent on their irregular features still unsure about sharing certain information.

  Laney gazed around in amazement at the collection of instruments amassed in the office. “You guys have your own little mad science lab here.” She made her way to the desk and looked through the microscope. “What do you mean ‘overly healthy’?”

  Devan walked around the desk, needing to keep some sort of barrier between them. “The wolf didn’t have any parasite infection at all; it was like it had been vaccinated for them.”

  She looked up with a frown. “Vaccinated?”

  “It’s possible the wolf was part of some test study, but if that was the case it should have some tag or chip on its body somewhere. I didn’t see anything on the outside of the animal, but it could have an internal implant.” Knowing that the pack had been part of some simple test study would relieve him of a lot of anxiety.

  “If the animals not sick then why did it attack that way? I’m not an expert on wolves, but I do know wolves don’t normally seek people out and attack for no reason; at least not the healthy ones.” She declared in confusion.

  “I don’t know.” Devan answered. With no abnormalities in the blood he wasn’t sure why the animal did what it did. He had a few theories but they were just theories, and he did not want one of those theories to even be a consideration.

  “Maybe they’re attracted to your animal magnetism.” She joked, though her statement had a hint of a question behind it.

  “I don’t think that’s likely; remember when I said that horses don’t really like me?”

  She nodded her head.

  “Well, it’s not j
ust horses; most animals shy away from me, as though sensing I’m something altogether different. This pact seems to be following me around though, which is unusual.”

  “What do you mean, following you around, you’ve seen them before today?” She jerked in surprise.

  “No, I haven’t seen them, but I have caught their scent around the perimeter of the house. They’ve been leaving a lot of markings.”

  Her attention drifted over the samples on the table again, focusing on the particulates he’d obtained from the wolf’s fur. “Is this stuff you got from the animal’s fur?” She asked looking up at him. He gave a nod. “Did you find anything interesting?” She picked up a pair of tweezers lifting up the portion of leaf he had been inspecting when the sound of her vehicle had interrupted him.

  “Actually, I did.” Devan leaned forward instinctively to enlighten her at the same time she lifted up her head inquisitively. The sudden proximity was jolting, but he stopped himself from jerking away, remembering the frowns she threw his way when he did. “That bit of leaf your holding is from a birch that doesn’t grow in this area or anywhere near here.”

  “How do you even know that?” She exclaimed in amazement.

  Devan drew back some, but made sure to do it in a way that wasn’t obvious. “I’ve made a study of different foliage.”

  She appraised him incredulously. “Of course you have.” She set the tweezers back down slowly. “And why is this relevant or interesting?”

  “The interesting and disconcerting part is the leaf particle isn’t from the Colorado region or any state nearby, rather it’s a northern species of birch.”

  “So the wolves or at least this wolf has possibly just moved in.” She speculated.

  “It would seem. It’s just remarkable that the wolf traveled so far.” This little piece of information was gnawing at the back of his cerebellum. It was significant, but the lines weren’t connecting—as yet.

  “When you explain it like that it does seem odd.” She granted, gazing at him with narrowed eyed thoughtfulness. “You think it’s more than odd though, don’t you?”

  Dean was silent, wondering if he should share his notions with her. The expression on her face was completely trusting and he wanted it to stay that way, but sharing was a new concept to him.

  “Yes,” he confirmed.

  She rolled her eyes and grinned at the epigrammatic answer. “Please don’t overwhelm me with all the finer points,” she replied sarcastically.

  Devan smiled. It was weird that he took pleasure in her sarcasm.

  “Sorry, I don’t have any factual data to overwhelm you with. All I have is my instincts, and they’re not really quantifiable.” He stated.

  She sighed and scowled good-naturedly. “I’ll take whatever you’ve got.”

  Well if she wanted to hear conjecture that’s about all he had.

  “The wolf’s an anomaly; in fact the whole pack is. All of them are larger than the standard Gray wolf, the way they prowled the parking lot and attacked us wasn’t typical, and the absence of any kind of parasite or disease in the one I killed is odd. Each one of these circumstantial details leaves me with an uncomfortable feeling.”

  “Uncomfortable in what way?” she asked.

  “Let’s just say that I would like to get my hands on that tracking chip, if there is one.” Devan said urgently.

  “My dad’s with the vet right now, I could call and ask him.” Her hand reached for the phone in her pocket.

  Devan held out his hand to stop her, but didn’t touch her. “No, I think it would be better if I stopped by again to take a look.”

  Her eyebrow was rising again. He really liked that look on her, it was sort of devil-may-care.

  “And why would that be better?” She questioned in bewilderment.

  “I would like a chance to check it out myself, and if the vet gets her hands on it I might not get that opportunity.” He explained. There was no telling what the vet would do with it.

  “What are you going to do, break in again?” She quizzed.

  “I didn’t have to break in, everything was open.” Devan protested, not wanting her to think of him as some criminal. “I doubt very much if it will be locked tonight either.” Small towns were pretty predictable.

  She smiled. “Okay, you’re not breaking, just entering. When were you thinking about doing this?”

  The longer he waited the less likelihood of acquiring the tag, if there was one. It was doubtful the vet would even look for an embedded tag, so he wasn’t worried on that end, but it was possible that she could dispose of the animal before he could get at it again, or have it shipped off somewhere else.

  “I’m going to have to go back tonight.” Devan stated. Looking up at the clock on the wall he was a little surprised at how the time had flown since Laney’s arrival. He also realized that she needed to depart soon if she wanted to make it home before dark. The very thought of her riding home alone in the daylight caused him some concern.

  “It would probably be a good idea for me to follow you home. It’ll be getting dark soon and we do have wild wolves roaming around. You probably shouldn’t have ridden out here all by yourself in the first place.” Devan reprimanded.

  He couldn’t miss the stiffening of her body at his words.

  “I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I’ve ridden in these woods for years.” She retorted. She turned to head out of the office, her back ram rod straight.

  Sighing in frustration at his failure to word that the right way Devan followed her. “I wasn’t trying to infer that you couldn’t, but there seems to be an added danger of wolves in the vicinity, that’s all I’m trying to say.” He said in way of apology. “As I’m going into town anyway I would like to follow you, just to make sure you get home safely.”

  She stopped and turned abruptly causing him to halt before he ran into her. She reached out and poked him in the chest with her index finger. Actually poked him in the chest! Devan couldn’t halt his eyebrows from rising in astonishment.

  “You haven’t even had any rest yet; like you should be out run..ning around.” Her voice had started out accusing, but stammered toward the end. Lowering her finger she backed up a step; a slight pink was coloring her cheeks. Devan attributed it to the irritation she was feeling.

  “I told you I feel fine,” he assured her, “but I do need to change the dressing on my arm before we leave. You’ll wait here?” He looked down at her questioning. If she decided to leave before he could change it then he would skip it and do it later. He wasn’t going to let her ride back home by herself.

  “Yes, I’ll wait.” She crossed her arms over her chest attempting to appear austere, but he could see a twitch trying to pull the corners of her mouth up.

  Returning to Brett’s office Devan grabbed some fresh bandages and an antibiotic cream. Walking back out he passed Laney to go to the bathroom, she was still standing in the same spot with her arms crossed over her chest, eyeing him closely.

  In the bathroom he unbuttoned his shirt and flung it into the hamper, intending to grab another when he was done. Starting at the elbow he began unwinding the wrap; it was sticking to the healing scratches so he had to pull at it carefully so it wouldn’t reopen the cuts. When it was completely removed Devan examined it in the mirror and was pleased at how well it looked.

  He had always been a fast healer. Back at the facility he’d broken some fingers several times and they had healed up in just a few days. Scratches and bruises would normally only take a day to heal. This injury was slightly more than a scratch, so it would probably take an extra day.

  It looked as if the subcutaneous tissue and dermis layers were already healing together. Devan didn’t see any open areas that allowed for bleeding any longer. He estimated that by the end of tomorrow the skin would be completely mended, without even a scar to show for it. Dabbing some peroxide on it he watched it fizzle up around where the deeper cut areas had been located.

  Devan heard Laney
take a few step nearer to the bathroom. “Is everything alright?” She asked tentatively.

  “I’m rewrapping it now.” He called through the open door.

  “It didn’t open did it; you’re not bleeding are you?” She asked, sounding anxious.

  “No, the tissues halfway repaired already.” Devan reassured her.

  Grabbing the antibiotic tube he smeared some on, more to keep the bandage from sticking than for its medicinal purposes. He was ripping open a new bandage package with his teeth when Laney’s footsteps tentatively stepped down the hall. She stopped a few feet from the door.

  “How can it be halfway healed already?” She asked from around the corner.

  “Salamander DNA, tremendous rejuvenating capabilities.” Devan pulled the bandage from the wrapper.

  There was a pause and Devan thought her questions were done.

  “Can I see?” Laney’s tentative request caused Devan to freeze in disconcertment. He wasn’t reluctant to show her his arm, it was just that he was without a shirt again; his birthmark available for her to see. Although, she had already seen it.

  Devan twisted slightly so his back was away from her. “Uh…sure.”

  Laney stepped around the corner hesitantly and their gazes locked for a second before hers drifted over his chest to the shoulder wound. She stepped closer scrutinizing the scratches, and he remained absolutely still as she did.

  “Wow,” she breathed. Her hand rose to touch, but didn’t. Instead she just pointed. “What is that film growing over it?” Her face was curious.

  “It’s a layer of signaling cells called Apical Epithelial Cap. They contain memory of tissue origin and are part of the rejuvenation process. You know salamanders have also been known to grow back organs.” He was blathering additional facts out of his edginess.