by Dan Glover
"We've tried infecting other animals with Lily's blood but have had no success. We have some sample vials refrigerated. We've examined her blood with electron microscopes and yet we find no trace of any parasite. I believe she must release them as a defensive mechanism, sort of like an octopus releases a cloud of noxious vapor when threatened.
"Doctor Hector Ramirez is in charge of physically studying the specimen while I'm about to delve more deeply into the psychological aspects of her mind, which is why I need you, Marilyn. I'll be relying on you exclusively. I see you have a master degree in psychology as well as a doctorate in physical sciences. These studies will be top secret. No one else is to know... no one... not even Dr. Ramirez. Do you have any questions?"
"Is this legal, Karen?"
"In a word, no... we're submitting false documents to cover our true work here... does that bother you?"
"Not at all... I just want to be on the same page."
Now, facing Tommy Thomas and his nasally whines about why this and how come that, Marilyn gathered her strength in knowing Karen Pool saw something special in her—that she relied on her to guard the secrecy of their research—and she was not about to let her down. Not for some mealy-mouthed twerp who thought he could come in here and bully everyone into doing his dirty work.
As she expected, the little puffed-up man sitting before her began to threaten her the same way the interrogator with the police attempted to intimidate her into confessing to her husband's murder.
"I'll be addressing my concerns about this facility and its management directly with the Prime Minister. So it is better if you and your cohorts come clean right now."
"I do have some concerns, Mr. Thomas, things I have noticed while working here. Perhaps we could go over them while we have tea."
"Splendid idea! Yes... now we are getting somewhere, my dear."
Chapter 44—Traitors
Natalia didn’t understand why Kirk ran up the stairs so quickly.
At first she thought he was going to get a medical kit to help with Ginger's injuries but then she heard the door slam at the top of the staircase and the sound of something heavy being placed against it. When she climbed to the top and tried to open the door she discovered they were locked in the dungeon.
"Why is he doing this, darling Lauren?"
"I'm not sure, sweet Natalia, but we've got to stop Ginger's bleeding. Here, please help to apply pressure to her head wound while I look for something to make a splint. Her leg is broken. We need to set it before she regains consciousness."
"He must think we're angry with him, dear Lauren. Why on earth would he lock us down here though? It doesn’t make sense."
"This was no accident. Ginger was pushed. I think Kirk did it to get us down here and to lock us in. I'm worried about Nate and Lily. What if Marilyn is behind all of this? She's been acting strangely for the last couple of months. Have you noticed it too, darling Natalia?"
"Now that you mention it, sweet Lauren, yes... she's been walking about quoting the bible at the most inappropriate times. I thought she was drunk but I did not smell any alcohol on her breath."
"I noticed a change come over her right after Lily gave birth to Maon... almost like it sent her over the edge into insanity."
Lauren's words brought Natalia back to the night her grandson was born... Karen and Marilyn assisted in the birth just as they helped when Nate was born. While Karen finished with Lily, Marilyn took the baby obstinately to give him a bath.
The look on her face frightened Natalia, however. Marilyn seemed ready to drown him. Natalia stepping closer to the woman to lay a gentle hand upon little Maon, her way of showing Marilyn someone was paying attention to what she was doing.
"She put Kirk up to this, darling Natalia. I'm sure of it. He isn’t smart enough to do it on his own."
A snap reverberated in the darkness as Lauren set Ginger's broken leg back in place. She bound it with three straight boards they discovered stacked in a dark corner using an errant roll of old duct tape to hold the leg in place. Afterwards she gently pulled Natalia's hand away from Ginger's head to examine the wound.
"Let me see, sweet Natalia... yes, it has stopped bleeding. She needs stitches but I have no access to a needle and thread."
"You ain't a going to be sticking needles in my head."
"Oh... she is awake! How do you feel, Ginger?"
"Like someone shoved me down a hundred flights of stairs and I hit every one of them."
"Was it Kirk who did this to you?"
"Yes... he wanted me to come down here and call out to you... to lure you here so he could lock you in. I refused so he pushed me."
"But why would he do such a thing?"
"He said Marilyn has a plan. She is going to be the queen and Kirk will be king. Marilyn was going to lock the others in a cage at the place they're going to and... oh... I don’t feel so good."
"Come, my lovely Natalia... let us try to help Ginger up."
"Why? There's nowhere to go, sweet Lauren."
"Yes there is, Lady Natalia."
"What do you mean by that, Ginger?"
"Amanda and I messed around down here all the time. If we go down into the catacombs and follow the tunnels they come out in the basements of houses close to the village. Let me lay here for just a few minutes and I'll show you the way. I just need to catch my breath."
Natalia watched as Lauren rubbed her hands together. It reminded her of long ago days when her Gypsy father used to start fires in the same fashion only using sticks. Lauren stroked Ginger's wounds slowly and tenderly as if instilling some power she manifested through the action of her hands. Natalia had witnessed Lily doing the same thing to others who had been injured.
"Are you a healer like our lovely Lily?"
"I haven’t her ability but I can effect small changes, sweet Natalia. Our bodies produce a kind of healing electricity like the eels we swim with at times."
"Whatever you're doing please keep doing it, Lady Lauren. It feels amazing. My leg doesn’t hurt any more and my headache is going away. I can think clearly again."
"Please lie still a while longer, Ginger. You will soon be strong enough to travel."
Chapter 45—Castles in the Air
She felt like she was finally home.
Orchardton Hall was more spectacular than Natalia ever dreamed it would be. The sandstone castle was situated in the south of Scotland and so large that she became lost just looking for one of the bathrooms. She found Lauren in the sitting room gazing out over the Scottish mountains.
"How did you ever find this place, lovely Lauren?"
"It was in my husband Roddy's family forever. They bought it after it was used as a boarding school back in the early 1800s. It was they who turned it back into a residence. Poor Roddy... he was the last of his line. Of course we never had children, he was an only child, and his parents were dead. When he died all his property came to me."
"Were you married long?"
"I don’t think so. It did not seem like long. But I cannot be certain. We do not measure time the way humans do. He decided to take a trip without me. I supposed I must have bored him. I know he bored me. I received word not long after that he died."
"Were you sad, sweet Lauren?"
"Not really, no... does that sound cruel?
"Not to me. But then I never liked men much."
"Ah, you are my special girl, lovely Natalia. Come...kiss me and then let us find something good to eat."
After they kissed for many minutes tendering twisting their tongues together, caressing each other's lips, they walked arm in arm into the kitchen to rummage through cabinets and the refrigerator pulling out all manner of food to scatter it upon the island and counters.
"Lovely Lauren... where is our sweet Lily? I woke up all alone. I missed you both so much when I woke like that."
Natalia had become so used to waking with Lily next to her that she was a bit perplexed when her lover was not there this morning. She wond
ered if she had inadvertently angered Lily.
"She is around somewhere... perhaps exploring. She is like a little girl when it comes to castles. I'm sorry to leave you all alone, my love. You were sleeping so peacefully that we didn’t wish to wake you."
"Oh please promise to wake me next time, dear Lauren. I hate waking up like that. I've spent so much of my life alone that I need you by my side."
About the time they set into their feast Lily rounded the corner. She was naked but for the flip flops she wore. Her breasts seemed to bounce with joy upon seeing Natalia and Lauren waiting for her.
"What a lovely castle you have, my darling Lauren! There are so many rooms I lost track of them all. And our lovely Natalia is up!"
"Our darling Natalia is upset with us both, sweet Lily. We left her to awaken alone in a strange room."
"Oh, I am so sorry, my precious Natalia."
As Lily approached Natalia and hugged her, she grew instantly energized feeling Lily's bare skin pressed against her body. When Lily leaned away Natalia saw tears streaking the Lady's cheeks.
"Don’t cry, my beautiful Lily. I'm not really upset with you. I know you had my best wishes in mind leaving me there to sleep. I miss you so much when we are apart. That's all."
"I really thought I would be back before you woke up... I must have lingered longer than I realized. Will you ever forgive me?"
"Only if you kiss me for a hundred years, my darling Lily."
"How about me, precious Natalia? Am I invited to this kissing fest too?"
"Lovely Lauren... as if you have to ask..."
Their meals were the same though the food differed. Today they had pancakes drenched in maple syrup and rich butter. They did not feed themselves so much as each other, tenderly lingering over each scrumptious bite of food as if it was their first and their last. When a dribble of sweet syrup dripped upon Lily's left breast Natalia was quick to savor it with her tongue.
"Tell us what you discovered on your adventures, sweet Lily."
"Oh my darling Lauren... I ventured down into the basement. It reminds me of home for some reason... maybe it is the odor. It smells of honey. I saw many jars stacked on shelves down there. And did you know there is another basement beneath the first?"
"Yes, my love... if you continue searching you will find yet a third and a fourth, and below those are the dungeons deep and dark where prisoners were once locked away never to be heard from again. My husband told me stories of how their bones are still down there and how ghosts sometimes are seen walking the catacombs below it all."
"Catacombs! I want to see."
Natalia was suddenly excited at the prospects of exploring the old chambers at the roots of the castle with her lovers by her side. She was quite sure she would never go into such a dark place all alone. Lily and Lauren lent her a strength she never realized she possessed.
"Let us go when we are done with our breakfast. But first, we must dress. The lower basements are cold and damp and our sweet Natalia may get a chill."
Lily was caressing Natalia's shoulders as she spoke, her webbed fingers working their way over her skin with a silken touch. Lately Natalia had taken to walking around naked as the day she was born although prior to meeting Lily she was quite obsessive with hiding her body. She always believed it was an ugly thing, too wrinkled and too ruined by surgeries and mishaps to be seen by anyone. She knew how Lily worshipped her, though, and Natalia couldn't remember ever being adored before.
"Before we dress, can we play for a bit? I am feeling a bit frisky this morning watching you two."
"You read my mind, sweet Lauren... come lovely Lily... let us explore each other a bit before we venture into the dark."
Chapter 46—Maon
The minutes ticked by like centuries.
Her son was trapped beneath the floor... that horrid ventilation shaft doubtlessly narrowed down to the point where even little Maon couldn’t wriggle through, or else there really was a drop off.
She imagined the poor boy stuck somewhere deep down inside the hard concrete passageway unable to move either forward or backward... he would lay there wedged in the darkness and die all alone.
The hatred arising in her mind surprised her a little... she had never before felt such disgust for a loved one. Still, it was Nate's fault that Maon was down there... he had sent the little boy, no more than a baby, really, on a hopeless task simply because he wasn’t man enough to get them out of that cage himself.
She couldn’t look at them... Karen had been an accomplice in it all too, assuring her that the ventilation shaft didn’t have a drop off inside of it where Maon would fall to his death.
Perhaps it was better the boy died easy rather than to lie inside that murky tunnel until he slowly suffocated upon his own breath. To think that she would never hold him again... she would rather die than endure the thought of her son gasping his last as he called out to a mother who wasn’t there.
Just when she gave up hope Lily's hearts leaped as she saw a flicker of light outside the isolation chamber. She heard a door open and in a couple moments little Maon was tugging at a drawer in the desk with all his might. When it crashed to the floor Lily could see the boy was mystified at finding nothing there.
Had Marilyn taken that key too? She should have never allowed the woman to accompany them on the trip to retrieve another genetic sample... she had heard the rumors. Marilyn was not happy at the thought of another hybrid baby being born.
Maon looked so small, so isolated. He toddled around the desk obviously frustrated at not being able to find the key and made to pull the top drawer out in an effort to achieve the impossible.
The key wasn’t there. Now, not only were they still trapped, but Maon was all by himself. Soon, the flashlight batteries would give out and the little boy would be alone in the dark.
All of a sudden Nate was banging on the window calling out to their son.
"Your other left, Maon! Look under the drawer on the other side!"
The little boy turned to look at his father before moving to the left side of the desk, tugging open the drawer, and discovering the key taped to the bottom just as Karen said it would be. In another moment the door to their prison was open and they were free.
"Lady Lily, turn on the generator, please, while we assess the situation."
Her hand was trembling when she raised her arm and pressed the three buttons to start the generator. In a split second the room was flooded with light again and a fresh breeze of cool air was blowing from the overhead vents.
As Karen took charge in her own easy fashion Nate went to the door checking to make sure it wasn’t blocked from the outside. When he returned he had a smile on his face and good news.
"We're good to go. I vote we get the hell out of here right now."
He picked up Maon and headed for the door as Lily followed. Karen hung back, however. Lily could tell she wanted to follow them but something was on her mind... the reason they had come here in the first place.
"I need to recover another sperm sample first. Marilyn has taken the first one... it may no longer be viable. I understand if you want to wait outside. I'll be a half hour or so."
"We'll remain here with you, darling Karen. Come, my lovely Nate... let us help her."
"I did it, dad. I saved you and mom and Karen."
"Yes you did, dear Maon... yes you did. I am so proud of you, son."
She felt so guilty for the horrible thoughts she was having just a few minutes ago... no, she hadn’t shared them, but she had them in her mind nevertheless.
Nate had no other choice but to trust Maon could make it through that ventilation shaft... had he listened to her, they would still be trapped inside the isolation chamber slowly dying as they ran out of oxygen.
Though he was only two years old Lily knew Maon was as intelligent as other children of the People who were ten years old and more. She recalled how Nate was also a precocious child. She believed it might have been a result of the blending
of the species which resulted in their ability to grasp language at such a young age.
She speculated their gifts would become more diffuse as generations passed and the new race flourished and she wondered if she was right in suggesting they engineer a female to mate with her son. Perhaps it was better to be content with what was instead of delving after what might be. Her lineage went back tens of millions of years farther than the ancestry of human beings. If the two species were blended it would doubtlessly be to the detriment of her own.
She watched in awe as Karen deftly maneuvered the instruments needed to retrieve the samples to create a new life. She questioned if she was wrong to think all human beings were dull-witted monkeys hardly down out of the trees. She might well have been using a brush to paint an entire species whereas the real concern lay within the individual.
"How have you learned to do such things, sweet Karen? You are like a magician."
"I may make it look easy, Lady Lily, but these things that I do have taken years of hard practice and study to perfect. I made many mistakes along the way. That was how I learned. The more mistakes I made the more I learned."
The fresh air never tasted so good in Lily's lungs. Marilyn had taken the limousine of course and though there were other cars in the parking lot it was clear from the looks of them that none would start after being dormant for so long.
"I guess we're walking."
"But it's two hundred kilometers back to Orchardton Hall, darling Nate."
"We don’t have much choice, beautiful Lily. Come... perhaps when we get to a town we might find a vehicle that I can fix and tools with which to work. Here I have nothing."
"Karen! My dad calls my mom beautiful."
"Yes I know, sweet Maon. That's because she is beautiful."