Elsewhere's Twin: a novel of sex, doppelgängers, and the Collective Id (Divided Man Book 3)
Page 36
There was no way to prove it, but Rook thought they were so tenaciously identical because the twinning happened so late. Thumper was meant to be a singleton, albeit one with three parents. Luckily that interesting anomaly hadn’t resulted in any health problems. Their eyes were the one place their unique genetic heritage was on display.
Each girl’s left eye was primarily the bright, pale blue Rook saw when when she looked in the mirror, decorated with distinct green and gray speckles. Their right eyes were smoky gray with a striated green and blue sector blooming from the inner corner like an alien sunrise that gave them a mischievous, dreamy look. Early on she and Fin concluded that while the blue came from Rook, the gray and green were Tanner traits. Either Fin or Kyle passed down the gray from Brad, while the other passed along his own deep green.
Rook had been silent for a long time. “I’m sorry,” she said to Possibly-Maggie’s-Mom. “I was thinking about what they’re going to be like as teenagers.”
Possibly-Maggie’s-Mom winced sympathetically.
*** *** ***
Fin was on his way inside to replenish the supply of cold drinks when Zen and one of the girls from school waylaid him.
“Fin,” said Zen, “tell Madison you’re my brother. She won’t believe me.”
Madison looked as defiant as a 5-year-old can when she is also a wee bit shy.
“I am Zen’s brother,” he assured her.
“Told ya!” said Zen. “Now tell her how many tattoos Rook has.”
Lately all the Tanner girls were obsessed with this topic. Jade and Sage noticed that in the first picture of Fin and Rook together, Rook didn’t have all the bird tattoos on her arm. They demanded an explanation. It apparently never occurred to them there was a time when their mother didn’t have ink.
If not for those lasting mementos, Fin might have started to doubt he’d really ventured into the Collective Id. Rook ended up with 341 new rooks by the time they escaped. He picked up six, giving him the paltry total of eleven.
“My wife has 497 tattoos,” Fin told the incredulous Madison.
“Told ya!” Zen said again. She took Madison’s hand and ran with her back into the throng of children.
In the kitchen Fin found Rook on the phone. She rolled her eyes and made loquacious hand-puppet movements, which meant she was talking to her mother. He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder and opened the refrigerator.
“Yes I’m sure,” she said. “The box from you came yesterday. Today there was a card from Bay. But whatever Bug sent isn’t here yet.”
More strenuous eye rolling accompanied whatever Linda said next.
“I’m not saying she lied, Mom. I’m saying it’s not here yet.”
She put her hand over the mouthpiece and whispered to Fin, “Get the girls so they can talk to her.”
Abandoning his fridge mission, Fin hustled into the yard where the kids were chasing fireflies. He caught Jade and sent her inside to rescue her mother, then tracked Sage down and they came inside together.
While the twins babbled to their grandmother, Fin sat on the sofa and pulled Rook into his lap.
“You’re the sexiest mom here.”
She beamed at him and they spent the next few minutes canoodling until the kids interrupted.
“Can we have cake now?” they asked in unison.
“Absolutely,” Rook said. “Go back outside and we’ll bring it out in a second.”
“No more kissing,” said Jade.
“Or you’ll forget,” said Sage.
“Our cunning plan is ruined!” Fin said. He gave Rook one more deliberate kiss. The girls ran back outside when he and Rook went into the kitchen to retrieve the two small cakes, each with five candles.
After Happy Birthday was sung, the candles blown out, and the cakes devoured, the children returned to their games and the adults to their conversations.
Rook reassured a very pregnant Lara and her girlfriend Anne that it was okay to ask for drugs during her imminent labor, but Lara seemed dubious.
Bishop and his girlfriend Abbey debated the finer points of Tarantino’s oeuvre with a Montessori dad.
Marsh hoisted his son Nick up on his shoulders, making him the tallest toddler in the world. He joined Rainbow and Willow explaining to one of the Montessori moms the work they did at the Technology Education Foundation, providing enrichment programs and tutoring in the sciences.
This newest incarnation of the TEF was flourishing under Brad’s financial stewardship, and it allowed Rook to flex her literary muscles and draw a paycheck writing promotional materials and press releases part-time while she worked on her acupuncture license. Fin himself was in charge of their website in addition to being a project manager at Binary Images.
Darkness closed in and the guests took their leave, exhausted pre-schoolers in tow.
Fin scooped his daughters up, one in each arm, and carried them to their bedroom. He and Rook tucked them in and closed the door.
“They’re growing up so fast,” Rook said. “In no time they’ll move out and we’ll be all alone.”
Fin said, “Whatever will we do with ourselves?” as he lifted her and took her to bed.
About the Author
Rune Skelley lives in a northeastern college town, and works as a web developer and small business owner. Two jobs, marriage, and raising two sons did not quite account for every waking moment, so Rune took up fiction writing to fill the hole where a social life should be.
Fun fact: Rune Skelley has 20 fingers and 20 toes, but doesn’t type any faster than you do.
For a sneak peek at new novels, free stories, and other goodies, join the email list at: runeskelley.com/shrugging-lessons
Rune strives to set aside time every day to answer messages from readers. Say hey at heyrune@runeskelley.com
Warning: Spoilers
I Get It. You Have Questions.
This massive, spoilerific, centuries-spanning, color-coded family tree has answers
— just save it until after you’ve read the book!
Dying to trace the many braided limbs of Fin and Rook’s family tree? The simple version at the front of this book is just a tease. If you want all the scandalous details, you’ll have to download the full Divided Man Family Tree.
Available exclusively to my readers group, free for a limited time.
Sign up for the author’s readers group and receive a free copy of the Divided Man Family Tree.
Visit runeskelley.com/family-tree
Table of Contents
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Series
Offer
Previously
Prophesy
Tanner Family Tree
Part 1
Chapter One - The Frigid Night
Chapter Two - Mystical Glass Kingdom
Chapter Three - A Former Motel
Chapter Four - Alleyway at Night
Chapter Five - Secret Dream Journal
Chapter Six - Bubbles of Light
Chapter Seven - No More Secrets
Chapter Eight - The Affected Area
Chapter Nine - Buckminster University Library
Chapter Ten - In the Tower
Chapter Eleven - Threshold House Infirmary
Chapter Twelve - Grainy Squiggly Confusion
Part 2
Chapter Thirteen - Mid-Century Modern
Chapter Fourteen - Into the Storm
Chapter Fifteen - The Upstairs Room
Chapter Sixteen - Green Glass Pyramid
Chapter Seventeen - Garden of Eden
Chapter Eighteen - Affront to Reason
Chapter Nineteen - They're Just Horses
Chapter Twenty - An Incomplete Set
Chapter Twenty-One - Crossing the Threshold
Chapter Twenty-Two - Tie-Dye Fire
Chapter Twenty-Three - Rook of Rooks
Chapter Twenty-Four - The Back Yard
Abo
ut the Author
Expanded Family Tree Offer