Chromosome 6

by Robin Cook

“Sounds like a good idea to me,” Melanie said. “Do you know his name?”

  “Alphonse Kimba,” Kevin said.

  When they reached the native village, they pulled to a stop in front of the busy general store and got out. Kevin went inside to inquire after the pygmy.

  “This place is almost too charming,” Candace said as she looked around the neighborhood. “It looks African but like something you’d see in Disneyland.”

  GenSys had built the village with the cooperation of the Equatoguinean Minister of the Interior. The homes were circular, whitewashed mud brick with thatched roofs. Corrals for domestic animals were made of reed mats lashed to wooden stakes. The structures appeared traditional, but every one of them was new and spotless. They also had electricity and running water. Buried underground were powerlines and modern sewers.

  Kevin returned quickly. “No problem,” he said. “He lives close by. Come on, we’ll walk.”

  The village was alive with men, women, and children. Traditional cooking fires were in the process of being lit. Everyone acted happy and friendly from having been recently freed from the captivity of the interminable rainy season.

  Alphonse Kimba was less than five feet tall with skin as black as onyx. A constant smile dominated his wide, flat face as he welcomed his unexpected visitors. He tried to introduce his wife and child, but they were shy and shrunk back into the shadows.

  Alphonse invited his guests to sit on a reed mat. He then got four glasses and poured a dollop of clear fluid into each from an old green bottle that had at one time contained motor oil.

  His visitors warily swirled the fluid. They didn’t want to seem ungrateful, but they were reluctant to drink.

  “Alcohol?” Kevin asked.

  “Oh, yes!” Alphonse said. His smile broadened. “It is lotoko from corn. Very good! I bring it from my home in Lomako.” He sipped with intense enjoyment. In contrast to the Equatoguineans, Alphonse’s English was accented with French, not Spanish. He was a member of the Mongandu people from Zaire. He’d been brought to the Zone with the first shipment of bonobos.

  Since the drink contained alcohol, which would presumably kill potential microorganisms, the guests cautiously tasted the brew. All of them made faces in spite of good intentions not to do so. The drink was powerfully pungent.

  Kevin explained that they had come to ask about the bonobos on the island. He didn’t mention his concern that their number included a strain of protohumans. He asked only if Alphonse thought they were acting like bonobos back in his home province in Zaire.

  “They are all very young,” Alphonse said. “So they are very unruly and wild.”

  “Do you go on the island often?” Kevin asked.

  “No, I am forbidden,” Alphonse said. “Only when we retrieve or release, and only then with Dr. Edwards.”

  “How do you get the extra food to the island?” Melanie asked.

  “There is a small float,” Alphonse said. “I pull it across the water with a rope, then pull it back.”

  “Are the bonobos aggressive with the food or do they share?” Melanie asked.

  “Very aggressive,” Alphonse said. “They fight like crazy, especially for the fruit. I also saw one kill a monkey.”

  “Why?” Kevin asked.

  “I think to eat,” Alphonse said. “He carried it away after the food I brought was all gone.”

  “That sounds more like a chimp,” Melanie said to Kevin.

  Kevin nodded. “Where on the island have the retrievals taken place?” he asked.

  “All have been on this side of the lake and stream,” Alphonse said.

  “None have been over by the cliff?” Kevin asked.

  “No, never,” Alphonse said.

  “How do you get to the island for the retrieval?” Kevin asked. “Does everybody use the float?”

  Alphonse laughed heartily. He had to dry his eyes with his knuckle. “The float is too small. We’d all be supper for the crocs. We use the bridge.”

  “Why don’t you use the bridge for the food?” Melanie asked.

  “Because Dr. Edwards has to make the bridge grow,” Alphonse said.

  “Grow?” Melanie questioned.

  “Yes,” Alphonse said.

  The three guests exchanged glances. They were confused.

  “Have you seen any fire on the island?” Kevin asked, changing the subject.

  “No fire,” Alphonse said. “But I’ve seen smoke.”

  “And what did you think?” Kevin asked.

  “Me?” Alphonse questioned. “I didn’t think anything.”

  “Have you ever seen one of the bonobos do this?” Candace asked. She opened and closed her fingers then swept her hand away from her body in imitation of the bonobo in the operating room.

  “Yes,” Alphonse said. “Many do that when they finish dividing up the food.”

  “How about noise?” Melanie asked. “Do they make a lot of sounds?”

  “A lot,” Alphonse said.

  “Like the bonobos back in Zaire?” Kevin asked.

  “More,” Alphonse said. “But back in Zaire I don’t see the same bonobos so often as I do here, and I don’t feed them. Back home they get their own food in the jungle.”

  “What kind of noise do they make?” Candace asked. “Can you give us an example.”

  Alphonse laughed self-consciously. He glanced around at his wife to make sure she wasn’t listening. Then he softly vocalized: “Eeee, ba da, loo loo, tad tat.” He laughed again. He was embarrassed.

  “Do they hoot like chimps?” Melanie asked.

  “Some,” Alphonse said.

  The guests looked at each other. They’d run out of questions for the moment. Kevin got up. The women did the same. They thanked Alphonse for his hospitality and handed back their unfinished drinks. If Alphonse was offended, he didn’t show it. His smile didn’t falter.

  “There’s one other thing,” Alphonse said just before his guests departed. “The bonobos on the island like to show off. Whenever they come for the food, they make themselves stand up.”

  “All the time?” Kevin asked.

  “Mostly,” Alphonse said.

  The group walked back through the village to the car. They didn’t talk until Kevin had started the motor.

  “Well, what do you guys think?” Kevin asked. “Should we continue? The sun’s already set.”

  “I vote yes,” Melanie said. “We’ve come this far.”

  “I agree,” Candace said. “I’m curious to see this bridge that grows.”

  Melanie laughed. “Me, too. What a charming fellow.”

  Kevin drove away from the store, which was now busier than earlier. But he wasn’t sure of his direction. The road into the village had simply expanded into the parking area for the store, and there was no indication of the track leading further east. To find it, he had to cruise the parking lot’s perimeter.

  Once on the track, they were impressed with how much easier it had been to travel on the improved road. The track was narrow, bumpy, and muddy. Grass about three feet tall grew down the median strip. Frequently branches stretched from one side to the other, slapping against the windshield and poking through the open windows. To avoid being hit by the snapping branches, they had to raise the windows. Kevin clicked on the air conditioner and the lights. The beams reflected off the surrounding vegetation and gave the impression of driving through a tunnel.

  “How far do we have to go on this cow path?” Melanie asked.

  “Only three or four miles,” Kevin said.

  “It’s a good thing we have four-wheel drive,” Candace remarked. She was holding on tightly to the overhead strap and still bouncing around. The seat belt wasn’t helping. “The last thing I’d want to do is get stuck out here.” She glanced out the side window at the inky black jungle and shivered. It was eerie. She couldn’t see a thing despite patches of luminous sky above. And then there was the noise. Just during their short visit with Alphonse, the night creatures of the jungle had comm
enced their loud and monotonous chorus.

  “What did you make of the things Alphonse said?” Kevin asked finally.

  “I’d say the jury is still out,” Melanie said. “But they’re certainly deliberating.”

  “I think his comment about the bonobos being bipedal when they come to get the food is very disturbing,” Kevin said. “The circumstantial evidence is adding up.”

  “The suggestion that they are communicating impressed me,” Candace said.

  “Yeah, but chimps and gorillas have been taught sign language,” Melanie said. “And we know bonobos are more bipedal than any other apes. What impressed me was the aggressive behavior, although I stand by my idea that it might be from our mistake not to have produced more females to maintain the balance.”

  “Can chimps make those sounds that Alphonse imitated?” Candace asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Kevin said. “And that’s an important point. It suggests maybe their larynges are different.”

  “Do chimps really kill monkeys?” Candace asked.

  “They do occasionally,” Melanie said. “But I’ve never heard of a bonobo doing so.”

  “Hang on!” Kevin shouted as he braked.

  The car lurched over a log strewn across the track.

  “Are you okay?” he asked Candace, while glancing up into the rearview mirror.

  “No problem,” Candace said, although she’d been severely jolted. Luckily the seat belt had worked, and it had kept her head from hitting the roof.

  Kevin slowed considerably for fear of encountering another log. Fifteen minutes later, they entered a clearing which marked the termination of the track. Kevin came to a halt. Directly ahead the headlight beams washed the front of a single-story cinder-block building with an overhead garage door.

  “Is this it?” Melanie questioned.

  “I guess,” Kevin said. “The building is new to me.”

  Kevin switched off the lights and the engine. With the clearing open to the sky the level of illumination was adequate. For a moment no one moved.

  “What’s the story?” Kevin asked. “Are we going to check it out or what?”

  “Might as well,” Melanie said. “We’ve come this far.” She opened her door and got out. Kevin did the same.

  “I think I’ll stay in the car,” Candace said.

  Kevin went to the building and tried the door. It was locked. He shrugged. “I can’t imagine what’s in there.” Kevin slapped a mosquito on his forehead.

  “How do we get to the island?” Melanie asked.

  Kevin pointed to the right. “There’s a track over there. It’s only about fifty yards to the water’s edge.”

  Melanie glanced up at the sky. It was a pale lavender. “It’s going to be dark pretty soon. Do you have a flashlight in the car?”

  “I think so,” Kevin said. “More important, I have some mosquito spray. We’re going to get eaten alive out here unless we use it.”

  They went back to the car. Just as they arrived, Candace climbed out.

  “I can’t stay in here by myself,” she said. “It’s too spooky.”

  Kevin got the mosquito spray. While the women doused themselves, he searched for the flashlight. He found it in the glove compartment.

  After spraying himself, Kevin motioned for the women to follow him. “Stay close,” he said. “The crocodiles and the hippos come out of the water at night.”

  “Is he joking?” Candace asked Melanie.

  “I don’t think so,” Melanie said.

  As soon as they entered the path, the illumination fell considerably although it was still light enough to walk without the flashlight. Kevin led while the two women crowded behind. The closer they got to the water the louder the chorus of insects and frogs became.

  “How did I get myself into this?” Candace questioned. “I’m no outdoors person. I can’t even conceive of a crocodile or a hippo outside of a zoo. Hell, any bug bigger than my thumbnail terrifies me, and spiders, forget it.”

  All of the sudden, there was a crashing noise off to the left. Candace let out a muffled scream, as she grabbed Melanie who then did likewise. Kevin whimpered and switched on the light. He pointed the beam in the direction of the noise, but it only penetrated a few feet.

  “What was that?” Candace demanded when she could find her voice.

  “Probably a duiker,” Kevin said. “They’re a small breed of antelope.”

  “Antelope or elephant,” Candace said. “It scared me.”

  “It scared me, too,” Kevin said. “Maybe we should go back and return in the daytime.”

  “We’ve come all this way, for crissake,” Melanie said. “We’re there. I can hear the water.”

  For a moment no one moved. Sure enough, they could hear water lapping against the shore.

  “What happened to all the night creatures?” Candace asked.

  “Good question,” Kevin said. “The antelope must have scared them as well.”

  “Turn the light off,” Melanie said.

  As soon as Kevin did, they all could see the shimmering surface of the water through the vegetation. It looked like liquid silver.

  Melanie led the way as the chorus of night creatures recommenced. The path opened up into another clearing at the edge of the river. In the middle of the clearing was a dark object almost the size of the garage back where they’d left the car. Kevin walked up to it. It wasn’t hard to figure out what it was: it was the bridge.

  “It’s a telescoping mechanism,” Kevin said. “That’s why Alphonse said that it could grow.”

  About thirty feet across the water was Isla Francesca. In the fading light, its dense vegetation appeared midnight-blue. Directly across from the telescoping bridge was a concrete structure that served as the support for the bridge when it was extended. Beyond that was an expansive clearing that extended to the east.

  “Try extending the bridge,” Melanie suggested.

  Kevin switched on the flashlight. He found the control panel. There were two buttons: one red, the other green. He pushed the red one. When nothing happened, he pushed the green. When there still wasn’t a reaction, he noticed a keyhole with the slot aligned with OFF.

  “You need a key,” he called.

  Melanie and Candace had walked over to the water’s edge.

  “There’s a bit of current,” Melanie said. Leaves and other debris floated by slowly.

  Candace looked up. The top branches of some of the trees that lined either bank almost touched. “Why do the creatures stay on the island?” she asked.

  “Apes and monkeys don’t go in the water, particularly deep water,” Melanie explained. “That’s why zoos only need a moat for their primate exhibits.”

  “What about crossing in the trees?” Candace asked.

  Kevin joined the women at the riverbank. “The bonobos are relatively heavy fellows,” he explained, “particularly ours. Most of them are already over a hundred pounds, and the branches up there aren’t nearly strong enough to support their weight. Back before we put the first animals on the island, there were a couple of questionable places so those trees were cut down. But colobus monkeys still go back and forth.”

  “What are all those square objects in the field?” Melanie asked.

  Kevin shined the flashlight. Its beam wasn’t strong enough to make much difference at that distance. He turned it off and squinted in the half light. “They look like transport cages from the animal center,” he said.

  “I wonder what they are doing out there?” Melanie asked. “There’re so many of them.”

  “No idea,” Kevin said.

  “How can we get some of the bonobos to appear?” Candace asked.

  “By this time they’re probably settling down for the night,” Kevin said. “I doubt if we can.”

  “What about the float?” Melanie asked. “The mechanism that pulls it across must be like a clothesline. If it makes noise, they might hear it. It would be like a dinner bell and might bring them around.�
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  “Guess it’s worth a try,” Kevin said. He glanced up and down the water’s edge. “Trouble is, we don’t have any idea where the float may be.”

  “I can’t imagine it would be far,” Melanie said. “You go east, I’ll go west.”

  Kevin and Melanie walked in opposite directions. Candace stayed were she was, wishing she were back in her room in the hospital quarters.

  “Here it is!” Melanie called out. She’d followed a path in the dense foliage for a short distance before coming to a pulley attached to a thick tree. A heavy rope hung around the pulley. One end disappeared into the water. The other end was tied to a four-foot square float nestled against the shore.

  Kevin and Candace joined her. Kevin shined the flashlight across to the island. On the other side a similar pulley was attached to a similar tree.

  Kevin handed the flashlight to Melanie and grasped the rope that drooped into the water. When he pulled, he could see the pulley on the other side swing out from the trunk of the tree.

  Kevin pulled on the rope hand over hand. The pulleys complained bitterly with high-pitched squeaking noises. The float immediately moved away from the shore on its way to the other side.

  “This might work,” Kevin said. While he pulled, Melanie swept the other shore with the flashlight beam. When the float was halfway across, there was a loud splash to their right as a large object dropped into the water from the island.

  Melanie shined the light in the direction of the splash. Two glowing slits of light reflected back from the surface of the water. Peering at them was a large crocodile.

  “Good lord!” Candace said as she stepped back from the water.

  “It’s okay,” Kevin said. He let go of the rope, reached down and picked up a stout stick. He threw the stick at the croc. With another loud splash the crocodile disappeared beneath the water.

  “Oh, great!” Candace said. “Now we have no idea where he is.”

  “He’s gone,” Kevin said. “They’re not dangerous unless you’re in the water or they’re very hungry.”

  “Who’s to say he’s not hungry?” Candace commented.

  “There’s plenty for them to eat out here,” Kevin said as he picked up the rope and recommenced pulling. When the float reached the other side, he switched ropes and started pulling it back.