Wild Girl of Chernobyl

by Thomas Porter

  Time for them to give me food. That frightened boy in the corner wearing something over his eyes like he always does. That thing next to him with the tiny light. He loves that thing so much. That cold, confused, sad woman behind me, facing away from me so I cannot look into her eyes. But there are two more of them now, in front of me. They are afraid.

  Helle turned around and stared at the back of Janice's head, then back to the table. Each time she turned, her dirty black hair flipped across her forehead.

  Where is my food?

  She spun back around and pulled violently on her chains. Janice stood motionless, she had experienced Wild Girl's behavior before, but the students across the room both jerked backward.

  "Can you smell the bread in my pocket, Wild Girl? No matter. We'll figure out that one later," Janice said to the wall. Then louder and in a sterner tone, she spoke to Rebecca and Rob, "Don't move. She can't hurt you."

  Helle spun back around and looked directly at the students across from her for the first time.

  If you are here, I get no food? Is that your new game?

  She pulled up on the chain and it jerked up against the mounting ring. Rebecca Quarry pressed down on the floor with her feet and lifted herself suddenly from the chair. While still staring at Helle, Rob Counsel reached out with his right hand and pulled Rebecca back down.

  Two more people who want to chain me down and watch.

  Helle spun back again to Janice, who reached out to her front and steadied herself against the door. She lifted up on the chains binding her hands. The table lifted six inches from the floor until the chain binding her feet to the table leg was pulled taught. She let the table drop. Rebecca jerked backward again. She pushed her chin into her chest and closed her eyes. Rob's bottom lip extended slightly and his teeth clenched. He looked to his left and whispered, “You have to open your eyes. That's part of the deal.”

  I am hungry!

  With her chin still pressed down, Rebecca opened her eyes and looked up at the dirty, wild animal across the table.

  Helle lifted and dropped the table again.

  That scares you? Good. You get me food or I'll do something that will do more than scare you.

  Helle's eyes suddenly grabbed Rebecca's and the room became silent. Rebecca's body relaxed and her chin lifted away from her chest, as if by pulled up by an invisible hand.

  “Rebecca?” Rob Counsel asked. He looked at her, then to Janice, then to Bradford in the corner. “Hey! What's going on?” he asked and began to raise himself from his chair. Suddenly, Helle's head jerked to her right, like a clock hand counting off another second. Rob looked at her, then dropped back into the chair like a lifeless doll. The chair skidded back several inches and the scraping noise filled the room. His head fell onto his left shoulder but his eyes did not leave Helle's. Helle's head then swiveled again to Bradford, who sat on the edge of his seat on the corner, resting his hand lightly on the camera to his right.

  Take those things off your eyes and I'll make you unchain me.

  Rob and Rebecca followed the movement of Helle's eyes as if they were connected by kite string. Rob's arms dropped limply toward the floor and a puddle of urine appeared under his chair. Rebecca leaned forward and unconsciously reached out to support herself against the table.

  Janice's right hand pulled a small round mirror from the right pocket of her lab coat. She held it close to her right thigh, tilted it back slightly and searched the room until she found Rob and Rebecca's slack jaws and vacant stares. From her left pocket she pulled the black polyester hood. She slipped the mirror back into her pocket and pulled out a single slice of white bread in a fold-top sandwich bag. With both hands, she opened the hood to its fullest extent, took two steps backward, swung around suddenly, and tossed the piece of bread toward the table in front of Helle. Helle's head swung away from Bradford and watched the bread arc toward the table and land. At the same moment, Janice slipped the hood over Wild Girl's head.

  Helle plucked the bread from the sandwich bag with her left hand and lifted it until the chain snapped taught. She leaned forward, slipped the bread under the hood, and stuffed it into her mouth. As she chewed, Janice walked quickly to the other side of the table, grabbed Rob and Rebecca's upper arms, and lifted. Both students looked up at her blankly but stood up and followed as Janice pulled them through the door behind them. Bradford pushed the duct-tape covered safety goggles onto his forehead and pulled a plastic bag stuffed with 4 slices of bread and two hotdogs from the backpack. He stood up and slowly walked to within three feet of Helle. He tossed the bag onto the table in front of her and she silently reached into it and grabbed another slice of bread. As she chewed, Bradford retreated to the backpack. Without taking his eyes off of the black hood covering Helle's head, he reached backward into the backpack and retrieved a one liter plastic bottle of water. Helle momentarily stopped chewing when he twisted the cap open. When her chewing resumed, Bradford approached to within 3 feet of the table. He leaned forward and placed the bottle onto the table at a 45 degree angle. He released it. As it tipped to a standing position and tottered side-to-side, he hurried out the door on his side of the room, leaving Helle alone.

  Chapter 3

  Ninety minutes later, Rob Counsel walked into Dr. Jameson's second floor office. It was split into two rooms, a front working space dominated by a rectangular, black-topped lab table and lined with messy built-in book shelves, and a rear room for Dr. Jameson's desk. Janice, who was sitting at the table, stood up when he entered and walked to him.

  She pointed to the bottom of his untucked shirt and said, "Got yourself cleaned up, I see."

  "Thank you for your concern," he said. Irwin, also sitting at the table, laughed.

  "Heard about today's success. Too bad I had class. Would have loved to see it," Irwin said.

  "Can I see the tape, see how stupid I look," Rob said.

  Bradford, who was leaning against the doorway leading into the rear desk area, said, "Forget it. Irwin pissed himself first time he met Wild Girl in Pripyat. That's her favorite thing."

  "What's her favorite thing?" Irwin asked.

  "Making people piss their pants," Bradford said and chuckled.

  "Did you watch it yet?" Rob asked.

  "I did," Janice said as she sat back down.

  "Well?"

  "I'm waiting for Rebecca. Should be here any minute," Janice said.

  “Can I ask about the blindfolds? How'd you figure that out?”

  Janice answered. “Right away, we knew she could control us. I mean, that was extremely obvious. You don't need to ask what that feels like. Scary. We're sure control is through direct eye contact. But what's really interesting is, I'm pretty sure she can control you without eye contact, as long as she makes eye contact first. Almost like, I don't know, like direct eye contact is how she gets into your brain. But once she's in, she's in. Kind of like, if you're gonna connect to wifi you've got to be in the same room as the router to establish that connection, but once the connection is made you can move around and the connection remains, as long as you're in range. We're going to study that more in a little bit.”

  Dr. Jameson, leaning against a bookshelf in the corner and nearly forgotten by Janice, shifted his weight but his facial expression remained frozen, unreadable.

  “Why didn't she keep controlling us then?” Rob asked.

  “No offense, but she was apparently more interested in the bread than you,” Janice said.

  "What's with her clothes?" Rob asked.

  “You mean lack of clothes?” Irwin asked with a smile. “You noticed that, did you?”

  "Anything we put on her, she just tears off. I quit trying last week. In fact, I had to lower the temperature in her room so she'd keep quiet. She doesn't like anything above 60," Janice said. “Anyway, why do you think she needs clothes?”

  “I'm just saying,” Rob said.

  Rebecca, wearing the sam
e black pants and the same rugby shirt she wore during her encounter with Helle, arrived several minutes later. "Hey, Dr. Jameson," she said.

  Rob said, "Let's get this over with, okay?"

  Dr. Jameson, still in the corner, nodded and Bradford pushed PLAY. For the next several minutes, all stared at the screen as Helle jerked her head from person to person, slammed the table, and finally settled into eating her bread. As they watched, Janice scribbled on her legal pad.

  "Awesome," Rob said after the screen turned blue.

  "Isn't she?" Janice said.

  Bradford said, "The other cameras in the room show the same thing, just different angles."

  Dr. Jameson stepped toward the table and broke his silence. To Rebecca and Rob, he said, "Alright guys, I'll let your professors know how much help you've been. Thanks again," and looked at the door.

  Rob stood up and Rebecca said, "Are you going to need me again?"

  "Probably not. At this point, I don't want Wild Girl to fall into any relationship patterns," Janice said. "You've provided very useful data and I appreciate it."

  Dr. Jameson said, “No, we won't be needing you again but thank you very much. I'll get those notes to your professors this afternoon.”

  Janice looked at Dr. Jameson and her face darkened.

  "What about her health?" Rebecca asked.

  "What about her health?" Janice replied.

  "I mean, is she seeing a doctor or anything?"

  "Just a physical exam while she's sedated. But you can see she's perfectly healthy. Dr. Jameson and I are arranging a complete physical at the med school but it's tricky. We've got to figure out how to examine her without, you know, getting held by her," Janice said.

  "Held?" Rebecca asked.

  "Like she did with you."

  "I see. What about the baby?"

  "What baby?" Janice asked.

  "Her baby."

  Janice glanced at Dr. Jameson, who lifted himself to a standing position, and said, "She didn't have a baby. We would have seen it."

  "What do you mean, 'would have seen it'?" Rebecca asked.

  "In Pripyat. We were in her room, her lair, and there was no baby."

  "Not in the Ukraine," Rebecca replied. "I mean her baby now. Didn't you know? She's pregnant."

  Chapter 4

  Janice stared at Rebecca in silence. Bradford, still leaning in the doorway, stood up and Irwin, sitting at the table, caught his eye.

  After several seconds, Rebecca's expression turned to confusion. She looked at Rob.

  “I've got class. You coming?” he asked.

  “Okay. See you guys later. Let me know if you need anymore help. It was scary, but I had fun. Really.” With that, Rebecca and Rob left.

  “Gentlemen, can you give us the room,” Dr. Jameson said to Irwin and Bradford.

  “How can she possibly be pregnant?” Irwin asked.

  “Don't look at me,” Bradford said.

  “What's that supposed to mean?” Janice said with an angry look.

  “It doesn't mean anything. I'm joking.”

  “Bad joke,” Dr. Jameson said.

  “Sorry?” Bradford replied and shrugged his shoulders.

  “Can you two give us some privacy? Janice and I need to talk,” Dr. Jameson said. Irwin looked over at Bradford and gestured toward the door with his eyes. As they left, Irwin asked, “You need us same time tomorrow, right?”

  “Yes, same time tomorrow,” Janice said and the two undergraduate assistants left the office.

  “You have news?” Janice asked.

  “You know there's news to tell?” he asked in return.

  “I know you told the board my study was going badly, that I've got this fall semester to finish up.”

  “Is that what you think? That you've got the rest of the fall?” Dr. Jameson said.

  “What do you mean, 'Is that what you think?'” Janice asked. She pushed herself up in the chair almost imperceptibly. “What else do you have to say?”

  “I say your study is going remarkably well,” Dr. Jameson said. “I told them that. This is a unique opportunity and the fact you have Wild Girl here is...remarkable. How you got her here, that's another story. But I've read your notes and watched your sessions.”

  Suddenly, Janice sat upright in her chair. “You're cutting funding, aren't you? You never did want me to succeed. But I can't finish everything in one semester. You've seen that girl. She is what's remarkable here! She is...remarkable! I can't do her justice in a paper I throw together in eight weeks!”

  Dr. Jameson raised his voice but, through great effort, did not shout. “It's worse than that, Janice. Your grant funds are gone already. You've been going top dollar on everything. Hotels, restaurants, equipment. That grant money was not intended for you to replace your wardrobe and bribe every government official you came in contact with. You should have known that, expected this. The account is empty. You're using university funds now, did you know that? The CFO said no more vouchers after this week without approval from the board and you know that'll never happen. Unless you want to use your own money, your study is done as of Thursday.”

  “Are you joking? Thursday? Did you even hear what Rebecca just said? Pregnant!”

  “I heard that, but that doesn't change what we've worked out.”

  Janice pushed herself out of the chair. “Worked out? What have you worked out with that cabal of white males on your precious 'board'?” she yelled.

  “Child Protective Services will be here Friday morning. They've already been contacted.”

  “She's not a child! Haven't you been paying attention? She's a remarkable woman. A person,” Janice said with an incredulous look.

  “Did you know the university has retained an attorney?” Dr. Jameson said as he crossed his arms. “Two attorneys, actually. Four hundred per hour each.”

  “For what?”

  “The way you got Wild Girl here was highly, highly irregular. Do you think LSU is going to take a fall over that, so you can keep burning through their money?”

  “You're not paying for lawyers with my grant!”

  “I don't think you heard me, Janice. There is no money left in your grant to pay any lawyer. The university is paying. Has to pay.”

  “You can't do this!” Janice said, yelling again.

  “It's not me who did that, Janice. It's you. Go back and add up your vouchers. The grant is gone. The money is gone.”

  Janice supported herself with both hands on the table. Her chin involuntarily pitched toward Dr. Jameson and she stared at him with hateful eyes. As suddenly as she sat upright in her chair moments before, Janice lifted her hands from the table and walked out of the office.

  “Friday morning, Janice,” Dr. Jameson said loudly as she entered the hallway.

  Chapter 5

  Why are you here?

  Helle, curled in a ball under the simple wood bed in her room, awoke with a start and opened her eyes. The windowless room was dark. She effortlessly pulled herself onto the carpet next to the bed and stopped in a crouch.

  Just outside the door, Janice reached up to one of the three duct-tape covered safety goggles hanging from a nail. She, Irwin, and Bradford used them to retrieve Wild Girl each morning for her feeding. Her hand touched the goggles and she stopped.

  Where are the other two?

  Janice felt a slight pressure inside her head as she lifted the goggles, put them on her forehead, and pulled the strap behind her head. She punched the five-digit code on the door lock, pushed it open, squeezed her eyelids closed and walked in.

  From her crouched position, Wild Girl watched Janice enter. She stared at Janice's eyelids for a second before tilting her head and looking around at the still-open door.

  Janice pulled the goggles down over her eyes, reached back with her left hand, and gently pushed the door closed. She took two steps forward. Helle shifted from her right leg to her left and her eyes ret
urned to Janice.

  Where are my wolves? You put me in that small box. Now I can't hear them.

  Janice took two more steps forward and swung her right hand side to side in front of her, waist height. It brushed the top of Helle's head and she let it rest there. After several seconds, Helle shook her head and Janice's hand fell back to her side.

  I know you miss your wolves, Janice thought. I regret taking you from them.

  You regret. What good does that do now?

  Janice thought, I can't take you back to them, and I can't bring them here. They are gone to you now, forever.

  They are dead.

  Dead? How do you know?

  You killed them and didn't care, Helle thought.

  I'm sorry. I didn't know.

  Helle replied, You weren't sorry then, and you did know. Now they're dead. Where are those two others who helped you?

  Don't worry about those two little boys, Janice thought. They work for me. It was only me who took you.

  It looked like they took me too.

  Janice responded, They are just boys. Worthless men. I am the only one who knows what is best.

  Why are you here?

  Under the goggles, Janice squeezed her eyelids closed. She lifted her left hand and rested it on top of Helle's head. Helle remained still. Janice then brought her right hand up to the goggles, lifted them up and over her head, and dropped them to the floor. Still squeezing her eyelids closed tightly, she leaned over and put her face close to Helle's. In response, Helle tilted her face up and for several moments stared at Janice's closed eyelids.

  Open your eyes.

  I'm afraid.

  Open your eyes.

  I'm afraid.

  Don't be.

  Slowly, Janice released the pressure holding her eyelids closed. Her cheeks dropped slightly and her eyes opened to slits. The room was dark but she could see the light, oval outline of Helle's face tilted up toward hers.

  Helle thought, Your mother was thinking of you when she died.

  How do you know? I wasn't with her when she died.

  I know.

  Janice asked, How did you come to be alone?

  What?

  You were alone in Pripyat. Where did your mother go? Why didn't she take you when the city was abandoned?

  Your mother left you. My mother left me. She left me but I don't think she wanted to. I think she loved me but then she was gone. My father was gone. Everyone. The only ones left to love me were my wolves.