The Eve Genome

by Joanne Brothwell

  I had no reason to trust Kalan, other than the feeling that we had a connection due to our odd genetic makeup. But I also had a deep-seated gut sense that he was good, a feeling I knew to the root of my bones was absolutely true.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  Kalan drove his white Acura Integra with rapid reflexes and tight precision. “My brother, Marcus, my twin.”

  The word twin caused a zap of sensation in my ribcage. Like my heart was hit by lightning. “You have a twin, too?” This was either very coincidental or very creepy. I wasn’t sure which.

  “Yes, but we didn’t grow up together,” Kalan said. “In fact, we didn’t meet until we were both fifteen.”

  Why would twins be separated? I couldn’t imagine a worse fate, having been separated from Analiese all those years. It would have been like having a phantom limb. I suddenly felt gratitude for the years I’d had with my sister. I blinked back tears.

  Kalan explained before I had to ask the obvious. “Marcus and I were given up at birth. Our biological mother relinquished all of her parental rights.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said.

  Kalan shrugged. “It is what it is.”

  Silence followed this disclosure. Finally, I spoke. “Have you been with the same family all of these years?”

  Kalan nodded. “Yeah, they’re the only parents I’ve ever known and they’ve been very good to me. But Marcus and I are looking for our birth mother. She was apparently here in Stonewood the last time she was seen.”

  “The last time she was seen?” I asked.

  “She was sketchy.” Kalan’s fist tightened around the steering wheel. His knuckles could be seen though his pale skin like it was transparent shrink wrap. “She’s had a few pseudonyms over the years, first it was Janet Kaar, then Jennifer Robinson. When she lived in Stonewood, she was known as Jenna or Jeannie Wright. Have you ever heard of her?”

  “No, sorry,” I said. “Do you have any leads?”

  Kalan shook his head and looked directly at me. “None. All I know are those names and the fact that her hair was black, she has blue-green eyes and… she has an extra rib.”

  I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach. “An extra rib?”

  Kalan nodded, his gaze fixed on my face. He glanced back at the road.

  “I have an extra rib. And so did my sister.”

  A wave of emotion passed through Kalan’s expression, an emotion I couldn’t identify. “I knew it.”

  Were we related? How likely was it that his mother had the same anomaly that Analiese and I had? “You knew what?” I asked.

  Kalan smiled. “Marcus and I were right. You have all of the genetic markers. The blood, the eyes, the rib. More pieces of the puzzle.”

  “Do I have something to do with your mother?” I asked. “Are we related or something?”

  Kalan shrugged. “Not exactly. We have the same blood type. But as far as I know, we aren’t directly related. You, Marcus and I do have a common ancestor.”

  “What do you mean a common ancestor? A grandfather?”

  “I mean a common ancestor, from two hundred thousand years ago,” Kalan said.

  This was the same information the geneticists at NHGRI told me. “How do you know our ancestor is from two hundred thousand years ago?” I asked.

  “I’ve been through the same blood analysis that you have,” Kalan said. “I’ve been to the Human Genome Research Institute. Marcus and I both have.”

  Two sets of twins with an unknown blood type. What were the odds? “I have so many questions right now I don’t know where to start. How did you end up at NHGRI?”

  “Marcus’s parents found out. I lived in foster care all these years, but Marcus was adopted. His adoptive parents were very controlling and… odd, but I’ll tell you about them later. They wanted to stockpile his blood because they worried he might need it later, if he got sick or injured. Anyway, when they began the process, they learned his blood didn’t quite fit into slot A or B.”

  “When did you find out?” I asked.

  “Luckily nothing ever happened that required my needing to give or receive blood. I didn’t find out until after I’d met Marcus,” Kalan said. Kalan rounded a corner onto a ramp that led to a huge overpass. I could suddenly see traffic from all directions, cars and cars for miles, all determinedly going somewhere. Where in the hell were we going?

  “How did you meet Marcus?”

  Kalan sucked in a breath. “His parents were very uptight, as I mentioned before. They treated Marcus like he was some kind of porcelain doll, one that they wanted to be handsome and perfect, but not have any needs. Most people would assume I was the one who would have had a difficult childhood, since I never left the foster system, but I was the fortunate one. Marcus’s parents were really quite abusive. If he’d been born in the Victorian era, it may have been common to have the children will be seen and not heard mentality, but not now. Marcus ended up angry, resentful and self-absorbed.” Kalan turned to me. “I’m getting to your answer, just bear with me a moment.” I nodded. “Because his parents, Martha and George, were so controlling, they were adamant to know every aspect to Marcus’s upbringing. Our mother apparently tried to keep the information about our being twins as hush-hush as she could, but hospitals have records and so do state departments. They found out about me and where I lived, and when Marcus was old enough, they arranged for him to meet me.”

  “God. That must have been amazing, to find out you weren’t alone, that you had a biological twin?”

  Kalan chuckled, a hapless sound. “You would think so, wouldn’t you? But no. Unfortunately, Marcus and I were unable to… connect. You’ll see when you meet him. He and I are very different. He has what I would consider a prickly personality. Through no fault of his own, I guess.”

  “So, he’s a jerk?” I asked.

  “That is a very accurate descriptor.” Kalan chuckled again, this time a much happier sound.

  “You and Marcus came to Stonewood after you heard Annaliese died, in the hopes of finding me, didn’t you?”

  Kalan’s smile fell. “Yes.”

  I wasn’t sure what to think. Or feel. My skin tingled. “Where are you and Marcus from?”

  “I’m from Livingston, Montana. Marcus is from Minneapolis.” Kalan paused but continued before I had the chance to ask the very question he answered. “We read in the headlines that you were enrolled in college here, so we came. I found your name on the class list outside the Dean’s office.”

  So much for anonymity and the protection of my confidential demographic information. “Oh.”

  “Look, I realize this is a lot to take in, and I’m sure your mind is absolutely overloaded after everything that’s happened… Analiese dying, learning about the blood type, then her body going missing. But I promise you, Marcus and I want the same thing you want. The truth.”

  “Is Marcus albino too?”

  He smiled and shot a mischievous sidelong glance my way. “Wait and see.”

  #

  Kalan pulled his sports car into the parking lot of a three story hotel on the outskirts of the city. As we approached the white stucco building, he pulled a key card from his jeans pocket and we went in through a side door. Inside, vacuums whirred away by the housecleaning staff hard at work, the scent of industrial cleaner intermingling with something minty and fresh, tickling at the back of my throat. It was a decent hotel, the gold and red carpet underfoot soft and spongy beneath my feet, the white stucco on the outside echoed on the interior walls. Every few feet was an ornate oil painting in jewel tones set above a table that held a large red vase of flowers.

  Kalan slowed as we approach room four-twelve. “He’s waiting for us.” He opened the door and stepped in, holding the door open for me to follow.

  I stepped into the room and stopped midstride. My legs felt like they’d turned to spaghetti beneath me. The face smiling at me from the chair at the other end of the
hotel room was exactly the same as Kalan, except the colouring. Where Kalan was fair, Marcus was tanned. Where Kalan’s hair was a silvery-blonde, Marcus had a shock of pitch-black hair. Where Kalan’s eyes were greyish-pewter, Marcus’s were as black as shiny obsidian.

  He smiled at me, the same winning smile that Kalan had. He stood up. “Hello. You must be Adriana. My name is Marcus. Marcus Kane.”

  “Hi, Marcus.” I blurted. Why did I feel awe-struck? Was it the way they were both so similar and yet different? Was it because Marcus’s colouring shocked me? Or was there something actually different about Marcus? “Nice to meet you.”

  Marcus dipped his head forward in a gentlemanly gesture. “And you. Has my brother filled you in on our quest?”

  “Yes, he has.”

  “I’m surprised to see you. I wasn’t sure you would agree to come with Kalan, especially so soon after meeting him,” Marcus said.

  Kalan shot him a look. “There was a turn of events. Adriana’s sister’s body has gone missing from NHGRI. I didn’t have the luxury of getting to know her before I had to explain the whole story.”

  Marcus’s eyebrows shot up. “Her body has gone missing?”

  I nodded. “Yes. Disappeared. Police have been called.”

  “Oh. That changes things, doesn’t it?” Marcus said, more musing to himself than asking a question. “What do you think this means, Kalan?”

  “I’ve been going over and over it in my head, and I just don’t know.” Kalan rubbed his jaw. “I believe there are others besides NHGRI people who have an interest in our blood type.”

  “I’m afraid this will cause us to lose sight of our goal, Kalan. The reason we came to Stonewood in the first place,” Marcus said to his brother. Then he spoke to me. “Not that the mystery surrounding your sister’s body isn’t of concern. But that’s not why we are here.”

  This first impression of Marcus was not off to a good start. I already didn’t like him.

  “Marcus, we can’t expect Adriana to want to help us find our mother right now. Her sister’s missing body is more urgent. We’ve never even met our mother. We’ve gone almost twenty years without her. I think we can wait a little longer.” Marcus pursed his lips together in response, but Kalan continued. “I personally think this situation with Analiese and Adriana is directly related to us. I bet we’ll find out about our mother in the process.”

  Marcus looked skyward, his eyes almost a roll, but not quite. He was really not winning any points with me. “Fine. Where do you plan to start? NHGRI in Bethesda? Because if I have to pay for hotel, food and gas for days on end I’m going to have a problem.”

  “Marcus, if you don’t want to come, you don’t have to. You can stay here and work on mom’s case, I just won’t be here to help you,” Kalan paused. “Maybe that’s a better plan. You stay, do some digging on your own, and we’ll head to Maryland. I’ll check in with you in a day or so.”

  Marcus shrugged and peered at me, his mouth a tight line. “If that’s what you think is best. But I don’t know anyone here. It’s going to be a lot harder trying to navigate this city on my own.”

  “I can introduce you to my friends, Tait and Zoe,” I said. “I’m sure they’d be willing to show you around and help out.”

  Marcus’s expression brightened considerably. “Perfect, yes. When can I meet them?”

  I dug my phone out of my purse and texted a joint message: Can u show some1 around Stnwood? Both responded almost simultaneously. Tait’s response was, Who is it? and Zoe’s was, K, who?

  “They said they would. I’ll hook you up tonight,” I said. I wanted to get to Bethesda as soon as possible, preferably without my falling-apart-at-the-seams mother.

  Marcus smiled. “Great.”

  #

  Introductions were arranged for that night at Kalan and Marcus’s hotel. We met in the courtyard out back, where a pretty white gazebo was lit up inside with tiny white lights, lending a fairy tale feel to the evening. Outside, it was dusk, the mountains shadowed black against the indigo backdrop of the night sky. The autumn air was cool and crisp, and there was a faint scent of lilac in the air. Marcus and Kalan hadn’t yet arrived, so I took the opportunity to give Zoe and Tait the full explanation about Kalan and Marcus and the blood mystery we had in common.

  Tait was first to respond. “This seems suspicious. The guy may as well have told you he is stalking you.”

  “It’s not stalking if you tell the person immediately,” I said. “It’s not like he followed me around for days on end. He came and found me and told me.”

  “Aren’t you a little nervous to go to Maryland alone with him?” Zoe asked.

  Was I afraid? Did I even know what I was getting into here? I could be hooking up with a mass murderer or serial killer for all I knew. Blood spatter expert by day… I shivered and shrugged it off. “At this point, with my sister dead and her body missing, I’m not feeling particularly patient. I don’t want to babysit my mother, whose mental health is seriously deteriorating, and I also don’t want to go alone.”

  Tait cocked his head to the side and his lips pinched together. “We will come with you. All you have to do is ask.” He glanced at Zoe. “Well, I would.”

  “I know,” I said. “But I don’t know when I’ll be back. I’m willing to stay until I find out what’s going on, and if it means I have to drop out of college this term, I’ll do it. This is not your problem. But it is Kalan’s.”

  “I don’t know,” Tait said.

  Footsteps approached us, two sets. It was them. Twin yin and yang. “Hi guys.” I said, as soon as they stepped onto the platform. They looked amazing together, their faces and bodies exactly the same, the colouring the polar opposite. Kalan looked like some kind of fallen angel, his silver hair glossy in the glow of the tiny white lights. He wore a thin cotton t-shirt and jeans that showed off an athletic build. Beside him, Marcus’s black hair glowed almost blue. His shirt glowed in fiery shades against metallic colours, an image of a burning mechanism with parts that looked like part chainsaw and part clock. It gave him a demon-machine look. The two of them side by side almost didn’t look real. Two perfect specimens, models made to demonstrate the epitome of the male of the species, at polar opposite ends of the coloring spectrum.

  “Hello, Adriana,” Marcus said. His gaze swept across to Zoe, then to Tait.

  “Hey,” Kalan said to the group.

  I did a round of introductions and after a moment or two we sat down on the concrete ledges of the gazebo. It was cold and hard against my bottom and a chill ran through me. Colorado fall evenings were always cool. Kalan and Marcus sat side by side on one end of the gazebo, me, Tait and Zoe on the other side.

  “When will you leave for Maryland?” Zoe asked.

  I glanced at Kalan. He nodded. “Tomorrow.”

  Tait leaned forward beside me, his head turned in my direction. “Flying or driving?”

  I looked back at Kalan. It was his call. I wasn’t taking my ratty old beater on the Interstate.

  “Flying,” Kalan said. “Marcus and I are hopeful there will be something or someone here in Stonewood who might know something about our mother. I was wondering if you two would be willing to give Marcus a hand while I’m gone? You might have some ideas of where he could go since you’re from here.”

  Tait responded, his gaze on Marcus for a lingering moment before he spoke to Kalan. “Of course. We’ll do anything to help out. We just want Adriana to figure out what happened to Analiese. We all loved her very much.” Tait’s voice broke on the last words, and his eyes filled.

  A gasp burst from my own mouth and tears erupted from my eyes, streaming down my face. Tait put his arm around me and pulled me close. Temple to temple, he whispered soothing words to me in hushed tones until I got a grip on my relentless crying. When I opened my eyes, Kalan and Marcus were no longer across from me. They were talking outside the gazebo.

  “Do you think this is o
kay? Showing Marcus around?” I asked.

  “He seems harmless enough,” Tait said. “I don’t mind. Do you, Zoe?”

  “He gives me the creeps. Actually they both do.” Zoe paused. “But I guess it’s because it’s not every day I see people that look like… like that.”

  Kalan and Marcus re-entered the gazebo.

  Marcus came to us and got down on his haunches in front of me. “Adriana, I’m so sorry for your loss.” I nodded in acknowledgement and he stood back up. “Tait and Zoe—what do you think of our request?” His gaze lingered on Tait.

  Tait leaned forward, closer to Marcus. “We can help you.”

  Marcus placed his hand on Tait’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

  My phone buzzed in my pocket. I dug it out. Damn. “Hi, Mom.”

  “Hi, dear.” Her speech was clipped and rapid, once again. It was like she was running on rocket fuel. “We are going to visit grandma and Aunt Bethany tomorrow. They might have some history for us, maybe give us a lead.”

  This was a crimp in the plan, but would be a better plan than heading off without making sure we’d covered every base here first.

  “Okay,” I said.

  “I’ll meet you at Grandma’s.” I hung up. Tait observed me with a steadfast gaze. “We have a delay in our plans.”

  Old Earth Creationism: An interpretation of Genesis in which days are taken to be figurative lengths of time, and the time scales given by geologists are generally correct. However, the special creation of man precludes common descent.

  -Talk Origins

  CHAPTER FIVE

  ADRIANA SINCLAIR