by L. S. O'Dea
She pulled back a fraction. “If Millie is feeling better, you should take them to my father’s.” She kissed the corner of his mouth. “Then we can have the house to ourselves again.”
“Why would you say that?” It wasn’t like they were sharing their room with Tim, Millie and his mother.
“What do you mean?” Her hand drift to his chest.
She hadn’t meant anything by it. He was just tired. He kissed her palm. “Right now, I think I’d feel better if they were here. With me.”
She pulled out of his grasp, leaning against the counter. “Another set of eyes might do some good. My father’s field is genetics.”
“I’m a geneticist too.” Why was she pushing this?
She ran her hands up his chest. “I know, but for the past few years you’ve been focused on the tracking device.”
“And your father has been working on surgeries. So what? We’re both experts in the field.” He began to pace. “This is big, Viola. If this is true. If I can find proof. We’ll have to rethink everything.”
“So? Science is always changing the way we think and view the world.”
“I have a feeling that this is different.”
“You and your feelings. That was the one thing that disappointed my father. Your gut.”
He stopped pacing and turned back to his work. She’d finally said it. Her father and perhaps, Viola herself were disappointed in him. “What neither of you like is that my gut is always right. Both of you hate not being able to prove the science behind a feeling.”
There was a long pause and then she began to lay out the slides on the counter.
He’d hurt her. It was in every precise movement that she made. He stopped working. He should apologize. “I met with the Handler today,” he said instead, glancing at her.
“And?” She didn’t bother to turn around.
She wasn’t going to make this easy. “Gaar said something strange.”
She continued working.
“He said that Benedictine tried to hire him to find Trinity.”
“So. You had the same idea.” Her tone was sharp.
“How did Benedictine know about Gaar? There are only five Almightys who know we have a Handler working for us and how to contact him.”
She shrugged, pausing in her work to look at him. “That’s no longer true. Officially, there are five of you, but I know because my father is one of the five. I’m sure others have talked too.” She went back to work putting blood on the slides.
He scratched his head. She had a point, but who else would be hunting the Producer. He walked over to her and took her hands. “I have to ask you something.”
She nodded, keeping her hands stiff in his grasp.
“If it came down to me or your father, whose side would you be on?”
“What kind of question is that?” She pulled her hands away.
He’d hurt her again, but now that it was out there he had to know. “One I have to ask.”
“How dare you.” She stormed toward the door.
“You didn’t answer my question,” he said softly.
She stopped, turning to look at him. “If you have to ask, then I guess we’re not as close as I thought.” She slammed the door as she left.
“I guess not,” he mumbled.
CHAPTER 16
HUGH SAT IN THE LIBRARY, his stomach rumbling. Supper had been another unappealing vegetarian concoction of his mother’s. She’d forced him to toss the steaks in the garbage and hadn’t allowed his cook to prepare any meat since. He paged through some old documents regarding the characteristics of the different species. This research was as disappointing as his meal. His mom entered the room, leaning heavily on her cane and stopping in front of his desk.
He was not in the mood to deal with her. On top of everything else, Viola was still upset and quite frankly, his temper was rising. She was the one who was pushing him to send Millie and Tim to her father. His question had been fair, given the data. When his mother continued to stand there after several moments, he looked up. “Yes?”
“I want to go home.”
“I’ll have the carriage made ready.” Good. Then he could have some real food.
“With Timothy and Millie.”
Women! One was trying to send away the most important discovery of his career and the other was trying to hide it from him. He had no doubt that if he allowed his mother to leave with the two he’d never see them again. Instead of throwing his book across the room like he wanted to, he carefully closed it. “That is not going to happen.”
“We cannot remain here with our every move under watch,” she snapped.
“Why? I would think the presence of my Guards would be comforting. You made me promise to protect Tim and Millie. How am I going to do that if they aren’t here?” His Guards had quit trying to hide their surveillance when Buddy and Sue had caught his mother attempting to sneak Tim and Millie outside.
“I’ve changed my mind.” She sighed as she lowered herself onto a chair. “I don’t want you anywhere near them. I can protect them myself.”
“Mother, I have apologized about the steaks. It won’t happen again.”
“That’s not it.”
“Then what is it?” He waited patiently. This trick would not work like it had when he’d been a boy. Silence no longer bothered him.
Finally, she spoke. “When were you going to tell me that you plan on taking Tim and Millie to Professor Conguise?”
“Who told you that?” Was Viola trying to cause contention between him and his mother? If Mom left with Tim and Millie, it would give Conguise the perfect opportunity to steal them away from him.
“Does it matter?”
He started to argue and then stopped. If his mother didn’t want to divulge information she wouldn’t, no matter what. “I’m not taking them to Conguise’s. Next time, ask me instead of relying on gossip.”
“So, you weren’t going to give them to the professor?”
“I was never going to give them to him. I was going to take them over there so he could run tests, but I’ve changed my mind.”
“Were you going to tell me?”
This was one of those situations where he should lie, but he wouldn’t. “No.”
“You have no right to take them anywhere without my knowledge.”
“I wasn’t going to tell you because I knew you’d get worked up over nothing.” He could point out that she had no rights to Millie, but that wasn’t going to help anything but his pride.
“That would not be nothing! If you take them there, they will not come back. I don’t trust him. I know that you do—”
“I don’t.” The professor was trying to steal his discovery. From this point forward they were adversaries. Well, at least regarding anything that had to do with Tim, Millie and Trinity.
“Since when?” She studied him closely.
She’d never liked Conguise and had warned him about the professor for years. He was glad she wasn’t the type to gloat. “I’ve been suspicious since my visit with the professor but I was sure after Gaar left.” He paused. “Conguise went around me to Benedictine in order to find Trinity.”
“How do you know?”
He ran his hand through his hair and then stood and walked over to the liquor cabinet. How much should he tell her? Her feelings weren’t exactly neutral regarding Tim and his family. He picked up the whiskey decanter and poured two drinks. He walked back to his desk, handed one to her and then sat. He explained about his deal with Benedictine and his visit with the professor. By the time he was finished, he’d told her everything. It was nice laying it all out with someone, rehashing it out loud. He could trust her. He wished he could say the same for Viola.
“That man is evil. You can’t let him get his hands on any of them.” She took a large swallow of whiskey and then coughed slightly.
“No, I can’t.” Evil was a bit much, but it was his discovery. He’d be damned if he’d let someone steal it.
/> “I don’t think the professor intends on letting any of them live.” She sighed. “I guess we’ll stay here for now.”
The professor did not want them dead. They were the proof that was needed. He started to explain and then hesitated. It would be easier if she thought Tim and Millie were in danger.
“Where is Viola? I missed her at dinner.”
“We had a fight,” he said, turning back to his book.
“About what?”
He didn’t want to talk about this, but he could use another woman’s input. “Do you trust Viola?”
“Of course,” she said without hesitation.
“Even with Timothy and Millie?”
She paused for a moment. “Yes. She is kind and lovely. Nothing like her father. Did you suggest to her that you don’t trust her? Is that what you fought about?” She gave him the look that she reserved for very bad boys.
“Yes.” He sat up straighter and met her gaze. He was not a child and would not be made to feel embarrassed by his actions.
“Apologize to her right now.”
She wasn’t seeing the whole picture. She didn’t know that Viola wanted him to hand Tim and Millie over to her father.
“Don’t mess this up. She loves you and would do anything for you. That is a rare gift in this world.” She stood and left.
Did Viola love him? Probably. Did she love him more than her father? That was the question. He took a large swallow of his drink and turned back to his studies.
Several hours later, after reading all the documents, he returned to the laboratory. It was late, but he would run the tests again. If he delayed long enough, Viola would be asleep and he wouldn’t have to spend the night on the couch.
He pulled out a set of seven slides and placed a sample of Producer blood on each one, laying them on a section of the table labeled Producer. The nice thing about the new machines was that they were fast because they only looked for abnormalities. All he had to do was input the species that the DNA was from and it would compare it to the standard DNA for that creature. He entered the code in the machine for Producer and placed one slide inside. Then he entered the code for House Servant. He pulled out another slide. He started to put Tim’s blood on it.
Buddy walked into the lab. “I need to speak with you.”
“I’m busy.” He didn’t look up. He didn’t want to speak with anyone right now. All he wanted was to go to bed and curl up next to his sleeping girlfriend.
“I smell blood,” said Buddy.
“I’m working with blood.” Sometimes Guards were oblivious.
“Not here. Whenever Millie and Tim are around. I can smell blood on them.”
He looked up. “Is Millie worse? Did the doctor have to operate?”
“I don’t think so. And it’s not just her. It’s on Tim too and he didn’t need the doctor.”
“They’ve been giving blood for my experiments. Could that be what you smell?”
“No,” said Buddy. “That’s a small amount and the hole is tiny. I can smell that but this is more. Much more.”
“Find out what’s going on and let me know.” He turned back to his work.
Buddy left the room. A few moments later the door opened again. He was never going to get anything done with these constant interruptions.
“For Araldo’s sake, Buddy, what is it now?” He started to place the House Servant slide in the machine.
“I’m leaving,” said Viola.
He dropped the slide and it shattered on the floor.
“I need some time.” She stood in the doorway with her backpack stuffed so full that a shirt hung halfway out of the top.
She couldn’t be serious. He walked over to the doorway. If he could touch her, everything would be okay. He reached for her. She stepped back.
“Don’t,” she said, her voice cracking. “I can’t.”
He let his arm drop to his side. “We can talk about this.”
“I can’t be with you if you don’t trust me.”
“I didn’t say that.” He relaxed a little. He could work with this.
“Don’t you dare try to twist what you said.”
“I’m not. Really. I just…don’t go.” She hadn’t been living with him long, but suddenly he couldn’t imagine his home without her.
“I have to. I need to think.”
“Think here. With me.” He took her hands in his.
She shook her head but didn’t move away. That was a good sign. He could change her mind. He leaned closer and kissed her softly on the lips. She stiffened and shoved him away.
“I said, don’t.”
She was more pissed than he’d thought. “Are you going to your father’s?” He held his breath waiting for her answer.
“No. I wouldn’t.” Tears welled in her violet eyes.
“Where then?” He exhaled slowly. If she went to her father, he wasn’t sure that they had a future.
“I’m going to stay with Kim for a couple of days.”
“Benedictine’s daughter! That’s just as bad. You might as well go to your father’s.” She was a traitor. He couldn’t trust her, so he’d forget her. He didn’t need her anyway. He turned and walked back to the counter. He picked up a slide and slid it into the slot in the machine. He pressed the start button.
“She has her own place,” she said defensively.
He tried to concentrate on setting up another slide but all he could think about was taking her in his arms, making everything better. That was the problem. She was a distraction to him not a helpmate.
“This proves that you don’t trust me,” she said.
That did it. He slammed his hand against the table. “Why should I when you’re leaving to stay with Benedictine’s daughter?”
“I’ve been friends with Kim since grade school and you know it. Why are you so paranoid about this,”—she waved her hand in the air—“this I don’t even know what to call it. You’ve been working and re-working the DNA and the results always turn out the same. There is nothing new to find. There is no great mystery here. The offspring is not Tim’s; he just thinks it is. Why can’t you see that? Why are you destroying our relationship over this…this nothing?”
“Maybe, you should go,” he said softly, daring her to leave and admit by her actions that she didn’t believe in this, in him.
She stepped back as if slapped. “If that’s how you feel.”
He turned and walked over to the refrigerator. He opened the door and stared inside, seeing nothing. She remained in the doorway for several moments, taunting him with her presence.
“Well, you’ll finally get some interesting results,” she said, her voice brittle.
He glanced back at her.
She pointed to the floor. “You put another slide of Producer blood in the machine but entered the code for House Servant.”
He stormed over to the table. There were only five slides left. The codes on the machine were for House Servant and Producer.
“Damn it.” This test was a waste of time but the machine could not be stopped mid-test. There was nothing he could do, but wait. He looked at the doorway. Viola was gone. He shoved the rest of the slides off the counter.
CHAPTER 17
HUGH SAT IN THE LAB, finishing his third drink. It was good that Viola had left him. He was better off without her. She was her father’s daughter. Untrustworthy. Devious. He refilled his glass. If the damn test would finish he could get back to work. He needed another machine. Once he made his fortune on this discovery he’d buy a brand new lab. Then Viola would be sorry that she’d sided with her father. He’d find someone better than her. More attractive. More…
The machine beeped, signaling that it was finished. He jumped up and grabbed the printout, glancing at it as he tossed it in the trash. He snatched the papers out of the garbage and read them again. He dug through the previous reports on his desk and located the Producer to House Servant DNA tests that he’d run as a control. He scrutinized the documents. This wa
s impossible. He laid the papers side-by-side on the counter and examined the printouts line-by-line. They were basically identical. The reports should have had major discrepancies in the sequence of the nucleotides, but it didn’t. There were a few spikes in the data regarding size but nothing like he’d suspected.
He loaded two more slides with House Servant blood and coded the machine for Producer and House Servant again. He pressed the button and waited. When the test finished, the results were the same as the previous report. He ran his hand through his hair, leaning against the counter. What could be causing this? Tainted samples? Viola had drawn the blood.
He wrapped a large rubber band around his bicep and grabbed a syringe. He withdrew a small amount of blood from his own arm. He prepared two more slides with his blood and loaded them into the machine. He coded the machine for Guard and House Servant. He pressed the button and waited. When it finished, he compared the results to the report created when he’d run actual Guard and House Servant DNA. He shook his head. This couldn’t be happening. He ran several tests, making sure to enter codes that did not match the actual blood. Something was very wrong. The results for the basic genetic makeup in all the reports were within the normal range, excluding a few spikes.
“It must be this machine,” he muttered.
He needed different equipment. He retrieved the remaining vials of blood from the refrigerator and all the reports. He shoved them into a backpack and left the house.
CHAPTER 18
WHEN HUGH ARRIVED HOME, the sun was just rising. His clothes were rumpled and his hair stuck out as if someone had grabbed handfuls and pulled. His tests at the university had the same results as the ones in his lab. It wasn’t his machine that was at fault. It was all the machines. It appeared that they did not analyze the baseline genetics of the DNA. He had to find the older equipment that he’d used in high school.
Buddy followed him into the lab.
“Not now.” Whatever the Guard wanted, he didn’t have time to deal with it. He began digging through the closet.
