The Secret - Book One of the Marcus II Series

by Bonnie Somerville

  Chapter Seven

  Two weeks later.

  Jaaza still hadn’t returned to the lab and Steph had given up hoping she might. She continued with her work but there was no joy. She had caught glimpses of Jaaza around the dining hut, showers and far off in the fields but had’nt actually been close enough to talk to her. She had also not tried to seek her out. She wanted to talk to her, see her, be with her, but she just didn’t know how to do that.

  Viva could see that Steph was having trouble concentrating. She felt sorry for her. Both she and Jaaza seemed to be struggling with their attraction for each other. Viva wouldn’t go as far as to try to match make, that kind of interference would not be well received by her sister. She could see how much Steph was hurting and she liked her enough to want to help get her mind off it at least for an afternoon. At lunch she went to sit with Steph and her group. “Steph I have something to show you that you might find interesting.” Viva said. Steph shook her head. “I have too much work to do.” Steph replied. Sara piped up. “I think you need to take the afternoon off Boss. No offense but you’re more of a hindrance than a help today, go please. I’ll take care of things in the lab and don’t worry I’ll crack the whip.” Sara promised. Steph rolled her eyes and scowled but she knew they were right.

  After lunch Viva took Steph for a walk down the road a ways to where a new cob house was being built. “This is a building project underway here in Cambridge Landing. It’s like an old fashioned barn raising. After work is complete in the fields and lunch has been finished many people will migrate over here to lend a hand.” She explained to Steph. There were already a couple dozen people at work. A substantial framework had been erected to carry the load of the roof. There was a pit nearby with clay and straw that was being mixed together. The method of mixing the concoction was good old fashioned people power. “I love these Cob houses. They’re so wonderfully unique with alcoves and niches and built in shelving. How do they decide what the design will be?” Steph asked. “It all depends on the homeowners’ needs and what they can envision. There are limitations when it comes to size and height but we more than make up for it with outdoor space.” Viva explained.

  With that said she moved over to a rock outcrop, sat down and started to remove her shoes. “I get it. You want me to earn my keep.” Steph said playfully. Viva whispered. “You want my sister to see you pitch in with the rest of the community don’t you? It will mean a lot to her that you’ll be able to fit in here. That is if you really are interested in her and honestly want to stay.” Viva winked. Steph smiled, she wanted that very much, more than anything else she ever wanted in her life. She sat down and removed her shoes as well. Viva took her hand and guided her into the muck where Kaley and Rachael were paired. Each was holding the others arms and shoulders to steady themselves. The muck created a suction that was difficult to pull their feet out of as the mixture became thicker. Another person added straw and water at intervals until the mixture was the right consistency.

  Steph and Viva held on to each other and started their awkward dance. Kaley and Rachael cheered them on. It was very hard work and neither expected Steph to last very long. The dancers sang an old working song to make the time go more quickly. As the workers became fatigued they were replaced with fresh “dancers”. Other workers started collecting the cob and forming them into large loaves to be smacked down into place. The walls would eventually be about a foot thick.

  When Viva saw Steph almost stumble a few times she knew it was time to take a break. She was very proud of Steph for hanging in there for so long. Viva also noticed her sister Jaaza watching from a discreet distance with a huge grin on her face. When they made their way out of the mud pit they collapsed on the ground. They washed the thick clay and straw from their extremities in buckets of water the younger folk had brought for just that purpose. Older folk came by with refreshments of water and a small snack. Steph lay there panting for a long time. She would be hurting like hell in the morning. When they had been sufficiently fortified Steph braced herself for another go round. She was determined not to look weak in front of the townsfolk or Jaaza. When Viva stood so did Steph, her thighs screamed. To her relief Viva didn’t return to the stomping area but to help form the loaves and hand them to people in charge of slapping them into place.

  With all the workers hard at it and fresh volunteers replacing them as they became tired a lot of progress could be seen. In spite of the fatigue setting in Steph felt good about the work they had done that afternoon. Viva took them over to some large cushions to watch the progress for a short time. “What do you think about the house so far?” Viva prodded. “It’s fantastic Viva, I would love to design a home for myself and build it like that. It’s extremely satisfying to know that you can take something that is just an idea in your head and bring it to life. The details that are being put into this place as we’ve gone along are spectacular. Look at those windows, they’re wonderful, I’m running out of adjectives.” Viva grinned. “Well I have to hand it to you. I was wondering how you were going to manage the physical labor but I’m pleasantly surprised, you did very well.” Viva admitted. Steph smiled. “Thanks, I tried really hard to keep up with you. I’ll probably pay for it tomorrow but I’m a little proud of myself as well.” Steph said.

  They leaned back and watched in silence for some time. “I can imagine building a home for Jaaza and myself. It makes my heart sing just thinking about it. Too bad it probably will never happen, she can’t even look at me.” Steph said. Viva didn’t want to give her false hope but she had seen the look on her sisters’ face. She had been proud of Steph too. “Steph I think if you stay patient and do all the right things you just might get that opportunity.” Viva said softly. Steph looked over at her. “What do you know, has she said anything?” Steph asked impatiently. Viva smiled. “I couldn’t tell you anything even if I knew. What I’m saying is I like you and I’d like to see you and my sister together.” Viva said. “I’d like to see us together too but at this point I don’t see that happening.” Steph said looking down.

  Viva had brought Steph to see this house to cheer her up but they were back at square one, Steph seemed bummed out again. “Listen Steph I have something else I want to show you.” They got up and slowly walked to the other end of town, took a fork in the road that took them up a slight incline. The ascent up the hill made Steph’s calves and thighs ache. At the top they stood and looked out across the river, it was a breathtaking view. Behind them was a wooded area with tall conifers and a chorus of birdsong could be heard. After several minutes Steph asked. “I love this view but why did you bring me here?” Steph asked. Viva looked over at her with a devilish grin. “This is the piece of land that my Mother has set aside for Jaaza to build her home. It’s funny that Jaaza has never built on this land, not yet anyway…” Viva confided. ~

  In the evening Rachael and Kaley sat by the fire holding hands and leaning against each other. The reflection of the flames jumped and danced in their eyes. After dinner the older folk went back to their porches or their neighbors porches to talk and tell stories of times long past. The younger crowd sat by the fire taking great delight in scaring the daylights out of the teenagers. It was an age old tradition on Marcus II. Viva knew that Jaaza would be there tonight so she strongly urged Steph to join her. Jaaza sat next to Rachael talking quietly.

  When Steph arrived with Viva, Jaaza tried to get up to leave but her cousin Rachael grabbed her arm and held it. Rachael turned to Kaley and asked her to tell a story. Steph and Viva took their seats at the edge of the group. Most of the stories that had been told around the fire had been told hundreds of times but Kaley grew up in the far north, a place many of the young people had never been. Rachael knew that Kaley was full of blarney as her Aunt Kitty would say. She had a gift for telling tall tales. “Kaley tell us about the Wildman of the North Woods.” Rachael urged. “I don’t know Rach. It might scare the younger folks.” Kaley replied mock seriously. This was obviously an often use
d and well-rehearsed set up line. Shouts of “please” and “tell us the story” rang out.

  Steph frowned wondering what this was all about but when she looked at Jaaza she saw that she had a large grin on her face, clearly delighted. “Ok well it’s an ancient story that goes back to the beginning when Moira and Conrad and the rest first came to Marcus II. Conrad was a bit, well let’s call him eccentric. He was a brilliant biologist and geneticist and as you know he had the project with the Pendek. Well he moved his laboratory to the Far North Settlement. He didn’t want to have the Pendek become too accustomed to people as they were going to be released some day and he didn’t want them to become a nuisance to the settlers.” Kaley took a dramatic pause and took a drink of her Ajja wine. The teenagers were transfixed with their eyes wide. “So he took his family and a few other scientists and moved up to where the river meets the sea.” Kaley took a deep breath.

  “He set up his laboratory and went about his research. Well they were there several months then weird things started happening. I know this is true because I was told by relatives who were direct descendants of the other scientists that were there.” Kaley took another long pause, looking in each young persons’ eyes. “There was one hut that no one was allowed to go into, Conrad’s private lab. No one was allowed in there… not even his old friend Moira! He would go there in the morning and be in there for hours on end, sometimes days would pass before anyone would see him. Sometimes in the middle of the night, it was said you could hear the most mournful howling. They say it sounded like someone was torturing kittens or babies in there. When the other scientists went to the door to see what was going on Conrad came out looking all sweaty and red in the face. He was holding his arm and there was blood on it.” The group around the fire made comments to each other, speculating what Conrad was up to. “He was doing something crazy to those animals and they fought back” one said “I heard he made a hybrid of a Pendek and Human.” Another teen exclaimed.

  Steph looked around watching the reaction of the group, she suspected that it was highly unlikely that Human and Pendek were genetically similar enough to create any such hybrid but the story was entertaining. Finally the teens quieted down and begged Kaley to continue. “Well the next day he came out of his lab, his jacket was shredded, his hair a mess, they say his eyes were bloodshot and darting around like he expected someone or something to attack him from behind. He got one of the medics to give him a tetanus shot or something, stitched up his arm and gave him a sling. But he wouldn’t disclose what had happened the night before. He went right back at it that very night. Again the scientists and their families could hear banging and crashing, yelling and blood curdling howls. Again the next day the scientists confronted Conrad.” She took another deep breath.

  “Whatever Conrad was doing was not what was intended by the planners, there was to be no experimenting or harming of any animals. They threated to tell Moira if he didn’t stop.” Kaley said rubbing her eyes and yawning. “It’s getting late.” She said stretching. She was bombarded with a chorus of awes. “What about the Wildman of the forest? What was he doing with the Pendek?” Asked one teenager. “Was he a mad scientist creating monsters?” The speculation became more and more wild. “Put them out of their misery Kaley.” Rachael pleaded. “Ok where was I? After the scientists’ threat Conrad was less obvious about the strange goings on in his lab. Some wanted to ask Moira to shut him down. Some actually left and went to one of the other settlements. Meanwhile a couple years went by with Conrad doing his thing. One night there was quite a commotion, again yelling and howling, banging and crashing. The other scientists were so frightened they didn’t even go to see if Conrad was ok. Some even figured he was getting what he deserved. In the morning the compound was a shambles, Conrad’s lab was turned upside down and all the animals were gone.” Again Kaley made a dramatic pause. “That’s pretty much it, for now anyway.” Kaley said. “What happened to Conrad, did they kill him?” Someone asked. “In the morning Conrad was gone… never to be seen again.” Kaley stated. “Ok youngans, you better head on home before we all get in trouble with your parents.” Jaaza stood and shoo’d them away from the fire toward their homes.

  Just about every one left at the fireside were giggling into their hands until the teenagers had gone. When they were finally out of earshot the group laughed out loud en masse. Being a newcomer Steph finally asked “How much of that story is true?” She said. Almost simultaneously Sara, who had come over sometime during the telling of the story asked. “What really happened to Conrad?” Sara said. Everyone giggled a bit more but it was Kaley who finally spoke up. “The story is pretty much true the way I told it. Conrad was a bit of a nut, he was very secretive about his lab and the animals did eventually escape.” Kaley explained.

  Sara knew there was more to the story. She’d heard bits and pieces from different villagers but none seemed to want to divulge the entire story. As a scientist that just made her more determined to find out what really happened. When everyone but Kaley and Rachael had left she asked more questions. “Kaley is there any record of what Conrad was doing?” Sara asked. Kaley shook her head. “I don’t think so, I’ve never seen any. I do know that animals were artificially inseminated and my grandmother told me he used some of the Kubu as surrogate parents for some of the Pendek offspring. That’s why people think something fishy was going on, they saw Kubu with Pendek babies. They also say the two species have interbred on their own, maybe they got used to seeing those babies as family members.” Kaley took another sip of wine. “What is this about human experimentation, splicing genes and swapping DNA with Pendek and vice versa?” Sara continued refusing to let the matter drop. This is where Kaley began to look more and more uncomfortable. Tentatively she finally said. “Like I said there are no records of what exactly Conrad Drummond did. He was a renowned geneticist, he certainly had the know-how. His mental state was also in question the longer they were here and eventually he went into the forest and disappeared. He was never seen again and no evidence of him was ever found. So there has always been speculation but no actual proof.” Kaley explained.

  Sara knew that a geneticist gone amuck could be a very dangerous person. If he had no boundaries and no internal conscience the possibilities were endless. From what she had seen on her tour at Kaley’s tree house and the subsequent observation of the Pendek and Kubu they were two distinctly different species. She did see a few individuals that were different, she didn’t know enough about either species to say for sure if they were natural mutations. The other piece of the Marcus II puzzle was the people. Kaley herself was an example of human anomalies. She was gorgeous and extremely physically fit like the rest of the residents of Marcus II but she had that distinctive platinum blonde hair and violet eyes. How is it that humans from Terra could have naturally born children that looked like that? It was a puzzle for sure. ~

  The next day Steph was awakened by the strange sound of horses racing into town, people talking excitedly and a commotion closer to the center of town. She hurriedly got dressed, ran her fingers through her hair to flatten down her bed head and stepped out onto the porch. “What’s going on?” She asked. “A rider came in from Arklow, Romi’s been injured badly, they need a doctor over there as soon as possible.” A villager yelled over his shoulder as he ran by. Steph knew Jaaza would be devastated. She went back into the house and packed her duffle and took off toward the stable. The villager she had spoken to was guiding two horses out the stable door heading toward the center of town. Steph asked the handler for the fastest horse she had.

  The handler saddled her favorite horse Buttercup and handed the reins to Steph. “Promise me you’ll take care of her.” Nodding Steph said “I promise.” She was an accomplished rider so she mounted Buttercup and raced toward town. She was told Jaaza and Viva had just left and was handed a pack with food and water. She followed as fast as Buttercup could comfortably go. She didn’t know how long it would take to get there on horseback, nor did sh
e know what she would do when she caught up with them but she knew she had to try.

  Shortly Steph saw Jaaza and Viva up ahead, they had stopped to give their butts a rest and give the horses rest as well. Her heart raced from the excitement, it also skipped a beat when she caught sight of her beloved. It was such a powerful sensation she slowed and allowed Buttercup to walk the final distance. She didn’t know what she was going to say or if Jaaza would even listen but she had nothing to lose. “What are you doing here?” Jaaza asked straight away in an annoyed voice. “I heard there was trouble. I thought I could be of help.” Steph replied. “Viva and I can handle it, you should go back.” Jaaza said harshly. Steph continued to dismount. “I brought the medical kit from the ship and I’m a Medical Doctor. I thought I could be of assistance.” Steph explained. Jaaza was about to protest further but Viva chimed in ahead of her. “I’d be happy for any assistance you could give thank you Doctor.” Viva said. Jaaza looked away annoyed. In a loud whisper she said to Viva. “I don’t know if I can deal with this right now.” Jaaza said impatiently. Viva turned to her. “We don’t know what we’re facing up ahead Jazz. You’ll just have to tough it out. This is about Romi and the others.” Viva said sternly. Steph turned her head to face Viva. “The others? What the hell happened? I just heard something happened to Romi.” She asked. Steph was suddenly even more concerned. “There was an accident. We really don’t know much more of the details at this point. We were told to get there post haste.” Viva replied. Steph saw to her horse, it wouldn’t pay to kill the poor creature in their race to help. In the long run they would actually make better time if they stopped for a proper rest. She took out the package the villager had given her before she left. She handed out the bread, cheese, fruit and drinks to the others. “We need to take care of ourselves as well, if we’re going to be in any shape to help Romi.” She said matter-of-factly. Viva smiled and nodded. Jaaza sighed and reluctantly took the snack.