Lucy (24 page)

35

JENNY AND AMANDA
went straight to Harry’s when they returned from Milwaukee. They were waiting for him in the kitchen when he returned from the hospital that evening.

“What a pleasant surprise,” he said as he crossed to the refrigerator and opened the freezer. “I have some split pea soup. Loaf of bread. You hungry? You two look like your dog got run over. Where’s Luce the Goose?”

As Harry began thawing the soup on the stove, Jenny explained everything to him. He took the news without any visible reaction. When she had finished, he said, “I’m sorry. I was wondering why you’d been avoiding me. I thought it was because of our date.”

“No, I’m sorry. I should have told you sooner. I just thought in the end that I’d have better news. That she was safe somewhere. But she’s not.”

Harry handed Jenny a baguette. “Here, cut this, will you?” Harry was used to death and suffering. Jenny didn’t have much of an appetite but she knew his approach to life: Bad things will always happen. Let’s make ourselves strong so that we can deal with them.

“Can I help?” Amanda asked.

“Go down and get some wine, if you don’t mind.”

Amanda turned toward the basement stairs.

“Harry, are you angry?”

“No, I’m thinking.” Harry continued to think for another moment as Jenny cut the bread. “Well, I have a very good lawyer if you want to try that route. Then there’s that senator.”

Amanda came up with a bottle and showed it to Harry, whose eyebrows went up. “Chambertin Clos de Bèze, eh? A girl of wealth and taste.”

“Did I get the wrong one? I’m sorry. There were so many I didn’t know what to pick.”

“No. That’s good. Really good. Might as well. You know, you don’t want to get hit by a bus and be lying in the gutter thinking, Damn. I should have had the Chambertin Clos de Bèze.”

Amanda laughed. “That’s good, Harry. I haven’t laughed in a while.”

Jenny smiled, watching them.

“Yeah? You want another laugh? Well, try this: Chambertin Clos de Bèze ‘offers several octaves of fruit, herbal, floral and mineral notes, leading to a reverberating finish.’ Robert Parker said that. Or something close.”

“But you’re supposed to be solemn,” Amanda said. “It’s a sad occasion.”

“No, my dear child. Laughter quiets the amygdala.”

“What’s the amygdala?”

“It’s a little peanut in your brain that makes you freak out when bad things happen. Better, I think, to shut it up and get on with business.”

“How did you get to be so calm?” Amanda asked.

“Well, I like to start slow and taper off. Let that breathe, will you?”

The following day they went to meet Harry’s lawyer at an office on LaSalle Street in downtown Chicago. Sy Joseph was a small man of fifty or so. He kept an old leather book bag that he had used since law school beside his worn wooden desk. Papers were stacked on the hardwood floor. He was framed by floor-to-ceiling windows that hadn’t been cleaned in years. They looked out onto the colorless buildings and the busy street below. Harry, Jenny, and Amanda sat in straight-backed chairs before him.

“I’ve done some research, and think I have an answer,” Joseph said. “At least, a partial answer. If any local police agency had Lucy, we would know. State, county, and municipal police are still bound by habeas corpus. On the other hand, if the federal government has her, then essentially they can do anything they want.”

“But they’d have to charge her with a crime and leave some record of her whereabouts, right?” Jenny asked.

“No, I’m afraid not. Under the provisions of the USA Patriot Act they really can hold someone indefinitely without charge and even without probable cause.”

“What about due process?” Jenny asked.

“Well, as I say, that applies to local police forces. But under the Patriot Act, there is no more due process. And what I’m telling you applies to human beings in the traditional sense. When you take into account the fact that Lucy is an interspecific hybrid, then you enter terra incognita—there’s no law to cover that. They can make it up as they please.”

“What do we do?” Amanda said.

“I’m sorry,” Joseph said. “I’m just telling you what I know.”

“Any advice, Sy?” Harry asked.

“I’d report her to the local police as a missing person. The local police still have rules, and they still generally prefer to solve crimes rather than commit them.”

36

LUCY WATCHED THE GLOW
that filtered through the skylight as it changed by imperceptible increments. Then she heard a key in the lock again. In walked a thin gray man in a lab coat and a surgical mask. He had close-cropped silver hair and rimless spectacles. He was neat to a fault, his shoes bright against the wet concrete floor. His name tag said, “Dr. L. Eisner.” He hurried in and studied Lucy with a disapproving look. She could hear his breath whistling faintly through his nostrils. She could not discern his intentions. He was giving off no signals in The Stream.

“Who are you? Why am I in this cage?”

“I’m sorry. Pure incompetence. The heavy hand of the military. I’m shocked. This was not my intention at all, I assure you.”

“Okay,” Lucy said, taking a deep breath to try to calm herself. “Okay. Good. Then you can help me. I’m cold, and I need water.”

“Yes, yes, of course. Just a moment.” He turned and left the room.

“Hey, wait! Where am I?”

But he was gone. Lucy slumped against the bars. She thought, Have I lost my mind? Is that it? I’ve gone psychotic from the stress and this is all in my imagination. She went through a check of her own sanity. What’s your name? Lucy Lowe. Where do you live? Illinois. Who’s your best friend? Amanda. What day is it? She didn’t know. Who’s your mother? Jenny. No, Leda. I don’t know, she thought. I don’t know anything.

She heard the key in the lock again and the man returned with a blanket, a hospital gown, and a plastic bottle of water. He put the items through a chamber in the side of the cage, a small door that she could open only after he had closed the outer door. Lucy drank half the bottle before taking a breath. Then she tied on the hospital gown and wrapped herself in the blanket.

“I’m very sorry about this. I gave strict orders that you were to be treated in a humane way. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to be there.”

“Who are you? Why am I being held prisoner?”

“I’m Dr. Eisner. And I promise, much more comfortable accommodations are being arranged.”

“But why am I here at all?”

“For your protection. I assure you that I have only benign intentions toward you.”

“I was shot and left naked on the floor.” Lucy could hear her voice rising. Stop, she told herself. Don’t go off on him. Try to be calm.

“Yes, that was unfortunate. I should have known better. I promise that you’ll be treated humanely throughout the procedures from now on.”

Lucy thought, Perhaps it is he who is mad. Because he wore a surgical mask, she had seen only his eyes. But she had seen enough. She tried to speak in a normal tone of voice: “What, what, what—” She couldn’t get the words out. “What procedures? Where are we? What are you going to do to me?” For a fleeting moment she had the thought that she could reach out and grab his arm. And before he knew what had happened, she could batter his skull against the bars like a box of strawberries. She concentrated on breathing. Don’t show your strength, she told herself. Make him think you’re weak.

Eisner studied her. “Remarkable. The moment I saw you on television I knew that what I’d long dreamed of was real. You are, as your father would say, more human than human.”

Lucy felt a stab of alarm go through her. “How do you know what my father would say?”

“We took them, of course. Naturally, we had to have your father’s notebooks.” And seeing the look on Lucy’s face, added, “Don’t worry. They were out at the time. No one wants complications. We made it look like an ordinary burglary.”

She felt all hope drain from her as she stared at him in speechless horror. At the same time, she could feel a fury rising inside her. She could feel strength pouring through her. She deliberately held herself still. If she started to rant, she knew, she might show how dangerous she could be. Don’t show yourself, she thought. Weep. Weep now and show him that you’re a helpless child.

Lucy fell to the floor weeping into her hands.

“I’m sorry. This was really the only way. Higher powers want you destroyed. They have these irrational religious beliefs. There’s no reasoning with the Christian right. They hate science. They fear knowledge. I crave it. I’m determined to protect you for as long as I can. Don’t you see the scientific opportunities here? Together we can fulfill your father’s dream.”

“I don’t want to fulfill my father’s dream!” Lucy shouted through her tears. “I just want to go home.”

“Yes, I understand. Of course you do. But I’m afraid that’s impossible.”

Lucy wept for a time as Eisner stood watching. “Soon,” he said, “you and I will establish trust. That’s something I’ve been able to do here only a very few times over the years.
Pan troglodytes
and the very few specimens of
Pan paniscus
that we’ve seen here are very intelligent, but they can also be very dangerous, especially after they’ve undergone some of the necessary procedures. You can’t explain things to them and get them to cooperate just because it seems reasonable. With you I believe I’ll be able to do that at last.”

Lucy’s tears had stopped as she had a revelation: Papa said that killing was wrong. Yet Lucy now saw that she might have to kill this man. And it dawned on her that she could do it if she was forced to. Papa was wrong.

“What are you going to do to me?”

“We’ll start with some standard tests. This afternoon we’ll perform a craniotomy. You’ll be given a local anesthetic. The brain itself has no pain receptors, so you won’t feel anything there at all. I’ll explain as we go along. You’ll be awake for most of it. I’ll place electronic sensors in your brain. You won’t feel them. They’re extremely fine wires. They do no damage to the tissue. The surgical incisions will heal for a few days. Then we’ll send tiny electrical signals down the wires and make a complete map of your brain. It’s an unprecedented opportunity.”

Lucy quailed. Her whole body was vibrating. She could no longer help herself. She could feel her guts churning as he spoke, and then the water that she’d drunk came exploding out of her mouth. She bent involuntarily and heaved a few more times before she was able to breathe again. Her vision was blurred with tears.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I assure you that this operation is completely safe. I’ve performed it many times, and there are no lasting effects.”

She tried to speak, to reason with him, but all she could say was, “Don’t,” her voice a hoarse croak. “Please don’t.”

“It’s really going to be just fine. We will give you a sedative to relax you. I’ve done these operations for decades. I’m the leading expert. It’s quite safe, I assure you. I know it’s hard. But it’s for science. For the good of humanity.” He turned to leave, saying, “My staff will be in shortly to prepare you.”

“Don’t. Please don’t cut me.” Lucy clutched the bars as she watched him go. She couldn’t stop herself now. She flailed against the bars. “Don’t do this! Let me out! Please don’t do this!”

He vanished through the door. She listened as it shut with a metallic clang. Then silence fell once more. She wept uncontrollably for a time. She didn’t know how long. Her throat was raw from screaming. And through an act of will, she pulled herself out of the abyss and sat, clutching her knees. Be still, she told herself. Be still and don’t let them know your strength.

Lucy paced the floor, wrapped in her blanket, her mind racing. She could feel the panic rising within her breast. It was all she could do to keep from screaming and throwing herself at the bars again. She had to get out. There had to be a way. But nothing came to mind. She seemed to be splitting in two, undergoing a kind of mitosis of the psyche. On one side she was a child, weak and weeping. But from the other side she heard a cold and rational voice. Think, the voice said to the child. You’re smart and you’re strong. Stop whimpering and think.

She looked all around. Now she saw that there were instruments on a tray near the operating table. Perhaps she could pick the lock with one of them. But she had nothing to reach with. The blanket. Maybe she could use the blanket to knock something off the tray and drag it to her. She unwrapped the blanket from herself, reached her arm through the bars, and whipped one end of it at the tray. She tried again and again, but the tray was too far away. The door opened again, and a group of people in green hospital scrubs entered. Lucy froze. There were two very large men and three women. They wore surgical masks and gloves and clear safety goggles.

One of the women unlocked a steel cabinet and brought out a rifle. She stepped forward. “If you fight us, we’ll have to dart you. Tell me you understand.”

Lucy couldn’t think straight. Was it better to be darted than whatever they were going to do to her?

“Tell me you understand, or we’ll have to dart you.”

“I understand.”

“Okay then. We’re going to take you out and you’re going to lie on that table, do you understand?”

“Yes.” She was shaking so hard that she could barely speak. The woman aimed the rifle at Lucy while another unlocked the door of the cage. Lucy retreated to the far end as the two men entered.

“Come on,” one of them said. “Nice and easy.”

Lucy calculated the distance. She knew that she was fast enough and strong enough to take the two men. But the woman with the rifle was too far away. She’d shoot. Lucy saw that this was not her moment. She hung her head and shoulders. They would be unconsciously receiving the signal that she was harmless. She thought, I’ll do as I did when wrestling. I’ll lull them into complacency and show my strength only at the decisive moment.

The woman motioned with the rifle. Lucy stepped between the two large men. The concrete was wet and cold on her bare feet. The rifle followed her movement.

“Up on the table, please.”

Lucy climbed onto the table. She felt the smooth white sheet. She smelled laundry detergent. She saw the skylight overhead.

“Lie down.”

She lay down, and then straps shot out and immobilized her. She struggled briefly, then forced herself to relax. Not now, she told herself. Wait for the right time. Someone covered her with a sheet.

“Don’t do this. Don’t let him cut me. Please.”

“He’s not going to hurt you. Dr. Eisner has been doing this for years.” The woman turned to the man and said, “Hold her arm.”

“Please don’t.”

She tore open a white paper envelope and removed a long needle from it. She put a rubber tourniquet on Lucy’s bicep. Lucy felt a pinch and looked down to see the needle going in. She felt tears streaming down the sides of her face and heard the blood singing in her ears.

“We’re going to give you something to relax you. Just breathe normally.”

“Don’t. Please.”

The woman held a syringe up to the light and tapped it. Her fingernail made a ticking noise that echoed in the vaulted room. Her goggles flashed as she bent down and injected a clear fluid into the fitting in the tubing.

“Don’t. Oh …”

Lucy felt a dreamy lightness come over her. She gradually split in two, as if one part of her wanted to panic while another part didn’t care what happened next. She was back in the forest. Leda and her father had been killed, and she was putting one foot in front of the other without caring whether she lived or died.

The other woman had put the rifle away. Now she approached and bent over Lucy. She smoothed the thick hair back from Lucy’s forehead. It was a comforting touch. Lucy thought, She’s grooming me. Maybe they understand at last. Maybe they realize that they, too, are bonobos and I’m human. We are all one now. Lucy felt the love of the woman’s touch.

Then the woman brought her other hand up, and Lucy saw that in it was a set of electric clippers. The clippers began to buzz noisily. She lowered the shears to Lucy’s head and began cutting off her hair. Lucy could feel the great heavy tresses fall away. She could feel the cold air against her bare scalp. Lucy thought, She’s shaving my head. I’m going to be bald. But she couldn’t seem to decide how to feel about that. The person who was terrified had grown very small, as if Lucy had a baby just beginning to form inside her. A tiny baby who could not speak yet. A child who was getting smaller, not larger.