Aesop's Secret (9 page)

Joe glanced out of the window at the people on the sidewalks and wondered how many of them might be Athenites. “There are some that can tell an Athenite from a human just by looking into their eyes. In an open civilization where Athenites were accepted and recognized as real members of society, it wouldn’t take long to discover who is and who isn’t an Athenite. As far as I know, no one in our family has had that kind of recognition power, but some, like Horace, do. I feel quite confident that he knows about the Huttons.”

Harmony slammed on the breaks, causing the car in back of her to swerve and honk loudly. “The Huttons are Athenites?”

Joe grabbed hold of the dashboard to steady himself. “That is precisely why he is so interested in young Felix.”

Several more cars angrily tooted their horns until Harmony accelerated again. “Felix is brilliant and Horace is always excited about bright kids that can attend the school.”

Joe shook his head. “That’s only partly true. Horace has always kept an eye out for exceptionally bright science scholars because he doesn’t want them to discover that metamorphosis is a very real scientific possibility. If one of them is an Athenite, how long do you think it would take them to discover the scientific explanation for our existence?”

“Felix did seem interested in the Spadefoot Toad.” Harmony pulled the car to a stop in front of a tall seventeenth-century white stone building. “I haven’t told you about Felix yet.”

“I know a lot about Felix already…need I remind you that I lived in the same house with him for a few years?”

Harmony turned off the engine and turned to face her uncle. “He’s suffered an accident and is in a coma.”

“Accident?” Joe snarled sarcastically. “Never assume where Horace is concerned. You also need to know that Horace’s interest isn’t only with Felix. Elaine Hutton has uncovered some of the same types of information as those cave writings described. From what I understand, her work is just about to be published―something that Horace won’t be terribly happy to see done. But I don’t think that eliminating Elaine would solve his problem, because the publisher already has rights to the book. The only way that book will not be published is if Elaine cancels the publication, and that is something that she would never do.” He opened the door but paused before stepping out.

Harmony’s eyes flashed angrily. “Joe, get back in. Let’s get over there right now and make sure that he doesn’t do something horrible to them.”

Joe shook his head. “Now that Horace has control of Felix and his family is living comfortably under his roof, he controls the cards. If we make a move, and it’s the wrong move, then all their lives could be in danger.”

Felix listened to all the subtle sounds that disturbed the silence as if they were music. He knew from the quiet that the hour was late. In the hospital, someone had usually come in and given him some kind of injection long before now. He was happy that it wouldn’t happen tonight.

For the first time in days he began to feel uncomfortable, like he had pins and needles all over his body.
It’s like my whole body is waking up,
he thought excitedly. Seconds passed and his discomfort grew. He was sure that he could feel his hand twitch and he could just about wiggle his fingers.

The door squeaked open and Felix waited excitedly. He would show whoever was there that he was getting better. With all his energy he tried to lift his eyelids.

“Ah, Felix, I see the Burungo is wearing off,” Professor Stumpworthy said quietly. “It’s the most powerful sedative in the world. Funny, other doctors aren’t aware of its unique properties.” He sighed happily. “At first I had thought of letting my little virus work its magic, but since you haven’t begun to mature, I didn’t know what would happen to you—it might actually kill you,” he chuckled oddly, “and you being in a coma is much more effective.”

Felix listened in horror.

“As planned, your illness brought the rest of your family here. Your father, as a man of science, will enjoy participating in some of my little experiments. However, your mother presents a bit of a problem. I can’t very well have her disappear; that wouldn’t do any good. I do have other tricks up my sleeve. I’ll admit that they’re experimental, but they could be very effective. Your little sister may prove a useful tool before I try them out on your lovely mother,” he hissed. “And you, my dear boy, are serving your purpose quite nicely…for now.”

For the first time since his paralysis had begun, Felix panicked when the piercing pain of the needle stung at the back of his neck. The drug took effect immediately and the panic left as Felix was sent even deeper into relaxed oblivion.

“No change?” asked Stumpworthy as he walked into Felix’s bedroom the next morning.

Elaine was sitting by Felix’s bedside; she could see the concern in Horace’s expression. She shook her head sadly. “Jake said he’ll go the hospital to run some tests.”

Horace nodded somberly. “Yes, I’ve arranged everything. He’ll have everything he needs, including a bed should he feel the need to rest while he’s waiting for the results. It can be such a waste of time traveling back and forth to the hospital.”

Elaine nodded. “He’s used to that. There have been times when he’s been gone for days because of his work at the hospital.”

That’s what I was counting on,
Stumpworthy thought, unable to suppress the smile that curled his lips.

Jake walked down the steps to the lower ground floor of the mansion to meet Professor Stumpworthy; they would travel to the hospital together. The stairs curved slightly, ending at a magnificent circular room. In the centre of the room was an elegant blue-tiled swimming pool with a mosaic of a mermaid on the bottom. A mural depicting an Italian country landscape was painted on the wall that curved along the near side of the pool. Huge marble columns supported the ceiling. The room was like a Mediterranean resort, with brightly coloured flowers and tropical palms growing in enormous urns all around. It was hard to believe that this paradise existed below ground level.

Jake put his medical case down and glanced at his watch; they had planned to leave at least fifteen minutes earlier. He looked up, clearing his throat to attract attention. Then a door hidden in the mural-painted wall opened.

“Ah, Jake,” the professor greeted. “Please come and take a look my own little laboratory for a moment. I would have set you up to work here, but I don’t have the same diagnostic equipment that the hospital does.”

Jake followed Stumpworthy into a good-sized room with some of the most advanced scientific equipment that Jake had ever seen. “Horace, this is fantastic. I would imagine that you have everything that I need.”

Horace smiled. “Then you think you’d like to stay?”

Jake nodded, pushing up his sleeves as if he were ready to get right to work. “Yes, I would. This will save a lot of time. If I do run into a problem, we can still contact the hospital.”

“As you wish.” Stumpworthy bowed his head.

Jake opened his medical bag and began removing blood samples, Petri dishes and the microscope slides he had prepared. Suddenly he rocked forward, grabbing onto a counter to steady himself.

Horace clicked the door shut and smiled. “Are you feeling all right?” he asked with a strange, almost giddy quality to his voice.

Jake shook his head as if to rattle himself back into feeling better. “Just a bit dizzy. I’ll be fine in a second.”

Stumpworthy nodded. “I’m sure you will.”

Jake fell forward again, now so dizzy that he could barely stand. His skin began to bubble and fur instantly covered his hands and face; his breathing came in short, desperate gasps. He held onto the counter tightly until violent convulsions sent him sprawling across the floor. His clothes tore as his body expanded, then fell away from him as he began shrinking into a mass of writhing animal parts. It was like a war of creatures fighting for dominance as hooves and paws, feathers and fins all fought for control. His body continued to writhe, getting smaller and smaller until only one animal was visible.

Professor Stumpworthy laughed, bending down to lift up Jake’s prone grey mouse body by the tail. “Tsk tsk! Who would have thought that you, such a well-respected doctor, would become such an insignificant little vermin in order to survive the virus,” he laughed. “Actually I had a hunch that you might, since mice have one of the strongest immune systems to fight this particular strain.” He waved Jake’s stunned body slowly back and forth like a pendulum. “I’ve also improved the delivery method. It’s no longer necessary to inject the virus directly into a person—it can be released into the air. Since I’m immune, it’s perfectly safe.” He checked Jake’s vital signs, then dropped him into a waiting cage. “I promised Elaine that you would have a bed, and here you are―fresh paper shavings. I trust that you will be comfortable. And when you wake up we can do some other experiments that I think you will find very interesting.”

Melinda sat up in bed, shivering, tears streaming down her face. She hadn’t had a nightmare in more than a week and this one caught her a little off guard. Her eyes darted around the unfamiliar room; then she sighed as she remembered where she was. She leaned back against the headboard, staring straight ahead at nothing in particular, recalling every image, every emotion, every feeling from her haunting dream.

Felix’s voice echoed in the hallway. She ran to his room, where he lay motionless in his bed. He was screaming, “Help me! Stop him!” but his lips weren’t moving and his eyes didn’t open. She leaned over him and lifted his eyelids, jumping backwards when she saw that his eyes were gone. She began frantically searching for them, thinking that perhaps they had rolled under the bed. She bent down to have a look when a mouse scampered out of the darkness carrying Felix’s eyes. As she tried to catch the mouse, Aesop walked into the room; he was the size of a man. He tapped her shoulder and said calmly, “I had to leave, but I’m here to help you now.”

She rubbed her eyes and ran her hands through her hair; her rabbit ears had finally gone. The bedside clock read 2:00 a.m. She pulled her covers tightly around her and was just closing her eyes, slinking down to rest her head on the pillow, when she thought that she heard Felix’s voice call for help.

Melinda’s feet hit the floor before she had even thought about getting out of bed. She sprinted to the door, turned the handle and crept out into the hallway. It took a minute for her eyes to adjust to the blackness as she stumbled down the dark passage, wondering why no one else was awake―hadn’t they heard Felix’s cry?

She reached his room, clicked on the light and hurried to Felix’s side. He looked exactly like he had in her dream, and her hands shook as she reached for his eyes. She took a deep breath and gently lifted his eyelids, sighing upon finding that his eyes were exactly where they were meant to be. “Felix, are you OK?” she whispered, watching for a sign that would suggest that he could hear her. Fear seized her like nothing she had ever felt before as she stared into the eyes of a person who simply was not there.