The Crystal Child (39 page)

“What do you know about my mother?” Alex asked at once when they were alone again.  But Forrester slowed him down.

“First of all, we have to be agreed that this meeting never happened.  I never told you anything about your mother, except to say that I had no idea where she was.  If you tell anybody — your father, the police, anybody — what we talked about here, I’ll deny everything.  I’ll call you a liar.  Is that understood?  This is absolutely confidential, right?”

“Sure, I agree. When did you see her?”

“I saw her in June.”

“Where?”

“Let’s wait before we talk about that.”

“Is she all right?”

“Yes.  I’d say she’s recovered from being in prison.  She seems … stable.”

Alex began to fire questions at Forrester, many that he could not answer, others that he was not ready to answer.  While they spoke, Forrester watched closely, trying to make a clear judgement about Alex.  Could he be trusted with a big assignment in life?  Did he have the maturity, the resourcefulness?  As they talked, Forrester gradually grew more convinced that the young man was strong, brave, level-headed.  But there was one question Forrester was waiting for, the question that mattered most.  “Is he there — the kid?” Alex asked. “Is he with her?”

“Yes, he’s there.  She went there to be with him.  But believe me, Alex, he’s not a kid.  I can’t tell you what he is.”

“I think he’s an evil little brat.”

“Give your mother more credit than that.  She didn’t throw her life away on some mindless whim.  Think of him as a child, and this will all go wrong.”

Alex’s eyes took on a vulnerable inquisitiveness. “Do you know about him?  Is he some kind of freak?”

“Freak?  I’m a biologist; biologists don’t use that word.  I guess he might qualify as a mutant.”  He turned the word over in his mind.  “Your mother would probably prefer to call him a changeling.  Something like that.  When I saw her, she’d strayed quite a long way from biology. She preferred to see things mythologically.”  He gave a bitter chuckle.  “I couldn’t follow her along that path.  That gives you some idea how she’s changed.  Be prepared for that.  I wasn’t and it threw me for a loop.”

“Why does she want to be with him?”

Forrester gave an impatient sigh.  “That I can’t tell you.  But if you intend to stage a showdown with Aaron, you can forget the whole thing.  That would be exactly the wrong move.  Do you hear me, Alex?”

Alex uttered a sullen “yes.”

“I’m not going to make your mother’s situation worse than it is.  Christ, Alex!  She’s paid a heavy price.  What more do you want?  So you have to decide.  And it’s a big decision.  Are you out to stick it to Aaron?  Or are you more concerned about bringing your mother home?”

Alex sat a moment, seeking to cool down.  “I have feelings about this.  I know I should be over the anger, the hatred.  I’d just as soon not have to meet him at all.”

“But you may have to.  In fact, I’m sure you will.”

Alex let out a low groan.  He squirmed uncomfortably in his seat.  “That could be hard.”

“Well, at least you’re willing to admit that.  That’s good.  One thing I can tell you that may help.  Julia’s relationship with Aaron isn’t what it once was.  You know what I mean.  There’s nothing … well, unprofessional going on — not as far as I could see.  She’s with him now simply as his physician.  He needs her care.”

“And that’s why she’s there? Because he matters to her so much?”

“If you want to go looking for your mother, you’ll have to understand that she has a special bond with Aaron.  It may seem totally crazy but she feels responsible for him. Almost in a motherly way — despite the sex that got mixed up in this.   Your mother is quite a fine person.  I don’t think anybody has a right to judge her for what happened with Aaron — not even you.  Because nobody understands why that happened.  I know that must be difficult for you to accept, but this much I can tell you for sure.  She’ll never leave unless he comes with her.  If you can’t deal with that, forget about finding her.  I’ve got to have your word on this.”

If Alex had answered too quickly, Forrester would not have believed him.  But the young man was clearly agonizing over the promise as if giving his word was a weighty matter.  Finally he said, “Okay.  I agree.”

“That’s good,” Forrester said.  “If you can bring them both back, you’ll be doing her a great favor.  She shouldn’t be where she is.”

Alex noticed the worried tone that came into Forrester’s voice.  “You think she’s in danger in some way?”

“I don’t like the people she’s staying with. I don’t trust them.  Not that they’d hurt her, but I know she’s not happy to be with them.”

“Who are they?”

“One is a phoney doctor named DeLeon.”

“I remember mother talking about him.  She didn’t like him.”

“With good reason.  He’s a pretty slimy character.  He makes you feel unclean just to be in the same room.  I think DeLeon considers Julia and Aaron to be his property.”  Under his breath he added, “He thinks of me that way too.”  Alex, puzzled, waited to learn more, but Forrester fell silent.  “Never mind.  It’s all about money and business and … money.”

After another silence, Alex asked, “Are you going to tell me where she is?”

The two men studied one another for a long moment.  “Yes, I am.  Are you familiar with Baja?”

“I’ve gone hiking there a couple of times.  I was there last summer.”

“Good.  Then you know the lay of the land.”

“The coast more than the mountains.”

“Your mother is in the mountains about four hours by car from the town of San Lazaro.  It’s a rough trip.  Do you think you can handle that?”

“I can handle it.”

Forrester felt certain he could.  “Here, I’ve brought a map.”  He spread a road map across the table and showed Alex where Tlaloc was.  “It’s a large private estate. Goes on for miles.  Big house, very whimsical place, very Gothic.  Mayan Gothic, if you can imagine.”

“You’ve been there?”

“Yes.  That’s where I met Julia.  And Aaron.”

Alex sat studying the map.  “What’s this road here?  Is it paved?”

“No.  Its hard dirt, very rough in spots.  Is that Honda you’re driving a rental?”

“Yeah.”

“It would be best to have a four-wheel drive, a good heavy van — and maybe carry some extra gasoline.  Can you turn the Honda in for something sturdier?”

Alex answered, “Yeah, I guess” but he looked uncertain.

“Do you need some money for this?” Forrester asked. “Enough for a week or so on the road?”

Alex was beginning to feel shaky.  He had been running fantasies about rescuing his mother since she went away to prison.  Something he would do one day.  But now that he was up against the real possibility of finding her, there were details he had to take into account.  Money and the car and how to get where he was heading and what he might meet when he got there.  He pulled himself up and squared his shoulders to show unswerving resolve, but inside he felt like the little boy who runs away from home only to discover he cannot cross the street by himself.  He did what he could to quiet the anxiety that was rising in him.  He must not let Forrester know how insecure he felt.

“I’ve got a credit card,” Alex said, “but it’s almost maxed out.”

Forrester sensed Alex’s uncertainty, but he judged this was a determined young man.  If he set his mind to something, money was apt to be the least of his problems.  “See me before you take off,” Forrester said. “I’ll give you what you need to pay off the card.  After that, if you need to use it, go ahead.  Use your credit line. Spend whatever it takes.  I’ll work out the finances with you afterwards.  If you bring Julia back, it’ll be worth what it costs.  Meanwhile …”   Forrester took out his wallet.  “I came prepared, you see.”  He took out a small stack of fifty-dollar bills.  “Go on, take it.”

Alex hesitantly pocketed the money.  “Well, thanks.  It’s a loan, okay?”  Forrester nodded.  Alex turned back to the map, more confident now.  He traced the route from Tiajuana to Tlaloc.  “So maybe that’s about two days of driving from the border.  What happens then?”

“There’s security,” Forrester said.  “The place is fenced in.  Also guys with guns.  You’ll be stopped at the gate.  I think you should identify yourself up front as Dr. Stein’s son.  If they give you trouble, insist on talking to her.  If they won’t put you through to her, ask to talk to Sylvana.  That’s the lady of the manor.  A rather batty type.  Be tough with her.  She scares easily.  Tell her Dr. Stein is expecting you.  If you absolutely can’t get by the gate, turn around and drive back to here.”  He pointed out San Lazaro on the map.  “There’s a spa there, DeLeon’s Mexican headquarters.  He tries to pass it off as an Institute. Ask to see DeLeon.  If he’s not there, wait for him.  Tell him your story.  Say I sent you with important information for Julia.  But don’t put any calls through to me.  You’re really going to be on your own.”

Vaguely, Alex registered what Forrester was saying, but he had other things on his mind.  Now that he could visualize the possibility of finding his mother, there were troubling questions to answer.  He asked, “Will she want to see me, do you think?”

“Aren’t you assuming she will?”

“Yes,” he answered hesitantly. “But what if she won’t?”

“We’re taking a gamble here, Alex, but I think she will.  I’m more concerned about what happens after you see her.  That has a lot to do with how you handle things.  It will be a test for you, trying to get hold of this situation.  I confess I didn’t succeed.  I left in a state of confusion.”

“About what?”

Forrester paused, wondering how to explain what he had encountered at Tlaloc.  “Julia is like somebody who’s fallen under a spell — like, you know, Snow White.”  He was surprised to hear himself say the words.  In earlier days he would have described Julia as stubborn, idiotic, plain crazy.  “Yes, that’s it.  It’s as if Aaron has cast a spell over her — though I don’t think he fully grasps what his powers are.  He claims he can heal himself spontaneously, regenerate lost body parts, that sort of thing.”

Alex blinked with astonishment.  “Really?  Can he?”

“He offered me a demonstration.  It was pretty damned convincing.  Of course, it went fast and we were in a darkened room.  I’m more than half convinced it was a stunt.  On the other hand there are things about this boy — his genetics, mainly — that are authentically baffling.  I can’t honestly say, Alex.  Maybe he’s a fake.  I almost hope he is.  Because everything about his case creates too much dissonance.  I’d like to sweep it all under the rug and forget about it.  He’s a superior intellect, way beyond all of us.  I’ve finally had to admit as much.  Be ready for that.  Don’t try engaging with him.  Stay focussed on your mother.  He’s brilliant, but in other ways he’s still a boy, very childish.  No, not childish.  Unformed.  He’s working something out and doesn’t seem to know what, as yet.  That’s why he needs Julia.  He seems to have mesmerized her.  He’s like some evil little wizard.  She needs to be awakened from his spell.  I couldn’t do that.  In fact, I blundered totally.  But you might — if you handle her gently.  I don’t doubt for a moment that she loves you.  I believe she wants your forgiveness as much as anything else in the world.  Seeing you might be the best thing that could happen to her.  At least that’s what I’m banking on.  In more than one sense, you may be what she needs to come home.”

They ordered coffee and spent the better part of an hour more talking over driving conditions, road hazards, and what Forrester knew about the layout of Tlaloc.  Before they parted company, Forrester took an envelope from his inside pocket and passed it across the table.  “I’d like you to do me one favor,” he said.  “This is for Julia.  It’s personal — very.  If you manage to see her, please give it to her.  And if not, please destroy it.”  After a moment’s thought, he added, “She may not want to take it.  If she seems reluctant, tell her … tell her it’s my flag of surrender.”

… and how  the brightness envelopes me like a second skin, so welcoming and protective.  How it carries me along the shining avenues, among the gleaming towers.  How it burns against the sky, brighter than the sun.  How it drives me faster and still faster.  Faster than time.  The thrill of knowing that time cannot catch me, cannot trap me and devour me.  That I have escaped Cronos, who eats his own children.  I am a runner at the end of his course, far ahead, victorious but so tired, ready to drop. One final burst.  I feel ready to give myself over.  I am an infant lifted from its cradle by its mother. 
This
, this moment is what I have been rushing to meet.

Julia is frightened.  With good reason, I suppose.  She’s been so patient, so willing to wait.  “I’m sorry,” I said.  “I’ve been inconsiderate.  Selfish, actually, keeping things to myself.  I’ve been hoping I would find some way to explain things that wouldn’t sound absurd.”

She couldn’t hold back her laughter.  “
You’re
afraid of sounding absurd?  I think you’re the incarnation of a myth.  I look at you and I see Adonis, Osiris, Cupid … I wouldn’t be surprised to hear myself saying you’re the second coming of Jesus — and I’m a good Jewish girl.  I believe something archetypal has emerged in you and taken you over.  Something that has nothing to do with genes, with cellular chemistry, with your immune system. I think I’m close to spinning out of control, that’s what’s going on with me.  Do you have something more absurd than that to tell me?”

I said, “You’re a remarkable diagnostician, Julia.  You have marvelous instincts.  You’re not far off the mark.  Would you understand what I mean if I said the archetypes that lie in the soul lead us forward?”

I could see it in her face.  Her appeal. 
Please, tell me more
, she was saying.

But I think time is running out.

***

In the night, she became aware of his presence beside her in the bed. When she turned her head on her pillow, Aaron’s voice greeted her, a soft, halting whisper in the darkness close to her cheek.  “I need to be with you.”  He was shaping himself to her body.

He had never come to her bed before.  There were times — soon after she arrived — when she wished he would, but his coldness and disinterest eventually dimmed her desire.  Now his nearness made her uneasy.  What did he want?  His breathing was labored, as if distressed.  His body touching hers was tense. 
What did he want?
  She feared even the least intimacy with him, knowing she would not be able to deny him anything he asked for.  But she could tell he had not come to her as a lover, nor to offer comfort.

For a long while, she lay without moving, her eyes staring into the darkness, afraid to move, listening to the uneven rhythm of his breathing, not wanting to encourage him.  There was no possibility of sleep.  Her heart was hammering madly inside her, her mind racing.  After a long while, he pressed in closer, his mouth at her ear.  What was he saying?  Something about “light.”  She turned to ask, but he was at her ear again.  “The light … I want you to know the light … .”

She turned to face Aaron across the pillow they shared.  She felt his arm reach across her body.  “Please,” he said.  And then “please” again more urgently.  “Hold me.”  The voice of a child.   “Hold me as long as you can.”  Was that all he wanted?  Then, for the first time, she noticed a small flickering light close at her cheek.  There was a moment of sickly panic; she swallowed it away.  Cold with fear, she felt for him, but taking his hand, flinched and drew back, shocked by what she touched.  Something cool and smooth, waxen to the touch.   Close at her ear he was whispering.  What was it?  She could not hear.  His voice was fading as if he were backing away down a long corridor.  He whispered again, forcing the words.  “I’m being taken.”  He was trying to find her hand. 
Hold me
, he had said.  Yes, she would hold him.  But what she was holding was not a human hand.