Chromosome 6. Chapter 22, 23
CHAPTER 22
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MARCH 9, 1997
4:15 P.M.
ISLA FRANCESCA
‘SOMETHING very strange is going on,’ Kevin said.
‘But what?’ Melanie said. ‘Should we get our hopes up?’
‘Where could all the other animals be?’ Candace questioned.
‘I don’t know whether to be encouraged or concerned,’ Kevin said. ‘What
if they’re having Armageddon with the other group, and the fighting
spreads to here?’
‘God almighty,’ Melanie commented. ‘I never thought of that.’
Kevin and the women had been virtual prisoners for over two days. They
had not been allowed to leave the small cave the entire time of their
confinement, and it now smelled as bad or worse than the outer cave. To
relieve themselves, they’d been forced to go back into the tunnel which
reeked like a mini-cesspool.
They themselves didn’t smell much better. They were filthy from wearing
the same clothes and sleeping on the rock and dirt floor. Their hair was
hopelessly matted. Kevin’s face was covered with a two-day stubble. They
were all weak from lack of exercise and food although each had eaten
some of what was brought to them.
Around ten o’clock that morning, there’d been a sense that something
abnormal was happening. The animals had become agitated. Some had rushed
out only to return moments later, making loud cries. Early on, bonobo
number one had gone out but had yet to return. That in itself was
abnormal.
‘Wait a second,’ Kevin said suddenly. He put up his hands to keep the
women from making any noise. He strained to hear by turning his head
slowly from side to side.
‘What is it?’ Melanie asked urgently.
‘I thought I heard a voice,’ Kevin said.
‘A human voice?’ Candace questioned.
Kevin nodded.
‘Wait, I just heard it!’ Melanie said with excitement.
‘I did, too,’ Candace said. ‘I’m sure it was a human voice. It sounded
like someone yelling `okay.’ ‘
‘Arthur heard it, too,’ Kevin said. They’d named the bonobo who most
often stood guard at the lip of the small cave Arthur for no particular
reason other than to have a way to refer to him. Over the long hours,
they’d had what could have been called a dialogue. They’d even been able
to guess at some of the meanings of the bonobo words and gestures.
The ones they were the most sure of included ‘arak,’ which meant ‘away’
especially when accompanied by the spreading of fingers and a sweeping
arm motion, the same gesture Candace had seen in the operating room.
There was also ‘hana’ for ‘quiet’ and ‘zit’ for ‘go.’ They were very
sure of ‘food’ and ‘water,’ which were ‘bumi’ and ‘carak’ respectively.
A word they weren’t too sure of was ‘sta’ accompanied by holding up
one’s hands with palms out. They thought it might be the pronoun ‘you.’
Arthur stood up and loudly vocalized to the few bonobos remaining in the
cave. They listened and then immediately disappeared out the front.
The next thing Kevin and the others heard were several reports from a
rifle: not an ordinary gun but rather an air gun. A few minutes later,
two figures in animal-center coveralls appeared silhouetted against the
hazy, late-afternoon sky at the cave’s entrance. One was carrying a gun,
the other a strong, battery-powered lamp.
‘Help!’ Melanie shouted. She averted her eyes from the strong beam of
light but waved her hands frantically lest the men not see her.
There was a loud thump that echoed around the inside of the cave.
Simultaneously, Arthur let out a whimper. With a confused expression on
his flat face he looked down at a red-tailed dart that protruded from
his chest. His hand came up to grasp it, but before he could, he began
to wobble. As if in slow motion, he sagged to the floor and rolled over
onto his side.
Kevin, Melanie, and Candace emerged from their doorless cell and tried
to stand upright. It took a moment for them to stretch. By the time they
did the men were kneeling at the side of the bonobo to give the animal
an additional dose of tranquilizer.
‘My god, are we glad to see you,’ Melanie said. She had to steady