you talking to?”
“No one,” said Jenny, lifting her mother’s secret out of the hole: One file in a manila envelope labeled Patient Zero. Jenny flipped it open to see her own face staring angrily back, eyes narrowed, sneering like an original punk rock queen. Hair hung in ropes and her face was dirty. Jenny smiled. Casey nodded.
“What the fuck is happening, Jen?” said Declan, staring at her like she’d gone crazy. Jenny looked back at him, seeming to notice him for the first time. Benji stood behind Declan and Trix, his face stitched together like a clown from a horror movie. Jenny held up the picture with her face. Her identical face.
“So you found your file?” said Declan.
“That’s not me,” said Jenny. “It’s my twin sister.”
“Took you long enough,” said Casey.
THIRTEEN
They sat around the kitchen counter and watched Jenny read the file. The forms never mentioned a name, but Jenny’s smile turned to a look of disgust as she read everything they did to her. When she finished she closed the stained manila folder. She stared at the coffee ring where someone had casually rested their cup. She wanted to start punching things all over again. She looked at Declan, who could barely move without sloshing against his stitches. He’d wrapped a sheet around himself over the duct tape as a cushion.
“She was the first,” said Jenny, her voice raspy from her screaming earlier. “Before me. They…” She swallowed, trying to find the right words. She hugged the file to her chest. “I don’t understand all of it. They cut open her head, I know that. Poked around. It says they cured her of epilepsy. They took out part of her brain.” Jenny looked around the room. A sofa. A kitchen. Electricity. Her mother had done these things to them and then been able to live a normal life. For how long? A month? A year? Would any length of time be okay?
Jenny swallowed hard and clenched her fists.
“They put — whatever this is that they put in me — they put it in her head. They called it a prototype. Mine is around my spine. Or replacing my spine. That’s why Sully cut me open. He wanted to see how it worked.”
“Jenny,” Declan said, taking a step toward her. But Jenny put up her hand, stopping him.
“Let me talk,” she said. “I think it’s time you knew just what they did to us.” Jenny hugged the file closer and looked away from all the faces. “They cut her open again and again. They used anesthesia, so that might have been easier for her. But they didn’t have the technology quite right. In the file, they didn’t know why it wasn’t working, why she wasn’t healing correctly. They must have fixed that because I heal real fucking good.” Jenny looked at her knuckles where she’d struck the wall. Not even a scar. Her chest wasn’t hurting either, except for the the occasional stretching of her heart as it regenerated.
“So she wasn’t healing,” Jenny said. “She had scarring everywhere, from what I understand. Which admittedly isn’t a whole fucking lot. Anyone speak scientist here?”
Benji looked away and Jenny saw his teeth clench together. She understood. Rayanne would know. If she hadn’t been taken away with the others.
“Yeah, well,” Jenny said. “Fuck that bitch, Benji.” Benji didn’t look back to meet her eyes.
“What happened to her?” said Trix. There was no trace of sarcasm in her voice and Jenny looked at her quickly. She’d been quiet the whole time and Jenny realized she was listening raptly to Jenny’s synopsis of Patient Zero. She was clasping and unclasping her hands. She had known Casey better than Jenny. Maybe even loved him. The file on her sister—Casey's sister—concerned Trix too. It concerned all of them. Jenny felt her guard go down a little, feeling her chest fill up with emotion.
“The study was terminated when my…when Patient Zero left,” Jenny said. “That’s what they said, left the premises. ”
“She
“No one,” said Jenny, lifting her mother’s secret out of the hole: One file in a manila envelope labeled Patient Zero. Jenny flipped it open to see her own face staring angrily back, eyes narrowed, sneering like an original punk rock queen. Hair hung in ropes and her face was dirty. Jenny smiled. Casey nodded.
“What the fuck is happening, Jen?” said Declan, staring at her like she’d gone crazy. Jenny looked back at him, seeming to notice him for the first time. Benji stood behind Declan and Trix, his face stitched together like a clown from a horror movie. Jenny held up the picture with her face. Her identical face.
“So you found your file?” said Declan.
“That’s not me,” said Jenny. “It’s my twin sister.”
“Took you long enough,” said Casey.
THIRTEEN
They sat around the kitchen counter and watched Jenny read the file. The forms never mentioned a name, but Jenny’s smile turned to a look of disgust as she read everything they did to her. When she finished she closed the stained manila folder. She stared at the coffee ring where someone had casually rested their cup. She wanted to start punching things all over again. She looked at Declan, who could barely move without sloshing against his stitches. He’d wrapped a sheet around himself over the duct tape as a cushion.
“She was the first,” said Jenny, her voice raspy from her screaming earlier. “Before me. They…” She swallowed, trying to find the right words. She hugged the file to her chest. “I don’t understand all of it. They cut open her head, I know that. Poked around. It says they cured her of epilepsy. They took out part of her brain.” Jenny looked around the room. A sofa. A kitchen. Electricity. Her mother had done these things to them and then been able to live a normal life. For how long? A month? A year? Would any length of time be okay?
Jenny swallowed hard and clenched her fists.
“They put — whatever this is that they put in me — they put it in her head. They called it a prototype. Mine is around my spine. Or replacing my spine. That’s why Sully cut me open. He wanted to see how it worked.”
“Jenny,” Declan said, taking a step toward her. But Jenny put up her hand, stopping him.
“Let me talk,” she said. “I think it’s time you knew just what they did to us.” Jenny hugged the file closer and looked away from all the faces. “They cut her open again and again. They used anesthesia, so that might have been easier for her. But they didn’t have the technology quite right. In the file, they didn’t know why it wasn’t working, why she wasn’t healing correctly. They must have fixed that because I heal real fucking good.” Jenny looked at her knuckles where she’d struck the wall. Not even a scar. Her chest wasn’t hurting either, except for the the occasional stretching of her heart as it regenerated.
“So she wasn’t healing,” Jenny said. “She had scarring everywhere, from what I understand. Which admittedly isn’t a whole fucking lot. Anyone speak scientist here?”
Benji looked away and Jenny saw his teeth clench together. She understood. Rayanne would know. If she hadn’t been taken away with the others.
“Yeah, well,” Jenny said. “Fuck that bitch, Benji.” Benji didn’t look back to meet her eyes.
“What happened to her?” said Trix. There was no trace of sarcasm in her voice and Jenny looked at her quickly. She’d been quiet the whole time and Jenny realized she was listening raptly to Jenny’s synopsis of Patient Zero. She was clasping and unclasping her hands. She had known Casey better than Jenny. Maybe even loved him. The file on her sister—Casey's sister—concerned Trix too. It concerned all of them. Jenny felt her guard go down a little, feeling her chest fill up with emotion.
“The study was terminated when my…when Patient Zero left,” Jenny said. “That’s what they said, left the premises. ”
“She
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