Lucy by Laurence Gonzales Page B

much,” he said, clearing his throat and taking off his glasses to wipe them with a balled-up Kleenex, which he produced from the pocket of his tweed coat. “She tested out of many classes.”
    “All of her classes, actually,” Jenny put in.
    “Not disruptive?” Dr. Mayer asked.
    “No, not so far as I know.”
    Dr. Mayer pored over the contents of the file folder for a moment. She adjusted her glasses and said, “Well, fortunately, the boy was not seriously hurt. And the police tell me that he does not want to press charges.” Dr. Mayer pressed a finger to her lips and studied the file for another minute. “I’m willing to present this case to the disciplinary board as exceptional and ask that Lucy be allowed to continue as a student here. However, I will require that she receive psychological counseling to ensure that no other incident occurs and that any issues from her traumatic experience are resolved. Does that meet with everyone’s approval. Dr. Lowe?”
    “Yes, fine.” Jenny knew that meant that Dr. Mayer wanted a chance to work Lucy over in private. But she didn’t see any way out of it.
    “Mr. Wicks?”
    “Yes, that sounds appropriate.”
    “Lucy?”
    “Whatever my mother says is fine with me.”
    Jenny felt herself choke up when Lucy referred to her as her mother. She wondered if Lucy was sly enough to do it for effect or if she really meant it. She felt the tension go out of her.
    “Very well. Then if no further trouble occurs I’ll consider the matter settled.” As they stood up to leave, Dr. Mayer added, “Oh, and I will also require that Lucy undergo a complete examination by a qualified physician.”
    “Why would that be necessary? I had her examined by a qualified physician on her arrival in the United States. He’s the one who signed Lucy’s school health form.”
    “We’d prefer to have our own physician make sure that there isn’t some occult condition that might have been overlooked. Violent behavior is not in the patient’s normal repertoire of conduct.” Jenny noticed that she had facilely transformed Lucy from a student into a patient. “She lived in a part of the world where exotic diseases thrive. Parasites. I’m sure that Lucy is just fine, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t check. It is a matter of potential liability, don’t you agree?”
    Jenny could hardly disagree. Harry ran tests on patients all the time as insurance against a possible lawsuit. The school didn’t want to be sued either.
    As they drove home, Lucy asked, “Are they going to find out now? With their doctors?”
    “I don’t think so. There’s no reason for them to do a genetic analysis, and that’s the only way to tell. In the meantime try not to throw anybody else across the room.”
    Lucy laughed, and Jenny thought that she detected a bit of pride in what she’d done.
    “Did you really want to call me your mother? Or did you just say that for the psychologist?”
    “Oh, may I? May I call you Mother? No, Mom. That’s more American, isn’t it? May I please call you Mom?”
    Jenny felt tears well up in her eyes. “Yes, of course. I’d love it if you did.”
    •  •  •
    When Lucy returned to school the next day, she could tell immediately that two pieces of information had spread far and wide: The story of the murder of her parents, and the fact that she’d thrown that boy across the gym. She was really in The Stream with all those people now. As she passed down the hall, the crowd parted before her and a tide of secret messages began washing back and forth. She could feel her hair stand up. She tried to control herself as her heart fluttered in her chest. Breathe, she told herself. Breathe. Don’t make a scene.
    By third period, when she was about to have English class, Lucy was barely in control. She walked stiffly down the hall feeling the stares coming at her from every direction. In a bonobo family, only the leaders are looked at as much as those students were looking at