Lyon's Legacy: Catalyst Chronicles, Book One by Sandra Ulbrich Almazan

though she still didn’t look convinced.
    Despite my lessons on board the Sagan , I didn’t feel comfortable using TwenCen phones, so I positioned myself so Sean and his grandmother couldn’t see me pretend to dial the numbers. I felt silly trying asking questions of no one. It didn’t help when Grandma Mary started offering advice like, “Ask what kind of furnishings it has,” and Sean countered with “Ask if it comes with a free elephant.” When I finally hung up, the phone was smudged. Ink from the newspaper? I tried rubbing it off, then I had to wash my hands to clean them too.
    “They said I could come look at it right away,” I told my relatives. “I may as well bring my suitcase.”
    “Is that it? Where’s the rest of your stuff?”
    “I’ll have it shipped out later.”
    “All right.” She collected the empty dishes. “Will you be back for dinner?”
    I sighed. “Probably not.”
    “Well, i f it doesn’t work out, the offer still stands. I hope it’s in a good part of town! Let us know, will you?” She hugged me before returning to the sink. “Sean, help her with her things, that’s a good lad.”
    I didn’t mind that Sean’s sexist attitudes required him to carry my suitcase, despite his crack about how I’d packed bricks instead of clothes. The day was cloudy and chilly, with a wind strong enough to make conversation difficult. I tried not to study the neighborhood too much as we walked, even though I knew it would be the last time I saw it. This was supposed to be a casual parting, even if it was final.
    Sean dropped my suitcase as soon as we reached the shelter. “Lucky you, moving out,” he said. “I can hardly wait until I can be on my own.”
    “Your grandmother seems nice,” I said.
    “Yeah, but she’s always telling me what to do.” He gave me a sharp glance. “Hey, maybe when you’re settled, I can drop by.”
    “There’s a roommate,” I improvised. “Two, even.”
    “I hope they’re good-looking.”
    “I think you have plenty of girls chasing after you already.”
    He grinned at that.
    The bus turned the corner. Soon, I’d never see him again. Why was I more disappointed than relieved?
    As the bus slowed, I turned and hugged him. “Thanks, Sean.”
    Still in my grip, he shrugged. “For what?”
    “For...everything.”
    Sean took charge of my suitcase while I searched through my purse for the fare. When I was set, I boarded the bus and paid as smoothly as if I’d been born into this time. I sat by the window so I could watch him walk away. Instead, he stood there and stared at me, as if he suspected this was a final parting. Suddenly, he ran his fingers through his dark hair, making it stick up in all directions. Then he made circles around his eyes with his fingers. What the hell was he doing? It took me a few seconds to figure out he was probably imitating Einstein. Yeah, I really had a chance at matching that genius; our family just had the madness. Still, I couldn’t help grinning as we pulled away.
     
    * * *
     
    Now that I no longer had to deal with Sean, I could think about how to thwart my uncle. I turned over ideas in my mind. Someone in the genetics lab would probably compare my sample to Jackass’s own DNA. I didn’t have any way to alter the sample, and I had to hand it over if I wanted to see George ever again. But he’d already said he wasn’t willing to help me alter the DNA. How was I going to stop my uncle from creating a child from Sean Lyon’s genes?
    I could see two possible futures for the child. In one, the clone would be raised on a steady diet of Lyonism, much as I had been. He’d be trained on guitar, piano, and voice, only he’d be pushed harder than I, a mere girl, had been. Every scribble or doodle of his would be scrutinized for signs of Sean’s humor. Every day, he’d have Sean held up before him as an example of greatness; Sean’s faults would be downplayed, even made into virtues. I knew from my own childhood what