Mutation by Robin Cook Page B

she wanted to forget. He was such a beautiful boy. It was hard to reconcile his innocent face in slumber with the monstrous truth revealed at the lab. At least now she felt she had some understanding of why he was so cold and unaffectionate. Maybe that was why he shared so many of the personality disorders displayed by Jasper Lewis. Ruefully, she reflected that at least her absences from home in VJ's early years were not to blame.
         Well, as long as Victor was insisting on a neuro-medical work-up, Marsha decided that she would give VJ a battery of psychological tests. It certainly wouldn't hurt.
        
    6. Tuesday Morning
        
         They took separate cars to drive to Boston since Victor wanted to return directly to Chimera. VJ chose to ride with Marsha.

     The ride itself was uneventful. Marsha tried to get VJ to talk, but he answered all her questions with a curt yes or no. She gave up until they were a few minutes away from Children's Hospital.
         "Have you been having any headaches?" she asked, breaking the long silence.
         "No," VJ said. "I told you I'm fine. Why the sudden concern about my health?"
         "It's your father's idea," Marsha said. She couldn't think of any reason not to tell the truth. "He calls it preventive medicine."
         "I think it's a waste of time," VJ said.
         "Have you had any change in your memory?" Marsha asked.
         "I'm telling you," VJ snapped, "I'm entirely normal!"
         "All right, VJ," Marsha said. "There is no reason to get angry. We're glad that you're healthy and we want you to stay that way." She wondered what the boy would think if he were told he was a chimera, and that he had animal genes fused into his chromosomes.
         "Do you remember back when you were three and suddenly couldn't read?" Marsha asked.
         "Of course," VJ said.
         "We've never talked much about that period," Marsha said.
         VJ turned away from Marsha and looked out the window.
         "Were you very upset?" Marsha asked.
         VJ turned to her and said, "Mother, please don't play psychiatrist with me. Of course it bothered me. It was frustrating not being able to do things that I'd been able to do. But I relearned them and I'm fine."
         "If you ever want to talk about it, I'm available," Marsha said. "Just because I've never brought it up doesn't mean I don't care. You have to understand that it was a stressful time for me too. As a mother I was terrified that you were ill. Once it was clear you were all right, I guess I tried not to think about it."
         VJ just nodded.
         They all met in the waiting room of Dr. Clifford Ruddock, Chief of the Department of Neurology. Victor had beat them by fifteen minutes. As soon as VJ sat down with a magazine, Victor took Marsha aside. "I spoke with Dr. Ruddock as soon as I arrived. He's agreed to compare VJ's current neurological status with what he found at the time VJ's IQ dropped. But he is a little suspicious about why we brought him in today. Obviously, he knows nothing about the NGF gene, and I do not plan to tell him."
         "Naturally," said Marsha.
         Victor shot her a look. "I hope you are planning to be cooperative."
         "I'm going to be more than cooperative," Marsha said. "As soon as VJ is finished here, I'm planning to take him to my office and have him go through a battery of psychological tests."
         "What on earth for?" Victor asked.
         "The fact that you have to ask means that I probably couldn't explain it to you."
         Dr. Ruddock, a tall, slender man with salt and pepper hair, called all the Franks into his office for a few minutes before the examination. He asked if the boy remembered him. VJ told the man that he did, particularly his smell.
         Victor and Marsha chuckled nervously.
         "It was your cologne," VJ said. "You were wearing Hermès after-shave."
         Somewhat taken aback by this