I Can Help You
Chapter 5
"It's beautiful out here" Adrienne remarked, "Jakob's gonna be able to ride his bike in the fields, and go to that nice little school over the Hill. And everyone seems friendly, we don't have to worry about kidnappers here"
She was acting as if this was perfectly normal; as if it was a pretty average to have your dead son cloned and be smuggled to the other side of the world. The enormity of what they'd done didn't seem to have hit her yet. But it had punched Billie Joe straight in the guts. As far as he was concerned, it was wrong, and nothing was going to change that. But how could he have refused? Adrienne had lost everything; he couldn't deny her this chance.
It had now been six months since they'd been given the test results, the results which changed their lives. Now they were living in an ornate country cottage, surrounded by nature. A reminder that they had gone against nature, that they had done something completely unethical.
"Only another few months" Adie said, rubbing her bump," I wonder what he'll be like"
Had she lost it, Billie Joe wondered, or did she just not want to think about it? Joey still didn't understand what was going on.
"My brother's coming back" he'd told his new teacher excitedly, "I'll get to see him again"
Billie Joe had the unfortunate task of explaining to a confused Miss Waltham what Joey was talking about.
"His older brother's in the army" he'd lied, "He's hoping to get some time off and visit us. We can't wait; I haven't seen him since Christmas."
Lying became easier, and soon there were perfectly rational explanations for why there were baby photographs locked away in boxes down in the cellar.
"Those are pictures of Joey's cousin Marc" Adrienne had invented, "He lives in China, so we don't get to see him much"
Not only did they not know anyone in China, Joey didn't have a cousin called Marc. They hadn't seen any of their family since the night they'd faked their deaths, and it was unlikely they would ever se them again. Lying, like anything else, becomes easier with practice. At first, you trip over your words, and your face flushes deep red. But after a while, it become part of your routine, you can just do it easily. And, like picking up an accent, it's a very hard thing to stop. Lies just seemed to tumble out of their mouths; they felt like they had to hide everything.
"I can't wait you know" Adrienne said, "I know it'll be weird, but I'm looking forward to it. Like we can forget everything that's happened, cause Jakob's gonna be the most important thing in our lives"
Billie Joe couldn't imagine ever forgetting the events of that day. He didn't think he would ever really forget all the people, and the mess, he'd they'd left behind. But, fixing a smile on his face, he nodded.
"He's coming back Billie" Adrienne whispered, "He's coming back"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Perched on the edge of a clean white plastic chair, Joey sighed. Waiting always made him nervous, but until then, he'd always believed that waiting, with no news or clue of what was happening, was far worse. Now, with Adrienne begging doctors to make sure Jakob was alright, he'd have taken an eerie silence any day.
"Please don't let anything happen to him" he could hear her scream, "Not again, please"
Joey knew there was nothing wrong with his brother, that his Mum was just terrified he was going to be snatched away again. But it didn't ease the twisting, knotted feeling in his stomach. Nobody had come to see him, to reassure him. Over the years, Joey had managed to piece events together, like a complicated jigsaw puzzle. But one question had never been answered, had they done something wrong? Adrienne insisted that they hadn't, that they were just making use of technology. Billie Joe said he wasn't sure, and he didn't have time to get into it. And Joey had never dared ask
Dr Hill.
The doctor arrived then, swinging his briefcase and whistling, as though nothing particularly eventful was taking place. He was, as always, perfectly groomed, his short combed into place, his shirt crisp and smart.
"Good evening" he said, addressing Joey, "I just received the phone call summoning me to the facility, excited are you?"
Joey nodded; feeling saying no looked horribly ungrateful.
"Excellent" Dr Hill said, "How's your Mum?"
Not knowing what to say, Joey shrugged, the question being answered by another hysterical shout. It was like a volcano, swirling around them, trapping them. Dr Hill had rushed off, leaving Joey alone again. Perhaps the loneliness that was the worst part. There had been so many lies, so much secrecy, that it was impossible just to be a family. Adrienne was petrified that something would go wrong again; Billie Joe put all his energy into supporting her. Joey had pretty much been left to his own devices. Perhaps all that was about to change, perhaps it would be like old times.
His new school wasn't bad, he had a friend at last, and now he would have his little brother again. Maybe everything was going to be all right.
"Joseph?" a doctor said, "Perhaps you'd like to come in now. Everything seems to be fine"
Shaking, Joey slowly got to his feet, inching his way towards the heavy white doors. He had no idea how long it had been since Dr Hill had spoken to him, it seemed to have flashed by like a bolt of lightning. Now here he was, about to see the brother he'd lost nine months previously. The brother he never thought he'd see again. Pushing open the door, Joey tried to convince himself that everything was okay, that a doctor had told him so, and that Adrienne was going to be happy again.
"Hey Joey" Billie Joe said, "Wanna see him?"
His eyes were silently begging Joey to smile and act as if everything was all right, if only for Adrienne. The room looked little like a hospital room, instead like something from a spy film. High-tech instruments and machines surrounded the bed in the centre, making Adie and Jakob look as though they were lost, marooned on a desert island.
Joey managed to murmur a response, and a tiny bundle was thrust into his arms. That was a bit much; it was far too huge a responsibility to be holding something so precious. He stared down at Jakob, wishing he could tell him how he felt, but with his parents watching, he'd have felt stupid.
"So" he said inside his head, "You're here. Again. You're meant to change everything, meant to make my Mum smile again. But we're not allowed to speak to our family, everyone thinks we're dead. I can't help hating you, but I love you at the same time, it's so hard to explain. You'd have loved our life before; you'd have loved our Dads daft mates. We were really famous before you died, and I wish you'd seen all that. We used to go to Dad's concerts and stuff, and we got loads of days off school. It won't be the same, and I've sort of got used to not having you around, but I'll try to help you. You're still my brother Jakob, I still love you. And even if you're nothing like before, we'll stick together, right? Forever."
She was acting as if this was perfectly normal; as if it was a pretty average to have your dead son cloned and be smuggled to the other side of the world. The enormity of what they'd done didn't seem to have hit her yet. But it had punched Billie Joe straight in the guts. As far as he was concerned, it was wrong, and nothing was going to change that. But how could he have refused? Adrienne had lost everything; he couldn't deny her this chance.
It had now been six months since they'd been given the test results, the results which changed their lives. Now they were living in an ornate country cottage, surrounded by nature. A reminder that they had gone against nature, that they had done something completely unethical.
"Only another few months" Adie said, rubbing her bump," I wonder what he'll be like"
Had she lost it, Billie Joe wondered, or did she just not want to think about it? Joey still didn't understand what was going on.
"My brother's coming back" he'd told his new teacher excitedly, "I'll get to see him again"
Billie Joe had the unfortunate task of explaining to a confused Miss Waltham what Joey was talking about.
"His older brother's in the army" he'd lied, "He's hoping to get some time off and visit us. We can't wait; I haven't seen him since Christmas."
Lying became easier, and soon there were perfectly rational explanations for why there were baby photographs locked away in boxes down in the cellar.
"Those are pictures of Joey's cousin Marc" Adrienne had invented, "He lives in China, so we don't get to see him much"
Not only did they not know anyone in China, Joey didn't have a cousin called Marc. They hadn't seen any of their family since the night they'd faked their deaths, and it was unlikely they would ever se them again. Lying, like anything else, becomes easier with practice. At first, you trip over your words, and your face flushes deep red. But after a while, it become part of your routine, you can just do it easily. And, like picking up an accent, it's a very hard thing to stop. Lies just seemed to tumble out of their mouths; they felt like they had to hide everything.
"I can't wait you know" Adrienne said, "I know it'll be weird, but I'm looking forward to it. Like we can forget everything that's happened, cause Jakob's gonna be the most important thing in our lives"
Billie Joe couldn't imagine ever forgetting the events of that day. He didn't think he would ever really forget all the people, and the mess, he'd they'd left behind. But, fixing a smile on his face, he nodded.
"He's coming back Billie" Adrienne whispered, "He's coming back"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Perched on the edge of a clean white plastic chair, Joey sighed. Waiting always made him nervous, but until then, he'd always believed that waiting, with no news or clue of what was happening, was far worse. Now, with Adrienne begging doctors to make sure Jakob was alright, he'd have taken an eerie silence any day.
"Please don't let anything happen to him" he could hear her scream, "Not again, please"
Joey knew there was nothing wrong with his brother, that his Mum was just terrified he was going to be snatched away again. But it didn't ease the twisting, knotted feeling in his stomach. Nobody had come to see him, to reassure him. Over the years, Joey had managed to piece events together, like a complicated jigsaw puzzle. But one question had never been answered, had they done something wrong? Adrienne insisted that they hadn't, that they were just making use of technology. Billie Joe said he wasn't sure, and he didn't have time to get into it. And Joey had never dared ask
Dr Hill.
The doctor arrived then, swinging his briefcase and whistling, as though nothing particularly eventful was taking place. He was, as always, perfectly groomed, his short combed into place, his shirt crisp and smart.
"Good evening" he said, addressing Joey, "I just received the phone call summoning me to the facility, excited are you?"
Joey nodded; feeling saying no looked horribly ungrateful.
"Excellent" Dr Hill said, "How's your Mum?"
Not knowing what to say, Joey shrugged, the question being answered by another hysterical shout. It was like a volcano, swirling around them, trapping them. Dr Hill had rushed off, leaving Joey alone again. Perhaps the loneliness that was the worst part. There had been so many lies, so much secrecy, that it was impossible just to be a family. Adrienne was petrified that something would go wrong again; Billie Joe put all his energy into supporting her. Joey had pretty much been left to his own devices. Perhaps all that was about to change, perhaps it would be like old times.
His new school wasn't bad, he had a friend at last, and now he would have his little brother again. Maybe everything was going to be all right.
"Joseph?" a doctor said, "Perhaps you'd like to come in now. Everything seems to be fine"
Shaking, Joey slowly got to his feet, inching his way towards the heavy white doors. He had no idea how long it had been since Dr Hill had spoken to him, it seemed to have flashed by like a bolt of lightning. Now here he was, about to see the brother he'd lost nine months previously. The brother he never thought he'd see again. Pushing open the door, Joey tried to convince himself that everything was okay, that a doctor had told him so, and that Adrienne was going to be happy again.
"Hey Joey" Billie Joe said, "Wanna see him?"
His eyes were silently begging Joey to smile and act as if everything was all right, if only for Adrienne. The room looked little like a hospital room, instead like something from a spy film. High-tech instruments and machines surrounded the bed in the centre, making Adie and Jakob look as though they were lost, marooned on a desert island.
Joey managed to murmur a response, and a tiny bundle was thrust into his arms. That was a bit much; it was far too huge a responsibility to be holding something so precious. He stared down at Jakob, wishing he could tell him how he felt, but with his parents watching, he'd have felt stupid.
"So" he said inside his head, "You're here. Again. You're meant to change everything, meant to make my Mum smile again. But we're not allowed to speak to our family, everyone thinks we're dead. I can't help hating you, but I love you at the same time, it's so hard to explain. You'd have loved our life before; you'd have loved our Dads daft mates. We were really famous before you died, and I wish you'd seen all that. We used to go to Dad's concerts and stuff, and we got loads of days off school. It won't be the same, and I've sort of got used to not having you around, but I'll try to help you. You're still my brother Jakob, I still love you. And even if you're nothing like before, we'll stick together, right? Forever."