Chapter VII

Kennon stopped at Blalok’s house long enough to tell the superintendent what was causing the trouble. Blalok scowled. “We’ve never had flukes here before,” he said. “Why should they appear now?”

“They’ve been introduced,” Kennon said. “The thing that bothers me is how Dr. Williamson missed them.”

“The old man was senile,” Blalok said. “He was nearly blind the last six months of his life. I wouldn’t doubt that he let his assistants do most of his work, and they could have missed them.”

“Possibly, but the lesions are easy to see. At any rate, the culprit is known now.”

“Culprit?”

“Hepatodirus hominis--the human liver fluke. He’s a tricky little fellow--travels almost as far as men do.”

“I’m glad it’s your problem, not mine. All I can remember about flukes is that they’re hard to eradicate.”

“Particularly H. hominis.”

“You can tell me about it later. Right now Mr. Alexander’s over at Old--your house. Probably he’s looking for you.”

“Where’s Jordan?”

“He went up to Station Fourteen. We’ll see him tomorrow.”

“I’ll say good night then,” Kennon said.

“I’m glad you’re here. It’s a load off my shoulders. See you tomorrow.” Blalok waved a friendly good night and left the lights on long enough for Kennon to make his way to his quarters.

Alexander was seated in a heavily upholstered chair listening to a taped symphony in the stereo, his eyes half closed, an expression of peace on his face. An elderly Lani stood beside him. It was a comfortable picture.

The humanoid saw Kennon and gasped, a tiny indrawn sound of surprise. Alexander’s eyes snapped open. “Oh--it’s you,” he said. “Don’t worry, Kara--it’s your new doctor.”

Kara smiled. “You startled me,” she said. “I was dreaming.”

“On your feet?” Alexander interjected idly.

“I should have known you at once, Doctor. There’s talk about you all over the yards, ever since you arrived.”

“They know what is going on around here better than any of us,” Alexander chuckled. “The grapevine is amazingly efficient. Well--what’s the story?”

“Liver fluke.”

“Hmm--not good.”

“I think it can be stopped. I looked at the records. It doesn’t seem to have been here too long.”

“I hope you’re right. How long will it take?”

“Several months, maybe a year, maybe more. I can’t say. But I’ll try to clean it up as quickly as possible. I’m pretty sure of the fluke, and it’s a hard one to control.”

“Hepatodirus?”

Kennon nodded.

“That’s an offworld parasite, isn’t it?”

“Yes. It originated on Santos. Parasitized the Varl originally, but liked humans better. It’s adapted to a hundred different planetary environments, and it keeps spreading. It’s a real cutie--almost intelligent the way it behaves. But it can be licked.”

“Good--get on it right away.”

“I’m starting tomorrow.”

“Fine--I thought you’d be the right man. Kara! Fix the doctor a drink. We might as well have a nightcap--then I’ll go back to the house and listen to Henry and Anne’s screams about poor mistreated Douglas, and then back to Albertsville tomorrow. Duty and the credits call.”

With mild surprise, Kennon realized that Alexander was drunk. Not obnoxiously, but enough to change his character. Intoxicated, he was a friendlier person. If there was any truth in the ancient cliche about alcohol bringing out a man’s true character, then Alexander was basically a very nice person indeed.

“Well--here’s your home for the next five years,” Alexander said. “Eight rooms, two baths, a freshener, and three Lani to keep the place running. You’ve got it made.”

“Perhaps--we’ll see when we tackle this fluke infestation. Personally, I don’t think I’m going to have an easy time. Tomorrow I’m going to be up to my neck in trouble trying to save your profits.”

“You’ll do it. I have confidence in you.”

“I still think you should have hired a medic.”

“This isn’t all of your job,” Alexander said. “And besides I can’t afford to do it. Oh--not the money, but it might be admitting that the Lani might be human. And we’ve gone to a great deal of trouble to prove they’re not.” He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “There’s a story behind this.”

“I wouldn’t doubt it.”

“Maybe it’d be better if I told it. It goes back over four centuries. Grandfather was a clever man. After he had secured this island he became worried about the surviving Lani. He didn’t want to be accused of genocide, since the Lani were so human in appearance. So he had his medical officer make a few autopsies. The M.D. reported that while there was similarity, the Lani were probably not human.

“That was enough for Grandfather. He requested a Court of Inquiry. The court was sitting in Halsey and the hearing was private. Even so, it leaked and Grandfather was highly unpopular for a time until the lab reports came in. It cost him over eight hundred Ems and nearly two years’ time to finish the case, but when it was over the Lani were declared alien, and Grandfather had ironclad discovery rights.

“They really put him through the mill. Grandfather furnished the bodies and three court-appointed M.O.’s went through them with microscopes. They didn’t miss a thing. Their reports are so detailed that they’re classics of their kind. They’re almost required reading for anyone who wants to learn Lani structure and function. The court rendered an interim decision that the Lani were nonhuman, and armed with this, Grandfather prepared the final tests which were run by a team of court-appointed medics and biologists, who made in vitro and live tests on a number of Lani female prisoners. The tests ran for over two years and were totally negative. So the Alexander family acquired Flora and the Otpens, and a legal status.” Alexander stood up. “Well--that’s a capsule summary. The records are in the library if you’d care to check them.”

“Why?”

“Just to prove we’re honest.” He moved carefully toward the door, opened it, and disappeared into the night.

Silently Kennon watched him descend the porch steps. He seemed steady enough. For a moment Kennon debated whether he should see him home--and then decided against it. If Alexander needed help he’d have asked for it. As it was, it was better to leave things alone. Certainly he didn’t know Alexander well enough to act as a guardian. He turned back to the living area. The stereo was playing something soft and nostalgic as Kennon sank into the chair Alexander had vacated. He let his body relax. It had been as full a day as he had ever spent filled with changes so abrupt that they were exhausting. He felt confused. There were no precedents he could apply. Neither his studies nor his travels had prepared him for living in a situation like this.