Double Helix Read Free

that’s possible.”
    â€œAh.” Dr. Wyatt had made a double-wheel kind of structure with the Tinkertoys. The spoke was green. The structure seemed to have his total attention. “You got A’s in chemistry and biology ?”
    â€œAnd physics.”
    A pause. Then, calmly, easily: “All right, then. You can work here for the year. It will look great on your college applications. You’ll like the work—it’ll be low-level, but you’ll see interesting things. And I’ll enjoy having you around. We can talk from time to time.”
    This was what I wanted. But still, my mouth dropped open with shock. And I thought, maybe, maybe if I worked here, if I talked to Dr. Wyatt from time to time, I could find some way to ask—to find out—
    â€œWell ?” Dr. Wyatt prompted. “Would you like that, Eli? It’s not every kid who has the opportunity to work at Wyatt Transgenics. Most of our employees—even the lab workers—have master’s degrees. Doctorates.”
    â€œI would like it,” I said. It was true. Everything else aside—my God! Wyatt Transgenics!
    â€œThen that’s settled.” Dr. Wyatt pushed the finished Tinkertoy structure away and stood up. “Let’s get you down to Human Resources. We can probably pay you something nice.”
    â€œBut—”
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œBut why would you want to hire me?”
    Another pause.
    Then: “I knew your mother,” said Dr. Wyatt. “Years ago.” And now he was, indeed, looking at me straight on. “I knew both your parents, but especially your mother. Ava Samuels. Nice woman. I knew she’d had a son named Eli, so I knew who you must be immediately, when I got your message. So of course I’d like to do your parents’ son a favor.
    â€œBut we won’t talk about your parents, Eli. Your mother. There is no need to. We both understand the situation, eh?”
    I stared at him. His linen suit. His big head. His eyes, mere pinpricks behind the black-framed glasses. Slowly his words sank in, and as they did, I felt something. I felt relief, and comfort, and security, of a kind that I hadn’t experienced—except maybe when I held Viv close—for years.
    Even if I didn’t understand what he meant by “the situation.”
    â€œDo you want a job, then?” said Dr. Quincy Wyatt. The Dr. Quincy Wyatt. “Is it a deal?” He stuck out his hand, as he had not done less than an hour ago when we met.
    I did not hesitate. I put my hand in his, and we shook, firmly.

CHAPTER 3
    OUTSIDE THE IMPOSING MODERN brick-and-glass cathedral that was Wyatt Transgenics, it was a perfect May afternoon. I decided to walk the three miles home, following the pedestrian path along the Charles River until I could turn off onto Western Avenue and up into deepest Cambridgeport.
    I was so filled with incredulous exuberance that I wished I - could run. But even though I’d taken off the jacket, the fact that I was wearing my father’s suit made running a bad idea. I stuffed the tie in my backpack and walked fast instead.
    I was going to be a lab assistant at Wyatt Transgenics, starting the Monday after graduation. That was in two weeks. Unbelievable. Unbelievable! I couldn’t have planned it even if I’d tried . . . or anyway, not so perfectly. It was a form of adulthood, sooner than I’d dared hope for. Adulthood—and control. Power over my own destiny.
    Viv would keel over with happiness when I called her. What a bonus for me that was. It had worried her so much that I - wasn’t planning for college next year. It’s just not like you, she’d said mournfully.
    I made a little bet with myself now. When I told her about the job offer, and my acceptance, Viv would say solemnly, We should always trust the universe, Eli. I should have known better than to doubt .
    Viv and her trustworthy universe. I grinned and shook my