Jill had told her the truth: Roger had remarried and had moved far
away. Her despair didn't last too long, since there were now Laser Trains,
super-fast trains that ran through a vacuum-tunnel and could travel
hundreds of miles an hour, faster than a commercial jet in her day.
She stumbled upon this information when she learned that one of the
people she had been cataloging had died from a heart attack while he
was riding one of those trains. It wouldn't take her any longer to reach
Roger's new home than it would have for her to drive across town in
her previous life.
She purchased a round trip ticket with some of the money she had earned
working for Dr. Cohen. Credit cards were obsolete: she only had to scan
her fingerprints when ordering online, and the proper amount was deducted
from her account.
Sarah left early the next morning, before Jill and her family had awakened.
Her heart was pounding, and her throat was so dry that she could barely
breathe as she boarded the train. It was narrow and bullet-shaped, a
sleek silver. Inside the seats were plush, if a bit worn. There were
no windows, but the walls and ceiling of this train were actually vid-screens
that flickered an array of three-dimensional ads, entertainment and
news reports. There was only a small sprinkling of people riding at
this time, for which Sarah was grateful.
She settled into a seat and struggled to tune out the bombardment of
holovid images. Soon I will see Roger...
Nerves tore at her as the train sped away. The engine was soundless,
and she could barely feel the motion.
In a little over an hour, they had arrived.
Sarah opted to walk down the residential streets instead of attempting
to flag some taxi, since it was still quite early. The autumn air was
crisp and cool and smelled fresh. How did they keep the pollution out
of the air, Sarah wondered. The cars and Laser Trains were apparently
powered by something other than gasoline. But what?
Unlike Jill's house, which was miles out in the countryside and futuristic
in design, this neighborhood resembled one from the time that Sarah
had known. The houses were older but were still nicely kempt with manicured
lawns.
Sarah's stomach was fluttery and her legs fluid as she started up the
walkway of a simple frame house that had Roger's address. Her hand shook
as she rang the doorbell. The musical chime pierced her ears.
She struggled to steady herself as the door drew aside, revealing a
tall man with a familiar ruddy face. A face that she had loved, that
was now lined with approaching age. Roger? His gray eyes, the eyes she
had once known so well, widened when they saw her.
"Sarah...?" His voice was a choked gasp.
Sarah blinked and felt the tickling warmth of tears upon her cheeks.
She drew herself into Roger's arms. His body felt similar to how she
remembered: lanky yet muscular, although his belly now sagged.
"I missed you... I... " Her throat ached with sobs; her emotions
were an incongruous combination of joy and grief.
"Sarah?" Roger's eyes watered. "How many did they make?"
"What?" Sarah shook her head, confused. Her stomach knotted.
This wasn't what she had been expecting from Roger, not after all this
time. What was he talking about?
"Roger, is someone at the door?" asked a sleepy voice from
behind.
A chill stabbed Sarah's stomach. She knew Roger had remarried, but
still the knowledge of it stung.
That voice was disturbingly familiar.
"I suppose they didn't tell you." Roger stepped aside and
spoke to the woman behind him. "Sarah, I didn't think this would
happen, but you should meet her. She's the second clone."
Sarah froze as the woman, draped in a pink flannel robe, stepped up
to the doorway. She felt as if she were looking into a mirror, at a
reflection that had aged a few years.
"Who... what...?" Her mouth refused to form coherent words.
Her head spun.
She was barely aware of Roger grabbing her arm and leading her into
the house, settling her onto a soft chair. She closed her eyes momentarily
and wondered if she was close to awakening. This was all so strange
it had to be a dream. Neither Jill nor Dr. Cohen had mentioned anything
about another clone.
"Will she be all right?" Sarah felt strange hearing her own
voice coming from a different part of the room.
"I think so. Perhaps you should get her some tea. Lemon herb,
the same kind you like." She felt Roger's hand on her shoulder.
"Sarah, I'm sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen. You were supposed
to stay with Jill until you were able to start a new life of your own."
Sarah pried her eyes open. The room looked disturbingly like the living
room of their old house with the same green-striped sofa and love seat
ensemble and the fake Turkish rug beneath the coffee table. He still
had the same television set, a clunky square thing with the DVD player
and remote control. After the weeks that Sarah had spent with her daughter's
family, these items looked like antiques and prickled her with a pang
of nostalgia. A reluctant smile tugged at her lips when she saw that
one of the shelves had been taken apart. He never could leave anything
alone.
Roger has been living in the past. It's as if I never died...
A sob caught in Sarah's throat. But it isn't me he ended up with. Well,
it is, and it isn't.
She took the tea that her older double handed her and struggled to find the words.
"I... I don't understand. I thought Dr. Cohen said I was the first
success."
"You were. Two of you were formed from your original DNA. I insisted,
since this was a very new procedure back then, and it was a risky one.
It took almost twenty-five years before she awakened." He smiled
and nodded toward Sarah's double — his current wife — who
had curled up on the sofa with an old fashioned newspaper. "She
was the first so she became you, the you before your accident. We moved
to this suburb, where the residents still retain the semblance of early
twenty-first century lifestyles, in an effort to continue the life together
that we had lost. You remained asleep, comatose, but I couldn't bear
to have you destroyed. After all, both you and she are still... my Sarah,
complete with her memories, since her brain was what was cloned first.
Since Jill had distanced herself from me over the years — she didn't
agree with my choices — I still saw her as my little girl and wanted
her own mother to look after her. I left instructions with Dr. Cohen
to have you stay with her and her family." He rubbed at his eyes.
"I know from Dr. Cohen that she is doing well and is happy to have
you back in her life."
Sarah sipped the tea, barely tasting it. She handed the half-empty
cup back to Roger. "I should leave," she whispered, kissing
his cheek. The familiar scent of his skin brought fresh tears to her
eyes.
"You are still with me, Sarah," Roger said, leading her to
the door. "You and she are the same person." He nodded to
her double who had glanced up from her newspaper. "Take good care
of Jill, all right?" Sarah nodded and turned away.
She didn't allow herself to cry until she had gone some distance from
Roger's house. Her chest ached, her eyes felt sore. Why... why? Why
couldn't I have been the first to awaken? She crumpled onto the curb,
buried her face in her hands and wept for some time.
"Are you all right, Sarah?" asked a familiar voice.
Sarah turned to see Dr. Cohen sitting on the curb beside her. She wiped
her eyes. "You... you followed me?"
Dr. Cohen squeezed her hand. "I traced your steps with the transactions
you made over the computer."
"Why didn't you tell me you had made another clone?"
"I didn't think it was important at the time and was hoping that
you'd be willing to start a new life. I was wrong, and I'm sorry."
Dr. Cohen touched her arm.
"It looks like I will have to now. I just wish it didn't hurt
so much. I..." Her voice broke.
"I know." Dr. Cohen helped her to stand and started in the
direction of the train station. "I'll take you home."
"It hurts now." The chill morning brushed against her tear-wet
face. "But maybe you're right. It's now my turn to start over."
