CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“Out of hand? We’ve lost eleven people, Butch. Eleven! What are we going to do when the buyers arrive next week?”
“We’ll do what we always do,” said Butch. “We’ll make it up as we go along.”
“We’ve got it all recorded,” said AJ. “They have buyers coming next week, probably to align with the meet and you can definitely tell they’re freaked out by the two of you leaving with all those kids.”
“How are they?” asked Bull.
“Some are okay. They hadn’t started taking the shots yet. A few are pretty sick. Riley has called in Gabi, Doc, Cruz, Ajei, everyone to help. We’ve got unusually formed masses, heart rates and blood pressure through the roof, emotional trauma, you name it. These kids will be in therapy for years.”
“I should have killed her,” said Rory. “I damn sure wanted to.”
“Same, brother,” said Bull.
“Hey, I’ve got something strange happening,” said Tanner.
“Strange how?” asked Luke.
“Well, I took the photos of Butch and Helen from college and aligned them to their faces now. We expect aging and the program allots for that. But this is something different. Watch.”
Tanner lay the early photos up on the screen, showing a brother and sister, with tremendous similarity, but also differences. Next, he showed the photos taken from their hidden cameras and placed those on the screen.
Again, siblings that showed similarities.
“What am I missing?” asked Hex.
“Look at the data. It should tell us that these photos are a ninety-eight to ninety-nine percent match, allowing for variables like plastic surgery.”
“But it doesn’t say that,” frowned Hex. “It says the match is in the sixty-percent category. Why? What the fuck is wrong with this?”
“Holy shit,” muttered Suzette. “Holy shit.”
“Holy shit, what, Aunt Suzette?” asked Luke.
“They’re the experiment.” The men looked at her, then back at the photos on the screen. “They. Them. They are the experiment!”
“The scars on Butch’s chest,” frowned Rory. “Butch was Helen and Helen is now Butch.”
“I think so,” she nodded. “It makes sense. I heard you talking about how masculine her features were and I kept thinking, that’s normal when a woman is taking anabolic steroids. But the scar on his chest. He had breast removal because he was a she.”
“That’s why their father was such a dick. He knew the kids wanted to be the opposite gender and he thought the steroids would lock them into their roles,” said AJ.
“I think so,” nodded Suzette. “Jesus, I can’t believe they’re even alive. Do you understand how much stuff has been pumped into them over the last few decades? They don’t even need the kids to show the buyer what’s worked. They can just show themselves.”
“AJ? Search all the medical records in the country, and out of the country. See if you can find any medical records for gender reassignment, or at least the start of it for Butch and Helen, or whatever name we believe they used. We need to know how far back this really goes,” said Luke.
“We need to get whatever is in that warehouse, and all the notes that Butch and/or Helen have kept on the research they’ve done and that their father did,” said Suzette.
“We’ll get someone over there tonight,” nodded Hex. “If there’s river access, we can load everything onto one of the boats and get it out of there. They’ll be panicked if they have nothing to present to whoever the buyers are.”
“I might have a lead on that,” said Tanner turning from his computer screen to stare at them.
“Russians?” asked Eric. Tanner shook his head. “North Koreans?” Again, he shook his head. “Iranians?”
“No. Three top members of the international Olympic committee. They’re scheduled to fly in for the powerlifting competition but it doesn’t make sense. They’re tied into the winter games, not the summer.”
“They’re in on this?” asked Luke.
“I don’t know. All I know is they’re coming to New Orleans next week and that feels suspicious to me,” said Tanner.
“What do we do, Suzette? I mean, doping themselves and changing their own gender isn’t against the law,” said Hex.
“It’s not. It’s not against the law but they may have broken some laws along the way. Doping themselves is illegal if the formulations contain illegal substances. I just need to know what I’m looking for.”
“I mean, don’t you have an idea of what you’re looking for?” asked Eric.
“Eric, honey, I know what illegal substances look like but you have to remember they’ve been mixing this shit in their own kitchens. We know the basic substances to look for. Cocaine, marijuana, LSD, ecstasy, methamphetamines, and heroin. But there are others out there that we may not know about.”
“Aren’t the steroids illegal?” he frowned.
“Not at face value. Remember, these drugs can be used for medical purposes in the right hands for the right things. I just don’t think Butch and Helen have been using them for good.”
“Have we thought about letting Erin take a look at these formulations?” asked Luke. “I mean, you and Riley have been amazing but this is sort of within her realm of expertise as well, right?”
“Honey, I’m not offended that you asked about Erin looking at them.
I’m actually mad at myself that I didn’t think of it sooner.
I’ll see if she has the time to take a look.
We could be missing something for sure. All we know right now is that it mutates genetics to fool the body into believing it’s the opposite gender.
I just don’t know how it does that or how to stop it. ”
“Will these kids have permanent damage?” asked Eric.
“I’m afraid that some will,” she nodded. “Julius will not because we got him to the pond. Carter, we caught early and we’re hoping this other young man was caught early as well. We just don’t know what this will do their bodies long term.”
“All for what?” frowned Cam. “To be champions? To get a scholarship? I don’t buy it.”
“You don’t buy it because it’s not in your nature,” said Shep.
“Sorry, I wanted to listen to all of this because I’m trying to help these kids.
Some of them have been brainwashed by their parents to believe that the only option they have is to become a superior, world-class athlete.
Others are doing it because they’ve dreamed of this, of being like their hero.
“But I can tell you that the saddest part of all of it, for me, is that they all believe they are not enough. Only one of the eleven that walked out with all of you wanted to change her gender.”
“Her? We left with all males,” said Rory.
“You thought you left with all males. She was in the pack, breasts bound, hair buzzed short, and already showing signs of male features. She’s twenty-one and well aware of what she was doing and the outcome.”
“She chose this?” asked Cam.
“Cam, some of these kids know very early on that they are a gender not their own.” He saw the confusion in the faces of everyone and nodded.
“Think about it this way. What if you woke up one day and just knew that you were in the wrong body? You, as a strong, athletic male knew that you were meant to be a woman.”
“I can’t imagine that,” said Eric. “I don’t mean to be flippant about it. I just can’t imagine wanting to be anything other than a man.”
“That’s good. You know who you are and you’re happy with it. But what if you weren’t? What if being a woman was the only thing you wanted? Cross-dressing was not enough. Wearing wigs, not enough. What then?”
“God, Shep, I’m not sure how to answer. I don’t think I can,” said Eric.
“We can’t because we don’t feel the way some of these young men and women feel.
I’m a psychiatrist. My job is to help them be happy with themselves.
I don’t have to understand it. I don’t have to argue with it.
But I know this. I can’t imagine feeling like I’m not in the right body.
I can’t imagine not having feelings for Samantha, but instead having intense emotional feelings for you, or Hex or Luke. ”
Everyone in the room was quiet, just pondering what Shep laid before them. They didn’t understand because they weren’t in their place. Being gay or bi-sexual was very different than wanting to change your gender.
“Look, I don’t think you need to understand why this woman is choosing to change her identity. It’s not for us to understand, approve of, or disapprove of. I’m here to help guide them in their decisions and you’re here to make sure that whatever they do, it’s done legally,” said Shep.
“I won’t lie,” said Luke. “I don’t understand it and I don’t agree with it but I know that if she were my daughter, or son, it wouldn’t change my love for her.”
“Same,” nodded Eric. Cam and Hex nodded as well, still deep in thought on what Shep laid out for them.
“So, what’s the next step?” asked Hex.
“We get Erin to take a look at the drugs once we get everything from that warehouse. Watch the cameras closely so we can monitor the feed coming from the gym and find a way to be there next week when the committee members are here. I’m not going to watch another kid die unnecessarily,” said Luke.
He stared out the windows and the others looked his way.
“What’s up, Luke?” asked Hex.
“Grandma? Grandpa?” he called calmly.
“We’re here son,” said Matthew. “I can’t answer all your questions. It’s not my place.”
“I’m just trying to understand,” said Luke. The others waited for Matthew to respond.
“Luke, I’m not sure we can understand any of this. We’re fooling ourselves if we don’t believe that men dressed as women and women dressed as men, thousands of years ago. Homosexual relationships are as old as time. It is not my place to say whether they are right or wrong.”
“Grandma?”
“Luke, my sweet baby, I won’t make that judgment on any human being. Love is hard to find, honey. To be denied love for what you’re feeling for one human being, regardless of sex, seems cruel.”
“But all this gender changing, I don’t understand it,” said Luke.
“Do you need to?” asked Matthew. He looked at all the people in the room and knew they were thinking about his question.
“You don’t. You don’t need to understand it in order to help right the crime that’s happening with these folks.
The other stuff, it’s not for you to be okay with or not okay with. ”
“But Grandpa,” started Luke. He held up his hand.
“Luke, how many times did you have to let a criminal leave your hold because the battle was done but the war waged on? How many times do you choose to let someone live because of their circumstances? You’ve let at least a few on this property.”
“That’s different, Grandpa.”
“No. No it’s not. Kindness and respect, Luke.
I’ve always taught you boys that’s all you need in this life to lead you to where you should go.
You don’t have to understand, or agree, or be in line with their beliefs.
You don’t have to attend the same church or school, you don’t have to drink their drink or eat their food. Kindness and respect.”
“You’re right, Matthew,” nodded Eric. “It’s what you and Mama Irene have always told us. I’m sorry I forgot that for a moment. I don’t have to understand it. I don’t have to agree with it. I just need to respect their decision and be kind.”
“That’s it, baby,” smiled Irene. “Right, Luke?” He gave her a big smile and a hug.
“Right, Grandma.”