CODE NAME WOLFGIRL: LOST CHILDREN IN AMERICA

Chapter 2: Not a Child

2

Jason finally reached the main building where all the important things happened. The institute had plenty of buildings on the grounds. Over the years, the farm buildings and storage sheds, which occupied the original property, were converted into housing for the clients and personnel. Jason lived in a small dormitory on-site that was there for the employees. Since Harvest Moon was located a good twenty miles from the nearest town of any size, it was hard to staff it up with the support personnel needed. Thus, many of them lived on the grounds.

He looked at his reflection in the glass of the door window and adjusted his tie before going on inside the building. Jason wondered where his ex-wife was and what she did, although it was no longer his concern. She was the one who wanted that house in Martha’s Vineyard, not him. Perhaps she could find someone to provide it for her.

One swipe of his badge opened the door and he was inside the main building. For some reason, this building didn’t have a name, everyone simply referred to it as ‘the main building’. He seemed to recall that it was one of the oldest ones in the facility. It had that 70’s look to it, he thought. Plenty of window glass in metal frames and a roof that slanted down over the top.

The rest of the staff involved with Candy was already in the conference room when he arrived. Jason sat down at his chair. He placed his files and tablet computer down in front.

“Did you have trouble getting out the door this morning?” Major asked him. Jason thought it an odd way to begin the meeting until he looked up at the dial clock and saw he was three minutes late. Major demanded every meeting start on time.

“No,” Jason replied. “I had a bit of a talk with Candy. She seems to understand we’ll be away from the institute for a long time.” He arranged the papers in front of him.

“Does Candy have much of a time concept?” Captain Saunders spoke up. “We don’t know a lot about her before she was brought here. Do those concepts require development in the way moral codes evolve?” It was an honest question.

“She can read a clock without any trouble,” Jason replied. “Sometimes I worry she doesn’t know what it means, but we haven’t reached that stage. At least not yet.”

“You need to let her know when it’s time for you to leave,” Major explained. “We can’t have her becoming dependent on you. It’s my hope Candy will be able to leave this place someday and she needs to develop the skills that will allow her to function on her own.”

Jason tried not to look at Mrs. Major in the face. She wasn’t tall, but the chief administer could be imposing at themes. Even the maintenance staff referred to her as “The Queen Mother” when she wasn’t around to hear.

Jason sighed and looked at the rest of the staff around the table. At least Dr. Klein was here. This made it a full staff meeting, as far as Candy’s well-being was concerned. At least someone else would be stuck filling out the state reports this time.

“So did anything new come in last night?” Jason asked everyone. “I checked my email when I got up and didn’t see a thing. Any objections at the state level for this trip? Any more forms we need to fill out? Have there been any new discoveries about her origin I need to know about?”

Everyone except Major shook their heads. The state had agreed to the trip last week and a completely new template was built for Jason so he could file updates on Candy’s progress while they were outside. Candy was a celebrity in human behavioral studies because she was the first person discovered in her condition in nearly fifty years. The previous feral children were few. Some doubted they were for real. It was never easy for someone to confess they’d kept a child imprisoned and out of human contact. A few of the people who did confess killed themselves later.

“The latest gynecologist report on Candy,” Major finally spoke. “It came in yesterday. Has everyone read it?” There were a few murmurs of assent.

“How well did everyone read it?” Major asked again, this time in a louder voice. “Did any of you read all of it? Did you read the conclusions by the doctors?” Now the rest of them were silent.

“She was r***d,” Major spoke. She let the information sink into them. “Not once, but repeatedly.”

“We know that,” Dr. Klein replied. He still had his lab coat on, even inside the conference room. Jason wasn’t certain if he’d ever seen Klein out of that lab coat. “The primary medical evaluation determined it in the first week she was brought to us….”

“She was r***d constantly over a period of years!” Major spoke in a louder voice as she slammed one hand down on the table. “Didn’t any of you real all the conclusions? The doctors said her level of abuse is consistent with victims of war time atrocities!”

“Yes, we are aware of this,” Saunders added. “It’s why….”

“And you want to send her out to hunt down a serial kidnapper?” Now Major was very angry. “Candy many never recover from what was done to her.” She turned to Jason and looked in the eyes. “This is too soon, I’m against it, but I’ve been over-ruled. Jason, you are personally responsible for her. So help me God, anything happens to that child….” She didn’t have to say more.

“She’s not a child,” Jason responded. “I wish you would quit referring to her that way. Candy is a woman and I shouldn’t have to remind you of the fact.”

“With the mind of a young girl!” Major snapped back. “She’s been abused and damaged to the point where most people would shut down.”

“Nerveless, it does us no good to think of Candy as a child,” Jason fired back. “No, we don’t know her exact age, but everyone thinks she’s at least nineteen, maybe older. Did you read that part of the report? She’s responding as an adult. We need to think her that way.”