I reached over and placed one hand on each of theirs. This time she didn’t pull away.
“You will stay with me until it’s safe to go home.”
“We won’t take nothin’.” Tamela’s words were hushed. The voice of a frightened child.
I took Boyd for a five-minute walk. Then we spent half an hour digging out towels and bedding for the sleeper sofa. By the time the Banks sisters were settled, Boyd having been granted a place in the den over Geneva’s objection, it was well past eleven.
Too agitated to sleep, I took my laptop to my bedroom, logged on, and resumed my Klinefelter’s research. I’d been at it ten minutes when my cell phone rang.
“What’s wrong?” Ryan sounded alarmed at the tenor of my voice.
I told him about Geneva and Tamela.
“You sure it’s legit?”
“I think so.”
“Well, be careful. They could be fronting for this mope Tyree.”
“I’m always careful.” No need to mention that moment of uncertainty concerning the lock. Or the unset alarm.
“You must be relieved that the Bankses are safe.”
“Yes. And I think I’ve discovered something else.”
“Does it have to do with fractals?”
“Ever heard of Klinefelter’s syndrome?”
“No.”
“How are you fixed for chromosomes?”
“Twenty-three pairs. Should hold me.”
“That would suggest that something about you is normal.”
“I have a feeling I’m about to learn about chromosomes.”
I let him listen to the sound of me saying nothing.
“OK.” I heard a match strike, then a deep inhalation. “Please?”
“As you so astutely point out, genetically normal individuals have twenty-three pairs of chromosomes, one per set coming from each parent. Twenty-two pairs are called autosomes, the other pair is made up of the sex chromosomes.”
“XX gets you the pink booties, XY gets you the blue.”
“You’re a whiz, Ryan. Occasionally, something goes awry in the formation of an egg or sperm, and an individual is born with one chromosome too many or one chromosome too few.”
“Down’s syndrome.”
“Exactly. People with mongolism, or Down’s syndrome, have an extra chromosome in the twenty-first pair of autosomes. The condition is also called trisomy 21.”
“I think we’re getting to Mr. Klinefelter.”
“Sometimes the abnormality involves a missing or an extra sex chromosome. XO women have a condition called Turner’s syndrome. XXY men have Klinefelter’s syndrome.”
“What about YO men?”
“Not possible. No X, no survival.”
“Tell me about Klinefelter’s.”
“Since there’s a Y chromosome in the genome, XXY, Klinefelter’s syndrome individuals are male. But they have small testes, and suffer from testosterone deficiency and infertility.”
“Are they physically distinct?”
“KS men tend to be tall, with disproportionately long legs and little body or facial hair. Some are pear-shaped. Some exhibit breast development.”
“How common is the condition?”
“I’ve read figures ranging from one in five hundred to one in eight hundred male conceptions. That makes KS the most common of the sex chromosome abnormalities.”
“Any behavioral implications?”
“KS individuals have a high incidence of learning disabilities, sometimes decreased verbal IQ, but usually normal intelligence. Some studies report increased levels of aggression or antisocial behavior.”
“I don’t imagine these kids feel really good about themselves growing up.”
“No,” I agreed.
“Why are we interested in Klinefelter’s syndrome?”
I told him about Brian Aiker, and recounted my conversations with Springer and Zamzow. Then I shared my boxless idea.
