The Truth is in the DNA

THE TRUTH IS IN THE DNA

by DG HEAR & PAPATOAD

I received an e-mail from Papatoad and he asked if I would like to collaborate on a story he was writing. I've always liked to collaborate with different writers and admit that Papatoad has always been one of my favorites. Here's our first collaboration. Hope you enjoy it.

DG Hear

"Major Turner. It's the Air Force Academy on line 2."

"Damn it, Cordetti. It's six AM and I don't even have my coffee yet."

"Sorry sir. They called three times already this morning."

As I sat down, I pushed aside a pile of papers that Cordetti had placed directly in the center of my desk. That meant they needed immediate attention. He had a good system because it kept the important things separate from the bureaucratic bullshit.

The amber light on the phone flashed steady and true. Even though I started work early to get things done before the duty day actually began, it never seemed to work. I fiddled around with a few pieces of paper while I watched the light flashing. Finally, Bennie came in with my first cup of coffee for the day. I sighed and picked up the receiver.

"Good morning. This is Major Turner. What can I do for you and why the hell are you calling so early?"

"This is Staff Sergeant Warner in the Air Force Academy Admissions office. I was hoping to get your help on a small abnormality that cropped up."

"Sergeant Warner, I'm an Avionics Squadron Commander on Guam. What information could I possibly have that would be of interest to the academy? None of my men has applied for the academy and I'm afraid that I don't know of any other applicants."

"No sir. It's nothing like that. The applicant has already been approved and accepted. In fact, he's near the top of the list for this year. The admissions staff just ran into a discrepancy when they were setting up his medical folder. I just have a few quick questions then I'll be out of your hair."

"Warner, I don't know a damn thing about medical records."

"Bear with me, sir. I'm trying to get to it."

"Sorry. I'm an impetuous bastard, sergeant. I'm always in a rush to get to the point. I'll try not to interrupt you again; I promise," I said.

"The DNA for the cadet and his father did not match. This has happened before and we usually have been able to come up with an explanation of some sorts, like adoption, or in some cases, infidelity. Because of the ramifications that might occur we have to handle things quite carefully."

"I'm with you, although I still don't understand. But keep going."

"In this case, one of the team requested a second DNA sample when it seemed there had been some sort of mix up. That turned out to be a big mistake. It didn't affect the applicant's admissions status, but apparently there was some disruption within his family."

"So somebody screwed up."

"Exactly. Corrective action has been taken to prevent reoccurrence, but that didn't undo the damage."

"Sergeant Warner, I hate to ask again, but what the hell does this have to do with me?"

"I'll try and get to that. One of the lab technicians ran a reverse paternity check against the cadet's file. It took a while, but your name popped up as a match."

"Sounds like some kind of glitch. I'm not married and I never have been. I have no brothers and I think my father was clipped thirty years ago. Whatever kind of match you got, it has to be erroneous."

"I made them check it three times before I called you, sir."

"What's the cadet's name?"

"Derek James Proctor."

The first thing I thought of was how the information so far was a nasty way to ruin a perfectly nice Micronesian morning. We had the same first name.

"Cordetti, get me another coffee, will you?" I yelled through the opened door.

"I'm sorry, Sergeant Warner. Do you have his mother's name?"

"Just a moment. OK, here it is. Katherine Ann Proctor, nee Willows."

Bennie gave me a curious look as I took the cup from his hand. He was the best head clerk in the whole Air Force. He stood by my office door just staring at me.

I guess it was because I was shaking my head and repeating my disappointment mantra repeatedly.

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

Nothing unique or clever, but my head clerk knew that it meant I wasn't happy. Memories filled my head, making me forget the phone that was still in my hand.

"Sir? Sir? Major Turner, are you there?"

"I'm sorry, Warner. I got a little distracted again. It's early here--the sun is just coming up. Now that we had our little talk, Sergeant Warner, what is it you want from me?"

"Sir, we would like to wrap up this admissions file. All I need is confirmation or rejection. I promise we won't bother you again."

"I'm afraid there are a lot of unanswered questions as far as I'm concerned, but they will not have any bearing on Derek Proctor's application. Mark me down as the biological father, but for God's sake keep a lid on it. Make sure that he doesn't find out until I get a chance to straighten things out."

"I understand. I'll classify the file until you give me the go-ahead. Sir, I'm not trying to be nosy or butt into your business, but were you even aware you had a son?"

"No Warner, I was not. I'm holding you responsible for keeping that under wraps."

"Just for your information, he is one of the best candidates of the year. You can be very proud."

"I'm not, Sergeant Warner. I didn't do a damn thing to raise that boy. Everything he turned out to be would be because of his mother."

"What about his father?"

"I don't know all of the facts, but I'm betting she did it in spite of him, not with him. It's a dark place, Warner. Don't even think of going there."

"Sir, I'm sorry. My mistake. I'll take care of things at this end. I apologize for the inconvenience and I appreciate your assistance."

I hung up the phone. That five-minute call took ten minutes. Then I noticed Bennie hadn't moved from the doorway. He would want an explanation and he was going to stand there until he got it.

"Bennie, did you listen to that conversation?"

"I did. Congratulations."

"I'm not really sure what happened, but I'm about to find out. Can you get me a hop on a tanker back to Beale today?"

"It shouldn't be a problem. There's nothing pressing on the table and Captain Kramer should be able to handle anything that may come up. I'll have the emergency leave papers ready in ten minutes. Is there anything else?"

"Am I supposed to hand out cigars?" I snickered, trying to keep my mood light.

"I think that can wait until you get back."

Bennie stepped aside as I left the office. We were both smiling. Was it good news or bad news? How was I supposed to decide? I just found out I was a father. Yet at the same time, I found out he was a grown man. I missed his whole childhood. I missed being a father, and most of all I missed getting to be with my son's mother, Katherine Ann Willows.

I settled in as the KC135 left the island of Guam, headed back to the mainland. It was a cargo-equipped aircraft so I had to endure the long hours on a canvas drop-down seat with a parachute for a cushion. A commercial flight would have been far more comfortable and I could afford it, but this was quicker.

An old friend would be leaving an F150 pick-up truck at the Beale AFB terminal for me. The key would be under the floor mat and the gas tank filled. He didn't even ask why. Old friends are good friends. Everything was ready so all I had to do was try to relax and remember what brought me to this point. It wasn't a big dramatic thing, just a small misunderstanding that was never resolved.

I sat in the plane and remembered back to the beginning when I met Katherine. We were classmates at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento, and secret lovers. She was from money and I wasn't. For three years we kept our relationship secret. Upon graduation, I left for Texas A & M, and that was the last time I saw her. Six months later my father notified me that Katherine had married a man named Jake Proctor, who was a friend of her family.

I had plenty of female friends over the years, but never married. None of them was up to Katherine's level. Everyone looks for that special woman and to me it was Katherine Willows.

The plane landed at Beale right on time. I found the pickup my friend left for me. I jumped in and headed for Sacramento to see a woman I had loved and hadn't seen or heard from in nearly twenty years. I was too old to be nervous, but I was.

She lived in the same house she grew up in--a mansion by any description. I pulled in the drive and rang the doorbell. A butler came to the door and asked if he could help me.

"Is Katherine Willows home? I would like to speak to her."

"Whom may I say is calling?"

"Just tell her an old friend."

I waited by the door as the butler left. When he returned, Katherine was with him. She stared at me for about ten seconds.

"Oh my god! Derek!"

She stepped forward and gave me the biggest and longest hug I had ever had. She had tears in her eyes. She was just as beautiful as she had been so many years before.

"Please come in and sit down. What brings you here after all these years?"

"My son. Apparently, I have a son who joined the Air Force Academy. A son who I never met or even knew about."

She was quiet for several moments.

"I'm sorry Derek. We were so happy when he got the appointment to the academy. We never realized they would do a DNA check. I didn't know for sure myself until a couple of weeks ago, although I always believed you were his father."

"What did Jake have to say about it?" I asked.

"To be honest, Jake knew too, but neither of us mentioned it. Actually, I think the whole family knew. It's funny how rich people can sweep things under the rug so easily. He really wanted to have a child or two of his own, but it never happened. After a while, he got frustrated and just gave up. He died in an auto accident nine years ago. He wasn't a very good father and he cheated on me a lot. I caught him with his secretary one night when he said he was working late. I picked up dinner for us and took it to his office. He was having sex on his desk when I got there."

"I'm sorry. You deserved so much better."

It didn't seem to make sense, but some of my old feelings for her were returning.

"Derek, Jake was bi-sexual. His secretary was a man. In the accident he died in, he was with a woman who was giving him oral sex. My son Derek knew his father cheated on me, but I never told him about the men."

"I don't know what to say. I came here because I was upset that you never told me about Derek, but now I feel sorry for you and just want to hold you."

I put my arms around her and gave her another hug. I kept thinking that holding her felt like the right thing to do.

"Will you stay for dinner? I'll tell you everything. I still have feelings for you even after all these years," she said, blushing as she spoke.

She told her butler to set another plate at the table. She admitted that her maid, cook, and butler all had dinner with her since Derek left, just like a family. Dinner was wonderful. After we ate, Katherine and I went into a small library and she told me about her past.

"Derek, that night we slept together, I told you I loved you. And I meant it. I don't know why but I really felt I did. If you had asked me to run away with you, I would have. But you were just starting college and there was no way I could burden you with my pregnancy. When I told my family, they were ecstatic because it meant they could marry me off to Jake. He was more than willing to marry me even though I was pregnant. It was like a rich family merger, something from the Middle Ages. I should have contacted you, but I was afraid."

"We had a small wedding a month later. My dress covered the start of the baby bump. Mom and dad were happy to see me get married. My two older sisters both lived out of state but they came home for the wedding. They both have kids of their own now, and one sister even has grandchildren.

"After Derek's birth, I was so happy. Jake wanted to name him Jake Jr. but I wanted to name him Derek. After a couple of years, I got a job at the Sacramento Memorial Hospital. Mom watched Derek while I worked. Of course, mom loved him to death and the staff always helped. He was such a good boy."

Katherine got out some albums of pictures and went through them. There were hundreds of photos of my son. He was a good-looking boy.

"Kathy, tell me about you. What have you been doing for the last twenty years?"

"The first few years were fine. We were a family. Dad loaned Jake the money to open a real estate business. He did really well until he started his cheating. He didn't even hide it very good. I worked at the hospital and raised Derek. He was my life. My parents were always there for Derek and me. Maybe you can meet them tomorrow."

"Do you have a boyfriend or date at all?" I asked.

"I have a lot of friends at the hospital. I've dated throughout the years but nothing serious. No one I wanted to spend a lot of time with. I go out with the other nurses to the lounge a couple of times a month. I often go with mom and dad to museums and plays. But no, I don't have a steady man in my life."

While we were talking, Jacob, her butler, came in and said, "Ms. Willows, you have a phone call. It's your son."

"Thank you, Jacob." She picked up the phone and asked Derek if everything was all right.

"Yes mom, but I have a couple of important questions for you. Do you know a Derek Turner? He's a major in the Air Force. I received information they had trouble identifying my DNA. They called me yesterday and said a Major Derek Turner signed my papers as my biological father. What can you tell me? The Air Force said it was all confidential."

"Honey, I got the call as well. I received it two days ago. I'm sorry I never explained things to you. I didn't think it was necessary. I guess I made a big mistake. I'm so sorry. I love you so much."

She was crying lightly. I sat there, wondering what I should do, how I could help.

"It's OK, mom. I just want to know who this man is and if he's my father. The Air Force has sealed that information."

"Derek, honey, Derek Turner is here at the house right now. He flew here to talk about you. Would you like to speak to him?"

She handed me the phone and sat down again. I saw the tears in her eyes and wanted to hold her again. First, I needed to take the call.

"Hello? Derek?"

"Um, hello. I guess I'm a little confused and we probably both have the same questions."

"I just found out about this myself. I never knew I had a son," I said.

"Why didn't we know before? There are so many questions but I don't know where to start. I don't even know what to call you. It would feel odd to call you dad, but I guess you are."

"You can call me whatever you want. Derek is fine. It would feel odd because I never considered myself a dad. I can accept it, if it's easier for you. Don't worry too much about it. I'm sure it will come naturally at some point."

"I don't think I will able to get home until Christmas. Do you think we could get together then?" the younger Derek asked.

"My tour on Guam is up in December. I won't have any trouble being here. Let's plan on it. Hopefully we can sit down with your mother and all have a conversation about what happened."

I handed the phone back to Kathy. She smiled at me then left the room. I looked around the library while I waited. Several photos of Katherine's family hung on the walls.

"I'm back," she said when she returned.

"That was interesting."

"Derek, your son told me to hold you hostage when you get back in December. In the mean time, I am not going to let you leave just yet. I'll have Judy make up a bed. You can stay here tonight. As you can see, we have plenty of room."

We sat around the rest of the evening and talked. It felt so good just being close to Kathy. She told me she had changed her name back to Willows after Jake died. Derek kept the name Proctor, since it was his father's name.

We stayed up late and talked about our past, the future, and our son. I actually felt sad when it was time to go to bed. I gave Kathy a light hug and headed to my room. I could feel the tension between us.

The next morning I got up, took a shower, and put on street clothes before I went into the kitchen. Kathy came in and we had a light breakfast together.

"How did you sleep?" asked Kathy.

"The room was great but I slept like shit. All I did was toss, turn, and think about you and my son. I wonder what will happen when I leave in a couple of days."

"I had a restless sleep too, knowing you were alone in the guest room two doors away. I couldn't get you out of my mind. Derek, I was thinking of inviting mom and dad over this afternoon so we don't have to keep explaining this story about when we met and you being Derek's biological father."

When Kathy's parents arrived, she introduced me as Major Derek Turner.

"Why are we here?" asked her mother as her father looked on.

"Mom, we have something important to tell you and dad."

"Dad, mom, when Derek was accepted at the Air Force Academy, they ran a DNA scan on him. It got a bit complicated, but the result is that Derek, here, is your grandson's biological father. You both knew I was pregnant when I got married. What you didn't know was who the actual father was. I'm sorry about that, but I didn't think that that information was important at the time," Katherine said.

I felt obligated to help her out, even though I still didn't have all the facts.

"When I found out about the situation, I immediately flew here to see if I could straighten things out. I never knew Katherine was pregnant or I would have been here nineteen years ago. I'm truly sorry for not being here when I was needed."

"Mom, Derek was the only boyfriend I ever had. We spent one wonderful night together. I knew I couldn't tell him about the baby, because he just left to start college. You both wanted me to marry Jake Proctor anyhow, so everything worked out, sort of. That was the last we saw of each other for twenty years. I always knew that my son was his but I had to raise him as Jake's. It was hard and emotionally draining."

After dinner, Katherine's parents left and we retired for the night. About fifteen minutes after I crawled into bed, she knocked lightly on my door. I opened it and she told me to follow her. We went to the other end of the house and into a bedroom.

"Derek, I believe I still love you and want you to make love to me. When we finish we'll have to go back to our own rooms."

I took her into my arms and it was as if time stood still. It felt like it was twenty years ago and I was kissing the woman I loved. I took off her pajamas and she lay on the bed. I kissed her at least a half dozen times before I sucked on her nipples and moved down to her lower belly.

She was breathing really hard and telling me she loved it as I tongue fucked her just like I did twenty years before. She had an orgasm and held my face against her pussy. I climbed up and slowly pushed my cock into her and she came a second time. After her pussy stopped pulsating, I rolled over on my back and she climbed up and rode me until I pulled down on her hips and came in her. She had another orgasm.

We lay there for a half hour. She took a quick shower and we went back to our rooms. I fell fast asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. Marie had coffee made in the morning. Kathy asked me how I slept and I told her I slept very well. I looked at her and she smiled.

"Derek, I don't want to lose you again but I know you have to leave tomorrow and go back to Guam."

"Kathy, I have no choice. It's my job and I love it as much as you love yours. My tour there is over at the end of the year. I'll be back in the states by the middle of December. I don't think I'll have any problem getting an assignment to either Beale or Travis. Both places are close to here. I don't want to lose you again either."