Secret Society for Genius Males Only

Secret Society for Genius Males Only

Susan W. Hudson

It was the sweltering summer that Jonah Christenson turned fourteen years old. He was a typical teenage boy. His limbs were long and gangly. His hair was light brown, tousled by the wind, and lightened by the sun and saltwater. His eyes were light brown. He was already tanned and freckled. It was also the first summer since Jonah has started the Secret Society for Genius Males Only. 

Jonah lived in a rustic house with his dad, Jonathan Christenson. The house was still filled with the nautical items that his dad loved and the many handcrafted pieces his mother had lovingly made. The wooden beams were exposed. The living room was adorned with an antique ceiling fan and an ill-fitting window unit air conditioner; the walls were rough-hewn wood.

The bedrooms were lighter. Jonah’s mother had hand-painted the walls the colors of the ocean that she so adored. She used the misty blues, greens, and greys, accenting them with the dark colors of an impending storm and the pinks and reds of a sunrise or sunset. Sometimes she threw in the colors of the moonbeams bouncing off the ocean’s waves. Jonah’s room was seafoam grey and accented with globes, maps, replicas of ships, and artwork that felt a little more masculine than the other rooms.  He was only eight years old when his mother, Chloe, was killed in a boating accident.

At night, Jonathan and Jonah threw open the windows and let the ocean breeze, and the smell of the salt air envelope them.

Jonathan and Jonah had spent most of their time together over the years since Chloe died. Jonathan had a few casual dates but spent most of his time in the workshop just outside their home. Jonah had been on his own for the most part. Jonathan trusted him. He was a thinker, a student of philosophy. He was not a trouble-maker and he made good grades at school. Jonathan taught Jonah how to build a campfire and cook the fish he caught or kabobs they put together, over the open fire. Jonah loved that, and sometimes they would entertain a lady that Jonathan liked. Jonathan rode his bike everywhere and knew the island around him very well.

The previous fall, their routine changed. Jonathan signed Jonah up for a football camp. He wanted to expand his son’s interests. This is where Jonah met the other members of his Society. And Jonathan met Abigail. She was a widow, and her son loved the football camp. She was beautiful with long dark-brown hair, tanned skin, and light brown eyes that sparkled with glittering shards of green. Though she was small in stature, she was strong and muscular; she had a very determined spirit. 

Jonah discovered that four of the other boys in the camp were as miserable as he was. They bonded and decided that when the camp was over they would declare a Society of their own. Although four out of the five boys in the Society were fourteen years old or about to turn fifteen, one boy had just turned sixteen and gotten a license to drive.

Jonathan became more and more infatuated with Abigail. She was an archeologist and treasure hunter. She hunted locally and long-distance. Jonathan began going on trips with her. She taught classes at the local college. They flew out on a plane owned by the university or traveled in her jeep; they brought home some unusual objects.

Jonathan did not notice that Jonah was increasingly incensed when the “unusual objects” began to replace some of his mom’s hand-crafted art and that the trips away became more frequent and longer in duration. Soon, Abigail was sleeping over often.

On one of her local excursions in late spring, Abigail found a small bag of stones. They were probably contraband that someone on the shipwreck had mistaken for valuable. One stone, though, Abigail identified as sea-green pistachio calcite. Jonah stoically listed as Abigail excitedly explained to Jonathan that it was purported to have metaphysical properties. It was nicknamed “the stone for peaceful insight” Abigail loved it. Jonathan thought it was a good omen; he “borrowed” it and had it set in an engagement ring for Abigail.

The Society met regularly during the winter. The only rules they had were: no girls allowed;  remain secret and hidden; reject all religious and moral principles; adhere to the belief that life is largely meaningless, and reject the need for the conventional family. They met once a week with a different day, time, and venue each time. They did little harm except for “borrowing” pornographic magazines and age-inappropriate books from their parents. Their ambitions were to foster self-involvement and irreverence, show no empathy, and to plot grandiose deeds to prove their genius.

They made fires on the beach and roasted fish. Occasionally they roasted a rabbit or a squirrel they had tracked down and captured. 

Jonathan and Abigail became closer and closer. They made love passionately, and Jonah often overheard their exclamations and declarations of love. Jonah was furious. He did not need a step-mother; his dad was all he needed. She was a distraction to his commitment to the Society. He complained to the other members of the Society; they agreed that she should go away. What should they do to help their leader?

They pondered their situation. Their meetings became more intense. They made a decision; Abigail would have to go. How would they do it?  Surely they could come up with a plan to eliminate Jonah’s nemesis.

Ultimately, they did. They were arrogant and thought they were invincible. They tracked Abigail’s movements. She went on an excursion to isolated places in her Jeep every other Friday. The time had come to put their plan into action. 

The first Friday in June, the boys rode their bikes and met up at the designated spot. They waited, and followed her at a distance, to her “dig.”  She saw nothing out of the ordinary and began her day’s work humming a love song. They watched her work all day. As dusk approached, the Society members surrounded her and overtook her. They took her to an abandoned boathouse close to the dig. They tied her up in hemp rope and gagged her. They used rocks, and bricks to deliver death blows to her head.

They dragged her down to the water in the sound and tossed her in. They brushed away the “drag marks” and they knew the high tide would wash most of them away.

The boys were careful to cover their tracks. The driver took the jeep back to Abigail's house and wiped it down carefully. They left her wallet, ID, and phone in the Jeep. They all swore themself to secrecy. The Society members went their separate ways and never convened as the Society again. Their mission had been accomplished. 

When Abigail did not come home that evening, Jonathan began to worry. He called her phone. He called her colleagues. He called 911. He reported her missing and never let up for a moment. He watched the news on TV relentlessly.

Jonah feigned remorse. His eyes were glazed over and he rarely spoke. On the third morning after their “deed”, the morning TV show was interrupted with “BREAKING NEWS.” “Local police have found a body on the bank of the sound with debilitating injuries - determined to be a female.” Jonathan grabbed his keys and sprinted to his truck without a word to Jonah. The hospital staff could give him no further information. They were fervently working to save her life. Once they had her stabilized, they would let him see her. Jonah searched his memory. What could have gone wrong?

Finally, the call came. The woman had been identified and was stable. She uttered one word - “Jonathan.” Again, Jonathan sprinted to the truck without even looking at Jonah. They let him in to see her. The police had found a ring in the zipper pocket of her work pants. She held it in her hand and would not let it go.

Moments before she died, she whispered into Jonathan’s ear, “ask Jonah why?