Vienna Blood

15

LIEBERMANN LOOKED UP AND into the dome. Sixteen cherubs danced above eight circular windows, and the whole edifice was supported on gilded archways.

He adored the Natural History Museum. It was a place in which one could marvel at the diversity of life and contemplate the extraordinary power of science to unlock the secrets of the universe. Charles Darwin had dispensed with a Creator and replaced Him with a simple principle: natural selection. In his masterpiece The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or, The Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life, the great biologist had succeeded in describing the evolutionary process in a single, simple sentence: “Multiply, vary, let the strongest live and the weakest die.” It was at the same time terrifying and beautiful, and it explained everything: eyes, ears, birds, and desire-nothing was beyond the reach of Darwin's awesome theory.

“Where are we going now?” asked Clara.

“To see our relatives.”

“Did you invite them?”

“No-they're already here.”

“What!” Clara was quite obviously miffed.

The couple entered an immense hall filled with glass display cases, all of which were occupied by stuffed animals. Liebermann gestured toward one in which a troop of gorillas-a male, a female, and two young-languished beneath a scrawny tree.

Clara poked a finger into Liebermann's ribs and cried, “Max!”

“Well,” said Liebermann, “strictly speaking we are related.”

“You may be…”

“Indeed, I am perfectly happy to concede that the Liebermann bloodline carries with it certain characteristics that are decidedly pongid. Look at that male-he looks a little like my father, don't you think?”

Clara stepped closer to the glass, and immediately her expression brightened with an astonished smile. It was true. The gorilla did look a little like Max's father. There was something about the creature's heavy brow and rigid jaw that reminded her-albeit only vaguely- of Mendel Liebermann's disapproving mien.

“Max…,” Clara said, raising a hand to her mouth, at once both shocked and amused. “You shouldn't be so disrespectful… but”-she began to giggle-”it is an uncanny resemblance.”

“There you are, then. Indisputable proof of Mr. Darwin's hypothesis.”

Clara's expression changed. Her lips pressed together and she began to pout.

“What is it?” asked Liebermann, stepping forward and letting her lean back into his chest. There were no other visitors present- but Liebermann nevertheless kept a judicious eye on the doorway. A public display of intimacy would not be countenanced in a royal museum.

“Do you really believe it, Max? That we have-what is the word… evolved, yes? That we have evolved from apes?”

“Well,” Liebermann replied, “I certainly don't believe that Adam and Eve begat the human race after being banished from the Garden of Eden.”

Clara looked up. Her red lips were too inviting to resist, and Liebermann stole a quick, dry kiss.

“But apes…,” she said softly.

Liebermann kissed her again, on the cheek this time. Clara did not respond, and her expression became increasingly fixed in an attitude of seriousness. She seemed inordinately discomfited by the idea.

“Maxim…,” she began hesitantly.

“Yes?”

“If we evolved from apes… could we not-one day-become apes again?”

“There are a number of scientists and doctors who fear such a thing. They have suggested that civilized societies must be vigilant for signs of what they call degeneration. These include unrefined physical features and certain mental traits. But such a descent into chaos would take many generations. Thousands or perhaps even millions of years…”

Clara's mood lifted in an instant. It was as though her moment of dejection had never been. Her lips parted and she produced a brilliant flashing smile.

“Let's go into town, Max. Mother said that the jeweler's on Karntner Strasse has some garnet earrings in the window-just come in from Prague.” She pulled away. “I think they will go well with my new crepe-de-chine dress: you know the one, I wore it at the Weigels’ party? It cost one hundred florins-you must remember it.”