Death of a mutant

In Short

Charles V. De Vet’s short story follows the final surviving mutant, a young blond man possessing extraordinary and terrifying abilities, after his arrest by Sheriff Derwin in White Bear Lake. Branded a mass murderer for ending the lives of terminally ill patients, the mute youth evokes complex reactions from those whose loved ones he released from agony. As a manhunt closes in, the story explores the profound moral friction between official justice, human mercy, and the tragic intolerance of a society terrified of human evolution.

The Story

A young, slack-limbed mutant with blond hair stands on a low hill, breathing in the morning air before Sheriff Derwin and his armed men place him under arrest. Taken to the small White Bear Lake jail, the mute boy exhibits a calm, expectant demeanor that deeply unnerves the injured sheriff. Although the authorities believe the eight discovered mutants turned into dangerous murderers after being raised by a genetics specialist, Derwin tries to understand his silent prisoner. He brings food, offers basic conversation, and notes the boy's strange, placid smiles when discussing the mysterious deaths of twenty-seven patients at an Anchor Hospital ward in St. Paul.

Over the following days, Derwin investigates the local deaths officially attributed to the boy. He speaks with a young man mourning his friend Carl, who suffered from a debilitating brain tumor and frequently experienced agonizing seizures. The friend insists Carl died from his illness, not the mutant. Next, Derwin visits an old man whose cancer-stricken sister passed away peacefully while the boy sat beside her. The brother defends her right to die, explaining that medical science offered no relief from her endless torment. Finally, Derwin interviews the widow of a man suffering from advanced lung silicosis; while she condemns the boy as a cold-blooded murderer who played God without knowing if a cure might arrive, she acknowledges her husband's intense suffering and the bitter financial destitution left in his wake.

Back at the jail, Derwin provides the prisoner with a fresh set of civilian clothing. Using a strange, unsettling ability that makes his flesh ripple and pass directly through solid metal, the boy manipulates his cell lock and escapes into the town unnoticed. He travels by freight car back to St. Paul, hiding near the Mississippi River until nightfall. When a policeman spots him near the post office, the boy flees toward a public park, accidentally startling a young mother when he approaches her disabled child. Panicked by her sharp screams, he runs through the city alleys, stumbling over a toy wagon and twisting his ankle painfully.

As police sirens close in from all directions, the desperate youth races toward the Mississippi River and dives headlong into the murky water. Sergeant Robert Kirk spots him swimming and issues repeated warnings to halt. When the boy refuses to stop, Kirk fires his pistol. The bullet strikes true, and the young mutant's pale features slowly sink beneath the water, finally ending the tragic lineage of the lost islands.

How It Unfolds

The arrest on the hill Sheriff Derwin approaches a quiet, slack-limbed blond boy standing on a ridge and cautiously places him under arrest. Despite the warning that the youth is a dangerous killer who can destroy with his bare hands, the prisoner offers no resistance and allows himself to be locked in the White Bear Lake jail.

The silent interrogations Derwin attempts to communicate with his mute captive, discussing the tragic history of the eight geniuses raised in isolation. The sheriff observes the boy's disturbing, tranquil smiles when reviewing the mysterious deaths of twenty-seven patients at a St. Paul hospital ward.

The testimony of survivors Derwin investigates the local murders by interviewing grieving friends and family members of the deceased. He discovers that each victim suffered from agonizing, terminal conditions like cancer, brain tumors, and silicosis, uncovering deep divisions regarding the right to die and the nature of mercy.

The escape from custody After receiving a fresh set of civilian clothing from the empathetic sheriff, the boy uses a strange power that makes his flesh ripple and pass through solid metal. He quietly unlocks his cell door, slips away from White Bear Lake unnoticed, and boards a freight train bound for the St. Paul yards.

The final chase Spotted by local authorities, the fleeing mutant panics after accidentally startling a mother in a park and sprints through the city alleys. Cornered near the Mississippi River, he dives into the murky water and is fatally shot by Sergeant Robert Kirk as he refuses to halt.

The People

Sheriff Derwin wants to maintain local order and uncover the truth behind the brutal murders, but his chronic knee injury and widespread societal prejudice stand in his way. By the end, he gains a profound, unsettling empathy for the boy, attempting to halt the fatal manhunt.

The unnamed blond mutant wants connection and an end to suffering, hindered by his muteness and humanity's violent terror of his evolutionary gifts. He ultimately meets a tragic, hunted end in the Mississippi River without ever finding the genuine understanding he desires.

Carl van Sistine wanted relief from a lifelong, agonizing brain tumor, blocked by medical limitations until his death, leaving his childhood friend to grapple with the reality of his passing.

The unnamed old man with the injured thumb wanted an end to his sister Louise's unbearable cancer pain, thwarted by strict medical laws that denied peaceful euthanasia. He ends up defiantly asserting to the sheriff that every human being deserves the fundamental right to die.

The middle-aged widow wanted her husband George to live and provide ongoing financial security, hindered by his terminal silicosis and the boy's lethal intervention. She ends up grieving, embittered, and financially destitute, demanding absolute justice against the mutant.

In Its Own Voice

When introducing the precarious plight of the young protagonist at the very beginning of the tale, the narrative highlights the deep-seated fear that drives society's violent impulses against anything unfamiliar.

The world kills what it does not understand!

Contemplating the profound ethical dilemma surrounding the mysterious mercy killings, the old man fiercely defends the personal dignity of his terminally ill sister who begged for release.

Every human being should have the right to die.

Questioning the absolute authority of medical institutions and the true nature of the tragedy, the grieving widow expresses her bitter, unresolved anguish over her husband's sudden death.

What justification can you have for a cold-blooded murderer like that?

What It's Really About

The story interrogates the thin, agonizing boundary between murder and mercy, asking whether ending prolonged, incurable suffering is a heinous crime or an act of profound compassion. It examines how institutional authority, legal systems, and ordinary people grapple with human evolution, disability, and chronic pain. Rather than offering easy answers, the narrative contrasts cold legal definitions of homicide with the lived realities of terminal illness, where patients beg for release and grieving families watch helplessly. Ultimately, it questions whether society's automatic impulse to destroy what it deems abnormal stems from self-defense or a fearful intolerance of the incomprehensible.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate mid-century speculative fiction that prioritizes philosophical dilemmas over traditional space-opera action will find much to admire here. Charles V. De Vet crafts a haunting, atmospheric tale that feels remarkably intimate, focusing closely on small-town interactions, lingering grief, and moral ambiguity rather than sweeping galactic battles. Reading it evokes a quiet, melancholic tension, pulling you directly into Sheriff Derwin's internal conflict as he weighs strict statutory law against human empathy.

The story does not shy away from difficult themes, presenting period attitudes toward disability, mental divergence, and institutional care with unvarnished directness that modern readers must engage with on its own terms. What stays with you long after the final page is not the sci-fi premise of a mutant with extraordinary powers, but the heartbreaking human questions left in his wake. You are left pondering the heavy burden of chronic pain, the limits of medical intervention, and the tragic price paid by those who are simply too different for the world to tolerate.