Page 119 of Star-Born Anomaly
“Did you give birth to me?” She almost choked on the question. “Are you my biological mother?”
A different sort of silence hung between them now that she’d voiced it. It shifted and strained against her body until she leaned most of her weight into Iax. It pulsed and throbbed, sounding hollow in her ears. She gripped his arms tighter.
Galloway shifted her weight, then spoke. “Yes.” The word was as loud as weapons fire, and as quiet as a whisper.
The wind in the space surged, echoing the emotions in Wynn’s chest. Her stomach dropped through the deck. When she’d seen that memory, she had known it deep in her body, a profound truth her mind had rebelled against. To have it confirmed both horrified and freed her. For a moment, it didn’t feel like she had solid mass, and her thoughts disconnected to crash into one another.
She stared at Galloway, unable to form words to express herself.She’s a sociopath.To send a baby into space with barely anything at all, herownbaby. Wynn couldn’t grasp the thought properly, and panic welled in her throat. She couldn’t control it. The foliage spun, mixing with the colors of the nebula beyond the biodome. She couldn’t take a proper breath; her vision hazed black around the edges.
She reached for her marks, then paused when the memory of her adopted parents took the forefront of her mind. Those were the people who had loved her, who had given her joy. She would remember them as the amazing people they were. The thoughts grounded her, giving her something to focus on besides the ugly truth.
She didn’t need scars when she had her memories.
Slowly, the haze cleared from her vision, and she stood in a room with four people who couldn’t feel enough.
Couldn’tcareenough.
If she focused on that fact, she knew she would spiral more, so she concentrated on the memory of her parents’ love, embraced it until everything returned to razor-sharp focus. She would find a different way to honor them than leaving scars. The room settled around her.
Wynn took another deep, cleansing breath, then turned her head to gauge Iax’s reaction. “Did you know?” she asked quietly, only for him to hear.
“No.” His arms tightened around her. “And I am sorry.”
A defeated breath huffed out of her. It was Briar Galloway who should apologize.
Maybe this is her attempt to makeamends.
Wynn pushed away that voice, not wanting to be charitable in this moment. Everything was too much all at once: the escape from theCorvus, this place with its freaky plants, and all these revelations. It overwhelmed when all she wanted to do was be alone with Iax, to find comfort and process these discoveries in private.
She lifted her chin, her jaw clenched. “Was that the third reason you brought me here?”
Another silence stretched, then Wiseman spoke. “No.”
His answer punched her in the chest, and the sensation of spiraling resumed until Sweeney added, “We need help with the anomalies.”
The statement returned her focus to Galloway. “You already said you sent people out to ‘collect’ them like you collected me. How can I help with that?”
Galloway tipped her head. “Not those anomalies. The others.”
Wynn’s heart surged in her throat, and she stepped forward. Iax’s arms dropped away from her. “There are more?” She stepped forward again. “More like me? Are we related? Siblings?” Another step. “Or just mutations of the Calypson gene?” And another. “Why are we different?”
Her voice had risen throughout her onslaught of questions, and when The Four stepped back in unison, she paused. “Where are they?” she insisted when none of them answered.
Galloway spoke after a long moment. “We have them contained.”
She delivered the statement with such matter-of-fact blandness that Wynn saw red. “You have them locked up? Like criminals? Like they’ve done something wrong?”
“It was either that, or send out another transport.”
Wynn clenched her fists, the urge to scream bubbling up her throat. But she had to be satisfied with the increasingly uncomfortable expressions on their faces.
“Lady,” she spat, “you’re a real piece of work. Take me to them. Now.”
Chapter forty-two
The Four thought him corrupted, tainted, and they might be right.
So many thoughts bombarded Iax’s mind, not just from those in the biodome, but other Calypsons he had known from the time he arrived in Sector Ten at such a young age, all of them questioning.
