Waiting for Amber Skyy

Chapter 13

I stared at them in awe, but then narrowed my eyes, "You're lying." Is this another test or something? Do they want me to believe this? I was going through enough trust issues lately.

"It's true," dad's voice was more stern now, which kind of surprised me. "I'm, well we, are supportive of ITex's intentions of collecting donations and eggs but-" He paused and shook his head like mad. "This was over the top. We never thought that they would stoop this low."

"What... how..." I tried to comprehend what they were saying. If I wasn't a test tube baby... then...

"We pored over whatever records your mother could grab," his voice was low as if all of this was a secret. Must've been because the entire place was quiet except for his voice and my unsteady breathing. "News clippings, milk cartons, all of them had pictures of kids gone missing. Some at a young age, and some just out of the hospital."

"And I-"

"Yes... they took you out of the hospital, just after birth. They said to your parents you died, but you didn't," he choked up as well. That was even more sickening. Even more sickening than the possibility of me being created in a test tube. They stole me, stole me from my own birth mother.

Oh god. I hugged my knees tight to my chest, wanting to throw up. This was too much. But there was one question left to ask, one question they hopefully can answer.

"What would've happened if you gave me up when I turned ten?"

They said nothing and I stared at them, pleading to know. I wanted to ask them about the "project" I was part of, but that word just made me want to curl up and die.

"The... the project would have been complete, at least at that stage. It was interesting," mom rambled a bit before glancing at me with curiosity. "That they could graft DNA into a person at a later stage. But..."

"But?"

Nothing.

I rattled my cage, "But? But what? Tell me!"

"Experiments usually don't last long after injection," dad piped up. I swallowed and blinked, wide eyed. "Amniocentesis is the usual protocol, but... the project was to have the other half unaffected during the fetal stage. It's an easier process when growing up with the genes, whereas it's severely more painful in the later stages of life." No wonder my shoulders and everything else hurt all the time. I was still growing, and the DNA was growing with me.

But hold on.

"'Other half'? What do you mean by 'other half'?" I inquired.

"It was a comparison test, to see how each child was affected. One was put through testing once they were born, with the DNA already grafted into them. The other..." he just looked at me. His eyes implied he was saying sorry.

"Oh god..." I wanted to feel tears in my eyes, just so I didn't have to look at them, but I must've used them all up.

"We're so, so sorry they did this to you," mom sniffed as she rubbed her eyes.

"Why?" I bit back. "You said you knew what was going to happen to me."

"Not this, anything but this," her eyes gestured to my tail.

"What? What do you mean?" This wasn't planned? Then what the hell are they doing with me?

"The original project was to only have the two kids to be grafted with avian DNA, that's all. But because we didn't meet the deadline..." her voice trailed off into a small fit of sobs again.

"Are you serious?" I heard my voice crack and coughed to get it back to normal. "Then what are they doing with me? What about the other kid in that project?" My heart was racing at the thought that I may be just a pawn in their little experimenting game.

"We don't know," dad said.

"A new project," mom said shakily, speaking right after him. He blinked at her, surprised that she knew something he didn't know. She hung her head low, "They say... in your file that you're only a test subject for further generations. It is fasc-" She stopped when she saw the look on my face. Lightly coughing, she continued, "They're having trouble with their guards. They're planning to create new ones, train them, and place them in new areas of the country."

That meant this wasn't the only place. There were others. Other labs that held other kids, other experiments, other projects. And I was bred to guard one of them. Well I wasn't going to let that happen.

Suddenly, the door slammed open to shouts and angry remarks. Both of them stiffened and jumped up. "They're not supposed to be in here!" I heard somebody yell. "Who let them in?" They both bent down and gently smiled at me, "We're so sorry, but we have to go now... and we probably won't be able to come back." They straightened themselves up, ready to brace the harshness of their coworkers.

"Wait!" I cried out as they started walking away. I wanted to say something, but all that I could muster was a question, "Who was the other half? Of the project?" Shoes slapped against tiles and I heard a couple more of the other kids stir and whine. Oh damn, they're pissed.

I could only see a portion of their legs, until one pair ran off, and from far away I could see it was "dad". He started yelling back at the other scientists and wolf guys, getting clocked in the face at the same time.

My eyes widened in his direction as mom bent down and gently smiled, "I love you sweetie, but we have to go now."

"No!" I cried. I had to know. "Please tell me!"

I heard even more shouts, sounding angrier than ever, and getting closer. She let out a deep sigh. "Your brother. They used your twin, and I think he's still alive." She suddenly shrieked and her leg kicked my cage, making it ring. I covered my ears as she was dragged out, her husband bloody as he joined her. I wanted to scream after them, tell them that I still loved them or something...

But I couldn't.

They weren't my parents.

They weren't my family.

I turned my head to the side, hearing their shouts all the way outside and down the hallways until they finally faded away. I clenched the bars and bit my lip to the point I tasted blood. A single tear rolled down my cheek and stung the cut, just like everything I had lived for: a lie.