BORROWED [Watty Awards Finalist/NEWLY EDITED!]

Chapter Twenty-Three

|Seraphim|

Have I committed murder? Maybe I've always been capable of killing. Genetically wired to feel less human in order to carry out Sylas's dire plans. If these are the answers to my questions, I won't ever be what PURE needs me to be.

Julian remains sprawled onto the floor where he dodged the bullet. I didn't kill him after all. Relief sweeps over me, long enough to keep my guard down. Borrowers pin me to the floor, folding my arms behind my back. I crane my neck, looking up to see where the bullet penetrated. Only inches from where Julian stood a small hole the size of a penny has dug its way through the wall behind his desk.

Kyler bends over, retrieving the weapon and walks over to Julian, pointing the tip of the barrel at the back of his head. He looks over at the Borrowers, who continue digging their knees into my back. "Let her go, or I put a bullet in the back of his head," Kyler demands, his tone sends goose bumps up and down my arms and legs.

I feel their knees shifting on my muscles, digging deeply into them. The pressure sends pain crawling across my back. Julian continues to lie flat on his stomach, palms faced downward past his head. He tilts his face sideways to speak, glancing up at Kyler.

"Let her go, boys," he demands, his voice calm and emotionless.

The Borrowers lift themselves from me, and I push myself up onto my knees. "Took both of you to pin me down?" I say smugly. They look at one another with flushed faces, backing away toward the door in silence.

Kyler walks over to me, reaching out to offer his hand. I take hold of it and stand. We both look over at Julian, who is now standing, his hands wiping the beads of sweat from his smooth scalp.

"Take the dead boy out of here," Julian orders, pointing down at Chase's body. "You know what to do with him."

Chase...

"You both want answers," he says, "and I'm going to make everything crystal clear." He walks toward us, and a part of me wants to take a step back, but I don't. I'm going to face this man even if being in close proximity boils the blood in my veins.

I take initiative and ask the first question. "Tell me about my creation. How did I come to be?"

Julian looks up to the ceiling where a Voicomm hangs from two steel pipes. "As you wish."

There is heavy breathing coming from the speaker. No surprise, Sylas is hidden away like a coward.

"Evening." His disembodied voice echoes inside the room. "I'm going to try and ease your concerns. As you both know, were my first attempt in the testing of growing a human genome without the woman and male. I didn't know if it would work, so I created a second, which would be Kyler. One girl and one boy seemed like a good idea. I wasn't sure at the time what your purpose would be but to make my wife happy."

Looking straight up at the Voicomm, I glare, wanting to shoot it down.

He continues, "In hopes of a genetically perfect child, the greatest gift I could give her was you, Irissa. Evelyn always dreamt of having a girl."

I glare at the Voicomm as if Sylas were here in person. "You created me to soothe your wife?"

He sighs, and says, "Not just to soothe her, but to soothe me as well."

Kyler walks to the desk, leaning against it. I watch him; his forehead creases as though he is contemplating his next move. He says, "How exactly did you create us?"