Perfection

Ellyssa remained in a low Chen-style stance, her slower phases accumulating energy before she let loose powerful moves, when Mathew entered with her tray. The aroma of eggs and ham lingered in the air, as he carefully passed by to avoid her flowing movements. The scent was tempting, and despite the fact she had not completed her Tai Chi routine, her mouth watered and she could no longer concentrate.

“Hope you’re hungry,” Mathew said. “I have a great menu planned for the day.” Chuckling at his own joke, he placed the tray on the table. “Bon appetite.”

Ellyssa smiled at Mathew’s mispronunciation. Of course, she doubted the Renegades had the opportunity to study languages as she and her siblings had. All of them were fluent in French, Italian, Spanish, and others. “I think you mean bon appetit.”

Chagrin blushing Mathew’s cheeks a slight pink, he shrugged.

“Now I know where you went the other night,” Ellyssa said, eyeing the food.

He smiled. “Mission accomplished.”

Ellyssa hopped onto her bed and pulled the tray onto her lap. “What is the occasion? Why all this?” She shoved a spoonful of eggs into her mouth. After days of boring food, the scrambled eggs tasted wonderful. She followed them with a piece of smoked ham.

“Well, you’re going to have a visitor today.”

She stopped chewing and eyed him warily.

“I think it’s time you meet Jordan.”

Ellyssa swallowed. “Jordan?”

“Yes, especially if you’re going to be staying with us for a while.”

Setting her spoon down, she looked at him. “Staying with you is not a good idea.”

Mathew sat on the corner of the cot. “Where else are you going to go?”

She shrugged. “I do not know.”

“What do you plan on doing?”

Ellyssa had no idea. “I do not have an answer for that, either.”

He leaned over and patted her on the thigh. “Eat.”

As Mathew grabbed one of his beloved books and leaned against his desk, Ellyssa picked up her spoon and continued eating, but the enthusiasm was gone. What was she going to do? From a young age, she had been taught that Renegades were the enemy and needed to be terminated. But the people she’d met here treated her differently than she’d ever been treated before.

Like she was human, instead of an experiment.

What surprised Ellyssa the most was that part of her wanted to stay. To belong. The other part realized the danger, if she did stay. There was no doubt that her father would find her. A struggle raged inside and rolled around with the new sense of belonging. To have people who truly cared for her, like in the family homes she’d passed in Chicago when she’d wondered what that type of life would’ve been like.

Her appetite completely diminished, she pushed the now rubbery, congealed eggs around on the plate.

“Done?” a deep voice asked.

Ellyssa looked toward the opening. Rein stood inside, his dark hair framing a face set into a frown. At least his arms weren’t crossed over his chest this time. As soon as he spoke, Mathew closed the book and stood up from his perch.

“Can I have a word with you?” Rein asked her.

She lifted a shoulder and set her unfinished breakfast on the table.

The doctor picked up her tray. “I’ll be right back.”

Mathew stopped at the door and whispered something to Rein before he left. Ellyssa thought about popping into either of their heads to find out what the secrecy was about, but, by the look on Rein’s face, she figured she would find out soon enough.

“Do you mind if I have a seat?” Rein asked as he wheeled the chair over next to her cot.

“Please.” She crossed her legs.

Inhaling, Rein plopped into the chair and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. For a long time, he didn’t say anything. Just sat hunched over, looking down at the floor.

Ellyssa respected his time to gather his words, as she admired the spikes sticking from his head in no particular order. His muscular shoulders stretched the fabric of his black shirt, and his biceps rippled when he wrung his hands together.

Finally, Rein lifted his eyes and settled them on her, the dark green pulling her in. Her heart picked up speed and her stomach formed a ball. Unexpected, unexplainable, and pleasing, she wavered between liking the feeling and hating it.

“Jeremy.” Rein paused and waited for a response. Ellyssa nodded, and he continued, “Was part of this community. He went to Chicago to meet with a member of the resistance. Doc and I think he is the one that you saw. Will you tell me all that happened?”

“I already told Mathew.”

His face softened, changing the hard countenance to one of pleading. “I know. Will you tell me?”

Unable to speak while his two jade eyes bored a hole straight through her, Ellyssa glanced away and floated into his mind. Rein was concentrating on her. Her hair had started to grow out some. Not surprising, as it grew fast, almost as fast as her body healed. Her eyes flashed, livening her fair complexion. His mind drifted to her body, which led to images of the night in the old town. He wondered if she was dangerous. If she was a spy. He didn’t want to believe such things; yet, he still wondered.

Ellyssa couldn’t blame him. Under the current conditions, she would’ve thought the same things. Besides, in spite of his curiosity and confusion, nothing screamed betrayal. He was being sincere.

She looked back at him. “I was going to…training, when the Gestapo brought him in. He was struggling in their arms. I stopped and watched. I had never seen anyone with dark hair. He looked at me and his voice entered my mind. He told me Kansas City. Later that night, while I was in my room, he found me again, shouting the same thing. Then, his voice suddenly stopped.”

Rein nodded, as if he understood why the communication had been broken. “Not many knew Jeremy was special. I was one of them. Jordan and Doc.” He paused for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts, before he spoke again. “Then you just left?”

Ellyssa nodded.

Rein looked away. “He was supposed to meet some…people in Kansas City.” After a long moment, he turned back toward her. “Did you work at The Center?”

Ellyssa hesitated, unsure how much she should say. The Center had been her home, after all. “No,” she finally said.

Rein raised his eyebrows, encouraging her to continue.

“I was a student.”

He blinked. “I don’t understand. The Center’s not a school.”

“That is correct. It technically is not a school. But it was for me. It was my school and my home. I was born there.”

“What?”

Ellyssa hesitated, wondering if she should tell him everything. She probed his mind again. No threat or danger populated his thoughts, just a cloud of confusion.

What was the saying? “What the hell”? Now, instead of being invited to stay, they’d truly understand the danger and force her to leave. The thought hurt. Her chest felt the weight.

Carefully, Ellyssa picked the words needed without exposing all her monstrous secrets. She masked her face in preparation for his expected response of anger and resentment. “I am genetically engineered.”

Rein’s expression fell, lips slightly parted. She noticed how full they were and the pinkish tint. Unlike his face, his body went rigid.

Dumbfounded, words stuck in Rein’s throat. He couldn’t move, as if all brain function had ceased, while his mind tried to wrap around what Ellyssa had just said.

“I thought The Center devised training for Gestapo and military operations.”

“They do. My father’s research is…not well known amongst the general population.”