Chapter 7 - The Genetic Secret
I slowly turned away from the computer screen and stared at my grandfather in absolute shock.
"What do you mean, because of what is hidden inside my blood?" I demanded, kneeling beside his cot.
He coughed a dark splatter of blood onto his shirt, his chest heaving with extreme exhaustion.
"Twenty years ago, I was the lead genetic scientist working on a highly classified military enhancement program," he confessed softly.
"We were trying to artificially engineer the perfect tactical operative, manipulating DNA to enhance physical speed, combat reflexes, and cognitive processing."
I felt the entire room start to spin as the terrifying pieces finally began to fall into place.
"You were the only successful subject in the entire program, Claire," he continued, a tear slipping down his bruised cheek.
"Diane and Michael were rival foreign agents who infiltrated the laboratory and murdered your biological parents to steal you."
My breathing became incredibly shallow as the devastating truth crashed over me like a tidal wave.
My exceptional combat skills, my perfect memory retention, and my rapid healing abilities were not just the results of hard training.
I was quite literally a scientifically engineered weapon, and I had been living a lie for my entire existence.
"I managed to track you down three years ago, but Diane caught me and locked me in that shed to rot," he finished weakly.
Suddenly, a loud, metallic beep echoed from Whitmore's computer terminal, flashing a bright yellow warning sign.
"Commander, someone just established a direct video uplink to this exact terminal," Whitmore warned anxiously.
The screen flickered violently, and Brandon's arrogant, smiling face appeared on the monitor.
"Hello there, big sister," Brandon mocked, sitting comfortably in an expensive leather executive chair.
"I see the old man finally told you the big family secret."
I glared at the screen with an intensity that could have easily melted solid steel.
"I am going to hunt you down and tear you apart, Brandon," I promised in a lethal, deadly whisper.
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He just laughed and casually spun the chair around to reveal a young, terrified girl bound to a steel pipe behind him.
"You might want to rethink that threat, Claire," Brandon smiled wickedly. "Because if you do not surrender in one hour, I am going to execute your biological little sister."
