Page 69 of Dream Mates (Into The Parallel Omegaverse #2)

Chapter Forty-Six

Grace

F inally, I washed my face and with a deep breath, went back into the exam room, where the professor and Lark spoke softly.

“It’s going to be okay, Grace. It seems like there’s lots of big feelings here,” Lark said. “I’m sure the stress of all this isn’t helping. I have blankets and fuzzy socks.” She started rummaging through her duffle bag which sat on an empty exam bed.

Right, because like dicks and cuddles, blankets solved all sorts of problems in this world. Lark pulled out blankets and fuzzy socks in bright colors and busy prints along with some candy bars.

She gave us an apologetic look. “Sorry. I usually work with teenagers.”

“I’ll take this one. It’s cold in here. Thank you. My mate’s an advocate and works a lot with teenagers, too. He can throw amazing pizza parties on zero budget.” I wrapped a black blanket with neon stars around me.

“I’m sure he can.” She laughed, then her eyes fell on my bruised arm. “I’ve got to ask you some questions, for intake purposes.” Lark patted the table.

“Okay.” I couldn’t meet the professor’s eyes as I took a seat.

Voice quiet, she asked me some basic questions, then got into ones I’d heard many times before. Do I feel safe with my mate? Do I have a place of my own in the house? Do I want to return to them, or would I like to be taken elsewhere?

Nate got up and went to the bathroom.

“Nate gave me the short version. While you’re allowed to have lots of feelings, try not to hurt his? He’s trying very hard to be very respectful of yours.” Lark’s voice was soft.

“I just don’t understand.” I started to sob.

“Oh, Hun. I have the genscan right here. Do you want to see it? Will that help? You’re a scientist, aren’t you?” she asked, tapping on the screen of the tablet.

“Mathematician.” I blinked. “My genetic workup in my file tells me who I’m related to?”

“No, that’s different. Basically, this workup is cross-referenced with a greater database to find extended family. It’s something you have to opt into.” Nate stood behind us. “Sorry, hazards of living with Verity.”

“I didn’t do a genscan.” My lower lip quivered.

“Maybe your mates did it? Possibly after seeing me yesterday? I could see an overprotective mate doing that out of worry.” The professor got close enough to see the screen.

“Oh. Or me meeting Creed. The resemblance sort of freaked some of the guys out–and Bren, he, well, he always thinks people are getting close to the pack for the wrong reasons.” My chest shuddered.

“Not that you are, but well, you’ve met one of my mates.

Adriana did accuse me of going after your pack’s money, so you probably understand? ”

Nate nodded. “I’m so sorry she did that, but yes, after meeting Spencer, I’m pretty sure that’s not why you’re in town.”

“No. I just came for the symposium.” My voice came out ragged.

“I know.” He patted my shoulder awkwardly, then grabbed a candy bar.

My belly growled, reminding me it was past lunch. I took a candy bar and gobbled it while Lark showed me a different screen, which was populated with Nate’s name, along with a bunch of other stuff. Another box said file locked.

All I could do was shove the rest of the candy in my mouth and stare at the screen. None of this made any sense.

My head spun and bile rose in my throat. Swallowing hard, I rested my head on my knees, wrapping the blankets tighter. 3.1415926535

“It’s going to be okay, Hun,” Lark said.

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How? The computer said I had a dad. Nate was my dad? How? How was that even possible?

“Grace, are you all right? What are you mumbling?” Lark asked.

“ Pi , I think,” Nate replied. He sat down next to me.

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I kept going through the numbers, willing myself to calm down.

“How many places do you know?” The professor finally said when I’d stopped, though I hadn’t looked up from my knees.

“More than Spencer. We had a contest.” My voice was muffled by my blanketed knees. I looked at him.

How did I ask if the professor was from a parallel world without asking if he was from a parallel world? That’s all that made sense. After all, I couldn’t be from here.

Could I?

“You… you didn’t leave me behind right? Like you went into protection and left me?” My voice shook.

“You’re not making any sense, Grace. I looked for you, so hard, I promise.” He wrapped another blanket around me.

“Okay.” I guess that was a no.

Nate looked at Lark. “Is there any way that they’d let her alpha in here? She’s newly mated and so scared.”

She tapped on her screen. “Not an alpha. Maybe someone else in her pack… oh, you’re not registered with a pack?”

“Not yet. We’re still getting it sorted.” I could use Evan right now.

“Oh, I see,” Lark replied.

“I’m still not really sure why we’re even here. Thora was a late-blooming alpha. I could almost believe her sister was a sigma, but not Thora.” He shook his head and took a bite of chocolate.

“Thora is the mother? The one blocked?” Lark said. “The paperwork said that Grace was suspected of having a fake record and a parent with an illegal designation. I suppose with one parent blocked, they brought you in as well in order to rule that out?”

“I believe so,” he said.

“Her name wasn’t Thora.” I peeked up at him.

“I absolutely believe that whoever raised you wasn’t Thora,” Nate told me.

“I would believe you thinking that the people who raised you were your birth parents. Thora’s mom said that she put you in care after something happened to her alpha and son and she couldn’t take care of you anymore.

She said that the records must have gotten messed up when you entered the system.

Given the record just stopped, I always wondered if you ended up baby trafficked.

It wouldn’t surprise me if Thora’s sister sold you. ”

Holy shit what?

“Grace, I know this is a lot for you to take in. But it’s on the genscan. They’re seldom wrong,” Lark said.

His voice shook a little. “Whatever you were told about me probably wasn’t true. That’s what this is about, right? You were told something that makes it hard to believe it’s me. Did they tell you that I was a bad person? Did they tell you that I was dead? ”

“By the time I knew that my dad wasn’t my biological father, I wasn’t talking to my mom.

He didn’t know who my bio-dad was and my mom and I never had that conversation before she died.

Even though I never looked that much like her, it was pretty obvious she was my mom.

We have the same eyes and stuff.” My body trembled again, and I squeezed my eyes shut.

It would probably be better to stop questioning and figure it out with my guys later before I said something weird.

“It’s just a lot.” My chest trembled.

“It is, Hun. I’ll leave your advocate a note to find you a therapist. I have some chips and cookies if anyone is still hungry,” she offered. “Also, some juice pouches.”

Yeah, we were way over poor Lark’s paygrade.

I took the offered chips and absently started eating them. “Not to change the subject, but I really don’t understand this testing situation. We’re being tested as carriers? If we carry the gene for the illegal designations, without actually having it ourselves, we could still pass it on?”

“Yes,” Nate replied. “Verity could explain all this so much better.”

I started to shake again. “Will they kill us if we’re carriers? I can’t believe they do that to people who had the audacity to be born with the wrong designation.”

Now I could better understand why Elaris wanted to come up with an alternative.

“It’s sad, but they don’t do it lightly,” Lark assured. “But your designation is fine–and they don’t terminate carriers anymore. But… it might mean that you won’t be able to have genetic children so that you can’t pass the gene on.”

“I’m not sure that’s much better.” I was starting to rethink my opinions of this world.

“The percentage of people with illegal designations is miniscule,” Lark assured.

If it’s so small, why were they so worried about it? I pinched the bridge of my nose with my thumb and forefinger.

“I’m still really confused. Like I don’t even know what designations are illegal and why.” I frowned. Lark gave me a look. I shrugged. “I missed that unit in school. My mom didn’t like me to go to those.”

“There’s a lot to unpack there,” she said softly.

“My mate Evan tells me that all the time.” I sighed.

“Sigmas are violent and destructive to the order of things. And as for the others, you know what, I’ll send a video to your Center account.” She tapped on her tablet.

“An alpha gunned down my birthday dinner. I have trouble believing that an entire designation is bad.” I just wasn’t getting this. Things like this were probably what led to interdimensional underground people-smuggling rings.

“This is one of those things that people tend to have very polarizing views on, so we don’t talk about it in public,” Nate said.

I nodded. “I’m starting to get that.”

“Did you just say that an alpha gunned down your birthday dinner?” the professor asked.

“We were fine. It had to do with Evan’s job.” I shrugged.

The nurse came back in. “Grace, dear, can you please just tell me what you know about your birth mother? If you do, we might be able to let the other children go. Nathaniel, your children are here. I can bring you the small ones. Also, we can bring you your mate, Harry.”

“The children are here?” Nate looked stricken. “Which ones?”

The nurse looked at the tablet. “Creed, Hale, Mercy, Pax, Tru, and Hope.”

“All the ones I'm biologically related to.” The air whooshed out of him.

“What?” My chest shuddered.

“None of this is your fault, Grace,” Lark soothed. “Since your mother’s record is locked, they’re ruling out illegal genetics on your father’s side.”

“The young ones, are they with their siblings or separated? Is someone with them?” His scent grew sour with anxiety.

“They’re all together,” she told him. “Your mate Harry is with them.”

“Harry’s here.” Relief crossed his face.