Anya watched as Damian fell apart, pulled himself together, and fell apart again, as though his body was constantly physically rejecting whichever state it was in, unsure and unable to make a choice in how to move forward. His shoulders stiffened at every intake of breath, and trembled at every exhale, as if his breath itself was causing him to glitch.

Once Damian had pulled Anya to her feet, there was a lengthy pause as they wondered where to go.

They didn 't dare go back through the door to the corridor. Both knew that the Director could be on the other side, and even without speaking a word, Anya knew that Damian was scared of coming face to face with her too. She didn 't blame him. How would she confront her parent, if

she

learned that they experimented on the person she loved most in the world as a child?

Damian wiped his face, but his eyes remained red-rimmed and haunted, his gaze heavy and unable to lift to meet hers.