Cruel
Twists of Fate
2015
Nick led Loren by the
hand to a park bench over looking the Puget Sound. At one time, it must
have been beautiful. Seated here with him, she could almost see it in all
its past magnificence. Lori snuggled in a bit closer to him and laid her
head against his shoulder.
Nick wrapped on arm around her shoulders and squeezed her tightly. In all
of his dreams, in all of his fantasies, he had never once thought his life would
turn out quite like this. Loren was more than he had ever hoped for.
Carefully, he slipped from beside her and knelt on the ground near her
feet. "Lori, my love, I...I never knew the world could be such a beautiful
place until I set eyes on you. I did not think it possible, but Beauty has
once again tamed the Beast. I love you more than simple words could ever
hope to express. There is only one thing of which I am completely
certain. I love you, and I could not hope to survive in this world without
you. I don't deserve you, Lori. I never have...but more than
anything, I want you to be my wife."
Lori's eyes widened in complete surprise. "Nick...I...I...I..." The
words were a maelstrom in her mind, confusing her thoughts so that she could
barely think. Instead, she simply melted into tears on that park
bench.
"I hope those are happy
tears." Nick whispered as he wiped them away with his
hand.
"Not really." She
sighed. "I haven't been honest with you, Nick. I should have
been...but I just couldn't make myself tell
you."
"Tell me what?" He asked
cautiously as he sat back down on the
bench.
Lori looked around
nervously. "My mother and father wanted children horribly. They
tried for years to get pregnant...but never succeeded. My mother was
barren. My father hid that fact from her and tried to seek out some
solution to her problem. Then...the X1 fiasco occurred at Manticore.
He hatched a plan that couldn't fail. My father went to Dr. Sandeman late
one night and issued an ultimatum. He would convince the Defense
Department to withdrawl funding unless Sandeman agreed to use his genius in
genetic engineering to help my mother and father have the daughter of their
dreams. Sandeman agreed, how could he not?"
Nick's face blanched. Was she
suggesting what he thought she was
suggesting?
Swallowing hard, Lori
continued. "They actually worked for years collecting the DNA and
designning the daughter my father fantasized about. She had to be petite,
black hair, blue eyes, a genius IQ, an affinity for science, and a heart bigger
than her intelligence. The insemination took several tries before the
fetus took. Nine months later...I was born. I found out when I was
twelve. When I confronted my father about it, he ran. He committed
suicide that night. So, here I sit. A Frankenstein's monster.
A freak of nature. A 'never meant to be.' My father's idea of
perfection in a human package." She once again sank into
sobs.
Nick immediately wrapped her
in his strong embrace and crushed her against him. "Shhh! I never,
never want to hear you say that again! You were created out of love,
Lori. Maybe you're genes weren't combined by nature...but they were still
designed out of love, a love for you and your mother. Do you really think
so little of me? Do you really think that story is going to keep me from
loving you?" Gently, he lifted her tear streaked face to his own. "I
love you, Lori. I don't care who made you or why. I just know that
you were made for me. You are perfect for me. I love you. Now,
you never answered my question. Will you marry
me?"
Lori smiled through her tears
and nodded. "Of course. There is nothing in this world that would
make me happier."