Reborn in the Enemy's Embrace

Sophia fell silent. She spoke up after a long time, "Let’s eat first. Go wash your hands."

"Where’s Xan?" Only then did Ashton realize that Xan was nowhere around.

"She’s still unconscious," Sophia said with her head lowered.

Ashton’s expression fell. "Why is she still unconscious? Didn’t the doctor say she’s fine?"

It had been a while since then.

"Go wash your hands." Sophia sent Ashton away before turning to look at Damien.

He instinctively stepped backward as he was afraid of her. "Sophia."

"Are you confident that you can protect him?" Sophia asked.

Taken aback, Damien shook his head. "I’m sorry, that region is beyond my reach. You’re also aware that that region is..."

He was implying that the Ulophia region was a lot more complicated.

Sophia frowned. Deep down, she knew that Damien wasn’t capable to that extent.

"But I’ll do my best," he said again.

He wanted to make it up to Sophia, so he would also compensate through Ashton and Xan.

Sophia did not reply to him. She said, "Let’s eat. Go wash your hands."

Damien was stunned. This was her first time offering him to stay for a meal. All these years, he had to shamelessly stay back to have a meal with them.

With teary eyes, he ran into the washroom with barely contained excitement. He smiled helplessly when he saw his own reflection in the mirror.

Back then, if only he had...

However, there was no room for "what ifs" in this world. Damien had to accept the consequences of his own mistakes.

He would never get back the Sophia who used to belong to him anymore, and it was all his fault.

Xan remained deep asleep in the bedroom. However, other than that, it was evident that she was healthy.

"She’s even snoring," Ashton mumbled as he caressed her forehead.

Xan’s light snores indicated that she was only sleeping. She would even turn over in her sleep, frowning whenever she was disturbed in her sleep. She just wouldn’t wake up.

"Her brain is unusually active, and her neurons are dividing rapidly. In other words, her brain is currently functioning and developing at a high speed," Dexter softly said. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

It meant that Xan’s brain was evolving, but the downside was that she needed a lot of rest.

"So, that means she’s not unconscious, but her brain is overworked and has shut itself down. That’s why she’s asleep?" Ashton asked in surprise.

Dexter nodded and replied, "That’s one way to put it."

"Well then..." Ashton let out a relieved sigh, but he was still worried. "Why is her brain constantly so active?"

Dexter replied, "That’s because both of your genes have been modified. Besides, Genome Society created you to allow both of you to actively evolve."

They wanted to create a whole new evolved humankind.

Ashton frowned and looked at Dexter. "Xan and I will never be truly safe if we don’t get rid of Genome Society, Dad.

Dexter nodded.

"Help me convince Mom to allow me to go overseas." Ashton wanted to venture out on his own. He wanted to protect Dexter, Sophia, and Xan by his own means.

"You don’t have to put your dad in a difficult position. I’ll allow you to go," Sophia said, walking in.

She walked over to the bed and caressed Xan’s forehead, finding her still in a fever.

"You shouldn’t disturb xan. She needs a lot of rest," Sophia said, asking Ashton and Dexter to head out.

"I’ve already given Xan her glucose and nutrient solution," Dexter said, wanting to lessen her worries.

"It’s time for you to eat, then," Sophia replied in a low mood.

Neither Ashton nor Dexter dared to interject.

Damien kept quiet at the dining table, and so did everyone else.

"You should leave after you’re done eating." Dexter glanced at him, finding him an eyesore.

Having grown a little more shameless over the years, Damien ignored Dexter and continued eating.

However, he dared not overstay his welcome. He left after he was done eating.

Ashton carefully asked, "Are you really allowing me to study overseas, Mom?"

"You’re all grown up now. As Xan’s older brother, you’re her support, and you’ll have to take up this responsibility. "Sophia looked at him and continued, "Your sister is evolving, Ashton, and you know what this entails."

They couldn’t let anyone find out about this.

Sophia and Dexter would protect Xan. Ashton, on the other hand, would need to take another approach. He had to infiltrate Genome Society to prevent any future threats.

If Genome Society were to find out about Xan and discover that their experiment back then had succeeded, she would be in grave danger.

Ashton nodded and looked at her determinedly. "Don’t worry, Mom. I’ll protect Xan."

As her older brother, he would surely keep her safe.

Ashton went overseas for his studies, and Dexter and Sophia arranged for Xan to take a leave of absence from the university.

Xan remained sleepy most of the time. Out of 24 hours in a day, she was asleep for 20, with only a few waking hours. But gradually, she spent more time being awake. Her pupils had also turned into a golden brown color.

"You have to wear colored lenses if you’re going out, Xan." Sophia was worried that Xan’s changes might catch the attention of others.

"It’s so noisy, Mom," Xan said, covering her ears.

She could hear many sounds Sophia couldn’t, and everything was too noisy for her. Despite her covering her ears tight, she could still hear the ringing noises.

Xan had been an autistic child lost in her own world since she was young. She never spoke to anyone else other than her family.

With how withdrawn she was, Sophia never imagined Xan would be the one to evolve successfully.

Sophia and Dexter had always thought that Ashton would be the one targeted instead.

"Xan?"

Xan suddenly ran out into the courtyard, where Stevie was barking madly. With her eyes closed and fists clenched, she looked like she was truly irritated by all the noise.

Sophia and Dexter came running out, looking at her.

The sky was dark as Xan stood with her eyes shut under the rain. Suddenly, she snapped them open and glanced to the side. A drone fell to the ground after she threw a pen out, hitting it.

A drone had been monitoring their every move in the villa.

Sophia stared at the drone in shock. Their home had long been under surveillance, and they had been living under the watchful eye of the camera.

"Could you actually hear the drone, Xan?" she asked as she stared at the drone. It was an advanced model that was unavailable in their country. It made almost no noise at all.

"The air was vibrating..." Xan looked at a butterfly that was fluttering its wings in the rain. "The noise..."

She could even notice the fluttering of the butterfly’s wings.

"Someone’s coming, Mom and Dad." Xan strained her ears as she listened to the sounds amidst the rain. "They’re at the foot of the mountain, around the bend of the winding road... They’re speeding at 70 miles per hour and still accelerating. Their estimated arrival time will be in ten minutes."

Dexter warily shielded Sophia and her behind his back, watching the entrance of the villa. Sophia was tightly holding onto her hand, equally alert.

"Eason and Joel are here too, Mom. They’re right behind the other car," Xan said again.

Sophia turned to look at her, surprised. "You can even hear that?"

Xan replied awkwardly, "It’s not that... Eason’s car is a little old, and the brakes are always making noise. I can tell it’s him as soon as I hear the brake pads."

Eason had become extremely frugal ever since he found Joel. He refused to change his old car, saying that he wanted to save up to build a villa next to Dexter’s.