Gemotions

It was late, the city lights blurred through the window. Maya sat on her bed, the laptop glowing in the darkness. The screen displayed the genealogy, the family tree, a complex tangle of names and connections she didn't recognize. A coldness settled over her, chilling her to the bone.

She felt a tremor in her hands. She wanted to scream, to lash out. She clenched her fists until her nails bit into her palms. The knowledge of a different past, a hidden life, a whole other set of people, weighed her down. The air felt thin, difficult to breathe. She closed the laptop, the sudden blackness a relief.