Not in a physical sense, anyway. Her spirit recognized them, not her body.
An odd sort of experience, one that defied her logic. Which was precisely why she followed the path. It served a suitable purpose to determine the origin and report back on the bizarre sensation.
Report back to who? she asked herself. When was the last time she even spoke to another being outside of the figments in her mind?
She pondered the latest figment, a rich, deep baritone that constantly infiltrated her thoughts. Caro rather liked his voice, something that alarmed her slightly. Because she shouldn’t like anything. What purpose did enjoyment serve? None at all, really.
Yet she found herself waiting for him to speak and missed him when he fell quiet. He told her strange things about their daughter.
Daughter. She puzzled over that phrase, curious as to what that meant. She’d procreated, but the memories were fuzzy.
Hmm. She pushed them away, chasing the pain into her core to locate the source.
And fell headfirst into a reality that made little sense to her.
She spun around in a circle, pausing at the heat from the fireplace. No sun. Instead, the moonlight glistened off the snow outside. Her lips parted at the sight. So beautiful, so—
“Caro?” that deep male rumble came from behind her.
“I’m almost done,” she heard herself say.
She frowned, not understanding how she’d spoken without actually moving her mouth. Then she turned to see herself on the couch beside a handsome dark-haired male. He held a tiny child in his arms.
However, it wasn’t a typical infant hold.
He had her upside down, his big hand gently cradling the baby’s face a few inches above his thigh. Her lower half was stretched out across his lap. The child slept soundly, which was rather bizarre because that didn’t appear comfortable at all. Unless she was a stomach sleeper.
Caro crept closer to see what the other woman was doing. Me, she thought. What I’m doing.
How very strange to observe herself in this manner, but she was too fascinated by it to question the abnormality. Instead, she watched as the magic flared from the fingertips caressing the child’s lower back.
A rune, she realized, her eyes widening. I’m creating a rune.
“You’ve turned it into a heart,” the male mused.
“Yes, I’m disguising it,” she replied, a smile in her voice. “It seemed appropriate with her being our little heart.”
The man’s lips pulled into a breathtaking grin, one that gave Caro momentary pause. I recognize that look. It stirred a foreign warmth inside her, one that seemed to spread heat through each of her veins.
This was much better than the pain that lurked inside her.
“It will still protect her against Ichorians, just like Leela’s original mark intended. But now it’ll conceal her from my familial line, too.” Has my voice always been so soft? Caro wondered, listening to herself speak. “We’ll have Vera shift our memory to only remember that part, not the concealment aspect.”
“We’ll need to do the same for Gabriel,” the male murmured.
“Yes,” Caro agreed. “And Leela, too.” She sighed, the enchantment flickering as she sealed the rune with a final swipe of the branding pen. It was a tiny needlelike object that oozed skin-altering ink. She set it to the side and met the male’s gaze. “It’s done.”
“How long will it take for her to heal?” The male’s tone held a touch of concern to it, one that sent another wave of heat through Caro’s insides.
“A few hours at most.”
“Should we bandage it?”
“No. But we should keep the area clear.” She glanced at the stairs. “We should put her in the bassinet and let her sleep it off.”
“She won’t wake until I release the compulsion,” he replied, carefully rotating the small child in his arms to cradle her properly. His green eyes smiled down at her, his pride radiating through the bond. “How is something so tiny destined for such greatness?”
Caro followed his gaze, her heart giving a small pang of longing. She didn’t quite like the pain that little look caused. Yet she found herself creeping forward, needing to see the child more clearly.
So beautiful, she thought.
“Because we created her,” she heard herself say. With a frown, Caro glanced at the woman and found her staring directly at her. “She’s ours.”
Ours?
The memory faded away, lifting up into the bedroom, to the male stripping off the woman’s dress and laying her on the mattress while the baby slept soundly in an adjoining nursery.
What are you doing? she asked herself, confused by the shift. Where’s the