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“But he…took me on a carriage ride, blindfolded, before he showed me where she was.”
“I’m afraid, if he did that to you, it was a ruse,” Loren murmured.
“She was…in the same house with me all along?” I said in a small voice.
Could that even be?
She was right there?
With me?
While I was Eliza Doolittling, she was suffering in the basement?
“I’m sorry,” he said in a quiet tone.
It was then I noticed a man who was big and tall and strong, like Loren, and handsome, like Loren (though not as handsome as Loren), strolling out the front door to Dad-not-Dad’s townhome.
And I wondered what in good hell I was doing standing on the sidewalk talking to Loren.
I bound-thighs ran to the steps, up them, past the new hot guy, and pushed into the house.
“Mom!” I shouted.
“Baby?” I heard from my left.
Edgar’s sitting room.
I ran that way.
And there she was, dirty, disheveled, much thinner than I’d ever seen her, in a filthy, white nightgown from this world, Maxine in the same state, clinging to her side.
Right, Mom and I had scrimped and saved and made do and dug in when necessary, and dug ourselves out when that was necessary. I’d started working at fourteen to help. We weren’t hard. But we were survivors. We were tough. We were strong. We endured.
But in that moment, I burst into tears.
I hobbled her way and threw my arms around her.
Maxine recoiled, but I grabbed her with us as Mom burst out crying too.
We clutched and we wailed, and I was pretty sure my hat poked her in the eye, and she didn’t care.
I ripped away from her hold, but caught her face in my hands, laughed through my tears because she was right there, so close I could touch her, and I was touching my momma, and I cried, “Oh my God! I was so worried.”
“Honey, I’m fine.” She held Maxine close. “We’re fine.”
I turned to Maxine. “Maxie,” I whispered. “Hi.”
She studied me, biting her lip and sticking close to Mom.
“But…what happened to your eye?” Mom asked.
“I’m fine too,” I told her.
“Girl,” she warned.
I sighed. “I don’t think I have to tell you, the dude’s a dick.”
Her eyes lit in a blaze of glory.
Okay, time to move past the bad, and get back to the good.
I took a step back and clapped my hands.
Maxine jumped.
Mom kept hold on Maxine and gave me a slow shake of her head.
Right, no sudden movements or noise.
Noted.
“Okay, baths. Or food first? And clothes,” I declared in a forced calm voice.
Mom took me in fully this time. “Good Lord, girl, what are you wearing?”
Oh.
Wait.
Mom hadn’t been around and about to get the lay of the land like I had.
No.
Wait.
I turned and saw Loren, Ansley, and new hot guy standing in the wide doorway, watching the reunion.
Right.
I had to do this, and fast.
I moved in, trying to take care not to freak Maxine, and put my mouth to Mom’s ear.
“I’m Satrine,” I whispered. “This is my twin sister, and your other daughter, Maxine. They don’t know about the worlds. They think Edgar faked your suicide. You’ve been banished with me to Fleuridia for two decades. Edgar’s going to jail now. We’re living in a renaissance festival, or more like a Victorian festival, actually, it’s kinda both, but a really good one. And I’ll fill you in on the rest when we don’t have an audience.”
I swayed back, caught Mom’s eyes, she was staring at me like I’d lost my mind, and then I announced loudly, “Of course, baths first.”
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m okay if you’re okay,” I answered. “And the rest, we’ll sort out later.”
She held my gaze.
Then, thank you God, she slowly nodded before she turned to Maxine and asked softly, “Would you like a bath, my beauty?”
“Yes, Momma,” she answered timidly.
Momma?
Oh.
Of course.
She looked like her mother.
Because she kind of was.
God, this was so effed up.
“I don’t want her out of my sight,” Mom told me.
“I’ll take care of everything, Countess,” Idina said from behind me.
Mom’s attention shot back to me, she dipped her chin and mouthed, Countess?
I mouthed back, Go with it.
Out loud I said, “Follow Idina. I’ll get you some food and bring it up. Yes?”
Mom nodded.
I walked out of the room with them, to the staircase, where I gave them over to Idina, who walked them up the stairs.
I stood at the foot and watched until they were out of sight.
Quickly, I went back to the sitting room.
“When she’s back to herself, I’ll formally introduce you,” I told Ansley.
“Of course,” he replied on a slight bow.
I didn’t know how “back to herself” I could make her, since she was three inches shorter than me and twenty-five pounds lighter (maybe now more like thirty-five, fucking Edgar) and clothing for rich people was made to order, and I had a shit-ton to fill her in on without anyone hearing, but I’d figure that out later.
