She lay down next to the sleeping woman and pressed her head into the second pillow, her hip digging into the blankets. She left space between the broken body and hers to not jar Addison more than necessary. The only thing connecting them was their hands. Rob had told her that she’d been awake earlier that day, but James had yet to see those green eyes staring back at her. That was all she wanted at that moment.

  Brushing her thumb carefully across the back of Addison’s thin hand, she whispered. “Addy, love, wake up.” She was in tears when she repeated the simple request.

  James must have fallen asleep, because the squeezing at her hand woke her. The face was dark, but she could tell that Addison was awake and smiling at her.

  “James.”

  Her name was a whisper in the air, and James didn’t wait two seconds before lifting her body up and planting her lips squarely on the woman, lingering for as long as possible.

  “I’m so glad you’re okay.” Addison spoke as soon as James was pressed back into the pillow with a large smile gracing her features. Addison lifted her hand and cupped James’ cheek. “Kiss me again.”

  James did as she was told, without any complaint or delay. Pushing up onto her elbow, she made sure that Addison kept her hand in place before bending her head and rubbing her mouth softly over her lover’s. Dipping her tongue out, Addison waited for the lips above hers to part. Deepening the embrace, James moved her other hand to brace her body further. Her muscles were shaking and she had to pull back far sooner than she would have liked.

  “I missed you, so much.”

  “Likewise. Now, where’s Lily.”

  James pulled a face. “Sleeping, it’s the middle of the night.”

  Humming, Addison thought it through. “I want to see her tomorrow.”

  “I’m sure that can be arranged.” James raised her hand and traced the outline of Addison’s slightly swollen and bruised cheek as lightly as possible.

  They lay in silence for quite some time, staring at each other and enjoying the company. They didn’t need to say anything. All they needed was to feel each other’s presence. They needed to be as close as possible, and they needed to absorb the entirety of the last two weeks. Addison’s voice broke the silence, the strain evident in her tone.

  “They didn’t hurt you, did they?”

  “What? No. Not at all, they didn’t touch me.”

  “Good.” Addison turned her head to stare at the ceiling. “Lily?”

  “I don’t think so, they were very careful with her. There were only a few minutes that I wasn’t watching. They only took blood.”

  “That’s good.” She sighed. “James?”

  “Yeah?” She slid in closer, her body inched across the fabric until she felt the warmth of the Addison next to her. Addison was crying. It took James a minute to figure it out, and she wiped her thumbs across the tears. “What is it?”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “You didn’t do anything.”

  “I know it wasn’t my fault. I’m sorry you had to see that.”

  She took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart and her body as the movement from her sobs were beginning to cause her a great deal of pain.

  “I thought I left it all behind. I thought that I would never have to deal with that again, and I never intended for you to see that world.”

  “What? The world of crime, drama, and hurt? Of accidents and bad people?” James was resting on her elbow again and staring down at the crying woman. When she saw the slight nod, she pressed a loud kiss to Addison’s lips. “Addison, I see that world all the time. I’m a firefighter, not a secretary. I’m used to seeing people broken, hurt, and bad things happen. It’s what I do.”

  “This isn’t the same.”

  “What makes it so different?”

  When she didn’t get an answer, James continued.

  “I don’t see that much difference except that this world has gifts and the one I was in doesn’t. You have people who love each other here, and you have people who hate each other. There’s good and bad and the in between.”

  Addison nodded. “Okay.” She drew in a deep breath. “Okay.” Licked her lips, she watched as James lay back down. “I need to tell you something.”

  “Tell me what?”

  “It’s really important.” Her breathing was becoming erratic. “I don’t want you to freak out.”

  “Addy.” James had moved back up and was sitting cross-legged on the bed, staring at Addison. “Out with it.”

  “I can’t go back, I have to stay here.”

  She wanted to sit up, she wanted to hug James and be as close to her as possible, but she knew the pain would be far too great if she tried.

  James was gripping Addison’s hand tightly. “Why?”

  “I need to stay here for treatment.”

  Shaking her head, James asked another question. Addison was avoiding, and James was becoming fed up with the tactic.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Because of my gift sometimes we need different treatments, but not often. But I need to stay here for this one, be seen by one of our doctors.”

  “Okay,” James dragged the word out, trying to figure out where the conversation was going. “How long are you going to be here?”

  Biting her lip, Addison let the words spill from her lips. “Quite a while, I’m afraid. This isn’t a simple fix.”

  “What isn’t?”

  “James.” Her voice broke, and she tried again. “James, I have cancer.”

  It was as if everything in the world stopped. Time, the Earth’s movements, the air going in and out of James’ lungs, her heart beat: everything pausing for one terrifying second.

  “What?”

  Addison was breaking down in tears again and each sob tore at her chest and body, but she couldn’t stop herself.

  “I have cancer. They found it when checking me out when I got back. They have to run more tests, they don’t know what kind. I’ll have to start treatments as soon as my body can handle it and even then it doesn’t look good. I—I don’t know what to say.”

  “Don’t say anything.”

  James held onto Addison’s hand as tightly as possible.

  “Don’t say anything. We’ll figure it out.”

  She pressed down next to Addison and ran her fingertips over the back of Addison’s hand and wrist. She repeated, “We’ll figure it out,” over and over, until she heard Addison’s cries subside.

  Chapter Fifteen

  James woke with a start. Her body was tense and her mind was whirling as she tried to figure out what had set off every alarm in her system. Taking a moment and a deep breath, she glanced over and saw two dark brown eyes set on her face. The light was beginning to pour in through the closed curtains and she could make out long waves of curly, blonde hair. Holding her hand out to the girl, she beckoned.

  Lily climbed onto the bed and rested her body between the two women. Her face was turned towards James.

  “What’s wrong, bumble bee?”

  “I couldn’ find you.” Lily pressed her face into James’ chest, and the woman carded fingers through the soft hair.

  “I’m right here.”

  They must have drifted back to sleep, because the second time her eyes opened Addison was reading a story to Lily. She’d somehow managed to prop half her body up on pillows, and the child was nestled into her side. Both James and Lily listened intently as the words were brought to life by the gentle cadence of Addison’s voice.

  The story finished, and Lily took the book, flipping through the pages again. It was a Berenstain Bear story and the girl was absolutely in love with it.

  James reached a hand over to grab onto Addison’s just as Lily realized she was awake.

  “Jamsey, Addy read me a story.” The girl was practically bouncing on the bed, her tiny legs curled under her.

  “Is she good at reading stories?”

  “Yeah.” Lily bit her lip carefully and held out the book. “She read Bernsteeen Bears.”

  “Awesome, what happened in the story?” James listened intently as Lily regaled the book with a few twists and turns that were not in the original plot.

  By the time she was finished, James was sitting upright with a very awake child in her lap. “That’s a great story.”

  “I love it.” Lily was grinning, and James couldn’t help but smile back.

  “Why don’t you head down to your room and get dressed. I’ll come see what you’ve chosen in a second.”

  “Okay.” Lily bounced up and out the door while James slowly slipped off the mattress. “I’ll be back for lunch. Norma wants to talk to me again.” Her eyes flicked over the broken body and sadness crept into the yellow hues of her eyes.

  Addison licked her lips and smiled. “Why don’t you move your stuff in here?”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah.” She was smiling. “I’m serious.”

  James paused and thought about the request. She would love to, in all honestly, but Lily’s room was nowhere near this part of the house. “I don’t know.”

  “They can move Lily. Please, think about it.”

  “Why don’t you move down to mine?”

  James tried another tactic, not that she wanted the woman to move in her state, but then at least they wouldn’t have to move Lily.

  Addison shook her head. “This is my room. It always has been.”

  “Your room?”

  “Yeah, when I lived here.”

  Her eyes were closed, and she was drawing in a deep breath. She needed the doctor to come in soon with pain medication because the burning in her ankles was getting to be far too much.

  “I thought you were in Chicago.”

  “I worked at an outpost there before I moved to Norwich, and I traveled there a lot to consult before I even lived in Chicago. But mostly I was here, before that. I lived here for years. It was easier to get the job at the Station if I put that as my primary location and position.”

  It was the first time Addison answered her without holding something back, and it left a weird taste in the back of James’ throat.

  James swallowed. “Huh.”

  “Think about it.”

  James nodded and turned to leave, but was once again stopped by the soft voice. “There’s someone coming this afternoon to help me heal, would you mind being here for it?” Her green eyes were locked on the other woman, and she was waiting for an answer.

  “Yeah, sure. Anything.” James walked over quickly and planted a kiss on Addison’s cheek and lips before strolling out of the room to find the wayward child in her custody. She and Lily dressed in silence before heading to the kitchen to find breakfast. It was a meal that James insisted on never skipping if viable. Deciding she would make eggs with toast, she started the skillet as Lily sat at the table. It wasn’t long before the fried egg was prepared and the toast slathered with butter and jam.

  Both of them sat there eating when Norma came in for a large dose of coffee. She sucked down half of the mug before immediately refilling the missing parts.

  James looked at her oddly and turned her head. “Long night?”

  “Yeah, I was up the entirety of it.”

  Narrowing her eyes, James looked over the pixie who was dressed impeccably in a dark blue skirt, matching jacket, and low cut, lacy white undershirt. Her makeup was in place, her eyes were wide and blue, and her hair shimmered in the morning light as if an ethereal presence were holding a halo above her.

  “Right,” James stated. “Up the entire night.” Turning back, she took a bite of her toast. “Want me to make you some breakfast?”

  “That’s all right. I have some work I need to catch up on before our meeting.” She took another long sip before smiling at Lily who had jam covering most of her cheeks. “Good morning, darling.”

  Lily gave a brilliant smile. “Mornin’, Norma,” she answered in a sing-song voice before taking another large bite of her toast.

  “Breakfast good?”

  Lily nodded vigorously. “Jamsey cooks real good.”

  Humming, Norma smiled sweetly. “Perhaps I’ll have her cook me a meal someday.”

  “She makes the bes’ cookies ever.” Lily was grinning still, and James was blushing.

  Not many people knew that she liked to bake and those that did never fussed over her for it. It was odd that the words coming from the mouth of a four-year-old would give her so much pleasure and embarrassment at the same time.

  “Yes, you do like my cookies,” James added and shoved off the compliment. Taking her plate to the sink, she started to clean the dishes that she’d dirtied.

  Norma smiled at her awkwardness and the obvious discomfort that she was trying to brush off. “Well, I need to head to my office. I’ll see you later, though.” She dismissed herself and made out of the room.

  Lily was once again playing with the two little boys that seemed to be permanent residents of the house. It wasn’t really a house per se; it was close to being mansion sized if not considered a mansion already. Lily was out in the front yard, and James was locked away in the study with books strewn everywhere as she read more about her gift. It seemed hers was the rarest of them all, and that she had quite a range of abilities.

  The pixie blonde eventually strolled into the room and sat wearily on the sofa couch in the corner.

  James came over slowly and sat next to her. “Maybe you should take a nap.”

  There was a wry chuckle that emerged from the pink lips, and it set James on edge. Norma stopped laughing, but the smile was still there. She said, “No time for a nap today, I’m afraid. Tonight will be a godsend.” She brushed her hands together. “There are two things I wanted to ask you, and if you had any further questions for me I’d like to open the floor.”

  “All right.” James glanced at the window again as if she was checking on the child even though she couldn’t see anything in the front yard. “Who was it that took us?”

  “Ah… yes. That was a group that we originally thought was trying to eradicate the gift. They were trying to make a medical cure for people who are part of us and didn’t want to be, or rather they claimed that. I’m not sure how long it would take for them to use it as a weapon against us, if they did create a ‘cure’.”

  Norma took a sip of the travel mug she had brought with her. Her voice was growing husky with exhaustion, but she wasn’t going to give in to it.

  “The people that you took are actually an offshoot of that group. They work with a group called ‘Singers.’ This faction specifically was trying to create a mastermind, to put it simply. They are trying to take the genetics for each gift that is present—the more powerful the better—and combine them into either an already existing person or an embryo to create someone who has all the gifts.”

  “Is that even possible?” James’ eyes widened.

  Norma hummed and locked her eyes onto James. “In theory it is, I’m not convinced that it is possible in practice. We might have slightly newer technology than most people, but even our genetic engineering isn’t that advanced. Unless they have managed to slip that much by me and hide it, I doubt that they have the technology either.” She took a long sip of her coffee. “Either way, you are here. All three of you are safe, and that is all that matters.”

  “But we weren’t safe.”

  “Right,” Norma responded quietly. “You weren’t. But I do not believe that they were after you.”

  “Why wouldn’t they be? I mean from what I’ve read—”

  “James,” she called gently. “They didn’t know what they had. They took Addison because she used to work for me, and they thought that through her they could find someone like you. If only they had looked a little more closely, you might not be here today.”

  Resting back against the cushions, James let the statement wash over her. She could have been in that tiny room instead of Addison, and perhaps she would not be there to take care of Lily. It wasn’t until then, that she realized exactly how lucky she was.

  Letting the air in the room become stilted and calm with understanding, James finally asked, “Where’s the doctor that was brought back with Addy?”

  Her question surprised Norma; she could see it in the slight crinkling at the corner of her eyes and the sudden parting of Norma’s lips.

  “I want to thank him for helping us.”

  “He’s in one of the guest rooms, second floor, third door on the right. I believe Jean-Pierre is with him now. You might want to wait until later tonight before visiting.”

  “Okay.” James fiddled her thumbs over each other as silence passed between them. “You said you had questions for me?”

  “Right. First, I want you to consider this before giving your answer. Addison was worried about your reaction, but Rob believes you’ll be very amenable.” Norma set her travel mug onto one of the end tables and leaned forward. “We were able to procure adoption papers and records for Lily. If you would like, you can adopt her without any strings, court cases, waiting, and anything else that might come up throughout the course of a normal adoption.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Quite.” Norma’s blue eyes were watching James carefully, gaging and judging all reactions.

  “And if I don’t?”

  Licking her lips, Norma continued. “If you don’t, I will have custody of the girl and she will attend my school. She needs to be in a specialized program.”

  James nodded and sat back against the couch. She had not been expecting that question.

  Starting again, Norma added, “I don’t need an answer right away, but soon. I can only hold off CPS for so long.”

  “I’ll need to think about it.”

  “I expected nothing less.” Norma stood. “The second question can wait until later. I don’t want to overwhelm you with options.”

  “Um… okay?” James quipped and ran her hands over her thighs.