My body was back to how it had been before the pregnancy, just like Sandalphon said. I was temporarily distracted from my melancholy by looking in the mirror. If we could bottle this and sell it, we'd make billions.
Ariel cooed from the bed, jerking me out of my temporary respite. I threw a sweatshirt on to hide my flat stomach and scooped her up off the bed. "Glamour me," I said. No way I would be able to get rid of the puffy eyes or fix my hair in time to get over there.
Gabriel waved his hand in front of my face. "There." I tried to smile at him, but it was beyond me.
"Ready?" Michael put his hand on my neck. "All of the nursery is packed to go."
"No. I'll never be ready," I said, my voice heavy with grief. "But we have no choice. She can't go to Hell."
I tried one last time. "Try again. Make sure you don't sense any magic in her."
Michael took her out of my arms with care and nuzzled her soft cheek. "I've never felt anything so soft."
He kissed her and gave our sweet girl back. "All I sense is the magic I felt you give her. It will give her health, emotional resilience, and deep-seated memories in her subconscious, but no magic of her own. She's a product of your human bodies."
I sighed and clutched her as tightly as I dared. "Let's go."
Michael and Gabriel took each of my arms, and the next thing I knew, we stood in Anna's living room. "Hello?" Gabriel called out.
"Oh, my." Anna's voice from the next room sounded scared. "Who is in the house?"
She ran in, followed by her boyfriend, Rupert. "How did you get in here?" he boomed.
"Oh." Anna stopped short when she saw the baby. "When did this happen?"
I exchanged a glance with Gabe. "It's a long story. What I need is for both of you to sit down and try to be receptive to what I want to tell you."
They gave each other a long look, then Rupert scrutinized us. "Okay," he said. They sat on the couch, leaving us their loveseat and armchair. We all three scrunched in on the loveseat, Ariel in my arms.
"We have some things to tell you that are pretty unbelievable." I sucked in a deep breath with my eyes on Ariel. "First of all, am I correct that you both wish you could have children, but Rupert, you cannot?"
Shock crossed both of their faces. "How could you possibly know that?" Rupert asked. "She and my doctor are the only people in the world that know."
I smiled at him. "I know a lot of things I probably shouldn't."
"Connie, what is this about?" Anna leaned forward. "How did you get in here? Where did you have the baby?"
"Lucian and I are going to have to leave the country." I leveled her with a stare. "And we have to leave Ariel."
Anna's jaw dropped. "Leave her where?"
I felt Michael and Gabriel sending magic their way. "Here," I said. "If you're willing."
"With us?" Anna's voice lowered. "How would that work?"
"She would be your daughter. But there would be things you would be required to do."
Rupert's face took on a more suspicious tone. "Like what?"
"Claim her as your child. Money will be no object. You can move if you'd like, somewhere that nobody would know any different. You'll also need to claim a home birth and take her for a proper birth certificate. We want her to have the best, most normal upbringing possible."
Anna shook her head. "What about Ariel? What would we tell her?"
"The same. That you're her parents. If we ever show up again, we'll be out of town relatives or your old friends. In all likelihood, you'll never see us again." I held my sweet girl close, knowing my words were true.
"What if you change your mind?" Anna asked. "And we get attached and then you rip her from us?" Her face was a mixture of hope and wariness, and I knew I'd made the right decision.
"I promise, I would not do that to you. Even if things go better than I could dream, and I find myself able to be a part of Ariel's life again, I would not remove her from your home or life." I sent a bit of my magic with those words so that she would know them to be true.
