Accidental Surrogate

Ella

A few hours later our entire party is gathered in the forest close to midnight, sipping champagne and mingling quietly as we wait for the hour to be right for Jesse’s baptism. We have a priestess here as well, of course, though this one is much more thoroughly vetted than the last.

I’m in incredibly good spirits as I look around at our party of loved-ones, truly enjoying my night, but when my eyes fall on Cora I see that she’s gnawing her lip a bit with anxiety.

“Oh, Cors,” I sigh, reaching out and putting a hand on her shoulder. I glance over at where Roger is standing a few feet away next to Henry with the baby in his arms, both of them talking with Sinclair, who has a sleeping Rafe held tight against his shoulder. “It will be all right!”

“I know it will,” she sighs, twisting her hands together and speaking softly to me. “And that even if it’s not, it’s not like I can change anything, you know?”

“I know,” I say, remembering how anxious I was at Rafe’s baptism. “But mom she can’t have anything really bad in store for him. It’s going to be all good things!”

“Oh, come on, Ella,” Cora says, shooting me a little glare. “It’s not like mom gave us the easy road just because we’re her daughters. We grew up in an orphanage. We had dark priests stalking us our whole lives.”

“But we had each other!”

“I just want my baby to have a good life,” she sighs, looking anxiously up at the sky, almost as if she can bully our mom into giving her baby a blessing if she glares at the moon enough. “It tortures me to think that he’s going to have to go through…half of what we did.”

“He’s going to have ups and downs, like the rest of us,” I say, wrapping my arms around my sister. “You can’t spare him from that.”

“Yes, I can,” she growls. “I’ll just… lock him in a very comfortable little basement. Very safe, very cozy.”

I laugh and shake my head at her. ” Your baby is going to have a big life, Cora,” I say, giving her a squeeze.

my little

Cora’s right.

that different from my first two weeks with Rafe, except with significantly less drama in my personal life. And while I treasured every single moment I was pregnant with Rafe, this pregnancy? Well, it’s kind of been a

so grateful to have

I could gush about my pregnancy for days, I

calls an old woman this time, dressed in the silvery-white robes of the goddess.

us there in front of the goddess, and Henry

a little kiss on his sleeping cheek before Sinclair hands our baby over to Henry for safekeeping while we’re in the

safe,” Henry

will,” Sinclair assures him, running a hand over Rafe’s dark head before

can’t believe you’re going to take my little baby into the forest without me,” Cora whispers, her voice breaking a little. “I haven’t been away from him

fifteen minutes,” I say, laughing and touching my sister gently on the cheek, even though I remember precisely what she’s feeling. I feel emotion stirring in me as well, the product of the special day combined with my memories, combined with my love for our growing little

take a deep breath and sniff, turning towards the

crying already,” Sinclair murmurs, his

can do whatever I want,” I mumble back, laughing

reaches out her arms for Jesse. Cora gives a half -hearted little sigh, but passes him over, making many of

smiles down at the wide- awake little Jesse, who looks like he peers back at her curiously, seeming to understand, somehow, that it’s an

presents this child for dedication?” the priestess says,

Roger replies, his voice steady and more serious

smile, recognizing the words and the process from Rafe’s ceremony. “And who will carry him to meet