Finding Jolyon wasn’t difficult. Autumn simply followed his bellows until she caught sight of his light. A woman, the replica of her mother, was squatting next to him, dangling a half-peeled banana and trying to soothe him. When she caught sight of Autumn, wariness took the place of the stress stamped on her classical features.
“Oh! It’s you. I’m not certain who the little guy is, but I’ve been trying to charm him for the last few hours. Initially, it worked, but I’m afraid he requires food and a nap.”
Her accent was an odd combination of British and American, and her long black hair was swept back in a French braid. She also wore no makeup, but it didn’t detract from her natural beauty or her peaches-and-cream complexion. Autumn experienced an odd vertigo from seeing her mother’s clone.
“He dislikes bananas,” Autumn replied inanely. A feeling of embarrassment began to take hold as she stared at Angelica Thorne. A good mother would’ve seen to her child first, but all Autumn could do was stare. Seeing this carbon copy of her mother was disconcerting.
“And he’s made it bloody well known,” Angelica replied with a weary grimace. “I’m not sure how you would know that, though, Autumn. Or why you of all people should care.” Coldness crept into the other woman’s tone, and oddly, it stung to be misjudged by a person whose twin she adored beyond measure.
“I’m not who you believe me to be. I’m—”
“Mama! Mama!” Jolly screamed, flailing his arms in her direction. “Mama!”
His cry broke the spell holding her in place. Rushing forward, Autumn scooped him into her arms, holding tight to his compact body and breathing in the scent of his sweaty hair.
“Hey, fry guy. Mama’s here. Mama’s here.” Tears stung the back of her closed lids, and she silently vowed to do better. Swore to protect him from incidents like this in the future. “I’m sorry, Jolly. Mama’s sorry you were lost.”
“Who are you, if not Autumn Carlyle?” Angelica asked. Some of her icy disdain had disappeared, having been replaced by curiosity.
“Actually, I am Autumn Carlyle, but not from your world. Right now, I don’t have time to explain, but just know I brought LJ back to you.”
“LJ?”
“She’s been calling me that since we met, darlin’,” he said as he approached. With a humorous glance in Autumn’s direction, he grinned. “She said the flannel makes me look like a lumberjack.”
“I had to call him something other than Alastair. It would’ve been too confusing otherwise.”
“Why?” Angelica asked after kissing her husband’s bearded jaw.
“Him.” LJ gestured to Dapper Alastair, who stood about ten feet away, watching the scene with a fascinated expression. “The alternate-reality version of myself.”
But Angelica’s attention wasn’t caught by Alastair, and instead, she was focused on the people beside him—Preston, Spring, Nash, and Aurora.
“Am I dreaming?” she asked.
“If you are, we are,” Autumn said. She materialized a blanket and, with a wave of her hand, spread it beneath a large oak tree. After making herself comfortable, she held out her hand and conjured apple slices for Jolyon to eat. “Here you go, my sweet boy. This should take care of those hunger pangs.”
Soon enough, he was happily munching away, alternating between bites and trying to shove the other half of the slice in Autumn’s mouth. Playfully, she pretended to gobble his fingers. His giggles were music to her soul, and she prayed to the Goddess his time here hadn’t scarred him. But that was a problem for another day.
“Uncle Alastair? Do you have Jolly’s anklet?”
He knelt beside her and wordlessly handed her the finely crafted jewelry with the ability to temper Jolyon’s formidable power. Autumn spared a moment to study the clasp, and after verifying it wasn’t faulty, she grasped her son’s wildly kicking leg.
“Steady now, munch. Mama’s trying to put your pretty anklet back on.”
Again, he kicked, and his heel connected with her forearm.
“The boy acts like he doesn’t want you to put it on him,” LJ said. “Could it be it bothers him?”
At a loss as to why it might, she faced Alastair. “Uncle Al?”
“Your guess is as good as mine, child. I’d say there was a reason either he or his sister tore it off, but until he’s able to vocalize it or we find Chloe, we won’t know for sure.”
“May I?”
Spring held out her hand, and Autumn placed it in her palm. They all remained silent as she studied the piece. Autumn couldn’t help but notice Angelica’s fascination with Preston, nor it seemed, could LJ.
“Unbelievable, isn’t it?” he said.
“Yes.” With a small laugh, she shook her head. “To see him again after all this time, well, I can’t seem to wrap my head around it. An alternate reality, you said?”
“Yep.” Within a few minutes, she’d been brought up to speed on the day’s events, and Autumn was talked out.
Her mother joined her on the blanket and pressed her back to the trunk. Using her arms to indicate Autumn should give her Jolly, she smiled when he dove into her embrace, and she accepted his sloppy kisses on her cheek like the indulgent grandmother she was.
“Thanks, Mama.”
“You’re welcome, darling girl.” Taking one of Jolly’s proffered apples, she rubbed her cheek against his downy head. “Why don’t you take your father and go find Keaton and Chloe while I stay here with Jolly? Perhaps we’ll get him down for a much-needed nap.”
“If I’ve never told you this, you’re the best.” With a quick group hug that included her mother and son, Autumn rose. “Any idea which direction my husband went?”
“We thought he was coming to find you, but we reached you first,” Alastair said with a frown. “I didn’t see him on the journey here. Anyone else?”
They all shook their heads, giving Autumn cause for concern. What the hell had happened to her husband?