FORTY-SEVEN
Xan was adrift in her dreams, feeling the blissful roll of a boat under her feet as she walked the deck of a yacht just like the one the Fishers owned. Instinctively, she knew this was her home, though how she knew it, she couldn't say. She called a name as she searched for someone, a vague sense of unease growing in the pit of her stomach.
But there was no one else aboard.
Laughter drifted up from the waves, and Xan turned to look. On the dive platform at the back of the boat sat a tiny toddler of indeterminate s*x, dangling its feet in the water as the fish rose up to kiss the child's toes.
Relief flooded through Xan. This was the child she was searching for. Her child, though she had none.
She climbed down the ladder, stretching her arms out. A pair of much larger ar
