And in that very moment, Bexoi must have realized what was happening, or at least that something was happening. That she was losing her power here.

She could feel Bexoi try to make a sound, a scream, a shout. The meaning was also clear: No! But Bexoi’s possession of her own body was so shallow, so tenuous that it was already weak compared to the control that belonged to Anonoei.

In her panic, Bexoi tried to force her body to obey her. But of course that did not work. It could not work. The body had once been hers, but now it belonged, mostly, to someone else. To Anonoei.

Not completely, no. Because Danny had been there before her. Danny had shown himself to the bits that made up this body, and they had recognized his power, his enormous, dazzling strength. And also, perhaps, his goodness. Certainly his goodness, or at least his desire to be good to other people. To be good to whatever body belonged to him.

Then he retreated, and all that was left to entice this body was Anonoei. Compared to Bexoi, that might well be enough—no, it was enough.

But if Danny asked, if Danny offered, then it would all be his.

Yet he would not ask. He would not offer. He had come here only to show her what she needed to do. How it could be done.

All these years, ever since she first recognized her manmagery, she had imagined that she was tricking them, seducing them, and then, when she needed to, forcing them. But no, it was never that. They all gave themselves to her. Not as completely as this body was giving itself to her. But to some degree, they had been won over, they wished for what she offered. The weakest of them had accepted her complete domination. But the strongest of them also became her willing allies. Her followers.

As Bexoi’s body now was.

I am you now, she said to this body, all the parts of it, the whole of it. Let’s be alive together, she said, and the body came to her and clung to her and now she willed the legs to bend.

They were stiff from lack of movement, and could not easily respond.

In that instant, Danny North sensed what was happening and she felt a wave of healing, of strengthening, pass through her. Had he taken her through a gate? No, this was something else. This was him giving the body permission to heal itself. And now her legs moved easily. She swung them off the bed, leaned up on an elbow.

“Who is she?” asked Wad.

“You mean, which of your lovers?” asked Danny softly. “Which do you want her to be?”

“I can see what body it is,” said Wad tersely. “Is it the mother or the monster?”

“She is the woman the body wanted to be,” said Danny. “But the monster isn’t gone yet.”