Chapter 19: Forgiveness

Mom and I finished our shower together, washing each other and almost not talking at all. She still had the mark of the other Mind Magi, and I was certain that was the reason I hadn't bound her to me. It was probably the same reason with Monique. With the way she had been flirting with me even after our encounter, I was sure I could find out if she had the same mark as Mom. It also made me wonder if the same person had used Master PC to password protect their profiles? Very possible. I used it to protect me and my girls from other users. Michael had put a password on himself and I was sure he used it to protect whomever he was bound to. The trend suggested that the protective nature of a Mind Magi made them look for any means to protect what they considered theirs, and that was something I couldn't disagree with.

However, I had done something I shouldn't have been able to do for Mom and though she had been completely controlled by her desires, she remembered.

"Honey, when you ... um ... when you ... entered me ... and you hit my..."

I knew where the question was going. I just didn't know how to tell her. "Mom, I..."

She put a finger to my lips. Our touching had become casual. Our bodies were still nude and wet from the shower, though we were drying off. "I need to ask the question. You may know what I want to ask, but I want to make sure we are talking about the same thing." She withdrew her hand and seemed to steel herself. "When you entered me and hit my cervix. You said you could make it easier so that it wouldn't hurt. Then I felt something ... I thought at first you were peeing in me but the feeling absorbed into me and suddenly I could feel myself falling onto you, taking you in completely." She glanced down and back up. She had known from the night before that I was packing something impressive, but she was still having difficulty believing what had happened in the shower.

I nodded. "Yes, that's exactly right." I stopped, waiting to see if she wanted to ask another question. Her look suggested that I explain. I had seen it enough times over the years to know it. We had wrapped towels around ourselves. I had grown accustomed to being naked around my girls, but this was my Mom. Then I took her hand and led her over to the tub. We sat on the edge and it was my turn to steel my nerves.

"I've inherited more than just my biological parents' looks. I'm able to do things most people can't, like what happened in the shower. I can alter ... other peoples' bodies. That warm liquid sensation is a side effect of that ability. It even allows me to heal wounds. I've healed cuts with it."

Mom sat there in awe. "Why haven't you told me before?"

"I only discovered the ability shortly after I left for college. I didn't know I could do it before that."

"Ral, that's ... that's incredible. You're ... You're like some ... I don't know..."

I didn't want her trying to compare me to anyone else, or worse telling anyone else. It was my turn to put my fingers to her lips. "You can't tell anyone about this. Only my closest friends know I can do this. I don't want to think what my life would be like if people started coming to me, and I mean by the thousands, to be healed or changed. It's based on my desires, not those of the person I touch."

For a moment she stared at me in astonishment. Then she relaxed and looked away. "So you wanted to fuck me?" She was actually hurt by the thought.

Gently, I pulled her chin around so I could meet her eyes. "I'm not going to deny that you are any extremely attractive woman. The thought of what it would have been like has entered my mind, but it would have never happened. Even while in the shower with you, I was doing everything I could do to stay in control, but I knew, just like you had said, that you were pretty well out of control. I didn't want you hurting yourself, and you said you would to make sure I got off." Mom blushed. "I'm not saying this to be mean or to embarrass you, but I didn't want you hurt. My desire was to help you to not hurt yourself, so I did what I could."

She stared at me. "I deserved the pain."

"Some part of you might have believed that, but whatever was affecting you was merely amplifying those thoughts and desires. You felt guilty and lustful and those emotions took control. So, no more about that. We have to find out why it happened. I already understand how."

Her eyes were soft. "You mean..."

I ran my hand over her bare shoulder and to the back of her neck, under her wet hair. "You have a mark on the back of your neck, a small red diamond. It's an indicator that you are bound to someone else, someone who is probably the one responsible for your actions today."

"What do you mean, 'bound'?"

"It's a term used for the connection between you and this other person."

"Is there any way to break this connection?" The fact that she couldn't see it, because it was on the back of her neck, helped make it easier for her to accept my knowledge about it. She would probably think it was a tattoo or some such. I'd let that notion go for now. However, the overflowing emotions had been all too real and she accepted that something beyond normal had happened. Thankfully, she was too concerned about this incident to ask too many questions about me.

"Maybe, but I don't know how. When I find out, you'll be the first to know."

She nodded and hugged me. I hugged her back. "I'm sorry about this, Mom. I know it's not what you would probably want for a Christmas family reunion, but I'm going to do all I can to make it right."

She sat back and looked at me. "It's not your fault, honey." She seemed to hesitate, wanting to say something else. I sat there patiently. "I know you've probably had a grudge about it, but um ... if you want ... you can call me Livia, instead of Mom."

"Did you really lactate for me? Feed me as an infant?"

She blushed but then nodded.

"Then you are my Mom. You may not have given birth to me, but you did help me the one way only you could have. I already know my biological parents are dead. There's some question about what happened to them and I'm hoping any information you can give me about my adoption would shed some light on it. But right now, probably for the rest of my life, you're my Mom."