Page 76 of His Retribution

Cora frowns. "What relationship? I was a total disappointment to him and Josef was convinced I'd be some crazy spinster living in the barn on his property in the country with dozens of animals."

Which is exactly why he had her betrothed to my bastard grandfather.

A way to take Cora off of his hands and earn himself more favor in the process.

Asshole.

"And do you recall the first time you met Havok?"

She looks to me with a smile so full of warmth I may explode into flames. "The first time I saw him I got this." She touches the scar on her forehead. "And threatened to have Samson eat his balls. The first time we actually met was a few days later when he cornered me sneaking out of the armory with a battle ax."

I laugh at the memory.

I had been looking everywhere for her, and low and behold, one night she turned up on base. My light had broken into the armory while I was on patrol, took an ax that was half her size and damn near hacked my hand off with it when I startled her. Instead of reporting it or scolding her, I introduced myself and asked if she was unattached, which of course she was because she is my mate.

Good times.

"And you remember everything about your relationship?" Henrich watches her face, analyzes each tick of a muscle, every expression and movement. "You recall everything?"

Cora nods and whispers, "Everything right up until the day before my birthday."

My heart sinks.

I'm overjoyed she remembers our time together but I hate that she remembers how it ended.

So I reach out and cup her cheek, smooth my thumb over the porcelain velvet of her skin and when her eyes close briefly, she leans into my touch then presses a kiss to my palm.

Oh, my beautiful blue light.

Henrich places a hand on her knee, gives it a squeeze and continues. "What do you remember next? After your birthday?"

Cora's brow furrows and for a second I believe we may have hit a wall but she sighs. "It's strange, really. I've never had any other parents, kind of like I just came into existence. Each time I came back it was as an infant, an orphan, and I grew up in some sort of home that catered to that. I was even in a convent at one point."

“Fascinating." Henrich's eyes light. "Where was the convent?"

"France."

"And when?"

Cora's eyes find mine. "Last time. 1965."

Fuck.

Fuck I was so close!

I had been in France for almost sixty years before Andrej found me and if I had searched a little harder, tried a little harder, I could have found her then.

Which makes me wonder.

"Where were you prior to that, my love?"

"Do you want the general country or each city?"

I smile softly. "Just the country."

Cora reaches out and places her hands on my knees, a grounding gesture which almost confirms my suspicion on its own. "Chronologically then. Slovakia originally, then Russia, Germany, Italy, England, Norway, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, and France. This last time I started in the U.S.. New York, actually."

If I had any color to my skin it would have drained completely.