Chapter 13
Are You Possessed or Just Happy to See Us?
Two days later, Carol was bent over a ledger in Caspian's study, trying to make sense of the estate's grain storage schedules, when Sterling cleared his throat.
"Your Grace, you have visitors."
Carol looked up from the numbers that had been making her eyes cross. "Visitors?"
"Yes, Your Grace. Your brother and sister have arrived unannounced. Viscount Jasper Holloway and Lady Beatrice Holloway."
The names triggered a flood of memories. Jasper. Bea. Caroline's siblings.
Carol's heart leapt. "They're here?"
"Indeed. They're currently in the main parlor. Shall I—"
Carol was already on her feet, abandoning the ledger without a second thought. "Yes! Please—actually, I know where it is."
She hurried out of the study, Mochi trotting at her heels, and practically ran through the halls to the main parlor.
When she burst through the doors, she found two people standing stiffly in the center of the room, looking around with barely concealed concern.
Caroline's memories immediately supplied their identities, along with a flood of associated feelings and experiences.
Jasper. Her older brother. And Beatrice—Bea. Her older sister.
Jasper was tall and broad-shouldered, with warm brown hair that curled slightly at the ends and kind hazel eyes that—according to the memories—had always been gentle with Caroline even when she didn't deserve it.
At twenty-six, he cut an impressive figure in his travel clothes, though Carol could see the tension in his shoulders.
The memories painted him as protective, warm, prone to dramatic gestures when his emotions ran high.
Bea stood beside him, more petite but with a no-nonsense presence that commanded attention.
Her chestnut hair was pulled back in a practical braid, and her grey eyes—eyes that the memories insisted missed nothing—were scanning the room with clear assessment.
Twenty-four years old. The sensible one.
The one who'd lectured Caroline for years about her obsession with Percival.
Caroline had loved these two people. Genuinely loved them.
And Carol felt an unexpected wave of affection for them, borrowed from those memories but settling into something real.
Both of them turned when Carol entered.
"Caroline!" Jasper's face flooded with relief. "Thank god, you're—"
He stopped mid-sentence, staring at her.
Bea's eyes had gone wide.
"What?" Carol asked, suddenly self-conscious. "Do I have something on my face?"
"Who are you?" Bea asked slowly. "And what have you done with my sister?"
Carol blinked. "What? Bea, it's me."
"Is it though?" Jasper stepped forward, studying her face. "Because our sister has been writing us desperate letters for two months begging to come home, and you just... smiled when you saw us. Genuinely smiled. Caroline hasn't genuinely smiled since before the wedding."
"I—" Carol stopped. Right. Original Caroline had been miserable. "Maybe I've matured a bit?"
"Matured," Bea repeated flatly. "In a few days? Because your last letter arrived a week ago and it was three pages of misery."
"A few days can change a lot," Carol said weakly.
Jasper's eyes narrowed. Then he stepped forward suddenly and grabbed her hand.
"Jasper, what are you—"
"Checking for enchantments," he said seriously, his hand warming slightly as he channeled his fire magic. "Compulsions. Mind control."
"I'm not mind controlled!"
"That's exactly what someone who's mind controlled would say," Jasper countered.
"I'm not—" Carol pulled her hand back. "I'm fine. I promise. I'm just... trying to make the best of my situation."
Both siblings exchanged glances.
"Make the best of it," Bea said. "You. The woman who spent years obsessed with Earl Sinclair and threw an absolute fit when you realized you'd trapped the wrong man. You're suddenly 'making the best of it.'"
"Yes," Carol said firmly. "Because what else am I going to do? I'm married. I'm pregnant. I can either be miserable for the rest of my life, or I can try to build something here."
Jasper and Bea stared at her.
Then Jasper turned to Bea. "She's definitely been enchanted."
"Or possessed," Bea agreed.
"I am NOT—" Carol stopped as Mochi meowed loudly at her feet. She picked up the cub. "Look, I know this is a change from my letters, but I'm really fine. Better than fine, actually."
"You have a Dreamweaver cub," Jasper said, noticing Mochi for the first time.
"His name is Mochi."
"Mochi?" Jasper repeated. "What does that mean?"
"It's an exotic dessert I had once," Carol explained, using the story she'd already told Caspian. "A traveling merchant passed through the capital selling them. Sticky rice confection on the outside, ice cream on the inside. Different flavors. It was sweet and soft, and it seemed to fit."
"You named a future apex predator after a dessert you had once," Jasper said slowly.
"Because he's sweet and soft," Carol said, scratching Mochi's ears. The cub purred contentedly.
Bea walked closer, studying Carol with those sharp grey eyes that had always been able to see through any deception.
"You're different," she said finally. "Not just happier. You're... fundamentally different. The way you're standing. The way you're talking. Even the way you're looking at us."
Carol felt a flash of panic. She'd been so focused on changing Original Caroline's behavior with the staff and Caspian that she hadn't considered how her family would react.
"I decided to change," Carol said carefully. "To be better. To stop being angry and miserable all the time."
"Why?" Jasper asked, and there was genuine confusion in his voice. "Caroline, you've been writing us desperate letters. Begging us to get you out of this marriage. Talking about how much you hate it here. And now you're... holding a baby monster and talking about making the best of things?"
"I realized being miserable wasn't helping anyone," Carol said. "Especially not me."
Bea stepped even closer, her eyes searching Carol's face. "What happened?"
"Nothing happened. I just—" Carol paused. "I woke up one morning and decided I was tired of being angry. Tired of hating my life. So I decided to try something different."
"Try what, exactly?" Jasper asked.
"Being kind to people. Apologizing for my behavior. Getting to know my husband instead of treating him like the enemy." Carol shifted Mochi in her arms. "Making an effort."
"Your husband," Bea said slowly. "The Butcher of the North. The man you've been calling a monster in your letters."
"He's not a monster," Carol said, and felt her cheeks warming. "He's actually very kind. And patient. And he let me keep Mochi even though Dreamweavers are dangerous."
Jasper and Bea exchanged another loaded glance.
"She's blushing," Bea observed.
"I noticed," Jasper said.
"I am not blushing," Carol protested, knowing full well her face was probably bright red.
"You're definitely blushing," Bea said, a small smile starting to form. "About your husband."
"Where is the Duke?" Jasper asked, looking around as if expecting Caspian to appear. "We should probably apologize for showing up unannounced. That was rude of us."
"He's not here," Carol said. "There was a monster incursion at the border. He left two days ago with his troops."
"He left you here alone?" Jasper's protective instincts immediately activated. "After only two months of marriage?"
"He left most of the guard here for protection," Carol said. "And it's his duty. He defends the northern border. I can't exactly ask him not to do his job."
"The Caroline we know would have demanded exactly that," Bea pointed out.
"Well, I'm trying to be more reasonable," Carol said. "Can we sit? I can have tea brought in. Are you hungry? How long are you staying?"
Both siblings just stared at her again.
"What?" Carol asked.
"You offered us tea," Jasper said faintly. "And asked if we were hungry."
"You're being... hospitable," Bea added, sounding equally stunned.
"I'm being a good host!"
"You've never been a good host in your life," Jasper said. "You once told Aunt Claire that if she didn't like the temperature in your rooms, she could leave."
Carol winced. "That was... not my finest moment."
"Not your finest—Caroline, you threw a tantrum at your own engagement announcement because they served the wrong wine," Bea said.
"I'm working on being better," Carol insisted. "Now, are you staying? Please stay. I'd love to have you here."
"We were planning to stay a few days," Jasper said slowly. "To make sure you were... alright. We've been worried."
"I'm more than alright," Carol said, smiling. "I'm actually happy. Or at least, I'm trying to be."
Edmund appeared at the door. "Your Grace, shall I have rooms prepared for your guests?"
"Yes, please," Carol said. "The blue suite for Jasper and the rose suite for Bea, if they're available."
"Of course, Your Grace. And shall I arrange for tea?"
"Yes, thank you, Edmund."
After Edmund left, Bea sat down slowly on one of the settees. "You know the staff's names."
"Of course I do."
"You didn't a few weeks ago," Bea pointed out. "Your letters complained about 'that annoying butler' and 'the incompetent maids.'"
Carol felt a flush of shame for Original Caroline's behavior. "I was being unfair. The staff here are wonderful. I was just... taking my unhappiness out on everyone around me."
Jasper sat down as well, still watching Carol with concerned suspicion. "This is the strangest conversation I've ever had with you."
"Is it so hard to believe I might have grown up a bit?" Carol asked, settling into a chair across from them with Mochi in her lap.
"Yes," both siblings said in unison.
Carol laughed despite herself. "Fair enough. I know I was awful before. But I'm trying to change. To be the person I should have been all along."
Bea's expression softened slightly. "I want to believe you."
"Then believe me," Carol said. "I'm not enchanted or possessed or mind-controlled. I'm just... different. Better, I hope."
"Better," Bea repeated thoughtfully. Then she leaned forward. "Tell me about your husband."