"It would be my pleasure."

"Very well then. Go for some air, and I will rest."

I hefted myself to my feet without losing my breath and left the study. The scent of his pipe smoke clung to me.

I made my way through the house to the stairwell and up, padding back to my room. Unable to understand why Carter put me here of all places, if the men I sought weren't close, I was trying hard to put the pieces of the puzzle together of what was going on here, like where the real Josie went and what happened if she suddenly came back.

Grateful to find Nell not present in my room, I stretched back and unfastened the ties on my bodice then dug around to get to the corset. Once I had loosened the straps, I drew my first deep breath in an hour.

"Oh, thank god!" I muttered. Part of my headache eased immediately. My ribs felt bruised, and I stretched over my head to make sure nothing had fallen asleep.

My phone buzzed. I pulled it out.

Language skills kick in yet? Carter had written.

Pleased to hear from him, I perched on the edge of my bed to respond. Yep. What's the other one? A history chip? Oh, BTW - what happened to the real Josie Jackson who belongs here?

He took his time with his response. I crossed to a pitcher of water and thick glass, pouring myself a drink.

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The sheep outside the window caught my eye again. They were perfectly huggable, though I didn't think I would be able to bend over to pet them let alone hug them in the silly gown. Sipping water, I sat near the window. John had sheep, cattle, horses, goats, pigs and chickens. Having lived my entire life in crowded southern California, I viewed the rolling hills and animals that belonged to him with barely contained excitement. Surely during my time here, I'd have a chance to explore the prairies, meet every animal, and learn more about this era than possible in history classes!

At the buzz of my phone, I looked down.

Great! The other is an empathic memory chip. Said the text from Carter.

Do I feel in color or something? I wrote to him, perplexed.

His response was a smiley face, followed by a more detailed explanation.

It's hard to explain, but you'll know when it kicks in. Your logic chip will process the historical records and feed that to the chip that enhances your emotional quotient. It'll help you interpret a course of action based on historically enhanced intuition.




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