She knew they weren't really her parents. She had a new family now, and eventually they’d come back for her. She couldn't say when, but for the rest...of her life she never doubted that it was true.***When Amina was 20 they came again. It was another Valentine's Day, and it was also her wedding night. Her parents were dead by then (a freak accident, a ferry collision), but in the meantime she'd met Jim, picking him from one of her classes at the university. He sat next to her for an entire. Nicola seemed not to share my enthusiasm. Rather she approached the device warily suspecting that it could be a source of discomfort, pain, or – from our earlier conversation – of what to her was perverse sexual degradation. In that, at least, given her views at that point, she was correct.I had not considered a name for the mechanism and so was unable to introduce it with a grandiose flourish. Instead I just led her towards it. In essence it has the form of a chair in which the subject is. "Um, I didn't know that," I managed to get out."I know, Paul. It is something that your mom and dad don't know about, we became that way while we were living overseas, but I think you'll find it to be nice and freeing without clothes. And, you're fifteen now, I'm sure you won't mind seeing my girls that way." Mom, geez," Marcie groaned but her older sister just laughed."Well, you guys, I certainly remember going through puberty myself and it would have been great fun to have a boy around to. "I didn't really cheat, I mean... I don't know, I never intended to, it was almost like I wasn't there."Thunder clouds formed on her mother's brow and lightning flashed in her eyes. "Donna Elizabeth Truman Bellows, don't you ever say anything like that to Steve! It's the same thing as saying you'll do it again when conditions are right. You damn well do know why you did it and you'd better be able to tell him why and why it will never happen again!"Her mother's face became implacable, "You need.