Page 8

ANNANI

A nnani stood by the window of her village home, her hand on the glass that was warmed by the sunlight filtering through the leaves of a maple tree. She smoothed her other hand over the side of her dark purple gown, chosen specifically because it minimized the appearance of stains.

Spending time with her newest batch of grandchildren was a delight, but their little fingers were not always clean, and she did not want to worry about her clothing.

Later, her faithful Odus would do their best to wash the stains out, but if they failed, it would not be a big loss.

She was not attached to any garment, and the seamstress she employed to make her gowns would love to create new ones for her.

At the humming sound of an electric cart approaching, a smile bloomed on her face, and a few moments later, the golf cart she had been expecting stopped in front of her house. Kian got out, leaving Syssi and Allegra in the vehicle as he strode to her front door.

Her son rarely did anything at a leisurely pace, always moving with purpose and determination. She wished he could slow down and just savor life like she was doing, and maybe one day he would, when Allegra was all grown up and ready to take over for her daddy.

When the doorbell rang, Annani put her sunglasses on and walked over to greet her son.

"Mother." He bowed nearly in half to kiss her cheek. "Your chariot awaits."

Annani laughed. "I still remember those, and this lovely golf cart is much more comfortable to sit in, but not as impressive to look at."

Smiling, he offered her his arm. "We can make it a project and build a golf cart that looks like a chariot. I'm sure the kids would love it."

"Indeed." She leaned on him not because she needed to, but because it felt nice. "Any idea what Kalugal's surprise might be?"

"I suspect it's an artifact of some significance. What else could he have brought over from a dig in Egypt?"

As they reached the golf cart, Allegra's face lit up, her small arms reaching out to Annani. "Nana!"

"Hello, my little princess." Annani bent to receive the enthusiastic hug from her granddaughter. "And how are you this beautiful morning?"

"Look!" Allegra held up the porcelain figurine from her birthday cake, its delicate features gleaming in the sunlight. "She's so pretty."

"She is indeed." Annani examined the doll with appropriate solemnity. "But you must be very careful with her. Porcelain breaks easily if dropped."

Nodding with a serious expression on her sweet face, Allegra clutched the doll closer to her chest.

Kian offered his hand to help Annani settle into the back seat beside Allegra's car seat, and once everyone was situated, he set off along the winding paths of the village.

"Sparkles, see?" Allegra pointed to the doll's elaborate costume. "Also on shoes. And her hair is like mine." She patted her own blonde curls for emphasis.

"Does she have a name yet?" Annani asked.

Allegra frowned, thinking for a long moment before lifting the doll in front of Annani's face. "She is Princess Sparkle."

"Princess Sparkle is perfect," Annani declared, earning a beaming smile from her granddaughter.

As the cart wound through the village, Annani's thoughts turned to Kalugal's invitation and the hint of a special revelation.

"I keep trying to guess what Kalugal found in Egypt." Syssi echoed Annani's thoughts. "He mentioned artifacts, but that was it. The guy sure likes to build up suspense."

"The most memorable artifact in Kalugal's possession, as far as I am concerned, is that small figurine of Wonder—or Gulan as she was once called.

" Annani paused, memories of her childhood friend contrasting with the woman she had become as Wonder.

"When Jacki held it, she saw visions of what happened to the caravan Gulan was traveling with when the earthquake struck. "

"I remember," Kian said. "Jacki reacted strongly to it, and Kalugal was worried."

Annani adjusted the folds of her gown. "The strange thing is that Wonder herself never held the figurine, and whoever carved it could not possibly have known about the earthquake or who Wonder was at the time.

The only plausible explanation is that it was a figurine of someone who merely resembled Wonder.

But then it does not make sense that it held echoes of what happened to her. "

"Maybe the carver had a vision of her," Syssi suggested. "Perhaps he or she had seen Wonder tumbling into the chasm while trying to save people, and that person imparted the vision on the figurine."

"That is actually the explanation that makes the most sense," Annani agreed. "Some humans possess second sight."

Like the old woman who had told her that she would find Khiann again. At the time, Annani had neither believed nor disbelieved the prophecy entirely. It had given her a glimmer of hope, and now, five thousand years later, it had grown into more than a glimmer.

Why had it taken her so long to detangle what had actually happened?

No body had ever been found, so the only evidence had been the oral testimony given by Mortdh's warriors.

Their minds could have been manipulated by her father to implicate Mortdh and get rid of a powerful enemy.

It did not mean that her father had engineered Khiann's death or even had anything to do with it.

It only meant that he had capitalized on an opportunity.

Ahn might have even suspected that Khiann had fallen victim to the earthquake and was buried somewhere in the desert, but had waited until after the trial to tell her. He had no way of knowing that neither he nor the other gods would survive long enough to search for Khiann.

But that did not make much sense either.

If Ahn's plan had materialized and Mortdh had been entombed for the crime of murdering Khiann, once Khiann had been dug out of the desert and resurrected, the gods would have demanded that Mortdh be resurrected as well.

The punishment for attempted murder of a god was not the same as the punishment for actually killing another god.

"Mommy, Nana, look!" Allegra's voice cut through Annani's jumbled thoughts. She pointed excitedly at a butterfly dancing on the warm currents of air beside their slow-moving cart. "Butterfly is pretty!"

"Yes, sweetheart, it's beautiful." Syssi leaned to kiss the top of her daughter's head.

"I think it has something to do with our search for Khiann." Kian's words sent a jolt of hope through Annani's chest. "Kalugal wouldn't have cut his trip short just to attend our birthday celebration, and he wouldn't have specifically requested that Fenella join us along with Din."

"Ah, yes. Our archaeologist guest." Annani kept her voice steady despite the turmoil of emotions rioting inside of her.

"I am pleased to see how well he and Fenella have reconnected.

As always, watching the Fates' matchmaking is fascinating.

They make the most unlikely pairing, and yet they are perfect. "

"Maybe they work so well because they are not perfect," Syssi said. "Those two were separated for fifty years, but I suppose that they had some growing up to do before they were ready to commit to each other."

"Time means little when souls recognize each other," Annani said softly. Her thoughts drifted again to Khiann and her infatuation with him that had blossomed into love. "True connections transcend the constraints of time and circumstance."

Kian slowed the cart as they passed the bridge leading to Kalugal's section, and as he stopped in front of the small house with a distinctive red door, Annani observed it with interest.

The door was new, another small act of rebellion on Kalugal's part, his refusal to conform to the village's Mediterranean vibe.

"We've arrived," Kian announced.

"Let me out!" Allegra demanded, already struggling against the straps of her car seat.

"Patience, munchkin." Syssi unhooked the safety belts, lifting her daughter out of the seat. "Remember what we talked about? Inside voices and gentle hands."

Allegra nodded solemnly, though Annani caught the mischievous gleam in her eye that suggested these rules might be forgotten once she was reunited with her little playmates.

She was a bossy little girl, a natural leader, and the other children had accepted her authority without a fight.

Anticipating the lovely time she was going to spend with her grandchildren, Annani experienced an expectant joy.

Still, beneath it all, there was the persistent melancholy that she had learned to hide so well that even she sometimes forgot it was there.

It was the longing for the one who should have been by her side through all these millennia, raising their children and grandchildren together and watching their clan grow.

But the Fates had had different plans, and her children had been fathered by humans who had embodied some of Khiann's qualities but never all of them.

There was no one like Khiann, her one and only love, and hopefully, they would one day be reunited.

Kian rang the doorbell, and moments later, the door swung open to reveal Kalugal.

"Clan Mother," he greeted her with a respectful bow. "Kian, Syssi, and the little princess. Welcome to my home."

Annani had told Kalugal a thousand times to call her by her name, but he refused, either calling her Clan Mother or Aunt Annani when Darius was present.

"Uncle Kal!" Allegra wriggled in her mother's arms. "Look. Princess Sparkle. She wants to meet Darius!"

Kalugal's expression warmed as he bent to the child's level. "What a splendid idea. Darius is playing with Evie, so you can show them your doll at the same time.”

Allegra nodded eagerly.

As Syssi followed Kalugal inside with Allegra, Kian offered his arm once more to Annani. "Shall we, Mother?"

They stepped into the house, following the sounds of conversation and children's laughter down into Kalugal's impressive underground domain. The main living area was already filled with family members.

Annani's gaze drifted to the children. Allegra was showing her doll to Darius, and Evie was watching with interest, patiently waiting her turn to be introduced to Princess Sparkle.

A pang of sadness touched Annani's heart again as she watched Kalugal's beautiful little boy.

Areana would miss her grandchild growing up because she was a willing prisoner of her mate, restricted to the lavish harem that Navuh had put her in.

Annani's and Areana's own sons had offered to free her, but Areana had refused.

For better or worse, Navuh was her truelove mate, and she would never leave him, not even to see her grandchild grow.

Darius's first words, his first steps, the gradual unfolding of personality and talent—they could never be reclaimed once passed. These precious moments would be lost forever to her.