“Hello, my son.” Annani sounded in a good mood. “I have been expecting your call.”
“I guess you’ve heard already.”
“Of course. Amanda called me last night and told me everything she knew, which was not much. I was waiting for you to give me more details.”
“Since I haven’t interrogated Emmett yet, I don’t know much myself. We are trying to figure out whether he’s a different kind of immortal or just a confused one who doesn’t know who and what he is. He also might’ve invented the entire thing because he’s unhinged.”
“Do you think he could be one of Navuh’s warriors?” Annani asked.
“He says that he’s never heard of the Brotherhood. He also claims to belong to a group of newcomers who are not immortal, only long-lived, and whose females have fangs and venom like the males.”
“He might be connected to May and Jin.” His mother echoed his thoughts.
“Possibly. You said that none of the female gods had fangs or venom. Did your parents ever mention a different race of people back home whose females had them?”
“My parents never talked about the gods' origins, but Khiann’s father shared with him some information about their home planet. He said that the gods had a violent past that they wanted buried and forgotten, but he did not elaborate. Khiann and I assumed that the conflict had been between rival gods. It never even crossed our minds that there could have been another race of people with whom the gods fought. Perhaps one of the goddesses had dallied with someone from that other race, and her child or children carried their genes. It could be that they never manifested during the gods’ era, but somehow surfaced later.”
“He told Peter that his people were newcomers. If that’s true, they couldn’t be descendants of the gods.”
“Do you believe him?”
“If aliens landed on Earth, we would have known. But everything is possible.”
“Indeed. What else did he tell Peter about his people?”
“He said that his society is ruled by females because for every four males, only one female is born. Did Khiann’s father hint at anything of the sort?”
“No. I would have remembered that. From the way the gods governed themselves, their society was neither matriarchal nor patriarchal. Rulership was hereditary, and if not for Mortdh, I would have been the next ruler.”
“Your parents didn’t have a son. Your father had two daughters, and you were the only child he had with his official wife.”
“True. But even if I had a brother, I think my father would have chosen the one who was best suited to rule based on merit and not gender.”
“That sounds very politically correct, but the reality was that the gods were ruled by your father, a male. You said that he had an older brother who was the son of a concubine, and therefore second to Ahn, who was the son of the official wife. But they also had a sister. Was she the daughter of a concubine as well?”
“I do not know. I also do not know whether she was older or younger, and whether she was suitable for rulership. She was a doctor and a scientist, and I do not think she was interested in a leadership position. And the same was true for Ekin. He was a brilliant scientist, and he was very happy to leave governing to his younger brother so he could devote all of his time to inventing things and philandering.” Annani laughed. “Ekin was a character. He was much more fun than my father.”
“I guess that you took after your uncle.”
“Indeed. Well, not the philandering part, but I like to think of myself as fun.”
“You are certainly not boring. So neither your father nor Ekin mentioned another race of people.”
“They did not.” She chuckled. “Maybe Mr. Emmett Haderech is a great storyteller, and he made it up.”
“I hope so. If not for Mey and Jin, I would have favored that theory. But we can’t ignore the anomaly they represent, and the way it corresponds to Emmett’s story.”
“I want to speak with him.”
Of course she did. Kian hadn’t expected anything else. Annani was scheduled to arrive next Friday for the wedding, and he’d known that she would want to visit the new prisoner.
“Emmett is a powerful compeller. Peter was lucky that Kalugal was able to override his compulsion. You are probably more powerful than both of them, and you might be an immune, but I don’t want you anywhere near him without the protection of earplugs.”
“Then I shall put them in. Anything else?”
“Emmett will have to be chained up. He’s incredibly strong.”
“I see no problem with that. I would like you to prepare everything for my arrival Thursday evening.”
“You are scheduled to arrive together with your people next Friday. Do you want everyone to come a day earlier? Or just you and Alena?”
Annani laughed. "I meant this Thursday, not next week. I cannot wait so long to delve into this new mystery. But do not worry. Originally, I planned to stay for two weeks after the wedding. Instead, I will return home right after your birthday.”
He rolled his eyes. “It will be my pleasure to have you stay with us for as long as you wish, Mother. I assume that Alena will accompany you.”
“Of course. Naturally, my Odus will have to return to the sanctuary. They will be needed there to fly our people to Anchorage the following week, so I might need to borrow Okidu, but if you cannot spare him, I am sure Alena and I can manage.”
“If you both stay with Syssi and me, that won’t be a problem.”
“Are you inviting us to your home? Three weeks is a long time to have guests over.”
“We would love to have you both, but it’s up to you. Do you prefer to stay in your own house? I can have it prepared for you.”
“Whatever is easier. I do not wish to be a burden. How is Syssi doing?”
“Allegra is an active baby. She’s giving her mother a hard time.”
“That is excellent. It means that my newest granddaughter is strong. I cannot wait to meet her.”
“In due time, Mother. Syssi has five more weeks to go.”
“That is a blink of an eye, Kian. Are her parents coming for the birth of their grandchild?”
“They’d better. I spoke with Adam, and I made it crystal clear that I will not let them wiggle out of it this time. If need be, I’ll send Guardians to get them.”
Annani laughed. “Good for you, my son.”
7
Eleanor
As Eleanor’s phone buzzed with an incoming text message, she expected it to be from Kian asking yet another question about her experience with Emmett, but it was from Greggory.
I miss you. Can you meet me at my place in half an hour? I asked Phinas to give me the rest of the day off. I’m leaving right now.
Damn, she’d thought that he wouldn’t be back until evening, giving her more time to come up with a strategy. Instead, she was out of time and still not ready to face him.
Last night, she’d wiggled out of seeing him by claiming to be exhausted. Naturally, Greggory had been disappointed and couldn’t understand why she hadn’t come running to him the moment she’d returned to the village.