Chapter 6 Kian
KIAN
As Kian opened the door to his house, he was greeted by the smell of food, the sounds of children playing, and the familiar chaos of a Friday night family gathering.
It should have been soothing, a time to unwind after a busy workweek, but instead, it felt like crossing from one dimension to another, and the whiplash was disorienting.
His mother seemed to be handling the transition better, drawing her regal composure around her to hide the turmoil that Navuh's revelation had caused.
"Nana!" Allegra squealed, running toward her grandmother at full speed, with Syssi rushing behind her.
"Sweetheart!" Annani scooped his daughter into her arms with ease. "Did you miss me?"
Instead of answering, Allegra planted a wet kiss on Annani's cheek and started to wiggle out of her arms. "Come see my fortress." She took Annani's hand as soon as her feet touched the ground.
"I have been summoned," Annani said apologetically.
The moment his mother disappeared into the playroom with Allegra, Syssi's smile slid off her face. "What happened? Your mother looks distraught."
"She is, but I should let her tell the family about Navuh's latest bombshell." He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. "I'm so incredibly grateful for having you in my life. I don't think I would survive if anything happened to you."
Syssi leaned away to look at his face, worry creasing her forehead. "What's brought that on?"
"I was just thinking on the way here how brave and resilient my mother is. I don't know how she managed to keep going after losing Khiann. I would have fallen apart and let the world burn. I wouldn't have cared about anything or anyone."
"That's nonsense." Syssi pulled out of his arms. "You might have been inconsolable for a while, but eventually, the sense of duty would have pushed you back into action.
You are not the type to give up, no matter how bad things get.
" She took his hand. "But let's not talk about upsetting things.
It's Friday night, my love, which means family time.
We should enjoy it and leave all the problems for later. "
"Indeed." He let her lead him to the playroom, where Allegra was showing Annani her fortress, while Evie was trying to add blocks to the structure and toppling whole sections.
His mother showed the appropriate admiration for the building skills of her granddaughters, and then she and Syssi followed him back to the living room to join the other adults.
His sisters and their mates were sitting on the various couches and armchairs, with E.T. squeezed between Orion and Alena and chewing on a teething toy.
Kalugal, Jacki, and Darius were at the keep, having dinner with Areana, Lokan, and Carol, which was unfortunate. Kalugal and Lokan could have contributed insight into their father's psyche and perhaps offered advice, but on the other hand, the discussion would be easier without them around.
Their relationship with Navuh was complicated, and even though both detested him, they might get offended upon hearing what Kian and the rest of the family had to say about the monster. Not having to worry about that was liberating.
Okidu entered from the kitchen and bowed to Syssi. "Dinner is ready, mistress. When should I start serving?"
"As soon as we are seated around the table." She turned toward the family and waved. "You heard Okidu. Dinner is ready. Let's get everyone seated."
Regrettably, Andrew and his family usually didn't join them for these family dinners because they were spending Friday evenings with Nathalie's family.
Syssi never complained about her brother choosing to spend more time with his wife's family, but Kian knew she was hurt.
She'd even invited Eva and Bhathian so they all could be together, but it had been obvious that Nathalie's parents didn't feel comfortable joining the Clan Mother's inner circle.
Orion and Alena also occasionally spent Friday evenings with Toven and the rest of Orion's family. But they still came to most of Syssi's dinners. Andrew could have done the same.
The conversation around the table was a little stilted as everyone waited for Annani to tell them what had happened at the keep earlier, but she was in no rush.
When they were done with their meal, she made her announcement. "Navuh made me an offer." She paused and the room went silent, including the children.
"He claims that Khiann is not dead but in stasis and that he knows where he is buried."
Syssi drew in a breath. "Your suspicions were correct."
"Perhaps." Annani took a sip of wine, projecting calm and composure even though she most likely felt anything but.
"Or perhaps Navuh is simply using my own theories against me, having heard them from Areana.
She is adamant that she has not told him about my suspicions, but I do not know if I believe her.
Areana is in a difficult position, having to choose between me and Navuh, but I know that in the end, she will always choose him.
For better or worse, he is her truelove mate. "
Every adult in the room knew about Annani's theory that the witnesses who had testified to Khiann's death might have been compelled to lie, used by Ahn to incriminate Mortdh and get him entombed, and that Khiann had not met his end by Mortdh's sword but had been swallowed by the same earthquake that had claimed Gulan, and just like her, he had been in stasis all along.
"I shared these thoughts with Areana and never explicitly told her to keep them from Navuh, because there was no need. She had to keep our communication secret. But now Navuh knows, so there is no reason for her to keep anything from him."
Orion nodded. "So, he might be using this information to extort concessions from you."
"Or he's telling the truth," Alena said. "It makes sense that if Khiann is not dead and Navuh knows about it, he also knows where to find him."
Kian frowned. "What makes you think that?"
Alena shrugged. "I'm not saying that he knows, but if anyone does, it would be Navuh. Mortdh might have told him."
"How would Mortdh know?" Amanda asked. "If he didn't kill Khiann, how would he know the location of the earth fissure that swallowed Khiann?"
"Because he intended to kill him," Alena said. "But he was too late, and he knew he was too late because he had seen the remains of the caravan Khiann had been leading."
"You weren't there." Amanda poured herself more wine. "That's all pure speculation."
"It just makes sense." Alena didn't look perturbed by Amanda's doubts. "But you are right, and I might be completely off."
"What does he want in exchange?" Orion asked.
"His freedom." Kian reached for the bottle of wine and refilled his and Syssi's glasses. Annani's was still full. "He wants us to set him free to resume his operations on his island."
Orion tilted his head. "Are you considering it?"
"No. We can't release him."
"Why not?" Amanda put her wine glass down a little too forcefully. "We could catch him again and snatch him off his island. Or we could just obliterate it with him on it."
"He will take Areana with him," Annani said. "We would be back to square one."
Amanda folded her arms over her chest. "We need to think it through. There must be a way to force Navuh to reveal where Khiann is in exchange for something else. If we let him understand that freedom is not on the table, and he believes that we are serious, he will compromise."
All eyes turned to Annani.
She sat very still, very composed, but Kian could see the war waging behind her eyes. Duty versus desire. The good of many versus the happiness of one.
"I cannot free Navuh," she said. "Not even for Khiann.
Not even for my own heart. I will not have countless lives on my conscience.
Fates know that I already live with enough guilt to fill the ocean.
Navuh was not wrong in accusing me of starting the chain of events that led to the demise of the gods and the loss of countless immortal and human lives.
If I had not spurned Mortdh, if I had been willing to sacrifice myself, the fate of the world would have been different.
But I was selfish, and I chose my own happiness over the good of the many. I will not do that again."
"We will find another way," Amanda said. "We will find Khiann without giving Navuh what he wants." She turned to Kian. "Any ideas how?"
"For now, only one. Tomorrow, the shaman and his mate are coming over for lunch. Elias had visions when he touched Navuh, so there's a chance he saw something that might help us."
"That's a stretch," Dalhu said. "What if he doesn't have anything useful for us?"
Kian reached for Syssi's hand under the table. "Then Syssi can try to summon another vision. I know that the Fates didn't bring Navuh to us on a silver platter only for us to release him. They have a plan."
Later that night, after all the guests had departed and Allegra had been wrestled into pajamas and deposited in her crib with her favorite stuffed bear, Kian returned to the living room and looked at the shuttered windows.
The strict security measures were necessary to keep the village hidden from satellites and aircraft that might reveal their location to humans and to the Brotherhood. It was a reminder of all they were forced to sacrifice to be safe because of Navuh and his ilk.
He heard Syssi's soft footsteps and then her arm wrapped around his middle. "Talk to me."
"I hate this," he said quietly. "I hate that he has this power over my mother."
"I know."
"She's waited five thousand years, Syssi. Five thousand years of grief and loneliness and missing the other half of her soul. And now there's hope, but I still can't give her what she needs."
"We'll find a way. What you said about the Fates was so true. We never expected to bag Navuh when we set out to rescue Tula, and look what the Fates did. We have Areana and all the ladies, and we have captured our archnemesis."
"He should tell us where Khiann is in exchange for us saving his worthless life," Kian said.
"He should." Syssi chuckled. "But the bastard knows that we can't kill him because of Areana.
If your mother were more like her father, she would have played the game better.
She would have threatened Navuh's life or even Areana's and made damn sure that they believed her.
Areana would have suffered for a little while, thinking that her sister was cruel and didn't care for her, but that would have been a small sacrifice in the grand scheme of things. "