Chapter 7
A far door opened in the big, decorated room and in came Kaley, Tanek, and Sojee. Kaley looked like she’d been crying. “It’s
perfect. It’s the most beautiful wedding I’ve ever seen. The cake, the decorations, it’s all . . .” Her eyes were so full
of tears she couldn’t speak.
Tanek gathered her in his arms, and he looked very pleased with himself.
Sojee also had his shoulders back and his chest out. “There’s more,” he said.
Behind Aradella and Mekos, the big doors opened and they stepped to the side. In came a man. He was older, handsome, and he
had on an unusual black suit that could only have come from Earth. He stopped and looked across the room at Tanek and Kaley,
who were still holding each other.
Tanek was facing the man and when he saw him, he had an expression that Mekos rarely saw. It was of shock, of relief—and especially
of love. It was the way Tanek looked at Mekos every time he pulled his son from one of his near-death escapades.
Tanek dropped his arms from Kaley, then took a step toward the man at the door. But after only one step, he began to soar.
He moved quickly across the big room, his feet touching only air.
Wide-eyed, Mekos looked at the older man by the door. His face was a smile of welcome—and also of love. He seemed to know about soaring as he opened his arms wide.
Tanek enveloped the man and went up and up with him. Had they not been in a room, they might have reached the clouds.
“I remember,” Mekos heard his father say. “I remember it all. Fishing. The truck. The jars. The birds. I remember everything.”
Aradella saw that Mekos had tears on his face and she moved closer to him. “Who is he?”
“Someone my father loves,” he said.
This is true love, Aradella thought. To be glad when someone you love is given happiness. In her life, she’d seen little but jealousy.
They were just coming down when a woman entered. She was older, slim, with gray hair that curled about her head. “And me?”
she asked softly.
Tanek turned to her, his face showing surprise, then pleasure. He put an arm around her waist and the three of them went upward.
Not as high as with just two but they were far off the floor. They came down slowly.
“I had no idea that could be done,” Aradella said. “Lifting two people at once.”
“Me neither!” Mekos said. “Let’s find out who they are.” He stepped forward, Aradella close beside him.
“You’ve grown into a fine young man,” the woman said, her hand on Tanek’s shoulder in a motherly way.
“He always was a big kid,” the man said proudly. “Remember when he drove my pickup? And the chickens landed on him? I thought
they were going to nest in his hair.”
The woman smiled. “I remember how he got the birds to pick the blackberries that were way in the back. They filled buckets
of them, then young Tanek helped me make jam.”
“I remember the jars,” Tanek said. “They were so pretty. I haven’t been able to remember any of that until now. I—”
“I’m Mekos,” he said loudly.
Tanek put his arm around his son’s shoulders. “This is my son.”
“Aren’t you a beautiful boy,” the woman said. “And who is this?”
“Princess Aradella,” Mekos said.
The woman’s eyes lit up. “A princess? Kaley must love that. Has she told you any of the thousands of stories that she knows?”
“She’s lived a few of them.” Tanek turned to look across the room at his wife. Kaley had her back to them as she was talking
to and hugging a younger man who wore the same kind of suit the other one did. “Cars!” he said. “I remember changing tires
and carber-something.”
“Carburetors,” the man said. “That’s Jeff, my son. You worked in the garage with him.”
“He’s Kaley’s father.” Tanek looked at Mekos and Aradella. “This is . . . What do I call you?”
“Frank and Rita,” the man said. “Or Grandpapá, as you used to. You can’t have too many grandparents.” Frank looked at Aradella.
“You probably have your own grandparents but—”
“No,” Aradella said. “None at all. I do have an aunt who’s a queen and her mother is a witch.”
Frank and Rita blinked a couple of times, then smiled. “Kaley must truly love this place! Let’s go tell her we’re here.”
The five of them walked across the room to where Kaley was talking to her father.
“So we blackmailed him,” Jeff was saying. “If they wanted the Solium that Dad and I’d grown, we were going with them. It was
the plan your mother and I made before Jobi took her away. I’m sorry we couldn’t tell you the truth for your whole life, but
Graceen made us promise. And—” He broke off when he saw Tanek.
“I can still drive a manual shift,” Tanek said, and they began hugging.
Jeff said, “When I yelled at you for not holding the flashlight right, you . . .”
“I had the birds grab fireflies and hold them so you could see. I think you said some bad words in shock, but I didn’t know it was strange.”
Smiling at the men laughing together, Kaley looked away, then froze when she saw her grandparents.
Aradella and Mekos stepped back as there was a flurry of hugs and tears, and proclamations of everyone missing everyone else.
Tanek pulled the young ones forward and introduced them to Jeff. “And this is Aradella. She’s a princess.”
“Are we allowed to hug a princess?” Rita asked.
“Yes.” To her joy, Aradella was swept up into everyone’s warm embrace.
“So when do we get to eat that cake?” Mekos asked and they all laughed.
Frank said, “You’re just like your father. He could eat his weight in beef and fish.”
“But not chicken,” Rita said. “Remember when I served fried chicken and Tanek threw up?”
“Oh yeah,” Jeff said. “Then he floated out to the coop and wouldn’t come out for hours. Mom had to promise him that there
would be no birds of any kind served ever again.”
“He hasn’t changed,” Kaley said. “He still gets sick if a bird is hurt. I guess I was a baby during all this.”
“You weren’t yet born,” Jeff said. “Tanek used to talk to you in some language that we couldn’t understand. He gave you a
white feather.”
Kaley gasped. “It’s in one of my books.”
“We brought all of them with us,” Rita said. “Jobi bellyached about the load, but we insisted.”
Through all this, Sojee had been standing near the far wall, but he stepped forward. He looked at Kaley. “You asked for a
wedding.”
Kaley stepped back. “I take it you’ve met Sojee.”
“Oh yes,” Frank said. “Right from the first.” He looked at Tanek. “We were told that somebody made a penguin suit for you.”
“A what?” Tanek asked.
“He means a tuxedo,” Kaley said. “Like they have on.” She looked down at herself. “I’m not dressed for this,” she said softly.
“I need—”
Sojee clapped her hard on the shoulder. “Think we forgot that? Reena did a little magic and the Beauty Guild put together
something they hope you’ll like. There’s a room over there.”
Kaley turned to Aradella. “Would you like to join me? You can be my maid of honor.”
Aradella’s eyes widened. “I would like—”
Mekos cut her off. “We have to go see the Third Crater. They have books there and Aradella really wants to see them.”
Sojee looked amused. “That’s the Fourth Crater. The Third has music and magic.”
Mekos was backing up, Aradella beside him. “That sounds good too. When should we be back here for the uh . . . ?” He wasn’t
sure what to call it.
“Four hours,” Sojee said. “I’ll send someone to find you.” He was giving Mekos a look that said he’d better be where he could
be found.
“Great! We’ll be here then.” He and Aradella ran out of the room.
Frank looked at Tanek. “I think your son is in love.”
Tanek grimaced. “She’s to marry a prince who is a snake of a human. Not even his dragon wants to live with him.”
“Dragon?” Frank whispered.
Kaley sighed. “It’s true. Aradella was to marry Tanek, but . . .” She shrugged. “I better get dressed.” She looked at Sojee.
“Please tell me you have hair and makeup people to help me.”
“They sent a lot of women.” Sojee nodded toward a door. “They’re waiting for you in there.”
Kaley ran from the room and closed the door behind her.
Frank, Rita, and Jeff were looking at Tanek.
“Young Aradella was to marry you but she’s being forced to marry someone else?” Rita asked. “How did that happen?”
Sojee put his hand on Rita’s back. “Why don’t you help Tanek dress while he explains everything? I have to see to my women.”
He left the room in a few long strides.
“Does he have multiple wives?” Rita asked.
Tanek smiled. “Worse. He’s head of security for this whole island full of women, and tomorrow the men will come here.”
“Men?” Frank asked. “Come from where?”
Tanek raised an eyebrow. “If you were on the ship with Kaley, where have you been all this time?”
Jeff grimaced. “Isolated. Some officer told us that we couldn’t see you or Kaley or we’d destroy many years of work, so we
were hidden away. It was beautiful and the food was good, but we were told hardly anything. It was maddening!”
Rita smiled. “I think you and Kaley were to be given time to reacquaint yourselves.” Her eyes sparkled. “It does seem to have
worked.”
Tanek laughed. “It did. Come on, I have a lot to tell you.”