Chapter 29 Tula
TULA
The jet's door stood open, and Tula stood frozen in the aisle, her hand resting on her belly not because she felt the need to shield it from what was coming but because she needed the reassurance it provided.
In a world of uncertainty, her baby was a constant, the one thing everything else revolved around, the one thing everything was measured against.
"Come on," Tamira said from behind her. "This is a very nice plane, but I've had enough of flying to last me the rest of my very long life. Let's get out of here."
Tony stood next to Tula, looking just as frozen as she was, but he shook himself off first and applied gentle pressure to the small of her back, propelling her forward.
A group of people were waiting on the tarmac, but her gaze zeroed in on just one.
Gulan.
Except it wasn't Gulan anymore.
The woman standing there and bouncing on her toes with barely contained excitement looked like Gulan but also didn't. She wore jeans and a simple T-shirt. Her dark hair cascaded down her shoulders in gentle waves, and her green eyes shone with happiness and unshed tears.
She looked like a modern woman. A stunning modern woman. A free, American woman.
The Gulan she remembered had been pretty, but she'd always felt awkward in her big, strong body. This woman radiated confidence, she was comfortable in her own skin, and she knew her own worth.
She now looked like someone who owned her place in the world rather than someone who'd been given permission to occupy it.
What an amazing transformation.
Calling herself Wonder after the famous movie character was most fitting.
"That's Wonder," Tula whispered to Tony. "That's my sister."
He touched her lower back. "Go ahead. I know you want to run to her."
The touch unfroze her. Tula moved forward on legs that felt disconnected from her body, down the stairs, and across the tarmac.
She was running, and Wonder met her halfway.
They collided in a tangle of arms and tears. Tula buried her face in her sister's shoulder and sobbed, happy and bitter tears. Happy for finally reuniting with her sister, bitter for all the years they'd lost.
"I can't believe that you're actually here." Wonder's voice broke. "You're really here. You're alive. You're here."
They stood there for a long moment while people kept moving around them and talking in hushed voices so as not to interrupt their reunion. They were just holding each other, crying, and saying nothing because there were no words big enough for this moment.
Finally, Wonder pulled back and wiped her eyes. "Look at us. Why are we still crying?"
"I don't know," Tula croaked. "I'm pregnant and emotional. What's your excuse?"
"I'm not pregnant, although I wish I was, and I'm emotional." Wonder kept one arm around Tula's waist. "Come on. People are waiting for us to be done so I can properly introduce you."
"Yeah, I have some introducing to do as well." Tula turned to find that the others had already disembarked.
Tony, Tamira and Elias, Sarah, Liliat, Beulah, Rolenna, and Raviki were standing in an uncertain cluster a few feet behind her.
Yamanu and Esag had walked over to talk with the people Wonder had been waiting with.
"Ladies, gentlemen, this is my sister Wonder," Tula said, her voice surprisingly steady despite her still being shaky.
"It's so good to finally meet you all," Wonder said warmly. "I've heard so much about you from Tula during our calls. I feel like I know you already."
That was a slight exaggeration, but given the smiles, the ladies loved it.
Tula had rarely been given the communicator to talk to Wonder, and then only for a few seconds.
All they'd had time for was to say how much they loved and missed each other.
Tula might have mentioned the ladies by name once or twice, but she hadn't said enough for Wonder to claim that she knew them.
Her sister was so different now that it was almost disconcerting. She moved through the group, embracing each woman in turn, and saying something to each one that made them smile or tear up or both.
Gulan would never have been so forward. She would have mumbled some quiet hellos and never looked any of them in the eyes.
When she reached Tony, she paused, then extended her hand. "Thank you for taking care of my sister."
Tony shook her hand. "No need to thank me. Tula took care of me more than I took care of her. Your sister is a powerhouse."
That was nice of him to say.
"I believe that." Wonder grinned. "When we were girls, I was older, bigger, and stronger, and yet she always protected me."
"Whether you wanted it or not," Tula added.
"True." Wonder chuckled and turned to the group she'd arrived with.
"Let me introduce you to Areana's family. They are here for her, but since her plane hasn't arrived yet, we can use the opportunity to get to know each other."
So, those were Areana's sons?
Tula couldn't see much of a resemblance to the goddess, but she could definitely see the resemblance to Navuh.
They were both tall, lean, and dark-haired.
Both handsome, but not as intense as Navuh, and they didn't project malice.
The one with the stylish goatee and Areana's blue eyes had a mischievous smile, a kind of smirk, that made her think of the mythological Loki for some reason, and given that he was holding a baby boy in his arms, that had to be Kalugal.
The other one had to be Lokan. He had dark eyes like his father's, but there was warmth in them that Tula had never seen in Navuh's.
A stunning blonde stood next to Kalugal, and the one standing next to Lokan was Carol, but not the Carol Tula remembered from the harem.
This Carol was dressed in the latest fashion, wore four-inch heels, and oozed femininity and sex appeal.
"This is Kalugal," Wonder said. "And this is his wife, Jacki, and their son, Darius."
Kalugal smiled. "Welcome to the village, ladies and gentlemen. We are thrilled to have you."
"And this is Lokan," Wonder continued.
Lokan smiled. "It's good to see you all safe. I'm glad that nothing worked according to plan."
"Yeah, me too," Carol said. "Surprised to see me?"
"Not really," Tamira said. "Tula told us that you were not dead, and that your suicide had been staged.
We were all overjoyed to hear that, but we would love to hear the entire story and not just the highlights Tula gave us.
We had no idea that you were a spy. Well played, Carol.
" Tamira clapped her hands. "Very well played indeed. "
"Thank you." Carol patted her bouncy curls.
"I think so too, and I would love to tell you about my crazy adventure in excruciating detail when I come to visit you in the village.
Lokan and I are staying at the keep right now, which is the clan's facility in downtown Los Angeles where Areana and Navuh will be taken when they arrive, but I promise to come visit once you get settled in your new homes. "
"When are they arriving?" Beulah asked.
Lokan checked his watch. "Her plane should land in about ten minutes. We're waiting to see our mother, but the rest of you should get going."
"A van is waiting," Wonder said, pointing to a large vehicle parked next to the hangar.
Tula followed Wonder's gaze, and her breath hitched. "Onidu?"
He bowed in acknowledgment.
"Onidu!" Tula rushed toward the Odu, throwing her arms around him.
Onidu returned the embrace with a broad grin that transformed his almost human features into an expression that was indistinguishable from the real thing. "Lady Tula. I am so happy to see you. You have grown into a beautiful woman."
"You remember me?"
"Of course. I never forget a face."
"But I don't look the same."
Onidu smiled. "It is a simple calculation to transpose the face of a child onto the adult version of her."
"If you say so." She clapped him on the back as if he were a real man.
She thought of Okidu, who'd climbed that cliff to secure the rope that had saved them all.
He was on the other plane with Navuh and the Guardians, another level of security in case Navuh managed to do something.
The Odus were not susceptible to his type of mind manipulation.
The only way to affect them was to change their programming, and that could only be done by their current master.
After saying their goodbyes to Kalugal, Lokan, and their families with quick hugs and promises to see them soon, they got inside the van that Onidu was driving.
Wonder settled beside Tula in the back row, and Tony didn't dare to protest, choosing a seat next to Rolenna.
Before the door had even closed, they were already talking over each other.
"Tell me everything about the rescue—"
"Tell me about the village—"
"Is it really safe—"
They both stopped and laughed.
"You first," Wonder said.
"No, you. We never had time to talk at any length. I want to know everything, from the moment you decided to run away and why."
"That's such a long story." Wonder sighed, casting a quick glance at the back of Esag's head. Thankfully, he was sitting in the front. "But we have time now. All the time in the world."
Time. What a strange concept. In the harem, time had been something to endure, to survive, stretching into eternity not as a promise but as a curse.
Now it felt like a gift.
As Onidu pulled the van onto a road that wound through an unfamiliar California landscape, Tula and Wonder did their best to catch up on five thousand years.