Chapter 23
New Therian Palace, Monday, January 7, 2013
After a long but productive day, Luca was alone in his chambers. He’d called Ash and been thrilled to discover that Eiko had completed the spell to withstand the sun.
She and Dani were bonding with the panthers but would be setting off soon. She’d asked for time to forge her own path and provide evidence that every race had good and bad people. As much as it pained him, he had to let her see this through.
He thought about humanity’s ingenuity in confronting a world without magic. He recalled moving to the United States to live among humans and the first close friend he’d made at the college. Dr. Jeremy Mills had learned about Therians from his father, who’d learned about them from his father, who had helped Queen Kittania find a valuable historical artifact she’d sought in the nineteen-twenties.
For reasons neither disclosed to Luca, she’d revealed her Therian nature, and the Mills men had kept that secret, passing along the knowledge only on their deathbeds. Jeremy’s father answered the call in the fifties when Luca needed a place to go.
Though he’d known the man for most of his life and had watched Jeremy change from an exuberant child to a well-respected geologist, Luca had last seen his friend five years ago at an annual convention. The tall black man was in his sixties, with salt and pepper hair and intelligent brown eyes that seemed to see everything through the glasses he always wore.
Luca chuckled. When they’d taught at the same college in the seventies, he’d learned that Jeremy’s glasses were only required for reading. He wore them all the time because he was usually reading. The other man had often aimed an inquisitive glance at Luca over the wire rims as they ate lunch or talked in the staff room.
Calculating the time difference, it was late afternoon in America. Thinking that it would be nice to hear from his old friend, Luca dialed the number. It rang twice before he answered.
“Hello?”
“Jeremy, it’s Luca. I was sitting here reminiscing about our days at the college and thought I’d call to see how you were. It’s good to hear your voice.”
“Luca! It’s been ages. How the hell have you been?”
He was grateful that he didn’t have to explain the hidden world. Jeremy was a trusted friend, and Luca felt like an idiot for not reaching out to him sooner. “It’s been a rough few months. I found my soulmate in a human woman. Nikoli went insane and slaughtered all of my siblings except Viktorija, plus hundreds of others.
“Nadya captured me, and my mate became a vampire to free me from her clutches. I had to make a temporary truce with the vampire queen to take Nikoli down. Now, I can’t be with the woman I love because, as the king, I have to put my people first. They aren’t ready to accept her yet.”
“I… Well, you know… Damn, Luca. That’s a lot to absorb all at once. I don’t know where to start.”
“Mostly what I need is a distraction. We can talk about me later. What’s been going on in your life?”
Jeremy coughed. “Well, I’m currently writing an article about the anomalous effects after an earthquake on the ocean floor off the coast of Chile. There are all sorts of strange readings in the area. The data doesn’t make sense. I ran the tests myself, and there are no fault lines to cause a seismic event of that magnitude mentioned in the available research. That alone is curious, but the sonar data indicates a created structure down there. Hundreds of miles from the coast.”
Luca grinned. Jeremy had a tendency to go on in detail about geological matters unless he was stopped, and the man’s obvious passion was an excellent distraction from his feelings. “I’ll bet you have those glasses perched on the tip of your nose, as usual.”
“You know it.” The other man laughed. “You never know when you might find a book.”
He laughed again. “How have you been, Jeremy?”
His tone changed. “Since Lucy died, I’ve been lonely. You’ll never believe what happened.”
“I’ll bite. You met someone new?”
Jeremy laughed. “I met someone new, all right, but not the way you’re thinking. You know there could never be anyone for me after Lucy. I’m an old man, anyway.”
That did nothing to alleviate Luca’s curiosity. “Out with it, Methuselah.”
“That’s rich, coming from someone who is three hundred-something. Now, do you want to hear my story or not?”
Luca chuckled. “I concede defeat. Tell me about this person you’ve met.”
“While I was in Chile researching the earthquake, I was walking back to my hotel one evening. I heard sounds of distress coming from a dumpster as I passed one of the alleys and thought a small animal was stuck inside. To my surprise, it was a little boy. Filthy as all get out and rail-thin. He was scavenging for something to eat. Broke my heart, I tell you.”
Luca smiled fondly. “You never could pass up a stray.”
“I couldn’t leave him there. The child was about ten. I got him a change of clothes, food, and a warm bed to sleep in. My Spanish is more than passable, but he was wary. Who wouldn’t be, with an old black man offering to take him home? But he agreed. Once I got him cleaned up and fed, he told me his name was Reynaldo. He’d run away from a foster home six months previously and lived on his own ever since.”
“What happened to him?” Luca asked, enjoying the distractions of the human world. He was glad he’d called his friend, who never failed to show him how good and honorable he was.
“He saw my library.” Jeremy laughed. “After the grime was gone and he ate, the boy turned out to be a genius. He’s got an eidetic memory, Luca! Do you know how rare that is?”
“I mean, where is he now?” Luca asked. “Did you take him to Social Services?”
“I sure did,” Jeremy said proudly. “And adopted him. I stayed in Chile long enough to arrange his citizenship. We’ve been home for a couple of months. He wanted an American name for his new life and chose Reid. He’s tested out of the high school courses and is attending classes at the university. Lucy and I tried to have kids and were never blessed. Then I practically trip over a wonderful child who just needed a chance.”
That warmed Luca’s heart. Having a kid in the house would keep Jeremy on his toes, and Luca was pleased that the boy would have a good life. Jeremy would see that he was well cared for and loved.
“I’m so happy for you both, Jeremy!” Luca exclaimed. “That’s great news. Lucy would be proud of you.”
“I hope so, man.” He sounded sober. “God, I miss her.”
Hearing the longing in his friend’s voice helped Luca get perspective on his situation. He and Ash would have extremely long lifespans, so this separation was the blink of an eye to them. Jeremy would miss his wife for the rest of his days.
“I know you do. She was a wonderful lady,” Luca agreed. Not wanting to upset Jeremy further, he changed the subject, but the life seemed to have gone out of the conversation.
“I have an evening class in twenty minutes, and it takes time to move these old bones around campus,” Jeremy said. “I’m glad you called, though. Keep in touch, will you?”
“I will. Thanks, Jeremy. It was great talking to you. Keep me posted on your research. I’d love to know what’s down there.” Luca hung up and sat back, feeling better. He had needed a little perspective, and he’d discovered that his friend had found happiness of his own.
He rose at a knock on the door. He sensed Viktorija on the other side and wondered why she didn’t barge in like she usually did.
“I know it’s you, Vik. Just come in.”
She looked worried as she stepped through the door, and he went on alert. “What happened?”
“The team I sent to investigate sightings of Jules and his pack missed their rendezvous,” she said. “They aren’t answering calls, and no one has heard anything from them.”
“Who was on the team?”
“Ivanna, Niletean, and four volunteer King’s Guards from the bears, tigers, moose, and lynxes.”
Luca swore. “That’s not a team anyone could easily overcome. Fuck!” He crossed the room to the door. “Come on, Vik. We need to tell the other kings and figure this out. Now.”