Chapter 24 Sophie
SOPHIE
Sophie stood in her kitchen with a cup of coffee, watching her children eat breakfast the next morning.
Momi carefully arranged her Cheerios into patterns on the table, while Sean wore more yogurt than he’d eaten, babbling happily to himself in a mixture of English and Thai that only Armita fully understood.
Feirn sat beside the toddler’s highchair, eating a bowl of oatmeal and chopped fruit mixed with protein powder with swift economy. Sophie wished she could make herself do the same; she needed fuel for the day ahead—but her stomach revolted at the thought.
“Mama, where you going?” Momi asked, her voice accusing. She had that perception some children seemed to possess. “You just got back from a trip.”
Sophie’s throat tightened. She’d rehearsed this moment during the sleepless night before, but the words were still hard to find. “Mama has to go help a friend. Just for a few days.”
Ginger, Sophie’s yellow lab, whined softly from her bed in the corner, sensing the tension.
Anubis, Connor’s graceful and well-trained Doberman, hopped up from his dog bed to nose her thigh, as if sensing her distress.
Then he paced, moving between the kitchen and the hallway leading to the front door as if already guarding the family in her absence.
Armita joined them, dressed in her usual plain black clothing and braiding her long hair.
She’d been with them since Momi was born, had seen Sophie through Jake’s death, through the dark months that ended brighter with Sean’s birth.
Her wise eyes took in the travel duffel in the hall, the way Sophie gazed at her children’s faces.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of them,” Armita said in Thai. “You do what you must do.”
Sophie came over and hugged her, murmuring thanks into Armita’s ear. “I will count the hours until I’m back.”
Her phone buzzed with a signal that Pierre had arrived; he’d insisted on driving them to the airport where an unregistered private jet awaited.
It was time. Sophie hugged the children fiercely, breathing in Sean’s baby shampoo scent, feeling Momi’s small arms tight around her neck as she kissed her goodbye. “Mama loves you more than all the stars in the sky,” she whispered, as she said in their nightly bedtime ritual.
“And all the fish in the sea,” Momi whispered back, completing their call and response.
Sophie’s heart squeezed painfully as she touched her daughter’s nose and gave a watery smile. “See you very soon. Be good for Armita.”
Both dogs walked Sophie and Feirn out to the car. In the driveway, Pierre waited beside a black SUV, its engine running.
“This is a mistake,” Pierre said without preamble as she approached. “Whatever debt you think you owe Connor—”
“You already said all you had to say last night. Do not strain our friendship with a repeat,” Sophie said.
“And, for the record, it’s not about debt.
At least, not entirely.” Sophie placed her bag in the trunk; Feirn did the same.
“He would come for me. Has come for me. If the situation were reversed.”
“That was before. You have children, responsibilities . . .”
“My mother is out there, Pierre.” She met his serious brown eyes; her own gaze was fierce. “And Connor could die. I won’t go into the compound, but I have to give him what support I can while trying to find Pim Wat.”
Pierre’s expression changed, softened; he pulled her into a quick embrace, surprising her.
Their bodies pressed close; she smelled sandalwood soap, and shut her eyes, feeling his breath on her neck, her ear. Sensing the longing coursing through him. She leaned into his arms, shocked by the answering desire he’d sparked, until he set her back and away abruptly.
“The plane is fueled and ready. I worked with a contact in Interpol to make sure your flight plan shows a charter to Los Angeles, then mechanical problems requiring an emergency landing in Bangkok.” He pressed a satellite phone into her hand.
“For emergencies only. Your most important numbers are already programmed in, including mine. Be careful when you use it—the CIA has ears everywhere.”
“Thank you.” Her body buzzed; her lips tingled as if they’d kissed.
The ride to the airport passed in silence with Pierre at the wheel. At the private terminal, a Gulfstream G650 waited on the tarmac, its white hull gleaming, sleek wings tilted up at the ends like a bird in flight. Feirn exited the back passenger seat as Pierre unlocked the trunk remotely.
They were alone for a moment—and once again Pierre surprised her, this time with a kiss. Quick and soft, just a promise, the light but intimate touch made Sophie want more—as his hug had.
“Come back to us,” he said. “Be safe.”
“I will.” She got out and slammed the door, her cheeks hot.
Feirn emerged from behind the car, holding their duffel bags. Both were the type that converted into backpacks. “Ready?” he asked.
Sophie nodded, not trusting her voice. As she climbed the jet’s stairs, she glanced back at Honolulu spreading up the mountains. On the other side of them, her children played, trusting she’d come home.
* * *
The jet’s interior was all cream leather and polished wood, but Sophie barely noticed the luxury as she and Feirn took seats across from each other. The weight of what they were doing settled between them like a third passenger.
As the plane lifted off, banking over Pearl Harbor, Feirn finally spoke. “You should rest. It’s fourteen hours to Bangkok, then another eight on horseback to the stronghold.”
“I can’t sleep right now.” Sophie watched the Pacific disappear beneath clouds. “Tell me about the ascendancy rules. What exactly will happen?”
Feirn was quiet for so long she thought he wouldn’t answer.
When he spoke, his voice was heavy, rough.
“The Yām Kh?mk?n way is old. Older than the kingdoms that rose and fell around us. When an anniversary or ascendance day comes around, any warrior can challenge for leadership. It is how the Master is always the strongest among his followers.”
“Do you have any sense how much support Connor has among the men?” Sophie leaned forward, propping her chin on her hand. “I tried to reach him at his private number, but it’s no longer in service or he’s blocked me.”
“I let my contact, Kamon, know that we’re on our way. Word will get to him. And to answer your question, there were many who were doubtful of Connor when he first ascended, though his gifts and strength were obvious.”
“He could do remarkable things for which there was no explanation.”
Feirn smiled. “Such things are not uncommon among the Masters. They are taught to manipulate energy, time and space.”
Sophie shook her head. “He told me he saw energy fields around everyone.”
“That is basic to the disciplines. I was honored he chose me as his personal . . .squire, I guess it would be in Western culture. He was beginning to teach me the deeper Ways when he sent me to you.”
“And I’m glad he did,” Sophie said, smiling at the earnest young man before her. “I see why he trusted you.”
Outside the window, dawn was breaking over the Pacific, painting the clouds in shades of rose and gold as they rose above them. “He never stopped loving you,” Feirn said, pulling her back to the present. “But I think that has to end for him to win.”
“I agree,” Sophie said. “It’s a gamble, me coming to support him. I hope I won’t be—in the way. Make him lose focus.”
“You will not,” Feirn said. “I will make sure of it.”
She smiled again, this time at his youth and simple faith.
* * *
Fourteen hours later, they landed in Bangkok as the sun set.
The city sprawled beneath them in a maze of lights and shadows.
No immigration, no customs—Pierre’s connections had ensured they ghosted through the airport like smoke.
A car waited, driven by a Yām Kh?mk?n contact.
Within an hour they were beyond the city limits, heading north into the darkness.
At a river village that had no name on any map, they transferred to a long-tail boat.
The pilot, an ancient woman with teeth stained red from betel nut, guided them up tributaries that grew narrower with each turn.
Sophie gripped the wooden sides as the handmade vessel skimmed over rapids.
The jungle pressed in on both sides, and the air was thick with moisture and the scent of decay.
“Nearly there,” Feirn shouted over the engine noise.
The boat scraped against a muddy bank where horses waited—small mountain ponies, sure-footed and patient. Sophie’s mount, a bay mare with intelligent eyes, picked her way through the jungle trails with confidence, as if she knew the route by heart.
They moved through the night, heading into foothills and navigating paths that switchbacked through dense forest. Somewhere in the canopy, monkeys called to each other, their cries echoing like shrieking birds.
The air grew cooler as they gained altitude. Sophie pulled her jacket closer, glad of its protection in the dank humidity.
Feirn had been on his satellite phone periodically; Sophie had only used hers twice, both times to briefly check in with Armita and the children, keeping the time under what it would take to trace the call.
“Have you heard anything about my mother?” she asked, as they paused to eat and rest the horses near a gurgling stream.
Feirn tilted his head, eyes going up and to the left as he considered his words. “They say a woman matching her description came through Bangkok a week ago; she was traveling with the Brotherhood.”
“So they are all here in Thailand.”
“Yes. Your mother had supporters among those loyal to the former Master. She seeks revenge on Connor. That is the rumor.”
“Nothing new there,” Sophie said. “The former Master was her lover. She was displaced when he died. She has been on the run ever since, and not happy about it.”
“But she always lands on her feet.” Feirn remounted his horse. “Like a bad cat.”
“A bad cat.” Sophie had to smile a little. “An evil one, actually. That is exactly what she is.”
They crested a final ridge. Feirn led them on a side path to a clearing large enough to see past the trees surrounding them.
Below them, a valley opened up, mist clinging to its depths like pale, filmy scarves.
Along one side, the Yām Kh?mk?n stronghold rose from the jungle.
Its ancient stone walls were topped with modern steel watchtowers; traditional wooden buildings mixed with barracks.
It was a fortress between worlds, between times.
“There,” Feirn pointed to a cleared area near the center. “The challenge ground is in the middle of the complex.”
A man with a shaved head dressed all in black approached Feirn from the jungle. Four others, heavily armed, accompanied him. Feirn slid off his horse to greet the man. They briefly embraced and exchanged an update in rapid Thai.
Sophie paid no attention. She had a pair of binoculars to her eyes, and from atop her horse, she could just make out figures moving, forming a circle in the courtyard. Drums began to beat, their rhythm carrying across the valley and up the slope, primal and demanding.
“We’re too late to stop it,” she said. She’d known that; still, the reality was terrifying. “When does it begin?”
“We could never have stopped it, and the challenge begins at dark.” Feirn returned to Sophie and mounted his horse. “We will watch from the surveillance tower. This is Kamon, my contact and liaison to the Yām Kh?mk?n.”
Sophie nodded to the man as he bowed. “We are honored you chose to support the Master,” he said in halting English.
“No, it is my honor,” Sophie returned in Thai. “Thank you for your help and invitation.”
“The Master knows you are here. He told me to tell you he is thankful you came. You can call briefly before the contest. I will give you the number,” Kamon said. “But keep it short. We do not want to alert any enemies to your location.”
Sophie nodded in acknowledgement. She and Feirn nudged their horses to follow Kamon and his men as he led them into the trees.
Sophie reflected on the passage of the past five years as the mare moved through deeper shadows under the jungle canopy; the closest she’d been to this place was that many years ago, when she came to Thailand following Pim Wat, who had stolen Momi as an infant.
She’d done her best to walk away from this world and build a safe, normal life for her children—but some part of her knew she might have to return and face the ghosts and demons of her past. “And now that time has come,” she whispered. “Please, God, may Connor win quickly.”