by L. J. Hawke
“Josie, well, she kind of quit. She sold me her guitar. I don’t see why she would need money. I gave her all I had.”
Sanur sat up straight. “I’ll buy it for twice what you paid.” What did his fierce woman need, and why didn’t she just ask him for funds?
“Cool, dude. She mentioned friends and a wedding.”
Sanur sat there, stunned. “I...thank you, that helps. I’ll transfer you to Lawan. She’ll send someone with money who will pick it up.”
“Naw, man, I’m in a coffee shop about five minutes from your office. Didn’t want to interrupt your day.”
“Come to my office. And...thank you.”
The transaction didn’t take long. The rocker’s hair stood on end, and he looked exhausted. “I’m sorry to lose Josie. We’ve been auditioning, but no one’s like her.”
“No, no one is like her,” said Sanur, shaking the man’s hand. “I’m sure we’ll come to see the show sometimes.”
“Anytime.”
Sanur checked, and found two open-ended plane tickets in the names of Kandace Walker and Corinne Jackson to Chiang Mai. Ah, his wife wanted to fly her friends to the wedding. Why not ask? Then he checked the trust account where she paid back the loan. The balance stood at exactly one percent left. He saw it, then. She wanted to be independent. To enter the marriage with no debt, as an equal partner.
He found the numbers to their cell phones in Supayalat’s report. He sent them a text for a group call, and got a buzz back nearly immediately from Corinne, a bit later for Kandace. They agreed to a time. He settled into work, and got a great deal done before the call.
Both women were prompt. Both were also in jeans and logo shirts. Kandace’s said “Climb” with a kitten climbing a wall. Corinne’s said “Girls Code” and had an anime warrior girl slaying a computer with a line of lightning code. Kandace’s red hair was pulled back, and Corinne’s black hair in a braid. “So you’re the mysterious Sanur. You are fine,” said Corinne, looking him up and down.
“I am pleased I am adequate.” Sanur tried not to blush.
Kandace laughed. “She means you’re hot. Handsome. Pleasing to the eye.” Sanur coughed, and sipped some tea.
Corinne waved a hand. “Let’s cut to the chase. I’ve got clients every which way.”
Kandace leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. “We want an upgrade. And a direct flight. And a wedding date.”
Sanur sighed. “I didn’t buy the ticket. Tania sold this to pay for your ticket.” He held up her guitar.
Corinne gasped. “She sold it? Why?”
“To pay for our tickets, doofus.” Kandace dropped her jaw. “She paid you off, didn’t she?”
“She did. She wanted to be equal in the company. She…,” Sanur discovered he had tears in his eyes.
Kandace nodded. “Ah. And how soon did you want to get married?”
“I will marry her at any time. We can marry tonight. I know she wants you there, so we can delay, but not by too much. There is...something I haven’t told her. A gift for us. I will raise them on my own if I must…,”
“Puppies! You got puppies!” Corinne gasped, and clutched her chest.
Kandace narrowed her eyes. “No, that’s not it, is it? You are apparently more than just rich.”
“I’m...much more.” Sanur bowed his head. “I must continue the line. Before, I went to a clinic, for...for my kind. Someone accepted. She did not inform me until very recently that things had...progressed well. She is much farther along than I had thought.”
Kandace’s voice was flat. “Does she want to keep the baby?”
Corinne looked shocked. “Baby? What baby?”
“No, she does not, and the pregnancy is dangerous. She has chosen to continue. After the birth, I will be a father. I want Corinne to be a mother, if she wants.”
Kandace stared. “She will want. Very much. And be terrified as hell. Her mama was a dishrag and her grandma a…,”
“A piece of work.” Corinne cut off what Kandace was going to say. “Baby? I want to see the baby! How far along is she?”
“Eight months. And she’s having twins.”
Both Kandace and Corinne jumped up. Corinne squealed, her hands over her mouth. They started talking to each other. “You get the registry going, and I’ll figure out how to get us over there,” said Kandace to Corinne.
Corinne nodded. “She’ll need two of everything.”
Sanur held up a black credit card. “Use this.”
“You have to marry her now. Those babies can come anytime.” Kandace stared at Sanur, face taut.
“But we won’t be there!” Corinne stomped her foot.
“Would you rather be at the wedding or help with the babies?” Kandace asked.
“Babies,” said Corinne. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“You will be there virtually,” promised Sanur.
“Give our girl back her money, and buy us a first class ticket to Chiang Mai,” Kandace ordered Sanur.
“Bali. The woman is in Bali. You could come for the second half of our honeymoon.” Sanur smiled. These were excellent heart-sisters.
“Give us that damn card number, and I’ll get it done,” said Kandace. Sanur rattled it off.
Corinne dried her tears. “She has Miss Amelia’s pearl earrings for something old. She needs something borrowed, something blue, and something new. For the wedding.”
“We have crowns. Then we return them to the vault. They will be borrowed, in a way,” said Sanur. “I will think about the other things.”
“Crowns? Who the hell are you?” asked Corrinne.
“I am a king of my people,” Sanur said, simply. “From an ancient line that no longer rules...openly.”
Corinne’s jaw dropped. Kandace nodded. “Tania…will be a queen?”
Sanur nodded. “She always has been.”
“Ohmigod.” Corinne smiled.
Kandace nodded once, hard. “Okay, I’ll handle it from this end. Four days? Five?”
“Five. I will send you the name of a hotel next to my friends’ hotel. They will not have room, and the other one has a bigger buffet and a swim-up bar.”
“I like.” Kandace grinned. “I’ll text you with the details.”
“See you at the wedding!” Corinne said. Sanur bowed, and they were gone.
When they landed in Chiang Mai, they took a tuk tuk to Sanur’s house. Everyone from work was there. The girls drew Tania away, laughing, exclaiming over her beautiful silver nails. They slid her into a golden silk top and a skirt that tied tight around her waist, heavily embroidered in gold, silver, and blue. They took her hair down and put it back up in little clips, and slipped silver sandals on her feet, exclaiming over her silvery pedicure. Tania looked in the mirror; she looked stunning, shiny-bright. Pleased, she had the girls take lots of pictures on their cell phones.
Supayalat came from Tania’s apartment. “Here are the earrings.” She handed over the box with Miss Amelia’s pearl earrings. Tania’s eyes misted. Miss Amelia would have been over the moon. “This necklace is made with carnelian square beads etched with silver, a new one based on an ancient design. It is my troth-gift.”
“I don’t know what a troth-gift is but thank you. It is beautiful.” Tania put it on, and it hung at the top of her golden silk top.
“It is my gift to the person my...family member chooses to marry.”
Tania smiled. She had almost said “king.” She inclined her head, and Supayalat did the same.
Achara stepped forward. “I bought this blue bracelet from a client.” The beads were simple glass, but beautiful.”
“Something blue!” Tania slid on the bracelet, and hugged Achara. “Thank you!”
Supayalat said, “The wedding crowns are borrowed from the vault.” She put her tablet on the side table. “Come, let’s get you ready!”
Tania went through the lines she needed to speak again and allowed herself to be fussed over. How did they know to get something old, borrowed, new, or blu
e? This wasn't an American ceremony, but an ancient one with its origins lost to the mists of time.
Once she had red and golden ribbons and flowers woven into her hair, Tania sat off to the side and ran through her lines again. The words were ancient, powerful. She had the gist of what most of them meant, after Htet and Sanur had carefully explained their meanings to her. She would be making vows much more complex than “To have and to hold from this day forward.” These were how kings and queens married, and the words were powerful.
As the girls put on similar dresses in silver and took turns working on each other's hair and makeup, the sharp scents of nail polish and hairspray in the air, Tania contemplated exactly what she would be promising. She would be a queen, making sure each one of her subjects had what they needed to find their own happiness. She had to rule, because her husband tended to travel the world. This was truly an equality. Her job was to be sure that she had what she needed to hold and protect her people, her territory, and the secrets they kept. Her husband's people had ruled vast territories, nations, and kept people fed, clothed, housed, and educated in times when all of the above was much harder to do.
Tania went over the words again, as Supayalat led her into a small area with incense wafting into the air, lit pillar candles in silver and white, rattan walls and mats. There was a single chair, and Tania sat in it, her arms on the carved wooden chair arms. This is a throne, she thought. Supayalat held up her tablet, and Corinne’s face came on it. Achara held up another tablet, and Tania could see Kandace waving to her. Tania waved back and tried not to cry. Corinne said, “We’re here for you!”
“This is incredible!” Tania said. “I wish you were here!”
“We are!” Kandace said. “Just on a screen.”
“What if I forget the words?” Tania asked.
“You won’t,” Kandace said.
“You look amazing, like a goddess,” Corinne said.
“You are amazing,” Kandace said.
“I love you guys!”
Htet came for her, in a golden silk shirt and loose tan pants. Tania stood and followed him. The ceremony was in a wide room open to the elements. There was a soft breeze that played with her hair. Sanur was in front, resplendent in a silk coat in white, copper, and gold that covered his arms, and went down to his knees. He wore dark blue silk pants and a golden shirt under the coat.
Tania came to stand next to him. There was a Buddhist monk on one side, and Htet on the other. There were two more monks on each side of the open door, one with incense, the other with bells. Supayalat put flower garlands around their necks.
Sanur began to speak the ancient words and took Tania's hand. Then, Supayalat put a red, gold, and silver crown on Sanur’s head. Then Tania spoke her words in a clear voice, and as she spoke, Supayalat put a red, gold, and silver crown on Tania’s head. It took a while for Tania to finish the words, then the monks prayed, rang the bells, and waved sweet-smelling incense.
Supayalat gave them stunning platinum rings in an ouroboros style, a snake eating its tail, to exchange, and matching snake armbands. The snakes all had golden eyes with ruby slits. Then Sanur turned Tania toward the gathering, and she held his hand at his side.
Then they had a ceremony about adopting the orphans. This one was held in Thai, and the Buddhist monks smiled widely as they offered up blessings and prayers. They formed a line in front of their new parents. Tania was able to follow along somewhat and copy Sanur’s words, and kissed each teenager on both cheeks. Tania made promises to look after all of them, help them reach adulthood and strength and health, to look after their education, to help them with their children and grandchildren. In return, the adoptees promised in Thai to show honor to their parents all the days of their lives, to preserve and increase the wealth of the family monetarily and with health, knowledge, and happiness, and to have proper behavior so that the family's name may never be besmirched.
Everyone had such huge smiles, and there was some laughter afterward as everyone got in line again for blessings and prayers, and more bells and incense. Then, Sanur handed the Buddhist monks bowls with envelopes in them and paper boxes with heavenly scents coming from them, obviously food. The monks bowed and left, taking their prayers, bells, incense, envelopes of money, and food with them.
Tania waved to her friends, and wiped tears from her eyes. Kandace and Corinne waved and cheered, then they were gone. “Don’t worry, you’ll see them soon,” Sanur whispered into her ear. “I bought them better tickets.” Tania laughed.
Sanur held up a hand. “I know that we all want to attend the party, but first we have the most boring of things to do, paperwork to sign. Each one of you now have lands, rights, and responsibilities.” There were sudden gasps, and the room went dead silent. “Don't worry,” said Sanur. “You have stewards who will help you with all of this, and I don't expect you to learn it all in one day.”
There were several obvious sighs of relief, and a wave of laughter. “We own farms of rice and mangos. We also have many herb gardens. As everyone knows, Thai food needs a lot of spices.” There was another ripple of laughter, because it was a child's job to pound those spices with a mortar and pestle into paste. “I think there are many more spices we can grow. The farmers have been working that land for many years. Listen carefully to what they say, I know that they are very open to making new profit.”
Aat was the first to speak. “Father, you greatly honor us, and we will be stewards of our lands. But, can we do what we're doing now? We can easily go to the universities and become better stewards for the family.”
“Of course, my son. Just understand, this land is not to be developed, except for the gardens and orchards. There are enough hotels, condos, and things for tourists to see and do. If you want to invest in that, you are going to have to learn a lot after university.” Everyone nodded gravely. “No, Thailand must also have its natural places. This is one of the most beautiful countries on the planet, and we have a responsibility to keep it that way.” Everyone nodded into the hushed silence. Htet brought out the massive stack of paperwork, showed the adoptees where to sign, then explained in detail exactly what they were signing.
Sanur drew Tania aside, drew her to a small table and chairs, and sat her down. The small side table groaned under the weight of the stack of paperwork. “Love, you don't have to sign this all tonight. If you want to, you can hire a lawyer to go over everything if you would like.”
Tania smiled at him, then gave him his first kiss of the night. They were both wearing metal crowns, so it was more like their lips touched, but it was a kiss, nonetheless. She smiled again, and said, “We can deal with the lawyers later. Just explain what it is I'm signing, but don't get into heavy detail. If I fall asleep before the reception, I'll be quite annoyed.”
Sanur laughed, and explained in a low voice in rapid English exactly what she was signing, where to sign it, and why. She found out about the trust funds for the use of family members only, the bank accounts in banks all over the world, the four nonprofits in addition to the housing and import/export businesses, and the farms.
There was one nonprofit for building solar, wind, human bicycle, and water power for people in third world countries using mostly recycled materials, except for the solar panels. Another fund paid for schools closer to children, so that they didn't have to walk five or ten kilometers or more to school, and backpacks and school supplies. And the foundation also built medical clinics in rural areas. Another nonprofit funded and found scholarships for children in third-world countries to go to medical school.
The last nonprofit brought the other three together, literally. The nonprofit built roads in rural areas connecting villages, schools, clinics, and people going to work. All along the route people could rent electric bicycles using their cell phones and return them farther on down the road, or back where they started. There were also electric tuk tuk rentals for people to carry goods, children, the sick and elderly, and whatever else they needed to transport with
out having to have an expensive truck. This business was accidentally making a profit, and was constantly expanding, buying more tuk tuks, and building roads with proper drainage. Villages grew as the foundation built roads, schools, and clinics.
The roads also had over- and underpasses for people and animals, and their narrow bicycle-path nature meant that they were cheaper to build and maintain. Unfortunately, they did have to guard the workers against warlords trying to demand money for going through their areas. More than one warlord was unseated by trying to prevent a road from being built by the people Supayalat hired.
The second set of documents were for an increasing number of properties all over the world where they were doing business. Tania was overjoyed to find the names of the property managers. She was determined to get in touch with them and be a backup when they couldn't get hold of Sanur.
The last stack of papers were about their shared lives and responsibilities that now included orphans adopted into the family. Sanur’s kind were expected to procreate, and they had already done so with the adoptions. She found the part where they were expected to have a child of his own kind, and Sanur smiled gently. “Before I met you, I met a woman. A surrogate. Eight months ago, I did this particular duty. It was...clinical. I did not know of her...success...until recently. She does not wish to raise my offspring. I know we haven't talked about having an infant …,”
Tania jumped up, and despite the heavy crown, she held him close. She whispered into his ear, with a low growl. “She better not change her damn mind. I may not know much about having shifter babies, and I had a horrible mama, but I know how to love, and to protect. I'll be the best damn mama this baby has ever seen.” She kissed his cheek and leaned back. Then she slugged his shoulder. “That's for not telling me we needed to buy a bassinet.”
He held up two fingers, and Tania’s jaw dropped. She carefully took off her crown. He took off his, terrified that she would hit him again. She carefully put the crown on top of the papers, swept him up in a hug, and kissed him deeply. Everyone around them clapped, even though they had no idea exactly what had set Tania off. Before she was able to stop her own mouth, Tania turned around, and said, “We're having two babies! And we only have one month to prepare!”
