by I. T. Lucas
Kian hadn’t answered his question, but Richard wasn’t going to press for an answer just yet.
“How are you feeling?” Kalugal asked. “Any changes?”
Casting a sidelong glance at Kian, Richard shook his head. Did the guy even know that Kalugal had induced him? With Edna witnessing the so-called ceremony, it couldn’t have remained a secret. Besides, he wasn’t transitioning anyway, so Kian had nothing to be upset about.
He let out a breath. “Regrettably, I feel as healthy and as energetic as usual.”
“Don’t worry.” Kalugal clapped him on the back. “It will come. David didn’t transition right after I induced him either.”
“Did it take him four days?”
“No, just one. But from what I understand, every Dormant reacts differently.”
“The problem is that I’m apparently not a Dormant.”
“You are.” Kalugal moved his hand to Richard’s shoulder. “I have a nose for those things.” He tapped the side of said nose.
Kian chuckled. “You found one Dormant, and you think that you are a Dormant detector.”
Pursing his lips, Kalugal arched a brow. “How many Dormants have you found?”
“None, but I don’t claim to have a nose for it.”
“Well, I do. I like Richard, and I’m not the only immortal who does.” He smiled and clapped Richard on the back again. “I choose to have faith.”
As they reached the Eastern Slope, Kian pulled out his phone. “The architect sent me the conceptual plans digitally.” He handed the phone to Kalugal. “What do you think?”
Kalugal spent several minutes looking over the drawings and enlarging portions of the plan to examine various details. “The Hobbit Bar is a genius idea. So far, it’s what I like most about the plan.”
“What don’t you like?” Kian took his phone back.
“Not enough houses. Even after we move into our section and vacate the homes in phase two, there aren’t enough of them to house all of Sari’s people. What if she decides to move here?”
“She won’t.” Kian put the phone in his back pocket. “We’ve talked after the funeral, and she said that unless a very compelling reason to move came up, she wasn’t going to do that.”
As the two kept going on about Sari and David and why they should or shouldn’t move into the village, Richard found a flat rock to sit on. The sun had burned off the morning overcast, and he was starting to sweat in his puffer coat.
He unzipped it, but that wasn’t enough to cool him, and he shrugged it off.
“What do you think, Richard?” Kalugal asked.
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t paying attention. What was the question?”
Kalugal frowned. “Your face looks gray. Are you sure that you’re feeling alright?”
“I’m fine. I was just dressed too warmly for the weather.”
His boss didn’t look convinced. “The question was whether to build a school and a restaurant here, or would it be better to demolish some of the houses in phase one to make room for them there?”
Wiping the sweat off his forehead, Richard glanced at the ragged slope and then back at the village behind them. “If the school and the restaurant are to serve everyone living in the village, they should be in the center, which means taking down houses, or remodeling them to serve a new purpose. I know that it seems wasteful, but it’s better to do things right from the start, even if it costs more, than regret it later.”
The victorious smile on Kalugal’s face indicated that this was his position on the subject, while Kian’s opinion differed.
Way to go antagonizing the person holding his future in his hands. If Kian decided to kick Richard out of the village, Kalugal was not going to stop him.
Thankfully, Kian didn’t seem overly upset about him taking his cousin’s side. “Then it’s settled. You’ve convinced me.”
As a wave of relief washed over Richard, it made him feel faint, and he closed his eyes for a moment.
“Richard? Are you okay?” Kian’s voice sounded gruffer than usual.
He wanted to say that he was fine, but for some reason, his mouth refused to move, and his eyes refused to open.
64
Stella
Julian? Stella double-checked the caller ID.
Why would he be calling her? Maybe he wanted to know whether Richard was having any transition symptoms.
Regrettably, the answer was no.
“Hi, Julian,” she answered the call. “Are you calling about Richard?”
“How did you know?”
“I guessed that you wanted to find out whether he’s experiencing any symptoms. Unfortunately, he’s not.”
“He is now. Kalugal and Kian brought him to the clinic. He passed out on the Eastern Slope.”
Stella’s heart lodged in her throat. “Do you mean that he fainted? He didn’t lose consciousness? Is he awake?”
“He is, and he wants to see you.”
Closing her eyes, Stella offered a silent thank you to the Fates. “Do I need to bring him anything? Pajamas? Slippers?”
Did Richard even own pajamas?
They hadn’t lived together long enough for her to find out. So far, he’d slept in the nude every night.
“I put him in a hospital johnny, so there is no need for clothing. But if you’re feeling optimistic, you can bring him slippers.”
“What do you mean by optimistic?”
“Most likely, Richard is going to slip into a coma soon, and he might either stay unconscious until he’s done with stage one of his transition, or he might wake up periodically. In either case, he’s going to be hooked up to an IV and a catheter, and he won’t be getting out of bed.”
Damn. Richard could lose consciousness at any moment, and she was wasting her time talking on the phone with Julian.
“I’m heading out this moment.”
“I’ll tell Richard that you’re on your way.”
Stella walked out the door without bothering to change out of her house shoes or take her purse.
She could always come back later and collect whatever she or Richard needed. Right now, she had to get to the clinic before he passed out again.
It had been years since Stella had last jogged anywhere other than on the treadmill, and certainly not while wearing slippers that kept falling off her feet, but she ran now, and when she’d gotten tired of the damn house shoes slowing her down, she took them off and ran the rest of the way barefoot.
Thankfully, Richard was still awake when she burst into his room.
“Did you run?”
“I did.” She dropped the slippers on the floor and rushed to wrap her arms around him. “You’re transitioning.” The tears started flowing down her cheeks. “You are actually transitioning.”
“Unbelievable, right?” He smoothed his hand over her back. “Either that or I’m suffering from heatstroke.”
She leaned back. “Julian said that you are transitioning.”
“He thinks that I am, but he is not sure. There is no way to know until the cut test is done.”
“That’s absurd. They must know by now what’s happening while a Dormant is transitioning.”
“Apparently, they don’t.” Richard sighed and closed his eyes. “It feels like heatstroke.”
“Stay with me, Richard.” She shook his shoulder. “Open your eyes.”
“Actually, he shouldn’t force it.” Julian walked into the room. “His body needs to shut down nonessential functions and redirect its energy to the transition process.”
“But not all Dormants lose consciousness.”
“True. But if Richard feels like he needs to drift off, don’t interfere with it.”
“I’m still here,” Richard murmured. “But it’s not going to last. Come, give me a kiss.”
She glanced at Julian. “Is it okay?”
“Of course. I’ll leave you two alone.”
As the doctor pivoted on his heel and walked out, Stella closed the door behind
him.
“Come here.” Richard patted the spot next to him.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Stella climbed on the bed and wrapped her arm around Richard’s waist.
Eyes still closed, he turned his head toward her and puckered his lips.
Was he just pretending?
Did it matter?
She kissed him softly, and he responded in kind, dragging his tongue over her lips and then dipping it into her mouth.
Holding him to her, she felt when his body started to go lax, and a moment later he sighed, kissed her lips one last time, and slumped in her arms.
“Richard?”
There was no answer, but there was a smile on his face, and he was still breathing.
Gently sliding back, she got out of bed and opened the door. “Julian? Can you come in here? I think that Richard just lost consciousness.”
When the doctor emerged from his office, she went back to stand by Richard’s side and took his limp hand in hers.
It took Julian a couple of seconds to confirm her suspicions. “I need to hook him up to a catheter. I’ll call you when I’m done.”
“Okay.”
She shuffled out of Richard’s room and took a seat in the waiting area.
For a long moment, Stella stared at the wall, unsure how she was supposed to feel.
Why wasn’t she ecstatic?
Richard was finally transitioning, and all she could feel was suffocating fear.
After the many inductions Richard had gone through, she hadn’t really believed that he would transition, and therefore it hadn’t occurred to her to worry about him surviving the process.
Richard was thirty-four, which was still young, but on the older side as far as possible transition complications. Sari’s mate was only four years older than him, and he’d almost died during his.
Taking a shuddering breath, Stella looked at the phone in her hand as if it could provide her with answers.
Usually, she could find instructions on the internet for how to solve nearly every problem. But there would be no instructions for how to help her mate stay alive during his transition, or how to cope with the fear and the stress choking the life out of her.
Except, she could use the phone to get a different kind of help.
Going to her favorite’s list, she chose the first number on top.
“Hi, Mom. What’s up?”
“Richard is transitioning. Can you come over to the clinic? I’m freaking out.”
Vlad was at work, but she was sure his boss would let him leave once he heard why Vlad needed to go.
“I’m heading out right now, but it will take me at least half an hour to get there. I’ll call Wendy. She’s in the café, right next to you.”
65
Syssi
“We need to put up heaters.” Syssi zipped up her hoodie. “It’s going to get even colder in the evening, and Ronja and Lisa are human. They will be uncomfortable.”
It was a shame that even her new and enlarged dining room wasn’t big enough for the big family dinner tonight. It was either move it outside to the backyard or invite fewer people, but since Syssi wanted the whole family to meet David’s mother and sister, she’d chosen the first option.
Hopefully it wouldn’t rain, or the whole evening would be ruined. Usually, the weather was not a problem in Southern California, but lately it had been getting cold at night, and the forecasters often got it wrong.
Standing behind her, Kian wrapped her in his arms and pulled her against his chest. “Better?” He kissed her cheek.
“You are always so warm.” She sighed. “Can you ask Amanda to send Onidu to get the heaters from the café?”
“Okidu can do that. There is still plenty of time until he has to leave. Sari said that they need to return the rental car first. They wouldn’t be ready before three-thirty.”
“I wish that Sari and David could stay with us a little longer.” Syssi sighed. “It would also have been nice if Ronja and Lisa could already stay for good and not leave after dinner.”
“Sari needs to get back home, and Ronja needs more time to pack and put her affairs in order. I asked Shai to take care of enrolling Lisa in Zelda Mayer’s school, so that’s one less thing she needs to worry about.”
“Good thinking. Ingrid is also readying a house for them, so that should ease Ronja’s mind as well.” Syssi tilted her head back to look at Kian. “Should we take them to see it?”
“Why not? Kalugal is going to compel Lisa and Ronja’s compliance to secrecy about the village and everything concerning immortals, so I don’t mind showing them whatever they want to see.”
“Having Kalugal here is a game-changer. We can ease up the rules about bringing humans to the village.”
“I don’t feel comfortable doing that even with his compulsion. Having our communities closed off to humans has kept us safe.”
“I know. I’m not talking about hiring a bunch of gardeners and house cleaners, although that would make many people happy. I’m talking about the occasional potential Dormant, or the families of transitioned Dormants.”
“I’ll think about it.” Kian lowered his arms and took her hand. “It’s too cold for you out here. Let’s get inside.”
“Okay.”
He led her to the couch and draped a throw blanket over her. “Would you like some hot tea?”
“Usually I would say coffee, but tea sounds lovely right now.”
“I’ll ask Okidu to make it before he goes to pick up the heaters.”
A few moments later, Kian returned with two teacups and joined her on the couch. “I might be thick, but I think that I got the hint this time. Would you like to invite your parents to move to the village?”
Smiling, Syssi put her teacup down on the coffee table and took Kian’s hand. “It hadn’t occurred to me at all, but it’s very sweet of you to offer.”
She could invite them to Kian’s birthday, but the question was whether they would come. They had their humanitarian work, and their friends, and they were not ready to slow down yet. Which was good. Syssi was glad that they had a full life, but sometimes she wished it included spending more time with her and Andrew.
“They will probably want to visit when the baby arrives. Or even before that. I’m sure that your mother would want to be at your side when you deliver our daughter.”
Syssi chuckled. “I’m not sure at all. If you haven’t noticed, my parents aren’t all that interested in my or Andrew’s life.”
“Count it as a blessing. I wish my mother was a little less interested in mine.”
“Your mother is great. She cares about you and your sisters and about Dalhu and me and now David.”
“She can be overbearing at times, and she interferes whenever it suits her.”
“She does not.”
“Yes, she does.”
“Give me an example.”
“When Amanda wanted to be with Dalhu, my mother came and forced the issue.”
“She was right to do that. You were being an ass.”
“True, but you can’t say that she doesn’t interfere because she does.”
“For a very good reason. If not for her, it would have taken much longer to soften you up toward Dalhu, and you would have made Amanda miserable for nothing.”
“Again, I can’t argue with that. But my mother should have let things resolve on their own even if it took longer.”
Letting out a breath, Syssi leaned back. “I don’t want to argue about that, or about anything else. I just want to relax.”
“You are right.” Kian lifted her feet and put them in his lap. “I’ll make it up to you.” He took her shoes off and dropped them on the floor.
Syssi wiggled her toes. “A foot massage is always welcome.”
When he started rubbing her arches, she closed her eyes and sighed. “Since Sari and David are going to spend the night in our guest room, we should plan to do something fun with them after dinner.”
“Like
what?”
“We can watch a movie or play a board game. And tomorrow, we can have a festive breakfast with them before they leave. Do you think we can persuade them to stay for lunch?”
“Sari wants to leave early so she can start her workday on Monday.”
“She doesn’t have to.” Syssi pouted. “She wants to.”
“No, she really has to. I can’t run my side of the business and hers, and there is only so much that her assistants can do on their own. I think this is the longest vacation she’s ever taken.”
“Poor Sari.” Syssi sighed. “That wasn’t a vacation.”
“True. She needs to go home to rest from all the excitement.”
“Should we invite the family for breakfast?”
Kian groaned. “Please, don’t. I want to have what’s left of the weekend with my wife. We will have a nice private meal with Sari and David, and if you want, we can accompany them to the airstrip.”
“I would like that. I would also like to visit them in Scotland again. We should make plans for another family vacation there.”
He chuckled. “The Highlands are miserable in the winter. If you think it’s cold here, you are not going to enjoy the freezing temperatures over there.”
“The summer then?”
“That sounds better.”
66
Sari
“This place is gorgeous.” Ronja stopped and took a deep breath. “And the air is so fresh.”
“It’s beautiful here.” David wrapped his arm around Sari’s waist. “But Sari’s castle in Scotland is unique.”
“Come on, Mom.” Lisa threaded her arm through Ronja’s. “You can admire the view while walking. Kian and Syssi are waiting for us with dinner.”
After spending nearly two weeks with the family, Sari was used to the dynamic between mother and daughter. Oftentimes, Lisa appeared like the grownup, pulling Ronja down from her flights of fancy and supplying a dose of reality. Their interactions reminded Sari of her own mother’s relationship with Alena.
