Past Lives
Page 65
Then he shrunk and became really sad to look at, and said: 'And if that doesn't work, I can always play the pity card. They really love me, and wouldn't leave me all alone with just my beautiful wife to keep me company, now would they?'
Hermes was truly diverted by John's liveliness, the small god was really ready for this.
They took leave as brothers, and Hermes went through the teleport to his own lovely wife, and Hailee and John looked at each other, held hands, and then John spoke the spell for his own palace.
As they found themselves on the beautiful mosaic in his own palace, John was momentarily overcome by feeling. He had really never expected to see this place again, and certainly not in the favour of the other gods and with such incredible power.
There was no-one waiting for them, for they were not expected, and John asked Hailee: 'Do you remember Petros? No-one comes to my mind.'
She replied with a fond smile: 'I remember him, I shared love with him often, and I recommended him for this post.'
At John's surprised look, she elaborated: 'Hermes asked me first, but I didn't want it, I wanted to look for you, not be bound to your property. It was
useless to me without you. But I never found you, and all this time Hermes knew exactly where you were. I try not to think of it, or I'd become very angry.'
'Don't blame him too much, love, he and our sister saved my life, though the price was high. But I hardly ever remember, I'm just beyond happy to have you all to myself. Or will I have to share you with Petros?'
Hailee kissed him, and said: 'I never loved Petros, I just shared with him because you liked someone else better than me and I felt lonely. I shared a lot with Lykos, too, at that time. He was even more lonely. I'm glad he has found happiness, even though we'll miss him here.'
'I should have listened to you, but I was a different person then. I didn't even need her grotesque way of having sex, Lykos could have shown me a whole new world of lovemaking, but I was afraid to be rejected by a mere mortal.'
'But I was a mortal,' Hailee objected, 'you were never afraid to open your heart to me.'
Bowing his head in shame, John admitted: 'You would never have rejected me, you were raised to worship and obey me, it took me a year to teach you to think for yourself just a little bit.
You could give your opinion and even sound advice, but you could not have rejected me, I was too much your master. That is why I doubted you in England, I thought I had been mistaken about your personality.
I hoped you had gained independence when you talked back to me, argued with me, yelled at me even, about Ishtar, but when you fell at my feet in the cellar I was afraid I'd imagined it all. I'm sorry I underestimated you.'
'You didn't, John, you are right, I could not have rejected you. I loved you first as my master, and second as a man. But even if you hadn't returned my love, I would have kept on loving you, I had been raised with it.
My time in England without you, and seeing independent women, and making my own decisions, it did teach me a lot, though I was unhappy too.'
She changed the subject, this was no time to think of the past. 'Let's find Petros, I want to see the rest of the palace.'
'And I especially want to see my vineyard, but duties first. Let's go. I'm glad you found out you love me for who I am, I don't want worship from you anymore, I hope you'll always speak your mind. I may be the god, and I'll do my duties, but I don't like to be worshipped anymore, and I really need you to make it bearable.'
She kissed him to promise she would, then she took his hand and led him up the stairs, and into the palace.
Back in London, Lukas was inconsolable of course. John had become one of the pillars of his life in London, and to have him leave so abruptly was a real blow. He understood, he had faced the same dilemma, had decided otherwise, but Lukas wasn't an established god, he didn't have people depending on him, a palace, an estate.
And his life-partners were not from his homeland.
His life was here, with Paul and Melissa, and little Edward. John's home was in ancient Greece, with his worshippers, his vineyard, and of course, Hailee.
Three people were doing their very best to console him, and they were succeeding very well. Edward looked at his father very seriously, until Lukas just had to cuddle him, and then he suddenly though of Frances, and his own grief disappeared instantly.
'What is it, Lukas?' Melissa asked him, 'this is not about you, is it? You know there was nothing else John could do, we can visit whenever we want.'
'Frances,' was all that Lukas said.
'She'll expect him tomorrow,' Paul said, 'we'll have to do the work in the afternoon for once. We'll all be there when you tell her. But Lukas, she will be all right, she is very strong, and she has known John would settle from the first. Don't worry too much for her.
She will miss him, though, her buddy in the garden.'
Edward was smiling at Lukas now, and of course he could not resist that cute little face, he kissed the chubby cheeks and they talked for a while, without words.
Paul and Melissa sat together, looking at the scene before them, hearts melting. Seeing Lukas so intensely happy with his little boy, Melissa couldn't even remember being so afraid of having a child to care for.
Lukas had been totally right, they all shared the responsibility, and all their family and friends were eager to help out. And having friends with a child the same age was just such great fun.
Melissa was of two minds seeing John leave. On the one hand, she would miss him a lot, he fit into their lives so perfectly, and they had had great times together.
But somehow he was too good for what he had been here, his qualities
lost on manual labour, his chances of his own business in what he was really good at limited to what Frances was willing to grant him, some space in her greenhouse, a field on their estate.
But John was so much more, Melissa could picture him living a small life easily, but she felt much happier picturing him running a large vineyard, experimenting with new breeds of grape, introducing coffee to his ancient world, raising exotic trees and plants in a little corner close to a well.
But especially, she pictured him teaching his people how to live their own lives, to pray to the gods for help and support, but to solve most of their own problems by themselves. Hermes had done it, Aphrodite was working on it, and Melissa truly hoped John would be next.
'I wonder how he will like being called Dionysus again,' she said to her beloved men.
'He won't,' stated Paul.
'He'll be the best god ever, and the people will call him what he likes,'
Lukas said.
And that was totally true.
Index
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
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by Luca Calcinai
Document Outline
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Index