A Thousand Years of Hope Ch 8-1

Tani was grateful when his feet sunk into the soft texture of the Turkish carpet in the living room of his house. Hera dropped into the closest armchair. Resting her head back, her eyes closed as she fought back the effects of his abrupt teleport.

“Why did we run from there?” she asked after a moment.

“Call Tom and let him know not to go to Artri House,” Tani said.

Hera reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She dialed Tom and caught him in the parking lot outside the fortress.

“You’d better park your car. We’re in Babu’s house,” Hera said. “Yes, Babu is awake and functioning. Something unusual happened at the vineyard. He’ll have to tell you.”

She ended the call and sat up, placing the book she held on the coffee table. She let out a heavy sigh.

“We, si, I’m in shock,” Hera said, studying Tani. “Artri House is not ordinary. The people living there are not like other Ekho-blessed. Dante is too powerful. The firepower is held deep inside him, I couldn’t sense his fire. The only other person who makes me feel the same blankness is you. The clothes you have on are not usual, Babu. Where did you get them?”

Tani looked at the clothes he wore.

The red tunic was made of the finest fabric in the Ekho Realm. The threads were woven to withstand the ravages of a flame. It was a sincere gift from Kinon. The god of fire who kept Artri House locked away from Cale.

It made Tani wonder how he had managed to get out of Artri House. The house had allowed his teleport for Dante or for Nora, he didn’t know.

“I found them on the bed upstairs after my shower,” Tani said, unwilling to reveal that Kinon, the god of fire, a man he thought his enemy had gifted him the fine clothes.

“Are the Arturos good?” Hera asked. “Is Artri House a mystery we have to solve?”

“Are you nervous?” Tani asked, smiling at Hera.

“Maybe,” Hera said, staring at the little book on the coffee table. “I liked Nora. She was kind. She’s very observant and knew I had a daughter just by looking at the charm on my bracelet. I—”

“You admire her,” Tani said.

“She’s a strong woman,” Hera said. “Dante Arturo doesn’t look easy to bring up.”

Tani chuckled and shook his head.

Hera narrowed her gaze on him. She looked at him as though she could see his secret.

Tani wondered if she could see the joy filling him inside at the flicker of warmth left by the small part of Dante’s soul lingering inside him. The scent of jasmine still filled his nose. The knowledge that Dante would come looking for him to ask for his reward made him want to laugh.

Tani bit his bottom lip to stop his smile and turned away from Hera.

“Who is Dante to you?” she asked.

“Someone who needed a vineyard cleansed,” Tani said, clearing his throat. He started out of the living room, but Hera stopped him, placing her hand on his right arm.

“Babu,” Hera said, her tone soft, vulnerable.

Tani looked at her then.

“I overheard Cale, and Uncle Amu, discussing a trial and a mortal who hurts you. That the trial will end and you will…,” she trailed off. “He’s not the one, is he? You won’t disappear, will you? I’m afraid if you leave, Deniz and I might not get to see you again.”

“Why won’t you see me?” Tani asked, gently pinching her cheek. “I’m here with you, Deniz, Tom, and Uncle Amu. Where am I going?”

“To the Ekho Realm,” Hera said, her eyes filling with the sheen of tears.

Seeing her tears hurt.

She represented the part of the mortal world he wanted to keep. Tani wanted to see Hera find true love of her own. He wanted to see Deniz get through school, graduate, find her passion, and pursue it. He wanted to help Hera plan her daughter’s wedding in the future. See Tom get married, and hold his children. There was so much.

Where was he going to find the strength to leave them all if he failed with Dante?

Swallowing down the lump of tears lodged in his throat, Tani smiled at Hera.

“Silly child,” he said now. “Why would I leave you and Deniz? Stop worrying and go freshen up, get some rest. It’s been a long morning for all of us. Let’s have dinner tonight as a family. What do you think?”

“Will you cook?” Hera asked, giving him a smile that did not quite reach her eyes.

“Of course,” Tani said. “I’ll even get Cale to help and make him bring us wine. We’ll make Deniz’s favorite.”

“Meatballs again?” Hera sighed. “You and Cale are too much. You spoil Deniz.”

“She’s too cute not to spoil,” Tani said, leaning in to kiss her soft cheek. “Stop worrying, Hera. All is well. I’m going upstairs to change out of these clothes. They feel foreign to me.”

“Okay,” Hera nodded and let go of Tani’s right arm.

Tani left the living room and headed upstairs to his private room. His heart felt heavy. The unshed tears in Hera’s eyes weighed on him. The most he could do about her fear was gift her terrific memories. He had no way of knowing what would happen after Dante’s thirty-sixth birthday.

If he failed to save Dante and failed to win Dante’s love…a love he had no right to have now with Viola in the picture.

Would he have enough power to find a way to stay in the mortal realm for the family he had made here? Would he be lucid enough to fight the Septum?

Letting out a soft sigh, Tani decided to push these worries aside. He was comfortable in a t-shirt and jeans or sweats, so he would change and take a quick nap. Afterward, he would head downstairs and cook for his family.

He would dwell on Dante and the secrets of Artri House another day.

****

That evening, Tani was busy skewering marinated beef pieces for kebabs when Cale strolled in carrying a bottle of red wine.

“We’re cooking,” Cale said, stopping at the kitchen entrance to take in the scents. “Meatballs for young Deniz, kebabs for everyone else, and side dishes. You’re busy, little lordling.”

“You’ve been gone,” Tani said, adding pieces of beef to the skewer he held. He spared Cale a glance, noting the new gray suit. “Did you stop by the tailor?”

“Your idiot beloved singed my new suit,” Cale said, placing the bottle on the kitchen table.

Cale removed his suit jacket and arranged it neatly on the back of a chair. He then folded the sleeves of his white shirt to his elbows and went to wash his hands at the sink. He wiped his hands on a hand cloth at the sink and unhooked a black apron from a hook on the wall.

Tani hid a smile at the caption on the front.

It read, ‘I make a mean deviled egg’. The apron was Hera’s gift to Cale.

“Is the singed suit the reason why you left me with Dante?” Tani asked, watching Cale pick up the bowl filled with clean tomatoes and peeled onions. “I was unconscious, Cale. You should have brought me here.”

“Dante said you promised to stay at Artri. He looked desperate to keep you,” Cale said, finding a knife. He started slicing and dicing, popping a slice of tomato into his mouth in between. “You know I don’t mess around with warlocks of fire. Their firepower is pure. I teleported you outside his bewitched manor, and he took over. I am surprised to see you walking and making family dinner.”

“Me too,” Tani said, pausing to study the gold cuffs he had not bothered hiding. He was home with his family. They all knew he wore the cuffs. No need to hide them. “Dante took the pain from me, and burned it away using a conduit spell.”

“Whoa,” Cale let out a whistle. “Artri House has a powerful gene pool to manage a spell that can heal you.”

Tani thought about Kinon and Artri House’s whispers. He started to mention Kinon being the Septum member who gifted Dante with fire. Something inside him stopped his words. He found himself biting his bottom lip and keeping the secret.

‘Please don’t tell yet,’ Artri whispered in his head.

Tani stood still, staring at the skewer he held.

How could he still hear the manor? Why was the manor begging to keep a secret from Cale?

“Tani?”

He looked up to find Cale watching him.

“What?” Tani asked.

“You’ve been staring at the skewer for a minute and a half. Is something wrong with the beef?” Cale asked.

“No,” Tani said, shaking his head.

Tani adjusted the cubes of meat on the skewer and lined it up with the six skewers he had already made. He pushed away thoughts of Artri House and concentrated on what he was cooking.

“Were you in the Ekho Realm?” Tani asked.

“Yes, they wanted to know why I took the cuffs off,” Cale said, finishing with the tomatoes and onions. He gathered a bunch of lettuce and went to rinse them at the sink. “Your father asked about you. He invited you to stay at the Citadel when your trial ends.”

Tani dropped the skewer he had picked up and braced his hands on the kitchen counter. He closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, and let it out. He took in air again, and let it out slowly. There was no way to escape the wave of anger building inside him when he thought about his parents.

His anger bordered on unquenchable rage. There were times he worried it would consume him.

His parents were not creatures he understood.

How did they end up together? Why did they choose to have him? He wanted to know why they bothered to bring him into a world where they could not live together as a family? Why did his mother hate him? Why did Sunu, his father, refuse to accept Tani’s beloved?

Yes, he lived with a deep anger directed at his parents.

It ate at him, at his soul. The weight in his chest threatened to choke him, and for a minute, he thought he might cry out. Then, the anger lifted off, disappearing, replaced with warmth.

‘Breathe.’ A soft murmur filled his head.

Tani took in air; relief filled him, replacing the flood of anger. He felt calm again.

What was that?

Was it Artri House again? How? Why was it able to neutralize his emotions?

“Drink this,” Cale said, pushing a glass of wine into his right hand. “I’m sorry I brought your father up. He asked about you. Said he wished he could do more for you. I needed to let you know.”

Tani sipped his wine and nodded, preoccupied with the restorative warmth filling him. It felt too similar to the connection with Dante earlier in the day.

“It’s not easy for Sunu,” Cale said.

“I—,” Tani stared into his glass.

It wasn’t easy for him either. What was he supposed to say about a father he barely knew?

“Cale,” Tani said, placing his wine glass on the work table. “It’s been a long day. Can we shelve my father’s message for another day?”

“Okay,” Cale said. “Full disclosure, I brought someone to visit.”

“Who have you brought now?” Tani asked, glaring at Cale.

“Someone who needs a place to sleep,” Cale said. “My apartment has only one bedroom. You know I spend all my time here with you. It would be horrible to take a guest there. Are you willing to host?”

“The fortress is open to guests,” Tani said.

“She’s not fortress fodder,” Cale said.

“Cale.”

“Little Lordling, only your good fortune can keep her comfortable in this mortal realm,” Cale said. “If she stays with mortals she will scar them for life. I should warn you. I left her standing outside.”

“Outside my front door?” Tani asked.

“Yes.”

“You’re an idiot,” Tani said, shaking his head. “Who did you bring?’

“Eren, goddess of the earth.”

“Damn it,” Tani sighed. How many members of the Septum was he going to meet in a day? “Go get her before she makes all my elder bushes bloom for no reason.”

“Um.”

Cale pointed to the picture window at the kitchen sink showing off the garden outside the house. The elder bushes near the house were filled with white flowers. Unusual for this time of year, every mortal in the fortress would notice the sudden splash of white flowers.

“Damn it, she’s ruining my ecosystem. I would tell you to clean it up, but you’ll suck the life out of the Elderwood,” Tani said, watching a large elder bush fill with flowers. “Go get her before she turns the flowers into berries. She can stay, but you get to babysit her. This can’t happen again. Poor Tom will have to come up with an explanation about the weather.”

“Your temper has improved. You haven’t run to the door to kick her out. I really want to know what they did to you at Artri House,” Cale said.

“Let’s say it’s been a long day and I’m exhausted,” Tani said, picking up a skewer. “I don’t have time to chase around a member of the Septum. If she stays here, she lives by the house rules. She eats what we’re having and respects Tom, Hera, and Deniz. I’m not accommodating her because she’s from the Septum.”

“I’ll be sure to lay out the rules,” Cale said, heading to the front door to invite Eren, the Ekho goddess of earth, into Tani’s house.

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