It was still dark outside when Kian carefully lifted Syssi’s arm and crawled out of bed. Annani hadn’t called yet, but he’d been lying awake for hours, and he craved a cigarette.

Not to disturb Syssi, he crept around his own house like a thief, grabbing clothes from the master’s walk-in closet and then ducking into one of the guest bathrooms. Syssi hadn’t slept much either, tossing and turning and sighing until finally quieting a couple of hours ago. She needed to get some rest before Annani’s arrival.

Kian wondered whether she couldn’t sleep because he’d been awake, keeping her up with his own tossing and turning, or because she’d been bothered by the same thoughts that had made sleep impossible for him.

His mother’s visits always stressed him out.

The goddess’s presence was tiring. Or maybe she had this effect only on him. Kian loved her unconditionally, but Annani was a handful, and as glad as he was to see her, he would be just as glad to see her go.

The problem was that this time she would be taking Anandur with her.

Things wouldn’t be the same without the guy—not for Kian and not for the rest of the local clan.

The village would lose its heart.

Outside in his backyard, Kian lay down on one of the chaise lounges and pulled out a cigarette from the pack of his new, special-order custom-made brand.

One drag, two drags, the tobacco helped reduce his elevated stress level.

It didn’t last long, though.

Bundled in a floor-length sweater, Amanda walked into his backyard. “I knew I’d find you here.” She sat sideways on the other chaise, facing him. “Couldn’t sleep either, eh?”

He shook his head. “Nope. Mother’s arrival always stresses me out.”

“It’s not about Mother. It’s about Anandur. You can admit to hating the idea of letting him go.”

“I admit it. Did you come up with some clever way to keep him here?”

“That what I was doing all night long, trying to come up with a solution that would make everyone happy, but there is none. The goddess gets what the goddess wants, and she wants Wonder aka Gulan by her side. So unless you convince Mother to move into the village, she’ll take Wonder and Anandur will have to follow.”

Kian took another drag from his cigarette. “Believe it or not, I offered. She refused.”

Amanda chuckled. “I can imagine how relieved you were.”

“As if you would’ve wanted her here permanently. She would’ve stolen your spotlight.”

“True.” Amanda lifted her legs and lay down. “It’s so quiet and peaceful out here. For now…”

They spent the next several minutes in silent companionship, which was out of character for Amanda. Not that Kian was complaining, but she hadn’t even commented on the cigarette stink. Maybe she liked the smell of this new custom-made brand—pure tobacco, with no additives, hand wrapped in a tobacco leaf instead of paper.

As he put it out in the ashtray, the call from Annani came.

“I am an hour away, and I cannot wait to see Gulan. I have Alena with me, and she cannot wait to meet my old friend as well.”

“I’ll see if she can be here when you arrive.”

“If she is sleeping, do not wake her up. I can wait.”

Right, Annani had made it obvious she wanted Gulan waiting for her. “I’ll check with Anandur.”

“Thank you. We will see you soon.” His mother ended the call.

After sending Okidu to the airstrip, Kian put the phone on the side table, lit another cigarette, and then palmed his phone again to type a message to Anandur.

Annani is an hour away from the airstrip, and she wants Wonder waiting for her when she arrives. Can you make it to my house by six?

Fortunately, it had taken the goddess longer than she’d estimated to get ready for her trip. Five in the morning was a decent hour to start the day, but six was more comfortable.

A moment later his phone pinged with a return text. Got it. We will be there at six.

Kian hadn’t expected a different answer. It wasn’t as if Anandur had any choice. Refusing the goddess or informing her that Wonder needed more sleep and would get there later wasn’t really an option.

Annani was a diva, but she was also the Clan Mother and deserved their respect. Until a few hours ago, he would’ve added that she was also the only goddess on earth, but that might no longer be true.

Areana, Annani’s half-sister, might’ve survived the catastrophe and been held captive by Navuh ever since.

The thing was, if Navuh had her, he was keeping her a secret. Dalhu and Robert had never heard of Areana, or any goddess for that matter. Navuh’s harem was rumored to have several immortal females, but not a goddess.

Then again, Navuh wouldn’t have wanted that known.

What’s more, Kian wouldn’t be surprised if the despot had disposed of Areana.

A full-blooded goddess would’ve undermined his position. Except, according to Gulan, Areana’s powers were insignificant, so Navuh could’ve passed her off as an immortal.

The last and least likely possibility was that Areana wanted to be with Navuh. He’d probably kept Annani’s existence a secret from her and had convinced the goddess that there were no other gods or immortals left in the world. Lacking Annani’s guts and tenacity, Areana might have stayed because she believed there was nowhere for her to go.

Amanda stretched and yawned. “Do you want coffee?”

“I could use some. Do you know how to work the cappuccino machine?”

“Pfft.” She waved a dismissive hand. “It’s easy. Press the on button, let it heat up, and then press one of the little buttons with the coffee cup picture on them.”

Yeah, operating it was simple, but setting it up to produce good coffee was nothing but. The device needed constant adjustments. Syssi tinkered with it endlessly.

“On second thought, use the coffeemaker in the kitchen. With the noise the machine makes as it thumps the coffee, there is no way Syssi won’t wake up. I want her to get at least another hour of shuteye.”

“What’s the matter, she couldn't sleep either?”

“None of us wants to see Anandur go. Syssi loves the guy.”

A smirk on her lovely face, Amanda put a hand on her hip and struck a pose. “I’m surprised you’re not throwing a jealous hissy fit because your woman loves another guy who is not her brother.”

A lot had changed, him included. “Anandur is like a brother to her.”

In retrospect, Kian realized that his jealousy had been more about his own insecurities than anything Syssi had done. He hadn’t been sure of her love for him because he hadn’t thought he was lovable. Syssi had changed all that.

“But he isn’t her brother, is he?” Amanda goaded him.

“It’s not going to work. I no longer suffer from that affliction.”