“Yes, and I still had no clue. I demanded to know what all the questions were about. By this time, she had custody of Phillip and Fiona. They are three years older than you, Lila, so they would have been about seven. Mitchell and his wife were killed in a car accident, and I wasn’t able to make it back to Skarr for the funeral. Vivian decided she was going to bring the children to visit Earth and that it would be a good distraction for them all,so instead of traveling to Earth with the pod, I waited and was going to teleport down with them when they arrived.”
“But that obviously didn’t happen,” Lila remarks, and my sister shakes her head.
“No. When I met her shuttle, she was the only one on board. She hit me with a stun gun and kidnapped me. I’m not sure where we went, but I was kept in a cell. When I demanded to know what she was doing, she told me everything. I didn’t believe her at first, I thought she had a mental breakdown, but then she started torturing me, which eventually triggered my memories to return and activated my immortality again. She would hurt me, and I would heal, but I refused to tell her what happened to the orb. Hell, I didn’t know what happened to it then. All I knew was that it was in the hands of the Una’s when we died that day, so of course I wasn’t any help to her, but she couldn’t let me go because I knew she was after the orb now. She wanted her powers back and was going to keep mine and our fellow gods’ powers as well…” Liliana trails off, and I can see the toll this is taking on her, so I pick up where she left off.
“She orchestrated your parents’ death then offed her own husbands because, by then, she heard rumors of the Una’s meeting with someone on Skarr, and they were pointing to the Adams family and Galaxy Circus. She was going to convince the Adams brothers to take her as their new mate, and then she would have free rein of the circus to find the orb. When that didn’t work, she started the Syndicate and planted people within the circus, including the twins. She thought that getting rid of Alina, Marcus, and you would make the twins the next heirs. She wasn’t aware that the protection of the orb is tied to the Adams’ blood, but she hadn’t counted on you surviving. When she found out, she was furious. Her plan had to be paused until you surfaced and she could get rid of you again.”
“But you proved to be more powerful than she expected, though I am not surprised. You carry the genes of a god, so you were always destined to be more powerful, and to have such a large and powerful mating circle to protect you hindered her at every step.”
“Why put you in stasis?” Lila asks, and Liliana shrugs.
“She was worried that if I got close to the orb myself, then I could take my powers out of the orb and leave hers trapped—or keep hers for myself.” She scoffs like it’s ridiculous. “Like I want more powers. I would have been happy for her to keep hers, but I know that sentiment wasn’t returned.”
“So when and why did you finally admit the circus and the Adams had the orb?” Lila asks, and Liliana closes her eyes, but before she does, I can see the uncertainty in her gaze. I had a feeling she was hiding something, and this just confirms it.
She swallows and takes a breath, and when her eyes open, there’s no sign of any turmoil. “Vivian and Agent Smith of the Earth facility Area 51 became allies. I’m not entirely certain how, but she told me about his special project.”
When I heard about this, I felt ill, and I was ready to track this man down and flay his skin from his body, but the Adams brothers told me they have plans for him.
“Special project…” Lila sits up and looks more alert. “I wonder if that was what was behind the door we couldn’t access,” she mutters to herself, and Liliana nods.
“Agent Smith has been detaining aliens and has a breeding project. He’s trying to breed his own army to be able to take over the world. They threatened to start killing the children and add you to their program. They said you had no powers and were completely helpless. I’d already lost so much, and I knew there wasn’t much chance for me to be released, but I also didn’t want your grandpas to suffer again. Losing me and then your parentswould have been hard enough to come back from, but losing you on top of that would have broken them…”
Lila nods her agreement. “Yes, I think you’re right. When John was ill, I was so worried about them.”
“You can’t let her get her hands on the orb.”
“But how are we going to stop her?” Lila asks, and my sister and I exchange a glance.
“We’re going to return everyone’s powers to them. We just need to track down our other sister and brothers,” I explain, and Lila frowns.
“Even Vivian’s powers? And how, exactly, do you plan to find your other siblings? They’ve managed to stay hidden for hundreds of years.”
Liliana shakes her head. “No, Vivian’s not trustworthy. We would be stupid to put faith in her again, but our siblings’ powers can’t stay trapped in the orb either.”
“So what are we going to do with them? Can someone else become the god of death?” Lila asks.
Liliana nods. “Yes, it should be possible for someone of the same bloodline.”
“So Phillip or Fiona?” Lila asks, frowning. “I’m not sure they would want to do that. They seemed pretty keen to start new lives on Earth.”
“Yes, possibly, but being one quarter divine may not be enough. You could do it, Lila,” Liliana says, and I feel helpless as Lila turns pale. I had much the same reaction, but when I argued with Liliana, she pointed out that we didn’t have much of a choice unless we wanted Vivian to take her powers back.
“Fuck no,” Lila says, shaking her head vehemently. “There has to be another option.”
“There isn’t. You’re the only one left with the bloodline after the deaths of your father and theirs,” Liliana replies, tearswelling in her eyes. “I’m so sorry, my sweet girl. I would take them if I could, but I can’t be both the goddess of life and death.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Brannock
We leave Lila at the Adams’ family home and split up in the morning. We know she needs time with her grandparents without any interference from any of us, so we use the old divide and conquer creed to finish up all the jobs that need to be done before the ship leaves Skarr tomorrow.
Link and Xavier spent the night looking after the twins and making sure Liliana was okay when she first woke. Now, after a nap, they are returning to the ship to finish welcoming the rest of the crew and performers. Nikos, Echo, Maxsim, and Caspian are spending the day purchasing play equipment and supplies to create a kid friendly environment, as well as buying school supplies Link requested. The Adams have made it known that the ship will now be family friendly, and crew and performers with families are welcome to bring them aboard if they wish. Kinga and Andre are in charge of keeping the children occupied. I do not envy them that job in the least. The three kraken babies are taking a little time to get used to being separated from their parents, while the two merbabies aren’t as concerned,not having the undivided attention from all of their parents for months on end. When they asked if I would like to join them, I quickly came up with a random excuse as to why I couldn’t. I love our babies, but they are exhausting.
Ghosie is finishing up the auditions with Susie and Magenta’s help, leaving Silac, Tirrian, Saxon, and myself to make plans to rescue Chloe once we get back to Earth. Saxon and I take point, as we are both familiar with the layout of Area 51.
“Chloe is being kept in a different area than the containment cells the Adams usually collect detainees from,” I tell him as he brings up a map of the facility in the war room of the big ship. This is the best place for us to plan because there is enough room for us, as well as all the information we need with the touch of a button. I frown as I study the schematics of the facility and jab my finger at it.
