Anandur was behind the wheel with Brundar beside him, one chattering about this and that and the other silent as a statue.
"Areana was wound tight as a spring when I drove her to the keep last night," Anandur said.
Annani had noticed. Her sister had seemed anxious throughout the celebration.
Anandur glanced at her in the rearview mirror. "I don't know if she was eager to return to him because she was worried about him or because she was afraid he would throw a tantrum on account of her being gone for so long."
"What did she do?" Annani asked.
"It was more what she didn't do. She barely said two words to me the whole trip, and she just sat there wringing her hands and staring out the window. When we got to the keep, she practically ran to the clinic."
Annani sighed, experiencing the usual heaviness in her chest when thinking about Areana and Navuh. "I do not understand my sister. Fated mates are supposed to bring each other joy. They are supposed to be happy together, to find comfort and peace in each other's presence. But Areana has no joy with Navuh. She has only anxiety and fear and this constant, exhausting vigilance."
"Some relationships are complicated," Kian said without looking up from his phone.
"All relationships are complicated. But if they are a constant source of distress, the correct term is dysfunctional."
He let out a breath. "Each couple is different, Mother. What is right for you might not be right for your sister. You have very different temperaments."
Annani turned to look at him. "Some things are universal. When you are with Syssi, do you feel anxious? Do you worry about saying the wrong thing or upsetting her?"
Kian returned his phone to his pocket. "I'm probably not the best example," he murmured. "I'm not a joyful guy."
Annani reached over and patted his arm. "You may not be the most cheerful person, but Syssi is never stressed because of you. She is never afraid to speak her mind or tell you when she disagrees with you. She does not walk on eggshells around you, worried that a wrong word might trigger you, and you do not have to tiptoe around her moods. You are comfortable with each other. You trust each other."
Kian's jaw tightened. "That's true. But does comfort equal bliss?"
"Everyone's definition of bliss is different," Anandur said. "I love that Wonder still laughs at my jokes, no matter how many times she has heard them or how lame they are."
Brundar uttered a sound that could have been an agreement, but Annani was not sure which part.
"Areana loves Navuh," she said. "But love should not come with such a heavy price. Love should lift you up, not weigh you down. I worry about her. Perhaps her love is a kind of Stockholm syndrome."
"The same thought occurred to me," Kian said. "I'm curious to see them together. You can tell a lot by observing how a couple interacts with each other."
Anandur looked at Kian through the rearview mirror. "Instead of you playing shrink, you could send Vanessa the surveillance recording from Navuh's patient room and have her analyze theinteraction between him and Areana. If she determines that Areana is suffering from Stockholm syndrome, that will change our entire approach to him. We provide her with treatment and put him in stasis. End of story. No need to find a location for a secure house for them."
Areana had spent five thousand years as Navuh's mate, shaping herself around his moods and his demands. That kind of conditioning could very well be some sort of syndrome.
"I would gladly do that, but I cannot," she said. "I cannot send the recordings to Vanessa without Areana's consent, and she will never give it."
Kian angled his head. "That depends on how you frame it. You can tell her that Navuh might need psychological help, and you want the clan therapist to take a look at his reactions. Areana will agree to that."
It was tempting, and Annani was not dismissing the idea offhand.
"I will think about it. I have not seen Navuh in five thousand years, and I am curious to see how much he has changed."
"I still think we shouldn't be doing this today," Kian said. "What happened to waiting? Making him sweat?"
Annani shrugged. "I am following my gut, and it sends a sense of urgency that I did not feel when we discussed this yesterday."
"Your gut." Kian sounded skeptical. "Don't you mean your curiosity? You just can't wait to hear what Navuh thinks is so valuable."
She could not deny that curiosity played a part. Navuh had dangled a tantalizing hint, promising something supposedly precious, something worth negotiating for. She was curious.
But it was more than that.
"I admit that I want to find out what he has to offer, but I truly feel like I should not delay, that time is of the essence."
