Page 13 of Dark Destiny: The Turning Of The Loom

At least he remembered that Tula had been part of his other life.

Perhaps they should form an exclusive survivors' club, if for no other reason than to preserve the old tongue. Not many of them were left, but significantly more than Annani had originally believed, and the list was growing. It made her hopeful that more people from the time of the gods had not perished.

As it turned out, the Fates were far more merciful than she had given them credit for.

Esag smiled. "Not at all. She remembers you fondly. It's just that Tula is a force of nature and speaks her mind without regard for whom she might offend."

Annani laughed. "Tula has not changed since she was a little girl, and I am glad she has not. It means she has not lost her spirit, even after thousands of years of captivity."

"Amen to that," Esag said.

"Your pot, Master Esag." Ogidu handed him the clean pot with both hands. "I saved what was left of the Tuh'u for Master Khiann to eat later."

"Thank you." Esag dipped his head.

After he left, Annani turned to Khiann and noted that he still did not look tired, confirming he had not been putting on a resilient front for Esag's sake.

"Do you need to rest?" she asked to make sure.

"I do not." He drove the chair after her. "Esag is surprisingly easy to be with."

That was because his friend had no expectations of him. Perhaps she should start insulting Khiann instead of complimenting him so he would feel at ease with her as well.

"That is good to hear," she said as she sat down on the couch. "It means that you are growing stronger. If you are up to a short ride, we could go visit Kian and Syssi next door. Syssi invited us for coffee and dessert, which today is Okidu's chocolate cake." She let a little mischief into her tone. "You are going to love it. You always had a sweet tooth, but Bridget did not allow any sweets in the ward."

He looked at her and smiled. "Then we have to test whether my proclivity for sweets survived five thousand years of stasis."

"I am sure it did. As it turns out, it is a genetic predisposition, and genes do not forget."

He tilted his head. "Since there is a word for this in our language, I must have known what genes meant, but I do not remember. I know what genetic means, though. Those are the traits we inherit from our parents."

"Correct. Remind me to explain about genes after we return from Kian's home and have the result of the sweets experiment."

"When do you want to go?" he asked. "You got me excited about that cake."

"We can go now."

He looked surprised. "That sounds lovely, but first I want to check on my men." He reached into his pocket for the phone. "It will not take long."

"Do you need help navigating the device?" she asked.

"I think I can manage."

He found the circle with Adaluh's face, pressed it, and then pressed the speaker button to activate it.

Annani was impressed. He had been shown how to do that only once.

The phone rang several times before Adaluh answered.

"Yes?" He sounded groggy.

"Adaluh. It is Khiann. Did I wake you?"

"Yes. Gertrude took us on a tour of the village, and it was as exhausting as if we had walked the entire time rather than being carried in motorized chairs. We all needed a nap when we returned."

"I understand completely," Khiann said. "Rest. Call me when you wake." He chuckled. "Though by then I might be the one napping."

As he ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket, Annani marveled at how quickly he had taken to it.