“She’s given me her love,” David said.
“The mange is what she’s given you,” Alezzander sneered.
“There’s no need for that, Father,” Eryx said calmly. “You forget we’re not children anymore. We’re able to make our own decisions—or mistakes—without your permission.”
“This is a case of Doctrinal matter, not personal affection. I won’t stand for it. And this girl has no business being alive. When I find her father, I’ll make sure he feels the wrath of the laws. And as for you,” Alezzander pointed to David, “you have no place in this family anymore.”
“Your actions have certainly spoken for you today, Alezzander,” Nyx said. “You’re not the man I married. You’ve become nothing less than a brute, unable to reason and unconcerned for your own. You’re the one that has no place in this family. The door is open—leave.”
“You don’t mean that.” Alezzander’s eyes widened. “I’m the head of this family.”
“Leave.” Nyx’s tone was stern. “I won’t have any of my children deprived of their happiness. You’ve been cruel and a savage to this poor girl. That’s not our way, Alezzander. That’s not our doctrine.”
Alezzander’s jaw clenched as he turned his back on all of us. He walked out of the room and ascended the stairs instead of leaving. We heard a door slam shut on the second floor.
Everyone was silent.
“David, why does he want me to give back the Star Crest? Tell me the truth.”
“Do you remember the story I told you of Deus and Starr?” David asked as he touched my face, wiping away the moisture that my tears had left.
“What does that have to do with…?” My jaw dropped as I remembered the story and his question about growing old together. “What did you do?”
“The Star Crest is no longer within me. I’ll become as you are. We’ll both be Creatura.”
“You… Why did you do that?” I cried. “I don’t even know what I am.”
“I don’t care.” David cupped my face. “I only know I want to be with you for as long as this life will allow.”
“You aren’t immortal anymore? You gave your life for me?”
David was silent. I looked at the others, but no one was willing to speak.
“Answer me!”
“I’ve renounced the life I had. My transformation will be slow.”
“But… I… How am I Creatura if both my parents are human?”
“No, dear,” Nyx said. “I’m afraid the man you knew as your father was not your biological father.”
“That can’t be.” I shook my head.
“If your mother is human,” Nyx rubbed her hands, “then your father isn’t. It’s the only possible explanation. There’s no other way that you can be Creatura.”
Galen began to pace behind his mother. Eryx sat on the arm of the sofa, his arms crossed.
“Your mother has never mentioned any of this to you?” David asked.
“Never.” How could Claire keep something like this from me? I felt like I had lost my identity. I didn’t know my real father, and I didn’t even know what species I was.
We heard Alezzander descending the stairs. I cringed.
“David, I want to go home,” I said.
“Yes,” David agreed.
Alezzander arrived at the door of the formal living room, glancing for a brief second at his wife.
“Isis,” Alezzander said. “I’ve realized that you’re not at fault for the actions of your parents.
“I can’t live without my family. If accepting you is the way to keep them, then so be it, but with one condition: you must tell me who your father is. I need to deal with him personally. He’s the one that’s shattered the principles of the Doctrine.”
“I don’t know who he is,” I said, not looking at him. “Are you going to kill him?”
“That isn’t up to me to decide. The Council must make judgment of that, and then pass their votes to Deus who has the final say.”
I stared at him. “Please don’t do that. Please don’t turn him over to your Council.”
“Why would you plead on behalf of a father that’s abandoned you? Do you think he’d do the same for you?”
“I don’t know, but he’s my father. It doesn’t matter what he would do for me. What matters is what I feel is right.”
“I don’t want my family compromised. Conspiring is a death sentence as far as this matter is concerned. You’re not supposed to exist. Do you understand that?”
I nodded.
“Once the Council learns of this, I can’t protect you… but I can buy time because you were born human and undetectable,” Alezzander said. “I won’t even hold my breath for your father. He must come forth and face the Council. His act is unpardonable.”
“Surely there’s something in the law that provides sanctuary for him—for her father?” David asked.
“I’m afraid not,” Alezzander said. “He’ll be tried and penalized with the harshest of verdicts.”
“No one but us knows about this,” I said. “The Council doesn’t have to know either.”
Alezzander was silent for a moment.
“For my son’s sake, I won’t go to the Council with this. But I’ll deny knowing you if that’s what I have to do to save my own flesh and blood. It’s the best I can offer you.”
“Thank you, Father.” David tightened his embrace on me. “I’ll do my best to keep the situation quiet. If for some reason the Council learns of this, I’ll serve as advocate for her father and for her.”
“But who will be advocate for you, my son?” Alezzander asked. “If they find out about Isis and her father, surely, they’ll know about you.”
“I will,” Galen said, to my surprise.
“And I,” Eryx said.
Alezzander glanced between Galen and Eryx, his mouth in a tight line. Then he looked at David again.
“Words can’t describe my opposition to this, Dahveed. But you’re a grown man and responsible for your own actions.” Alezzander took a seat on the couch next to me. “And you, girl, you’re undetectable even to a Primitus, as myself. I had to strain to find the most minimal sign of difference in you. I pray that my son will be undetectable, too, or you both will be in grave danger.”
“What’s a Primitus?” I asked David.
“They’re the first generation of gods to care for humans,” David said.
“Are you the son of Deus and Starr?” I asked Alezzander.
“We are all sons of Deus.”
“By blood, are you the son of Deus?” I asked again.
“By blood,” he answered, “we are all the sons of Deus.”
The room was silent for a few minutes. Nyx was still upset over the earlier happenings. I was upset too, but I needed answers to so many things.
“What am I?” I asked Nyx.
“Different.” Nyx answered. “You have the ability to control your subconscious. I can sense a long life within you, but I don’t know if you’re immortal. I see you fragile, yet fierce… and you’re changing, Isis—on your coming of age.”
“Changing?” I gasped.
“When will that be?” David asked.
“I don’t know.” Nyx looked at me with a blank stare, reading me. Then she walked over to Alezzander and slapped him. The sharp snap of skin against skin bounced off the walls.
“You deserve more than that. She’s terrified of you, and I’m ashamed.” She left the room, her eyes reddening.
Alezzander followed. I could hear arguing coming from the kitchen in Latin.
“I think I should leave now. I’ve had enough for today. I can’t deal with this.” I began to cry. “And I’m changing? Into what? I don’t understand.”
“I think you should stay. Rest in my room until you’ve calmed down and your head is clear before you go home and interrogate your mother. You should be inconspicuous in your approach to ask for information about your biological father. You shouldn’t mention how you discovered the t
ruth.”
“But I don’t—want to be—in—the same house—as your father,” I confessed, between ragged gasps and sobs.
“Come here.” David kissed my forehead. “I won’t ever let anyone hurt you again.
“I’m sorry for my father’s behavior. He’s not a savage, I assure you. He’s just concerned for our wellbeing. He thought you were an abomination.”
“He treated me like an animal,” I said. “He’s a horrible person.”
“He seems that way now, but believe me, he’s not that bad.”
“Pfff,” Eryx hissed.
“I just want to go home,” I said, continuing to weep.
“Isis,” Galen said. “I think you should take David’s advice and settle your emotions before leaving. You don’t want to cause panic in your mother.”
I accepted Galen’s reasoning.
“I’ll take you to my room. You won’t be disturbed there.” David held me under his arm and led me up the stairs.
We sat on his bed. He wiped tears from under my eyes. “Would you like a drink?”
“No.” I hugged him. “What I want is to know who I am.”
“You’re exactly the same Isis you were before.” He kissed my eyes. “You haven’t changed.”
“Maybe my name is the same, but everything else has changed for me.” I sobbed into his chest. “Who’s my father? Why did my mother keep this from me?”
I suddenly had a thought. I sniffed and gazed at David. “Do you think he—my real father—did the same thing you did with the Star Crest?”
“No, precious. That’s not the case. You would’ve been born fully human.”
“What am I, David?” I held my hands over my eyes. “Am I turning into something hideous?”
“No. The ones that were abominations were born as such. You don’t resemble them in the slightest.”
“Why would she keep this from me?” I hit the bed with my fist. “She made my father believe I was his daughter, or maybe… maybe he knew and kept it from me too? How am I supposed to live without knowing what I am?”
“I realize you’re overwhelmed. I’m here for you. I always will be.”
I held on to him with all my strength and began to sob again. My face was nestled into his neck, my tears wetting his skin and shirt collar. I could smell his unique scent and it soothed me.
“Why didn’t you tell me what the Star Crest meant when you gave it to me?” I asked, still breathing him in.
“You wouldn’t have accepted it. I was desperate—a fool in love.” His fingers made comforting circular patterns on my back. “There was no other way.”
“Do you think my mother knows about me?”
“No, and don’t mention this to her. It only compromises her and all of us more.”
“How could you give up your immortality for me?”
“Since the first time I saw you, I knew my life was yours. I would sacrifice everything for you.”
I placed my hand on the back of his head, running my fingers through his dark hair. He closed the gap between us, pressing his lips against mine.
Nyx knocked on the door to David’s room. “Am I interrupting?”
“No, Mother. Come in.” David smiled shyly.
I wondered how long she’d been standing there before she decided to knock.
“Isis, Alezzander would like to speak to you and David alone.”
“Is he going to strangle me again?” I asked.
“I’m sorry that happened. He thought you were something else. He had no idea that you were so normal. He’d like to make his apology now. Will you have him?”
David stared at me, awaiting my response. I was reluctant to accept, but for David’s sake, I would do it.
“Yes,” I said.
Alezzander was already at the doorway when I gave my answer. He walked to the bed and knelt on one knee.
“I’ve hurt you both physically and emotionally. I’ve used horrible words to disrespect you. I was hasty to judge,” Alezzander said. “Please accept my sincerest apologies. I kneel before you as the most significant form of symbolism for repentance. I’ve knelt before no one under these circumstances.”
“You call yourself a father and a god—a protector of the human race,” I said, shaking my head. “You don’t deserve those titles. You have no respect for your family or for those you’re supposed to care for—such as me. If the only reason you’re doing this is to please Nyx, then you keep your apology. I don’t need it.”
David’s eyes widened as he gazed at me. Alezzander lowered his head.
“I realize where your anger is coming from. I ask that you reconsider. I won’t rise from here until you’ve accepted my apology.”
“He’s not feigning, Isis. Hypocrisy isn’t a trait of his,” David said.
“He owes you an apology, too.” I held my ground.
“And I’ll give them all my apologies,” Alezzander promised. “But you’re the one I am beholden to.”
Alezzander kept his knee to the floor. His back was straight like a Templar waiting to be knighted; he waited for my forgiveness.
David tightened his hold on my hand. “You don’t have to accept. He’ll have to live with the remorse.”
“It’s not in my nature to hold grudges. It makes for an ugly personality.”
“What are you saying?”
“I forgive you,” I told Alezzander. “And I apologize for my words also. It’s bad manners to speak to your elders in that fashion. I was taught better than that.”
Alezzander’s face was serious. “May I stand now?”
“Why would you ask me that?”
“Out of respect,” David said. “He won’t rise until you approve.”
“Please, stand up.” I felt ashamed of being ignorant of their customs. I was suddenly aware of the magnitude of humiliation the act of kneeling before me was to them. David had done it, too, but privately. It took guts for Alezzander to do this before his son and wife. And I was no one, really.
After Alezzander apologized to his family, we sat down to eat, but no one had an appetite.
Alezzander questioned me about such small details as my abilities to travel to Somnium. He was curious about my parents and complimented me on my looks. That was awkward.
“Do you take after your mother?”
“No, I look nothing like her.”
“She’s quite beautiful, your mother,” Nyx noted, “but you’re right; you bear no resemblance to her.”
Near midnight, David drove me home. I was sure Claire would be fast asleep. She had to work the next day.
David pecked my lips under the porch light.
“Don’t leave,” I pleaded with him. “I don’t want to be alone.”
“My lovely, these aren’t visiting hours. I’m surprised your mother didn’t call to reprimand you for being so late.”
“She knew I’d be with you and your parents. She had no reason to call. Besides, she didn’t give me a curfew tonight.”
David tilted his head and gazed at me. “How soon are you planning to confront her?”
“Tomorrow, I think. But I don’t know how to do it.”
“It doesn’t have to be that soon. You can wait until the time is right. Rest and it’ll come to you.”
“But I need to know,” I said. “Would you be able to live with the mystery?”
“No, I suppose not.” He peeled my arms off him. “Isis, I have to go. It’s past midnight already. Do you think it appropriate for us be out here this late? What will your mother think?”
“Party pooper.”
“That I am,” he said. “Time for little girls to go to bed.”
I took the house key out of one of my pants pocket. I turned the knob and opened the door.
“Night,” I said.
“Wait.” David pulled me back onto the patio. He took me by the waist, pinned me against the wall, and kissed me hard. “Good night.”
Breathless, I walked in the house.
&
nbsp; ***
I lay awake for several hours, crying and thinking about how it was that I had never once noticed how different I looked from Claire. I probably looked like my father—whoever he was. What if I was adopted? What if Claire wasn’t my mother? I had so many questions.
***
When I woke up Claire was gone, which was a good thing because my face was puffy from crying so much. It was almost noon when I headed downstairs. She had left me some money on the kitchen counter under an empty can of diet soda. That was her subtle attempt to tell me to buy more.
I grabbed a pastry bar from the cupboard and headed upstairs again. I stood at her bedroom door and stared at the nightstand where I knew she kept all her important papers and photographs. Could it be that somewhere in there would be a hint of who my father was?
I looked through all the legal documents with my name on them. I found my birth certificate where I was registered as the daughter of Hector Martin and Claire Ann Martin. Everything looked legitimate.
Old photographs of my father, Hector, and me—of when I was born—were tucked in an envelope along with our—Claire’s and mine—hospital bracelets. I didn’t look like my dad, Hector, either. I always thought I had inherited his green eyes. I was wrong.
I found some old photos of Claire during her pregnancy. My theory about being adopted was wrong, too. But was Hector aware that I wasn’t his daughter? He had been a wonderful father to me in spite of his imperfections.
Nothing out of the ordinary turned up in the nightstand.
I remembered a box that Claire kept at the far corner of her closet. That box held some documents along with pictures, too. I ran downstairs for the stepladder and brought it up.
I fetched the box and placed it on the floor. I opened it and started pulling out papers: house insurance documents, old receipts, Claire’s associate’s degree from the University of Texas—I took my time reading each document, looking for a name or a clue that would help me decipher my origins.
Just as I was about to put everything back in the box, I noticed a yellow legal size envelope taped to the bottom. I opened the clasp and reached in. There was a letter addressed to Claire with one single sentence typed out: For your troubles. It wasn’t signed. I put my hand in the yellow envelope’s opening again and found an envelope postmarked in a language I didn’t recognize, but the date was clear enough to make out. It was about a month after my father had passed.
“Isis.” Claire startled me. “What are you doing?”
“What’s this?” I held up both the envelope and letter.
“Where did you get that?”