A Thousand Years of Hope - 5. Chapter 5

 

 

Chapter Five

 

The power filling the olive grove felt massive, unimaginably strong. It enveloped the olive grove, stifling everything it met. Dante ran fast, determined to stop it, before this enormous power reached his mother or Hasim in the vineyard. He chose to use the same spell he used at Viola’s house. Adding a bit more energy into it made the heat burn hot. He needed to contain and incapacitate this being.

A shout reached him as he raced by a thick cluster of olive trees and entered the large clearing. Shock filled Dante at the sight of Ryuzo kneeling on the ground. His hands were covered in black soil, contrasting his white t-shirt and jeans. Blood tears trailed down his cheeks, and amber eyes looked other.

He barely registered Ryuzo’s presence when the hard earth held his feet in place on the ground and thick vines wrapped around his wrists. He hissed when an ice shard dug into his neck.

“Disperse the heat, or I will end you,” a woman stepped up to him and said, her brown skin with warm orange undertones. Her dark brown eyes filled with fury. Her right hand trembled with the restrained power holding the shard of ice pressed to his jugular.

“I’m not afraid of drawing blood,” she said, her soft accent reminding him of Africa. “You have crossed a line, Arturo. How dare you harm with your fire! Disperse it.”

“I’m defending my territory,” Dante said with a hiss when the shard pierced his skin. “This is not the first time I’ve felt him. He shook off my attack the last time when we were abroad.”

“You burned him then,” the woman said, still glaring at him. “The pain you’ve inflicted for days lingers. Now you come blazing with more fire like a raging beast. Stop it now, or I will send this ice into your veins.”

“Hera,” a pain-filled voice said in soft admonishment.

“Don’t talk for him when you’re in pain, Babu,” Hera said, her eyes filling with tears.

Dante frowned when he noted Tom standing next to Hera. The disappointment he read in Tom’s eyes told him he had gone overboard. His gaze returned to Ryuzo, who had closed his eyes to absorb the worst of his pain.

It was indeed Ryuzo from his dream. There was no mistaking him for a human. He was not human: from his sharp black claws to his extraordinary eyes, those amber eyes looked too 'other' even as they were closed. Tears of red blood streaked down his cheeks. Ryuzo’s face looked the same as it had in the dream.

Dante frowned when Ryuzo shivered, his eyes opening again to stare at Dante, the pain reflected in amber eyes enough to sober him.

Dante willed the pillar of heat around Ryuzo into healing energy. Relief flooded amber eyes, and Ryuzo relaxed, sitting back on his haunches.

“Why would you attack us?’ Tom asked, shock in his voice, drawing Dante’s attention. “We talked yesterday. I told you we would be here today.”

“In my defense, this is not the first time I’ve felt the overwhelming power. It feels too large. This is my home, Tom. My mother lives here. Innocent men and women are working here—”

“Still—” Tom started.

“Stop, Tom,” Ryuzo said, drawing Tom’s surprised gaze.

“Tani—,” Tom frowned.

“The energy around me has healed my burn.” Ryuzo raised his right hand to show Tom and Hera his right palm. “It’s no longer painful. No pain. The heat around me has turned healing. It is only holding me in place. You’re a powerful warlock, Dante Arturo.”

“I have my grandmaster to thank for the skill,” Dante replied, a small smile tugging on his lips at the compliment.

“You dare smile while Babu is on his knees,” Hera hissed.

The ice on Dante’s neck pressed into the skin of his neck. Dante hissed and closed his eyes, sure she was going to make good on her threat to kill him with ice. He could not blame her.

“Hera, don’t draw blood. You’re a healer, child.”

Hera mumbled under her breath, scowling at Dante, and then the sharp piece of ice moved away from Dante’s neck, turning into water. She removed a handkerchief from her pocket and caught the water with it, soaking the handkerchief.

“Release him,” Hera said, pointing to the heat column around Ryuzo. “You have no reason to hold him. He is here to help you. That is if he still wishes to help after how you’ve treated him.”

Dante sighed and glanced at the thick vines binding his hands together and his legs covered in thick dirt. It would be easy to break away, but he needed patience. Tom was essential to his family because of the vineyard. It was also clear Tom and Hera valued Ryuzo. What he needed now was to earn their trust somehow.

He could not strong-arm his way out of his current situation.

His gaze shifted to Tom, who stood watching him in silence.

“Your house is Ekho-blessed,” Tom said after a moment. “Why don’t we know you exist?”

“We do not announce our presence,” Dante said. “My ancestors have worked hard to keep our existence quiet.”

“Clearly,” Tom said with a frown. “Did you know we were Ekho-blessed when you came to Elderwood?”

“No,” Dante said. “Our meeting was coincidental.”

“There are no coincidences,” Tom said, shaking his head. He looked to Ryuzo.

His gaze sought a way forward from Ryuzo.

How interesting, Dante thought.

“Tom, let him go. He can release himself from your makeshift chains if he wants,” Ryuzo said, his voice filled with amusement as he studied Dante.

“Ah, you’re powerful enough to hold our Babu. So, are you looking down on me by pretending to be held by those vines?” Tom asked, turning his gaze to Dante.

“Not at all,” Dante shook his head. “I’m keeping the peace. I made the mistake first. I’m sorry for coming in on the attack. Please understand my side. My family is essential to me. I only wanted to make sure we were not in trouble. Tom, I really want to stay friends with you. I’ll stay like this if it is what you want.”

Tom narrowed his gaze for a full minute before the vines slid away from Dante’s arms, and the soil loosened from his legs.

Dante let out a relieved sigh and got to his feet. Shaking his hands out, he ignored Tom and Hera and went to stand right before Ryuzo.

“You are Ryuzo,” Dante stated.

“I am Tani Ryuzo.”

Tani stood up, studying his right palm. He smiled and met Dante’s curious gaze.

“Thank you for healing my wound. It was rather painful. How do you know my last name?” Tani asked, his amber eyes sparking with curiosity.

“I—” Dante stopped.

Would it sound unbelievable to say he dreamt about Ryuzo?

Not once, but the last two nights. Ryuzo’s smiles and his tears filled his head now.

“What are you?” Dante asked.

“What am I?” Tani countered.

Dante frowned, his gaze shifting to the black claws on Ryuzo’s fingers, then back to stunning amber eyes and red-brown hair styled in a right undercut with long floppy locks threatening to hide Tani’s eyes.

His past self, Durante, called Ryuzo a fox, but the description felt wrong. There was more to this man. Ryuzo was more complex than folklore. His eyes widened when he remembered his grandmaster’s lessons about where his power came from.

The elusive Ekhos from the Ekho Realm that was hidden from the mortal realm. Humans could never find their way into the Ekho realm, but Ekhos visited the mortal realm often. According to his grandmaster, they were powerful creatures divided into different clans based on power attributes and elemental affinities.

His grandmaster named a fox clan, a dragon clan, an elemental clan, and something he called an immortal clan as the most powerful clan. There were lesser-known clans with little power rooted in each of the powerful clans. The ruthless Septum governed all of them. Mortals, like his grandmaster, only knew what an Ekho was because he met one in a moment of crisis.

“You are Ekho,” Dante said.

Tani smiled wide.

“This Dante is more learned,” Tani said. “Yes, I am Ekho.”

“Your kind does not appear easily in our mortal realm,” Dante said, remembering his lessons with the grandmaster.

Dante suspected Tani Ryuzo had a fox clan in his lineage and something else. His power felt large, as though on the brink of a nuclear explosion.

“Why are you in the mortal realm?” Dante asked.

“The answer is too complicated for our first meeting,” Tani said.

“Are you going to release him?” Hera asked behind Dante.

Dante’s gaze widened.

“Has the pain stopped?”

“It has,” Tani said, showing him his right palm. “No pain, no wound.”

“Good,” Dante nodded, still staring at Tani.

“The burn on his palm shouldn’t have been there to start with,” Hera said, her annoyance with Dante clear.

“Forgive this child of mine,” Tani said with a small, intriguing smile. “She’s protective.”

“Mm,” Dante nodded, wondering how to get Tani to Artri House.

He needed answers to understand why he dreamed of breaking Ryuzo’s heart. Most importantly, why the thought of hurting Ryuzo left him feeling so empty?

***

How poetic that he would meet Dante in an old olive grove. Their relationship was already so heavy perhaps this old olive grove was the only thing that could contain the misses between them. Tani took in Dante up close, filing away the nut shade of brown eyes, different from the previous one’s dark brown. Dark hair held in a tight bun, Tani wondered what the texture of the soft strands would feel like between his fingers. Dante wore a beard that gave him a rugged image, the best kind of rugged, making him look wild. Tani imagined it would be interesting to watch Dante trim it.

The ground shifted under his feet, and he dragged his gaze away from Dante’s face, afraid all his longing and need would betray his thoughts. He stared at the ground where he had sunk his fingers before Dante arrived. His black and white Vans were covered with black soot. The tendrils of fine black dust covered the perfect circle where he stood. The heat from Dante’s spell kept the soot-like tendrils inside the circle.

Tani frowned when the tendrils grew thicker like growing roots reaching out of the ground.

“Dante,” Tani said. “Don’t lower this wall of heat. Keep it in place.”

“Babu,” Hera started.

“I’ve found the source of the corruption,” Tani said, staring at the soot-like roots from the ground.

Dante’s eyes widened in shock when the soot tendrils thickened, rising from the ground and swirling around Tani’s feet. They swirled around him, but they did not touch Tani.

“Babu, come out of there,” Hera said, her voice filled with panic. “

“Don’t worry, I’m Ekho. It won’t touch me,” Tani said, realizing he was looking at a parasite from the Ekho Realm: Kara ot - black weed. It would have followed an Ekho from the Ekho realm and found its way into the mortal world.

“Tom, Hera, this is a parasite from our Ekho Realm,” Tani said. “It feeds on hybrids. You cannot get close.”

Kara ot was deadly for the Ekho blessed. It searched out their power and infected them in an attempt to suck out their vitality to the last drop. It exhausted nutrients in fertile soil and all living plants, growing and spreading its roots until the land turned barren.

Tani worked hard to eliminate the black weed in the mortal realm.

“Hera, Tom, get out of the olive grove. This will grow wild and gravitate to you both for your power. It’s dangerous for you to be here. Find the mortals in the vineyard, get them back to the main house,” Tani said.

“What about you?” Hera asked, fear in her dark eyes.

Tom hurried to Hera’s side. He took her right hand and turned to Dante.

“Let’s go. Babu is serious when he says to leave.”

“Dante stays,” Tani said, making Tom and Hera stare at him in surprise.

The thick black roots swirled around Tani’s thighs, hitting against the wall of heat Dante kept in place.

“He and I have an unfinished conversation. The black weed is staying within the circle he has made. He is safe for now. Go.”

Hera gave an impatient sound, glanced at Dante, and then shook her head.

“I’ll be fine,” Tani said, giving her a small smile. “Go with Tom. Keep Dante’s family and the workers on the vineyard safe for me.”

Hera nodded and turned to Dante.

“I’ll make sure he’s okay,” Dante said before Hera could speak.

Hera let out a soft sigh. She bit her bottom lip, unsure, and then because the thick black roots were only growing faster, she gave Dante a hopeful nod.

“Should I call Uncle Amu?” Tom asked.

“No,” Tani said. “I’ll find a way to deal with it. No need to disturb uncle. Hurry, Tom.”

“We’ll wait for you at the vineyard’s main house,” Tom said, holding Hera’s hand.

They ran in the direction Dante had come to get everyone out of the vineyard and to the main house.

Tani met Dante’s worried gaze. It was time to jump into essential matters. His smile disappeared.

“One of ours has left your vineyard a terrible gift. You find yourself in a unique moment of crisis,” Tani said. “The black weed rises from the ground because it feels your power. The black weed is confused for the moment because I stand here. Your knowing I’m Ekho makes what happens next easier. After we deal with this parasite, we’ll discuss why you know what I am.”

“Promise you won’t leave after you help us,” Dante said, his voice tinged with an emotion Tani could not define. Brown eyes watched him, anxiety rising as they dropped to the black weed growing at Tani’s feet. “Please promise you won’t disappear on me. Your kind does that often to people you help.”

Tani smiled then because Dante was right. It was easier for others like him not to interact with mortals. Their lives were so fleeting, after all. Yet, their encounter was different. Tani could not walk away now. The aura surrounding Dante teased him. The scent of jasmine sank into him, healing his ripped heart like a healing salve over an open wound that would not heal.

“I will stay,” Tani said, his promise a vow. He would stay until Dante discarded him again or he saved Dante from death.

The black root tendrils reached his waist. They were careful not to touch him still, as though he had a shield around him. Instead, they started hitting against Dante’s wall of heat with growing agitation.

“What is it you want to do?” Dante asked, his worry growing. He took a step closer as though to help, and Tani stopped him with a shake of his head.

“Don’t be too shocked at meeting another like me,” Tani said, then closed his eyes and called the god of calamity. “Cale, find me.”

When he opened his eyes, Cale stood behind Dante. Tani’s eyes widened when Cale held out his right hand, intending to put Dante to sleep.

“Don’t,” Tani said, making Cale look at him in surprise. “I need him conscious. No secrets this time, Cale. He knows I’m Ekho.”

Dante jerked to the side when Cale moved to stand on his right in silence.

“Where did you come from?” Dante asked, shock clear in his expression.

“Somewhere your kind cannot reach easily,” Cale said, studying the black roots rising around Tani.

“Why are you standing in a circle of heat?” Cale asked Tani. He pressed his palm against the wall and winced.

“Powerful magik,” Cale said, staring at his singed palms when he pulled his hand away. His wounds disappeared in an instant.

“The wall of heat is secondary,” Tani said. “Why do we have kara ot on this island?”

“Clearly, someone has brought it here,” Cale shrugged. “Should we let it flourish?”

“This is not a joke,” Tani warned. “Mortals live here.”

“You mean your mortal lives here,” Cale said, glancing at a confused Dante.

“Cale,” Tani said, annoyed by Cale’s indifference.

Dante frowned when Tani held out his hands to Cale. Tani’s hands moved through the wall of heat with no trouble.

“I thought I was holding you in place?” Dante asked.

“Were you?” Tani asked, smiling at him. “Don’t be shocked.”

“You keep saying that. Shocked by what?” Dante asked.

The illusion Tani kept up for the sake of his mortal life fell away.

Dante gaped. His gaze fixed on the intricate, wide gold cuffs wrapped around Tani’s wrists. They were an inch thick and looked heavy enough to sink a man to the bottom of a deep lake. Intricate designs were carved into the heavy gold.

The symbols forged in the gold were a binding spell designed to hold Tani in the mortal realm for a thousand years.

“I’m the only one who can heal this blight. Take the cuffs off,” Tani said to Cale.

Cale watched the black tendrils grow faster now. Whipping around Tani, agitated.

“Why can’t we let the black weed grow? Let it flourish in this place—”

“Your power is currently feeding the Kara ot,” Tani said, annoyed when Cale only shrugged. “It is deep in the land to be coming up this fast. Hera and Tom are on this property. You know the black weed will seek them out and do its best to infect them until they are wasted. You are honor bound to Uncle Amu to protect them.”

Cale still looked unwilling, his gaze sliding to Dante with a wince.

“Tani, returning the cuffs will hurt. Are you sure you want to do this now?” Cale asked, nodding to Dante.

Tani looked at a shocked Dante. He had no words for this moment.

Hearing Dante refer to him as Ekho had felt good. The secret of what he was always easiest out, like the first time they met in the old forest. The lifetimes where he had to hide what he was were the hardest. Dante’s abundant power meant there was no need to remain cautious. They could meet on equal terms.

In any case, the kara ot needed to be cleaned.

Tom and Hera had come to this vineyard to heal the soil.

Tani always did his best to fulfill their wishes.

“I will endure,” Tani said to Cale.

He then met Dante’s curious gaze.

Cale grumbled under his breath as he looked at Dante, then let out a loud exasperated sigh. He stepped forward, taking Tani’s wrists in his hands. White light wrapped around the gold cuffs, and they disappeared from Tani’s wrists.

***

Dante stepped back as Tani pulled his hands back into his circle, head tilted to the skies, every muscle on his body straining, amber eyes turning a brilliant gold. Lightening colored the skies above them, and thunder rolled, loud and heart-shaking. The ground shook, and Dante started to step back, reaching for the closest olive tree to steady.

“Don’t move,” Tani said, his voice soft, cajoling as he met Dante’s gaze, his amber eyes now a vivid gold. “Otherwise, the kara ot will come for you. Now, feel and learn what I teach. Your wall of heat is incomplete if you want to use it to keep in your prey.”

Dante started to ask what Tani meant, only to gasp when the wall of heat shifted, moving away from Tani and instead circling around him. The spell to make a similar wall whispered in his head and burned into his memory as revitalizing warmth circled around him. The wall of heat turned solid, like transparent glass forged from clear sand, wrapped around Dante in a hard protective circle.

One moment, Dante was staring into Tani’s eyes. The next, Tani dropped to the ground, slamming his right palm deep into the ground where the black weed grew. When he straightened to his full height, he pulled out a sizeable, thick root of the black weed. Holding it with both hands, Tani closed his eyes, and gold fire seeped into the black tendrils from where he held the thick root, black claws digging into the sooty skin.

Sensing danger, the large black tendrils did their best to wiggle away from the gold fire. Wiggling, agitated. The thick roots slammed hard against the circle around Dante. Dante quickly noticed the black weed did not attempt to reach for the man in a navy blue suit standing to his right. Cale, Tani had called him.

The ground shook and trembled, the dark roots digging deeper, moving under the soil, uprooting three large olive trees. Dante winced at the destruction, wishing he could save the old trees. The black weed dug through the earth, racing away from Tani and his gold fire.

“No,” Dante said, afraid when the ground bulged quickly, the damage heading straight toward the vineyard and Artri House.

Tani noticed the black weed’s change, too.

“The parasite is rooted deep in the land. Cale,” Tani said, in his voice rough. “Protect yourself from me.”

“Burn hot, little lordling,” Cale said, giving Tani an exaggerated bow.

Dante frowned at Cale when he rose, a dark cloud swirling around him.

“Dante, shield your eyes if it gets too bright,” Tani ordered, sparing Dante a glance before he let go of the black weed.

Gold fire wrapped the thick black roots around Tani, squirming in an attempt to escape the damaging gold flames. Tani knelt on the ground, eyes closed, and sank his hands into the disturbed ground. He seemed to pop open a cap holding his power deep inside him. He allowed his power to pour out of him in a forceful rush.

Dante gasped as the pressure of Tani’s power wrapped around him despite the shielding wall. The pressure surrounding him felt like falling into the deepest part of a lake without knowing how to escape the crushing force of the water. There was not enough air for his next breath. Dante’s hands came up to his throat, breathing shallow breaths, fighting panic. Dante gasped for air.

“Sorry,” Tani whispered.

The pressure eased, and he took in several deep breaths in relief.

Tani remained focused on the ground.

Dante’s gaze shifted to the black weed now racing toward Artri House over the vast expanse of the vineyard. The thickening roots formed deep, damaging ridges in the land, damaging vines and trees in a quest to escape Tani.

Tani let out an arduous shout, drawing Dante’s gaze. He watched as Tani sunk his hands deeper into the ground until they were elbow-deep, and then gold light enveloped every living thing in sight.

Dante closed his eyes to escape the intensity of the white-hot light. When he opened his eyes again, it was to see the ridges made by the dark weed healing. The vines restored as before, slowly creeping over their usual lines. The deep ridges returned to normal, and the roots of the uprooted olive trees dug back into the ground, sinking deeper until they were standing again. The ground around Tani was scotched white.

The wall of heat melted away and sunk into the ground. Dante stepped back, eyes wide as the grass on the ground was restored to green, the white circle around Tani reducing until he removed his hands.

Dante took a step toward Tani. Tani remained kneeling, and when he looked at Dante, it was with beautiful amber eyes. Dante closed the distance between them and dropped to his knees before Tani.

“Your vineyard is clean again,” Tani said with a small smile. “I suppose we should solve the mystery of how such a large parasite ended up on your precious vineyard.”

“Is it normal for Ekho realm parasites to migrate to our realm?” Dante asked.

“No,” Tani said, shaking his head. Then, he started to reach up to touch Dante’s cheek. He stopped when he noticed the dirt on his left hand.

Dante frowned at the disappointment inside him when Tani dropped his hand to his lap.

“Almost millennia, and you still shake my heart,” Tani said, his words heavy with sorrow and joy melded into a tone that sunk into Dante’s cold heart.

Dante started to speak, but Cale cut in.

“Are you ready?” Cale asked.

“I’m never ready,” Tani said, tired and unwilling. “Let’s get it over with.”

“Move,” Cale said, squeezing Dante’s shoulder.

Dante moved away from Tani, not stepping too far, though. Cale crouched before Tani and held his gaze momentarily, and then Tani nodded.

Cale cursed under his breath, and then he was holding Tani’s wrists.

Tani let out a gut-wrenching scream, making Dante grip Cale’s shoulder, intent on pushing Cale away from Tani. Cale shrugged off his hold and glared at him.

“Stay put, mortal,” Cale ordered. “It is not your place to interfere.”

Tani's scream continued, making Dante feel like he might tear out his hair at the pain-filled sound. Then silence came, and Tani fell into Cale’s arms.

Dante placed a hand on Tani’s right shoulder, pulling him back. He peered into Tani’s face, resting on Cale’s shoulder. Tani’s eyes were closed. He was unconscious.

“What did you do to him?” Dante asked Cale. “What the fuck did you do to him?”

“Wrong question. You should ask what Ryuzo did to himself because of you,” Cale said, wrapping an arm around Tani’s shoulders. It was in apparent preparation to leave, so Dante gripped Cale’s arm, holding Cale and Tani in place.

“Tani promised to stay,” Dante said, meeting unnerving black eyes. He had never seen eyes as dark as midnight before.

Cale had to be a dark Ekho. Perhaps the god of calamity in person.

“He promised to stay,” Dante said, holding Cale’s terrifying gaze, refusing to cower in the face of such dark power.

“He sure makes a lot of unnecessary promises to you,” Cale hissed, making Dante flinch.

“Artri House has comfortable guest rooms,” Dante continued, ignoring the annoyance in Cale’s unusual eyes. He was not losing Tani because he was afraid. “He has protected our vineyard. The least we can offer is a place for him to rest. Please, don’t take him away.”

Cale started to shrug Dante’s hold on his arm away, and Dante felt panic rise. He tightened his grip on Cale’s arm as a small part of the cold wall inside him cracked and crumbled away.

“Please…” Dante said, shocked by the depths he felt his plea.

He was desperate to keep Tani with him at Artri House. He bit his bottom lip as determination to keep Tani grew inside him. He would fight Cale off if needed. He was still strong enough to burn an Ekho.

“You…,” Cale frowned, his gaze shifting to where Dante held his right arm. The blue suit was starting to burn. “Hey, don’t you dare burn my bespoke suit. Do you know how much it costs? I got it delivered two days ago.”

“Give him to me,” Dante said, not letting go of Cale’s arm.

“Are you sure?” Cale asked with a scoff. “He might be more than you bargained for.”

“I don’t care, give him to me,” Dante said, impatience coloring his voice.

“No need to get mean,” Cale said with a sigh. “You cannot teleport. I will take you to Artri House. You can take him from there.”

Cale did not give him time to protest the idea. They teleported out of the olive grove, and a second later, Dante’s arms were filled with a passed-out Tani. At the same time, Cale leaned on a sculpted stone urn planter bursting with blooming Sweet William flowers.

Dante glared at Cale.

“You can’t teleport without care here. There are people in the house—”

“You forget what I am,” Cale said, folding his arms against his chest. “None of the mortals saw us. They’ll assume we drove back from the olive grove. Hera and Tom are in the kitchen with your mother.”

Dante hissed and looked at Tani’s face. Tani looked peaceful, as though he slept. Dante touched the lock of red-brown hair falling over Tani’s right eye, stroking the soft strands away with his index finger.

Tani looked thirty years old. He had high cheekbones, was clean-shaven, and his skin smooth. Dante wanted to trace the line Tani’s eyelashes made against his skin. He stopped himself because Tani was lying on the grass before Artri House.

Cale’s dark eyes watched him with too much interest.

“When is he going to wake up?” Dante asked.

“I don’t know,” Cale said, rolling his shoulders in a negligent shrug when Dante looked at him. “Last time, it took a month.”

Dante frowned and returned his perplexed gaze to Tani.

“I—”

He never finished his sentence. Hera and Tom came running out of the house. Hera pulled Tani out of Dante’s arms before he could protest. She rested Tani’s head on her lap while Tom straightened Tani’s arms and legs.

“What happened?” Hera asked, looking at Cale.

“He cleansed the kara ot from the vineyard. It was larger than he thought, sunk deep in the ground in the olive grove. It has been feeding itself a long time,” Cale said.

“The cuffs came off,” Tom said, sitting back on his haunches with a sigh.

Hera echoed the sigh and pointed to Tom.

“You get the car. I’ll hold him for now,” Hera said.

Disappointment filled Dante. He did not want Tani to leave yet. Even if it took a month for Tani to wake up, he wanted him here at Artri House.

Irrational, as they had just met, but…panic rose deep inside him.

“Wait, Tom. Tani asked to stay with Dante,” Cale said, surprising Dante.

“What?” Hera asked, frowning as she looked at Dante. “Why would Babu ask to stay with a man who burned him and caused him pain?”

“It’s complicated,” Cale said. “Sweet Hera, you always do what your Babu wants. He promised to stay here.”

Hera cursed under her breath in a language Dante didn’t understand. He was sure she was cursing him out as she promptly glared at him.

“Dante Arturo,” Hera said, her accent clear as she said his name. “Does anyone in your house know the healing arts?”

“Yes,” Dante said with a triumphant smile. “My mother is very skilled.”

“I hope so. Let’s get Babu off the grass and into a comfortable bed,” Hera said. “It took too long to heal the damage caused by the cuffs. Perhaps with your bloodline, we might be able to wake him earlier than a month.”

“Why does he have to wear the cuffs?” Dante asked, his gaze on the shining gold cuffs on Tani’s wrists. Their intricate designs were enough to make him sigh. He never wanted to hear Tani scream as he did back in the olive grove. “Can’t we take them off?”

Cale scoffed behind Dante.

Hera and Tom stared at him with wide eyes.

“Dante,” Nora Arturo said from the front door. “I know I taught you better than this. How dare you keep a guest lying on our front lawn like a discarded carcass?”

Dante winced at his mother’s callous comments. She could embarrass the god of calamity if she so wanted.

“Come on, Dante, use those muscles and lift Mr. Ryuzo,” Nora said when he didn’t move fast enough for her. “Get him off the grass; his t-shirt will get grass stains, and that’s not good. Take him to the blue room. Hera, Tom, come inside. We’ll show you where your boss can stay during his visit with us.”

Hera sighed as she watched Dante lift Tani into his arms. She only moved once he started toward the front door of Artri House.

****

Nora Arturo stood at the front door, her arms crossed against her chest, her gaze on the tall man in a navy blue suit standing by her sweet Williams. The dark aura around him was enough to make her shudder.

Hera and Tom entered the house, following Dante and his…

Nora frowned.

Ryuzo, she thought with a small smile.

Her gaze returned to the dark man still standing by the flowerpot urn.

“You’re warded against me,” he said, straightening to his height.

“We are,” Nora said. “It’s an old ward created by my grandmother.”

“She was powerful,” Cale said, a smile curving his lips. “I can’t step on the grass.”

“She was paranoid,” Nora said.

“Look after the little lordling for me,” Cale said.

“Artri House will take care of him,” Nora said.

“Thank you,” Cale said, giving her an archaic lordly bow before he disappeared.

Nora let out a soft breath and dropped her hands to her sides. She could not believe that the calm creature was the god of calamity.

There was more to the Ryuzo warning.

As she turned to enter the house, she stopped when she saw the five Elderwood leaves carved on the wood threshold of Artri House glowing gold.

Nora smiled and pulled the front mat over the symbol with a pleased grin.

***