Lori Lee - Gates of Thread and Stone

She hadn’t answered my question. They could have just told me all this. Instead, they had manipulated my every move—and now, recalling my conversations with Irra, I had little doubt that he’d been in on this as well. I had been as much a puppet as Ninu’s human decoy.

If they had told me what they wanted, would I have helped them? I didn’t hate my life. It wasn’t ideal, but I had Reev, a place to sleep, and enough food to keep me going. What did I care about their stupid immortal feud? I had always wanted to know where my powers came from, but that didn’t mean I wanted to be like them.

I didn’t want to be Infinite.

“Exactly,” Kronos said, watching me closely. “You wouldn’t have done as asked. Your humanity, your emotional attachments hinder you.”

I scowled. “You can read minds, too?”

“Your eyes give away your thoughts.”

“You wanted Reev dead,” Avan cut in.

I turned to him. He looked steadier, and he’d been watching the conversation unfold with an increasingly dark expression.

Reev added, “They probably expected Ninu to have me rebranded already. And once you killed him, there would have been nothing left—no emotional attachments —holding you to your human life. They would have used that to persuade you to join them.”

They thought Reev’s death would convince me to let my humanity go. They obviously knew nothing about humans.

From the moment Kalla attacked me in that alley, I had performed according to their script. But, because of Ninu, it hadn’t gone exactly as planned. Instead of just creating a mental block, Ninu could’ve begun Reev’s rebranding at any time, and he hadn’t. For that, I was grateful. They were out of their immortal minds if they thought I would want anything to do with them now.

“You screwed up,” I told them. “I’ll never be one of you.”

“I never intended for you to remain human, Kai,” Kronos said. “Ninu may be gone, but Reev’s life remains tenuous.”

I didn’t care that he was my dad. Reev was my family . I moved to put myself in front of both Reev and Avan, and silenced their objections with a glare. “If you hurt him, I swear I’ll never leave this body. I’ll find a way to bind myself permanently.”

“That’s impossible,” Kalla said.

“Then why do you look so nervous? I’d rather die human than be like you.”

A weak laugh pierced the room. It resonated in my chest. On the floor, Ninu stirred. It was the slightest movement, the most he could manage.

“Yes,” he whispered. “Yes. That’s the right choice. Don’t ever let them take that from you.”

I felt nothing but hatred for Ninu, but I understood his words.

Kalla’s perfect lips pursed. Even annoyed, she looked unnaturally beautiful. I should have realized it at the Raging Bull.

“Persistent, aren’t you?” she said.

“Well, it is rather difficult to pass on with our dear friend Time weaving his interference,” Ninu replied. “I stand now at the gates to your realm, Sister.”

I could sense all the tones and tremors in his voice. It conjured images of glass shrines that reflected the sunlight and billows of greasy smoke that reminded me of the market outside Zora Hall. Then he dragged in a shallow, wet breath, and the images dispersed.

“There are no more restrictions holding you. Help me along, won’t you, Sister?”

Kalla’s scythe appeared in a flash of light. She approached Ninu, weapon raised. I looked away, focusing instead on the stubble on Avan’s jaw. It was a good look on him.

Kalla’s blade whined as it sliced the air. I flinched.

A SHIVER OFpower went through me, and I knew Ninu was gone. I held my breath in the silence that followed.

Kronos sighed heavily. “I’m not unreasonable, Kai. I do not wish for you to hate me. You are, after all, my daughter.”

I didn’t tell him that, after all their scheming, our relationship didn’t mean much. Especially since I couldn’t remember any of it. I wanted to ask if I would get my memory back, but the answer scared me. If I remembered, if I knew where I’d come from, would it change who I was now?

For the first time, the answers were within my grasp, and I couldn’t reach for them. Not without betraying Reev and Avan.

“I may not be fully recovered, but I don’t have need of my heir yet,” Kronos continued.

“You’re immortal,” I pointed out. “When will you ever have need of me?”

His eyes were cool. “I am the oldest of the Infinite, and immortality has grown weary. When I have decided it is time to rest, I will call on you. For now, you may remain with the humans. But the next time I come, you will be prepared to join me. And I will not be so charitable.”

I didn’t reply. He would just remind me of the control he had over the lives of anyone I cared about.

“For now,” he said, apparently taking my silence for agreement, “make your peace with your human bonds.”

I leaned back against Avan’s chest and felt his fingers against my waist.

Kronos gave me a steady look. I had the impression I amused him, but I couldn’t be sure.

“I have one final task before I leave,” Kronos added.

I waited for him to elaborate. He looked over my shoulder. I twisted around to stare at Avan.

“Avan?”

His knuckles brushed my cheek. “I know what you think I am. But I’m not mahjo .”

“Some humans,” Kronos said, “possess the ability to sense the Infinite. As one of them, and due to his affection for you, Avan was in a convenient position to be your guardian.”

I moved away from Avan, and he let me go. I looked between them, from Kronos’s stoic face to Avan’s guilty one.

“You knew? All along, you knew and you didn’t tell me?”

“I didn’t know all this, ” Avan said, gesturing around us. “I told you I already knew what you could do, Kai. I knew you were special; and when Kronos came to me, I finally discovered why. But I wasn’t expecting any of this.”

“With Reev gone, you were the only person I thought I could trust, and you’ve been lying to me from the start.”

“I had to be able to protect you.”

“I knew you would need help, so I offered him a proposition,” Kronos said. “He made an adequate guardian.”

As furious as I was with Avan, I had to defend him. “Adequate? He saved my life.” Probably more than once.

Kronos looked down his nose at me. “Precisely.” Then he said to Avan, “You recall what I told you about your time?”

Avan nodded.

“Okay,” I said, lifting my hands. “Quit being cryptic and tell me what’s going on.”

“He asked me to keep you safe, and he gave me the power to do it,” Avan said. He rubbed the back of his neck, as if the admission embarrassed him. “But if I told you the truth, the deal would be off. In Etu Gahl, when I thought that was the end of your search for Reev, I wanted to tell you then.”

What if you could find out for sure? Avan had said that first night. Would you want to know?

Suddenly, I couldn’t catch my breath. “Why didn’t you?” I asked, overcome.

“Because Irra promised a way back into Ninurta, and I had to be there to protect you.”

“I can take care of myself.” I spat out the words. Not only had he lied to me, he hadn’t trusted me to keep myself safe.

“I know,” he said. “And I know what you’re thinking, but you’re wrong. You’re a strong person, Kai. I’ve always admired that about you. But anything could happen, and I had to be prepared for both our sakes.”

“How long have you known?”

“Since the day before Reev disappeared.”