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They tied Dirk up and left with the boy, Zeke. He was remarkably composed and appeared unconcerned to be with strangers. He said little except to ask their names and where they were going. In return Sybilla asked him how old he was and how often he saw his father. His answers were nine and not much.
The streets were still deserted and they made it back to the bakery without mishap. When they walked in with Zeke there was a long silence as they all stared in amazement at Zeus’s treasure. Once recovered from their surprise they left Zeke with Alice and some food and met in the adjoining room to discuss their next move.
“I was certainly not expecting that,” Aaron said to Sybilla as they all found seats.
“Who’s his mother?” Katerina asked.
“Considering this is the first we’ve known of the boy, I would say his mother is either well-hidden, well-paid to keep her silence or dead,” Aaron guessed.
“Now what?”
“We go ahead as planned. This is even better because he won’t abandon the boy.” There was excitement in Aaron’s voice and he was pacing with nervous energy.
“He’s the cruelest man I’ve ever known,” Sybilla said. “If anyone could sacrifice...” she trailed off, looking through the doorway towards the room Zeke was in.
“But he hasn’t — that’s the point. He’s kept him safe and hidden all these years.”
“Vanity perhaps?” Katerina suggested. “Maybe he wants his blood line to continue?”
“I don’t think you can trust him,” Sybilla tried again.
“I don’t trust him. I just need him to show up.”
“What are you going to do to my father?” a voice asked from the doorway. Zeke had appeared without their awareness. Embarrassed, Alice was right behind him trying to steer him away, but Aaron waved him in.
“We just need to meet him because we have some business to do with him. Do you mind?”
“You think he’ll come to get me?”
“Yes, we hope so. What do you think?” Katerina asked.
“He may,” the boy shrugged. “He doesn’t like people knowing about me. He killed the last guard that told someone else about me.” Shocked they all stared at him. He shrugged again. “There was nothing I could do. I asked him not to but he doesn’t listen to me. The only person he ever listens to is my aunt.”
“Diana?”
“Sometimes.”
“Do you love your dad?” Katerina spoke again,.
“I don’t know. I hardly ever see him. He doesn’t talk to me, he doesn’t listen to me. He keeps me hidden away all the time...should I love him?” No one knew what to say to that. He continued, “What will happen to me after you meet him?”
“What would you like to happen?”
“I would like to play with other kids like I used to,” he said decisively.
“Maybe we can arrange that,” Katerina ignored Aaron’s warning look.
The boy studied her momentarily then nodded, “You’re telling the truth. You will try — that’s good enough. Can I have some more food?”
“Sure,” Alice said quickly. “Come on.”
“So now what?” Noah asked when the boy had gone.
“Now I’ll let Karim know and he’ll get a message to Zeus. It may take a day or two, so we’ll rest up while we wait.”
They all slept surprisingly well and woke late. Everyone was already up and breakfast half eaten when Katerina made her way downstairs to the small, warm kitchen. There was an air of excitement present — she could only imagine it was because they had heard back from Zeus already. “So,” she began as she helped herself to bread, cold meat and cheese, “who’s going to be meeting Zeus, me or Noah?”
“Actually, Karim’s contact got back to him late last night and we’ve had the most unbelievable news. Diana is here with Zeus! So you’ll both be going.”
“You think he’ll bring her to the meeting?”
“After what Zeke told us last night, I think Diana is the only person he trusts. So yes, I think he’ll bring her.”
“That’s amazing...when do we leave?”
“The meet’s set for just after midday.”
“That soon?” she was suddenly nervous.
“Yes, in a few hours. And we have a lot to do. Eat up then we’ll start getting ready.”
Katerina had a very small window of time to herself before they wanted her back. She went to her room to prepare herself mentally. She had only been thinking and pacing for a few minutes however, when Aaron knocked on her door. He got straight to the point. “Are you okay Katerina? Do you feel ready? You looked like you had some things on your mind at breakfast.”
“I do actually. I think maybe you should give this ring to someone else,” she held Claudia’s ring out towards him. “I don’t know how to use it obviously. I was completely fooled by Josiah.”
Aaron frowned. “I see your point. But remember, I said you might not want to see through him. Truth is something you need to actively search for. It’s far easier to live in delusion and many choose to do so. But truth — truth requires a cost.”
“What sort of cost?”
“Truth does set you free, as the ring says. It heals and guides and protects you. But it will also challenge your delusions, the lies you cling to, the deceptions you embrace to stay safe. That’s why so many people prefer to live their lives without any reference to the truth.”
“Are you saying that I didn’t realize Josiah was dodgy because I didn’t want to? I had some reasons to want to believe he was who he was pretending to be?”
“Yes. The question is, why did you want him to be genuine?”
They sat in silence a while. Then Katerina admitted, “I think it’s because I was so hurt by Noah and Patrick. I wanted to believe Josiah was someone I could trust. It made me feel better.”
“Well done. Now look at the ring.”
Obediently she held it up and gasped. “It’s really bright! I’ve seen glimpses of gold before but not like this!”
“That’s right. Keep being that honest with yourself and it will only increase in strength.”
“I’ll try,” she was examining the golden-yellow glow in amazement.
“I don’t know if it’ll work when you get back home or not. But whatever you do, don’t let your parents get hold of it...It’s time to get ready — let’s go.”
She and Noah were taken to one of the bedrooms and given new outfits. Katerina went to a different room to change and when she returned there were four extra people present. A tall, dark-haired man, who to her shock looked surprisingly like Noah, greeted her, along with a woman who had features remarkably similar to her own. The other two appeared to be there to assist and promptly had the two women and the two men sit side by side, all facing into mirrors.
Just as had happened with Alice after she killed Alexandre, they were each given vials of liquid to drink. Amused, Katerina watched as her eyes changed to dark brown to match the other woman while the latter’s eyes morphed into her deep hazel ones. “We’re becoming each other, right?” she asked.
The woman nodded back but there was no humor in her voice when she replied, “Levi and I are buying you time to get close to them, just in case they have a description of what you look like. You had better not blow it or we’ll all be in danger.” Sobered, Katerina nodded and awkwardly turned away.
Next her hair was sprayed to change temporarily from brunette to blonde. When she rose, wearing the dark gray pants, white top and jacket, she barely recognized herself. Noah too had turned blond and looked like a stranger to himself in black pants, a shirt and a black leather coat.
They had yet another debrief with Aaron before they left: Katerina and Noah, Levi and Rachell, their doubles. Once he was satisfied everyone knew the plan, they said their farewells to Alice before leaving. Noah lingered a few moments longer, hugging her and speaking quietly into her ear. When he let her go, brother and sister both had tears in their eyes.
The meeting was taking place in Mahalia Restaurant which had been closed for the afternoon for them. Karim met them just before they reached it to let them know Zeus had not yet arrived, but several of his guards had. “Ours are in place too,” Karim told Aaron.
“You realize this could be it,” Aaron murmured, gripping Karim’s shoulder with emotion.
“Yes. This really could be the end of it all.” There was a break in Karim’s voice.
They approached Mahalia Restaurant from the south. Levi and Rachell walked beside Aaron with Katerina and Noah flanking them as bodyguards. Karim took the lead.
The restaurant was set beside a river, perched high on a bank overlooking the rushing blue water. It had a deep veranda encircling it and was completely constructed of a glowing, golden wood. It was riddled with windows and as they approached they saw it was already full of people, mostly men, heavily armed and grim. Katerina clutched her own revolver tightly and steeled herself for the meeting. “Relax,” Aaron muttered to her, “or you will give yourself away.”
They entered and took up position. Noah and Katerina stood apart from Aaron, watching the roads outside. No one spoke — they all waited.
Ten minutes passed in silence then two dark cars appeared in the distance, moving fast. They swerved to a stop in front of the restaurant and several men emerged from each, heavily armed. When they were in position flanking the two cars, Zeus emerged next. He was tall, resplendent in black and surprisingly attractive. He was almost, Katerina reflected, a darker harder version of Noah. She hadn’t noticed that back at the train station. His face looked softer than she had expected too and she started wondering if he was really as bad as they had been told. But then he looked briefly at her with cold, dead eyes and she knew it was all true.
Behind her, Katerina heard Aaron shift uncomfortably and guessed he was waiting to see if Diana was there too. A lot was riding on her being present, because reaching her if they killed Zeus might prove impossible. With three siblings’ dead, she would surely become even more inaccessible than she already was.
But then another car door opened and Diana stepped out. She was tiny, petite and beautiful. She wore a red belted trench-coat and her ice-white blonde hair cascaded down her back. Once more, Katerina thought in surprise, she didn’t seem that terrifying. And yet, again when she looked closer, she saw something frightening in Diana’s eyes that spoke of darkness, even madness.
Zeus waited for his sister and they climbed the steps to the restaurant together. He paused inside the door, taking everything in. His eyes flicked but briefly over Katerina and Noah, coming to rest, as they had hoped, on Levi and Rachell.
“So, these are your puppets Aaron,” he said, walking closer — yet not too close. From a distance he circled them as if they were slabs of meat to inspect. “They’re nothing much,” he dismissed them abruptly and walked to the back of the restaurant. Taking a seat he studied Aaron with distaste. With his legs casually crossed, one arm slung over the chair back, he looked every inch the part of a powerful Mafioso boss.
Aaron had warned them beforehand that Zeus’s men would be searching for Zeke even before coming to the restaurant and it was only a matter of time until they found him. Their window of opportunity was short so Aaron came straight to the point. He too took a seat, facing the man, and said, “We have your son.”
Zeus leaned forward at that and a change came over his whole face. It transformed from mesmerizingly handsome to ugly and cruel in a moment. “You have my son and you think to go against me? Me!”
“We have a proposition for you. We return Zeke to you. You leave Santtu and Cereise alone.”
Zeus studied him a moment then started to laugh. “You think you can take my son and bargain with me?”
“We know about Zeke now. And we have ways to track him even after you take him back. You will never be able to keep him hidden from us again. If you break your word my men will find him.”
As they talked, Katerina was taking a few subtle steps towards Zeus. It was obvious they actually needed him out of the chair for her to get close enough. Noah was nearer to Diana, who was watching the interchange between Aaron and her brother enigmatically.
“Your men!” Zeus spat. He rose and took a few steps forward. “Your men betray you. You have many traitors within your ranks and you have no idea who.” His eyes narrowed. “You talk nonsense. You have no way to do what you claim. You waste my time — why?”
Aaron stayed silent. Zeus thought a moment, then nodded at his men. In moments they had surrounded Levi and Rachell, seizing them roughly, guns to their heads. Aaron’s men moved too, guns to Zeus’s men. Noah moved instantly closer to Diana, Katerina to Zeus. “You think to do to me what you did to my foolish sister and brother? You have no chance — I will kill your puppets now.” He said it calmly, yet there was no doubt he would carry out his threat.
At that moment, Sybilla swept through the door. She glanced quickly at Aaron and her look said it all. Zeke had been found.
Because Noah was focused on getting near Diana, he saw her reaction to Sybilla first. She went white as a sheet and clutched at a chair for support. “Lynne?” she whispered, just loud enough for him to hear. She looked like she had seen a ghost. Zeus turned around to his sister, following her gaze to Sybilla and back. Recognition dawned on Noah and Zeus at the same time —Diana thought she was looking at her mother.
“How can you be here?” Diana cried, her voice rising.
“That’s not Lynne,” Zeus said. “Who are you?” he demanded of Sybilla. “I know you...”
She ignored him, addressing Diana, “You think I’m your mother?”
“Who are you?”
“I am Sybilla. And I know who you are. Our mothers gave birth to us at the same time.” She was walking towards Diana purposefully. Katerina wondered briefly if she was just trying to buy them time. Yet there was the ring of truth in her voice. “My mother was always convinced we were switched, that you were her true daughter. She felt no connection with me because she believed I wasn’t hers.”
Diana was shaking her head in disbelief. “It’s not true!”
“Really?” Sybilla demanded. Her eyes flicked to Noah, an invitation in them to move as she did so. Behind Zeus, Katerina took another step towards the ruler. His men were too focused elsewhere to notice. “Then why do you look so like my mother and I like yours?” Sybilla continued, taunting Diana.
The door opened abruptly again, interrupting her. This time two men entered shunting Zeke in before them.
Katerina’s heart sank. They were out of time.
Zeus and Aaron both reacted at once. Zeus spun towards his men and nodded, “Do it!” Aaron cried, “Wait!” and into the split-second pause that followed, yelled at Katerina and Noah, “Now!”
Noah reached Diana in one pace and Katerina flung herself forward at Zeus, so they touched the two rulers simultaneously. Things went oddly hazy — then abruptly, Noah and Katerina were both home.
