Laura Jo Phillips (62 page)

“That is a unique and thoughtful tradition,” Clark said.  “It must be interesting to look at the faces of your ancestors.” 

“Yes, I have always loved the Wedding Book,” Hope said.  “As a little girl I used to dream of the dress I would wear on my wedding day because I wanted to have the most beautiful one in the Wedding Book,” Hope paused for a moment.  “Now that I have no family left to me, the book helps me to remember that my family has existed for a long time, and that as long as I am still here, it still exists.” 

“When we found the book, we sensed that it was something important to you,” Jackson said.  “As Clark said, we thought that Ellicia might be able to find you through it, and she tried, but it didn’t work.  Her gift did not work that way.  But I admit that we went through the book.”

“Is that the thing you wish to confess?” Hope asked.

“Yes, it is,” Jackson replied.  “In part.”

“I don’t mind,” Hope assured them.  “It’s a book meant to be seen, not a book of secrets.”

“That’s a relief,” Rob said with a smile.

“We found one image that we sensed you returned to many times,” Jackson continued.  “It was about half way through the book, the name below the image was...,”

“Minerva,” Hope interrupted.

Jackson smiled.  “Yes, that one.”

“There is something about her that always draws me,” Hope said.  “My mother was named after her.”

Their dinner arrived at that moment so they set their conversation aside for a while.  Once the wine was poured and the waiter left them to their dinner, Jackson led the discussion toward more general topics while they ate.  When they were finished and the plates were taken, he returned to more important matters.

“We understand that you think your beliefs are different from ours, Hope,” Jackson began, “but in truth, we did not understand what your beliefs really are, or what they meant.  We asked the Director for help, and he assisted us in finding three people to teach us your beliefs, and the meanings behind them.  We spent many hours with these people over the past week, discussing our beliefs and our ways, as well as yours.”

Hope was stunned.  She had never imagined that they would do such a thing.  She wanted to ask them why they had done it, but she also wanted to hear the rest of what Jackson wanted to say.

“In the end, we discovered that our morals, rules, and beliefs, are very much like your own.  Much more than they might appear, actually.”

“Why did you do this?” Hope asked, unable to withhold the question any longer. 

“We know, from what you told us, that the ceremony of marriage is very important to you,” Jackson explained.  “In truth, it would have been a simple thing for us to go through with that ceremony just to satisfy your beliefs.  But our beliefs would not allow us to do that.”

“It would have felt like we were lying to you,” Rob said.

“So we took the time to learn, and understand, the meanings behind your beliefs,” Clark added.

“Having done that, we can now honestly say that we appreciate and respect your beliefs,” Jackson said, “and we find that, at their core, they are very much the same as our own.  Without sacrificing our own beliefs, we are certain that yours, and ours, can live together in harmony.

“Therefore, we do this with a full understanding of what we ask, and what our obligations to you, and ourselves, will be if you agree,” Jackson said.

Jackson rose from his seat, then held his hands out to Hope.  She wasn’t sure what he meant to do but she took his hand and stood up.  Clark and Rob came around the table to stand beside Jackson and then, much to her shock, all three of them went down on one knee in front of her.  Jackson reached into his pocket and pulled out a cream colored velvet box.

“Hope Strigida, we love you, and we ask that you marry us,” Jackson said.

“We will stay here, on Earth, with you and the boys, if that is what you wish,” Clark said.

“We will live anywhere you want, do anything you want, make whatever you want work for all of us,” Rob added.

“No matter what we do or where we live, for the remainder of our lives, we both need and want you with us,” Jackson finished.  “Please, say yes.”

Jackson flipped the box open, revealing a ring that seemed to draw all of the light in the room and convert it to white fire.  There were three round diamonds set in a row on a platinum band, each one surrounded by tiny gemstones; topaz that matched the blue of Jackson’s eyes, peridot that matched the green of Clark’s eyes, and moonstones that matched the pale silver of Rob’s eyes.  She had never seen a more beautiful, or meaningful ring, and she instantly wanted to wear it.

But she had to think about this for a moment.  Did she really want them to sacrifice their lives for her?  Why would they even offer to do such a thing?  What would the Jasani think about them keeping the only members of one of the Lost Clans on Earth?

All of these questions, and others, raced through her mind in the space of a few seconds. 

Jackson reached out and touched her hand lightly with one finger.  “Hope, don’t think of anything else right now,” he said.  “Only one thing matters at this moment.  Do you love us, as we love you, and if you do, will you marry us and spend the rest of your life with us?” 

Hope did as Jackson asked, and considered that one question only.  When she did that, she knew that the answer to the question was really very simple.

“Yes,” she said.  “I do love you, each of you.  But, there is a problem.”

“Which is?” Jackson asked warily.

“I cannot marry three men,” she said.  “It is not allowed.”

“It is allowed,” Jackson said.  “We have already addressed this issue with the proper authorities.  Since we are Jasani, and our physiology and culture are what they are, we have received approval to legally marry you.”

“But I am not Jasani,” Hope pointed out.

“Actually, you are,” Jackson replied, much to Hope’s shock.  “You will need to have a genetic test to prove it, but considering that your cousin fathered the first three members of the Owlfen in many thousands of years, and you are
berezi
, we have no doubt that you will have some Jasani genetic markers as well.”

Hope considered that and decided that, on the surface, it made sense, though she was going to have a few questions about it.  Later.

“And because of that, it will be allowed?” she asked, sticking to the subject.

“Yes,” Jackson replied.  “However, it will be a civil ceremony, not a religious one.” 

Hope didn’t mind that.  Neither she nor her family had ever been particularly religious.  Strong morals, and a sense of right and wrong did not have to go hand in hand with religion.  It was important to her that she do the right thing in the right way, according to how she was raised, but that was all she wanted.  The Bearens had certainly done everything they could to ensure that was possible.

The question now was, why?  Why had they done it?  Did they really love her that much? 

She looked down at the ring that Jackson still held out toward her, and was very tempted to say yes.  She wanted to say yes with her entire being.  But what if she was wrong again? 

“Would you mind if I take a little time to think about this?” she asked.  “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to make it difficult, but...,”

“Of course not,” Rob interrupted as the three of them rose to their feet. 

“We have had time to think on this,” Jackson added.  “You are certainly entitled to take some time to consider it as well.”

“
Efharistos.
”

***

Hope sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the mural of the Bearens that still graced her wall.  She had thought about painting over it, but hadn’t been able to make herself do it. 

The guys had been subdued after she’d asked for time to consider their proposal, though they had tried very hard not to show it.  She’d been worried that they would get angry with her, but they hadn’t.  She’d sensed that they were disappointed, and hopeful, but not angry. 

She got up and wandered to the corner of her room where she had set up a small drawing table and a few art supplies.  Most of her supplies were still in the room that Berta was now using.  Hope missed her studio, but not as much as she would miss Berta when she left for Jasan.

Hope sat down at the table and reached for a large sketch pad from the stack nearby.  Sometimes, when she was worried or had a problem, just doodling helped her to think.  She reached for a box of colored pencils, grabbed one at random and began drawing without thinking about what she was doing.  She just kept remembering Jackson, Clark and Rob as they knelt before her on one knee, their hearts in their eyes as they’d proposed to her. 

A couple of hours later Hope blinked, feeling as though she were waking from a dream.  She was still sitting at her drawing table, holding a pencil in one hand.  She looked down and gasped at what she saw.

***

Jackson, Clark and Rob sat in the living room of the apartment they’d been using since arriving on Earth.  None of them could sleep, nor could they find anything to talk about that held their interest for long.  They were worried, and a little afraid.  If Hope turned them down, they didn’t know if they would ever find a way to change her mind. 

Jackson stood up and stretched.  “I think I’ll go up to the roof for awhile,” he said.  As he turned toward the door, someone began knocking on it.

Jackson paused and sniffed the air, surprised to scent Hope.  Had she crossed the city at night from her apartment to theirs, alone? he wondered.  Why had the Director’s men not voxed them as they were supposed to?  Had something happened?  He hurried forward and pulled the door open.

“I’m sorry if I woke you up,” Hope began before noticing that Jackson was fully dressed.  Clark and Rob crowded close behind him and she saw that they were fully dressed as well, which was a relief.  She hadn’t given a moment’s thought to the time.

“No, you didn’t wake us,” Jackson replied, relaxing when he saw that Hope seemed nervous, but not frightened.  “Come in, please.”

Hope entered the apartment, feeling a little awkward all of a sudden.  She had simply thrown a sweater over her pajamas, stuck her feet in a pair of shoes, grabbed her sketch pad and raced out of her apartment.  She had needed to speak with the Bearens right away, and had not thought about anything else.

“Are you all right?” Clark asked as Jackson guided her to a chair in the living room.  She sat down, holding the big sketch pad in her lap. 

“Yes, I’m fine,” she said.  “Well, sort of.”

“Why are you here?” Rob asked.  “I don’t mean to be rude,” he said quickly.  “I’m curious, and a little concerned.”

“Yes well, that’s understandable,” she said.  “Listen, do you guys remember when I told you that I got images in my head that I had to paint, and that’s when I did those murals in my apartment?”

They all nodded.  “Of course,” Jackson said. 

“Tonight I was thinking about your proposal, and I sat down at my drawing table and...well...I don’t remember doing it.  I don’t know what happened.  One minute I was just sitting there, the next I blinked, and I had drawn this.”

Hope flipped back the cover of the sketch pad, turned it around, and held it up for them to see.  She watched their faces as they looked at the drawing, so it was impossible to miss their shock.

“Am I right in thinking that these creatures are what you call bearencas?” she asked.

“Yes,” Jackson said as he approached her slowly, reaching out to touch the paper with one finger, as though testing to see if it was real.  “This is beautiful,
Niha
.”

Hope nodded as she turned the pad back around so she could see it herself.  She wasn’t sure she would ever get her fill of looking at it. 

The drawing was of four large, bear-like animals with long fangs, claws and white fur with large black patches.  Three of them stood on all fours in a semi-circle, their eyes the same colors as Jackson’s, Clark’s and Rob’s.  The fourth one was smaller than the others and had turquoise eyes.  She stood before them with three tiny owl-like birds perched on her back.  One bird was white, one brown, one dark red, and all three had Harlan’s amber eyes.

The grass beneath their paws was blue, and the sky above their heads was lavender, indicating clearly that they were on Jasan.  Though none of the animals wore expressions on their faces, there was a feeling of happiness and love about the entire scene that could not be denied.

Hope tore her eyes from the drawing and looked at Jackson, Clark and Rob.  “Yes, I will marry you,” she said.  “I will marry all three of you in a civil ceremony here, on Earth.  Then we will perform the Soul-Link Triad, so that we are connected in every way.  After that, we will take our sons and go home, to Jasan.”

Chapter
62

Jasani Space, The Chameleon

Mara could not quite believe how bad her luck was. 

On the verge of true freedom for the first time in her life, she had told Eldar Hamat that she had no need or desire to return to the home she had shared with her Rami.  There was nothing there that she wanted.  She preferred to go straight back to the spaceport in Badia and begin her new life.