Page 80 of Old Secrets

The story remained the same, yet it changed with the introduction of a little more knowledge. “Well, thank you, Rosalie. I do very much enjoy being alive.”

“That was the first and the last lie I ever told,” the woman confessed. “I always thought you were such a strong little baby with bright, knowing eyes, so much like the moon.”

“Offer your prayers if you would like,” my father said. “Giving you this is the least I can do.”

“I offered them long ago and every day since. And when the sinners come, my life will be a prayer, one I use to right the wrongs done here. But we will not defile the sacred bones resting below with their filth. We will haul them from this mountain, however long it takes, and leave them out for the birds. And once their bones have been picked clean, we shall grind them to dust and cast them into the flames so that they may never find honor in proper burial. They do not deserve such things.”

“You may have to leave such rituals to another, Rosalie. I have plans to entrust you with my daughter’s safety when she returns to the United States, to look over her and her husband and their many litters of children, for they will not suffer as we have suffered. I saw you then, and I see you now—and they will need someone who loves children to help, for they will be cursed with many more than they know what to do with given time. But unlike us, their legacy will not be one of grief, but of joy.”

Rosalie did not fall to her knees, although she did bow to my father three times. “If I can, it would be my honor.”

I wondered how he knew, and I stared at my father with wide eyes, unable to think of a way to ask him.

“My daughter, you wear your soul on your sleeve and your heart shines bright in your eyes. You, who are so much like me and your mother, have no hope of hiding such feelings from us. You are a being of love and creation, and every step of this journey, you have made certain young Rosalie had a place with you at our fires. It would be stranger if you were not burdened with the worries of what shall come in future days. I will clear the way for her to travel with you to the United States, and I am certain your other companions will help. I can make no such promises for the others, but I will do what I can to make certain justice and mercy walk hand in hand for as many as I can. But I cannot erase their crimes, nor do I wish to. But I can do this for one, so I will.”

Jake captured my hand, gave me a squeeze, and said, “We had been discussing that, but she was worried about how you might react.”

“You will be good for each other.” My father stared in the direction of the hole, and he sighed. “I will not add to the tragedies that have brought me here time and time again. And I will hope that we do not need to return to this cave for many years. May our dead rest in peace knowing that our absence is because we have found life and live it free from the burden of so many deaths.”

That I could get behind. Afraid of the answer but unwilling to let the question fester, I asked, “Will you come to the United States? At least to visit?”

“We will, once this is done and we are certain all our children can rest in true peace. We want to see the world that molded you. We would also like to meet this Richard Murphy once he has finished the important business he is doing.”

“And the souls of his parents?”

“They have been given a fair offer. Should they aide us in eradicating the sinners, their souls will be laid to rest—and we will not prevent them from reincarnating for a second chance to redeem themselves. Their souls will be marked for all eternity, however, until they have done as much good as they have done ill. They will be a long time freeing themselves of that burden, but that is a deserved and a fair punishment.”

That beat what I had worried they might do. “I think you’ll like Richard’s father-in-law, although I warn you now, you might end up adopted.”

“Adopted? Us?”

I laughed at the absurdity of it all. “He is an old wolf who loves children, and he adores Richard. If you can help his son-in-law, the only acceptable course for him and his mate will likely be adoption. Jake and I are already on notice we likely have another set of parents waiting to meet us. Found family is not a bad thing.”

“No, it’s not. I think we would both enjoy meeting this old wolf. And the rest?”

“I doubt he will at all mind having an entire skulk of foxes at his doorstep seeking attention, although that might be a fun way to introduce everyone. Jake? Mind being the only one on two feet some night when we sneak into his yard as foxes?”

My husband joined me in laughing. “I think he would love it, and I’d be glad to stage the fun sort of ambush. I’ll talk to Mellisa and see what her recommendations are.”

“Then that’s settled. Once this is done, we’ll all go to the United States for a visit. And if you like it, you can stay for a while.”

Only time could heal wounds as deep as theirs, but as long as I had a say in it, they would get all the time they needed.

TWENTY-ONE

She didn’t need to witness more death.

While plain, the interior of my parents’ refuge was comfortable. The walls were of smoothed, carved stone lacking decorations. Rugs helped to ward off the chill of the rock underfoot, and each one was a work of art. Someone had gone through a great deal of trouble to import luxuries, including modern beds, cookware, and some creature comforts. I questioned how they got electricity to operate their television, although I discovered it was limited to approved Chinese media, all of which were on disc.

I guessed Greenwich hadn’t been willing to draw attention to their operations. While I questioned how they had a television that worked, a gaming console to stave off boredom, and thousands of books, they lacked the little things I associated with happiness.

They had no photographs of happier times, they had no knick-knacks proving they’d been new places in the world, nor did they have beautiful things that existed solely to be beautiful.

When I thought about it, I doubted my parents had any idea how to be happy, and it would fall to me and Jake to teach them.

Two days after our arrival, my parents managed to coax out the remaining survivors of my family, of which there were eight couples, and none of them could have children. While I understood their hope, I struggled with the idea of being the source of it. Jake endured even more scrutiny than I did, especially upon learning we had confirmed, through the use of science, that we could have children.

I made the mistake of teaching them about the ways science might help couples have children when they were not capable of producing any together, allowing families to grow when natural methods were not viable. Considering how my genetics tended to override Jake’s, I held the opinion they’d end up with a lot of children very similar to them—but with enough diversity our species might survive.