Page 30 of Dark Witch Resurrection

When the cup was ready, she put it in front of Kaia on the counter. Marina held her breath as the female lifted the cup to her lips and took a sip.

"Excellent." Kaia smacked her lips.

Marina very much doubted it, but she appreciated the white lie.

"Come back in a few days, and I promise it will truly be excellent."

"It already is." Kaia took another sip.

"What kind of scientist are you?" Marina asked.

"I'm a bioinformatician."

Marina had no idea what that meant and was too embarrassed to ask and admit her ignorance.

Kaia must have read her expression because she smiled. "Not many people know what bioinformaticians do. I work with biological data, trying to unravel the secrets of life." She tilted her head. "Who knows? We might discover how to turn ordinary mortals into immortals, no godly genes required."

Marina's heart rate accelerated, and her eyes widened. "Are you serious? Or are you just teasing me? Because if you are teasing, that's just cruel."

Kaia's piercing blue eyes seemed to hold the universe's secrets as she trained them on Marina. "The gods weren't always immortal. They found a way to modify their genes and make their bodies self-repair at such an accelerated rate that they turned immortal. What if we find a way to do the same?"

Marina's mind was reeling as she tried to process the implications of what Kaia was saying. If it were true, if there was a way for humans to become immortal, it would change everything. She could have forever with Peter after all. They could build a life together.

"How close are you to discovering the secret to immortality?" Wonder asked.

Kaia sighed. "Regrettably, I am not as close as I would like to be, but I believe I will be able to crack the code." She finished the last of the cappuccino, wrapped up what was left of her pastry, and put it in the paper bag Wonder handed her.

"Do you want to take another one for William?" Wonder asked.

"He's not here. He's at the keep today."

Wonder nodded. "Right. Anandur is there as well, guarding Kian."

Marina had a feeling that something important was going on in that place they called the keep, but she didn't dare ask what it was.

She was here because of Kian's good will, and if she didn't want to be kicked out, she should keep her nose out of where it didn't belong.

23

KIAN

TGIF, Kian thought as he rolled over and turned to look at Syssi, who was still asleep beside him. Or was it TTMFIF? 'Thank the merciful Fates it's Friday' didn't roll off the tongue as easily, though.

He leaned over and gently kissed Syssi's forehead before slipping out of bed and heading for the shower. He had a busy day ahead of him, with five phone meetings and a thousand and one details to attend to.

Nearly a month had passed since the cruise had ended, and he was still catching up.

As he stood under the hot spray, letting it sluice over his shoulders and down his back, he thought about the twins and the slow progress of their recovery. There had been some small improvements in their condition, but the road ahead of them was still long, and no one knew whether their minds would function properly once their bodies recovered.

Jasmine was keeping vigil at the prince's bedside, which was romantic given that all she had seen so far was a withered body. There was that one moment when the prince had opened his eyes and looked straight at her, but he hadn't done that since.

The poor woman was pining for what could be and not what was.

When Kian returned to the bedroom, Syssi wasn't in bed, and when he went looking for her, he found her as he had expected in Allegra's room.

"Good morning, my loves." He kissed Syssi's cheek and then his daughter's.

"Daddy!" She stretched her arms toward him.

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