Page 19 of Rifted Hearts
Kaveh tried not to bristle. Granted, Rhys was older than him, and his position as the matriarch’s second husband gave him added standing in the clan. But Kaveh found it frustrating to be treated like this when he was a grown man with a respectable position in human society. That was one reason he lived and worked at the ranch. The other reasons were more complicated, and Rhys was one of them.
“He’s a bard, of sorts.” Kaveh had no idea how to explain what a vid streamer was to Rhys, especially since he had a limited understanding of Remi’s job himself. “He intends to share stories about the ranch and the monstertown with a large number of humans. Anything that puts Riftworld people and the drakones in particular in a positive light with the surrounding communities is a good thing.”
“It doesn’t matter what they think of us,” Rhys snapped, then let out of frustrated sigh. “In any event, I didn’t come here to argue with your beliefs about cooperation with humans. The matriarch asks that you attend services and the communal meal at the end of the week.”
It had been a while since Kaveh participated in thereligious observances of his adopted clan. They weren’t onerous, and in fact often provided an opportunity for introspection and self-evaluation. They were far more pleasant than the dark rituals his biological Azdaha clan was purported to have carried out. But he had been avoiding his family. He should have told them about the summ and asked the matriarch for advice on how to control it. The awful green flames hadn’t returned, and the longer he waited to tell them about his new Azdaha powers, the harder it became to tell the truth. His heart pounded, an irrational fear sweeping over him that Xiang Jao had discovered his secret.
“It’s been a while.” Kaveh knew such a reminder didn’t warrant Rhys coming into the monstertown in his humanoid alter form. “Is that all you came to tell me?”
Rhys shook his head. “No, there’s more. The matriarch has received word of another Matchmaker pairing and wishes to discuss it with you and the entire family.”
This wasn’t about the summ, then.
A chill of unease ran through Kaveh.
“She thinks the Matchmaker chose me.” Kaveh’s mouth had gone dry, and although he already knew the answer, his heart sank as Rhys nodded.
It had been difficult giving up his relationship with Rhys years ago, but he’d moved on and accepted he was unlikely to form a similar attachment again. Demiromantic, a term he had learned from his human colleagues, described him well. He hadn’t been attracted to Rhys until they had formed a close relationship, and not having a romantic or sexual partner didn’t bother him. He treasured his relationships with his friends and family, and that was enough. What would bother him was to be forced into a romantic relationship by the machinations of the Matchmaker. Could it be amatch with someone in the clan? The few family members who weren’t married were older and wouldn’t be a good fit even if Kaveh wasn’t ace.
Rhys tugged at the open-ended circlet of gold the Matchmaker amulet had transformed into when the ancient sentience paired him with the matriarch. The object was one of the most revered communal treasures of the Saguaro Rift clan. It transformed into a new shape when touched by a clan member who had been chosen for Matchmaker pairing and then would alter again when the drakone honored by the Matchmaker gifted it to their spouse.
He held it out to Kaveh, his expression conflicted. “She asked me to bring the amulet to you in order to confirm this.”
Kaveh didn’t want to look at the thing, much less touch it, but he forced himself to take the gold circlet. It reformed in his hand, turning into a bracelet molded into facing griffins, with lapis lazuli and other precious stones embedded into the gleaming metal.
There was nothing he could do about it now.
The Matchmaker had chosen him, and Kaveh had no choice but to obey.
Rhys stiffened for a moment, but the pull of tradition and etiquette was too strong. “Congratulations, Kaveh. The Matchmaker has honored you. The amulet is yours now.”
Just as the ancient artifact that expressed the will of the Matchmaker had transformed into a Welsh torc for Rhys, the object now reflected Kaveh’s background. His biological clan had adopted the symbols of the human civilization near an ancient rift opened millennia ago, in this case, the Achaemenid Persian dynasty. It would change its shape again when his intended spouse touched the object, andthen Kaveh would know who the Matchmaker had chosen to be his lifelong partner.
“Does she know who I’ve been matched with?” Kaveh didn’t try to keep the dread out of his voice. The only remaining eligible members of the clan had no understanding of how the human world worked and understood Kaveh’s preferences even less.
“Not someone in our family.” Rhys made this sound like an unfortunate turn of events.
Kaveh’s initial relief twisted into more anxiety as he waited for Rhys to tell him more. He knew little about of the handful of other drakone clans that had come through the Sundering to Earth. Perhaps being paired with a total stranger would be even worse.
“The Matchmaker makes its decisions with knowledge we cannot hope to fully understand. It’s our fate and our honor to accept the one chosen for us.”
Kaveh puzzled over that convoluted statement before figuring out what Rhys was trying to say. His next thought was that Rhys could have tried out this little speech when he had learned the Matchmaker had paired him with the matriarch, rather than not talking to Kaveh about it at all.
“I’ve been matched with a human, like Ceto’s husband?” Kaveh had only met Ceto, an aquatic drakone who lived off the coast of Massachusetts, once.
Her Matchmaker pairing had been with a marine exobiologist, which made sense, but his relatives bemoaned the entire affair as unnatural. The fact that Ceto and her new human husband were thrilled with their marriage had sent the traditionalists in the clan into a frenzy.
Ceto’s husband had at least studied and interacted with aquatic rift people before being matched to what most humans would call a sea monster. How would someonewithout that background react if Kaveh revealed he was a drakone and that the two of them had been paired up by a mysterious and ancient Riftworld entity? Most of his human friends thought of drakones as exotic alien dragons, not as people.
“That’s the most likely possibility, but I don’t think even she knows.” Rhys spotted the open roll of medical sigils on Kaveh’s desk and frowned. “I thought I sensed something off about this Remi Gatti you brought here. It must have been the healing parchment. It’s not wise to give out these items so freely.”
Kaveh had no intention of sharing his suspicions about Remi having a Riftworld background with Rhys. His former lover had little interest or liking for humans, and he could be downright aggressive where other clans were concerned. “Remi had a phoenix bite while helping me with my work. The sigils work better on those than human medical treatments.”
“There’s something odd about him.” Rhys cocked his head toward the door as if he heard something, then gave a dismissive shake of his head. “In any event, now you have an activated amulet. The matriarch will expect you to focus on finding the spouse it will reveal. Perhaps you could start with the humans you know here and at the ranch. If your future spouse is close enough to activate your amulet, those would be the logical places to search. Your intended is likely to be someone you already know.”
Kaveh didn’t feel like searching for a wife or husband he didn’t want in the first place, but as before when the Matchmaker upended his life, he had little choice in the matter.
“Thank you for coming to tell me this.” Kaveh stepped forward and embraced Rhys. He wasn’t often physically expressive, but he still felt fondness toward his ex andwished they had remained friends. “I’ll be prepared tomorrow to listen to the matriarch and find out what I need to do next.”
