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In a way, it’s a relief. For the time being, I can be Hanna’s husband and lover, hopefully without him being too bothered by it. He won’t know what I really am.
But I know that in order to find the portals back to my world, I will have to make him remember everything.
And then he’ll hate me once again.
Until then, though, I am happy to play the role of a mortal.
“Papa,” Hanna says to him as she gestures to me with a sweep of her arm. “This is my husband, Tuoni.”
His eyes nearly fall out of his head. “You got married?” he exclaims. At first, I think he’s going to disapprove, but I suppose he’s so elated that she’s alive, he doesn’t really care what she tells him.
“I did get married,” she says.
“So, this is why you disappeared?” he asks, his puffy grey brows coming together in a frown. “You got married?”
“It’s part of the reason,” she says patiently. “And I promise I will explain everything. Just know that I am happy and I’m safe and Tuoni is a good man.”
She gives me a secretive type of smile, and for some reason, it hits me right in the chest, her words following suit.
She’s happy.
She’s safe.
She thinks I’m a good man.
And somehow,Imake her feel those things.
I swallow the strange lump in my throat, not liking these emotions that keep appearing out of nowhere. It must be the sentimental scene unfolding in front of me. Perhaps I’ve had too much coffee and cake, not enough sex.
She motions for me to come forward with a jerk of her chin, and I go to the trunk of the car, pulling out our bags. I have to assume he will let us stay the night, or it will be a long drive back to Helsinki.
I walk over to the cabin, and the porch groans from my weight when I step on it. Her father cowers slightly in a humorous way, a very Torben thing to do.
“You are a rather large man. Polynesian?” he asks, his eyes focusing on the silver lines on my neck.
“Mostly Finnish,” I tell him.
“I see,” he says. “Well, it’s freezing out. Come in you two.”
Hanna reaches out and gives my arm a squeeze before we follow him inside.
The cabin is toasty warm, bordering on hot thanks to a roaring fire, and it smells spicy, like cardamom and smoke. There are books everywhere, as well as a tiny kitchen with a wood stove, an old couch, and a couple of armchairs. There’s a small loft up above with a narrow ladder that’s about the size of one of my legs, and two doors, one that seems to lead to a bathroom, the other to a bedroom. I’m not sure where we’ll be spending the night, but if I go up that loft, I will make half the cabin collapse.
“Here, please sit,” he says, gesturing to the couch. “Water only boiled a few minutes ago, so I’ll make us some herbal tea. Perhaps you’d like a biscuit? Are you hungry? Did you come from Helsinki?”
“Yes, to all the questions,” Hanna says, sitting on the couch. I sit beside her, but there’s not much room, so she’s practically in my lap. That’s fine with me. I put my arm around her, feeling like one of the old movies I liked to watch all the time, where a man was on a date with a woman and she brought him home to meet her family. It’s strange to be living that kind of life, one so unlike my own, even if just for a minute. It’s so disarming and surreal to feel and act like a mere mortal, a normal person.
There’s some kind of beauty in the simplicity of it all, and none of these humans realize it.
“So,” Torben says, bringing over a tray with two cups of steaming tea and a couple of flat, long biscuits. He sits down in the chair across from us, a bunch of books falling to the side and scattering to the floor. He waves at it, as if the books will clean themselves up later.
Then again, he is a Shaman. I’ve never seen a Shaman in his real habitat before. Perhaps I’m not so far from the truth.
“So,” Hanna says, reaching for a biscuit. She doesn’t eat it, just twists it around between her fingers. She’s nervous. She hasno idea where to start or what to say. She’s going to try and wing it again.
I clear my throat. “I’m sure you’re very surprised to see that your daughter is alive and well, but rest assured, she’s been in good hands this entire time.”
He blinks at me rapidly and then looks to Hanna. “Can I ask where you’ve been? Can I ask why you haven’t told anyone? Hanna, dear, everyone thought you were dead. They also thought I was dead. Everyone said I had a funeral, that I had died, but that wasn’t true. That never happened.”
