I forced a smile. “The next day, I wanted to build a sandcastle from the prettier white sand on the other side of the island. Calliope wasn’t allowed that far from the citadel, so I hugged her goodbye and ran to the coastline. I used shells to dig and build my own version of the ivory castle, etching every detail I could remember. As I toiled over my masterpiece, a man approached me.”

Savina sat up and started clapping. We had reached her most beloved part.

“The man was beautiful. Golden hair, blue crystal eyes, tall and muscular as champions of lore. He asked me my name. I told him Rylander. He asked where my father was, and I told him I didn’t know. Then he asked who my father was, and I told him Apollo. The man’s eyes lit like blazing suns. He extended his hand, and I hesitated only for a moment. As our fingers interlaced, images of the past and future flooded my mind.”

“And what did you learn?” she asked, as she always did.

“He was Apollo. He was my father. And eventually, together, we would free my mother.”

“I love that story,” Savina said, rolling onto her back with a dreamy sigh.

“I’m glad,” I said, stroking her hair. Even though that story hurt in many ways, I enjoyed sharing it with Savina.

“Rylander? Captain Rylander?” Lou’s voice bled through the flowers, and my moment with Little Rose. “You have some explaining to do. Show your face this instant, or I will send you straight to Hades.”

“She sounds mad,” Savina whispered. “Should we hide?” Savina sucked in her lower lip and bit it.

I laughed. “No, Little Rose.” I flicked the tip of her nose. “I’m not afraid of her.” In a whisper I asked, “Are you?”

She bobbed her head, just as Lou rounded the bend and growled, “Well, you should be because when I get through with you…” She shook her fist, but then her gaze found Savina, and she dropped her arm. “Oh, I didn’t realize you had company.”

I pushed myself off the ground and stood, brushing away the flower petals and leaves left on my legs from Savina’s bouquet creation. “What has your knickers in a knot, Captain Lou?”

Her brows dipped, and her cheeks reddened. Maybe bringing up her undergarments wasn’t the right way to lead into this conversation, but the words were already out.