Prologue
"Look here, little one." A woman dressed in black from her head to her feet knelt down to be on the level of a little girl. She was holding out a toy and reaching toward the toddler. Although all you could see of the woman's face were her eyes, they were crinkled into a smile and she was laughing.
The toddler took a careful step toward the woman, and then another. She wanted the toy, and her chubby arms reached out for it as she slowly made her way to the woman. When she finally reached her, the girl allowed herself to simply fall forward, absolutely trusting the woman to catch her, while taking hold of the toy and hugging the stuffed animal tightly. She was scooped up into the woman's arms and swung around in the air, much to her delight. The toddler squealed with laughter and spread out her arms, careful not to relinquish the hold on her toy.
A moment later, as the woman lowered the toddler to be held securely in her arms, a man walked into the room with a smile on his face. He approached the woman and the toddler, and leaned forward to gently press a kiss to the top of the little girl's head. "It sounds like someone's having fun," he laughed. With a squeal, the girl reached out her arms toward the man and he laughed again as he reached for her.
"She missed her daddy," the woman said, passing the toddler over. Again her eyes were smiling as she looked adoringly at her husband and daughter, who was now patting her father's cheeks and babbling incoherently.
"Well, well, well, aren't you the happy girl today," the man said to the little girl. Then he said to the woman, "Wait until I tell you about the arrangement we made today." He smiled again, this time a thoughtful smile as he mused to himself and looked at his baby daughter. "Yes, my dear Laila, we will expect great things of you."
.
Many miles away, in a distant city, a stern-looking older woman was staring over a table at a small boy held tightly in the arms of a teenage girl. She did not look like she had seen a happy or cheerful day in her life, and even her clothes were a dull gray in a culture where most wore bright colors. It seemed strange that such a woman would be the one in charge of an orphanage which housed at least thirty children of all ages.
The teenage girl was looking at the woman almost fearfully. She had tears in her eyes, but they were not falling, and she was holding the boy close to her. The little boy was sitting on her lap, quietly sucking on his thumb and eyeing his surroundings with big, almost black eyes.
"You plan to leave him here indefinitely, then?" the woman asked, as if they were conducting some sort of business arrangement.
"Yes." The girl spoke quietly and her voice was melodic. "I hope it won't be a permanent arrangement, but I can't take him where I am going. You will take good care of him, won't you?"
The woman nodded dismissively before picking up a bell she had sitting on her desk. She held the handle loosely while she swung it back and forth, the loud pealing of the bell breaking the heavy silence that otherwise surrounded the place. "Is he well?"
"Oh! Oh yes, he is," the girl stammered, caught off-guard by the bell and struggling to regain her composure. The boy seemed utterly undisturbed, though he did fix the bell with a very intense gaze.
"Very well, then." The woman looked up at the door as it swung open and a petite girl of about eight years old came in. "Jade, take this boy to Kara and the other boys in his age group."
The small girl did as she was told without a word. She padded silently on bare feet over to the chair and reached for the boy before the girl holding him could say anything. He was already halfway into the younger girl's arms before the girl in the chair tightened her hold. "I…I want to be sure he will be well cared for," the girl said with a quiver in her voice. She was looking at the girl called Jade and taking in her clean, but patched and faded tunic. Also, Jade's hair was only shoulder length, something that was unheard of for proper young girls in the city. "Will he be raised and taught properly?"
"Yes, yes, of course. Now if you don't mind, I have a very busy day planned." The woman's brow was furrowed and she crossed her arms, waiting impatiently for Jade to take the boy and leave her office.
Reluctantly, the girl let Jade take the tiny boy out of her arms. Then she stood and prepared to walk out of the room, followed closely by Jade. At the last moment, she stopped, took the boy out of Jade's arms, and hugged him tightly, kissing him on the cheek. Then she handed him back and rushed out of the room.
After Jade stepped out of the room as well, the woman shook her head. "Huh, we won't expect much of that one. He doesn't seem to be anything but a street rat."