Her voice held the music of stars, a timeless harmonic melody. Richard felt the strength in her fingers and then lost himself in her brown eyes.  Richard stared into an unknown universe.

There were moments, turning points, path changers, when life’s journey veered suddenly. Sometimes they were earthquake events of cataclysmic nature, a car crash, a death, a lottery win. More often they were so subtle, they went unnoticed.

There were many cautionary tales in the dark nights of Hollywood. The witch raised her bony finger in warning. “Be careful what you wish. It might come true.”

To the average tourist, London meant Soho, embodying the West End of the City of London and the legendary theatre district. Here the glittering lights attracted millions of tourists offering music and drama, sorrow and laughter along a narrow strip of land bounded by Charing Cross to the east and continuing along Shaftsbury Avenue westward towards Piccadilly Circus.

Once the Victorian red light district, vestiges remained with doors ajar and orange lights in windows with placards announcing French models one story up. South of Shaftsbury Avenue sat Chinatown with its welcoming gate, orb lights and yawning lion statues. You could find anything and everything in Soho, if you knew where to look.

“He touched my hand and my heart beat as if I was galloping at full speed. I can't explain it." Her eyes glowed. “His voice was a thousand church bells on Christmas eve.” She stopped. “Oh my god. What am I saying?”

“Ice princess,” Magda said quietly. She sat back with her black eyes shining, “you might be falling in love.”

And here, after a thousand years of searching, of lives forgotten where only fragments of misty pasts remained, they found each other again.

There were forces that took lives in unforeseen directions. They had many names, destiny, kismet, predestination, divine will, fate. All were illusory attempts to explain chaos, to create meaning from chance, logic from randomness. The millionaire died in a plane crash. The mailman won the lottery. Life was a journey with only a beginning and a shrouded end guaranteed.