Prologue
Fongafale, Tuvalu, South PacificThe earth shook once more, a tremor more powerful than the last. A deep rumble sounded from beneath the ground as if the gods wakened in anger, and Meihani clutched a nearby palm tree with gnarled fingers to hold herself steady. The rough bark scraped against her skin as she tried to stay upright. She was old but a lifetime of walking the island had strengthened her limbs and as she braced herself, the shudder passed beneath her.
It would not be the last.
Something had changed in recent weeks, a shift in the cycles she had seen in her long life. The earth was broken — and they would all pay the price.
Meihani looked out over the waves to the horizon across the tiny cove. She stood just around the bay from where fishermen launched their boats, ho
