The Wicked House of Caroline

It was such a small miscalculation. After all, the original placement of the exile stele had been marked on a map that was no longer relevant. Wars and territorial disputes had come and gone over hundreds of years, so the loss of fortresses wasn’t out of the ordinary.

But it was out of the ordinary for her.

Beks wanted to punch the pillow of the small bed in the inn room where she’d retreated to when they arrived at the edge of the seaside principality of Varkana. She’d managed to maintain her posture all day, and gave Mr. Reidan an unquestionable order to change course away from the Kadmus border, but she was still angry at herself for such a mistake.

A small miscalculation with a big, if not life-threatening consequence.

At the time, her father and brother didn’t believe in the severity of the issue, but they were flushed and sweaty. Deo was rubbing his arm where the exile marking was. The closer they were to the exile stele, the hotter they would get. It wasn’t noticeable at first, especially when the climate was already hot and humid, but as they went southwest, it was enough to alarm Beks.

She didn’t dare risk her father and brother. They’d tried to convince her to keep going, but she refused. Even overheating could cause serious problems if they didn’t cool down soon. It caused problems with the mind and a person suffering from it could pass out.

Jonas had told her this when he recounted Laz’s recovery after they were attacked and he lost his hand. Laz was feverish and sweat so much, he became dehydrated. Jonas had been concerned that the hot and humid air of the Forbidden Valley would exacerbate Laz’s fever, but luckily, it had gone down and Laz was fine otherwise.

Deo and her father also didn’t suffer much, and as soon as they went east for an hour or so, they were no longer overheating as a result of proximity to the exile stele.

While that was good news, it still left them with the problem of getting to the island.

If they couldn’t get to the meeting place to be picked up by the rokhs and flown to the island, the only other way was to go by water, but water travel posed another problem because of the island’s barriers: the diverting current and fog surrounding the island.

Deo suggested they split up. Beks and Mr. Reidan could go to the meeting point and then find the rokhs to pick them up outside the exile stele, but Beks wouldn’t know where to find them. She also didn’t know if the distance was too great for the massive birds. If they flew too far, they wouldn’t make it back to the island by sunrise, meaning they could be sighted.

They flew at night for secrecy and the biha infused light pearls were what guided them back to the island. Beks had no idea how far they could sense them.

Gerard should’ve arrived at the island already and he had been charged with going to the mainland to arrange for a ship once they arrived. She could always go with Gerard on a ship to find her father and brother without utilizing the rokhs, but they’d have to contract an entire ship for that, which was costly.

Forget it,she thought as she rubbed her head. They should just rest first and consider other options, the first of which was to take a ship directly to the West Islands to start looking for her mother. Her father had immense confidence in her mother’s water biha and was convinced that Sybil could find a way to bypass the diverting current and thin out the fog.

It wasn’t a bad plan after some consideration. If her mother’s water biha was as strong as her father insisted, then they would have a better chance of getting back to the island. In addition, there was the added bonus that finding her mother would also get them a ship to use. If they got a ship through her mother, they wouldn’t need to deal with the logistics of becoming passengers onboarding from one of the port cities, which would require documentation that they didn’t have.

“Beks, my Snow Flower?” Her father’s gentle voice came from the other side of the door as he knocked. “Come downstairs to eat. You haven’t eaten since morning.”

She was hardly in the mood to eat after her oversight nearly burnt her father and brother from the inside out.

“I’m not hungry.”

“Beks, you can’t starve yourself.”

Beks took a deep breath. “I’m not starving myself, Daddy. I just need to rest. My head hurts.” How else can I explain such a low-level mistake?

She could almost sense her father’s hesitation outside. “All right.” He sounded resigned. “If you are hungry, just go downstairs. Your brother is in the other room. Mr. Reidan and I will familiarize ourselves with the city. It’s been some time since I’ve been here.”

“Remember to cover your hair.” When he didn’t respond, she figured he’d already left to look around.

The coastal Principality of Varkana was a large port city and maritime trade was its source of wealth. While not large, especially in comparison to Kadmus, which was narrow, but long, or even Paraxes, which was half peninsula and half archipelago, Varkana was more a city-state.

In order to enter the city, they had to go through one of several massive gates along an impressive fortification wall. Past the wall was some farmland, a few clusters of what could barely be called villages, and then a single hill with an old fortress on top. On the other side of the sloping hill was one of the largest ports on the continent.

Even Kadmus’ largest port, the Port of Black Sands, could not measure up to the city state’s. Its official territory went past the walls about a quarter day’s journey. It was surrounded by other minor principalities on all sides. Past those principalities were the Basin, where the shrines were located, in the north; Paraxes to their south, and Kadmus to their west.

It was far enough from the old Kadmus border that her brother and father weren’t affected by the exile marking.

If they had continued down the road to another, smaller port city in the neighboring principality, her father and Deo would only grow hotter and begin to feel the burning sensation of attempting to cross the stele border.

I can’t just lay here and wallow in my failure. There was no time. She had other things to do. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes. She pushed herself up and rolled on to her side in order to slide her legs over the edge of the bed and stand up.

She rummaged through her bag and took out her urapearl and its stand, affixing it to a solid writing desk in the corner of the room before telling it to connect to Nexus.

What she needed to do in order to refocus was regain perspective and control after her mistake. She wouldn’t dwell on the fortress she didn’t realize no longer existed. Distancing herself from the problem would allow her to come back later without such a clouded head.

The late Queen faced many problems and this was one of the ways she taught Beks to work on them. She said that sometimes, one could become too caught up in a matter, desensitizing them to the problem and impairing their judgment. Stepping back from it could clear her head, allowing her to think of a different solution.

What better way to distract herself from the mess she made by following up on what she could control?

“Good afternoon, Mistress of Nexus.” Mr. Kesse’s image within the urapearl bowed and Beks gave him a respectful nod in return.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Kesse,” Beks replied as she sat on the chair. “Is there any update on the royal property purchases?” In particular, she wanted to know if they were able to buy the Alpine Route Inn. Aside from it being an iron-ore rich mountain, it was also in a good location of the country at about three-days travel northeast of the capital. The area was undeveloped and severely underpopulated, making it an ideal place to hide their men.

If they managed to buy it under White Snake Holdings Company, which dealt with real estate, construction, and entertainment, then no one would think twice about a large group of people descending on the mountain to ‘build’ a new resort.

Mr. Kesse’s lips curled up in a slight smile. “Good news, my lady. We were able to purchase the Alpine Route Inn property. We paid a higher asking price, but it was still within our budget. We managed to secure the deal quickly, so we had little competition.”

Beks nodded. “Wonderful. What about the other two properties?”

At this, Mr. Kesse frowned. “Our bids to purchase the grazing lands were rejected, despite our lofty offers well above the selling price and the assessed value of the property. Our bids went through the Dawn Company and two private entities.”

“But this means you were still to have the beneficiary assets from my account transferred to you, yes?” Beks asked.

“Yes, my lady. It was done swiftly, but it seems that just after the transfer was completed, there was an inquiry from the Fourth Prince’s staff regarding your assets.” At once, Beks’ interested face hardened. It was just a slight clench and a narrowing of her eyes, but it was visible enough for Mr. Kesse to try to calm her. “He was too late to stop the transfer, my lady.”

Beks closed her eyes and took another deep breath. Her lips pulled into a wry smile and she couldn’t help but let out a small cackle at the image of Luther, who was in need of money, being told that there was no money for him.

Knowing Luther, he’d probably believed the beneficiary would be him, and not the various charities she supported and their associated shell companies. Beks held back a snort. He thought himself too important in her life when she obviously wasn’t in his.

Luther’s beneficiary for his private accounts and business-related assets was his father. Beks couldn’t help the slight bitterness and regret. For Luther’s business, however feeble, she was the one who did all the research, did time-consuming negotiations, and guided him into what he had to do. In return, she received a ‘thank you’.

She shook her head and opened her eyes. “Do we know why our bids were rejected if they were over the asking price?”

Mr. Kesse continued to frown. “We were able to purchase the Alpine Route Inn because we knew it was going to be on sale and prioritized its purchase. The Royal Treasury needed the money, so while the few bids that came in tried to buy the land for a lower price knowing the treasury was in need, our bid stood out and it was accepted at once. However, for the other two properties, we haven’t had similar luck, as sale of the properties had become a hot topic and buyers know they are sought after.”

Beks nodded. “So, there was more competition.”

“And the man spearheading the sales of the properties is Frank Hessing.”

Her hands that were resting on the table gripped the edge, digging her nails in as she recalled the name.

Frank Hessing was the nephew of the Third Consort, and a disgusting, opportunistic lout. While Beks didn’t like the House of Hessing in general, there were particular family members she had personal animosity with, and one of them was Frank Hessing. In the few times she’d run across him at a large ball, he’d made lewd and suggestive comments at her, ogled her, and once inappropriately touched her backside during a dance - all knowing she was his cousin’s fiancée at the time. She learned to avoid him early on, but that didn’t mean he would let her ignore him.

There was one time he had tried to follow her to the Old Tower after a ball. Beks had to have the guards keep him away, else if somehow sneaked in, as the Old Tower wasn’t as heavily guarded as the Gilded Palace, Beks would treat him as a thief and attack without restraint. It didn’t come to that, but that was the last time she saw him.

She had told Laurence the next day, worried that the late Queen would ignore her complaint as the Hessings were on her maternal side of the family. Laurence had no such affinity for the Hessings, and somehow made it so that Frank Hessing never appeared in front of Beks again.

That in itself made her feel that Laurence was an effective Crown Prince, as the Hessing patriarch considered Frank ‘gifted in business’ and a source of pride for the family, so he was always welcomed at balls. To Beks, he always seemed too cunning and sly; the kind of merchant willing to sell his own mother if the price was right.

“Why is Frank Hessing involved?” Beks asked.

“He is assisting the Fourth Prince with the royal businesses in order to earn more money.”

She ground her teeth together, holding back the cry demanding to know why Luther would let such a questionable person around royal funds. “I assume the Third Consort suggested it to him.”

“He does have a reputation in business, my lady,” Mr. Kesse said.

She was still not convinced. How could she trust anyone who would dare accost his own cousin’s future wife? “Investigate him and his connection to these properties. See if he knows any of the prospective buyers. I know he must have something to do with our rejected offer.”

“Yes, my lady.”

“Now, is there any movement in the military?” Beks asked. “Is anyone still looking for the Second or Third Prince?” Was anyone looking for them?

It had been over two weeks since the incident at the cascades. Her father had left the two paladins who weren’t involved with her assassination attempt on the wagon up the road. Or rather, in a ditch off the side of the road with the two piled on top of each other. They weren’t dead, and Beks didn’t know when they woke up, but knowing her father, they weren’t badly injured and could leave when they woke.

If they were smart, they would’ve made their way back to their oracle and reported the attack.

Who would dare attack paladins? It was a risk very few people would take, and even if those two paladins didn’t know who they were, the oracle would likely make the assumption.

What was more, when Deo had searched around the flooded area once the water subsided enough, he found only three of the four paladins. From the corpses, two had drowned in the sudden flood and one had trauma resulting in a broken neck. It was likely that he’d been swept into the waters and debris hit him or he was slammed against a tree.

The missing paladin was Captain St. Moore.

After Deo pushed him off the cliff, Beks hadn’t had a chance to look over the edge and confirm his death by seeing his body. The drop was high and there were rocks at the bottom of the waterfall, but death was not absolutely certain.

If anyone could’ve survived, it would’ve been the paladin’s leader. Once the new oracle realized that it was them, she could either send more paladins after them or convince Luther or the Third Consort to send their people to search for fear of a threat. The Carolines obviously didn’t support Luther as king. How could the Third Consort stand any opposition to his precious son?

If that were the case, Beks wanted to know where the various armies and naval ships were in order to prepare for confrontation. If Kadmus’ army and navy were looking for them, they couldn’t be near Kadmus without eventually crossing paths.

“We’ve only been keeping track of the guards sent to find the Second and Third Princes, my lady, but we can gather information about the locations of the battalions and naval plans for you.”

“Please do so. I will call again soon, so I hope to have the information then,” she said. “Now that there is some money from the sale of the Alpine Route Inn, with more coming in from the other two properties, is the treasury still lacking?”

“For the time being, the sale has filled in the gap,” Mr. Kesse replied. “This is not a permanent solution. They cannot keep selling royal lands to make money, so talks are already being made to decrease interior funding.”

Beks’ eyes slowly narrowed, her stomach twisting. She didn’t know what that detailed, but she knew she wouldn’t like it. “Have any new policies been introduced? Or proposals to amend the current ones?”

Mr. Keese seemed to take a deep breath, as if readying himself. “The most recent one is to cut civilian benefits.”

“Such as?”

Her low voice dripped with anger as she watched Mr. Kesse swallow hard. “They want to make a funding cut to one of your oldest policies - the compensation and support program for the injured soldiers and the families of dead soldiers.”

Her heart twisted as she struggled not to scowl. “That was one of my first policies meant to reduce poverty amongst our soldiers and their families. While the budget is very strict, it’s comprehensive. We had a rare amount of support from the court, as well.”

During the late Queen’s fight for power, all sides suffered heavy casualties and soldiers and their families were greatly affected. Many of those trapped in poverty were civilians who lost the family member who supported them suddenly, leaving them without any source of income and forcing them into dire situations.

At best, family and community would support them through the difficult time. At worst, they were out on the street in a dire situation. Helpless, grieving people were exploited physically and financially. People were left begging on the street. She’d even heard of widowed parents abandoning their children for a better life without them.

There were war orphans, widows, and then countless injured former soldiers who could no longer be soldiers and couldn’t go back to farming because they simply were physically unable to. It was a tale Beks had heard over and over, as well as witnessed in the slums on the outskirts of Kadmium. It broke her heart and infuriated her that the people suffered.

She began working on a proposal when she was nine years old. She poured over what statistics she could find, what money could be spent with the greatest effect, and tried to cover every aspect of her proposal from advertising the program to final implementation. It took her five years to put together a comprehensive plan lauded as being more in-depth and manageable than proposals from more seasoned courtiers.

Over the years, after her program had been implemented, there were less and less people helpless on the streets. It was a significant expense, but much less people were suffering.

The late Queen said when the people weren’t suffering, they were stable. When they were stable, there would be less danger, less worry, and the populace could focus on things to better themselves and the kingdom.

It was popular amongst the people. Why would Luther want to cut such a successful program? He’d also been very supportive of it.

“Are they cutting it because it’s a large expense? What are all those people going to do? The expenses will only get smaller as less people qualify when we’re not fighting a massive war.”

“The Oracle and the Fourth Prince seem to have submitted their own plans that cost less and with support from the Temple.”

She shot up from her seat.

“Why is the Temple suddenly getting involved with another country’s governance?” Beks almost balked as her voice rose. “Does this fall under their charitable works? They’ve never done so with such clear ties to a governing policy before.”

The Temple was always doing charitable works everywhere, especially after natural disasters or during high holy day festivals, but they never directly aligned themselves with a country. They were staunchly neutral. If they suddenly wanted to work so closely with Kadmus, wouldn’t that seem like favoritism and alarm the other kingdoms?

It was already suspicious that the new oracle was marrying into the royal family.

Did it have something to do with Kadmus’ king’s relationship with the new oracle? It had yet to be proven that the new oracle was a Great Oracle. According to what Beks read, Great Oracles were highly valued and had substantial influence and power in the Temple, but they were few and far between.

There had been plenty of young women who gave prophecies, but very few ever became a Great Oracle. Those who didn’t had a little prestige, but not the amount of influence in the Temple to convince it to support a country.

Mr. Kesse’s brows were knitted as if he were thinking the same thing. “We have also found it suspicious, as well as worrisome. If the other countries learn of this, they may become suspicious of Kadmus and defensive.”

Beks let out a low, measured breath and frowned. “Is Luther trying to provoke a war?” Her eyes narrowed. Was the Temple trying to? She didn’t want Kadmus to be caught up in any sort of conflict with neighboring kingdoms while Luther was in power. She doubted he’d be able to manage the kingdom during wartime. Laurence didn’t need to concern himself with an outside conflict when he was trying to reclaim his throne, either.

“We thought it out of the ordinary, so we’re investigating the new oracle’s contact with any high-level clergy that may have influenced the Temple’s decision to support Kadmus,” Mr. Kesse replied. “We will send you the findings once we have anything substantial.”

Beks nodded. “Thank you.” She took a deep breath. “Aside from that, see if you can spread a rumor that Frank Hessing is trying to embezzle royal funds, just to make Luther and the court suspicious of him. If anything, he’ll be forced to be more discrete in his actions. I also would like to know any out of the ordinary placements of Kadmus’ army and navy. Since we are moving around Kadmus’ borders, avoiding them is important.”

Mr. Kesse bowed his head. They ended the call and Beks leaned back against her seat, her eyes narrowed. She was more familiar with Kadmus’ land forces, as Laz was in a Battalion, so her knowledge of the navy was limited. Outside of funding and logistics, she wasn’t sure what their patrol routes were. Considering that she and her family could very well have already been revealed as alive and taking revenge, battalions along the border and the navy could be looking for them.

If they were named as a threat, then Kadmus would send notices to their allies to watch for her family and prohibit any assistance to them. The more eager allies would try to arrest them for benefits.

Allies are wonderful when they’re your allies.... Beks muttered to herself as she stood up and put her veil back on. With her mind filled with new things to consider, she left her room to eat. She stopped by Deo’s room to invite him to go with her. He’d been taking a nap and already ate, but accompanied her downstairs.

“We’re by the sea and it’s been some time,” Deo said. “Why don’t we go out closer to the water and go to a restaurant there? It’s bound to have fresher seafood.”

The Sacred Valley wasn’t far from the sea, so Deo had grown up having a lot of seafood. Beks also ate quite a bit when she lived with her family. “A restaurant by the sea will be more expensive. You’re not only paying for the food, but the ambiance.”

Deo scoffed and gave her a small dismissive wave. “Did you forget that I had a hefty remuneration from the stadium for my fire biha? I can afford to treat my little sister to a good meal.”

Beks couldn’t hold back her smile and nodded. “Well, if you insist.”

Their inn was on the other side of the hill, so in order to get to the side of Varkana that faced the ocean, and spare themselves a long walk, they had to buy seats on a wagon to ride on. The wagon had multiple stops and they got off near the piers, which catered to visiting merchants, sailors, and passengers coming through.

Beks eyed the wagon as it left and Deo raised a brow. “We have a wagon, too. And ours is covered.”

“Did you hear that the driver said he was going back. Did he not have an errand here?” she asked.

Deo cocked his head to the side. “It’s a public wagon run by the principality. Wagons leave at set times from different stops and follow the set routes to get passengers around the city without the need of private transport, such as horses or carriages. Not everyone can afford those or have space for them, so common people will take a public wagon.” He paused for a moment and furrowed his brows. “Now that I think about it, Kadmium didn’t have any. At least I didn’t notice.”

Beks frowned and looked at her brother. “Are they common?”

“In crowded cities, yes. They’re expensive to run, but Varkana is not lacking money. In some places, there are informal private wagons that bring people from villages to towns. Sagittate has wagon trains that circle the territory to move people and supplies, but the Sacred Valley is small enough that we don’t necessarily need them. We also have many horses and nearly every family has them,” Deo told her.

“I will look into this....”

“Beks! What are you doing out here?” They were almost to the restaurant when they heard someone call her name. The two siblings stopped and looked over their shoulders to find their father quickening his speed and leaving Mr. Reidan behind in order to catch up with them.

“Brother is treating me out for a meal, Daddy,” Beks said. “Have you and Mr. Reidan taken a look around?”

“We’re almost done going through the docks once to look for suitable ships to take us to the West Islands,” Robert told her as he caught up with them.

Beks lowered her eyes.

The West Islands were her mother’s birthplace and where she’d likely return to with two small children.

“Make sure you find a trustworthy one,” Deo said as he crossed his eyes and gave his father a look. “Hair can be covered or dyed, but eyes can’t.” Even with their red hair covered, he and his father couldn’t change their gray eyes. They were quite rare. They also didn’t know when Beks’ disguise would fade. At the very least, she had a veil.

Robert sneered. “This is not my first time doing this, Deo. I know what I’m looking for. Your sister’s safety is my priority.”

Deo and Beks both squinted at their father. “Only your daughter’s safety? Are you just going to leave your son to die?”

“You have fire biha.”

Deo rolled his eyes and turned towards the door. “Come, Beks. I’m sure you’re hungry.” She put her hand over her stomach. Her hunger was more noticeable now. She followed her brother into the restaurant and let him arrange a table. He had them seated outside, so she could get a good view of the water.

The cool breeze over the warm air felt very good against her skin, and as she sat down, closing her eyes, she sank into the cushions placed on the wooden seat.

A chair scraped beside her and her eyes flashed open. Her father sat down next to her as across the table, Deo had a disgusted look on his face.

“I heard you were paid an impressive amount at the stadium for your fire biha,” Robert said with an air of arrogance as he smirked at his son. “Surely, it’s enough for you to treat your father, too.”

“Didn’t you already eat?” Deo said with a frown. “You and Mr. Reidan...where is Mr. Reidan?”

“He’s continuing down the port road to look over prospective ships. Varkana is the closest and best place to find a ship to the West Islands,” Robert replied. He stretched his arms over his head and gave his son a smile. “I used up a lot of energy walking. I could use a meal.”

Deo let out a heavy breath. “I don’t see how I have a choice.” They ordered their food and as they sat around waiting for it to be served and drinking local wine, their father reminisced about his youth traveling around.

Beks didn’t think it was so bad, as new environments and experiences brought forth new ideas that could be beneficial. After Brother Laurence settles down, I’ll ask if he’ll let me travel a bit to familiarize myself. She doubted Laurence would refuse her.

“It’s been so many years since I was last here,” Robert said, gazing out at the sparkling blue sea as he swirled some golden liquid in glass. “It’s as busy as I remember it.”

“Do you have any contacts here?” Deo asked. Beks tensed for a moment and internally frowned. Why didn’t she think of asking Nexus for contacts in Varkana? Was it because it was outside of Kadmus?

She gave herself a little shake. She was already asking Nexus for so much, and right now, finding out if the Kadmus military was trying to find them took priority. Her father wasn’t helpless. He was adaptable and could do what needed to be done, which was why exile didn’t faze him.

Robert narrowed his eyes a bit and took a sip of his drink. “They’re more contacts that could get in touch with your mother,” he said as he seemed to think. “Your mother was a...sailor and she has many connections all along the coasts. If we can contact them, then your mother will find out. There are people here, as well. I just have to find them.”

“That’s good, but we don’t exactly have all the time in the world to search for them,” Deo replied. “But it’s reassuring to know that Mommy was exiled west.”

“It wasn’t an accident,” Beks said as she put her glass down and stared at the contents. Both her brother and father looked at her. “I’m sure it wasn’t.”

“How are you so sure?” Deo asked.

Beks tapped her fingers on the table. “Just a feeling.” After all, wasn’t it too much of a coincidence that everyone, with the exception of her, had been exiled to a place where they would suffer the least?

Her father’s hand rose and stroked her hair back. “You were taken from us when you were so small, but you retain aspects of me and your mother so well.” He chuckled as his eyes crinkled with joy. “That is something your mother would say. She says it is instinct sharpened by a difficult life. Your mother started off well, born to a magistrate in the West Islands. A typhoon devastated the region and her parents died. She was left with her kindhearted nanny before her maternal aunt found her.” Robert let out a tired sigh and looked back at the sea before taking another sip of his drink. “You will likely meet her soon enough. Your Great Aunt...doesn’t like me.”

“Is it because you were an irresponsible rake who stole Mommy from her and brought her to Sagittate, where she’d never be seen by her aunt again?” Deo asked in a dull voice.

Robert scowled and shot him an irritated look. “How dare you call your own father a rake?”

Deo shrugged and looked away, drinking his wine. “I was just approached by many women in Dranga who remembered you from years ago, when you wandered through the Giants Ridge....”

“I wasn’t wandering for the sake of wandering. I wanted to see the world so I could become a better ruler of Sagittate,” Robert replied, defensive. “We are far from Kadmus’ central power, both in distance and culture. Isolation and ignorance can severely weaken a region, so I left to gain knowledge and experience, as well as make contacts outside of Kadmus in order to avoid being overly dependent on the kingdom. And I didn’t just go gallivanting on my own. I had some Thirnir with me, including Rid Olander Jacobhaal.”

Thirnir were the realm knights of the Duchy of Caroline. Rigorously trained from youth in both martial, civil, and biha arts, they were well-rounded warriors that protected the Ducal Family and defended the territory. Entire families had dedicated their lineages to becoming Thirnir.

The ones who had escorted her family to Kadmus had been sent away by her father to avoid being implicated. They hadn’t returned to Sagittate according to her uncle, so Beks wasn’t sure where they were.

Deo raised a brow. “How many?”

“Three,” their father said. “It’s not at small as you’d think. It isn’t as if I were helpless.” Heirs of the duchy often studied with youth training for Thirnir, Deo included. “The most dangerous parts of that journey weren’t so terrible that the four of us couldn’t make it out, and when I was captured by Maritime Legacy, who at the time were the most infamous pirate fleet in the surrounding seas, my Thirnir came to get me. Rid Olander took a harpoon through his shoulder to save me!”

Beks drew her head back. “Did he survive?”

Robert snapped his head towards her and gave her a curious look. “Of course, he survived, Snow Flower. Don’t you remember him?”

Deo sighed. “It’s Uncle Olan, Beks.”

An incredulous look filled her face. When her father said his Thirnir took a harpoon to the shoulder, she imagined this towering man with bulging muscles tearing through a ship deck, and fighting off three or four people at a time as he ripped the harpoon out with his bare hands, while searching for her father.

The disbelief in her voice was strong. “Uncle Olan, the duchy’s head accountant?”

She always thought he was just one of her father’s close friends. He did not fit her image of a Thirnir who took a harpoon to the shoulder. Uncle Olan was tall, but slender and pale, appearing as if he’d fall over at any moment. He had glasses and long, silver-white hair tied at the nape, and his clothes were always neatly pressed, looking nothing like the Thirnir guards. She remembered that he spoke gently and was always carrying around ledgers that seemed too heavy for him. He’d have sweets in his pocket for her whenever she’d run into him as a child.

Robert let out a disgusted snort. “Don’t be fooled by his looks. He is a devil, and faster with arrows and dagger than anyone in the duchy.” There was a hint of bitterness in his voice, hinting that Uncle Olan was better at him in those arts.

“If he was such a good Thirnir, why did he become an accountant?” Beks asked.

Robert gave a dismissive wave of his hand. “He’s always been good with numbers, but when he found out the woman he was in love with preferred scholar-type people, he quit being a Thirnir and became an accountant for the duchy’s treasury.”

“Then, did he ever get anywhere with that woman?”

Robert blinked. “Oh, that’s right...they were only wed after you left....” He frowned a bit, as if disappointed. “They took so long with their ‘courtship’ that it took years for them to marry. And even then, they were only living together for a few years before his wife was transferred for work.”

“What could be done at the time?” Deo asked. “Our cousins were still so young then. It was too dangerous to bring such small children to the Northern Pass, so someone had to remain in the Sacred Valley.”

Beks was nodding and then froze. “Cousins...Northern Pass....” She turned towards her father with wide eyes. “He married Aunt Hilga?” Beks flushed at once. She didn’t even know her aunt was married.

“She put up quite a fight pretending she didn’t care about him,” Robert said with a snort. “But he got into one small accident and hurt his leg, and she came running to nurse him to health. He acted as if he were dying.” He shook his head. “But never mind them. Let’s focus on the issue at hand. We found some prospective ships that were going to or will stop at the West Islands and are taking passengers.”

Beks tapped her fingers against the wood again. “Do they check for White Papers?”

Her father stopped drinking. His hand froze with the wine glass over his lips as his eyes narrowed and his lips pulled into a tight frown. He lowered his glass, placing it on the wooden tabletop as he raised his hand and rubbed his forehead. “I forgot about those. No wonder you were desperately trying to avoid going by ship from the ports.”

Deo cocked his head to the side. “What are White Papers?”

“When the late Queen took power, in order to limit the power and resources of her enemies, she made an agreement with some of the neighboring countries that would put restrictions on particular people who were enemies of her, and thus the state, in her early reign. Sea travel is very lucrative, though dangerous. It was the fastest way to regain wealth for some of those families who fell out of power and were in opposition of the late Queen when she took the throne.

“The White Papers are a list of those individuals that are shared with allied countries. Those countries would prohibit, or at least heavily restrict, individuals on the list from doing business, regulate their entry and exit to and from a country, and refuse to aid them in any way. This was especially created to restrict trade, so coastal nations near Kadmus had agreed for similar actions towards their enemies that may try to expand power in Kadmus. It’s a mutual agreement to protect each other, in a way. Paraxes and Varkana comply with the White Papers.”

“Even now? The late Queen has passed,” Deo said.

“It’s loosened in recent years. Families who were once on the list were re-evaluated and their threat to the crown reassessed. Several had been removed,” Beks replied. “But exiles are included in those White Papers. If Luther’s people did their work properly, an updated list should’ve been sent to the complying nations.”

“Did the Fourth Prince know about this?” Deo asked.

“I doubt it, but that doesn’t mean no one on his advisory council wouldn’t.” Beks crossed her arms over her chest. “At the very least, he should have some sort of advisory council at this point.”

Deo clicked his tongue. The food arrived and was placed in front of them. They continued to speak in Sagittater as they ate.

“All the more reason to find one of your mother’s contacts here. We’ll need paperwork to prove our identities,” Robert told them.

“Fake identities,” Deo said.

Beks brought a spoonful of her seafood confetti to her lips. “Where do we start looking?”

╔═════════════════ ∘◦ ♔ ◦∘ ═════════════════╗

“Stay close. Deo, don’t let your sister out of your sight. This isn’t the safest area of the city,” her father said in a low voice as they wove through a crowded, narrow street a few blocks from the docks. It was noisy, dingy, and smelled of fish and wet produce. In the sea of pressed, shifting people, it was easy to get lost or robbed.

Beks drew her lips inward and bit them to keep from telling them that this wasn’t her first time in such an area, and that she was quite familiar with the questionable workings of such a disreputable place. She held on to her brother’s arm and kept close, keeping her head facing forward and resisting the urge to look around like a curious newcomer perfect for being targeted.

She’d seen worse in her lifetime, of course. The narrow street was lively and there were plenty of hawkers selling various goods. There were several fishmongers, temporary stalls selling vegetables, and the like. Beks could feel several gazes on her, but as long as they didn’t act upon any malicious intent, she didn’t pay much attention to them.

Ahead of them, her father looked as if he were casually glancing at passing stalls, but he was searching for something. He didn’t say what, likely so his children wouldn’t stand out searching.

Without a word, he made a sharp left, into an even narrower alleyway. Beks and her brother followed and saw their father step into a corner fishmonger’s shop. He didn’t enter through the front, which faced the main street, but came in from a side door. A short, plump old woman seated in the back counter looked up as Robert entered with Beks and Deo peering in behind him.

Robert put a smile on his face and greeted her before she could open her mouth. “Good afternoon! I’m just looking.” He had stopped by the entrance and lifted his right hand. Beks watched the back of his hand knock against a palm-sized wooden disc embedded just beside the entrance.

Beks brushed aside her veil a bit to peek through and get a good look at the disc. It was old and didn’t stand out at all. It blended in with several similarly sized wooden discs around the frame of the entrance that appeared as a decorative border. Except the other discs were different seashells.

The disc her father had tapped had what appeared to be a squid or octopus of some sort.

The old woman narrowed her eyes a bit and didn't reply. Robert kept a smile on his face and lifted his hand once more, knocking on the same disc.

It was strangely silent inside though the noise of the street poured in front the outside. Beks began to worry that the old woman didn’t understand her father, but she stood up and wiped her hands on a rag. She turned away from them as she squeezed out from behind the counter. Beks almost missed the way she gave a slight tilt of her head opposite them.

Without a word, the old woman walked away and her father followed. She and Deo didn’t speak as they followed their father. They were led through a small storage room. In the back, the old woman moved aside a barrel that was against a wooden wall.

Beks noticed the same pattern of seashell discs going around the ceiling as a decorative molding. Above the wooden wall was another disc with a cephalopod. The old woman grasped a piece of wood across the wall that should’ve been decorative trim. It was lifted up and then pushed back. A panel was made out and then pushed to the side.

The old woman turned around and pointed up.

Robert nodded his head and gave the woman a small nod as thanks before lowering his head to duck through the opening’s threshold and step inside. He turned to his right and looked up. He held out his hand and motioned for the two to follow.

Inside was a narrow staircase just wide enough for one person. Robert went first, followed by Beks. Behind her, Deo followed, but kept a firm grasp on her hand. Beks couldn’t see how far the stairs went, as there was nothing at the top to shine light into the stairwell. The air was stale, but it wasn’t uncomfortable.

Halfway up, the panel was closed behind them and Deo gasped.

“It’s fine,” Robert told them, as if he’d expected it. “It’s not locked. She’ll let us out when we’re done.”

“Where are we going?” Deo asked as the stairwell’s only sound became the rustling of clothes and the creaking of old wooden stairs.

“Your mother’s aunt’s contact. Weren’t you listening?” Beks held back a small laugh, just imagining her brother’s annoyed look. “Stop. We’re here.” She felt her father’s arm in front of her, signaling her to stop when she couldn’t see him in the darkness. She heard him knock once, then pause, then again. He repeated knocking and pausing eight times before he stopped.

A muffled voice answered. Robert must’ve stopped in front of a door, as creaking was heard and then a bright sliver of light cut through the dark stairway. Beks shut her eyes and slowly opened one to adjust before following her father up the final steps and through an old, rickety door.

There was a small, simple room with a large window that looked over the top of surrounding buildings and out towards the water a few blocks away. The ceiling was a bit lower than normal with exposed beams that required them to bow their heads to avoid. This was probably the attic of the building.

A low table was placed on the floor, on top of a rug and surrounded by worn cushions. The square table was quite large and there were various papers, jars, and writing utensils on the table. There was a worn wooden box with various ink stains, and random pieces of wood.

Seated by the window was an old man with leathery dark skin and glasses. He was wearing worn, but clean and well-kept clothing. He looked up with dark eyes and furrowed his brows as he looked at them.

Her father clasped his hands together and brought them to his forehead, speaking in a pleasant, familiar language, though Beks couldn’t understand. Deo closed the door behind her and looked towards their father. Beks mirrored her father’s hand motion, figuring it was a sign of greeting.

“Tahier,” Deo said as he followed Beks’ movements and whispered to her. Beks held her breath. Tahier was the primary language of the West Islands. She lifted her head and watched as the old man rose to his feet, laughing and smiling as he greeted Robert and then extended his hand.

He must’ve been one of her mother’s contacts.

Beks never formally learned her mother’s native language. She only knew a few words, but with how fast the old man was speaking, she couldn’t pick anything up. Deo’s brows were furrowed and it seemed he was having difficulty understanding, as well. Their father stepped aside and motioned towards them, saying their names.

The old man’s eyes lit up and he quickly shuffled forward, adjusting his glasses to get a better look at them. He laughed as he put his hand on Deo’s shoulder and looked back at their father, saying something that made Robert laugh.

“He says you take after me,” Robert said with a lopsided, but proud grin.

“Oh...wonderful,” Deo replied, though he smiled at the old man.

The old man then looked at Beks. Without being asked, she moved aside her veil to reveal her face. Though her eyes and hair had been disguised, the shape of her face and overall features hadn’t changed.

The old man’s eyes lit up. He didn’t reach out to touch her, but his gaze softened as he looked over her face. He said something and Robert nodded. The old man looked back at her and spoke in broken Jasper. “You look like Lyone,” he said before giving her an energetic smile.

Beks blinked and looked at her father.

Robert crossed his arms over his chest and smiled. “The Lyones were your mother’s mother’s family. The Lyone family was once considered the most beautiful of the West Islands. Both men and women were so captivating, it was said that they’d draw attention like a siren singing.” He lifted his chin, proud once more. “I’m sure you can tell from your mother.”

He never seemed to miss an opportunity to brag about his wife. Robert turned his attention back to the old man, who motioned for them to take a seat.

Beks sat down on some cushions with Deo next to her. The old man spoke to their father as he offered them a small metal plate with some dried strips of meat. Beks took one and began gnawing on it. Her eyes dilated a bit as she recognized the taste. It was dried squid shreds. It was her favorite snack as a toddler, but she hadn’t been able to eat it in Kadmium as it wasn’t considered a ‘proper’ snack.

“You know I spent months trying to replicate this flavor for dried squid,” Deo said as he ate a handful. “And it turned out, it wasn’t the seasoning or the drying process. The main flavor we taste is the taste of this specific species of squid.”

“But can’t you get it back home?”

“The squid lives in warmer water, so we can’t catch it where we are, and it’s a popular snack in this region. We only get so many shipments at a time back home and they go directly to Mommy,” Deo replied. “She takes most of it. Thad and Wrath also developed a liking, so that’s less availability for me.”

“You should take the opportunity here to arrange for an import channel to secure any difficult to procure goods from the region,” Beks said.

Deo raised a brow. “You mean bypass Mommy completely?”

“It’s not bypassing, it’s business. You just happen to have direct access to the squid,” Beks replied.

“All right.” Robert turned his attention to them and the two went quiet about a private channel for imported food. “It will take two days for four sets of papers to be prepared.”

“Is that enough time?” Beks asked.

The old man nodded and patted his chest, proud. “I can,” he said. “Trust me.”

Beks nodded. “Then, thank you, sir.” She reached under the table to her skirts and fished out a gold plat. She held it in both hands and presented it to him.

The old man drew his head back, surprised. He looked at her father, who nodded. The old man furrowed his brows, looking at the plate in Beks’ hands. He seemed to be debating about something.

Finally, he reached forward and took the plat from Beks’ hands. “I arrange for boat.” Unable to say everything he wanted to say in Jasper, he turned to their father with a serious look and began speaking. Robert’s brows rose a bit and he leaned forward, nodding as he listened to the old man.

Every so often, Robert asked a question and seemed to consider the old man’s answers. Finally, he nodded and agreed, reaching into his own pocket for some more coins. The old man held out his hands to try to stop him and reject the coins, but Robert insisted. When the old man wouldn’t take them, Robert left the coins on the table and withdrew his hands.

The old man seemed to concede and nodded. Robert smiled, reached across the table, and patted the man’s shoulders. He then looked over at his children.

“He will make our four sets of documentation in two days under the names Duke Snowy, Deo Snowy, Beks Snowy, and Dan Rei. We’ll be from the Principality of Avello, which is north of here. If we can wait for one day after that, he can secure us a trustworthy vessel.”

Deo drew his head back and Beks furrowed her brows. “What kind of vessel?”

“A simple fishing vessel that goes around the southern sea and sells different fish at various ports. This one fishes a stretch of water from here to the southern tip of the West Islands. He’ll arrange for them to take us directly there instead of stopping at the usual ports,” their father told them.

Beks nodded. That was why her father gave the old man more money. If the fishing vessel didn’t fish, and then stop at ports to sell the fish, they’d lose money. The gold was compensation.

Deo mulled over this for a moment. “A fishing vessel wouldn’t be suspected. The crew is small and they usually don’t take passengers.” No one would look twice at a fishing crew.

“It’ll be cramped, but it’ll be our safest option if we want to remain unnoticed.”

They thanked the old man once more and he reached down to pick up a small rope. He pulled it a few times and then smiled at them. “She will open door.”

It probably rang a bell or signaled the old woman to come get them. They got up and filed out of the small attic room. Once inside the dark, narrow staircase, Beks asked how her father knew that man.

“I don’t,” Robert replied. “Not personally. However, he is someone your Great Aunt knows and all her people know about me.”

“Because you stole Mommy from her?”

“I did not steal your mother. We fell in love,” Robert stressed and sounded annoyed at his own children. “And she agreed to marry me and return to Sagittate with me. If she didn’t agree, your Great Aunt would’ve skinned me alive, title or no title. As for the old man, she was on her crew. Many sailors who were injured, or old enough, retired to coastal cities, but still stay connected with your Great Aunt’s fleet-company. Her company.”

“What kind of company does Great Aunt have?” Beks asked.

“She has a business moving things around the sea,” Robert said, distracted. They reached the bottom of the stairs and waited a moment. There was shuffling behind the wooden panel. It was pushed back and slid open. The old woman stepped aside to let them out.

Robert pressed some coins into her hand before nodding and leading his children out.

“Do you think that Mommy will hear of us and try to find us?” Beks asked as they stepped outside the fish monger’s.

Above the sound of the bustling market outside on the street, Beks heard a cawing sound of a bird. She looked up, remembering the colorful parrots she’d been gifted as a child that flew away, and now lived as wild birds outside the Old Tower.

Beside her, Robert stopped and also looked up.

Against the backdrop of the light blue sky and the fluffy white clouds dotting it, a green and yellow bird flew overhead.

“Word will get to your Great Aunt,” Robert told them. “And when your Great Aunt knows, so will your mother.”