"I knew Dregaul was beginning to slip into a maniacal notion that any business deal, no matter how questionable, whether financial or ethical, was all right," Hetta said.
They were all gathered in the sitting room. The elderly matriarch of the Matrell family was in her favorite chair, and Ladara was beside her, as usual, though Emriana's mother was obviously more subdued than usual. The girl couldn't really blame her; she had lost a son and a grandson, after all.
After Denrick and Evester's deaths, the rest of the family had been found, unharmed, locked in the cell in the basement. Marga had not handled her husband's death well, though in the end, after some magical calming ministrations from Kovrim, she at least began to see that she and her twin children had probably been spared a lifetime of misery under a tyrant's rule. Still, she was left in a quandary. Her own House was devastated, just as House Pharaboldi was. Her only true family seemed to be the Matrells. The three of them were resting quietly in their rooms while the rest of the family discussed how to honor their dishonorable dead.
"But I had no idea he was teaching those same reprehensible qualities to Evester," Hetta continued quietly, sadly. "If I had, I would have taken control back a long time ago."
"But Grandmother," Emriana asked, "why in the world didn't you do that anyway?"
"Because I needed Dregaul to do something that would get him in over his head," the woman replied. "I needed to be able to show to everyone, you included, that I was still sharp and that he was the one unfit for running the family business."
Emriana nodded, though she didn't see how Hetta would think that anyone wouldn't trust her. To her, the woman seemed to have the most sensible head on her shoulders of all of them.
"That's not the only reason you let it go on, though, is it?" Xaphira said, sitting off to one side and studying the family.
Emriana still hadn't gotten used to the idea that her long-lost aunt had returned from her self-imposed exile. She had heard the story about the woman's disappearance only a couple of days before, and yet there she was, in the flesh, and Emriana had a chance to get to know a new member of her family. The thought excited her, especially after the conversation she and Hetta had had. Such a newfound mentor, coupled with the loss of Dregaul and Evester, caused the girl's emotions to be in turmoil at the moment
"No," Hetta said, answering Xaphira's question. "I also needed to see who would recognize that the House was on unstable ground and do something about it. I had to see who I could trust."
Emriana realized that her grandmother was looking at both her and Vambran then. She cocked her head to one side, not understanding.
"If Dregaul wasn't suitable to manage the Matrell family affairs, then who would be?" Hetta explained. "You are, my dear," she said, smiling at her granddaughter.
As what Hetta was saying began to dawn on her, Emriana looked over at Vambran. He seemed just as apprehensive as she felt.
"Us?" she asked quietly, uncertainly.
"Yes," Hetta affirmed. "You and your brother did far more than I had ever imagined for the sake of the family-not the House, the family. Of course, I never envisioned having to stop Dregaul from forcing you to marry, or for us to need to be rescued from a trio of misguided fools," she added wistfully.
Emriana felt her chest tighten, then, for she knew that Hetta grieved for her lost son and grandson.
"You two have a lot of thinking to do," Hetta continued. "I know you're not ready to assume control of the House yet, but it will be time, soon. I'm not going to be around forever, you know."
That sobering thought just added to Emriana's poignant mood. She went to her grandmother and gave the woman a long hug.
"You can't leave us too soon," she said in a fierce whisper. "You still have too much to teach me."
Hetta laughed and replied, "I'm sure that whatever wisdom I fail to impart to you, Xaphira can more than make up for."
Emriana turned and smiled at her aunt.
"I'd like that," she said, and Xaphira smiled back. She looked over at her brother, then, and saw him still brooding. "What are you thinking about?"
Vambran sighed and said, "That everything is changing. The House, the family responsibilities… I don't even know how much longer I'll remain a member of the Sapphire Crescent, with all that's happened."
"You still have a bright future there," Hetta said. "Your captain was more than understanding when you abandoned your post."
Vambran grimaced. He had received a disciplinary rebuke for his actions, a symbolic punishment and nothing more. He claimed that he was ultimately thankful for the light punishment, but Emriana could tell that he had become somewhat disillusioned with his service in the mercenary company. She wondered whether he would stay a part of it. He seemed to love it so much, and he excelled at his craft. But he was faced with becoming the head of the household, and perhaps some of the things he liked doing most would have to be set aside, for the sake of the family.
Of course, Em thought. I'm facing the same thing. Who would have thought that turning sixteen would carry so much responsibility with it?
Things had definitely changed at the Matrell estate. As Emriana looked around at her family, she wondered just how many more changes were on the horizon.
"You know," Vambran said to Xaphira during the lull, "you still have some explaining to do to me. Why have you been following me the past few days? And what have you been doing all these years?"
"She's been working for me," Hetta cut in. Everyone turned to look at her, shocked. "That's right, I've kept some secrets, too. The truth is, Matrell holdings are actually ten times the size that you all think they are, thanks to Xaphira. Even after she disappeared, we kept in contact. Never mind how, just trust me that we found a way. She's been my business partner for the past eleven years, and together, we've managed quite a few shrewd investments." When everyone still gaped, the matriarch feigned indifference. "What? Did you think I was going to trust all of our assets to Dregaul? If I had, we'd be a very poor family right now."
"And the other?" Vambran asked. "Following me?"
Emriana watched her aunt not say anything for several moments.
Finally, taking a deep breath, Xaphira said softly, "I told you last night that there was more to this than you could fathom, and there is. I'm still only beginning to put all the pieces together. But you should know that I'm almost certain you didn't shoot Rodolpho Wianar twelve years ago."
Emriana gaped at her aunt, then at Vambran. Her brother's mouth hung open.
"What?" he said quietly, as though he couldn't understand what he had just heard.
"Let me show you something," Xaphira said.
She walked over to where her red cloak hung near the door and removed a small bundle from a pocket inside it. The bundle was long and thin and wrapped in oilcloth, and when she unrolled it, Emriana could see a pair of crossbow bolts.
"This one," Xaphira said, holding up the first, "was in the quiver you gave me that night a dozen years ago before we parted ways. I dumped everything else into the sea once I was well out of port."
Xaphira took up the second bolt. Emriana could see that it was darkened at the tip, stained.
"This one," her aunt said, "was one I pulled out of my leg that night, after I ran from you."
The woman held them up, side by side. They were identical, right down to the blue fletching.
"What?" Vambran said again. "How can that be?"
"Because someone who was shadowing me that night, following me as I ran from the watchmen, had it in his possession. He shot me with it while I was fleeing, down near the docks."