Captain Idan stood at parade rest in a clean, well-kept room. Wooden statues carved with detail so intricate that they almost felt human surrounded him, their flat gaze boring into his skin. At the center of the room was a wooden desk made from a tree sprouting from the floor.

A young man sat at the desk, fingers interlaced. His silver hair was pulled back into a bun and his dark, nearly black eyes were locked with Idan’s. The features of his face were sharp and polished, much like the statues surrounding them. A flicker of unease passed through Idan.

The man before him was Magus Exal, one of the family heads. The youngest Torrin to reach Rank 5 in years, and he’d done it – at least as far as everyone knew – entirely without help. He was one of the most reclusive mages in the Torrin family, rarely leaving his room for any purpose.

Idan had seen the flat face Exal wore a dozen times before on a dozen different mages. It wasn’t anywhere near as good as Evergreen’s had been, but there was something about the young man that set Idan’s hair on end.

“Captain,” Exal said, his voice smooth. “It is with great distress that I greet you today.”

You don’t seem very distressed.

“I deeply wish we could have met under better circumstances.” Idan inclined his head respectfully. “The Torrin family thanks you for your service and for taking the mantle of family head. I will be at your service for the foreseeable future.”

“Indeed. I trust that you have much to fill me in on with regard to the state of our family.” Exal drummed his fingers on the table and leaned forward. “But, before that, we have matters to deal with. I have picked up rumor of the circumstances of Evergreen’s death, but I would hear from the man who witnessed it.”

“Magus Rinella struck her down. My guards are working to reveal all who were involved in the plot. She died whilst meeting Magus Moxie and Magus Vermil, who is from the Linwick Estate.”

“A Linwick was involved and he still lives?”

“Vermil was the reason we were able to intervene before Rinella could do even more damage. I was as baffled as you are, Magus Exal, but his warning is the only reason half of Blancwood city is not up in flames.”

Exal’s lack of experience revealed itself as he blinked in surprise, taken aback. The young man was a talented mage, but he was new to the political stage. Idal suppressed a wince.

He will take much training before we allow him to meet with any other families. They will rip him apart in his current state.

“He did? Why?”

“I am unaware, but he claimed it was to avoid a war. He and Moxie came to report on Moxie’s progress teaching Emily.”

“The once-future heir,” Exal mused. “Interesting.”The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“Would you like me to call for one of our mages with Mind Runes? It would be some time until they arrived and their service would not be cheap, but it would reveal anything that we have missed.” Idan watched Exal’s expression closely as he spoke – and within it, he saw a flicker of discomfort.

“No. There’s no need for that. It would be too great a hassle for a problem that has already solved itself. Evergreen’s death was a tragedy, but wasting resources and showing the other families we suspect our own will only weaken us further.”

If Exal wasn’t directly involved in Evergreen’s death, then he either had plans to facilitate it in some other way or somehow knew about the plan and chose not to interfere. They’re all the same. It is not my place to act, though. I enforce peace in the family – not justice.

“Understood, Magus Exal.” Idan inclined his head. “Then I will report back to you when the investigation is complete. It may take several months.”

“That is a great number of resources to dedicate when we need to be focusing on preparing ourselves for the fallout of this tragedy. We cannot linger on the past. Rinella was the orchestrater, was she not?”

“She appeared to be,” Idan confirmed. “But–”

“Then that should be enough. Arren was in support of my position of family head, and Rinella is dead. We have nobody who would stand to gain from more chaos, so we should focus on ensuring the family recovers rather than lingering.”

In other words, you and Arren don’t want anyone poking their noses into your business. Were all three of you in on this? Or did Rinella simply act on her own and catch the blame?

“I will do as you order,” Idan said with a salute. “The investigation will be limited to Evergreen’s immediate estate to avoid any wasted resources while ensuring that no direct threats remain.”

“Brilliant. Thank you, Captain Idan.”

“And what of Magus Moxie and Magus Vermil? They are currently in holding.”

Exal tilted his head to the side. “Removing Vermil would be likely to cause trouble with the Linwicks, wouldn’t it?”

“It would, especially considering how many people have already spread the rumor that he was a large reason that we were able to stop this disaster before it could fully unfold – not to mention he came to deliver Evergreen a gift. We would find it very difficult to claim he was causing trouble without the use of a mage with a Mind Rune to confirm details.”

“It’s not like we could reasonably hold Vermil for that long. It seems apparent he was acting quite honestly.”

I’m sure you’d love to believe that, though I can’t disagree there. He did seem to be genuine.

Exal rested his chin in a palm. “And what of Moxie’s role in all of this? Is there anything beyond her getting caught up in the crossfire?”

“She failed to notice that Vermil had been replaced by a clone and was nearly killed alongside her. There is little more information I have in regard to her role.”

“I see. In that case, I believe the answer to this is clear. Moxie was negligent, but not malicious. The Runes that the Torrin family has given her are to be shattered, but there will be no further punishment. It will be up to her to redeem herself. Vermil is to leave the city – unharmed. That should wrap things up nicely.”

A scapegoat for the last of the trouble before sweeping everything under the rug and taking control. Ruthless. Effective, though. I imagined as much.

Idan saluted. “Yes, Magus Exal. I will deliver the news and remove them from the city. Then, once this has been wrapped up, we must meet again. There is much to discuss.”

Exal inclined his head once more, dismissing the captain. Idan turned on his heel and strode out of the room, his thoughts conflicted. Evergreen had been powerful, but her brash personality had only commanded respect through fear.

Without her, the Torrins would be considerably weaker. But, without her, there was a chance that they could start making inroads with former enemies. Exal was as power hungry as all the other nobles Idan had met, but he had chosen to let the Linwick leave.

Perhaps this may be for the best, but only time will tell if a more malleable leader will be a blessing or ruin to our family.

I’m not looking forward to telling Moxie of this news. She was a decent enough lass. Wasting her potential for a political play is a shame.

If only my apologies actually meant anything.