First Apprentice

Chapter 13 Part 3

Arms crossed over my chest, I glared at him. "You cut my allowance!"

"After you blew up the carriage house experimenting with those damned seals of yours. If you kill yourself experimenting, it won't be on my coin! Still, Alannah, a brothel?"

"It paid twice what the conservatory offered for tutoring, and I worked in the dance hall. I never went upstairs."

He let out a deep, belly laugh. Shoulders shaking, Grandfather clutched the chair arms and gasped for breath. "You know the expression on David's face when I asked where he found you almost made this entire mess worth it. I've never seen him so embarrassed. You even trumped that time with the crone on Metus."

My ears perked. That sounded like humorous blackmail material, but he didn't elaborate.

"How did you stand the stench?" he said.

I shrugged. "I got used to it."

"You were leaving us," Grandfather said after a comfortable pause spent staring at the heavens. "Don't deny it. It all fits. Moving out of the dorms, the letter I received from my solicitor last week..." he trailed off.

"What letter?"

"He wrote me after you requested a copy of the estate's books. I won't say don't pursue Martha for fraud. I will warn you to exercise caution and keep your expectations low."

"I don't care about the money," I said softly, conscious that Grandfather hung onto every word. We hadn't discussed the Martha situation in recent years. Too many arguments. "When I was little, every time you gave me something that belonged to my parents she'd take it for safe keeping. Their wedding bands, the miniature, and even the pillowcases my mother embroidered for her trousseau. It didn't matter if it had monetary value. If it had value to me, she took it. I have asked her to return their things. I have written letters. I have done everything short of stealing them back."

"But I gave you the miniature when you were four," he whispered in a broken voice I never wanted to hear from him. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"The day I summoned Endellion she tossed my doll in the fire and threatened to do the same to me if I told." Then she called me demon spawn when I pulled Lily out without getting burned. "Later, I understood that we needed her. Even if I didn't like her, Martha's presence kept the vultures away."

"Only because she was the bigger vulture."

"True. More recently, I realized that if Endellion and Manfred learn about this, they will mount her head on the city gate and burn the house down. I doubt they'll care if her children are inside at the time, but I know they will afterwards. They've lived through enough. They don't need another burden. Besides, I have a better way. Next week, my solicitor has an appointment with the king on my behalf. During his meeting, he will present the king with a detailed list of every item Martha has withheld. Then he will give our illustrious monarch a choice. He either personally ensures every Iver and Claise heirloom is returned or I will call in his loans. All of them, including the interest free ones my father gave him to help fight red fever."

"Alannah," he said carefully, "that sum is four times the current tax revenue. If you do this, you will beggar Vinetta's government. The people will revolt."

"Then maybe Vinetta will acquire a ruler with enough sense to live within their means," I said.

"I'll take care of it. Next time, please ask for help."

"Why now?" I asked.

"Two weeks ago, David contacted me about a scorched practice room. Maintenance wrote it off as an oil lamp, but an oil lamp only scorches a single wall. You burnt the paper off all four walls and left soot on the ceiling. I realized then that your magic was becoming a danger to yourself and everyone around you."

My teeth pulled back from my lips as a snarl escaped my throat. "I put it out."

"This time, Alannah, but what about the next? I realized then that I could no longer hide you. Thus, I sought to shield you the only way I could - by sending you to the academy." Grandfather closed his eyes and ground his teeth together. His eyes snapped open. "The Seven," he said in a stronger tone, "is for life. However, my word holds little weight because Mitra shares my seat."

"You said you retired." I tried keeping my tone even, but it still sounded accusing.

He winced. "There are things I can share with First Apprentice Alannah-dae that I could not share with my granddaughter. I became fifth of the Seven at age sixteen. When I die, my spirit will join my predecessors in the Well. Once a member, always a member. Remember that."

I nodded once.

"Terry lives for peace. I feared he'd give you to the Dracon or arrange a mating in your name as part of a peace agreement. Involving Joel bypassed Terry. Although Joel and I haven't spoken since I left, we still exchange monthly letters. Instead of writing him another letter about my sweet granddaughter, I wrote about a non-existent student. I told Manfred to send him one of your button seals. I knew you created a seal that let you walk through wards, but I never saw the final product."

"You didn't want to," I said with a bitter smile as I recalled him turning his back whenever I tried showing him my latest iteration.

"For your safety. No matter how terrifying the seal in question may be, I cannot testify about a seal I haven't personally seen. When Manfred showed me the seal, I didn't recognize it."

"He knew." The options Joel presented only existed because Uncle Manfred twisted Grandfather's orders, a remarkable feat. Unlike Endellion's guardian bond, Uncle Manfred's barely let him breathe without permission. He said it was penance for choosing his clan over his nephew.

"I know." He sighed. "I wrote Joel because I knew the Dracon are restless and Joel's partners can't hold the anchor points without him. I expected Joel to send either Mitra or his apprentice Luis to investigate. Once they realized you were a maturing dae, they would follow procedure and call in our second seat Simon, who would have calmly discussed all your options with you without getting his soul ripped out of his body. Joel didn't act as I predicted. Now, Terry's involved. Manfred taught you how to absorb memories," he said abruptly.

Shocked, I jerked my head up and stared at him, gape mouthed. Don't," he said when I started to deny it. "I know Manfred better than I know myself. In many ways, you are the child we never had. The bonds are different, but you are ours. If we thought falling on our swords would protect you, we would do it in a heartbeat. Just as Manfred showed you how he held the Daneian anchor point, I give you all my dirty secrets and back room deals in the hope it keeps you alive." He reached inside his robe and pulled out a draw string bag, which he passed to me. I traced the outlines of a quartz crystal through the silk. Grandfather reached over and patted my knee. "Please do not think too poorly of me when you see them."

Silence stretched between us. This close, Grandfather's magic embraced mine and muffled the Dracon Gate's screams. As I drifted off, his chair scrapped across the floor. Then a hand brushed my hair away from my face.

"Despite my arguments to the contrary, I believe the seal you're crafting for your transformation will work. Will it be unorthodox and give my wrinkles wrinkles? Absolutely, but you will live and thrive and prove everyone who doubted you wrong. I will shield your mind while you sleep," he whispered and brushed a kiss against my forehead.

I drifted off with a faint smile on my lips. Maybe I could choose my own path without losing my family.

What I'm Reading:

Alpha's Bargain by mistandfuryy