Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
PRIMSYN
Morning comes too soon. We're both still awake, having spent the night in tense silence, our bodies tangled together like we could anchor each other against what's coming.
"We should prepare," I say, though I don't move.
"Yeah." Oliver's arm tightens around my waist. "We should."
Neither of us moves.
Finally, I force myself to sit up, wincing as my sprained ankle protests. Oliver's shoulder is stiff and painful; I can tell by the careful way he moves. We're both injured, exhausted, and about to walk into the most important confrontation of our lives.
"I need to send word to the council," I tell him. "Request an emergency session. If we're doing this, we do it right. Official."
"Will they grant it?"
"They have to. I'm a widow of a former council member. I have the right to request a hearing." I stand, testing my weight on my ankle. It holds, barely. "The question is whether Thrain will try to stop it."
"He can't stop it if he doesn't know about it until it's already happening."
"True." I move to the door, then pause. "Oliver, if this goes wrong...if they rule against us—"
"Then we face it." He stands, crossing to me despite the pain it clearly causes. "No more what-ifs. We committed to this. We see it through."
I nod, drawing strength from his certainty.
Corvask arranges everything with his usual efficiency. By midday, the council is assembled in their chambers. Seven members, including Thrain, all waiting to hear what emergency could possibly require their immediate attention.
I dress carefully in formal attire, every inch the proper widow. Oliver dresses in the finest clothing my household can provide. Not servant's clothes, not livestock clothes. Proper attire for someone who will stand before the council as an equal.
The statement alone will cause ripples.
We arrive at the council chambers together, Oliver at my side rather than behind me. I can feel the stares from other Lactari as we pass, can hear the whispered speculation. A widow bringing her livestock to a council meeting? Unheard of.
Good. Let them stare. Let them wonder.
Thrain is waiting outside the chamber doors. His eyes widen when he sees us, then narrow with fury.
"What is this?" he demands. "Primsyn, our deadline isn't until this evening. And why have you brought that...that thing here?"
"His name is Oliver," I say calmly. "And I've called this emergency session to bring charges before the council. Against you."
His face goes purple with rage. "You dare..."
"I dare." I move past him, Oliver following. "Shall we go inside? Or would you prefer to make your guilt more obvious by attempting to stop a formal council proceeding?"
Thrain's jaw works, but he can't refuse without looking suspicious. He follows us into the chambers, fury rolling off him in waves.
The council chamber is circular, with seven high seats arranged in a semicircle. The members are already seated, their expressions ranging from curious to annoyed at being summoned on short notice.
Councilwoman Merra, the eldest member, speaks first. "Widow Primsyn. You've requested this emergency session. State your business."
I step forward, Oliver remaining at my side. "Honored council members, I come before you today to bring formal charges against Councilman Thrain. Charges of blackmail, coercion, and multiple counts of murder."
The chamber erupts in shocked murmurs. Thrain shoots to his feet.
"This is outrageous! I demand—"
"You'll have your turn to speak, Councilman," Merra says sharply. "Sit down. Widow Primsyn, these are serious accusations. What evidence do you present?"
"Yesterday, Councilman Thrain came to my estate with an ultimatum. He demanded I dispose of my human, Oliver, or face ruin. He threatened to bring false charges of impropriety before this council unless I complied with his demands."
"False charges?" Thrain snarls. "You've been fucking your livestock! Everyone knows it!"
The chamber goes silent. I feel Oliver tense beside me, but I don't flinch.
"Yes," I say clearly. "I have been intimate with Oliver. But he is not livestock to me. He is my partner, my equal, and my choice. What happens in my private chambers is my business, not yours, Councilman."
"You admit it?" Councilman Vex, a younger male, looks shocked. "You openly admit to such...perversion?"
"I admit to finding a connection with someone who sees me as more than a political pawn." I meet each council member's eyes in turn. "Something my late husband never did. Something Councilman Thrain sought to exploit."
"She's lying!" Thrain is on his feet again. "I made her no threats. I merely expressed concern about her reputation, as any concerned colleague would."
"Then why did you tell me if I didn't comply, you would destroy me and purchase my estate once it went up for sale?" I counter. "Why did you demand I accept your courtship in exchange for your silence?"
"Hearsay. You have no proof."
"Actually, we do." Oliver speaks for the first time, his voice steady. "Last night, we infiltrated your estate. We found the locked drawer in your study. The one filled with trophies from the humans you've murdered over the years."
The chamber explodes again. Council members are shouting, demanding order, demanding explanations.
"Lies!" Thrain roars. "There is no such drawer!"
"Then you won't mind the council sending investigators to search your study?" Oliver asks calmly. "If there's nothing to find, you have nothing to fear."
Thrain's face cycles through several colors. "This is a conspiracy. They broke into my home, probably planted false evidence..."
"We didn't plant anything," I interrupt.
"We didn't get the chance. Your guards discovered us before we could remove any evidence.
We barely escaped with our lives." I gesture to Oliver's bandaged shoulder.
"He took an arrow fleeing your estate. Your guards can verify the intrusion.
The evidence is still exactly where you left it. "
"A locked drawer," Oliver adds. "Bottom left of your desk. Unless you've already moved it to cover your tracks."
Merra's eyes narrow. "Councilman Thrain, these are serious accusations. Do you consent to a search of your estate?"
"I...this is highly irregular—"
"That's not an answer." Another councilman, Drex, leans forward. "If you're innocent, a search will exonerate you. If you refuse, it looks like an admission of guilt."
Thrain is trapped, and he knows it. "Fine. Search my estate. You'll find nothing."
"We'll see." Merra gestures to the guards at the door. "Escort Councilman Thrain to his estate. The rest of you, accompany them. I want a thorough search conducted immediately."
"What about them?" Thrain points at us. "They admitted to breaking into my home! That's a crime!"
"One we'll address after determining the validity of their other claims," Merra says. "If the evidence exists as they claim, their illegal entry becomes far less relevant. Guards, take him."
Thrain is escorted out, still protesting. The other council members file out after him, leaving only Merra, Oliver, and me in the chamber.
"That was either very brave or very foolish," Merra observes. "Possibly both."
"Probably both," I admit.
"And you." She looks at Oliver. "You're either the most audacious human I've ever encountered, or the most suicidal."
"Maybe both of those too," Oliver says with a slight smile.
Merra's lips twitch. "Sit. Both of you. We're going to have a conversation while we wait."
We sit, though my ankle throbs, and Oliver's shoulder must be screaming. Merra studies us for a long moment.
"How long has this been going on?" she asks.
"Three days. I purchased him at auction three days ago."
"Three days." Merra shakes her head. "And you're already willing to risk everything for him?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
It's such a simple question, but the answer is complicated. I look at Oliver, at this human who's turned my entire world upside down in less than a week.
"Because he's the first person in forty years who's made me feel alive," I say quietly. "Because he challenges me, argues with me, refuses to let me hide behind titles and walls. Because when I'm with him, I'm not a widow or a property owner or a member of elite society. I'm just...me."
"And that's worth losing everything?"
"Yes."
Merra turns to Oliver. "And you? You could have tried to escape. Could have refused her advances. Why didn't you?"
Oliver is quiet for a moment. "At first, I hated her.
Hated everything she represented. But then I saw past the owner, past the Mistress.
I saw a woman who'd been as much a prisoner as I was.
Different kind of cage, but a cage all the same.
" He looks at me. "She freed me in ways that have nothing to do with locked doors.
How could I not fall in love with that?"
My breath catches. It's the first time either of us has said the word directly, not dancing around it.
"Love." Merra says it like she's testing the word. "Between Lactari and human. Owner and owned. Such a thing is...unprecedented."
"Maybe it shouldn't be," I say. "Maybe that's the problem. We've built a system that dehumanizes an entire species, that treats sentient beings as property. And we wonder why it breeds resentment and violence."
"You're suggesting we change the entire structure of our society based on your personal experience?"
"I'm suggesting that maybe it's time to question whether the way we've always done things is the way we should continue doing them."
Merra leans back in her chair, studying us both. Before she can respond, the chamber doors open. The other council members file back in, their expressions ranging from shocked to disgusted.
"Well?" Merra asks.
Councilman Drex steps forward. "We found the drawer. Exactly where they said it would be. Contents...match their description. Jewelry, hair, teeth. Twenty-three items total, each labeled with a date and name."
The chamber is silent.