thirty
Mira’s “scramble their brains” comment had been made in jest, but she had to admit that the staff in Gardiah Estate had little interest in discussing what they had witnessed the day before.
When she asked her mother what she had done, Joiya simply said that she and Ramaron “took care of it,” but it wouldn’t be permanent.
As for Kema and me… Nobody, including Joiya, said anything about them the next day.
Kema retreated into her room out of embarrassment, and the bodyguards had a good laugh about it, but that was the nature of who they were.
There might be anger, some shame, and even confusion, but julah moved on quickly, as long as nobody was actually hurt.
Well, Mira could think of someone who might be hurt.
She avoided Sonall as much as possible, but he didn’t go out into the fields.
She overheard that he might not for a couple of days due to taking care of some bookkeeping in his father’s office, and that was where she expected him to be, especially with everything going on.
Instead, she stepped into the family stables to check on Emi on Sulim’s behalf and discovered someone staring her down from the other side of the large structure.
Mira did not engage. Not even when Sonall crossed his arms and looked like he had it in him to ruin Mira’s life.
Give me a break. If he hadn’t been caught in his own affair yesterday, Mira would have had more sympathy—maybe even a little guilt. As it was, Sonall had to admit that his marriage was one in name only. He wasn’t even Sulim’s soulmate. I am.
“Hey.”
Mira knew this was probably a bad idea, but humored the man sauntering her way. Even with her tattoo suppressing her sorcery, she could still take him… right? Maybe there are too many sharp things in this barn for my liking.
“Can I help you?” Mira’s attempt at being curt but polite failed.
Sonall stopped a few feet away, his posture still rigid and his countenance fluctuating between anger and that kind of subtle curiosity that meant this conversation could go about five different ways.
“She told me that you offered to take her away from here.”
Out of everything Mira expected, that was not it. “I see. Well, this is awkward.”
“I’m past awkward right now,” Sonall said. “I’m not going to pretend to know what a julah like you thinks about human marriages, love, all of that… I’m not exactly without my own flaws, you know.”
“Oh, yes, I heard all about that.”
He was not fazed. “I take it that you must love her.”
Where is this going? Mira swallowed. “Yes. I wouldn’t lie about that.”
“Good. I don’t like to think about her being conned by a julah who does not truly care for her happiness. Sulim doesn’t have anywhere to return if you drop her. I’ve heard stories.”
I’m sure you have. “Women in particular are not known for declaring love solely to ensconce a human. Even Ladies who keep humans as temporary pets don’t throw around fickle words. So, if I tell her that I love her, it’s the truth.
I invited her back to Yahzen or wherever with me because I want to be with her. Even as she gets older.”
“Why? I mean, she’ll be dead before you know it.”
“If you really must know…” She cleared her throat. “She’s my soulmate.”
While that somewhat caught Sonall off guard, he did not back down. “Your soulmate?”
“According to my mother, yes.”
“But she said…”
“She said that you two have very similar auras, implying that you are capable of intimate closeness to last a lifetime… the kind of thing that can lead to good marriages, but is not the same thing as being a soulmate. Hell, being soulmates does not equate to good marriages. Not inherently.”
She thought of her father when she said that.
“I see.”
“It’s funny. My mom seems to have caused plenty of confusion with that reading.”
Mira leaned against the nearest post as she got more comfortable in front of him.
“Kema thought my mom meant you two were soulmates. That’s why she pursued you, isn’t it? And your sweet sister thought that she and that boy were soulmates. In reality, my mom saw multiple similar auras that implied a happy family. Which implies that I have an aura similar to yours as well,
if mine is identical to Sulim’s. We should be close friends.”
“I think I’m good.”
“Sure.”
He thought something over before gritting his teeth in her direction again. “I’m not inclined to give her up so easily,” he said, referring to Sulim. “But I also won’t force her to stay. If she really wants to be with you instead, well…”
Mira lowered her guard a little more. “It can’t be easy, discovering all of this.”
“It’s been a crazy few days, yes.”
“I don’t wish you ill will.”
“I don’t wish you ill will, either.”
“Good.”
“Good.”
They glared at one another for a bit longer before Mira conceded defeat to whatever contest they had engaged in. “I’ll let you get to work. I know you have a lot to do around here.”
Mira turned her back on him as she exited the barn. He did not pursue her, nor did he say anything. Mira had a feeling that anything they had to say to each other had already been said.
Sulim didn’t like how quiet the staff was. Well, they gossiped, but it was about Graella’s Qahranian wedding, which was happening on the morrow. They also tittered about the unexpected pregnancy and debated whether it would be a boy or a girl, and if either, what their former mistress would name it.
Why aren’t they talking about my scandal? The maids and cooks didn’t even look at her weirdly. It was like they had forgotten.
Sonall was in his father’s office until dinner.
She took him some tea, which she deposited on the desk without any pomp.
She had half a mind to ask if he and Kema wanted to go on a double date with her and Mira, but kept her mouth shut.
Instead, she glanced at the papers in front of him.
He did not cover them up or shoo her away.
“Find more about your sister?”
He took a moment to respond. “No…” Sonall flipped the top paper over. “Just a few discrepancies from a few years ago.”
“What kind?”
Her husband glanced at her, as if debating whether to share. “Money. Staff logs. It’s to be expected, I suppose, since this was the time of the… attack…”
“Oh. Yeah.”
“Yeah. People died. Took a while for us to recover and rehire. Plus, people were not super keen on coming to work with us in case another attack came. They killed a lot of people last time. Including my tutor. I miss her, sometimes.”
“Did you find out who did it? Called the hit, I mean?”
“We have always suspected Lord Lassiter of at least being a co-conspirator. He’s been wanting our land and business ever since his grandfather put it in his head. I know, because both my father and I attended university courses with Lassiter-bred boys, and they had… ideas…
about who should really own this land. I guess it goes back several generations. But…”
“Hm?”
“It never made sense to me. And the older I get, the less sense it makes. Even if Lassiter got something out of our demise, especially since he’s a competitor with his own breed of horses, they’re not that rich.
I don’t even know if our family coffers could afford the whole kit and kaboodle that was hired to take us down. They sent a whole squad of mercenaries, Sulim. Everywhere you turned, there was another one shooting at you.”
His eyes briefly glazed over before he shook his head, clarity returning.
“They sent one of those giant cargo cruisers—I don’t doubt they were going to take some of the horses as part of their payment, but even then…”
“A squad of mercenaries is about six people, right?” Sulim was already calculating it in her head, based on what little she knew about Cerilynian life. “A cargo cruiser. Yeah, they were planning on killing everybody.”
“And they would have, if Mother hadn’t gotten us in a hidden compartment in her salon. We were lucky nobody saw us. I don’t remember where Dad hid, but his bodyguard was killed. Sometimes I wonder if he never hired another one because he realized how futile it was…
just a liability of somebody else’s life.”
“Maybe.”
“We were lucky none of us were killed that day. My mom was… you know… but it spared her life since by the time that guy was over it, the mission fell apart and they had to escape. Some of the ranch hands were killed or injured, too… we were lucky that Marco wasn’t around when it happened.
I think my dad would have had a breakdown if he lost Marco too.”
“Marco wasn’t there?” Deep down, Sulim probably knew this, but she had forgotten—one of those details that hadn’t mattered until now… not with so many others to keep track of about an event she wasn’t around for. “Interesting. Why?”
“He was out of town. Had gone to Dassil for business.”
“Hm.”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Sulim left him to it. She had chores to get back to before dinner, and if the staff wasn’t going to gossip about her and her husband, then all the more reason for her to be out and about.
She was picking up debris in the backyard when the devil approached, having been spoken into existence.
“Sulim.” Marco’s genial demeanor caught her off guard, and she dropped the bundle of twigs that had broken off the nearby trees from last night’s wind. “Good to see you in decent spirits, after what happened yesterday…”
She tweaked one of her brows at him as she gathered up the sticks again. “I’m sorry?”
“Why, you and Sonall’s indiscretions both coming to light. Or am I the only one who seems to remember?”
She clutched the bundle closer to her chest. “I’m…”
“I honestly had no idea that Sonall was having his own affair. So, I wanted to apologize for confronting you the other day. I see now that you and your husband are quite open…”
“Yes, it really isn’t any of your business.” Never mind what he thought about their marriage… why the hell was he talking to her about it?
He didn’t back away. Instead, Marco came closer, hand outstretched as if to placate her from running off.
Excuse me? Out here in broad daylight? Speaking of scandal, anyone could come out onto the back porch and see them standing closely like this—and Marco was not helping her with the sticks in her arms.