Yvienne rapped on her door and let herself in. “Come on, aren’t you ready?” Her sister was wearing a blue dress that showed her dark hair and blue eyes to their best advantage. Her eyes held the same shadows though, and Tesara knew the demons were just beneath the surface. The Gentleman Bandit would not be contained with corsets and washed silks.
“You look very fine,” she told her sister, as gently as she could. Yvienne’s only response was a cynical shrug.
“Thank you. Best hope that no eagle-eyed lady sees a resemblance to my more larcenous persona.”
They were going to Elenor Sansieri’s engagement party. Most of the guests had been robbed by Yvienne at gunpoint and Tesara at the card table. Then again, most of the guests had been involved in the fraud against House Mederos, so there was that. Either way, kind, gentle Elenor was going to have an engagement party that would fuel the Port Saint Frey gossip mill for years to come.
They walked down the wide stairs together. Alinesse, talking to Brevart in the large entry salon, glanced up to see them coming the stairs.
“Lovely, girls,” she said. “You both look very fine. No doubt you will be eyed very closely by the other guests and they will be chagrined to find there is nothing about you to disparage.” That seemed to satisfy her, that her old friends would have to acknowledge that the sisters Mederos were back and a credit to their House. Tesara and Yvienne exchanged glances. What could one say to that?
“Thank you, Mama,” Tesara said, just as Yvienne added,
“What are you two planning? Any more violent renovations?”
Brevart smiled at his elder daughter’s gentle teasing. He had lost some of his vagueness, though his conversation would forever be marked with a tinge of confusion. However, their mother and father had thrown themselves back into restoring House Mederos with the strong will that had made them two of the most important merchants in Port Saint Frey. Although it would take years to unravel all of the tangled web that Trune and his cronies had brought down on their family, they had managed to work some deals with a few of the smaller merchant houses. The bank had once again extended credit, after some lusciously worded mea culpas and a few protestations of well, it might have been true. Uncle Samwell’s connections – old, disreputable friends though they were – had extended insurance as shipping Names.
Parr was not among them. Parr had disappeared the day of the last Arabestus broadsheet, along with Trune and a few of the other merchants. The Guild had turned on each other, as facing the fury of wives and business partners who were not in on the deal, the remaining chief culprits were turned in to the courts. The entire scheme went through all facets of society, extending to the death of Treacher, contracted by Trune himself and executed by one of Cramdean’s boyos. It involved not just the merchants and the underground but the captains, and even harbor masters in other cities, where cargo was unloaded and went directly to the black market.
It was a wonder they had ever been found out, Tesara thought. But then, Trune’s first and last mistake was betting against House Mederos. She reckoned he wouldn’t do that again, but there was no way to tell. He had taken the opportunity Yvienne had given him and disappeared.
The butler, Albero, opened the door for them. Alinesse and Brevart had tried to rehire Charle and the rest of the staff, but when they discovered that Charle had retired and gone to live with his son up in the mountains, where he spent his days running a country inn and fishing during the off season, they let him be, even though he offered to come back. Cook had taken a position in Ravenne in the Governor’s House, and decided to stay, though she sent word that she was happy the family was restored to their former station. Jenny was no longer in service, having married Coachman Jone’s oldest son; she ran a tea shop on Bury Street. So Albero was promoted, even though he was too young to be a butler.
Mrs Francini stayed on as cook. Mrs Aristet and Pol were let go, with references, after a discreet word from Tesara. She knew she couldn’t ever see them again. As for poor, hapless Marques, the poor man had thrown in with Trune, apparently; there was no word of him after that fateful night.
Her parents had enquired about Mathilde after she never showed up again, and Uncle Samwell protested his innocence loudly and furiously with the air of one who was going to be unfairly blamed. Alinesse had taken a breath to upbraid him, but Yvienne and Tesara quickly stepped in. They didn’t tell the full story but managed to mollify everyone that Uncle was telling the truth. This time it really wasn’t his fault.
Stepping out into the glorious day, Tesara breathed deep again. Today, despite presentiments of magic and old enemies, would be a good day. She glanced at Yvienne, who was carrying the beautifully wrapped present from Sturridges, a collection of small silver whimsies, fairies with lacy silver wings and tiny teakettles that really whistled, and beautifully worked acorns, a charm snowflake, and other treasures. The collection was beautiful and completely impractical, but they had taken one look at it and known it was perfect for Elenor for her engagement party. “You won’t let me carry it, will you,” she said. Yvienne smiled and shifted the basket from the crook of one elbow to the other.
“I’m the eldest,” she said. “My responsibility.”
Tesara linked her arm through the handle. “Both our responsibilities,” she corrected, and the two elegant Mederos sisters, clever, powerful, and ruthless, promenaded along the Crescent as if they belonged there.
Acknowledgments
Many thanks to my agent Jennie Goloboy for believing in the
