The attendant placed the wrapped gift on the table, then unwrapped it carefully. It was three little statues, each about the size of a fist. Three fish appeared to suspend in the air but were actually attached to thin metal rods that connected to a wooden base. The surface of the fish shined of gold. Most likely, they were hand-carved out of wood, then covered in gold leaf. Although the gold content was small, it took a skilled artisan to hand make each one, making it quite an expensive gift. After it was revealed, the attendant folded up the piece of cloth and placed it under his hope then went to stand by a wall.

“That is an exquisite gift,” said Augustus. He picked one up and examined it carefully. “Truly, you shouldn’t have. The customary gift of a few venti would have been much more appropriate. As you can see, we haven’t gone to some extravagant expense to host you.” Augustus motioned around himself at the empty walls and plain furniture.

It was an odd choice of gift. In Venocia it was customary, in wealthy society, to give a gift of a few venti to the host on such an occasion, especially when you were the only guests invited to an estate of higher status than yourself. Clearly, these statues cost far more than a few venti. And, in their current situation, much less appreciated than those venti would have been.

“Augustus, they have demonstrated great generosity with this gift. It could be considered rude to mention alternative gifts.” Marielle turned from admonishing Augustus back to Revenica. “I assure you, we greatly appreciate these fish statues. As Augustus alluded to, we are clearly lacking in decorations.”

“I apologize for my poorly chosen words just now. I do appreciate it. We do not have much in our house yet to show our dedication to Aurelia. This will help with that.”

Revenica was the one to respond. “We knew that you would still be getting your estate in order, so felt it would be a more thoughtful gift. We are happy that it is appreciated.”

“Let’s start out with some tea, shall we?” asked Marielle. Quintus gave a meek nod.

Marielle rang a bell and Sara came out of the kitchen with the tea and cups. Augustus made sure to take the first sip before the rest of the cups were filled.

“Quintus, I must tell you, your wife and I had a wonderful time the other day.”

“Oh, is that so?” said Quintus, looking uninterested.

“Yes, I showed her a great restaurant, the Venotii. We had a beautiful view of the cliffs as we ate.”

“That is certainly good to hear,” said Augustus. “It has been a long time since I ate there myself. An excellent choice Revenica, now that I think about it. A great place to show off how beautiful this city can be.”

“That was exactly what I was hoping to achieve. And Marielle, there are so many more places for me to show you.” Revenica seemed excited at the very thought of going to more restaurants.

“I look forward to it,” Marielle said. But in her mind, she felt skeptical that would come to pass. With the burden of payment on her, their financial predicament would need to be solved first.

“Maybe we should arrange something today?” Revenica's eyes were wide with anticipation. “How about the four of us head out together?”

“No, that won’t be necessary,” said Augustus dismissively. It was a marked change in tone. “Quintus, you’ve said so little. Tell me, how are your dealings going?”

Quintus responded slowly, choosing his words carefully. “It goes fine. There isn’t much of note to speak about lately.”

“I’m speaking specifically of the deal you made with the Sentellius family, of course. It must continue to reap good profits. No?”

“It’s a modest sum.” Quintus averted his gaze.

Marielle began feeling uncomfortable at the topic of conversation. Augustus was focusing too much on their personal wealth, a subject that should be touched upon delicately. But Augustus was anything but delicate right now. Still, she knew the importance Augustus placed on this meeting and had no choice but to trust his decisions and allow Augustus to continue down this line of conversation.

“Is it not enough?” asked Augustus. “Perhaps that is why you chose to give us such a gift instead of a few coins? Did you just pick some random item in your house? Are you in such a sorry state?”

The look on Revenica’s face was one of complete shock. Marielle couldn’t blame her for that. Quintus pushed his half-full cup of tea away from himself and stood up and said, “I think it would be best if we left.”

“No, that would be far from best. You should know that if you leave now you would be leaving here with no allies at all. Giovannus’ eyes would fix upon you with suspicion.” At Augustus’ words, Quintus froze in place. “Sit back down, we haven’t even gotten to the food.”

“I have no business between you and Giovannus!” Quintus turned next to Revenica. “We never should have accepted this invitation.”

“It was—” Revenica began.

Augustus interrupted immediately. “What’s done is done! There are two guards outside watching the house. I have no doubts that they have been told to record everyone that arrives and leaves this. Word of your visit will reach my brother’s ears.”

Quintus sat down, sinking in his chair. “I can just explain it to him…” he said with a shaky voice.

“Yes, I’m sure if you just go to my brother and explain that you were tricked he’ll believe you. I’m sure he will embrace you like an old friend. My brother is famous for his magnanimity,” said Augustus with a mischievous smile.

Revenica looked at Marielle. Her eyes were the eyes of a beggar, hoping for some scraps. “Marielle, why would you bring us into this?”

Augustus put his hand on Marielle’s shoulder and answered in her place. “Because I asked her to do it. I needed you two here. I wish for you two to become our allies in this struggle and into the future.”

They all sat in silence. Even Marielle was uncomfortably in the thick air. She desperately wished to say something to reassure Quintus and Revenica, but no words came to mind.

“I can see you aren’t convinced. At least stay and eat with us, as you were invited to do. The damage is already done. There will be no greater harm incurred by listening to my words.”

More silence. Augustus rang a bell and the servants brought the food into the room. Cressa placed a plate in front of Quintus and waited for him to fill it from the main platter. He did as he had to, but with a complete lack of urgency. He moved slowly and thoughtfully, each movement drawn out, all while staring at Augustus. When he finally had the plate filled, Cressa lifted it and brought it to Augustus.

Augustus also took his time tasting each morsel. Slowly chewing his food then giving an exaggerated swallow. “I know you are angry. I can see it on your face. And you should be angry. You knew something like this would happen, didn’t you? But you came anyway. If we were of lower standing than you in the family, it would have been acceptable to send a letter saying you regretfully couldn’t make it today, but with so little standing in the family, you needed to swallow those fears.”

Augustus paused, waiting for a response. “Nothing to say to that? How sad, to be at the mercy of another’s whims. But that is your lot in life, I guess.”

Marielle watched as Quintus became more and more withdrawn. His eyes lowered at his plate. How could this be Augustus' strategy, she wondered. If anything, he was driving him further away. Although Augustus claimed he had already made Giovannus his enemy, a sufficient apology to Giovannus might clear things up. If Giovannus was in a difficult position as Augustus believed, he would be more willing to forgive something like this rather than push him away so casually. Marielle began questioning the sanity of her husband’s actions.

He slammed his fist against the table, startling everyone. “Aren’t you tired of it?” Augustus waited for a response but none came. “Answer me!”

“Of course I’m tired of it,” said Quintus with a strained voice. He sat up higher in his chair to speak further. “Who wouldn’t be tired of being taken advantage of?”

“When you made the deal with the Sentellius family, you were powerless to stop Cladius from coming in and taking the majority of the profit. I would have been furious. He did nothing to earn it, but you let him have it because you couldn’t say no. Or rather, you didn’t want to say no. The risk was too great. You like to play it safe. That’s where you and I differ greatly. I would have denied him a portion of the deal, standings be damned.”

“You weren’t there. How can you say you wouldn’t have done what I did? You don’t know what it’s like to be on a lower rung in the family.”

Augustus laughed. “Do you really think I wouldn’t have taken the risk? Just consider the last few days and what’s happened. I’m not at all averse to risks, as long as the outcomes favour me in the aggregate. Let me ask something, between me and my brother, who do you think will end up the victor?”

“It’s hard to say,” replied Quintus. “I think it could go either way. That’s exactly why I want to stay out of it.”

“Come on Quintus! Think about it! Use that mind of yours. You are a smart man, to have come up with the Sentellius deal, you must have some wit. Put your mind to the task, run through the scenarios, weigh the vices and virtues of each side.”

It was clear that Quintus went deep into thought. His eyes moved randomly as he considered the problem before him. He spoke softly and slowly as if he feared the very words he spoke. “I guess you have the advantage.”

Revenica looked surprised at Quintus’ response, and both Marielle and Augustus noticed. Marielle now saw Augustus’ plan of attack and deemed it the best time to interject. “Revenica, you look shocked to think that my husband might have the upper hand in this fight. Quintus, maybe you can enlighten us how you came to that conclusion.”

Quintus leaned back in his chair, preparing himself for the long speech that would explain his thoughts. “Even when Giovannus won the election to head of the family, it was still a close victory, showing the strong base of support Augustus has. Now, most people have flocked to Giovannus because he holds power, but they are fickle allies. They will turn tail as soon as the winds look unfavourable. It might appear like Giovannus’ support is strong, but once the tide turns it will turn swiftly. Those of moderate leanings tend to take stock of the leanings of those around them, so it will seem to happen all at once if it does happen.

“Giovannus suspending the payouts hasn’t done him any favours either. Making the middle even easier to break. He has kept them in line by loaning coin to key people who hold influence and keep the others in line. But it’s a complicated scheme. A scheme that Augustus has likely disrupted. Ledgers needed to be kept, names, dates. A lot of letters negotiating terms and amounts need writing. Assurances need to be given; jittery hands held. It requires skilled men, trained and loyal. Without them, the coin will be disrupted.”

Augustus applauded and spoke cheerfully, “Exactly right! I couldn’t have said it better myself. In fact, it was better I didn’t say it. I knew you’d be able to see below the surface level, and now that you’ve discovered it on your own you can know I didn’t trick you with my word games. Now that you see the play, you need only make the move.”

“It’s too much of a risk. If you lose me and Revenica would be cast out. Taken care of in some back-alley. I can’t.”

“Look where that aversion to risk has gotten you. You can’t even afford a few venti, instead, you give these trinkets at great cost. Do you really want to continue living like that? Take the risk. Choose the winning side and after this is all over you will wield a position and the standing befitting a friend of the head of the Castellian family. You will have wealth and power. I know you desire it. At the very least you’ll never have to feel that fear and anger from being impotent.”

Quintus let out a long sigh, and Augustus smiled broadly. “Fine,” he said with defeat.

“Excellent, now I’ll tell you what I’ll need from you.”