Kelton spent the next day doing tallies for the house. He followed Vasco from building to building, counting bolts and skins, and the staged development of goods. Although he would have preferred to work on the Barrenkee puzzle, Master had reminded him that House Tarvakian needed to be functioning to afford to uncover the secrets of another.

It was a good exercise and allowed Kelton to get to know more members of the house. Halfway through, it became apparent that Master also wanted to remind him how many depended upon the profits of House Tarvakian. A mere side effect of a necessary task.

The following day, Vasco and Kelton returned to the library. Zello desired to join them, but his father thought it best that the first visit was without a master. He didn't want the Princess, if she showed, to think House Tarvakian was thrust upon her. "Better to let it grow like a flower," Master had said. "Tease the eyes, then the nose, before the full glory bursts forth." Zello disagreed, yet stayed back as directed.

"Page 97, fourth word?" Gladfee asked when Kelton approached.

"Decide," Kelton responded after some thought. The pages of the King's Truth weren't fading as yet.

"Remarkable," Gladfee said. "I am told you are sanctioned." Kelton smiled and produced his disc. "And where does your mind take you today."

"House histories," Kelton said.

"He thinks he can find advantage by knowing a house's past," Vasco said with a shrug. The only house they were interested in was Barrenkee, though no one else need know there was only one target.

"An interesting tact," Gladfee agreed with a nod. "We tend to negotiate easiest with those who know us best. And how much of the day have you been given."

"All of it," Vasco said. "Half for the house, half for our desires."

"You have a fine master to allow such time," Gladfee said.

"Aye," Vasco agreed. They headed up the stairs while Gladfee once again moved to the King's Truth to verify Kelton's memory. Kelton saw him shaking his head in awe and smiling when he found the page.

The ancestry of House Barrenkee was not well documented. It was a newer house, barely three generations old. The grandfather was the first owner with two slaves. The house specialized in short inter-city shipments.

Kelton took a new tact when the paternal side of the house failed to yield useful information. After identifying Barrenkee's mother, he looked into the existence of a house named Mortique. It was a gamble with weak odds, but a small trail was better than none.

House Mortique was a farming house in Mila. It had survived for many generations, illustrious in the past, less so now. From what was available, Kelton made a guess that the current head was Barrenkee's cousin, though an uncle was not out of the realm of possibility.

"Mila can't be a coincidence," Vasco whispered.

"Aye," Kelton agreed. "Though hiding farm shipments seems a foolish thing."

"Mayhap, it is a different endeavor. Farm produce rarely travels far. Grain at times, but only famine drives great profits from it."

"It does not say House Mortique's main product," Kelton said as he turned pages. "Pigs are mentioned in the early records and nothing else in the later references. Their profits seem less this day than last".

"Pigs are not welcome near a city in numbers," Vasco said. "The smell is offensive. Cities grow, mayhap, into House Mortique. It would explain the lowering of profits."

"I see nothing worth hiding."

"Could be nothing at all. Mortique may only be a relation, nothing more."

"Aye. It is an odd thing though." Kelton shrugged and placed the book back on the shelf. "Is there nowhere else to look?"

"Everywhere," Vasco said, his arms spread to the thousands of books. "Without more knowledge, it is like fishing in the desert."

"Then we have learned little," Kelton said. They had spent the morning, and Kelton felt the time wasted.

"Every piece is another step," Vasco said. "I will head to the nature tower and look into pig care. Mayhap, another clue will be found."

"I wish to go to the foreign tower and learn more of Sonniria," Kelton said.

"For two who have never joined, your care of each other is odd," Vasco said, adding a chuckle.

"Is it?" Kelton replied abruptly. "We are where we should not be, together. Any who find themselves trapped would be less without one like her at his side."

"I meant no..."

"Nay, you did not." Kelton smiled. The harshness of how he spoke came to him, and he wished it wasn't so. "You are not against me, yet sometimes I see the kingdom in you." He raised his palm when Vasco was about to speak. "A friend is what I see in you. Your intent for Yanda and me is well known."

"Yet, I see Tarvakian as a friend as well."

"Is it also odd that I find my unjust jailer as not evil as well?"

"He is not."

"Mayhap he is both good and evil." Kelton chuckled at himself. "Or is it that he knows me better than I do myself. I knew he had a plan, yet I did not see Felicity in it. I saw him as I have seen others, devising some vile strategy to force concession. Instead, he undoes a misery and tells me, no... asks to undo more. How can I fight one such as him?"

"I gave in long ago," Vasco said. "In a storm, you find shelter. House Tarvakian offers strong walls against terrible winds."

"Know that my mind is not changed, only shifted," Kelton said. "I do not like the laws that allow one to own another."

"I know, and Master knows," Vasco said. "And know that if you choose to run, I will give what help I can." He grinned. "And a night's head start before I tell Master. He will delay a day or two before the hunters are told."

"Barrenkee first," Kelton said.

"Aye, Barrenkee first."

~~~~~

Kelton delved into Sorinnia history. It was a difficult topic since few had looked deeply into the subject. Most facts were labeled as conjecture, developed from stories told by those who heard it from others. It was if the Sorinnia floated in mist yet its location well known. The language was documented by merchants, a necessity of trade. There was some trade by the Kingdom's ships, though much less by Sorinnian ships.

The maps of Sorinnian lands were crude. The coastlines well defined, but inland was only vaguely documented. More than once Kelton found references to subservient men. The authors feared to venture inland, or perhaps did and never returned to write about it. Kelton found it strange that no one thought to send a woman. It would be a logical step. If wood burned away, you poked the fire with iron.

"Sorinnia?"

Kelton turned and found the smiling face of princess Alliette Victalica. He dropped to his knee and bowed his head. "Good day, high mistress."

"You spend your own time looking into Sorinnia?" Alliette asked. Gladfee hid no words from her. She signaled him to rise with her hand as if his kneeling annoyed her.

"Yanda, the woman who weaves my hair, is Sorinnian," Kelton said as he rose. "I wish to know more of her land."

"You wish to please her?"

"I wish to know her better," Kelton replied, then added quickly, "high Mistress."

"She is important to you?"

"Aye."

"Why?"

"We share..." Kelton stumbled as he considered the question. It was odd that an answer that would flow so easily to another would be difficult for someone else. He decided he would not hide the reason behind sweet words. "We were taken together and suffered the lesson. To this day, I feel the whip that marked her back and know that she feels the stripes that mar mine. Your sanction allows me to know her better. For that, I am in your debt, high Mistress."

"Your master has not hindered your words," the princess said with wide eyes.

"Nay, though he said I must consider those who depend upon him before I tear his house asunder."

Princess Alliette's laughter echoed in the tower. Kelton saw a few heads turn, then seeing the source they looked away quickly.

"High Mistress," Kelton added, remembering the needed respect.

"Your master is a good gambler," Alliette said. "I mean no harm to your house, at least not through your words."

"It is good to hear, high Mistress. I fear my thoughts sometimes leave my mouth before reason has a chance to silence them."

"You as well?" Alliette smiled. "My father has told me as much as well. For some reason, men feel women's thoughts should be stifled. My father thinks I stretch that rule by desiring to speak with you."

"You go against the king?"

"Nay." Alliette shook her head. "A daughter uses what power she has with her father. He wishes to say nay, but cannot for it would displease me."

"You have great power."

"If you were a treaty or some great law," Alliette said, shaking her head, "then I would have been told otherwise. He does not see you being of great concern. I choose my battles well." She signaled with her hand for Kelton to follow. "Come, I wish to learn what you think of the Nagada."

They found a comfortable corner of the tower. Four cushioned chairs circled a small round table with a marble surface. Kelton wondered how it was raised to the third floor. The weight of it looked more than four men could lift. He meant to sit opposite her, but she pointed at the seat directly to her side. He took it as ordered.

"Did you find the Nagada myth as some think?" Alliette asked.

"Nay, high Mistress. The words were of an account, not spoken as in a tale. That and the encounter ties well with the end of the Kingdom's expansion. Your Great Father was wise to cease after such a loss."

"Wise? Some may say he had weakened and grown old."

"To win a land of jungle? At best, he would have thrown away many lives to claim a trade route that is well served by sea."

"But what of the lands beyond? Would it have not eased the conquering of those and added to the Kingdom?"

"Aye, high Mistress," Kelton replied. "Though, it is the purpose of the expansion that would be lost in the lives. King Victalica claimed peace as a purpose, yet those lands never threatened these. In the defeat, I think he saw the fallacy in his expansion. Without it, he would have fed on success, never seeing the cost in lives."

"And why do you think he lost?"

"He knew nothing of the Nagada. In all other conquests, he understood the tactics because he shared the same style of war." Kelton's mind revealed a revelation, something that came to him sparked by the question asked. "And the Nagada knew nothing of him."

"What do you mean?"

"Fear of the known is powerful, high Mistress," Kelton replied. It was no different than the viners who feared his skill, or those that feared the Brethren. "The Nagada knew nothing of King Victalica's past victories. To them, he was a hill to be climbed. To others, the King's armies were an unscalable mountain. Some of his previous victories were won before they were fought."

"I have never heard it worded so," the Princess said. "It is usual to desire to know your enemy well. Yet, I can see where the lack of knowledge could be powerful as well."

"It was a mix of things, most like."

"They had no shield, no bow, and no horse. Most would think the Nagada would be beaten before they came to the field."

"The book described them armed with two swords each. It failed to mention how that offset the disadvantages. Only that they moved as one and incited fear as they engaged." Kelton shook his head. "It is a shame that defeats are not written as well as victories."

"There is another text. It speaks of their fervor for the All-Father. Says it is not land or a people they battled for, but a dogma of religion."

"Odd," Kelton said. "I would like to read that. Why would a person fight for something that cannot be seen or heard?"

"You do not believe in the All-Father?" Alliette asked.

"In my land, it is the Goddess. This land, the All-Father." Kelton shrugged. "I have spoken to neither and distrust those who claim otherwise." His mouth moved too quickly, and he worried he had spoken without thinking. "I mean no offense to the All-Father, high Mistress."

Alliette waved away his concern. "I have spoken to neither as well." Her words were a whisper, a confidential statement. It surprised Kelton that she thought him worthy of a secret. "Does your Yanda believe as you do?"

"She is not mine, high Mistress. At best, I am hers if it could be described that way. I know little of her Goddess and she little of mine." Kelton smiled to himself, remembering the misunderstanding Yanda had of him. "Before we knew each other's words, she thought Juno was the name of my Goddess."

"Juno?"

Kelton kicked himself. Again he had divulged more than he intended. Alliette's eyebrows rose when he stalled in his response. "A woman I knew and spoke of often, high Mistress."

"Yanda is not your woman?"

The princess was figuring out too much. She had a sharp mind, and Kelton was talking too much. He tried to figure out how the conversation shifted from the Nagada to Juno. His mouth opened, but nothing legible was ready to come out.

"Ahh, another thing you desire to be hidden," the princess said. "Lies do not sit on your face well, so it is best to move back to where we started. I do not think the loss to the Nagada stopped the expansion. The loss showed the weakness of long supply lines, and thus increased the cost of resources it would take to hold what would be taken. There was no profit in it."

"I had not thought on that." Kelton scrunched his eyes and chewed on his lower lips as he contemplated the idea. "Mayhap, it is as you say, high Mistress. Understanding the scale of it all is difficult for me. I know more of what is within arms reach, and lack your experience with kingdom topics."

"It is only a thought," the princess said. "Yours is no less valid."

"It is a good thought," Kelton said. "As of late, I have found many things that I wished to put in a category only to see them bleed into another. It is best to allow all thoughts to meld together before words are declared as fact." Alliette smiled. Kelton quickly added, "high Mistress."

"I confess, I did not think your master would let your tongue loose."

"Can you not command it to be so?" Kelton asked.

"If I wished to weaken my father, aye." Alliette sat back. "Your master has faith in you."

"Mayhap, he has faith in you, high Mistress."

"You speak more than most coppers. In some houses, one such as you would be silenced and your ideas molded to match theirs."

"My master shackles me in other ways. He uses my thoughts to rule me without the oppression I have seen in another house. House Tarvakian is the calm in the storm, high Mistress."

"I had expected one of your house to oversee your words to me."

"There was one who wished it so," Kelton said, his smile honest as the memory returned. "Zello, my Master's son, is most anxious to meet you. He will desire to hear all your words when I return, high Mistress."

"Ahh, my status," the princess said, nodding her head with a sigh. "They tire of bedding their property and desire the power of ancestry. He will not find it in me." Kelton's smile disappeared.

"It is not Zello's way," Kelton argued. "True, he is an owner, and that alone weakens his hand. But he does not fill his bed with property. It is not done." Kelton sucked in his breath when he realized his tone gotten away from him. "My sorries, high Mistress." He dipped his head and was about to drop to his knee in shame.

"You care for him," the princess said. Kelton looked up into a confused smile. She wasn't insulted by his words, nor his tone.

"I...do," Kelton said. It was an odd admission. He had convinced himself that the Tarvakian's were worth tolerating and not to be hated. Yet, now he was defending Zello as if he were a good friend. "I did not think before I spoke strongly, high Mistress." Alliette waved away his concern.

"He does not take privileges?" the princess asked. Kelton shook his head. "It is a rare thing for an owner. Does he prefer men?"

"Men, high Mistress?"

"Aye," Alliette clarified. "Some men do not care for women. They seek others like themselves."

"Nay," Kelton replied. "I have not seen that. Zello speaks of you like he's in a dream. It is your eyes he seeks, not other men."

"A dream?"

"A poor choice of word, high Mistress," Kelton said, trying to brush it away with this hand. "I have said too much. It is his mind to say one way or another, not mine."

The princess rose, wiping her dress straight. She looked at Kelton who quickly stood, which made her smile. "I will give a book to Gladfee. When next your master allows you time, I would be grateful if you would read it and discuss it with me."

"Of course, high Mistress," Kelton said, dropping to his knee as was expected during her departure.

The princess turned to walk away, then stopped and turned back. "And I would know Zello's favorite color when next we meet. And he will have no knowledge of why, or of our discussion of him."

"Aye. It will be as you desire, high Mistress," Kelton said. He could swear he caught a glimmer in her eye before she turned and disappeared beyond the shelves.

Kelton returned to his research on Sorinnia. Some kingdoms were given multiple shelves, others entire sections. It would take four times the available tomes on Sorinnia to fill a single shelf. He moved to the end, to what appeared to be the most current. It was a merchant account of trades with Sorinnia from six years past. They were profitable, but not overly so.

House Parage attempted to establish consistent terms and failed. The Sorinnian Queen was not open to agreements beyond a single shipment. Her land would not be held to the terms of men. The gamble was deemed too risky for goods that could easily be sold elsewhere. Without terms, a ship could arrive and be sent away on a whim.

A note at the end was included for future reference. It held a phonetic translation of the entirety of the Sorinnian Queen's name. Kelton read it. Then again. Then he sat on the floor and reread it. The picture in his mind did not change, nor the words on the page.

"A good reference?" Vasco asked, his approach surprising Kelton.

Kelton closed the book and stood, giving himself time to think. He placed the book back on the shelf and moved away from it, hoping Vasco would follow. "Nay, just shipping accounts. Sorinnia is a hard land to fathom through the words here."

"The princess found you?"

"Aye," Kelton said, happy for the change in subject. "We spoke on Nagada, and she wishes me to read another book the next time Master allows."

"Wishes?" Vasco chuckled.

"Aye, she said she would be grateful," Kelton continued his retreat from the Sorinnian shelf. Vasco thankfully followed. "I see it as a command, yet it was done kindly. I would do it either way. She has a good mind."

"It is time we returned."

"Aye," Kelton said. Leave one princess...and return to another.