Kelton traveled back to the house in silence. Vasco had tried to engage him in conversation to no avail. Vasco gave up well before they neared the gates of House Tarvakian. Kelton's mind was elsewhere. Yanda had kept her secret well, though he had no idea why. Captain Sebastian hadn't known or kept it for her as well. There was no reason for her to have taken the lesson. Or maybe, there was. Maybe there were secrets upon secrets.

Kelton spent the evening meal trying not to look like he knew Yanda's past. His eyes drifted away from her, fearing she could see inside and pluck out the knowledge. It was uncomfortable to hide such a thing. The hall was no place to bring it up, and yet Kelton wanted it to burst forth. Curiosity and anger mixing in a froth of confusion.

"You mad?" Yanda asked as they traveled back to their room. There was concern on her face. Kelton shook his head and looked forward.

"You mad me?" Yanda asked again. She didn't believe his denial.

"Nay," Kelton said. Omission of such magnitude was a lie. "Aye," Kelton said. Yanda must have her reasons. "Nay," he repeated. He stopped walking and turned to her. It was unfair that she had no clue of the argument he was having with himself. "I found a merchant's account of trade with Sorinnia at the library. The Queen's name was written inside."

Yanda's face lost color. She didn't move a muscle, her eyes failing to blink as she stared at Kelton.

"It is best we talk in our room," Kelton said after a long pause no response.

"Library bad," Yanda whispered with the expression of a toddler who had done wrong. Kelton had no control over his laughter. Here was a woman who willfully took lashings, labeling the exposure of her secret as worse. The truth did more to weaken her than a hundred whippings ever could.

"No funny." Yanda slapped Kelton's shoulder. She looked embarrassed, and Kelton's laughter was making it worse. She hit him again before Kelton could stifle the humor. The world was so broken.

Yanda took Kelton's hand and pulled him toward their room. Her strength had returned and with it the look of determination. When Kelton tried to speak, she shushed him as if he were a child. It was if she intended to blame him for her lineage.

"Serinda Orctavia Onlain Grovicko Sabo Divarina Linbola Travici Bangala Wath Nab Fortuna Mina Mordico Yovia Aborocollo," Kelton said when the door closed. Yanda sighed and released his hand. "It is your mother's name."

"No say anyone," Yanda ordered.

"You took the lesson," Kelton said. "On the ship, you tried to choose death rather than tell them who you were. One word from you and none of this would be. Why?"

"No simple," Yanda said. She sat on the bed and patted the space next to her. Kelton took the spot. She cradled his face in her hands and met him eye to eye. "No say anyone," she repeated.

"Aye, I will leave the words to you. But I don't..."

"Mother strong," Yanda said, releasing Kelton's face. "Order, order, order. All time order. I free once and now I here. Not good." She shook her head. "I shame her."

"But she is your mother."

"What mother do if know?" Yanda said, the question rhetorical. "She not pay. She war." Yanda squeezed her lips together. "Sorinnia no win war."

"It was not your fault."

"My fault." Yanda's eyes fell. "Ordered to flag ship. Had fight. Took no-flag." She raised her hand and tapped her temple with her finger. "No queen think."

"Master will solve this," Kelton said. He stood. "I'll vow as he desires in trade. He's smarter than he shows and will find a way for you to return without shame."

Yanda's eyes widened, and she rose from the bed and slapped Kelton's face. It wasn't the pain of if that shocked Kelton, it was the intent he saw behind her eyes. He took a step back and raised his palm to the cheek she struck.

"I..." Yanda stuttered. Her expression shifted to concern. "You..." Kelton flinched when she came forward. Instead of another attack, she pulled him down into her arms and tucked her head into his shoulder. His stiffness receded when he felt her body shudder. Yanda was crying.

What was left of Kelton's agitation fled. Whatever her reason for slapping him, it hurt her more than him. Somehow, recognizing her lineage had drained her. She was a princess, a future queen of a society that placed women before men. The premise itself should have been empowering.

Kelton held her close until a knock at the door forced them to separate. Yanda turned away and moved to the shelf to clean her face. He waited a moment for her composure to return, then opened the door.

"Tea," Beldin said as he entered. Felicity followed with a smile and carrying the kettle. Yanda turned, her face showing nothing of what had transpired.

"I thought your duties with Beldin were done?" Kelton asked Felicity.

"They are," Felicity replied. "It is a friend I help." She placed the pot on the slate atop the shelf. Yanda and her traded a pleasant greeting.

"She is helpful," Beldin said as he unloaded the tea and infuser. "Knows the kitchen better than I and is pleasing to trade words with." Felicity smiled at the compliment.

"Beldin knows much of the workings of the house. He is my teacher, and my friend," Felicity added. There was pride in Beldin's eyes. He stood taller and lacked his past insecure responses.

"Friend important," Yanda said as she took Kelton's hand. "Make all better." Kelton knew she meant more than her words conveyed. It was an apology for the slap and an admonishment for him insisting she return home. Princesses are a confusing breed.

"Aye," Felicity said, then looked to Beldin. "You wish to show them something?" It was spoken kindly, as a reminder.

"Ahh, Aye," Beldin said and drew out a strip of leather from his pocket. It had holes punched along the edges. "The first is done. The holes are a guess and sewing will tell if more are needed." Yanda grabbed the strip, her excitement evident. She grabbed an unfinished muzzle from the shelf.

"Sew edge?" Yanda asked as she applied part of the strip to the mask.

"Aye," Beldin said. There was a confidence in him as he moved next to Yanda. "Sew along the edge, then stuff with scraps and fold to sew the other side."

"Like pillow," Yanda said with glee. She looked up at Kelton as if it were the first time she fully understood. Her happiness was infectious.

"It is a smart solution," Kelton said to Beldin. "You know leather well." There were no words from Beldin, which surprised Kelton. Beldin traded a prideful look with Felicity. It was if she was the only one he needed to impress, no longer the world.

"He has a good mind," Felicity said. It was a strange partnership. Beldin nearing the end of life and Felicity, at best, a few years older than Kelton.

"We must leave you and tend to other things," Felicity said, unprompted by Beldin. They left, trading words as if delivering the tea was an interruption.

"Odd, those two," Kelton said, once the door was closed.

"Felicity safe," Yanda said with a shrug. "Beldin no lonely." It was a simple calculation for her. Felicity had found someone who needed her for something other than the bed and Beldin acquired a friend. Kelton wondered if Tarvakian had planned that as well.

"Soft," Yanda said, holding out the leather strip. Kelton took it and indeed it was supple. The perfect cloth to form a pillow that would seal the muzzle. Beldin was a mystery, both smart and addle-brained. He knew what he knew and fumbled through the rest of life.

"Aye, it will work," Kelton said.

"It good," Yanda said, retrieving the strip and placing it, and the muzzle, on the shelf. "I sew tomorrow." She began preparing the tea.

"I will tell no one about your mother," Kelton said. His apology.

"I no say your home," Yanda said. Her head turned, and she smiled before returning to her task. It was true. She knew where he had come from and had kept it to herself. "Home no good - you or me."

Kelton moved closer and poured the tea into the first cup after Yanda had filled the infuser. It was done without hesitation as if they were attuned to each other. One person with four hands. Yanda was right, friends were important. There was a comfort to it.

"You found nothing of use?" Karvakian asked. Kelton, Vasco and the two masters were seated around the table. The papers that Zello had collected were still spilled across the top.

"A relative in Mila, on Barrenkee's mother's side," Vasco replied. "A house in decline it seems."

"House Mortique, Master" Kelton added.

"Mortique? There is a Mortique on the King's counsel. A hereditary position, like most who sit in those chairs," Master said.

"They were more prominent in the past." Vasco nodded at the possible connection.

"And you believe this house is part of Barrenkee's secret?" Zello asked.

"Or nothing at all," Kelton said with a shrug. "A profitable swine farm in times past. Little is mentioned today."

"You called for me, Master?" Felicity was standing in the frame of the door, uncomfortable with the summons.

"Aye, Felicity," Master said, waving her in. He pointed at an empty seat which Zello pulled closer to the table. Felicity moved toward it slowly.

"We wish to query you about your last master," Kelton said. "Your answers have no bearing on your life here." Felicity smiled as Kelton expected. Knowing what was going to happen removed some of her nervousness.

"Aye," Master added. "We will task your memory and nothing more." He indicated the seat again, which seemed to please her. Sitting in the presence of the master must have been an aberration in House Barrenkee.

Felicity's eyes took in the documents that were closest to her. Kelton noticed her brief concentration before she raised her head.

"You know tallies?" Kelton asked.

"Aye," Felicity replied. "It was a duty in the kitchen. The larder was watched, and it meant a beating to be off the count."

"We worry about such things as well," Zello said. "Though beatings aren't part of errors."

"It is the bellies we watch," Master said with laughter. "We fat ones are always the culprits." He slapped his belly with both hands to indicate he was not innocent in that type of corruption.

"Your house feeds us well, Master," Felicity said, dropping her hands into her lap. She was becoming more relaxed.

"Good, good," Karvakian said in a father's tone. Kelton admired the way he dealt with people. Setting them at ease with simple words. "We have some interest in your last house. Will you answer some questions?"

"Aye, Master," Felicity said, her brow rising in surprise. "Is it a choice to decline?"

"In this, I desire the truth." Tarvakian shifted in his chair, his shoulders squaring to Felicity as if she were the most important person in the room. Felicity's back straightened. "I will not fault you past loyalties. If you wish to remain silent, it won't be held against you."

Felicity looked from face to face, then back to the papers on the table. Her eyes returned to her Master. "May I speak to someone first, Master?"

"Who?"

"Beldin, Master,"

"If it would speed your choice, then find him now," Tarvakian said. He added his warm smile and signaled for her rise. Felicity rose with a small bow and left to find Beldin.

"Beldin?" Master asked.

"They have bonded, Master," Kelton said. "Yanda said she feels safe with him. It has changed him as well."

"Old for her, isn't he?" Zello asked.

"I think that is his appeal. She was not treated well at House Barrenkee and desires a friend who does not demand to share her bed." Kelton thought of Eveyin as he spoke and put an emphasis on demanding to share the bed. Tarvakian didn't seem to notice.

"It's a good thing," Vasco said. "Glenda says she works well and Beldin is the happier for it."

"Mayhap, it will slow him down," Master said. "Beldin worries too much about his place, which is secure."

"He fears uselessness," Kelton said. "Yanda said he was lonely. Mayhap, leatherwork is his place."

"It is too much for him," Zello said. "His hands don't work well with the tasks anymore. I'll not have him in pain all day, not after all the years we have profited from his work."

"Aye, Master," Kelton said. He found the statement hard to disagree with. Both the father and son saw themselves as good caretakers, and Kelton didn't want to say anything to dissuade them from that course.

Felicity returned while they were in a side discussion about princess Victalica, which Zello had started. Kelton felt boundaries were forming, words that would not cross between the house and the princess and vice-versa. He didn't enjoy being the fence line and was happy to have Felicity interrupt.

"May I ask a question, Master?" Felicity's asked it with confidence. Beldin was good for her.

"Aye."

"Do you intend to profit in partnership with House Barrenkee, Master?"

"Profits are the reason for this house," Tarvakian replied. "Though a partnership is not what I would prefer."

"Will my words do harm to House Barrenkee, Master?"

"Mayhap, they will," Zello chimed in. "Mayhap, not." Felicity looked about the table again, absorbing what she could without overtly grabbing the pages.

"I desire to end House Barrenkee," Kelton said.

Felicity looked up, and a smile grew on her face. "I desire that as well." She turned to Tarvakian. "Beldin speaks of you highly, Master. Says I should trust your words and return only the truth. Ask what you will of me."

"I am grateful for Beldin's trust," Karvakian said, adding a chuckle. Zello and Vasco struggled to hide their smiles. It seemed Beldin had more control over Felicity than her owner did.

"It is his wagon's we have interest in," Kelton said.

"Shipments to and from Mila," Zello added.

"They are troublesome, or so the kitchen was told," Felicity said.

"Why would the kitchen be told this?" Vasco asked.

"We prepared extra provisions for those wagons. Enough for ten times the count of men going. Sometimes twenty. I was told it was for unplanned delays, so the men wouldn't go hungry. An odd thing, since House Barrenkee was never overly concerned with a properties belly." Felicity's thoughts returned to the present, and she quickly added. "Not like here, Master."

"It's not like Barrenkee to waste coin," Tarvakian said to the table.

"Are you sure it wasn't for extra guards or such?" Kelton asked.

"Nay." Felicity shook her head. "Two would travel with each wagon, one guard - one property. Never more." Felicity thought on it for a moment. "The wagons left with two. I know not what happens after they leave the gate." Kelton was impressed with her thought process. She was intelligent, recognizing that limits of her knowledge. Barrenkee was a fool for seeing only her body.

"It could be mercenaries," Zello said. "Mayhap, that's how he makes it through unscathed. They meet before the wagon's enter the forest and escort it through."

"And feed them?" Vasco asked. "Would they not bring their own food?"

"It could be negotiated to keep the coin lower," Tarvakian said, then shook his head. "It is unlike contract warriors to accept food in kind. It is the taverns they desire, not food. They'd eat grass if it afforded them another drink."

"Is there any other strangeness about the Mila wagons?" Kelton asked.

"Nay," Felicity replied, then she squinted her eyes as if a memory was awoken. "Mayhap, something though it is a silly thing."

"What?" Zello asked.

"The tarp they throw over cargo, it is a brown most often," Felicity said. "On Mila wagons, it was red. I thought it a strange choice since the color wouldn't weather well. It is just now that I realize it was used only on the Mila wagons."

"A red tarp?" Vasco asked.

"Aye," Felicity said with a nod.

"How often did you prepare food for Mila wagons?" Master asked.

"Two, sometimes three a week, Master," Felicity replied.

"That is many more than I have deduced," Zello said, looking around the table.

"Perplexing," Vasco said. "Too much food and at best a ten-day round trip. That's a lot of wagon's to have in motion, Master."

"What returned in the wagons?" Tarvakian asked Felicity.

"It was not my place to know, Master. No food ever returned to the larder. Until the curiosity I see here, I thought it sold if not eaten." Felicity replied. A reasonable assumption, Kelton thought. "Is...is this why I was purchased, Master?"

"Nay," Tarvakian replied with a smile. "Barreenkee's striking of you was more than Kelton could bear. You were brought here to end a revolt, and protect the profits House Tarvakian."

"Revolt?"

"A small one," Kelton said. "Master wished to remind me of the good here. The world is broken, but here you can breathe. Do you not sleep better?"

"Aye, I breathe well here," Felicity said then turned to Tarvakian. "I wish to stay, Master." There was a small panic in her tone. Trust hadn't fully set in.

"That is good," Master replied. "I have been informed that you learn fast and work well. Your place here is set while I live."

"My father's words are mine as well," Zello added.

Felicity's face beamed. It warmed Kelton's heart to see it that way. It helped to cover the memory of her bruised cheek. He watched as she departed after being dismissed to return to her work. There was a lightness in her step that had been lacking the days prior. He found himself smiling at the empty doorway after she left.

"It pleases you?" Tarvakian asked.

"I feel you know the answer to that well, Master," Kelton said. It was the worst kind of shackle. The kind you lock yourself.