I raised an eyebrow at Lait’s suggestion. His request to continue without Riala being present was a rather obvious attempt to bypass the biggest hurdle in any negotiations one might have regarding this topic—the girl was where she wanted to be. Further, we were all aware that stopping Riala from doing what she wanted to do was close to impossible. With any child you would reach a point where they’d challenge your authority, but here we were dealing with someone who could not be contained by locked doors, chains, or even fortified walls. She would need a serious deterrent to distance herself from us. In short, Lait expected us to push her away.

“You're asking for a private discussion because you know she wouldn’t like your proposal,” I observed, “and because you know it wouldn’t work if she knew. Isn't that a little disingenuous?”

Lait’s frown deepened. “I’m not pleased to be suggesting such tactics, but our options are limited. You clearly understand that. I’ll admit, I hoped Zara's words were hyperbole, but alas, I now see they weren't.”

Reluctantly, I affirmed his statement with a nod. It was certainly an awkward situation. I wasn’t in the right, enabling a young girl to do as she pleased against her guardians’ wishes, but I didn’t have any plans to forcefully convince Riala to go with them either.

Lait was not yet done, however. “If you’d be willing to assist us,” he continued, “I’m authorized to offer a level of support in regards to the plans of establishing your ‘Guild.’”

My ears perked up at the unexpected offer. Apparently their response to our demands was not a strict “No” after all. “Is that so...” I mused, imagining the possibilities. “What level are we talking about?”

Lait’s eyes gleamed with hope. “Should we come to a satisfactory conclusion, the Rulers of Alarna will officially recognize your authority over the Wildlands. We’ll accept your proposed rules and regulations for our dealings within them, and we’ll pay the required fees to continue our ongoing businesses."

I glanced at Hayla, who met my gaze with an arched eyebrow full of curiosity. This offer was beyond our expectations. Without official support, we had anticipated that it would take us weeks, if not months, to convince the Rulers to endorse our claim. But with Lait’s proposition, we could have their backing in an instant—all we needed was for Riala to leave with them. She wouldn’t even need to stay in Alarna forever, and no matter how we persuaded her today, we could always make amends later.

My eyes wandered over to Riala, cocking her head in confusion. She hadn’t been able to follow our conversation, though that was the point, of course. She couldn’t know what was going on, or Lait wouldn’t accept our part of the deal to have been fulfilled. As I looked into her eyes, I thought the proposal over for a moment, until a smile formed on my lips and I came to the only possible conclusion.

I faced Lait, who responded to my smile in kind, expecting a favorable reply. However, his expression quickly soured. “Not a chance,” I said, unwavering.

Disappointment spread across Lait’s face, like a sudden gust extinguishing a hopeful flame. “Miles, please reconsider,” he pleaded. “I’m aware of your abilities, but you can’t hope to establish such an organization without support—let alone with a ragtag group of deserters, criminals, and beasts. Our support is a significant compromise for the relatively minor cooperation we ask of you.”

I had to stifle a chuckle. “We will see just how impossible it is,” I replied, my smile fading to emphasize my next words. “Besides, even if it meant giving up on this idea altogether, I would never do this to her. I suggest you stop considering it an option.”

This hint of a threat was enough for Lait to clam up and slump his shoulders. It seemed like this was the only card he had to play, and unfortunately for him, it held little value.

An irritated grunt escaped Zara as she crossed her arms. “Hmph. How many times do I have to be right before you start listening to me?” she demanded of Lait. “I told you talking to him is pointless. On top of everything else he is essentially a kidnapper!”

Breathing a frustrated sigh, I turned to her. “Listen, Zara... Neither Lilly nor I ever meant to keep Riala from you. I thought you had realized that. Perhaps it wasn’t always apparent on the surface, but I had her best interests at heart at all times. For her own safety, I couldn’t leave her in Alarna back then, and I couldn’t do it this time either. Can’t you understand that?”

Zara closed her eyes and took a deep breath before locking her gaze on me. “Your intentions are irrelevant, Tomar. You had no right to take her, and I had my own plans to deal with the Rulers. Who do you even think you are, making decisions for her?”

Her voice was calm, but laced with hostility. I didn’t recognize this version of her, which was so different from her usual demeanor. It seemed that her new relationship forced this new approach on her. I appreciated the lack of shouting, but logical arguments posed a different challenge.

“I’m not trying to act as her guardian,” I said in a pacifying tone, “but I am currently the one most suited to protect and teach her. Wasn’t that the point of your agreement with Lilly?”

“That was before you killed her!” Zara hissed. “The person who helped me forgive you! And now that she’s gone, that deal is null and void regardless.”

I sighed weakly, disappointed that I needed to address this as well. “So you believe the rumors,” I murmured. “Unfortunately I have no evidence to prove that I didn’t kill her. However, would you do me a small favor? Just for a moment, entertain other possibilities. The Rulers said they had witnesses who saw me with the dead body, but that doesn’t mean I killed her. In fact, I don’t even deny it. I did run through town, her corpse in my arms. Think about this for a moment. Why would I do that?”

Zara remained stone-faced, seemingly refusing to engage in his line of thought. She didn’t say anything either though, so I simply continued. My words were heavy as I wondered how Tomar must’ve felt after Lilana and I died, and I could feel a heavy mood fall over everyone on our side of the table.

“Suppose I was going to kill her, I could’ve utilized my powers to accomplish it and make her body disappear in one go. Instead, I carried her bloody remains through the streets. Now, you may argue that I still had plans to use her in some way, but I didn’t. If I had only wished to seize control over Alarna, the wisest course of action would have been to announce her demise, blame it on the imaginary category ten, rile up the citizens, and proclaim that we would pursue the monster. That way, I could have truly manipulated them to earn their confidence.”

Zara remained silent.

“And if I had a hand in summoning the creature, as alleged by the Rulers,” I continued, my voice rising slightly, “I messed up royally, because I was at death's doorstep at the end of the fight. Why would I pick a battle I couldn’t win? Please, consider it. My actions and the rumors don’t match up. It’s true that I haven’t been entirely honest about everything that happened... But I had good reasons for withholding certain information, to protect people.”

I paused, scanning Zara’s face for any hint of a reaction. Initially, she only glared at me with disgust, but after a moment, she finally spoke.

“Are you done?” she asked coldly.

I flattered slightly, perplexed. “Well... yea.”

“Good, because I don’t care anymore,” she said flatly. “All I want is for Riala to finally come home and live a normal life. I don’t trust a word you say, and I never will again. You even admitted that you lied. I always knew that you were not to be trusted. You’re a liar, just like your father.”

Overcome with confusion, I furrowed my brows as I stared back at her. “My... father? What does he have to do with anything?”

For some reason, she accused Tomar’s father of being a liar—a man I knew little to nothing about, and who died years before I met Tomar.

Zara scoffed at my question. “Leander had a talent for spinning lies and winding himself out of suspicious situations as well. He always had some kind of excuse at the ready, tricking people into trusting him with his nice-guy-act.”

Her negative feelings towards this man sputtered out of her as if she had bottled them up for many years. Convinced that she had finally seen through Tomar—or me—Zara equated us to his father, who had supposedly tricked her into trusting him when she was younger. She only learned about this later in life, however, and she vowed to herself not to trust such natural born liars ever again, including Tomar.

Questions raced through my mind. What had he lied about? Were the father’s actions, whatever they were, the sole reason she disliked his son? And if she despised Tomar as much as it appeared at this moment, why did she ever let him near Riala? None of the theories I came up with on the spot quite made sense. That was until a momentous slip of the tongue on her part.

“Like father, like son,” she spat. “And now that I know what you’re really like, I will make sure that you don’t infect our sister!”

The room grew quiet as awkward glances were exchanged. Zara didn’t realize what she had said, but the weight of her words hit me like a hammer.

“Riala...” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “She's my sister?”

Zara’s eyes widened in shock, and I knew that I had found the missing piece of the puzzle.