Tarvakian sat in the meeting room. The stress of the past weeks had taken a toll. Chunks of his dreams had been ripped to shreds and replaced by chaos. Eveyin's love was the only thing that remained unchanged, though only the All-Father knew why.

Bellina had been angry at first, then resigned to the expected orderly dismantling of the house. She admitted that she would have come to the same decision and didn't blame Herilic. Tarvakian thought it was a brave facade. Behind her eyes, he imagined a burning hatred of the man who destroyed all that she had built.

Somehow, in the sloppiness that ensued, the house limped on. One in ten had chosen to grasp their freedom. It took coin to buy their silence since many needed the means to return from whence they came. In a strange twist, Borlin organized those that remained to accept less in the beginning, to help offset the cost of the silence that would benefit all. Vasco had done the sums, calculated the cost of housing and feeding those who remained, and guessed at the future profit to be apportioned. Half of the gains would remain as Tarvakian, the rest divided among all those who stayed. It was further broken into shares, and those whose skills exceeded others, such as Vasco, would get a higher count of shares. True chaos.

There was a knock on the door, intruding on Tarvakian's moment of private silence. "Come," he shouted with more anger than he meant. He put down his mug of tea and repeated the word with calmness when he saw Vasco's tentative face peek through the door.

"My sorrows, Vasco," Tarvakain said, waving him in. He pointed to the steaming teapot and mugs. "Join me. I should not be wallowing in the muck all by myself." He forced a smile to ease Vasco's mind.

Vasco sat down and poured some tea. "The weavers have changed how the wool is pulled. It caused arguing before an agreement was reached." Vasco took a sip of the tea and sat back. His body seemed to meld into the chair. He was frazzled as well.

"Chaos," Tarvakian said, then picked up his tea and sat back as well. He shook his head. "All know best, yet none of the bests can be agreed upon. It is if my words are mere suggestions now."

"Aye, sir," Vasco said. "It is odd how anything is done at all. Odder still, the counts."

"The counts?" Tarvakian asked.

"They are up, sir," Vasco said. He sipped his tea and smiled.

"Up?"

"Aye, up. I know not how, yet they are up and increasing." Vasco chuckled. "There are less doing the work, there is barely a moment without disagreement on how it should done, and somehow more is being done."

"Are you sure your tallies are correct?" Tarvakian's eyebrows rose.

"Aye, though I miss Kelton's eye for such things. I'd feel better if there were another following my count."

"Mayhap, Borlin has the right of it," Tarvakian said. "Mayhap, ex-property love profit as much as I."

"True on this day," Vasco agreed. "It remains to be seen if it holds tomorrow and the days that follow. It is why I waited to tell you." He sipped his tea again. "And counted many times."

"I have yet to thank you for staying," Tarvakian said, lifting his mug in salute. "This mire would be impossibly deep without your skills."

"Forgive me, sir," Vasco said. "I see this house as mine, as well as yours. I always have. Leaving was never the choice I could make."

Tarvakian pondered the boldness of the statement. Then he saw it for what it was - the truth. Kelton may have kicked house Tarvakian toward greatness, but Vasco had always been steering the boat. Tarvakian merely pointed in the direction he wished the ship to go. Vasco was loyal to him, and to the house he helped grow.

"Aye, It is yours as well, Vasco," Tarvakian said with laughter. "It is good to know that I do not drown alone."

"Drown? Whose drowning?" Bellina said. She had snuck in during the laughter.

"Ahh, my good wife," Tarvakian said and stood. His disposition had improved, but gloom still reigned below the surface. "It is I who is drowning, and I am pulling Vasco with me. You as well, am I not?" Vasco started to stand as well.

"Sit, sit," Bellina said, her hand waving them back to their seats. "We may want to wait before we go under for the last time." She took a seat next to Vasco. "Borlin has just informed me that one of our wagoneers who was shipping lettuce for house Savion, overheard property speaking of a failed corn shipment. It is reported that the necessary ship never made port."

"Mayhap, the same storm," Tarvakian thought out loud.

Bellina nodded. "It would take many wagons, but moving that shipload to Mila may be of great profit. Savion will find little coin here due to the abundant harvest. How much corn can one city eat?"

"And Savion will be happy to be rid of it before it rots," Tarvakian said with a smile.

"And if the Mila ports are unscathed, it will be worth more still," Vasco added. "You know your advantage, my lady."

"I was born for profit, Vaso," Bellina said. "And it seems Borlin and his ilk are as well."

"I must find Zello," Tarvakian said as he stood. It would be best if Zello were part of any negotiation, and it must happen quickly. The value of information deteriorates with time.

"He is on his way, Herilic," Bellina said, indicating he should remain seated. "As is his wife. It seems Yanda has made her decision, and we must all be present to hear it. Though I know not why an aye or nay need all these ears."

"It is nay," Tarvakian surmised, dropping his head. "I saw it in her eyes the moment I told her of Kelton." He sighed and closed his eyes. "Her dress work will be sorely missed. We can only hope Glenda has grasped enough to continue."

"We will soon know," Bellina said. "She has been summoned as well."

"I guess we will suffer a summons," Tarvakian said with a weak chuckle. He lifted his head and tried to force another smile. "Yanda has always been as headstrong as she is talented with the needle. And to lose one's love, who can blame her for fleeing."

"Chaos, as you have said, husband."

"It would have all been easier if Kelton would have returned," Tarvakian said. "It is as if this house has been cursed. Once with freedom, twice to suffer it without his mind." He shook his head. "And I miss him. He always saw things so oddly." Tarvakian chuckled. "Did he not keep us on our toes?"

"Aye," Vasco said, adding his chuckle as well.

"I knew him least," Bellina said, "yet I too found him an enjoyable man. I hope you both know how much he loved this house. Property or not, he saw us as family."

"Aye," Tarvakian said as Vasco nodded in agreement. Their discussion ended when Zello, Alliette, Glenda, and Yanda entered. Tarvakian found it odd that his son did not glance in his direction. He had seen it before, but not since Zello was younger and had done some wrong.

Yanda moved in front of Tarvakian and wasted no time. "I must leave, Heralic." Not sir, which was odd coming from her, or any other ex-property.

"I am not surprised. The loss of Kelton has damaged us all, and you the most," Tarvakian said.

"It is true, though I prefer to believe he still lives," Yanda said. "Still, I can no longer wait to find the truth. It is time I faced what awaits in Sorinnia."

"If you believe he lives..." Tarvakian began.

"He is as my brother, and never have we joined," Yanda interrupted. "A ruse to ease your mind. It is no longer a necessity, so I end it now." Tarvakian looked at his son and could tell he already knew. Alliette looked equally guilty, her eyes examining the ground like scolded property. Glenda was unsurprised but did not fear his glare.

"That is news," Bellina said. At least she was surprised.

"I do not...." Tarvakian started again, only to be interrupted.

"Your house will provide a ship for my return to Sorinnia," Yanda ordered. "I must face what awaits me there. In return..."

"What is this?" Tarvakian demanded with some anger. The demand was outrageous. He stood, and Zello stepped forward.

"My sorrows, father," Zello pleaded with his palms raised. "Mayhap, you should tell him all," he said to Yanda.

"I would have thought you already have," Yanda said.

"Tell me what?" Tarvakian asked, his anger now peppered with confusion. "It seems news reaches my ears last these days."

"It is my fault," Alliette said. "I made Zello promise to say nothing."

"Everyone sit," Bellina said. "There has been turmoil enough. Let it not infect the family as well." Tarvakian found himself sitting, after a huff. When all were seated, Bellina continued, "What is it we need to know, Yanda?"

"I am Yanda Serinda Orctavia Onlain Grovicko Sabo Divarina Linbola Travici Bangala Wath Nab Fortuna Mina Mordico Yovia Aborocollo, firstborn of the Queen of Sorinnia, rightful heir to the throne," Yanda spoke as if it were a simple fact that should be glossed over, said only to explain what must follow. Bellina's mouth opened and failed to close. Zello mouthed his sorrows to his father. Alliette looked relieved. Glenda only tilted her head as if the news was new, yet also not unexpected. Tarvakian felt his stomach turn.

"Your highness," Tarvakian said, fumbling out of his seat toward his knee. Everything he had done, the request - no demand of her to be with Kelton. "I did not know...how could I..."

"Do not kneel in your own house, Heralic," Yanda said, waving him back his seat. "You did not know because I did not tell you. There were many trips to the library before Kelton knew."

"I would never have..."

"Aye, as your son has made clear more than once," Yanda interrupted. "In truth, I feared my birthright and found solace in your house's work, in Kelton, and in the admiration of those who wore my dresses." Yanda and Alliette shared a smile. "I meant to die on the ship that brought me here. It was Kelton who forced me to live. I stayed for him."

"All-Father, the lesson," Tarvakian said. They had whipped a princess.

"A fowl thing," Yanda agreed. "I took the lashings because Kelton did. I do hold you in blame for your kingdom's vulgar laws. We were well treated inside these walls."

"I must tell the king," Tarvakian said in a panic. Such things were done with ransom, not the whip.

"You must not," Yanda said. "I tolerated all for Kelton and my home. My mother will pay no ransom, and her pride would demand a war she can not win. I would not see my land torn apart to avoid a few strokes on my back, nor in payment for the same. The king should remain ignorant."

"You are stronger than I, your highness," Bellina said.

"In this house, I desire the name, Yanda. Princess is for when my feet touch Sorinnian soil once again."

"Passage," Tarvakian said, his mind still reeling. "We shall pay for your passage home. I know not when the next..."

"Father," Zello chimed in. "Yanda requires more than passage, and it benefits all."

"What?" Tarvakian was getting tired of new revelations. He wasn't sure his mind could stand anything else turned on its head.

"You enjoy those crogerts, do you not?" Yanda asked. She made a face that Tarvakian was sure meant that she did not.

"Aye," Tarvakian replied. "I am not sure what that has to do..."

"They are called 'jathic' in Sorinnian and are a nuisance. Sometimes, we are forced to subsist on them when the harvests fail." Yanda made another disagreeable face, probably formed by some memory. "They fall and clutter everything. If the trees did not provide good shade, they would have all been cut down and banished from the land. Fortunately for them, hardy shade is of great value in an arid land."

"You mean crogerts lay about your land?"

"Aye. Gathered and burned most years," Yanda said.

"Father, she envisions trade with our house," Zello said.

Yanda nodded. "Our land will not trade with slavers, but a free house in the middle of slave houses should be encouraged. I will see to it my mother sees the wisdom. It would please her to perpetuate the ruse of house Tarvakian in the middle of a slave king's domain." Yanda smiled in a superior way. "Mayhap, a trade of cloth for crogerts. Sorinnian wool is heavy compared to your light fabrics. I see strong profit for both queen and house."

"A trade? Cloth for crogerts?"

"Aye," Yanda replied. "A bolt for each barrel to begin. Do you not see the beauty of it? We turn our nuisance to value, and a barrel of crogerts will create far more coin than a bolt of cloth here."

"Ten times as much," Vasco said, his eyes large at the prospect.

"More if we don't saturate here," Bellina said. "We could disperse through Mila, Heralic." There was excitement in her voice, the same excitement that cursed through Tarvakian's bones.

"And the queen will agree?" Tarvakian asked.

"Aye," Yanda said. "I did not leave on good terms, so she will be angry at first. Mayhap, I will not tell her of the lesson. It may be best if kings and queens do not know of each other's full part in this."

"Secrets and ruses abound," Tarvakian said, shaking his head. "This will be but another to pile on the rest. Chaos rules these days."

"Profitable chaos, Heralic," Bellina said with a smile. "Private trade with Sorinnia can benefit our house in ways unimagined. I would think there is more than crogerts and bolts our land's desire of each other."

"Aye," Tarvakian agreed.

"I have thought the same," Yanda said, nodding to Bellina. "Mayhap, an emissary of house Tarvakian travels with me." She looked at Glenda. "Your strength would feed mine, Glenda. My first steps on Sorinnian soil would be lighter with you at my side."

"If Heralic would allow me to speak in his name, then I accept. It would be good to see a land ruled by a woman." Glenda snorted. "Men have made a mess of this one."

"And what of the dress crafting and such?" Zello asked.

"There are others," Glenda said in her motherly voice, the one Zello always listened too. "There will be time before we leave, shipping as it is these days. I will select those to oversee in my absence. Mayhap, there are new styles I can learn of in Sonrinnia."

"Chaos," Tarvakian said, looking at Bellina. "It is as if we are blown about by an ever-changing wind."

"Then we must travel with it," Bellina said. She was all smiles thinking of the profit.

"Aye," Tarvakian agreed. He wondered how long the charade could be kept up. How long before the world realized his house was free, and all the secrets exposed. He sighed. "Is this the end of the secrets you have kept from me?" He asked Zello. He knew instantly by the look on his son's face that it was not. Alliette was looking equally sheepish.

What followed was a lengthy discussion of what was known of the origins of Kelton. Even Vasco had kept that from Tarvakian. At first, Tarvakain was taken aback by the secrets and lack of loyalty, then realized it was loyalty all along; loyalty to Kelton. The man had endeared himself to many, and in turn, endeared himself to the house. Kelton was chaos incarnate.

"We all walk a fine line here," Tarvakian said. The kingdom was full of secrets if Alliette was to be believed, and Tarvakian had no reason to disbelieve her. "It is best if all of this stays behind these walls. With Kelton gone, there is no good way to dig deeper, not with the ruse consuming all our efforts." The last was meant for Alliette, who seemed determined to dig out truths the king would prefer remain hidden. "At least for a time." He looked directly at Alliette.

"Aye, father," Alliette said. "I will rest my mind for the house's sake and Yelvin's future." She took Zello's hand, and it proved to Tarvakian that the Princess's love for family exceeded her desire to know.

~~~~~

Yanda sat on the bed and looked in Kelton's chest. It was filled with clothing and little things that he had acquired. Nothing of value, just useless trinkets that caught his eye, or were given to him by another. There were a few early attempts at the Kuzzle, and a small carving blade provided him by Zello. She missed Kelton and wished he had never gone on that misguided adventure. His mind simply didn't know how to ignore things. Yanda chuckled. It is one of the things she cherished about him.

"Come in," Yanda said, in response to a knock. She closed the chest and gave the door her full attention.

"I wish a word if you have time," Tarvakian asked. He didn't fully enter. Yanda wasn't sure if it was newfound respect for a princess, or hesitation for the coming conversation.

"Aye." Yanda waved him in and patted the bed. Tarvakian closed the door and sat an arm's length away. At first, he fumbled with words, then settled his thoughts and spoke clearly.

"When you and Kelton first arrived, I had thought you and he were already..." Tarvakian dropped his eyes to the floor. "The story of him risking all to save you, well, it reminded me of many tales told by the master tellers. Owner or not, I now see I made a grave error." He looked back at Yanda. "Princess or not, I should never have demanded what I did. It is not how I wish to run my house."

"Eveyin?" Yanda asked. She felt emboldened to question Tarvakian's other indiscretion. A princess had standing that could not be ignored. To her surprise, Tarvakian smiled.

"That is another secret, Yanda," Tarvakian said. "One, I hope you will seal away." Yanda nodded. Tarvakian shifted to face her directly. "Bellina is my wife in name. Eveyin is my second true love and my true wife." He shrugged. "It is not fitting for an owner to marry property, so the ruse was created."

"What of Bellina, she knows of this?"

"Aye. Though her secrets are not mine to tell." Tarvakian shifted, as if uncomfortable. "It was a merger of houses. She gains my name and the power that comes with it. House Tarvakian enlarges, and Yelvin inherits more." He smiled. "And it gives Eveyin cover to be Eveyin. She is more beautiful that way, so I gain the most profit."

"Zello and Alliette know?"

"Aye, and they hold the secret close."

"As will I," Yanda said. "And know that I was once angry at your demand, but I do not hold that anger now. My virtue was never at risk, though I did not know it at the time. Kelton was angrier than I when the demand came to light." She smiled and wondered what would have happened if Kelton had taken her. Life would not have been so horrible; she was sure of that.

"The world is less without him," Tarvakian said. "I do not think he was done with this house. So much has changed, and yet still, we prosper." He chuckled. "There are two princesses under my roof, one is the mother of my grandson, and I sit on the King's counsel. All of it tied to Kelton. Mayhap, I should rename it to house Kelton."

"I do not think Kelton is done with this world," Yanda said, holding her hand up to stall Tarvakian's words. "I know what you saw, but I know Kelton. If breath still moves in his chest, the Goddess will see him through." She took Tarvakian's hand in hers. "If you believe your new-found profit is derived from his efforts, I ask that you save some shares for him. He has his own Eveyin, and he will need coin to retrieve her."

"From where? Not the Dark Isle."

"Aye, the Dark Isle. Her name is Juno, and he spoke of her often." Yanda smiled. "Like all things in his mind, she will fester there until he acts."