Page 48 of Eternal Ruin

“After everything you did for him.” Her anger was a steel-edged thing, making Slen stare intently at her.

June was exactly like this. Oblivious. Selfish.

This time, Slen’s voice hummed with determination. “There was always a worry in the back of my mind that one day I might fight my own brother to inherit Qaros House. Wonder if the house would come between us as it did between my father and his siblings. It was the only scenario where I didn’t know how I’d react. Now I know.”

Slen’s fingers rubbed against one another, like plucking the strings of a violin. She was decent at masking her emotions but there were small signs like these that made everything she said ring false, or as if it held alternative meanings and Kidan had to translate it.

“What about your other family members?” Kidan asked. “They won’t stand in your way?”

Only Kidan’s house had two living members. For the others, the rules of inheritance were more complicated. Kidan doubted Koril Qaros had named his daughter in the will.

“Since my father was arrested, the house is temporarily assigned a new inheritor,” Slen explained. “My family will choose soon. It will be between me and my uncle.”

Though her tone was even, her eyes dropped for a moment.

“Do you have a plan?”

She nodded. “My grandfather was the one who changed our profession from agriculture to music. He respects progress and advancement. I just have to prove I have great visions for Qaros House. They’ll back me.”

There it was again, a flicker of desire that Kidan had to watch for. Whatever her plan was, it would have to be big.

She’d always known to be cautious of Slen’s ambition but now she feared it. GK had died because of it, and if Slen gave in to it, what would happen to them?

You can’t trust her, a voice whispered in her ear. A quote fromAseracti. “Loyalty is only for starved men.”

“What about Yusef’s family?” Kidan asked, trying to distract herself.

“No need for a family meeting, his great-aunt named him inheritor when he was seven.”

Though it was quick, there was a slight tension in Slen’s jaw.

As Kidan understood it, a house technically could be claimed by any descendant who matched or severed the established culture.

Even June could take the house from Kidan.

But Uxlay had laws within laws. They demanded a study of Dranacti be completed first, and wills of succession be drafted.

“Are you going to inherit or sever?” Slen asked.

Kidan’s hands shook a little, drawing a square against her thigh.

“I don’t know enough about my mother yet.” Her voice wasn’t as casual as she wanted it to be, a wisp of longing made her sound weak. “You?”

“Inherit.”

Kidan jerked straight. “What? From Koril? You’re not serious.”

There was a resigned look in Slen’s flat eyes. “I received a letter from my father. There was only one message. ‘Wool makers. Music makers. What will you make us now?’I have more in common with my father than differences. I can match his Four Points of Culture. It is the easiest path.”

Yusef’s cascading laughter drew their attention. It settled beneath Kidan’s heart, making her sick with want. If she had at least one parent to help her, guide her, everything would be different.

“I’m going to wait outside,” Slen said.

She must have had enough too.

Kidan followed her out, catching a brief nod from Omar Umil. He seemed to say the same thing as the last time she’d visited him.Protect my son.

Once Yusef was finished, they made their way to East Corner Coffee in silence. Yusef studied the ground, lost in thought.