Sulaiman hadn’t managed to do much more than unsecure their packs from their horses and place the bags on the ground before Priscilla returned. Kavil spotted her fist, a smile brightening and then dimming as he took in Priscilla’s expression. Her lips had been pulled into an involuntary scowl as her mind continued on a rage induced rant towards the Thornewood parents.

  Priscilla took a deep breath to help smooth out her expression before stopping in front of the boys, Mr. Ordan a half-step behind her.

  “Change of plans,” Priscilla said, “there will be no relaxing for us, as we’ll be leaving Meadowyar in the morning.”

  Sulaiman glanced between Priscilla and Mr. Ordan. “What changed?”

  “Illnyea’s caravan was supposed to show up yesterday and didn’t,” Priscila said, “so we’ll be trying to figure where the fuck they are and getting there as soon as possible.”

  “I thought the trip took longer than that,” Sulaiman said, frowning deeply.

  “Illnyea, being Illnyea, happened upon some mages and they provided so many enchantments the caravan’s schedule was accelerated. They decided to take a shortcut through…”

  Priscilla trailed off as she pulled up a mental map of the area between Meadowyar and Harosaw City. Horror crept across her thoughts as she realized there were only two places that would require specialized equipment to traverse – the rocky Grandure Mountains to the north and in the south, next to the inland ocean, the Clarnchill Sea, was…

  “The Heinlein Fens,” Mr. Ordan offered helpfully and Sulaiman’s eyes snapped to Priscilla’s, eyes widening.

  Kavil gasped. “The Gorelock Toads are from there right? Who in their right mind would travel through such a dangerous place?”

  Priscilla’s throat was dry as she said, “Someone who thought they didn’t need to worry about such things because they have fancy wagons and guards.”

  “Fucking imbeciles,” Sulaiman spat, pinching the bridge of his nose as if to ward off a headache. “I told Illnyea that Rudy only cared about cutting costs and she shouldn’t go with but–”

  Sulaiman cut himself off and took a deep, shuddering breath. When he opened his eyes, there was an intensity in the black depths that burned with the same rage mirrored in Priscilla’s heart.

  “What do you need from me?” Sulaiman asked, the syllables crisp and carefully controlled, like a tamed tiger waiting for the cage to be unlocked.

  “I’m going to shakedown the fuckwits that are my parents to get the caravan’s exact route,” Priscilla said, which made a sliver of dark satisfaction dance in Sulaiman’s eyes, “but I know we’re going to need supplies for the trip and it’s already nearly sundown so we have to move fast. Talk with Mr. Ordan to figure out what we need and where to get it from, and when I come back out, we’ll leave immediately. Once we have supplies, we’re going to need to spend the rest of the night planning.”

  Sulaiman nodded, the motion sharp yet restrained.

  “Um, where should I stay the night?” Kavil asked, wincing as everyone turned their attention to him. “Sorry, forget I asked. Let’s get back to plotting.”

  “Don’t apologize, that's a good question to consider,” Priscilla reassured Kavil, mind running through a few possibilities before landing on the one she liked best. “Mr. Ordan, is the room next to mine empty?”

  “It is, Priscilla,” Mr. Ordan said promptly. “I shall see to it that it is cleaned and prepared.”

  “Good,” Priscilla said, returning her focus to Sulaiman. “I know you have a room in the guard’s barracks, but we’re going to need our tactician nearby.”

  Sulaiman considered that for a long moment before nodding. “I will need to grab a few things from my room, but I can spend the night with Kavil if he’s okay with it.”

  “I am,” Kavil said quickly, tension dissolving from his shoulders.

  “Then it’s settled,” Priscilla said. “I’m going to go spew venom at some dipshits, get a map or two, and I’ll be back with you shortly. Wish me luck.”

  “Good luck,” Kavil called as Priscilla turned on her heel.

  She threw a cocky smile over her shoulder at him before refocusing and walking purposefully over the cobblestone into the mansion. She remembered where the parents’ office was and quickly made her way there, ignoring the staff’s startled looks as they quickly got out of her way. Priscilla was still clad in her armor that was stained with blood (she had tried to clean it but hyena blood was surprisingly tenacious), a sword and dagger strapped to each hip respectively, and she knew that her expression had settled into something venomous the moment she was out of sight of those whose opinions she actually cared about. Priscilla probably made for a terrifying figure and she found she didn’t much mind that realization.

  This was the body of a villainess after all, and she might as well use it to her advantage.

  Each step she took, Priscilla wondered what sort of reaction she’d get from the parents when she stormed in. If they’d continue to be disappointments, or if they’d surprise her with a shred of decency – either way, Priscilla kept her expectations low and an insult on the tip of her tongue.

  As Priscilla drew close enough to the office to see the dragons around the rose carved into the door, she could hear the muffled sound of an argument happening from inside the room. Priscilla paused for a moment, straining her ears, but she couldn’t make out any words. The only thing she could tell was that a sharp tone had been adopted by the mother and the father had raised his voice with a belligerent edge to it, so Priscilla decided this was as good as circumstances as any. If things were already chaotic before she entered, she might as well take advantage of it.

  Priscilla pushed the doors open just a crack, turning the knob so she could pull off her dramatic entrance.

  “–tant business opportunity,” the father rasped. “Why can’t you see that, Idalah?”

  “Well, Cian, if you had just–” the mother started to retort, but Priscilla took this moment to kick the doors open so that the solid pieces of wood hit the walls with a sharp crack that sent a painting clattering to the floor from the force.

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  Both parents were startled as the sound reverberated through the room, and looked towards Priscilla with wide eyes.

  The silence hung in the air for a moment while Priscilla stepped in and took in the view.

  The father leaned over his desk, his arms holding him up as he used the position to lean into the mother’s space. Underneath his palms were various papers Priscilla couldn’t quite make out the details of, but there was a letter at the edge of the desk with a large golden seal that had been broken. The mother had drawn herself up to her full height, arms crossed over her chest and her auburn hair was flowing freely around her shoulders as she sneered, making the woman look younger and, surprisingly, more like Priscilla, which was an uncomfortable thought Priscilla was determined to ignore.

  The mother blinked a few times, her tight body language relaxing as she said, “Priscilla, we hadn’t–”

  “Skip the small talk,” Priscilla snapped as she took a step forward without closing the doors for an easier getaway, “and give me a map with Rudy's caravan’s course marked on it right now.”

  “What on earth do you want that for?” the father asked, a thunderous look overcome the annoyance he previously had. “Are you attempting to go back against the agreement that you would stay out of the family’s business?”

  The father’s sneer slashed through his beard as he continued, “You certainly haven’t hesitated at using the funds we generously provided you.”

  Priscilla met his expression with a sneer of her own, and looked towards the mother. The woman didn’t move to say a thing to contradict him as her face went blank, so she earned a contemptuous scoff for her cowardice.

  “Wow,” Priscilla said, slowly clapping as she walked forward, “what an excellent way to greet me after I’ve been away, the Thornewoods will definitely win parents of the year for how much love they show their children.”

  “You’re the one who wanted to be disinherited,” the father said as he straightened, his tone suggesting that Priscilla was stupid for forgetting it. “Why act so surprised we aren’t kissing your feet?”

  “As it seems like we’re both pissed off by the other’s existence,” Priscilla continued, ignoring the father’s remarks, “let’s make this quick and just give me what I asked for.”

  “And why should I do that?” the father said as Priscilla came to a stop in front of his desk. This close, Priscilla could see she was taller than him and straightened to emphasize that difference.

  Priscilla’s answering smile was sickly sweet and poisonous in equal measures, eyes crinkled into half-moons.

  “Because I need to know where Illnyea’s last whereabouts are,” Priscilla said slowly, as if speaking to a child, “so I can figure out where to search for her rather than sitting on my ass like you until it’s too late.”

  The father let out a sharp sigh, running his hands through his hair.

  “That’s what you’re making a fuss about?” the father said, his tone scathing. “If anything had gone wrong, Rudy would have sent out a message. They probably just got delayed, so there’s no need to barge in here, demanding confidential information like a temperamental child.”

  Priscilla’s smile stayed in place even as she rolled her eyes so hard they felt like they were about to roll out of her head.

  “If things went to shit as quickly as I think they did,” Priscilla said, continuing with her tone talking down to an imbecile, “do you really think they’d have enough time to send you a fucking pigeon? Unless you gave them an artifact that allowed instantaneous communication that can back up those baseless claims that nothing went wrong…?”

  The father’s silence was telling and Priscilla let out a derisive snort. When Priscilla glanced at the mother, the woman’s face had a slight hint of smugness which just made Priscilla pissed because why the fuck was she looking smug when she was being less than useless?

  While Priscilla could keep wasting energy trying to reason with people who clearly didn’t care about her opinion, she didn’t have time for this shit.

  Priscilla slammed her palms onto the desk suddenly, making the father jerk back in surprise and sending his papers flying and the letter bounced to the ground.

  “Listen here, you greedy dumbass,” Priscilla snarled, voice dropping a few octaves with the edge of a growl, “I will be leaving this city tomorrow morning regardless of whether or not you choose to make yourself helpful and give me the fucking maps. It’s up to you whether you help me now or…”

  Priscilla leaned in, her smile twisting at the edges into something nasty as she said, “Or I get to tell Illnyea about how you refused to lift a single finger to save her just because you wanted to spite me. Choose your fate – a father who pretends to care or a useless sperm donor who doesn’t even try.”

  The father flinched minutely and Priscilla took vicious satisfaction in it. She stayed leaned in, letting her words hang in the air between them as the father was clearly trying and failing to come up with some sort of response.

  There was a scuff against the ground and Priscilla glanced to the side to see the mother’s pale face as she walked forward to a cabinet.

  “Allow me,” the mother said as she swiftly opened the doors. The father opened his mouth to protest as the mother pulled out a large map, but the mother said sharply, “I believe I have allowed your bullheaded nature too much leeway, Cian, so close your mouth and be quiet.”

  The father closed his mouth with a sharp clack that sounded painful but Priscilla was watching the mother’s every move. While the mother seemed to be temporarily on Priscilla’s side and had made overtures towards Priscilla before she left, Priscilla trusted the woman about as much as she’d trust a Gorelock Toad to not spew poison. Maybe even less if Priscilla was being honest because she knew mothers were the best at selling gilded lies to get your hopes up just to casually shatter them upon a whim.

  It was probably only the threat of the parents’ image being tarnished in Illnyea’s eyes that got the woman moving, but Priscilla would take forced cooperation over no cooperation.

  The mother laid out a square map of the Kavendash Kingdom over the table atop the papers. It was an exquisite map, finely detailed and each major section labeled in ink in a neat penmanship. There were faint markings on the map from Meadowyar to Harosaw City, but the path that took the caravan around the Grandure Mountains had been erased and instead a dark direct path had been traced from Harosaw through the fens to Meadowyar.

  The Heinlein Fens weren't very large on the map, but in reality the wetland stretched nearly fifty miles long in an elliptical shape that made it annoying to maneuver around, so most chose to take the long way around the mountains or traveled by boat through the Clarnchill Sea.

  It looked like the caravan had ignored both those options to cut straight through the heart of the fens.

  “The caravan’s last known location was here,” the mother said, pointing to the part of the fens closest to Harosaw City.

  “Why’d they go through the Heinlein Fens?” Priscilla asked to give herself more time to commit the map to memory. “Did you send extra guards with the caravan to fight off the countless monsters that claim the fens as their home?”

  The mother gave the father a sharp look before saying, “The caravan received specialized equipment that allowed them to travel unhindered by the terrain. As for protection, our guards are fully capable of felling large beasts.”

  “Sure, Jan,” Priscilla muttered as she pictured said guards covered in poison by toads and set on fire by wolves. The mother gave her a quizzical look Priscilla ignored. “Can I take this with me or is it extra special ‘confidential information?’”

  The mother spoke before the father could fully open his mouth. “Yes, you may. Is there anything else you require of us?”

  Priscilla gave the woman a bland smile and folded up the map before saying, “Stay the fuck out of my way and I’ll bring Illnyea back alive. Ta.”

  Prisiclla turned without waiting for a response, pulling one of the doors closed behind her and ignoring the other one to force the parents to get off their asses. The second door was shut firmly behind Priscilla and a heated argument broke out between the parents as she walked away.

  There wasn’t time to linger and eavesdrop, as Priscilla had more important things to do, but she allowed herself one final cruel thought as she walked back to the doors – she hoped they made each other miserable.