Cooper’s conviction lasted until he found the others in their favorite reading nook. He collapsed onto the couch to the sounds of Rebecca and Gabrielle arguing over schedules with their contracted journeymen, and realized what he’d gotten himself into. Leander acknowledged his arrival with a little wave, prompting him to explain.

  “I just got a mission from Laurel. To hunt down the elusive owner of the Verilian Express.”

  “Good.” It was Helene who’d spoken up, silencing the rest. The young woman said little enough that the rest of them had learned to pay attention when she did. “They’ve been printing some nasty rumors about the sect. My parents read that paper. When I went home for dinner the other day they were pulling it out and acting concerned. Not that they cared when I joined in the first place.”

  “Well, I guess Laurel is looking to do something about it. Not sure why she asked me though.”

  “Seriously?” Gabrielle said. “You grew up in that world, and you’re like the most meticulous person in the sect, after maybe Annette. You are definitely the right person to look into this. And we’ll help you.”

  The rest of the group nodded along, even Rebecca, with whom he barely spoke since this whole rivalry business got underway.

  “Do you know where you’ll start?” Helene asked.

  “I’m afraid I do. Into a seedy world full of conniving betrayals and intrigue. Where it’s impossible to tell who can be trusted.” Cooper took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I need to talk to my parents.”

  **********

  Leander’s eyes darted around the entrance room they’d just been let into. When Cooper offered for him and Eric to join him on the visit, Leander agreed because it was the right thing to do. A cultivator always helped their friends. But he also wanted to see one of the mansions in the upper districts. He had never even been this high up in the city before joining the sect, and never without Laurel or Adam. He had no idea this was how rich people lived.

  Everything was huge! The ceilings were high, so every footstep echoed, and the doors were bigger than anyone needed. One wall was dominated by a massive painting, of some other big house Cooper whispered was his family’s main estate. Some man had taken a little card from Cooper when they got there, and walked off with it, and now they were just standing around on a marble floor with a pattern that made him dizzy. His mind flashed back to his first visit to a high-end paper shop and he edged a few steps further from the giant piano that dominated the space, giving it a wide berth on his circuit. On his way back to the others he saw Cooper’s hands wringing together, first in front of him, then behind his back, then back to the front. Eric must have noticed the same thing because a wave of calm spread out from him. Leander felt his muscles relax, but Cooper’s breathing calmed and he stopped fidgeting.

  “Mr. Cooper!” Another man in a matching outfit to the first strode into the room. This one had hair so gray it was almost white, and a face full of wrinkles. He was still moving with controlled urgency as he came to a stop just in front of Cooper and gave a short bow. “You should never have been made to wait. The lad was new and we weren’t expecting you.”

  “Not a problem, Bennet. Are my parents in today?”

  Leander tried to look over at Eric without being obvious. It had been a long time since he had parents, but was this how it was supposed to go?

  “They are out at a garden party hosted by Lord and Lady Evaraux, but they should be back for dinner, if you and your companions would like to wait.”

  “Sure, thanks Bennet. Come on guys, I'll show you around.”

  Eric and Leander trailed behind him as they were led past one room after another. The formal sitting room caught his attention while the others walked further up the hall. He stood in the door and observed the couches, covered in matching thin emerald cushions that reminded him of the jungle on Elgin. The rest of the room matched. Green drapes, green walls. Even the carpet. Why have a room just for sitting and then make the chairs look so uncomfortable? He shook it off and jogged to catch up to the others.

  “...through here is the library,” Coop was saying when Leander arrived. The doors were carved in intricate designs, highlighted with white paint against the dark wood. When Coop pushed them open, the other boys saw a room full of shelves upon shelves of books, polished covers gleaming in the afternoon light. It was fine. He looked over at Eric who was similarly uninterested and shrugged at Cooper.

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  “Yeah, I guess after the Archive any other library would be a let down. But it’s an impressive collection. There are pieces in here that are centuries old, and that’s without magic preserving them.”

  The rest of the tour was more of the same. There were lounges and studies and even a room with several ornate boards set up for games of Byd. It reminded him of the sect, the thought of which brought him up short. Was he a rich person now? His hand drifted down to his coin purse, which held enough for several meals and maybe a room at an inn. Two years ago it would have been more money than he’d ever held at one time.

  The afternoon melted away while they waited in the game room. Coop and Eric played Byd, which Coop won easily. Leander and Eric then taught him a card game popular in the Flats. It took at least an hour before Coop realized they were cheating, and another to catch on that it was part of the game. The fun ended when the same old man as before came to let them know it was time for dinner.

  They had barely passed through the – again too tall –doors before a small woman was grabbing Cooper up in a hug, pulling him down by the neck to reach her level.

  “My baby!” she shouted, giving Cooper a kiss on both cheeks.

  “Hello mother,” Cooper answered, his cheeks coloring. “Father,” he added with a formal nod that didn’t quite work when his mom was still hanging off his shoulders. “Let me introduce my friends.” His mother finally released him and Cooper stepped back to gesture to them. “This is Leander and Eric, members of the Eternal Archive, like me.”

  The man at the head of the table looked like Cooper, but with hair going gray at the temples, and shoulders half again as broad. Cooper had told them he was the bookish member of the family and his father and older brothers liked to hunt and camp on their estates. Judging from the man’s physique, he would be dangerous in a fight.

  “Are any of the others home this evening?” Cooper was still talking.

  “No, your brothers are on a yachting excursion with Lord Coste’s oldest, they’ll be back tomorrow.”

  “Oh, shame about that. Let them know we were sorry to miss them.” Cooper said. He didn’t sound sorry at all. “Let’s eat.”

  They were directed to seats around the table and bowls of soup were brought out. Leander dug in. Not quite as good as what Esther usually made but it was tasty and food was food.

  Coop’s mom could talk. And talk. And talk some more. Cooper tried to participate but the woman was perfectly able to hold a conversation without help. Leander had mostly ignored it to focus on the food but he went back to listening when he reached the bottom of the soup bowl.

  “...And of course Roland is doing splendidly in his position at the Exchange. We’re thrilled with the placement. Lord Montbaton’s daughter works there as well, maybe we’ll see something happen on that front.

  “That’s good, mother. I –”

  “Stacia’s pregnancy is going well. She decided to stay at the estate for the season rather than traveling into the city, more’s the pity. But it is a difficult ride. Maybe these new steam carriages your father’s investing in will make things easier.”

  “Actually the new air cabs –”

  “Jean has been talking about joining the Hunter’s Guild for a season or two to have a reason to track down a snow leopard. I’ve told him not to with all the monsters roaming around, but he’s at an age where he doesn’t want to listen to his mother.”

  “Oh? I didn’t realize he had other ages.”

  It went on and Leander was entranced. He wasn’t convinced the fancy woman actually paused for breath. At last the soup bowls were cleared away and the main course, some sort of roasted meat and vegetables, was set down in front of the guests. Watching until his mom paused to chew, Cooper finished a sentence.

  “I’m actually here to discuss some issues the sect is seeing.”

  “Now, now, Cooper dear, you know your father doesn’t like discussing business at the dinner table.”

  Defeated utterly, Cooper was quiet for the rest of dinner. On occasion Madame Sarsenne asked Eric or him a question, but she rarely paused long enough to hear the answer. In the end when she excused herself after dinner, Leander was exhausted, as though he had been the one talking nonstop all evening.

  “Come into the study and you can tell me why you decided to visit for the first time in six months.” Lord Sarsenne’s resonant voice jolted Leander, who had almost forgotten the man was there as he patiently let his wife dominate the evening.

  Cooper followed him into the study and, not knowing what else to do, Leander and Eric followed. The room they ended up in was dim, night having fallen while they ate dinner. When the lanterns were lit, they revealed a space dominated by dark wood, polished to a shine, and rich maroon upholstery. Lord Sarsenne poured a dark amber liquid into four glasses and passed it out to each of them.

  “Tell me,” he commanded.

  Leander almost missed the explanation from coughing after a sip of the liquor. A thump on his back from Eric and a few deep breaths and he sat back up. No one would remember that.

  Cooper was smiling when he answered his father. “Have you read the Express at all in the last two weeks?”

  “Not closely. Those people aren’t worth listening to.”

  “Be that as it may, they’ve been spreading damaging rumors about the sect, and our Sectmaster asked us to look into it. I thought you might know who owns the paper after the issues back with the steam engines when I was a kid.”

  The man rubbed his fingers against the stubble shading his jawline. “The paper has always maintained that their owners are anonymous to avoid bias or reprisal. Since they are always careful to couch their ridiculous lies as opinions, or quotes from sources no one else can find, no judge has ordered anything more. Yet.”

  Cooper’s shoulder slumped over and he stood up, Leander and Eric scrambling to follow suit. “Well it was worth a shot. Thank you for dinner, Father.”

  “Sit down boy, you never visit, no need to run out.”

  They all sat back down and sipped their drinks in silence. Well, Leander pretended to sip it to copy what the others were doing.

  “So, any of the women at the sect caught your interest?”

  Cooper’s liquor sprayed across the rug when he choked at the question. “Father!”