The main section of the office was in a frenzy when Kaliope disembarked the elevator. On her way to Sage Tower, she received a call from Inola asking her to come in. The breaking reports about the Falgor attack played on two big screens. One on the Occult news and the other on a Noccult station. The Noccult headline read: Explosion of unknown origin at an upscale residential mansion. No fatalities reported.
Inola surveyed Kaliope's casual attire when she strode into the division. She was wearing slacks, a t-shirt with a rabbit on it, and a thin knitted jacket. It was the weekend, and Kaliope hadn't expected a trip into the office.
"What happened?"
Inola sniffed at Kaliope and shrank away. "Where were you?"
Kaliope gave herself a quick sniff. "I was out."
The fox demon squinted. "Hmm."
Inola strode for her desk and returned with a perfume bottle. Kaliope coughed and swatted as Inola bathed her from head to foot in a scented mist.
"What the heck, Inola?"
The fox demon sniffed and, with a final spritz, nodded, satisfied. "You smell like a Southender."
"A south-what?" Kaliope sniffed at herself.
Ronin exited his office with Gideon, delaying Inola's explanation. Their boss wore casual attire. His clothes fit him perfectly, accentuating his toned physique and the subtle movements of his body. Kaliope dropped her gaze, memories of the glazed orange roll surfacing, convinced she was losing her mind.
"Ms. Barnes. Apologies for calling you out after hours."
"It's fine. The situation at the estate?"
Ronin rubbed his nose, frowning. "Do I want to know why it smells like Inola preened on you?" He glared sideways at the fox demon, who smiled innocently, her perfume bottle tucked away.
"Preened?" Southender? The terms flew over her head. Kaliope fanned off the tangent. "The Falgor estate. Who attacked the mansion?"
Ronin folded his arms, his expression grim. "Zohar Falgor."
~
What do you get when two Pyro Mages and a Hex Mage go full-on witch wars in a residential area? Millions of dollars in property damage and a PR disaster of epic proportions.
In stunned silence, Kaliope watched the live video feed of the mansion relayed by one of the firm's drones. Half the house was on fire, the grounds pitted with crater-sized holes. Parts of the remaining structure suffered damage to the roof, with portions caving into the second floor. Another section succumbed to the damage and crumbled.
Panic fisted Kaliope in the chest. "Oh, my god. What about Lucius Falgor?" Ballister's father was bedridden on the second floor.
"Juniper carried him out in time."
Kaliope was about to ask Inola how it was possible when she remembered Juniper was half-lycan.
"And Madam Falgor? Ballister?"
"Ballister suffered minor injuries, but his mother..." Gideon trailed off.
Ronin picked up the briefing. "Zohar believes the Council and the Assembly are trying to cover for the Main House. He made a scene at a Council meeting before he barged into the estate to confront Franziska and Ballister directly. The butler asked him to leave, and Zohar retaliated."
In their attempt to cover up the breach, the Assembly and the Witcher Council omitted portions of events—like Katerina's proper designation and Ballister not acting on his own accord. They spun and weaved a narrative that exonerated the Minor House, clearing Ballister of any involvement and setting the blame squarely on Katerina alone. Zohar, unsurprisingly, didn't buy it. The history of unfair treatment against the Minor Houses justified his suspicions.
Gideon cycled through still images of the scene. "Zohar attacked the butler and might have killed him if not for Ballister. Of course, Zohar's no match for Franziska in an all-out fight, so the sniveling snake targeted Ballister. She sacrificed herself and took a hit meant for her son. Franziska's in stable condition but unconscious."
If this family went up in flames, you'd be the one I saved. Not some name.
Kaliope pressed a shaky hand to her forehead. The case was supposed to be over.
Fuck.
Solve one problem, and ten more crop up.
~
In the coming days, the row in the Falgor House remained top news. A scandal like this hadn't happened in over a century since the Constitution's establishment. Some Main Houses used the incident as an example of why they needed the rules. The Minor Houses called out their argument for what it was—utter bullshit.
For all its worth, the Witcher Constitution was a glorified band-aid covering the festering wound of disparity between the Houses. There was no conclusion in sight for the debates. No amendment suited both parties.
Zohar Falgor's brazen violation of the contravention of the Constitution accomplished what he'd feared his nephew might—the expulsion of the Minor House. The press wasn't shy about declaring Katerina's plot a posthumous success as a Great House toed the edge of dying out.
Insensitive bastards.
"Can't the Assembly or the Witcher Council do something?"
"Like what?"
"I dunno." Kaliope shuffled her mental files for a solution. "Petition for leniency. A prison sentence instead of expelling the entire family. If they'd told him the truth, Zohar wouldn't have suspected collusion. He wouldn't have attacked the estate." Their coverup spat fuel on the fire.
Franziska, Ballister, and Juniper were all under orders not to reveal what they knew about Katerina under an official edict from the Occult Assembly, co-signed by the Witcher Council.
"They could have signed him in."
Inola tossed a folder on the stacking pile on the floor beside her desk. They were slowly making their way through their old case files. "Everyone sees Zohar as a loose cannon. Doubt his feelings were high on the priority list."
"And look what happened." Kaliope shook her head, exasperated. Poor Ballister. His father's dying, and his mother risked her life to save him. What he and Juniper must be dealing with right now, along with dodging the media frenzy and high-society gossip.
"It's a miracle the Assembly's hushed everything. They're not about to fess up and blow it. Then the public will know they lied. It's an election year. Matthias will be dead and rotten in his grave before he sullies his good name."
Matthias. Whenever Kaliope heard the man's name, it grated her nerves like nails on a chalkboard. Why were people like him always the ones with the most power?
"Hot freaking mess."
Kaliope continued typing the summary report for the team's investigation into Katerina. On Ronin's orders, they were handing over the matter to the investigators. She suspected he wanted to tie them up, chasing their tails, to get them off CMT's back. Inola shimmied into her section, reading the report over her shoulder. The fox demon had zero perception of personal space.
"Too bad the orphanage was a bust. And the birth certificate was faked too."
Katerina's journal also proved a dead end for answers about the black card.
"Well, she won't be our problem anymore in another two, three paragraphs."
Inola sighed, wistful. "Can you imagine? A secret heir cast out and hell-bent on revenge."
Kaliope shook her head. "You make it sound like a drama."
"Isn't it? High-witch society has the best gossip. They're always trying to be unnaturally proper. Wait until the Witcher Ball when all the politicians go pandering for votes, and eligible bachelors and bachelorettes hunt for a mate."
"Will you be hunting for one, too?"
Inola feigned a shiver. "My clan won't go extinct if I don't add to their numbers. Trust me. Foxes are baby-making machines. Speaking of foxes..." Inola grabbed Kaliope's chair and spun her around. "You have a fox friend." Inola moved in close, her eyes narrowed slits.
"Ah. Yeah. No." Kaliope considered it, "Well, sort of, I guess." She'd refused to attach a label to her relationship with Tobias, leaving it uncomplicated. It was what it was.
"Sort of? You'd have to be close for his scent to be on you." The fox demon sniffed at Kaliope.
Kaliope gently nudged her coworker away. "Personal space, Inola. And the sniffing thing is kinda creepy."
Inola pouted and stepped her chair back. "Wanna have drinks with me tonight. We haven't celebrated since you joined the team."
"No. Thanks. I have other plans."
Inola's head rose and fell. "Oh. Okay." She pushed her chair over to her side of the cubicle.
Kaliope's conscience pinched. Ronin's confirmation that he considered her part of the team lessened Kaliope's anxiety. Nevertheless, insecurities over her tenure at Sage lingered. So did her habit of not getting attached. How was she to explain her constant rejection of Inola's invitations was nothing personal? That she was merely being cautious? Without strings, there were no expectations on either side.
"I'll see you tomorrow."
Kaliope's brow knitted as she watched Inola's departure. She'd hurt her partner's feelings.
Damn it.
"Foxes are social creatures."
Kaliope spun to Ronin, who stood by his office door.
"Sir?"
"Inola may act tough and joke things off, but foxes feel everything deeply, Ms. Barnes, so please," Ronin's voice assumed a warning edge, "be gentle when you let her down."
~~~
To read the entire first season, along with Seasons 2 and 3, join me on Ream. The link's in my bio on the home page. Hope to see you there.