“I suppose since you have arranged my investiture for three days from now the invitations have already been sent.”
“No milord they await your signature, which we hope you’ll provide after this meeting, we have arranged to have our fastest horses carry all the invitations to their intended recipients just as soon as you do.”, stated the Seneschal.
“Good, I hope that everyone who is invited can attend or in the case of our neighbours at least send a representative, we cannot afford to be stubbed by anyone.”
“I am sure milord that even Eugene will be represented.”, replied the Stewart.
“Dusti, knowing him he will likely send his wife along with a large entourage and minimum guards or perhaps even the current lords of Antwa and or Ruehasen.”
“Surely even he wouldn’t stoop so low milord.”
“I am sure he would be willing to stoop even lower than that, they mightn’t wish to come but I’m sure if he felt the need he could easily manage to persuade them to do so. To tell you the truth I don’t really expect him to go that far but you never know with him. The tales I could tell you about him and what he go up to when he was younger would shock you to the core. Enough about him is there anything else you wish to inform me of?”
“Milord as planned Nazma moved into the manor house while you were away and seems to be settling in.”
“Good, one less thing to worry about, I hope.”
“Also three letters arrived while you were away, one from your lawyer and another from someone I am unfamiliar with by the name of Alexander McCusker. Both of them were sealed so naturally, we passed them on to your secretary.”
“What about the third?”
“That one was also sealed but it was addressed not to you but rather Leonid and with that being the case we passed it on to your secretary with the others.”
“I will be heading out with my ward in the afternoon to the dungeon so if anything comes up in the meantime unless it’s very important it can wait until I return, now where are those invitations you need me to sign.”
I really hate having to mass sign documents especially things like these invitations that may be scrutinised far more than normal and thus need to be done properly. It was nearly half an hour before I managed to deal with the last one and was finally able to head to visit my secretary. I found Mavin in Leonid’s former office which he was getting ready for me to use, along with certain other tasks I had entrusted him with.
“How goes it, Mavin?”
“Milord it wasn’t easy but the office should be more or less ready for you by tomorrow evening, not that it will see much use until you get back from walking the boundary, by which time I’m sure I’ll have it perfect for you. As to the other thing I’m afraid I don’t have anything new to offer you, whatever he might have been up to he doesn’t seem to have left any evidence of it behind, not here at least.
Either that or someone got rid of everything after he died and if so I have no idea who. I managed to search the Manor House before Nazma moved in and couldn’t find anything there either. I can’t think where else I might be able to find something, so unless the letter addressed to your brother that turned up yesterday sheds any light on it I’m sorry to say
I’ve reached a dead end.”
“Speaking of that letter, who is it from and what do we know about them?”
“It doesn’t say on the envelope and while it was sealed I have no idea who’s it is. I decided it was best to leave opening it to you, it’s just in the back, I’ll go and get it, as well as the other two.”
“About them, I don’t believe I’ve ever met or even heard of anyone by the name of Alexander McCusker, what about you?”
“Sorry the only McCusker I’ve ever heard of was a Jonathan McCusker, a merchant by trade but last I heard he was dead, perhaps Alexander is a relative of his.”, stated Mavin as he left to get the letters.
“Didn’t Jonathan trade in fish, I can’t think of any reason a relative of his would-be writing to me.”
Once Mavin returned with the three letters he handed them over to me and I immediately opened the one addressed to my brother from the mysterious sender. It was from one Daniel Lahti, the Entuc dungeon warden, who had unknowingly written to my now-dead brother to inform him that Jan Grosse, who Leonid had sent to him to be trained to be the next Membe Dungeon Warden had died in a tragic accident.
“Mavin if you would please summon the Jailor, I need to tell him some bad news.”
“While waiting for Mavin to return I opened the letter from Alexander McCusker, who was as expected no relation of Jonathan. He was, in fact, a lawyer representing my Cousin Walter the count of Dotel who for whatever reason was offering to buy the one percent of the Fulbright Mercantile venture that was hopefully coming my way provided the statue reached Wilmer in time. Since the company was apparently not doing so well these days the amount he was offering seemed excessive. Naturally, this made me suspicious and I had no intention of accepting his offer, at least for the time being, and not just in the hope he might raise his price.
When Mavin returned with the jailer in tow I regrettably had to inform him of his sons passing.
“How did it happen milord, I thought even apprentice dungeon wardens were protected from being harmed in a dungeon?“
“They are but he didn’t die in the dungeon, he was crushed by a runaway wagon.”
“How will I tell his mother, when did he die?”
“It was on the eighteen of suxtalas, they sold all his possessions and send the money raised with the letter, here it is,” I said handing over the funds that had been included along with a few extras that came from my own purse.
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