They continued to theorize about their sudden arrest and exchanged small talk about their lives until the door opened. Jac turned, jaw dropping in surprise. Of all the people she expected to walk through the doorway, her father, wearing a smug grin and an expensive jacket, wouldn’t have been in her top five choices.

Her anger spiked as she watched him swagger into the room without a care. It wasn’t the face of a man who had considered for a moment the inconvenience he might have caused having his children snatched off the street by armed guards like criminals.

“Jacquelline. Matthias.” He called their names with false concern, belatedly arranging his features into an appropriate expression. He had the bad habit of getting sloppy when he thought he had won.

“Father,” Jac replied in a cool tone. Her brother didn’t bother responding, dipping his head in placid greeting before turning his attention back to his drink. “What are we doing here?” Normally, she’d have more tact than to jump right into her questions but she wasn’t in the mood for their usual games. Hadn’t been since she realized there was more to life than speaking in code and reading between the lines.

Jackal’s lips twitched as he suppressed a frown. “I’m sure this has been a trying day, but I have good reasons, my children.” He flashed a smile at the royal knights that escorted him. “Thank you, gentlemen. Would you please step outside? This is a conversation best held in private.”

Jac didn’t miss the way the two hesitated for a breath, but they acquiesced, stepping from the room and closing it behind them. Jackal’s mask departed with them. Her father’ frowned as he looked them over with a discerning eye. “I hope the two of you have been minding yourselves.”

“Don’t worry, Father. We’re still housebroken. I managed not to claw up the furniture and persuaded Matty not to piss in any corners.” She smiled as her brother chuckled softly.

Her father didn’t appreciate the joke, his frown deepening. “Your new sense of humor isn’t endearing, daughter. Perhaps you spent too much time with your cousin before she departed.”

Jac thought she spent just enough time with Lou, as her debauched cousin had gotten her out of an engagement she’d been dreading and set her life down a different, and in her opinion much better, path. “I didn’t air the family’s dirty laundry, not that I think anyone would bother listening.”

“Have you forgotten everything I’ve taught you? The walls are always listening.” Jackal poured himself a drink before taking a seat. “And our family won’t be so negligible soon. Things have been happening.”

“I suppose this has something to do with the conversation we didn’t finish before?”

Her father smiled, pleased that she had found her tact. If the walls were listening and his smug demeanor had something to do with the scheme he spoke of, it wouldn’t be good to mention his involvement without knowing the situation.

“Indeed it does. I spoke to you about how your uncle had gotten involved with the independent summoners. They were discontented with the laws passed by the crown and spoke of worrying retribution. I hoped your uncle would be a moderating influence on the group. Instead, it seems they proved to be a destructive influence on him.”

It felt as if all the comfortable warmth Jac enjoyed since stepping into the palace disappeared, making way for winter to grasp her with an icy hand. She shivered and spoke through grit teeth. “What does that mean?”

“It means that Luke agreed to consult with them for a summoning. For what purpose, I don’t know. I advised him against it and when he decided to continue their acquaintance, I separated myself from the situation.”

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“But you’re assuming the worst.” That much was obvious from his tone.

“When I told them that the Masons may be involved, the king ordered the royal knights to investigate. They tracked down the group to a small farm outside the city. The owner was found dead and his barn had been destroyed. Once they cleared the rubble, they found a summoning circle. Having no summoners amongst their ranks, they asked me to provide my expertise.” His smug smile returned but quickly faded. Jac perked up as she realized there was genuine worry in his eyes.

“What did you find?” she prompted when he’d been silent for too long.

Jackal cleared his throat. “I haven’t dedicated as much time to the art as your uncle—" A kind way to say he had forsaken their longest tradition, the same as her. “It took me a few days and the notes scattered throughout the debris and I can’t be sure—"

Jac huffed. She wouldn’t go as far to tell him to get to the point, her upbringing had instilled too much respect for him to outright challenge him like that, but she managed to communicate enough with a roll of her eyes.

Her father cleared his throat. “Yes, well. From what I could put together, it appears the group was attempting to summon a drakkon.”

Jac paused, stunned by the revelation. Then she laughed. She laughed so hard she had to grab the arms of her chair to keep from falling out of it. When she finally managed to get control of herself, she looked up, took in her father’s serious expression, and lost it again.

The idea was too ridiculous. It was a drakkon, for saints’ sake. No one, no one, was crazy enough to summon one. Not even the most ignorant summoner would dare. Even if they stumbled into inviting one of the creatures into their circle, if half the stories she heard about them were true, they would never dream of making a contract with one. And this wasn’t an ignorant summoner. It was Luke Tome, the coward. He wouldn’t be caught within five leagues of a drakkon summoning. The idea was so ridiculous, just thinking it made her laugh.

“If you’re quite done, daughter.”

She held up a hand, telling him it would take her a minute.

“The idea is quite incredible, Father,” Matty said.

“It’s hard to believe, I know, but this isn’t the time for games. I am quite sure of my conclusion. The cabal of independent summoners attempted to summon a drakkon with your uncle’s help. I can only think of one reason why.”

The implication of treason sobered Jac’s mirth. She straightened up, forcing her expression into a neutral mask. “Was it successful?”

“Impossible to tell without finding those involved. However, the destruction suggests either something very large or very powerful, perhaps both, was in the area.”

“As good as a confirmation as we can get.”

“More than enough for the king. I’m afraid a bounty has been issued for your uncle.”

“Then what are we doing here? We had nothing to do with it. You can’t believe Uncle would come after us? He’s not that kind of man and there’d be no point.”

“I know neither of you are involved but this is a drakkon we’re talking about. The king is unwilling to take chances. You’re being held for questioning but it’s a formality.”

“Questioning? Do you mean…by interrogators?”

Her father avoided his eyes. “It’s—"

“Saints damn it!” She jumped to her feet, unable and unwilling to hide her anger. “Did you consent to this? This is a complete abuse of power!”

“It’s a matter of national security.”

“The king has the power to interrogate criminals using the mental affinity. He does not have the power to abduct citizens off the street and ransack their minds at his convenience!”

“Calm down, Jac. It’s harmless.”

“Harmless.” She would have cursed him to his twelfth ancestor if they weren’t her own. The interrogators supposedly had a code they abided while going about their work but the only ones to hold them to it were themselves. They could go through her mind, ferret out her every secret, and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

She had things she didn’t want exposed. Things the king would be interested to know. Like Lou’s control over the Mason family. With the crown’s vendetta against the Grimoires, they would undoubtedly go after her next. “I won’t submit to this.”

Jackal frowned. “That, of course, is your right. But the king will detain you indefinitely while investigating through other means. Is your discomfort with the mental affinity enough to warrant such action?”

His words said one thing but his tone asked if she had something to hide. Something she wished he would have asked before he enacted his stupid scheme. “Yes. Give me the dungeon. Just keep those creepy bastards away from me.”

“…I hope you don’t regret this decision, daughter.”

“The same to you, Father,” Matty sneered, glaring at the older man.