Everyone else took it worse than she did; then again, that wasn’t a hard feat when she treated it with such nonchalance it was impossible to guess what she’d just read aloud.
“I suppose I should prepare to leave for Levi Asari,” she remarked. “I trust you’ll be able to take care of things here without me.”
“Samone…”
She offered Imre a reassuring smile. “It’s alright, Nokae. I promise I’m not hiding anything.”
…
Everyone was there, surprisingly, though it didn’t make things any better. Parpar practically clung to Iris around so many strangers, leaving Hadar to keep the kids under control; even their brothers were here with their families that Samone had never seen before. Then there were the strangers, noble lords from all over the territory along with most of the residents in Levi Asari. It didn’t feel like a community. All it felt like was everyone relying on a feeling they’ve only felt once, hoping to sympathize with those who were supposed to care.
On the morning of the funeral, she did nothing different than she normally did: she found a quiet place and smoked. She didn’t bother anyone like this—far from everyone else in a place it was only more inconvenient to go to—yet there was still someone who sought to bother her.
“Your father’s dead and you’re out here smoking,” Iris sighed.
“Who’s to say I’m not so distraught over the loss that I’m out here to make sense of it all?”
“Is that how you’re justifying it?”
“You know I never cared.”
“Well somehow I thought it would change. You haven’t been to see him in months.”
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“If that bothered me I would’ve made the time to visit.”
“Did you get any of the other letters I tried sending you?”
“Of course I did.”
“Don’t you realize he was waiting for you?”
Samone hesitated. She covered it by saying, “That’s his own fault for assuming that I would. Compared to you, I might as well have never been his daughter. You’re the one that stayed with him for nearly ten years, after all, while I was in Lelishara as if nothing was going to happen.”
“I wasn’t—”
“Oh, yes, you were. Everyone knows it. I wouldn’t be surprised if he told you that himself before he died. I’ll be willing to accept that I’m the worst daughter in the territory if you’ll finally admit that you were the child he had wished to have.”
Iris didn’t say anything. It took her a moment but eventually she did leave, finally leaving Samone again.
When it came time, she sat through everything and never once cried or left the room. It never crossed her mind to do so, honestly, holding on to the belief that she didn’t care at all. Once it was over, she lingered with the others and observed them all with a kind of apathetic stare.
She was a bit more appreciative of Tyche’s company than Iris’s, knowing there was nothing the two could discuss to make her mood worse.
“Are you staying for a while?” Tyche asked as she gave Samone a glass of wine. “There’s got to at least be some things you need to sort out. Iris can’t take care of the region controller side of things.”
“I’d rather not, but I’m going to have to,” Samone sighed. “Minne’s there to help Imre with Natheniel but he still doesn’t have enough time to work on much. Unfortunately, though, I doubt I’m going to be returning soon…”
“I could always help you, if you’d like. Atka and Nehi should be able to take care of things for me, and we’re close enough I could quickly yell at them if they can’t. At least that way you’re not alone with your family.”
“I’d appreciate it. I need someone as a buffer between the two of us…” Samone didn’t need to say a name in order for Tyche to know who she meant.
“I bet. And I’ll keep the kids away, too—that way we can have some peace and quiet.” Tyche smirked. “As long as you’re willing to bring out the good wine, that is.”
Samone gave a weak smile. “Of course, and… thank you.”
“That’s what friends are for, isn’t it?”