Two Crows Watch from the Gallows Tree (part 6)

(I'll leave that for later, I think. Not gonna spoil! But he doesn't do corporal punishment on his family members)

(Wanna skip now or play out a little more?)

(fair enough! And yeah, figured not. "Goddamn it, Gaius, I sent my daughters with you to keep them safe, and I didn't mean in your fucking dungeon" xD)

(and I'm good to skip! Where are you thinking?)

(That's his hard limit, definitely. Verbal and physical abuse to family members is a no-no.)

(We can skip to dinner unless you have another idea!)

(works for me! Want me to start? I could skip to Zander/Pratik/Emery heading that way? Or you can! I don't particularly care either way ^^)

(Sure, you can start if ya like! Do you have the table layout?)

(Yep! You sent it to me on discord, which I super, super appreciate!)

This had been informative for Zander. And, he hoped, it hadn't been informative to Emery. He and Pratik had certainly done their best to be vague with nicknames and locations so that Emery wouldn't have anything to report back to Gaius. Not that either of them had anything against Gaius or Emery. But they didn't trust them, that's for sure. Zander and Pratik didn't trust anyone, except having a very, very cautious and tenuous regard for one another and a handful of others that they'd known for years and years. Not a paranoid Lord that they'd only recently met who had them both locked up and followed around.

If Gaius was going to keep his secrets, they were going to keep their own.

Finally, the conversation wound down and ended up in casual banter which they did their best to include Emery in, seeing as they'd just spent an hour intentionally excluding him from. They were sure all three of them knew why, but it still was hard not to feel like at least a little bit of a dick, and this was a weak effort at correcting it.

A servant came and fetched them for dinner, marking the end of their visit. Which left Zander with one more question. "... Would you leave your niece here?"

Pratik raised an eyebrow. "I don't have a niece."

"You know damn well what I mean," Zander said, refusing to let Pratik pull one of his antics. "Could you get in the Keep?"

Pratik glanced at Emery. This was certainly getting back to Gaius, and he wasn't sure which answer he'd like reported. If he said yes, Gaius would regard him with even more suspicion and no doubt give him a babysitter once more. If he said no, it'd probably undermine his credibility in his employer's eyes. But, he decided honesty was -- for once -- the safest option.

"No," Pratik confirmed. "I wouldn't risk it. At least not for Aleth's estate. The numbers would have to be in the millions for me to make an attempt like this, and I'm not sure I'd make it even if I tried. There's no chance in hell anyone Aleth could have hired can make it. I'd bet my life on it."

Zander's shoulders relaxed slightly. He'd definitely rest easier now that he'd heard that straight from Pratik's mouth.

Emery had been listening to everything they said carefully, following along behind as if he was on a lovely summer stroll but remaining perfectly attentive. He'd gathered what little information he could glean from the sidestepping of names and context and was compiling a list of useful things in his head.

"Good," Zander said with a nod. "There's not an ice cube's chance in hell that he's going to let me check the security for myself."

"Absolutely not," Pratik agreed, smirking. "He's got more of a reason not to let you snoop around than I do, and there's not a thing in the world that would convince me to let you wander around my house."

"You don't have a house," Zander scoffed.

"Exactly. It's a pre-rejection, before I even get a house."

Zander rolled his eyes.

"And you should definitely take it personally," Pratik added brattily.

"You two are a wonder to listen to," Emery remarked after listening to this. "Are you sure you're not brothers or something? You squabble like you are." He chuckled. "Not that I have any experience being a brother myself, but I imagine it must be like this."

"Big bubby!" Pratik threw his arms around Zander in a hug.

"Get off me!" Zander gave him a rough shove.

Pratik stumbled away, cackling. Zander scoffed, trying to stay serious, but he couldn't manage it and started laughing as well, shaking his head.

"I suppose we do," Zander conceded, cracking a grin at Emery. "Seems I got stuck with the world's most annoying little brother, that's for sure."

Not by blood, however. Zander was definitely the most annoying of his actual siblings. He'd own it.

"That's adorable." Emery grinned. "You two must have known each other forever; that sort of friendship is very hard to come by."

"It has been quite a while," Zander agreed with a laugh, then squinted at Pratik. "What, five years now?"

"Well, I got cool eight years ago now..." Pratik said, but he was also trying to recall. It'd been eight years since he'd interrupted the rape and officially became a killer. Took a few more before he really applied himself, though.

"What, you put a knife to someone's throat and make them call you 'cool'?"

Pratik laughed, not at all surprised at the quip. He scratched his chin, trying to remember. He was fairly sure he'd met Zander when he was fourteen. They'd attempted to take down the slavers when he was seventeen, which, in retrospect, had been a terrible idea. "Six, I think."

Zander nodded in agreement. Six years seemed a reasonable estimate.

"Six years," Emery repeated, deeply impressed. "You've known each other quite awhile indeed. You seem to care for one another a lot." He paused. "And Ky will be in good hands, Zander. You needn't worry about security; that's one thing this Keep is very well known for."

The statement made them both a little uneasy. They did care about each other more than was safe for either of them to care about anyone. And they didn't want that to be public knowledge -- especially not with their real names attached, which they were both going by now. But oh well. They didn't have to confirm or deny it.

"I'm counting on it," Zander said with a nod. The walls had been every bit as high as he'd been hoping for before he saw them. And lined with enough guards to fend off most any threat, it seemed. Especially since even Pratik regarded it as an impenetrable fortress. He gave Emery a little smile. "I do worry -- I'm pretty sure it was in my job description when I became an uncle -- but it certainly makes me feel better to know she's safe. I have no doubt she'll be secure here."

At least, very, very little doubt. He could focus his attention on finding the bastards after her, rather than fretting nonstop about her. Gaius could keep Ky securely in here. And Zander would go out and take care of the problem from the other end.

"You're a noble uncle," Emery assured him. "There are some who wouldn't be so kind or so protective of their nieces; you seem to be on the right track, even if she's a bit miffed with you right now. She'll understand, in time."