“You must be the daughter, Case.”
“I am,” I said, because, seriously? There was no hiding now.
“Abraham can explain it to you,” he said absently, “but if we are to pull entire crews off a job at a moment’s notice, we must suspend all workers on all contracts with that particular House until the matter is satisfactorily resolved.”
“I didn’t know,” I said.
“Of course you didn’t.” He gave me a small smile. “Abraham, on the other hand, knew full well.”
“Children, Oscar,” Abraham repeated.
“I know, I know.” Oscar waved his hand. “I’ll take care of Aranda. In return,” he said with a nod toward me, “you and Ms. Case will return to Gray Towers immediately, please.”
“I can’t leave yet—” I started.
“Miss Case,” he said firmly. “You must leave immediately. We’ve just involved ourselves in a contract dispute with House Red on your behalf, if I’m not mistaken?”
Abraham didn’t say anything and neither did I.
In a milder tone, Oscar went on. “Every House will notice the contract dispute. It will take them seconds to trace it back to me, to Abraham, and then to our sudden interest in your property, and finally to you.
“If you are not here to sign papers with me or with another House, you, your property, and everything on it, including, I am to assume, the advanced and unregistered communication system we are at this moment conversing on, will be forcibly acquired.”
“But the land doesn’t belong to me,” I said. “It belongs to my grandmother and she’s human. House Green.”
“Forcibly acquired,” he repeated. “I am sorry. This must all be happening rather quickly for you. But this is the safest course of action for all of you, including your grandmother. Abraham, bring Ms. Case here. Immediately. I’ll see what I can do to clean up this mess you’ve made.”
“Thank you,” Abraham said.
Oscar smiled briefly, then the screens went black, flickered, and snapped back with the feeds they were usually plugged into.
“Fuck it to hell,” Right Ned said.
Pretty much my sentiments.
“Matilda?” Braiden’s voice called out over the line.
“I’m here. Are you okay?”
“The bombing stopped,” he said. “The sky is quiet. They’re gone.”
“Good. Now listen to me. I had to call in favors with House Gray to stop them.”
“Oh, God, no.”
“Which means I owe them repayment. You are to leave the compound tonight.”
“But—”
“Right. Now. Pack up the kids and head over to Pocket of Rubies. We’re letting them know you’re coming their way.” I glanced over at Neds, who was already putting in the call to the girls at Pocket of Rubies. “Do you have vehicles and supplies to make it?”
“We do,” he said quietly.
“Go. And hand me over to your boy, Thad.”
There was a pause, then Thad’s baritone answered. “Thank you,” he said. “I don’t know what you did, but thank you.”
“I traded favors with House Gray.”
