“And you think First Nations Peoples don’t have any of that?”
He made a chopping motion with his hand, anger flickering through his expression once again before he got it under control. “That’s not what I meant.”
Amusement bubbled through me, but I pressed my lips together to hold it back. As much as I enjoyed needling him, I also didn’t want to push him too far. Juli’s anger was easier to trigger than our father’s, but it was just as ugly.
Besides, he was bigger than me. Granted, with the wild-magic-induced changes to my body, I’d probably be his match strength wise, but I really didn’t want to test that out.
“Look, say whatever the hell you came here to say, Julius, and then get the hell out of my home. You aren’t welcome here.”
Cool amusement crossed his face. “So much for sibling love—”
“Oh, I think we both know there was never any of that between the two of us.”
“Fine.” The vague amusement died, and his expression became hard. “Whether you like it or not, you’re a part of our family, and it is extremely unbecoming to drag a family dispute into a courtroom.”
“Oh, this is a whole lot more than a family dispute,” I snapped back. “What he did to me was against the law, and I have no intention of letting him off the hook so easily.”
“Your formal complaint has been investigated, and Father has been sanctioned—”
“By who, exactly? Not the high council, I know that for damn sure.”
He waved a hand, as if it wasn’t important. “The point, dear sister, is that there is no need to air our laundry in the very public setting of a court. The Black Lantern Society will drop the case if you request it.”
I dug my nails into my palms to keep from lashing out at him magically. “I could. But I won’t.”
“Elizabeth, it is unbecoming for the Marlowe name to be dragged through the courts—”
“In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I give exactly zero fucks about the Marlowe name. In fact, I legally changed my surname years ago, and I have no intention of ever changing it back.” I paused and took a deep breath. It didn’t help ease any of the inner anger. “Is that all you were sent here to say? Because if it was, feel free to turn around and get the hell out.”
His expression darkened again. “I think you’ll discover a name change means nothing. You will always be regarded as a Marlowe, and therefore a valuable asset to the family and those who wish a connection with us.”
I laughed. Harshly. “Oh, so now I’m a valuable asset?”
He nonchalantly waved a hand around the room. “The spells here certainly speak to that.”
“Then how is the unguided and undirected weaving of wild magic in any way useful to our family—or anyone else, for that matter—when it cannot be used beyond the confines of this reservation.”
He frowned. “Whatever do you mean?”
“I don’t have the control you and Father covet, Juli. The reservation’s wellspring was unprotected for well over a year, and it seems to have garnered a vague kind of sentience that has nothing to do with me. Perhaps if you’d read the various reports sent up to the council from both Ashworth and Monty, you’d have saved yourself a trip and me the annoyance of your presence.”
“The wild magic is not the sole reason for my being here.” He reached into his pocket and drew out a long envelope.
It held an official court seal, just like the one Ashworth had slid across the table only hours before.
He offered it to me. I didn’t take it. “What is that?”
“A subpoena.”
“A second one? To the same court case or a different one?”
His smile was cold. “Different. Your inheritance is being challenged.”
“Inheritance? What fucking inheritance?”
He laughed, but it was as cold as his expression. “What inheritance do you think? You were Clayton’s wife—”
“No, I wasn’t—the marriage was legally annulled before Clayton was murdered.”
“A murder that very few of us believe you played no part in.”
“He was alive when I left him.”
“Which is not a denial that you took no part in his death.”
“I did not kill the man, but you know what? I surely would have if I’d been given half the chance and an assurance of no legal blowback.” I motioned to the envelope. “Why on earth would he have left me anything? I disappeared on our wedding night; he didn’t have time to fuck me, let alone make a will.”
He raised an eyebrow. It was a somehow mocking gesture. “Do you think our father was totally uncaring about your future?”
“Is that a trick question?”
He didn’t look amused. “There was, of course, a prenuptial agreement in which your dowry—”
“My dowry?” I cut in, with a laugh. “What fucking dowry?”
“Your percentage of the Marlowe empire, of course.”
“Yeah, like I was ever going to inherit even the smallest smidge of the so-called Marlowe empire.”
“For the purposes of the agreement, you certainly were. In exchange, Clayton made you his main beneficiary on his death. The will was a part of the prenup agreement, so of course everything was made official before your actual marriage.”
“And he never bothered to change said will in all the years I was missing?” I snorted. “I find that terribly hard to believe.”
“Clayton was nothing if not stubborn. He could never believe that you—a mere snip of an underpowered witch—would ever outfox him for very long.”
Now that I could utterly believe. “So why are you delivering the paperwork rather than Clayton’s family or their lawyers?”
“Because I wished to see firsthand your spell skill, and because our families remain on good terms.”
Of course they did. A squabble over a dead man’s estate would never get in the way of old alliances. Like it or not, my family was one of the major powers in the ancient halls of the royal high court. No court case, successful or not, was likely to change that too much. Not when my brother and mother were also powerful figures in said court.
I reached out and took the subpoena. “When is the court case?”
“It will initially be mediation, and it’s slated to start two days before the other case. We do not expect it’ll take more than a day or so to sort out.”
I raised my eyebrows. “That sounds as if agreements have already been made.”
“There have been discussions, yes—”
“Without me? The main recipient of said estate?”
“You will of course be given final approval—”
“And I will, of course, require a full list of everything my inheritance entails before agreeing to anything you and Father might have negotiated on my behalf. I will also want a copy of said agreement so that my lawyer can go through it thoroughly.”
“That is unnecessary—”
“Perhaps it is, but my days of trusting you lot are long, long gone.”
He scowled, but he really had no choice and we both knew it. “Fine. I shall get the documents spelled down to you.”