18th Summer 514AV
Morning - just after the ninth bell
Morning - just after the ninth bell
Adelaide had defied her Uncle and she was already worrying about what would happen if he found out. After an entire day and a half fruitlessly hunting for clues as to who might have stolen such a large supply of Saffron, she had decided that to hire someone would be the best way forward. Aria had turned her nose up at the opportunity, deemed it beneath her and disappeared, hunting down some runaway slave with the intention of dooming it to whatever unpleasant end. In a way, Adelaide was glad for an entire day in Aria's company was stressful and would have put her ill at ease. Somehow, she had an element of trust in the Konrath and decided that Estrellir would not risk her professional reputation for the sake of some gossip. So, on the morning of the 18th - knowing full well that her Uncle would be in the city for most of the day and that he had a meeting with the Radacke - Adelaide asked the Konrath to swing by the house and see if there was anything she could do. Mercifully, the House was empty of everyone save Grandmother, who had locked herself up in her room at any rate, and the slaves. Father had disappeared completely, but that was not unusual and he was usually gone for bells.
She had spent a bell in her room following breakfast, working through the finances in order to budget for Yatmina Sitai's breakfast whisky but had not been able to concentrate - thinking about her using Estrellir, specifically against her Uncle's express desire not to use her. Was that dishonest? She did not know. Life on the Sitai Plantation had a way of warping one's sense of what was morally right and what wasn't. It was necessary, however, that her Uncle did not find out. After a few chimes passed, she had turned to doodling again, waiting for the clock to mark the beginning of the ninth bell. A intricate design was forming in front of her, a design for a wardrobe... she had always liked furniture and it amazed her own original some designs were. Silently, she sketched a couple of pillar-like decorations next to the swinging doors and took a moment to curl the foot of the wardrobe into lion-like wooden paws. Paws, or rather claws, on a piece of furniture was obviously a cliché but Adelaide could not think of anything better and was merely trying to waste time. Finally, a slave came up to tell her that the ninth bell had struck and Adelaide stood up from her writing desk. The sun shone blindingly in her face and she had to turn away, but not without taking the mild heat and blue skies as a positive omen.
"Today will be a good day." she told herself in a murmur, "Today, we'll hopefully find out the truth. Saffron, not to mention all the other items, can't vanish without a trace."
Waiting at the front porch, she could not help but wonder if she had done the right thing. If anyone betrayed her, they would pay for it dearly, but still there was the nagging feeling that it was her the traitor - a traitor to her Uncle, who has specifically ordered that she do not use the "Konrath Woman" as he put it and, thus, a traitor to her family... especially as she had already revealed the particulars of the situation the day before. She prayed that Viratas would give her strength to do what was best for the Dynasty, for there was no higher purpose for a caretaker. At least, she thought, she had managed to convince Estrellir to investigate for free, simultaneously assuring her that to do so would improve her standing with the Sitai family in the case where anybody should find out. That would allow her more employment in the future. Naturally, though, Adelaide had suggested this way forward more out of a desire to protect her own interests than to help Estrellir further hers. Furthermore, Adelaide had had the good idea of speaking to the slaves and servants beforehand, assuring them that if they cooperated with the Konrath and it led to a discovery as to what happened to the stolen saffron (and other vitals) they would gain favour and might even be rewarded. Of course, rewarding slaves was grossly unorthodox and perhaps even embarrassing, but Adelaide knew that she had to maintain their respect for her. She wasn't buying them... she was being magnanimous and gracious.
"Everything will go well. I've done everything I possibly could."
She had spent a bell in her room following breakfast, working through the finances in order to budget for Yatmina Sitai's breakfast whisky but had not been able to concentrate - thinking about her using Estrellir, specifically against her Uncle's express desire not to use her. Was that dishonest? She did not know. Life on the Sitai Plantation had a way of warping one's sense of what was morally right and what wasn't. It was necessary, however, that her Uncle did not find out. After a few chimes passed, she had turned to doodling again, waiting for the clock to mark the beginning of the ninth bell. A intricate design was forming in front of her, a design for a wardrobe... she had always liked furniture and it amazed her own original some designs were. Silently, she sketched a couple of pillar-like decorations next to the swinging doors and took a moment to curl the foot of the wardrobe into lion-like wooden paws. Paws, or rather claws, on a piece of furniture was obviously a cliché but Adelaide could not think of anything better and was merely trying to waste time. Finally, a slave came up to tell her that the ninth bell had struck and Adelaide stood up from her writing desk. The sun shone blindingly in her face and she had to turn away, but not without taking the mild heat and blue skies as a positive omen.
"Today will be a good day." she told herself in a murmur, "Today, we'll hopefully find out the truth. Saffron, not to mention all the other items, can't vanish without a trace."
Waiting at the front porch, she could not help but wonder if she had done the right thing. If anyone betrayed her, they would pay for it dearly, but still there was the nagging feeling that it was her the traitor - a traitor to her Uncle, who has specifically ordered that she do not use the "Konrath Woman" as he put it and, thus, a traitor to her family... especially as she had already revealed the particulars of the situation the day before. She prayed that Viratas would give her strength to do what was best for the Dynasty, for there was no higher purpose for a caretaker. At least, she thought, she had managed to convince Estrellir to investigate for free, simultaneously assuring her that to do so would improve her standing with the Sitai family in the case where anybody should find out. That would allow her more employment in the future. Naturally, though, Adelaide had suggested this way forward more out of a desire to protect her own interests than to help Estrellir further hers. Furthermore, Adelaide had had the good idea of speaking to the slaves and servants beforehand, assuring them that if they cooperated with the Konrath and it led to a discovery as to what happened to the stolen saffron (and other vitals) they would gain favour and might even be rewarded. Of course, rewarding slaves was grossly unorthodox and perhaps even embarrassing, but Adelaide knew that she had to maintain their respect for her. She wasn't buying them... she was being magnanimous and gracious.
"Everything will go well. I've done everything I possibly could."
