Calion climbed the stairs of the ancestral home. His mother stood at the top of the stairs with the younger brothers to her left and the heads of staff to her right.

"Darling, welcome home," Selene said as her arms widened.

Her arms wrapped around Calion, sensing the tension easily.

"Do not fret. You will meet someone wonderful. Elwin has taken great care to interview all of the women."

"Is that what they call it in Merah now?"

Selene narrowed her eyes with a playful smirk.

"Do you really think that your brother would fornicate with his future sister-in-law and create tension with you? Why do you think so little of him?"

"Now is not the time, mother."

Calion's eyes lowered to Aleph, who was clutching his mother's skirt. He was hidden behind her, wary of the man that he knew was another brother but one that he'd only met a few times. The attention turned to Corwen, who was almost ten, and Johan, who was fifteen.

It had always amused Calion that his parents only ever produced a child every five years. There were no alterations or unexpected pregnancies. Calion thought that they probably had sex once in the year, fell pregnant, and then went on to ignore each other for the next few months until the child was born.

Then, his father would acknowledge the child as his own, add the unlucky thing to the wall of the bequeathed, and return to his office for the next four years.

Calion could not recall a day when his father played with them, took them anywhere, and spoke to them as a parent and child. If they dared to misbehave, they'd be sent to his office for a dressing-down. The severity would depend on the situation.

All they had as children was their mother and the staff. Calion hated it as much as he despised this place. It's why he left when he was legally allowed to. Twenty years old, to be precise. The day after his birthday, Calion packed his bags, said goodbye to his mother and siblings, and then left.

The only time that he'd been asked to return was when his father died. When his mother appeared on his doorstep with an obviously lowered mood, Calion knew what had happened without a word said. Selene asked her son to return, if only for her sake. She knew that Barwin was not liked by many of his sons but Calion most of all. He'd never taken the time to get to know them and rarely spoke to them.

"Did you travel with Elwin?"

"No, I,"

Calion turned to see the servants rushing to help. Elwin had arrived and was already walking up the stairs. He greeted his mother with a kiss on her cheek and then ruffled Aleph's hair. The boy giggled, pulling in closer to his mother's legs. Whether he liked it or not, Elwin had become a father figure to the three boys that had lost their father so early in their lives.

Elwin figured that not one of them actually cared, but there was still a sadness that lingered deep within their hearts. Johan had coped reasonably well, but Corwin and Aleph took a little longer than any of them had expected.

The two eldest brothers looked at each other. Anger still firmly rooted in their minds, neither were ready to make peace.

"Perhaps afternoon tea in the drawing room?"

"Yes, my lady."

Elwin turned to follow the staff into the house. Aleph skipped beside him, already telling him about what happened at the estate in his absence.

Selene and Calion were alone. His mother reached out, gently rubbing his upper arm.

"It's going to be okay, my love. Elwin took great care in the selection. He wanted the best for you."

"The best would be to let me decide for myself."

"You know that is not possible, and if it were, then it is exactly what he would have done. Do you honestly think that he likes forcing this upon you? Consider that he has to do this for each and every single one of your brothers. For the next ninety-five years, he is bound to this life. Every four years, he has to return to this world and start the process. Over and over again. Drag his brothers home and force them down the aisle as if they had a shotgun pressed to their backs."

Calion opened his mouth to protest yet again, but Selene shut him down with a heavy frown. Tears lingered because she'd seen how hard this was for Elwin. How he'd paced the floors with stress weighing him down. He'd spent thousands on lawyers with the hope that they'd find a loophole. Something was all that he wanted. He got nothing.

"Don't, Calion. We're all sorry that you have to endure this, but it's not Elwin's fault. He was not the one that made the decree, and he certainly didn't send it off to make it legal. Your brother did everything that he could to break the decree so that you and your brothers could be free. You might not believe my words, son, but it's the truth. Accept that you cannot change this. Be grateful that your brother put the effort in and found a group of lovely women for you to meet. He was broad in his choices,"

"Because he didn't know what I would prefer." Calion interrupted in a dry and disinterested tone.

Selene sighed.

"Fine. You can continue with your woe is me act, but you will refrain from doing so in the presence of your brothers. You will not taint their future with your foolish belief that you are so hard done by. If you cannot comply, then I will make you reside in the servants' residence."

"On what authority?"

Selene's hands tightened, the anger swelling. She didn't know when Calion had become so insolent.

"Watch your mouth. You might be an adult, but that does not mean that I cannot punish you as if you were a child. My authority is not what it used to be. I am the lady of this house."

"Elwin's house."

Selene raised an eyebrow as the smile grew wide. Her son thought that because she was not a Rochester by blood, she had no authority here. There had been a time when it was true. Barwin was a monster like that. It changed not so long ago. With a new lord at the helm, many things were altered. As for Selene, her placement as lady of the house was solidified by her loving son, who wanted to right the wrongs now that he had control.

"Perhaps you'd like to consider your words carefully. I would not make the claim if it weren't true. You are on thin ice, Calion."

Selene turned, lifting the heavy dress as she walked up the stairs.

She'd made an effort and selected a lovely dress for Calion's return. Then he threw it all back in her face, reminding her of the life that she'd once lived. Barwin. It seemed as if their second born was more like his father than he cared to be.

Selene stopped when she saw a figure approaching from the formal parlor. Elwin struggled to breathe now that Aleph had his arms wrapped around his neck. It was always the first order of business for his return. A piggyback ride through the lower level until Elwin couldn't take the breathlessness any longer.

She wasn't fast enough to wipe away the tears. Elwin frowned and then looked through the open door at his brother, who was approaching.

"Don't," she whispered. "He's just upset. It's understandable."

"Taking it out on you is not."

Gently gripping Aleph's arms, he pulled him down to the ground to a loud complaint.

"I know, but I've got one little thing to do first, okay?"

Aleph nodded reluctantly.

"How about you take mother into the drawing room and nibble on those cookies that are sitting on the table? I'll be back soon, and we can continue the journey."

Taking his mother's hand, Aleph began pulling on it. Selene gave Elwin a fearful look. She knew that an argument was about to be unleashed upon the quiet halls of this place.

Selene hated to admit that the time between Barwin's passing and now had been blissfully quiet. The only interruption to that was more recently when Elwin had to start the preparations for this mess. His stress, the regular discussions then continuing to the interviews, it became a little chaotic. She hoped that once this was done, she would have a few years of tranquility before it returned.

When they were gone, Elwin moved to the study door and waited with a look of expectation. Calion huffed and stalked through the door. Elwin did not close it, but that was only because once the argument started, no one would come near them. No one wanted to be drawn into it.

"Sit down."

"Pass."

Elwin moved to the chair, turning to face the wall and not his desk.

"It was not something that you can negotiate. Sit down."

Calion rolled his eyes and lumped himself into the seat. Elwin had already moved to the bookcase in front of Calion.

"How often have you been in this room?"

"A few times."

"Do you know of the magical properties it possesses?"

"Father might have mentioned that there are some unworldly things that I would be wise to avoid."

He was a boy at the time. Barwin found him poking through the books, looking at the objects on the mantle. Calion was always surprised that his father did not yell at him that day. Instead, he guided his son to the chair that he was sitting on and then spoke to him. No yelling, no ranting. Just a few words that warned him against poking his nose into things that he didn't know about.

"The wall of the bequeathed?"

"I heard our father mention it in passing once or twice. Have not seen it, though."

Elwin flicked the catch and slid the bookcase over, revealing a hidden wall. Calion stared as he stood to get a closer look at it.

It appeared to be made of gold but did not shine or glint as if it were. Matte in appearance, it was not rough but smooth. The entire thing was a family tree. At the top were their parents, then the lines ran down to Elwin and himself, through all of their brothers, right down to Aleph. The pictures moved, sometimes offering a smile but almost always a sullen look. Barwin was the only one that was different. It appeared as if he was asleep.

Calion's stomach turned, thinking that it was a current picture. He tested it by twitching his mouth, but his image did not alter.

"What's the deal with it?"

"The wall is enchanted with the children of our parents, showing us, and one day with our partners. It knows when we turn one hundred and, as agreed upon, the time in which everyone except me is to marry. At that stage in the life of the particular son, another placement appears, like the space next to your ugly mug."

"Charming."

"When you and our brothers marry someone, the line will become locked, and then one of those little marks around my frame will disappear."

Calion squinted. They were so small that he struggled to see them. What he could see was that there were a lot of marks. He assumed that there would be twenty marks in total.

"Did mother tell you that I consulted lawyers to figure out if I could break the decree for you?"

His eyes widened, but Calion didn't respond. He didn't know what to say.

"Well, I did. Do you know what they told me? That I can let you do as you please."

"Really?"

"Yes, absolutely. There is a downside, a punishment, if you will."

Calion didn't like the sound of it. He knew that his father was not one to play games, and for him to put a decree upon his children like this, it meant that he expected it to be adhered to.

"This is the wall of the bequeathed. It means that those who are the children of Barwin and Selene Rochester are entitled to a portion of the financial estate, but only if they adhere to the rules set within this wall. Because you and our brothers requested the extension of time, father granted all of you a stipend, but that stops the day that each of you turns one hundred. It will not go any further until you obey the decree. If you want to receive your portion of the financial estate, then you must marry someone that I have selected for you. But as I said, you can refuse. Just be aware that I will be forced to banish you from Merah and withdraw all assets from you."

Calion stepped back, gripping the wall for support.

"You cannot be serious."

"The lawyers, remember? I read the decree and hoped that I'd misinterpreted it. I prayed that I was wrong. I wasn't."

"But the money in my accounts, the townhouse."

"There is power within this decree that is beyond my comprehension. The lawyers recommended that I consult an enchanter. She was the one to tell me that even if I sent you off with a suitcase full of money, you would be completely broke by the end of the day. Homeless and penniless. I suggested that I could give you more money and she told me that it would not work. It is the power of this decree, Calion. Any money that you get will fall through your fingers. You will never be able to retain it or even gain it with your own efforts."

Elwin slid the bookshelf back, hiding the wall from sight. Calion hadn't noticed that the stipend had been cut off, but the next payment wasn't due for another month. He, like the other brothers, was paid every six months.

"I'm sorry, Calion, I really am."