Leon was furious.

He had been sitting with Ari when a furious Logan burst inside, followed by a slip of a girl he later knew was Summer's maid. The note was succinct and attached with an address.

Why did she not tell him beforehand? That was the question for which he had no answer as he quickly put a team and a half-assed plan and went after her.

If they had had more time to plan an ambush, if she had told him early enough... Now it was too late.

The underground passage in the decrepit house led outside to a nearby alley. There was no trace of their quarry anywhere.

Leon was furious.

The capital was now under tight control, no one was getting in or out without permission. The castle was tightly locked and under heavy guard.

The fact that someone had gone deep enough into the castle to leave a note in Summer's room, which was near Leon's wing, was enough to give the head of security a heart attack. But the alternative, which was that someone who had the right to be in the castle was the one who put the note there, was more chilling. Leon had a feeling that the latter was more probable.

Leon's brother would have been briefed by now. He would go meet him after dealing with that infuriating woman.

"Where is she?" he asked Ida as he stalked into his guard's wing where Summer's room was located. Al had taken Summer back to the castle after she gave them descriptions of the people who had escaped. Guards and more men in civilian clothing were now combing the city, searching for them.

"She's in her room," Ida said, "Leon-"

"Not now, Ida."

Ida had a soft spot for Summer, and right now, he didn't want to hear anyone defending her. She would explain herself to him in person.

Two guards were stationed outside her room. Leon wondered if he would find her inside. He knew she was able to escape if she so wanted. She had been able to escape the entire time. Her skills at moving unseen were nothing ordinary, no amount of training could achieve that level of talent.

He would have been livid if anyone else had so easily slipped past the castle's security. But Summer was not anyone.

He rapped on the door and opened it.

She rose from where she was sitting on her bed, playing a dinner knife between her fingers. To think that it was the only weapon she had on her while she was out there only fueled his anger further.

Ida closed the door behind her and leaned against it, out of the way. Good, right now he wanted to eat someone alive, preferably a violet-eyed stupid female.

"At least have the sense to go armed, if you're going on your own," he rumbled.

She arched a brow. "I would be happy to oblige, except I don't have any weapons."

"You could've stolen one," he paced back and forth, too riled up to stay in place. It had been a long time since he'd last been this agitated. "You excel in all matters of stealing and sneaking after all."

Her eyes lit up with a flash of emotion before her too bright a smile made an appearance, "I should have, shouldn't I? The next time I'm going out I'll make sure to raid your armory."

The silence that ensued was thick with tension. He stalked to the window and looked outside, gripping the window sill until his fingers hurt. He could barely see past the blaze of anger that refused to abate.

"Why didn't you inform us?" he finally asked.

"I did inform you," she said, that fake smile still on her face.

He took a deep breath. "You should have told us beforehand. It was an opportunity to capture people who were presumably involved in the theft. At the very least, an opportunity to gain more information."

The smile vanished. She walked closer, took an envelope from her pocket and gave it to him. He read the note inside, and checked the map. The note she had left him in the morning didn't mention anything about her mother. Only the fact that she found directions to a place in the city where she would meet people possibly involved with the theft.

Leon's anger fizzled out like fire dosed in water. He already regretted his loss of temper and the words he uttered. But, he was still annoyed with her for making him lose the opportunity.

"She's my mother," she finally said, looking out the window with a blank expression. "Lady Mauve, she was there with three men. She's my mother."

He looked out of the window. "You still should have told us."

"I wanted to have a chance to speak with her first," she said. "I wanted to know if she was really my mother before you came in. I know she might be involved in the theft, and that once you capture her, I won't have a chance to speak freely with her."

"You would have let us capture her?" Ida asked. "Even after confirming she is your mother?"

"Yes," Summer replied without hesitation. "If she is indeed guilty, she has to pay for her crimes."

"Even if it meant she would die?" Leon asked. Violet eyes met his, reflecting his own image. An open and honest gaze.

"Yes. There are lines I will not cross," she said, reminding him of similar words she'd spoken when they were stranded in the woods. "She has no misgiving about killing innocents. I will not be responsible for letting such a person walk free. Although, I suppose I did just that in the end."

"I would have let you have time with her," Leon said. She looked at him, surprise and suspicion clearly written on her face.

"Would you?"

"I wouldn't have taken away a chance to speak to your own mother, Summer. If you don't trust me enough to believe that, I am terribly disappointed."

She pursed her lips and looked away with a frown, confused. Leon felt the last of his displeasure fade away, to be replaced by resigned exasperation.

Summer, he knew, would not trust anyone easily. Especially people in a position of authority. And with the life she had led thus far, it was no surprise.

He sighed and thumped her head with the envelope. "I assume catching up with Lady Mauve about a long lost past was not everything you spoke of."

She glared at him and tilted her chin up. "I'm not stupid."

"Oh, you are stupid," he said, mainly to get a reaction out of her. He rather enjoyed having her all flushed and annoyed at him. "You're just not stupid enough to let an opportunity to gain information pass you by."

She narrowed her eyes at him then smiled, "maybe I am stupid enough. After all, I don't know anything about the course of the investigation. It was your decision to keep me out of the loop."

"Having some information would be in your best interest, Summer. Your decision this morning was not spectacularly bright. And many people are miffed at you. Including me."

"So what? You'll throw me in a prison cell again?"

"No, but if the king decides to do just that, it will be difficult to stop him."

She looked at him for a long time, not knowing whether he was truthful or not. At the moment, Leon himself didn't know what his brother's reaction would be.

She crossed her arms. "Fine, but I want to be in on the investigation from now on."

This woman... Leon shook his head. "You're not in a position to negotiate."

She grinned. "So throw me in prison."

Leon pinched the bridge of his nose with a deep sigh. "I will think about it."

"Give me your word," she said.

"I will consider the merit of having you help in the investigation. You have my word for it."

It wasn't what she wanted, but it was the best she was getting. And she knew that. "Alright."

She sat down on the chair by the fireplace, and proceeded to tell them everything that had happened from the moment she found the envelope to the moment she was escorted back to the castle by Al.

Ida and Leon listened intently when she relayed the conversation she had with her mother word for word. She had a remarkable memory.

When Summer was done, Ida groaned. "The first thing that we need to find out is who, exactly, put the note in your room. This may have very dangerous implications."

Leon rubbed his stubbled jaw. There was much to work through. So many questions. However, Leon would have to wait until Holloway and other members of the investigative team were present. Their input in light of the new information would be valuable.

"This evening," Leon said. "You will be present in the meeting and answer everyone else's questions about your little escapade."

Summer stood up and bowed with a flourish and a smile. "Yes, your highness."

Leon closed his eyes for a moment then said, "meanwhile, you will stay in your room."

"With the guards right outside my door, I assume."

"They're more for your protection than keeping you in," he said, knowing full well that if she wanted to escape, the guards wouldn't stop her. "Your mother wants you, for whatever reason. Until we figure out why, you will be under heavy guard. Get used to it."

"I'm in the royal palace," she said. "Sneaking a note in is one thing, kidnapping a person will not be as easy. Although I don't think she would go through the trouble."

Leon doubted that, but, "there will be more people than usual in the castle for the next couple of weeks. More outsiders to guard against. The guards will stay. And Summer?"

"Yes?"

He moved closer until his boots touched hers. She didn't move back. "Don't sneak out on them," he warned.

Her reply was an unrepentant grin.

*** ***

Ida was smiling ear to ear when they walked out of Summer's room.

"What?" he growled at her, striding down the hallway.

"Nothing. I just remembered a story my mother used to tell me. About a little mouse and a bear." He didn't take the bait, but she continued anyway, "the mischievous mouse always found ways to irk the bear."

He gave her a long look. "Well, this bear can make the mouse's life a living hell if he wants to."

"But you don't. You're not even angry at her anymore," she said. "Why?"

He thought about it for a moment. He wasn't one to tolerate defiance and insubordination. And Summer had been both this morning. Except that, for some reason, he didn't see Summer as someone under his command. She wouldn't follow orders, even his orders, and he was fine with that.

Summer had also been very obstinate in her demand to be part of the investigation, despite the fact that she had been in the wrong this morning. He should have just forced her to tell him what she gleaned from the meeting. He should have been angry at her for going there without telling him. He should have been. But he wasn't. Not anymore.

Maybe it was because he couldn't fathom what it was like to never know one's parents. He couldn't begin to imagine how she was feeling.

He knew in his heart that it wasn't the reason he was letting her get away with things, though.

"Hell if I know," he told Ida.

His unreasonable reactions to Summer, however, were not what took his mind. What did her mother want? If Summer was truly the lady's daughter, why was she abandoned? Maybe she'd been illegitimate? He needed information about Lady Mauve as soon as possible.

"Ida," he said, "where are you on Lady Mauve?"

"Only a couple of diplomats and a few merchants have been to the Northern court in the past couple of decades. None of them are in the capital, though," she said. "I've written letters to the ones whose location I'm aware of but haven't received replies yet. My parents are helping me locate the rest. It will take some time."

Ida's parents were both retired diplomats. They had connections all over the kingdom and in the neighboring nations. If anyone could find information about their quarry, it would be them.

What bothered Leon the most was why Lady Mauve abandoned Summer in Springwood instead of her own country? It made no sense.

Inviting Summer to go along with her also made no sense. It was hard to believe that Lady Mauve was suddenly overcome with motherly affection for her lost daughter. And from Summer's expressions while she was retelling, he had the impression that Lady Mauve was not a specifically affectionate person. So why was she interested in Summer, all of a sudden?

None of it made sense. And until he had more information, thinking about it would only make his head ache. Perhaps his brother could shed more light on the matter. His brother would let him deal with the matters at the moment, but he would certainly summon him in the evening for a report.

For now, however, Leon would focus on the hunt. Al and Wolfe waited for him in his office. Ida stood next to Al, her hands clasped behind her back, mirroring the two men's stance.

Leon's office was bare except for the necessities. His desk, a fireplace, bookshelves with a seating arrangement and a table. Green curtains with golden trim and a pale brown carpet. He remembered a time when Ria would leave some of her things behind after spending time with him here. A blanket on the settee. A book on the table. A hastily drawn sketch of him working. She hadn't been a great artist, but she'd loved it. His and Ari's bedrooms still had some of her artwork.

Leon shoved the memories and the guilt away and sat behind his desk.

"The tunnel opened in an alley not far from the house," Wolfe said. "The market was too crowded for an effective search."

It was undoubtedly what they'd hoped for by setting the meeting in the heart of the market and at noon, when it would be most busy.

"Who owns the house?" Leon asked.

"A merchant who passed away five years ago," Al replied. "His son inherited it, but he lives far east and never comes here ever since his father's passing, according to neighbors."

Underground passageways were not uncommon, especially in the middle of the market where some merchants used them to smuggle in goods, or simply as a safety exit for their families in case of an emergency.

"They had obviously been using the house long enough to find the tunnel and get familiar with it," Leon mused out loud. "Either that, or they have a local familiar with the place in their pocket. Check the owner of the house and the neighbors, confirm they have no involvement in the matter. And see if they've noticed anyone coming in or out of the house lately."

"Yes, your highness," said Wolfe.

"The search party, did they find anything at all?" Ida asked.

"Not yet," Al replied. "Holloway is still leading the hunt. Summer's descriptions will be useful. Several of our people are searching every inn and lodge in the capital and its surrounding villages."

"If they have allies here, they wouldn't be risking a stay in an inn," Ida said.

Which was more than likely, given the fact that they had enough connections to know about Summer, and to sneak in a note to her bedroom.

And since they knew they were being hunted, they would take even more care in hiding. Leon doubted they would leave, though. From Summer's impressions, they were still deeply implicated in retrieving the artifact, a possession they claimed was theirs.

The guards around the museum holding the artifact had been doubled. Still, Leon would take more precautions.

*** ***

Leon was walking in an open hallway in the castle. The trees brushed the parapet with green fingers. He had never paid attention to it because the trees were very high off the ground, but after seeing Summer move on high trees like she was walking, he saw it as an easy access way.

He would have to reevaluate the security parameters of the castle. Perhaps Summer could shed more light on that. The more he thought about it, the more he was convinced she would be perfect for the task. To make the castle's security Summer-proof would be extremely efficient.

After all, if Summer couldn't break in or out of a place, no one else could.

His thoughts of Summer and trees were interrupted by a loud, eager greeting.

"Your highness!"

The man who'd just turned the corner with a young woman in tow was vaguely familiar. It took a moment for Leon to place him. He was one of the lords governing an eastern district. Lord Hodges' gray hair was combed to perfection, not a hair out of place. His dark eyes glinted with eagerness, his hooked nose dominated the rest of his features, and his pale face lined and weary.

The young woman with him held a resemblance to her father in the shape of her eyes and the stubborn chin. Her face, however, was more delicate and feminine. Her mother must be a beauty.

Lord Hodges must be here for the yearly assembly of lords.

"Lord Hodges, Lady Hodges," he greeted as father and daughter stopped before him.

The father bowed and the daughter curtsied with an elegance and a bright but shy smile that were lost on Leon. He was too interested in the person who rounded the corner along with two guards on either side of her. Summer grinned when she caught his eyes and wiggled her fingers in a wave.

"...met my daughter, Lady Skylar. She has just made her social debut this spring."

Leon turned his attention back to the lord and his daughter. "I haven't had the pleasure," he nodded, "Lady Skylar."

She blushed and smiled demurely. Lady Skylar was a beauty. And Leon had a good inclination of what her father's intentions were by the way he kept smiling. The lord's next words as Summer was just passing them by confirmed his suspicions.

"She was very eager to attend the opening ball of the assembly. However-"

"Lord Hodges," Leon interrupted, snagging Summer's wrist before she could walk past. "I would like to introduce you to Lady Summer. A guest of mine, who has done me the honor of being my partner for the opening ball."

--- ---- ---

Thoughts?

Thank you guys for reading. How's your new year going so far? 

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M.B.