A Brother's Price

then propped the cabin’s chair under the door handle. He wondered how much of his conversation with Captain Tern Eldest had heard. He felt vaguely guilty about talking to someone outside the family about his fears—but none of his sisters could have answered his questions about nobility. What Captain Tern told him, however, hadn’t settled his fears. He changed into his sleeping shirt, and then sat on his bed, chin on his knees.
    Eldest eyed him, reloading her revolvers without looking. “What’s wrong, Jerin?”
    “I’m worried,” he whispered. “What if we don’t get more than two thousand for me? What are we going to do?”
    “Don’t worry.” She spun the cylinder on each gun, double-checking she had a full load. “If things come to worse, we could sell futures on Doric’s brother price.”
    “Futures?” Jerin asked.
    “Like grain futures.” Eldest slid her pistols into their holster, hanging from her headboard. “A lot of farmers sell their crops in the summer at a set price before the harvest. It helps them tide money over, but it’s risky. Basically, it’s a loan, and you put your farm up as collateral on the loan. People that don’t look at it as a loan usually lose the family farm.”
    Jerin picked nervously at his sheets. “What if the market price of your crops goes higher than the set price?”
    “That’s what the women that bought your crop are hoping for,” Eldest said. “You don’t see the profit; they do. That’s why the Whistlers don’t sell futures. We don’t work to make other people rich.”
    “Why don’t you use my brother’s price?” Jerin asked.
    Eldest smiled, and hugged him suddenly. “Because I want a husband, silly, not the money.”
     
    Three days later they arrived at Mayfair. The city seemed to go on forever, stunning even his sisters into silence. Eldest took firm hold of his arm with her left hand, keeping her right free to draw a gun, and didn’t let go.
    “Stay here.” Raven went down the canted stage to the crowded landing. The ship’s calliope started up, drowning out all normal levels of conversation with bright loud music. Jerin watched the captain’s broad back as she pushed through the milling crowds. Partway to the cobbled street, an odd thing happened. A woman in a wide-brimmed hat coming down the street glanced at Raven as they passed each other. The stranger started as if recognizing the captain, then ducked her face away. Raven, intent on the wagon, seemed not to notice.
    “Did you see that?” Jerin shouted at Eldest, standing beside him, as he kept watch on the mystery woman. The woman had turned to watch Raven’s retreating back, and Jerin had a momentary stab of fear for the captain.
    “What?”
    “The woman. Did you see her?” Jerin pointed at the only figure that seemed to be standing still in the crowd.
    “I can’t hear what you’re saying, Jerin! Who do you see?”
    He took his eyes away only for a moment, to turn and shout into Eldesfs ear. “That woman is acting oddly.”
    “Which one?”
    He glanced back, and found her gone. “She’s gone now.”
    Eldest scanned the crowd. “Was she armed?”
    He shook his head, and shouted back, “I don’t know!”
    “Here comes Raven!” Eldest pointed out the captain.
    Raven waded back through the crowd, signaling that they were to join her. Eldest took his arm above the elbow to escort him down the stage. Raven met them at the foot.
    “I’ve got a hackney hired,” Raven shouted to Eldest. “Take Jerin over and I’ll bring the luggage.”
    Eldest nodded, not bothering to shout back. Eldest turned, apparently spotted Corelle and Summer, and flashed hand signals for them to get the gear and follow.
    “We’ll get your stuff loaded and go straight up to the palace,” Raven told Jerin, pointing.
    Jerin gasped. The city ran back to sandstone cliffs, which leaped skyward in walls of rich tan. Crowning the bluffs, with windows glistening like diamonds, sat an immense building. It was an architectural sprawl of turrets and wings, gables and dormers, slate roofs and copper cladding, gray stone veiled with ivy, and windows— hundreds and thousands of mullioned windows. Too huge, too impressive, too noble to be anything but the royal palace.
    “I’ve never seen anything so big,” Jerin breathed.
    His words fell in a moment of silence as the calliope paused between songs.
    “It’s where you’ll be living for—for the next few weeks.” Raven said, then patted him