Adeline tried to press Thomas' little face against her shoulder while she hid behind her father's broad back. The two-year-old was restless, whimpering softly and trying to squirm out of her embrace. She could feel his warm breath on her neck as he murmured "Val, Val" – his favorite word for weeks, ever since her big sister had sent the letter.

  The wealthy yeoman Aldred Brentwood stood like a looming mountain on the courtyard outside their house. His massive figure was made even more imposing by the heavy fur coat he wore despite the mild weather. He had bought it for a lot of money from the earl's furrier and had been wearing it at every opportunity ever since. Strands of gray streaked his dark beard, and his cold eyes surveyed their family with barely concealed contempt. Behind him, his three sons stood like a row of grim shadows – tall, hard-faced men with broad shoulders and calloused hands resting casually on their cudgels.

  A shiver ran down Adeline's spine when she thought that she could already be his wife. The thought of his rough, coarse hands on her skin, his beard scratching across her face... No, she didn't want to think about it. She swallowed hard and hugged Thomas tighter, grateful for the warmth of his small body.

  Just a few weeks ago, she had been lying on her bed crying when her parents had told her about the engagement her father was negotiating with Brentwood. The debt had left them no choice – either she would marry Brentwood or they would lose everything. Then Valentina's letter had arrived, with the signet of the House of Greystone in red wax. She had won the Greystone Excellence in Essence Weaving Competition. The prize money had been enough to pay off the most urgent debts and keep the moneylender quiet for the time being.

  "You have no right to break the contract," Brentwood's voice thundered across the courtyard. A flock of startled birds rose from the old oak tree, screeching. "We had a deal!"

  Thomas winced and began to whimper. Adeline stroked his back reassuringly as she watched her father stand up straighter. He was shorter than Brentwood, but his dignity gave him height.

  "We didn't have a contract, Brentwood. We talked about an engagement, yes. But the situation has changed," he said firmly. "My daughter is not for sale."

  Brentwood's face turned dark red. "Sale?" He spat the word out like venom. "I'd have given that little tramp a better life than you poor wretches ever could!"

  Behind Adeline, her mother hissed sharply through her teeth. She could hear the rolling pin handle crack in Mabel's hand.

  Brentwood's eldest son took a step forward, his hand tightly closed around his cudgel. "A deal is a deal! Or are you going to call our father a liar? Just watch how you talk about our father, you good-for-nothing!"

  Adeline's father did not back away, although she could see his shoulders tense under his worn shirt. "On my land, I speak as I please, young man."

  "Your land?" Brentwood laughed barkingly. "How much longer, I wonder? The harvest was bad last year, wasn't it? And this year doesn't look any better." He made a dismissive gesture towards the fields. "Who knows, you might soon be unable again to pay the next loan."

  "Then we'll go to the bank in Bridgewater," her mother said sharply. She stepped up beside her husband, the rolling pin half hidden behind her skirt. "Not to people like you."

  Brentwood's second son – Adeline believed his name was Martin – grinned hideously. "Do you really think the bank will do business with scum like you?"

  "Times are changing," her father said calmly, but Adeline could hear the suppressed anger in his voice. "My daughter Valentina has written-"

  "The daughter you sent to whore in the big city?" Brentwood interrupted him. "At least it seems to have paid off. What a proud father you must be."

  Mabel took a step forward, the rolling pin now clearly visible. "One more word about my daughter-"

  The youngest Brentwood son laughed. "What then, woman? Are you going to beat us all up with your rolling pin?"

  Thomas started to really cry now, big tears rolling down his round cheeks. Adeline tried desperately to calm him down, but her own hands were shaking too much. Behind the house, she could see Edwin and Mabel the Younger hiding behind the stables. Ten-year-old Edwin had picked up a pitchfork almost twice his size and little Mabel had to hold him with both hands to stop him from charging at the Brentwoods.

  "I want to try again in good faith," Brentwood said, "nobody has to get hurt if everyone is reasonable." He pointed his cane at Adeline. "Give me your daughter and we'll forget all this trouble. If you really don't want to marry her off, I'll bring her back to you in a few days, I promise."

  "That's enough!" Aldwin's voice cracked like a whip. "Get off my land now!"

  "And if we won't?" Brentwood stepped so close to her father that their noses were almost touching. His breath smelled of ale and garlic. "You're forgetting yourself. Who do you think the sheriff will believe? You're nothing but a-"

  A loud rumble interrupted him. All heads turned towards the road, where a cloud of dust was approaching. The characteristic sound of wheels on the dusty dirt road grew louder.

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  "That will be Roric," said Mabel, but Adeline could hear from her strained voice that she wasn't sure. Her Ember brother had announced that he would visit them, but not for a few days.

  The dust slowly cleared and Adeline recognized the outline of a mail cart. The mail cart was large and was pulled by two massive brown horses. As it came closer, Adeline could make out the insignia of the royal postal service on the side.

  The car stopped in a perfectly controlled movement. Not a speck of dust kicked up as the wheels came to a halt. Thomas stopped crying and stared wide-eyed.

  A slender figure stepped down from the loading area and Adeline's heart skipped a beat. She hardly recognized her sister.

  Valentina was wearing a dark travel dress made of fine fabric, simply cut but obviously of good quality. Her long brown hair was braided as artfully as it was practically. A silver brooch sparkled on her chest – the crescent moon of House Greystone.

  But it wasn't just her clothes. Valentina moved differently, her posture upright and controlled. Every movement seemed precisely calculated. Her sister, who had often tripped over her own feet in the past, now glided across the dusty courtyard like a queen, while the carter dutifully cleared her luggage from the carriage and drove away without Valentina giving him a second glance.

  "Val!" Thomas shouted and stretched out his arms towards her.

  A smile flitted across Valentina's face, warm and loving – but there was something else, a cold glint in her eyes that made Adeline shiver.

  "What a... surprise," Brentwood said. His voice sounded uncertain, the earlier scorn gone. His sons unconsciously took a step back.

  Valentina let her gaze wander over the group. Her eyes were hard as winter ice as they lingered on Brentwood. When she spoke, her voice was soft, but something in her tone made the hairs on the back of Adeline's neck stand up.

  "I hope I'm not interrupting something. But it looks like I'm just in time."

  An unnatural silence descended over the courtyard. Even the birds seemed to have fallen silent. Only Thomas chuckled happily and continued to stretch his arms out towards his big sister.

  "What's going on here?" asked Valentina. Her voice sounded interested, almost amused, but Adeline knew her sister well enough to hear the dangerous undertones.

  "Just a little dispute between men," Brentwood said with a forced smile. "Nothing that should interest you, woman."

  "Really?" Valentina raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow as her hand almost imperceptibly opened a small glass vial on her belt pouch. "Strange. From here, it looked like you were threatening my father." She paused thoughtfully. "And my little sister."

  Brentwood straightened up to his full height and took a threatening step towards her. "And who do you think you are to talk to me in that tone? I don't have time-"

  A deafening bang interrupted him. The Brentwoods' horses shied wildly, their eyes rolling with panic. With a jerk, they tore loose and galloped off, dragging the cart the Brentwoods had come in bumpily behind them.

  "Strange," Valentina said aloud. Adeline noticed her sister making a small, flowing movement with her fingers.

  "Father!" Martin Brentwood suddenly shouted. Smoke rose from his sleeve. Small flames danced across the fabric without burning it, but the heat must have been considerable – he flailed wildly, trying to put out the fire.

  Strange shadows flitted across the courtyard, accompanied by eerie whispers. The wind seemed to pick up, but the trees didn't move.

  "Demons!" gasped the youngest Brentwood son. His voice was thick with panic.

  "Not quite. Essence Weaving," Valentina said coolly. "I suggest you leave now. And never come back." Her fingers moved again, barely noticeably.

  A loud clapping sound echoed across the courtyard, which seemed to come from the direction of the Brentwoods, who flinched in pain like beaten dogs and turned around frantically.

  "That... You'll regret this," Aldred Brentwood groaned, but his voice trembled. "The sheriff will hear about this! We'll-"

  "You're not going to do anything," Valentina interrupted him gently. "You'll go home and forget that this family exists. Or..." She smiled, and Adeline shuddered at the sight. "Or I will become very displeased." And with those words, the hems of the four men's pants began to burn brightly.

  The Brentwoods stumbled backwards, then turned and ran, slapping themselves violently on the legs of their pants to smother the flames. Aldred Brentwood cast one last hateful glance over his shoulder, but he didn't dare say anything else.

  Thomas clapped his little hands enthusiastically. "Again!" he shouted. "Again!"

  Valentina laughed – a warm, natural sound that didn't fit at all with the cold precision of her previous actions. She turned to her family, and suddenly she was her sister again, no longer the fearsome lady from the city. At least almost, Adeline thought.

  Mabel reached her second eldest daughter first, dropping the rolling pin on the floor, forgotten. "Valentina!" she sobbed as she hugged her daughter. "My clever girl!"

  Adeline watched as the rest of the family crowded around Valentina. Thomas wriggled in her arms, his small hands outstretched. "Val! Val!"

  Valentina skillfully took the little one from her, a fluid movement, immediately falling back into the role of the big sister. "Well, my sweetie," she said tenderly. "Have you grown?"

  Tears welled up in Adeline's eyes. She had missed Valentina so much, her big sister, her role model. And now she had saved her from that horrible old man – again. The thought of old Brentwood made her shudder.

  As if Valentina had read her thoughts, she turned to Adeline. "Come here," she said gently. She held Thomas with one hand and held out the other invitingly.

  Adeline threw her arms around her sister's neck, carefully surrounding Thomas. "Thank you," she whispered, "thank you, thank you, thank you."

  "No one will ever threaten you again," Valentina murmured into her hair. Something in her voice caught Adeline's attention – a dark promise, a hardness that hadn't been there before.

  She took a step back and took a closer look at her sister. Valentina moved differently, she noticed again. Every gesture was controlled. Even the way she held Thomas had something regal about it. Her family seemed to sense it too – they were all waiting for her to speak, for her to take over the conversation.

  "Let's go inside," said Valentina. "I want to tell you about Bridgewater. And find out everything that happened here in Palewood."

  They turned towards the house, and for a moment, just for a split second, Adeline caught a strange look in her sister's eyes – something alien, cold, almost triumphant. But then Valentina smiled, and she was her familiar, warm sister again.

  "Mabel, Edwin!" she called to her younger sister and little brother, who were still looking a little sheepish, half hidden behind the stable. "Bring the luggage inside, will you? I've brought presents for everyone!"

  As they walked into the house, Thomas nuzzled Valentina's neck and played with her silver brooch. The ruby red eyes of the half-moon seemed to glow in the dim light of the hallway.