“Mr Mayor, congratulations on your re-election.”

Her words hung in the air as the middle-aged man took off his fabric cap and adjusted the hem before placing it back on. “Has it been so long since we last met? I suppose work has kept me busy,” he said.

She replied with a smile, then gestured at a seat opposite her—one of two. A pleasant fragrance filled her office, the logs crackling in the fireplace against the early chills that followed summer’s passing. Despite the fire and the afternoon sunlight falling through the window, a veil of shadow clung to her as if a widow, making her smile seem hollow.

“It has been so long. Master Schulz has his flaws, but stupidity is not one of them. Alas, one must be aware of ones own strengths, and one must be very aware of ones faults. This is something he has backwards. So prideful in his own intelligence, yet quick to dismiss others’.”

She paused there to open her hands, showing a look of mild exasperation, paired with a heavy breath.

“I have made good progress. It is almost funny how quickly people should compromise, that they would feel it a good deal to suffer only one injury than two. Well, in this case, I suppose it is more that they would take an injury now to be spared one later…” she said, falling into thought.

After a moment of silence, he said, “My Lady?”

She raised a hand, then brought it back down to drum a few beats. “This is not to be written down. In the coming months, bring attention to your childhood and move to have the Church handle cases where capital crimes have been committed. By Easter, before I head to the capital, I will present the new guidelines to be followed in sentencing. When I return, I shall hopefully have further reforms to be instituted. There is much that happens in the capital which I may only anticipate.”

He listened, still, his eyes on her mouth as if burning the sight of every word into his memory. “Understood, My Lady.”

Silence fell heavily in the dim room until such a time that she raised her hand to the side. Footsteps broke out, a cup of steaming tea provided to her. She took a sip.

“Mr Mayor, the day may come where you shall be required to make a choice between the Nelli family and myself. At such a time, will you choose those who saw your potential, rescued you from the life you so hated, and trusted you with mayorship….”

He waited a long second before whispering, “Or….”

“Would you choose she who, despite the differences in station, respects you.”

For a short while, she simply enjoyed watching the gears turn inside his head, flickers of emotion in the various twitches across his face. However, such enjoyment was only a secondary consideration.

“Pray not make a decision hastily. For the foreseeable future, there should be no need to make such a choice—and I am rather accustomed to seeing far, far into the future.”

He gave a weak smile. “Of course,” he said with some lingering strain.

For a moment, she met his gaze and held it comfortably, then she looked down upon the desk with its papers neatly organised and a single book to the side. “There are many things I do not tell you as you do not need to know. However, I hope you trust that I would only lie to you if it is imperative that you truly believe it.”

His face showed nothing; his hands on his laps clenched.

She then placed a hand on the book and slid it across the table. “Oh, a present for you—Galileo,” she whispered.

Hearing his chosen name, confusion touched his brow, only for it to become surprise a moment later as her hand left, revealing the name of the book. “That is—”

She put a finger to her lips and he instantly fell silent, but his hands did not rest as they tentatively touched the book, as if afraid it would go up in smoke before his eyes, and then tenderly opened the cover, his eyes drinking in the words therein.

“I have learned all that I need to from it, that I hope, in reading, Mr Mayor will understand some of my recent… eccentricity,” she said, that last word coloured with humour as it left behind a smile on her lips.

He dared not speak, only nodded his head.

“Pray do cover it as I believe our guest does read Latin and would find such a book… unpleasant,” she said, the word she emphasised this time not sounding so warm.

“Indeed,” he murmured and he took off his coat, wrapping up the book with the kind of care usually reserved for swaddling babies.

As if that to be a cue, three short knocks landed upon the door. “The other guest has arrived,” came a muffled voice from outside.

“Pray do show him in.”

Without a word, the mayor rose to his feet and held his bundled coat tight. The door then opened and an older man entered with her butler behind him. This man’s skin had a touch of bronze and more than a few wrinkles, his hair half grey and half black, slicked back and held in place by his cap. While his clothes were muted colours of white, black, and greys, the fineness of silk could hardly be understated, what other fabrics used certainly of a matching quality. Given the season and how thin it looked, she would have said the finest Merino wool—at least, the finest Spain had to offer to mere merchants.

“Signor Nelli, it is my pleasure to at last make your acquaintance,” she said, the Italian address rolling effortlessly off her tongue.

He paused in his walking, then broke into a smile as he continued. “Lady Augstadt, please, the pleasure is all mine. I must admit, I did not know My Lady spoke Italian.”

“There are many things regarding myself that but a select few know of,” she said, only to cover her mouth as she tittered. “Alas, I cannot claim to know much Italian but for the pleasantries. As much as I would love nothing more than to walk among the living history left behind by the Ancient Romans, I have accepted my title, so it is only right I commit to governing my people with poise and wisdom.”

He chuckled. “Truly, My Lady understands our heritage well. However, to call them Ancient Romans—there is no need to split hairs. For all these Greeks call themselves Roman, which of us does not call them Greeks?”

“Indeed, it is an unnecessary confusion,” she said, then gestured to the seats. “Pray do sit. Mr Mayor has asked for water, would sir have any requests before the meeting begins?”

As if only now noticing the other man present, the old man looked at the mayor. “Ah, yes, Christian, you are here today.”

“It is, after all, a matter that the mayor would need to be aware of to correctly enforce,” she said.

“Yes, I suppose so,” he said and gave his chin a rub, then turned back to her. “Well, if we are making requests, I wouldn’t suppose your father left behind anything appropriate for these kinds of business meetings?”

She gave a small smile. “Of course,” she said.

Without a word, her butler moved over to a cabinet; meanwhile, her guests took their seats, the old man taking a moment to find a comfortable position.

“I heard that Ricker hasn’t looked well recently, so I can only hope it’s good news.”

She waited for her butler to hand the man his drink. “My thanks, Mr Cromer,” she said and he gave a bow and left. “Signor Nelli, may I speak frankly?” Her gaze pointedly settled on the mayor.

“I trust My Lady’s judgement on what he may hear,” the old man said.

“Then it is like this. I discussed the matter with Master Ricker and, understandably, he is against loosening the monopoly. Although I offered him money—he is not a fool. He knows how good his situation is and that a pile of coin now would only lead him to his own ruin.”

The old man chuckled, tapping his chin. “Perhaps I have underestimated him.”

She gave a wry smile, then continued. “Of course, I have the final say in these matters, yet I am my mother’s daughter. Force is most powerful when it is a threat. Rather, I looked at the situation and realised that, instead of adjusting the monopoly, a compromise could be made.”

“Oh? What kind of compromise?” he asked, leaning back in his seat.

“To begin with, the goal of the Nelli family is to sell fine cloth. The purpose of the monopoly is that only the guild may trade in fine cloth. These two things, while contrary at a glance, are in fact perfectly aligned,” she said and raised an eyebrow.

He took a moment to consider, then calmly said, “We would simply have to sell the fine cloth to the guild.”

“Precisely,” she said, her hands coming together in a clap, then they rested on the table, her fingers entwined. “Master Ricker, he did not find this a satisfying compromise. His expectations of the market are rather outdated. To alleviate his worries, I made a commitment to covering any decrease in the guild’s revenue.”

One second, two, three passed in silence, then the old man’s laughter bubbled up, a croaking laugh that grated at the ears. “I would be rather impressed if the guild’s revenue dropped after selling our fine cloth alongside their own. My Lady certainly does take after her mother,” he said with a broad grin.

“Please, sir flatters me,” she said, lowering her gaze for a moment, then she brought it back up. “Pray do not think me cruel. That is, I have no intention of leaving the guild to its demise.”

“Oh? My Lady has plans within plans?” he asked.

She gave a single laugh and a weak shake of her head. “It is nothing so grand,” she said, her voice growing distant before she then cleared her throat. “I would not trust Master Ricker with this matter. Perhaps, he is wise to not trust me either. It seemed to me that we needed a kind of mutual assurance that we shared the same goals. So, as my show of sincerity, I have purchased the guild.”

He waited for her to continue and, when it became clear she would not, he asked, “What is to be his show of sincerity?”

“That is, of course, to be self-evident in the bookkeeping,” she said with a slight smile.

“Of course,” he said, returning her smile.

“Regardless of any other details, I hope that, this way, the Nelli family may have full trust that deals shall be honoured and have confidence in the negotiated amounts and prices. Thus, I have met the conditions of our arrangement,” she said.

Silence fell. The old man, still sat back in his seat, regarded her with a critical gaze. She neither flinched nor shrank away from it, simply meeting his gaze. “My Lady must have a certain trust in Ricker’s abilities to take on such a risk.”

“The trust I have is solely in myself,” she replied.

His lips quirked. “My Lady has such trust in herself?” he asked.

“Should I not? My mother left me writings and my father, for the little time I spent with him, taught me well. This trust I have is not arrogance, it is the recognition of who I am and what my legacy shall be. Sir, please, I shall be insulted if I am thought too incapable to run a business when I am free of such burdens as taxes and tariffs and have monopolies that I may enforce with whatever means I deem necessary.”

Although he did not show any remorse, his chuckle came out thin. “My Lady misunderstands. I am simply a merchant and so I think in terms of risk. Regardless of how competent My Lady is, men like Ricker have a knack for turning silver to copper. By the time My Lady checks the books, he may well have drained the guild of every kreuzer and—”

“He shall be arrested, executed, his assets forfeited, his immediate family expelled, and his extended family investigated for any recent windfalls. If it his found that either of his two sons in the guild are involved, they shall also be executed. The law is very much clear on the price to be paid for stealing from me.”

She spoke as if speaking of the weather, her tone neutral, every word clear, and her face showed no emotion but for the polite smile she always wore as a lady.

With all that said, she raised her hand in a loose gesture. “Money is not a concern I have, it is a concern commoners have, so I cater to their concerns.”

“Of course, My Lady. We give our thanks for catering to us,” he said, touching his cap. “Alas, we may only aspire to have such protections for our businesses. It is all too easy for a manager to… abuse our trust, as it were.”

“If the Nelli family cannot solve such an issue, I doubt anyone else may. However…” she said, trailing off with her gaze sinking down to the table.

The silence that fell settled, dragging on until such a time that he sat forward in his chair. “Does My Lady have thoughts on the matter?”

She looked up at him, an apologetic smile touching her lips. “I would like to meet with a Viscount Erberg in the next year. He is the one who helped design and implement the changes to minting laws a while ago, which has proven most beneficial to trade and commerce. If I may meet him, his advice on this matter, I would think, should prove insightful.”

“Lord Erberg… yes, if anyone would have thoughts on the matter, it would be him,” he said, rubbing his chin. “Unfortunately, it is the case that we may only act within the laws, so we rarely consider how such laws may be changed to assist us. Our efforts are best spent working towards lower tariffs and taxes, after all.”

She nodded along, then said, “This aside, I have produced the relevant documents. If sir would like a moment to review them for any errors….” At his small nod, she clapped her hands three short times and the door opened almost immediately. “May our guest be shown to the documents.”

Her butler bowed in the doorway, awaiting the guest to escort.

“Ah, would sir be taking Mr Mayor as well?” she asked.

As if only now remembering their company, he looked over at the mayor—who had sat so still this entire time, coat bundled on his lap, face blank—and then shook his head. “I am sure Christian shall be told what he needs to know at the appropriate time.”

So her butler escorted the old man away, leaving the office in silence.

After a minute, she finally broke it to say, “Oh yes, Mr Mayor, I think it is about time for another grand bazaar.”

His mouth gave a half-hearted smile. “My Lady finds herself so idle?” he asked.

“No, rather, it shall be Mr Mayor’s turn to arrange it. Of course, I would still hold a petit bazar for the nobles and such. Sir would be planning for those of lesser means.”

He sat there for a moment, then lowered his head with a weak chuckle. “My Lady thinks too much of me to arrange such a festivity.”

“Do I?” she asked, tilting her head. “I gave myself but half a year and had no previous such events as direct reference. If anything, sir should be insulted at my assessment—or perhaps he thinks too much of me.”

Chuckling again, he took off his cap and rested it on the bundle. “I dare not think too much or too little of My Lady. She simply is,” he whispered.

“Well, it is not like I would expect sir to devote all of his efforts to this for the next year,” she said, her gaze drifting to the window. “My notes will be more than sufficient to emulate the previous success. However, delays may happen and so to begin now means that sir shan’t need my assistance. Of course, if something does come up that requires my assistance, it shall be there. Not to mention, any mistakes shall only serve as praise for my skills, so there is no need to worry over perfection.”

“My thanks,” he said dryly.

The fire crackled, logs burning with their pleasant scent, the afternoon’s sunlight spilling through the windows. “Does sir think the head of the family will approve my deal?” she asked.

“Alonzo will, but Virgil I am less sure of,” he said, barely above a whisper.

She softly smiled. “Indeed, Mr Mayor is sharp. Alonzo has spent his life as a merchant whereas Virgil has spent half his life as the family’s head. How the Nelli family has survived this long, while other merchant families rise and fall, is that Virgil knows the family’s place. Rather than reach above their station, he prefers to pull their business partners down to their level.

“It is for that reason I know Virgil will accept. The Nelli family… my father did not marry my mother by coincidence. Let us leave it at that. This deal, it humiliates me. I am giving up power for money. Although I have the King-given right to negotiate trade with foreign rulers, I am instead negotiating with mere merchants.”

Her words did not go unheard, as quietly as they were said, a secret shared with him and the crackling fire. A secret that brought a simple question to his lips: “Then why?”

“Because, Mr Mayor, I trust myself.”

Nothing more needed to be said.