I didn't give the phone call much thought. Only surface-level memories had returned, but even those were enough for me to know that Matúš had always been a little bastard. Yes—he had definitely called just to mess with us. That was exactly like him.
I left the living room and ran straight into my sister. Instinctively, I caught her around the waist to keep her from falling. For a brief moment, we stared into each other's eyes.
"Where did you disappear to so suddenly this morning?" I asked.
She pulled away from me and sharply gestured for me to follow her. I didn't want an argument, so I went after her. We headed toward her study. It crossed my mind whether she'd realized I'd taken one of her rings. I hoped not.
We went inside. She closed the door behind us and sat down without a word. It was obvious she was nervous. Her face was flushed, and she fixed me with a hostile stare that was starting to make me uncomfortable.
"What's going on?" I asked. "You seem irritated."
"Don't tell me I'm irritated," she snapped. "You knew perfectly well I was going to tell the others that you're staying here. You must have panicked and blocked my way."
This was the moment I'd been dreading. Yesterday she'd been drunk—then it was easy to pretend I knew everything and steer the conversation. Now she was sober. And I was afraid. I didn't know what she was capable of.
But I was already in too deep. I couldn't allow Matúš to arrive here only to be met by a sister in a foul mood instead of the promised asylum.
"Why would I stop you from telling everyone?" I said calmly. "I don't plan to interfere in anything anyway. So if something went wrong, don't pin it on me."
She looked at me coldly.
"Astibor," she sneered, "are you seriously trying to tell me you've given up power games? That you won't interfere in what's happening? No one among us would believe that. It's true you've been out of the game for a long time, and no one expected you to suddenly return—especially not at the worst possible moment, when a fragile peace had finally settled between us. But even if you don't intend to press your own claims, you can always support someone else and—"
"Enough," I cut her off. "That's enough."
I took a deep breath.
"I told you what was on my mind—and for the record, I was honest with you. If any other sibling had asked me the same thing, they'd have received the same answer. I have no intention of getting involved. And by the way… Matúš is coming. He called me and said he needs help. He's under my protection. If you have any problem with that—"
She smiled. She spoke his name with unmistakable disgust.
"You gave Matúš asylum?" She shook her head. "You know perfectly well this is probably one of his jokes. He's one of the biggest embarrassments in our family. I know you've always had a soft spot for him, but I can't stand him—and it's far too late for that to change. And honestly, this is just like you again: you say one thing and do another. But fine. If it's not a joke, then he's done something stupid again and wants us to clean up his mess."
She stood up.
"I won't get involved. You made him a promise, so it's on your head. Bye."
She turned her back on me and left.
I stepped outside into the fresh air. I needed to organize my thoughts and feel the wind in my hair. Above me stretched a sky filled with dark clouds. It wasn't raining yet, but a storm was clearly on its way.
I was staring down the road when I noticed a middle-aged man running toward me. He was dressed in various shades of green and wore a green cap. He looked suspicious.
When he was only a few meters away and I finally saw his face, I realized it was Matúš.
Before I could say a word, he slammed into me.
"Well, damn! It's been ages since we last saw each other!" he blurted out. "Where the hell have you been hiding? We were looking for you everywhere! And what about Vedana—still alive, or did you finally get rid of her?"
He pressed close to me, talking a mile a minute. I pushed him back and nodded toward the door.
"Come inside. It's getting cold, and it looks like a storm's coming."
We went in. Vedana was standing in the entryway, shaking her head. I turned to her and laughed.
"Didn't you say you weren't going to get involved?"
She shot me a look that could only be described as sixth-degree fury, then turned to Matúš.
"So," she said coolly, "what kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into this time, Matúš?"
I looked at him.
"I promised I'd help you," I said. "But I need to know what we're supposed to protect you from."
His answer didn't please me at all.
"I'm not exactly sure how many of them were following me," he shrugged. "But there are three of us. As long as there aren't three times as many of them, it's fine, sister. You haven't forgotten how to fight, have you?"
Vedana smirked.
"Not in the slightest. But in case you haven't noticed, I'm wearing a dress."
"You don't wear anything else anyway," Matúš laughed.
Then he turned to me.
"I'm always ready," I said calmly.
"So who are they?" I asked. "And where are they coming from?"
He smiled.
"Don't worry about that. They'll be here any moment now. Better get ready. Like always. We haven't fought together in a long time—and to be honest, I'm looking forward to it."