After having his discussion with Jon Arryn, Petyr returned to his chambers with a calm look on his face.
But the moment he stepped inside his solar and the door closed behind him, his face contorted in rage. Anger took over him as he stormed to his table and swept everything off with a violent slide of his hands. He was angry. Furious.
Jon Arryn had discovered his scam with the City Watch soldiers' salaries. Those were moments when he had faced the greatest anxiety in his life. He had almost seen a sword slicing though his head.
Though Petyr had been spared, which should have left him relieved, what followed after had filled him with nothing but rage.
Jon Arryn had proposed a partnership, an alliance to oppose Lucas and limit his influence. Their plan, though not yet finalized, was to wait for Lucas to begin his work in the cities, let him pour his wealth into the projects, and then seize the benefits for themselves.
They would force him out of the city or eliminate him entirely. But not yet. Not for a few months. They would choose the appropriate time before doing with Lucas so that it is they who would reap all the benefits.
And then came the insult. Jon Arryn had claimed all the coins Petyr had earned for himself. Technically, they were still hidden in Petyr's brothels, but the guards would be replaced by Jon Arryn's men. Informally, Jon Arryn was taking over those brothels. Those coins now belonged to Jon Arryn. And probably the profits from the brothels too.
Petyr had not dared lie. Jon Arryn already had a fair idea of how long he had been skimming.
Still, he had hidden away some fortune in other places. Jon Arryn knew nothing about his corruption in the taxes and expenditures. Though Petyr was sure that Jon would be suspicious and would soon lead to investigation.
Taxes, however, were nearly impossible to check. Only the Master of Coin knew the exact figures, and since he had never been audited before, no one had a baseline.
Thankfully, he had left the royal tributes from the seven kingdoms untouched. Those were far too easy to verify. As for expenditures, he had padded the accounts with enough fabricated records. Road repairs, blanket distributions, food supplies, that no one could ever prove otherwise. What would they do? Inspect a road already broken again by wear?
Probably this was the reason Jon had not talked about any other thing apart from the salaries.
Even though Petyr had agreed, for now, to work alongside Jon Arryn, he knew the partnership would not last long. Lucas's presence had forced Jon Arryn to overlook his corruption, but once Lucas was dealt with, Petyr would surely become the next target.
But Jon Arryn had made a mistake by sparing him. He would be the one who would first strike Jon Arryn.
But not immediately. With his partnership with Jon Arryn settled, he could make certain benefits for himself. And then Jon Arryn would fall.
Lyssa would see to it.
Petyr picked a parchment and scribbled something on it. He opened the door and found his loyal guard standing just outside.
"Hand this to that merchant from Lys," Petyr Baelish said. "I believe you know him."
The guard nodded, "Yes, My Lord."
"Good," Petyr grinned. "Say to him that I will visit in a week. I want the material ready by then."
The guard nodded and he walked away.
.
.
.
By the time Lucas emerged from Cersei's chamber, it was already afternoon. Once again, he had taken her to the heavens, and he knew that after every encounter, she would crave him even more. And that craving would eventually break her. Even though it was happening at a slow pace, he did not mind. In fact, he intended to enjoy every moment of his game with Cersei.
Lucas left the Red Keep to oversee the training of the new recruits which was to begin today and the other development work which was ongoing in both cities.
He only returned back when the darkness had already taken over the city. The Red Keep was covered in darkness and pale flickering light from the flame torches fixed at regular intervals was the only thing producing illumination in the darkness. He was walking through the corridors of the Red Keep when a maid suddenly approached him.
He recognised the maid. She was the handmaiden of Margaery.
"Ser Lucas," the maid bowed. "Lady Margaery requests your presence in her chamber."
"Now?" He asked with raised eyebrows.
The maid nodded with slight apprehension in her voice, "Yes. This is her humble request."
The maid clearly was worried at Lucas taking offence for being 'summoned' by Margaery. But Lucas had no such thought. His presence being requested at this hour? Now this felt interesting to him.
"I will come," he agreed and the maid's face immediately brightened.
"You all can return," Lucas said to Gary and other guards who had been following behind him.
Gary gave a respectful nod and walked away with all the men in tow behind while Lucas followed behind the maid.
"Do you have any idea why your lady might want to see at this hour?" He questioned as he walked close to the maid.
It felt as if his mere presence was enough to make the maid shiver.
"No," she said in almost a trembling voice. "I do not know."
Lucas hummed and did not press her any further.
After a short few minutes' walk, Lucas reached Margaery's chamber. The numbers of the soldiers guarding around her chamber was quite thin and no one questioned as the maid led him directly inside the chamber.
"Welcome Ser Lucas," Margaery was standing just inside the door as she greeted him. "I hope you did not take any offense at my odd request."
"None taken," Lucas smiled as he ogled at her body.
Though Margaery was not bold enough to wear something as revealing as Cersei, it was clear that she had paid quite attention in dressing herself. She had a light touch of make up on her face and a fine scent of perfumes was coming from her body. She was dressed in a sleeveless blue coloured gown and a small section of her cleavage was visible to him. Her intentions could not have been clearer to Lucas.
"Please," Margaery said as she gestured for Lucas to take a seat in the centre of the chamber.
"Bring something to eat and drink," she instructed the maid who immediately hurried.
Lucas smiled and took his seat. This was going to be interesting. For the last two weeks, he had been behaving very politely with Margaery but had kept that small boundary around him. Margaery had tried countless times to cross that boundary, but every time he had pushed her away. And now it seemed that she was desperate. Desperate enough to make such moves.
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