She wanted to, but she could not leave with a bitter farewell. She did not want to have to return someday merely to quiet her conscience with an apology. “The mirror catches all those wishes and returns them to you in silver,” she said, giving him the traditional gulden reply. “Be well, Chay Zanlan. I will not forget you.”

And she left him. And she found, not at all to her surprise, that the guards had already packed her clothes for her and purchased her a ticket for the evening train. There was time to say goodbye to Rell and the girls, but Kit did not attempt it. She wanted to leave Gold Mountain without crying.

This time.

*   *   *

But in the city, there was cause enough for tears. While Kit had been gone, her grandmother had died, and the whole family was in disarray.

It was the first thing Kit learned when, weary and travel-stained, she showed up on Sereva’s doorstep two days later. The butler merely gaped when he saw her on the porch, but Kit heard Sereva’s voice from the upstairs hall.

“Is that the lawyer?” Sereva called.

The servant did not answer, so after a pause Kit raised her voice. “No,” she said. “It’s me.”

“What? Kit? Is that you?” Sereva demanded, and came hurrying around the corner of the bannister to stare down from the upper landing. She was dressed in a gown of severe burgundy, the indigo color of mourning. Kit felt her stomach lurch with warning. “Where have you been? Are you all right? Why have you been gone so long?”

“It’s a complicated story,” Kit said, brushing that aside and running lightly up the stairs. Seen at a close range, Sereva looked as exhausted as Kit felt, though infinitely calmer. “What’s happened?” Kit asked. “Why are you dressed like that?”

Sereva stared at her. “You mean you don’t know? It’s been in all the media.”

“Granmama,” Kit guessed. “No, I hadn’t heard … What happened?”

“Her heart. She was fine one day. The next morning, she was dead. The servants have been hysterical. It only happened two days ago, so all of us are still in shock. I thought you must have seen—I thought that’s what brought you back.”

Kit shook her head, her throat too tight to allow words to pass. Two days ago, she had been leaving Chay Zanlan’s bright mansion. One week sooner, and she would have had another chance, a final conversation, a word of farewell for her mother’s mother. Yet one more charge to level against Chay, another reason to despise him.

But Sereva was mustering up some anger herself. “What am I saying? Of course that wouldn’t have brought you back. You didn’t care about Granmama, anyway. You hated her and everything that mattered to her. So why would you care if she died?”

“Sereva!” Kit choked out in protest.