Chapter 10
Ash was upset to say the least. He really had hoped that Mare thought higher of him than she thought of Kestrel. He thought they'd be friends.
Then she'd punched him and any chance of that disappeared.
There were ways to regain her trust- and if not trust, than at least tolerance- but they all seemed too impossible to do on his own.
He could adopt her, he had no doubt she would thank him for eternity if he got her out of the orphanage, but he was only 12½. There was a 1% to 0% chance of convincing his father or Uncle Delos to do it for him, but Thierry might be willing.
However; Thierry- blast his stupid manners- would probably refuse even thinking about it until Mare's time with Delos was up.
Then, the idea Ash knew Mare would probably marry him for, but would get him killed by his folks: finding Mare's parents.
He'd fed the thought all night, turning it around in his head until it was fully cooked. Of course, he couldn't do this one on his own either, but he had a pretty good case to present to his uncle.
-0-
"Just think about it," Ash urged, "I know you only took her in for good publicity- think of how much more press you'd get if you found her real parents! And besides, you'd get her off your hands early."
"Yes, Ash," Delos sighed, "I'm well aware of the upsides to this idea- but really? A $50,000 reward? That seems a bit… expensive, don't you think?"
"You can afford it, I know you can, you're practically a prince!" Ash reminded him.
"These are tough times for the company, Ash." His uncle sighed. "I may be able to afford it now, but there is a good chance that cash will be needed in the near future." Delos gritted his teeth at that admission- but, as much as he hated appearing weak in front of his nephew, he hated being bothered by him more.
"Well, part of the reason these are tough times is all the bad publicity. Get some of the good, and your halfway back to easy street." Ash argued.
"Ash-" Delos, once again, sighed.
"Then, just lower the reward. $30,000 instead of 50,000." Ash pushed.
"Oh, fine," Delos closed his eyes. "Now, get out of my office.
Ash was more than happy to comply.
Mission accomplished.
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Maggie smirked as Delos explained his predicament. "And besides," he ranted, "why would he even care so much. It's not like they're best friends- he's known her for what, one day?"
Maggie let out a small laugh, "He's just trying to impress her."
"'Impress her'?" Delos asked incredulously. "Why would he want to do that?"
"He likes her," Maggie answered. "You can protest all you want- say Redferns don't get crushes, or whatever it is you're thinking right now- but it's true."
"And how would you know that?" Delos asked- thinking exactly what she said he was thinking. Redferns don't get crushes- especially on humans.
"Just the way he acts around her, you know? Always teasing her," Maggie shrugged, "and that's a sure sign of affection in twelve year old boys."
Delos scowled. "I can hardly believe that. You just wait- he's only doing this because he wants her out of the house."
Maggie shook her head with a slight smile.