SANSA
"I want to visit Petyr. I need to talk to him," Sansa told Uncle Benjen the next day, as soon as she was showered and dressed.
"No," Uncle Benjen didn't even bother to consider her request.
"Please, Uncle Benjen. I have to know. I have to hear the truth from his mouth. That's the only way I'll be able to go up front in court and talk about what happened." She looked at her uncle with pleading eyes while he stared back at her full of misgivings.
"Sansa," Uncle Benjen finally sighed. "All I want to do is protect you, love. And allowing you near him goes against that."
"It will be safe. People visit jails all the time. The guards will be there. You will be there. You'll be able to keep an eye on me," she reasoned.
Uncle Benjen still appeared doubtful so she tried again.
"It's a visiting room full of people, Uncle Benjen," she said. "I really need to do this so that I can move on."
He mussed her hair and laid a kiss on her forehead. "Okay," he conceded, but he didn't look pleased. "I will call the case manager so that everything can be put in place for you to visit."
A few days later, Sansa found herself walking through the doors of the correction facility.
She was tense and nervous as she entered, but she had her wooden hound with her, providing her comfort. After going through security and every other check-in procedure, she was finally led to a waiting room.
"Nervous?" Uncle Benjen asked her.
"Very," she replied. Sansa looked at him when the guards called their names. "Don't sit next to me," she instructed. "Petyr won't speak to me if you're there."
Uncle Benjen looked as if he wanted to call the whole thing off but he gave a brief nod.
"Sweetling," Petyr looked pleased when he sat opposite her at the table in the visiting room. "So glad to see you."
Sansa felt a lump form in her throat and didn't reply.
"You were the first person I put on my visitor's list," he told her.
She stared into his eyes trying to see the truth. "Did you do it all because you wanted me? Did you kill them because of me?" her lips trembled despite her effort and her grip tightened around the hound that was clutched in her hands. She pressed it against her trembling mouth.
Petyr studied her for a while before he replied.
"Cat and I grew up together as kids. I always loved her. I desired to marry her one day but she was dating Brandon Stark.
"I heard Brandon Stark bragging about taking the virginity of some girl named Barbrey Dustin and confronted him about leading Cat on. He didn't take it well. He was also older than me and bigger. After nearly killing me he went to the bar and drank himself into a stupor. His father went to pick him up and they both perished in a car accident that night."
"Did you mess with the brakes in their car too?" Sansa demanded angrily.
There was a satisfied malicious gleam in Petyr's eye as he continued on with his story. "Unfortunately I was in the hospital grievously injured. Cat visited and cried over me, she also cried for worthless Brandon Stark and his father. Sweet Cat was upset about the whole affair and I tried to comfort her, injured as I was.
"But then she decided to move on to Eddard Stark rather than me. I thought everything lost when she gave birth to a bunch of Stark children but you, my sweetling, were a jewel.
"Cat reborn. But more beautiful and more special. I knew that you were meant to be mine from the moment I saw your beautiful auburn hair flowing down your back and your huge crystalline eyes."
Sansa shook her head. "But I wasn't yours. I belonged to Mother and Father."
Petyr only smirked. "Even when you were a little girl you loved me. Whenever I visited you were so happy. You would sit on my lap so that you could receive candy."
Sansa shivered. "The night before the accident when you came over, you told me that soon you and I would get to be together all the time. I didn't know what you meant and I worried, but I also thought I imagined it because I was sick and not thinking clearly. But even before that… when I saw you messing with Robin's medicine..."
Petyr looked amused but Sansa was remembering…
"Uncle Petyr, what are you doing?" Eight years old and curious, Sansa had crept out of bed unable to sleep. She had admonished herself the entire way down the gallery but it was thrilling to be as naughty as Arya for a change. Plus Uncle Petyr was here and he wouldn't let her get into trouble.
Her favorite uncle turned to look at her and his face lit up when he saw her. "There goes my sweetling."
Sansa had beamed happily before her attention was caught by what he held in his hands and now she was curious.
"I'm going to give Robin his medicine," Uncle Petyr replied.
Sansa was alarmed. "But he already had medicine today, Aunt Lysa said so. Wouldn't another dose hurt him? Mother said that it's dangerous to take too much medicine."
"Not if I'm careful, and I'm always careful," Uncle Petyr winked at her.
But Sansa was worried. Mother had been very serious when she warned them about playing with medicine.
Uncle Petyr noted her conflict and crouched down to her level. "Promise you won't tell? No one would understand that I'm just trying to help him and I would get into so much trouble."
After much deliberating, she finally nodded. "I promise." Sansa crossed her heart.
Uncle Petyr's eyes twinkled at her. "That's my special girl."
"You messed with Robin's medicine again, didn't you?" Sansa accused. "The night of the accident you gave him too much so that he would be rushed to the hospital and Father would feel obliged to speed due to the emergency with Robin. You had everything planned out. Oh, I wish I told. When I first saw you messing with his medicine I should have."
A tear fell from her eye and she wrapped her arms tightly around her hound as she drew comfort from it.
Petyr's eyes went to it. "Who gave you that?" he asked.
"Someone better than you," Sansa told him.
His eyes narrowed before a glint entered it. "Do you think about our special night?" he asked her. "I think about it often. I miss you."
Sansa wanted to scream but she remained calm, the hound clutched a little tighter in her numb fingers.
"Did you mess up the brakes before or after you came to my room and told me that we would be together soon?" her voice was void of emotion as she questioned him.
"After," Petyr replied casually. He didn't seem to take her seriously at all. He'd controlled her for so long, he probably thought he still controlled her now.
"How did you send my siblings away?"
"Benjen Stark couldn't be located after the accident but that worked to my advantage. His absence left Lysa in charge of you and your siblings. Lysa did anything I whispered into her ears. Didn't even blink an eye when I told her that the other three were being sent away. She wanted you sent away too but I couldn't allow that. I have friends in powerful places. And my friends know people in high places all around the world. I paid good money to make those adoptions happen."
Sansa's skin crawled at the satisfied smirk that curved Petyr's mouth.
"Over seas adoption are often sketchy. Many times the children involved are stolen or have parents fighting to get them back to no avail. I knew that if enough money passed the right hands I could conduct my own adoptions. Money always wins, sweetling. Adoption agencies are businesses and the big fish wants a profit."