Betray: Part 3
...
The mausoleum was tranquil and still. He would not enter it, but stood
outside upon the long grass, hearing faint birdsong as he contemplated
the ashes entombed within.
“I will not address him,” Julian thought. “The dead
do not hear.”
Nevertheless, long he stood there, wondering, fearing; dreaming of
times past.
The conjuror could be under no illusions: his father had not been a
great man. It was from the side of his mother that Julian inherited
his intelligence, and disposition. His father had been good in nature
and reserved, attending to the House of Ultonïr with great
difficulty. Often, Julian suspected that his father had married his
mother not through love, but out of necessity.
As a magus, he was likewise slow and strained. The vast library that he had assembled was begun when Julian entered the College of the Magi, and the younger man knew it was intended for his perusal.
Yet, as a father he could not be surpassed. So it was that Julian
found himself asking many silent questions.
“Would he approve of my intentions? I know he distrusted the
monarchy, but he was a patriot. He acted only in what the law would
allow.”
A shiver clung to Julian like a shadow. “But I am more than my
father was; I see things clearer. I will not go to the grave as he
did, nor will I let myself be bound by a false honour. If I cannot do
what needs to be done through the law, then I shall do it
without.”
He turned to leave. Something, some whisper in the morning breeze gave
him pause.
“Goodbye,” he called, and then went back to the mansion.
...
You can find the complete version of Betray: Part 3 in issue 47 of TBD.