Chapter 8
LUCAS
“Welcome to our humble home. It is our great pleasure to have you visiting us tonight.”
The line was the same, and I’d been repeating it endlessly since the first princess stepped in and entered the palace. That was an hour ago, and so far, they were all the same—wearing elaborate ball gowns that spoke of wealth and style, sporting lovely, graceful smiles on their faces that spoke of manners, and looking demurely eager to meet the crown prince, who was waiting for them in the grand hall.
It wasn’t necessarily my task to greet them as they came in, but I did it all the same for the sake of having a firsthand impression of what they would be like. It was more of a screening than anything—and so far, all of them met my expectations and had me satisfied that there was nothing to worry about.
I let that assurance carry me as I made small talk with the last incoming princess and walked her to the grand hall myself. She was Russian and the daughter of the king’s sister in law, with those dark good looks that their family heritage boasted. She was young enough to catch Benjamin’s attention but old enough to be witty and to retain it. My brother had a tendency of getting bored with political discussions when it wasn’t done in the meeting room, and I only hoped she’d have enough smarts to catch his interest in a different way.
The grand hall was wonderful, with all the lights polished and turned on, and food imported from all the queen’s favorite places around the city and out of it. We made sure to have something of everything prepared for everyone, along with our own signature dishes so they’d get a taste of our culture, too. It was the sort of weapon that Laverna liked weaving, and I spotted her now in her element as she smiled and conversed quietly with the local head vicar.
The princesses were scattered all around the hall, taking their turns to approach the crown prince who stood near the throne chair with his back ramrod straight. Benjamin’s smile looked sincere enough, and the way he responded to whatever the conversing princess was saying exuded confidence and charm, one that was bred into him ever since he was born.
But I knew him too well and knew what those gestures covered, and I detected the emotion in his eyes before others could.
It was boredom.
That didn’t bode well. I couldn’t exactly call him out in public, but I also didn’t think I could relax. So I observed him. I observed his interactions with the princesses as subtly as I could, all while making my own obligatory conversations with them and observations of them.
An hour later, no one was the wiser as Benjamin worked up a charm. Eventually, all twelve princesses were fighting for his attention, and it was so subtle that it should have been amusing. Instead, I felt the too-formal air seeping into me. It made me feel restless, but not enough to leave here and go to the west wing. There was plenty of time for that later, and I wanted to make sure Benjamin would be safely there once this ball ended, too.
The next course of action was the most sensible. Without thinking twice, I stepped away from the hall and into one of the dark hallway corners, which led to some potted plants and a large French window that I could easily open. I did so, then took out a cigarette from my pocket. I couldn’t have alcohol now, but this would ease me back into my usual calm self.
Just as I was about to light it up, a shadowed movement beside one of the pots had me pausing. I squinted. I stared when a tiny figure stepped out and eyed me with big brown eyes.
I sighed. Then I stashed the cigarette away and watched as his expression turned wary, almost like he was expecting me to do something harsh.
“Don’t look like that. I’m not going to hurt you.”
Kyle nodded his head, the movement slow and tentative. It made me feel like trash as I remembered our conversation on the balcony and how I practically threatened him out of there. But that was necessary, and I had no choice in that scenario.
This was a completely different matter.
When the kid still remained quiet, I tried to use a different approach. “Have you been observing for a while now?” I asked.
He nodded again, then hesitated. I waited patiently, trying to appear calm as he seemed torn. Finally, he gave in.
“It looks so grandiose.”
“It does,” I agreed. The queen had a tendency of showing off, and this was no exception. Amusement slid through me at his use of the word, and curiosity came. “So what did you observe so far?”
“The princesses are so pretty.”
“Just pretty?”
“I haven’t talked to them, so I can’t determine yet until I know what their thoughts are.”
“What about body language? What are your thoughts?”
“The red-haired princess looks young and unsure of herself. She tries to cover it up with her bright smile, but it’s obvious she always waits for a princess to do something before she does it next. She never does anything first.”
My brows rose. That was my exact thought on the Irish royal, except I didn’t get to deduce it as cleanly as he did. “Hmm. What else?”
“The blond princess looks like she’s experienced with social events. She’s always eagerly looking for the crown prince with her eyes, but she’s polite and waits her turn to talk to him.”
The English royal. I did know she was older than the other women, probably middle twenties, which suited Benjamin’s twenty-nine perfectly.
“Hmm. What about the others?”
One by one, Kyle scrutinized the princesses, using clear observations without insulting them. In fact, he was so polite and so precise that it had me staring at him in fascination without responding for a long time. When he finally rounded it all out and appeared nervous, I couldn’t resist voicing out my own thoughts.
“Where did you learn all that?”
The boy shrugged. “Liz taught me to be watchful of my surroundings, and that included the people. We used to live in alleys before she found work, and we could never trust anyone. Sometimes we had our blankets yanked from us in our sleep, and other times we would be followed on the streets by people with bad intentions. She was always one step ahead of them and told me I needed to do the same. When we got our first apartment, the first thing she bought wasn’t food but two sturdy locks. She’s always trying to keep me safe.”
The images his words conveyed deeply disturbed me. While I didn’t necessarily agree with Liz and Kyle being here, the thought that they were constantly harassed on the streets…well, it didn’t sit well with me, either.
“And are you safe now?”
He looked at me uncertainly. “Temporarily, I guess. I know she came here for me. She wanted me to learn what I could from the library while she saves money. She has this ridiculous plan of sending me to school when she has enough savings, even though I keep telling her I can learn everything through books. School sounds nice, though.”
No wonder she was rude. She thought I was a threat to what she was trying to provide for Kyle.
It all made sense now—that thirst I felt in her, the desperation that she tried to cover up with boldness and her spunkiness, which allowed her to survive and keep her brother alive. But that still didn’t make it right for her to take advantage, and I knew there needed to be a balance.
Maybe I wouldn’t try driving her away now.
But I wouldn’t stop watching in case she tried anything deceitful, either.
With an inward sigh, I approached Kyle and took the first step, patting his shoulder. “You’re a good kid.”
His eyes widened, then turned solemn. “And you’re a good man. I can feel it.”
I wondered if he felt something else in me—the darkness that was building up day by day. Instead of asking, I nodded my head and advised him to eat before he went to sleep. I watched him walk off, then stepped to the edge of the hallway corner as I watched the party scene once again.
No one seemed to have noticed that I disappeared, which was just as well. Maybe I could stay here for a little bit longer. I used my eyes to see what Kyle saw, amazed as it all started making sense—every bit of body language, every movement that the royal women made that spoke more of their motives. I was pretty observant myself, but Kyle was a step up, and I noted to treat him to some really good food as a thank you. Or maybe a good book for him to keep.
Just as I was about to join the fray, a glint on the other hallway corner caught my eye. I paused, squinting.
It was an empty silver tray, held in the hands of a familiar figure. Said figure was doing what Kyle did earlier—standing behind a potted plant and staring at the scene in fascination. Her brown curls were in disarray, and her uniform was askew, unbuttoned at the very top to reveal milky skin and some freckles.
Liz was too busy looking at Benjamin and the women to notice me looking at her, and that was just fine by me.
She looked softer now. But then again, maybe she just looked this soft whenever I wasn’t around. She also looked relaxed, like she was ready to settle down and had just dropped by to take a peek.
My gaze strayed to her face, where I found the same dark circles still there, indicating lack of sleep. Her brown eyes were focused, and something glinted in them—no, sparkled. I realized she was amused over something as she covered her mouth with her hand, and I glanced at what she was looking at and saw that one of the princesses looked flustered as Benjamin tried flirting with her.
I looked back at Liz, who now removed her hand from her mouth. Her mouth opened partially, and she licked her upper lip with her pink tongue. They looked entirely too kissable for her own good: entirely too soft.
My stomach jolted.
Something akin to heat built up there, strong and steady and simmering endlessly. It was like hot coal, and my fingers itched to touch the part where her tongue licked. Belatedly, I realized my feet were already primed to take a step, and I had to catch myself back before I could do anything.
I knew what this was, but I wasn’t going to acknowledge it. Not when I knew where it was going to lead and how it was going to end badly.
But there was no harm in looking.
So I let myself look, taking my time as I watched different expressions cross her face. I watched a dreamy smile bloom on her lips, watched as she licked it a couple times more before wistfulness caught on.
Then I took a deep breath and walked away.