The Half-Class by Kayvion Lewis
Chapter Twenty-Seven
How long had we spent tucked away in the library? A quarter-hour? Half? A full hour? Who knew how long we kept the court, and the king, waiting? His Majesty was probably not used to the task, let alone accepting of it.
The maid led us back through the castle, down to the first floor. Cass slid my hand into his arm as we approached the doors of the dining hall. His muscles were tense under his coat. With each step, his gaze hardened. Lady Lilith said he’d never invited a girl to meet the court before. This was new for him too. But he didn’t ask to introduce me, the king asked to see me. I had expectations to meet, and if I was lucky, surpass.
Arriving late was not putting me off to a good start.
The doors of the dining hall, another tall, imposing pair, stood wide open, with a guard posted before each. The lighting changed as we entered. It was darker, dimmer. The candles protruding from the chandeliers above seemed to give off the least amount of light required of them. The candelabras lighting the table were no more eager to share their light with the room. They succeeded only in lighting the table’s guests in an eerie glow.
Sir Percy was the first to recognize Cass and my entrance only a moment after we passed through the open doors. He rose to his feet, and the rest of the court did the same. In an instant, the entire table was standing, all except for the figure at the head of the table. The backs of the dining chairs were tall. I could only see the grey sleeve of his coat and his fingers tapping the curve of his chair’s arm.
The servants lining the wall bowed, and a couple Sirs of the court did as well.
But still, he didn’t move.
My heart clenched, my stomach squeezed, and my veins pulsed under my skin. I couldn’t be afraid. I would not be intimidated. This was nothing more than an assignment, and I’d face it with the courage I carried on all our missions.
Two seats were left open, one right next to the head of the table and another next to that.
“Finally,” the king said.
We passed the edge of the table, and his face was revealed to me.
His hair was longer than Cass’s but of the same thick black hue. His jaw stern, even under the thin layer of stubble running over it.
His skin was the lightest shade of tan. Like he had spent all day basking in the sun, although the shadows would have suited him better. Not until Cass pulled out a chair for me, thankfully the one not at his father’s side, did he finally bother to bring his eyes to me. They weren’t the same lively green as his son’s. They were dull. A dull, dead hazel. They scanned over every inch of me, examining every mark, curve, and curl. Suddenly, every flaw in my person became aware to me. Every twitch of my muscles, every rustle of my dress. Under his scrutiny, I felt as far from perfection as one could be.
Cass took his place between his father and me. The barrier between us helped ease my discomfort but didn’t distract me from my purpose here. My enemy was only a seat away from me.
Play nice.
“We apologize for keeping you all waiting,” Cass said. With him seated, the rest of the court returned to their seats as well. “We were preoccupied.”
“I’m sure you were,” King Dreux said, his eyes still lingering on me. Lady Lilith snickered across from me. I blushed horribly.
“Evelyn, isn’t it?” His Majesty asked. As if he didn’t know my name. If the court knew so much about me, then so must he, if not more. I was going to play nice, but I couldn’t let him walk all over me. He wasn’t going to dismiss me before I ever even said a word.
“King Dreux, isn’t it?” I asked, tilting my head ever so slightly.
His rhythmic tapping halted. My heart pounded furiously against my ribs. “You’re unsure of your own king’s name?” he asked in a dead tone.
“As unsure as you are about mine, so I’m rather certain.”
Cold silence fell over the room. My gaze on the king stayed constant, but in the corner of my eye, Cass was as still as stone and paler than usual. He told me to be myself, and that’s all I’d done. But maybe I should have waded into it.
King Dreux clapped his hands and broke into a laugh. “As blunt as Jasper said.”
Cass breathed a small sigh of relief at my side, and the court seemed to be of the same sentiment. Everyone shared a weak laugh, sounding as uncomfortable as I should have felt.
I smiled, contributing to the apparent joke.
“Donestan, too, told me you were of a rougher sort, but who doesn’t like that in a lady like yourself?” The king offered his hand to me over the table. Some part of me wanted to recoil, but instead, I lifted my hand and laid it in his. “It’s wonderful to meet you, Evelyn.” He leaned over the table and brought my hand up to his lips. The scraggly hairs of his unshaven jaw scratched my skin as he pressed a kiss to it.
How gauche he was—from his over-the-top kiss to his brocade grey coat, to the furniture he’d cluttered this castle with. But under the coat and behind the kiss was a man no different any I might find walking the streets of the town. He didn’t seem to fit with the court, or even Cass, despite their uncannily similar features. They were soft and delicate in appearance like they’d spent a lifetime inside a glass case. But the king was firm and hard. Their air was demanding, but his was overwhelming.
The king released my hand, and I quickly returned it to my lap. He raised his hand to the air, and the row of servants waiting against the wall scurried out. The court began to engage in their own conversations, but nothing was as lively as it had been in the great room.
“Have you ever been to the castle before?” King Dreux asked, placing his hand back under his scraggly chin. The answer was obviously no. Perhaps he wanted to hear me say it.
“Only in my imagination.”
“You fantasize about castles and the company of royalty often, do you?” Lady Lilith asked, her dark eyes as calm as possible. She slashed a glance to the king after she spoke as if trying to gauge his approval.
“I fantasize about any and everything.” I held my head high. “My imagination knows no bounds.”
“You’re a constant daydreamer then,” Sir Percy, seated next to Lady Lilith, said. “You must be an avid reader as well.”
“The best people are,” Cass said.
Donnie, or Donestan, I should say, pulled himself away from whatever trivial conversation he was having with Lady Kaya. “I’m sure there’s no self-flattery there.” He shot Cass a grin.
“Now I understand why you and my son get along so well,” King Dreux said. “You’re just as distracted and dreamy as he is. He’s too much like his mother in that way.”
Cass’s eyes shifted to the table in a flickering moment of pain. Had King Dreux really just managed to insult his son and late wife at the same time? And it was going to go unchecked too.
“Did you not love that about her?” I asked. “A free spirit and an imaginative heart are usually the traits that inspire love, not flaws overlooked in spite of it.”
The king, clearly not expecting any sort of question in response, answered, “I loved other things about her.”
“Like what?” What did he love about this woman, if not the very things that must have made her, her?
King Dreux’s playfulness was fading fast. I was pushing too far, but I couldn’t help it. If I’d learned anything from Cass’s and my night at the pond, it was that his love for his mother was deep. For the king to attack her even in death was needlessly cruel.
“I loved her charm,” the king said. “And her sense. She always knew when to go on. And when to be quiet.”
I bit my lip—and my tongue. My hand balled into my skirts. Why was I being so abrasive anyway? What happened to playing nice?
The servants returned, hauling in dozens of platters and plates with them—there were so many of them. They situated themselves around the table, and in an instant, the thick table runner disappeared under the countless platters. I’d never seen so much food and of so many different varieties. Duck, lamb, boiled potatoes, fresh buttered bread, and dozens of other dishes. Some I didn’t even know the name of. The buttery and savory scents licked the edge of my nose. This was a true fantasy brought to life indeed. I might have basked in the splendor of this feast for more than an awestruck moment had I not had the revelation that on this table laid enough food to feed half of Bexbury, yet it would be enjoyed by only a total of eleven.
I remained still for a moment as the court began to fill their golden plates with whatever dish was within arm’s length. No one looked particularly impressed. Was this an ordinary evening for them?
“Nothing you like?” Cass whispered to me. His brow bent in concern.
“I don’t know where to start.”
“Hm.” He picked up my empty plate and switched it with his already very full one. “Start here.”
I snickered. “I hope you have good taste.”
“Awful,” he leaned nearer to me, “but since we’re so alike, it shouldn’t matter.”
I smiled and glanced at the king, who had thankfully become intertwined in a quiet conversation with Lady Lilith.
Perhaps my inquiries about his wife left too bad of a taste in His Majesty’s mouth. For the first half of our meal, he said nothing else to me. Donnie was too far to properly conversate with us, so he stuck to his half of the table. That was fine. I was quite content with Cass and Sir West, who sat at my opposite side.
Of all the courtiers, Sir West won the title of my favorite. Listening to him laugh about any and everything kept a constant smile on my face. I could barely eat between giggles. He was obviously a favorite of Cass’s too. A breath of fresh air in the court he’d likely grown up with.
“Are you married, Sir West?” I asked as West took a sip from his never-empty chalice.
“Sir West is married to himself,” Cass said with a smirk. “The only person who could put up with him.”
“What a falsity,” West swore. “I’ll have you know that there are at least a hundred women in Aurell begging for my hand.”
“Begging for your hand?” I asked. “Not the other way around?”
“Why yes.” Sir West spread his arms and presented the entirety of his very round torso to me. “With a fine prize like this available, women lose all their senses.”
I covered my laugh. “You’re entirely right.” I placed a dramatic hand over my heart. “Cassian, I’m sorry, but I feel compelled to kiss Sir West right this moment.”
Cass shook his head. “How could I ever compete with the magnanimous Sir West?”
“Worry not, my prince,” Sir West said. “I will not steal this beauty away from you. I’m smarter than to blight my future king in such a way.” He briefly glanced to the ever-distracted King Dreux, faltering in his cheerfulness for a split second. “Besides,” he continued. “Had I wanted to marry, I would have done it years ago. But I couldn’t find a tempting enough reason to do so.”
I took a bite of duck and relished the sensation of it melting over my tongue.
“You’ve never been in love?” I asked.
West swirled his chalice. “Only with myself and my country.”
“And you never wanted to have children?”
“Certainly not. If they were anything like me, they’d probably poison me and take all my fortune. I had no obligation to procreate, so I tossed the idea aside.”
I frowned. Now that he mentioned it, why wasn’t he obligated? “What about your court seat?” I asked. “Who will take your title when you…pass on?”
“Court titles are assigned, not inherited,” Cass informed me. “When a member dies, the king appoints a new person. If they have children, it could be one of them but not always. Anyone in the kingdom could take the seat, in theory.”
“The only one who needs to leave an heir is the king. Or future king.” Sir West took a sip from his chalice.
Cass remained silent. Not that it mattered, but my heart burned up for a second, wondering exactly when Cass would be expected to do such a thing. And with who. Was his father expecting him to fall in love with a proper, light-class girl?
“Are we speaking about parentage?” Lady Lilith’s smooth voice drew my attention back across the table. It appeared she, His Majesty, and Sir Percy had tired of talking amongst only themselves.
“Something of the sort,” Cass answered.
“Your parents are from Bexbury?” the king asked. His knife scraped against his plate as he cut a hefty piece of boar away.
“My father is.” I did my best to ignore the stitch in my throat. “My mother came to the city when she was around my age, but her family lived on the coast before that.”
“But they both reside here now?” He lifted the raw piece into his mouth and raised his thick eyebrows.
“In a way.” I struggled to keep my eyes from drifting down. “They’re dead.”
A hush fell over our side of the table. Sir Percy lowered his head in a subtle condolence. Cass’s eyes told all the apologies in the world. Had we been alone, perhaps he would have wrapped his arms around me. Sir West, though out of my sight, was quiet too.
But King Dreux’s demeanor didn’t change one bit. He swallowed his bite. “Oh, that’s right,” he said. “Cassian told me that. I must have forgotten.”
This bastard. Had I offended him so much by asking about his wife that he needed to draw this out of me? Was he trying to test my strength?
Or perhaps he just enjoyed it.
He took the most casual of sips from his golden chalice. “But he didn’t tell me how they died.” His dull hazel eyes stared me down. He wasn’t even going to ask, but I had to tell him anyway.
“A capsized ship,” I said. “The sea is a cruel mistress.”
“How unfortunate.” Not an ounce of sympathy was hidden in his voice. “Of your parents, which of them was the dark one?”
My fork slipped from my hand, clattering against my gold-rimmed plate. “What?”
“You are an artificial, aren’t you?”
“Father,” Cass pleaded, but the king silenced him with the lift of his hand.
“Well, aren’t you?” His gaze drifted over my skin, a dark hue compared to his and even darker compared to his son’s.
I gripped the knife left in my other hand. “I am.” I hadn’t answered his question, but I couldn’t will any more words out.
The dining hall was stone silent, and all eyes were on the king and me. My slip of silverware had turned everyone’s head.
“I only ask,” the king continued, “because, during our incident in Aurell, when all those artificials and peculiar pairs attacked us, I couldn’t help but notice that the majority of the couples were comprised of men from the dark-class paired with women from the light-class. It seemed as if all the would-be husbands were dark as night, but the wives were pale like the moon.” He rubbed his chin. “I’ve come up with a theory that light-class women must be more appealing to men of all classes, and their darker counterparts are less alluring, especially to men of the opposite class. There’s no way to test my theory directly since we’ve corrected all of those unholy unions here and long since back home, so I have to settle for asking the few half-classes I come across about their parentage. The tally so far is three in favor, one against. Will you be adding to my correctness?”
I could have killed him. Right there. This knife was sharp enough. One slash across the table was all it would take.
“I’m sorry I can’t confirm your theory,” I said through gritted teeth. “But my mother was the dark one, and my father quite fair.”
A tremor radiated through my body. Had I stabbed myself in the heart with this blade, the feeling would have been the same as it was then. He’d already taken my parents from me, and now he forced me to rob them of their identities too, to deduce them to nothing more than a color. It was entertaining to him.
“Interesting.” He glanced at Lady Lilith. She looked almost as shaken as I was, though her gaze remained on her plate.
The king threw a cloth from his lap over his plate and rose from the table. “I’m quite stuffed. Let us retreat to the great room for some games.”