A Game of Cards - Otherwise Known As - Life and Death

I. Of-Age

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I. Of-Age

“Lyn! Today’s the big day!” a girl yelled into Evelyn’s ear. She responded by wincing and slowly climbing up, out of her bed, throwing the cream colored, delicate blankets to the side. She yawned and rose up, patting the girl’s head, while smiling.

“Arianna,” she acknowledged.

Arianna tugged at the bottom of the 17 year old girl, Evelyn’s, night gown. Though Arianna was 12, she was small for her age and Evelyn was quite tall, reaching a height of five feet eleven and a half.

As Evelyn strode over to an ornate closet to get some clothes, the small Arianna bounded about, jumping across the furniture and grinning to herself. She was dressed in a servant’s garb, a simple, sky blue dress tied in the back with a faded cream ribbon. Her pale, blond hair was tied into a small bun with the same type of ribbon.

Evelyn put on an exquisite, deep green gown, covered from head to toe with flowery flowing designs, the tones of the dress changing from the darkest greens that were almost black to a light, leafy green that matched the plants visible from her window, looking down into a courtyard.

Arianna set to do her hair, pinning it up in small braids, finishing the hair into a complicated bun sitting at the top of Evelyn’s head. A small pin fastened it together, ending her look with a beautiful flourish.

Evelyn stood up from her dressing table and walked toward the door to the hallway, Arianna following her closely.

As they passed servants busily working, Evelyn gave them small smiles, thanking them quietly for their hard work and Arianna gave them happy hellos.

When they reached the dining room, Evelyn gracefully lowered herself into her usual chair, giving the master of the house and cold stare he took as a hello.

Around the large table sat three important figures, including Evelyn. At the very head of the table sat the master, known to Evelyn and the boy sitting on his other side as Mr. Conway. His silver hair glinted, his black eyes gleamed, giving him an ageless but fearful look.

Arianna skipped away back to the servants’ quarters, the boy at Mr. Conway’s side’s eyes lingering upon the small girl. The boy, Garrett, was 22, Mr. Conway’s only son. If Mr. Conway had any other children, no one else knew about it other than Garrett and himself. Garrett’s dark brown eyes stared at the table as his dark red hair covered most of his face. He was the only one slightly slouching at the table.

Evelyn sat erect, now slightly glaring at both Mr. Conway and Garrett Conway. After all, the ageless, obviously though, old man, had killed her mother in front of her very own eyes when she was just a child. Though Mr. Conway didn’t know she’d seen anything, he knew she suspected him of many things. After all, he’d had two men form out of thin air and drag her through her dining room with her mother dead, slumped in one chair. He had felt no sympathy though, since that was just a step into his huge dream. He took out a small deck of cards and slightly smiled at it, his teeth glinting in the light of the glowing chandelier, while Garrett gave him an odd, but sly, look.

“Good morning,” a servant said, setting a platter of breads, butters, fruits, anything you could imagine for a grand breakfast on the table, “Master, Lady Evelyn, Lord Garrett.”

They all nodded in response, without saying a word. All three of them ate in silence, until Evelyn stood up and excused herself, walking back toward her room.