The Shadow Kingdom

Chapter 22i

"The young Ashcroft Highness has quite the knack for politics, it seems." Augustus raises a glass to me. "Tell her we will send one hundred men. Keep her daughter here in the meantime."

"Wait, what? Why?" I protest. "Maddelen has served her purpose."

"The girl will have served her purpose once House Ashcroft surrenders. Until then she will be our collateral."

My outrage overpowers my restraint. "You mean hostage!"

"The Keller woman was stupid enough to overestimate her leverage over us. She delivered her own daughter straight into our hands, and as such, we will take advantage of what she has given us." Adrian grabs my hand underneath the table, giving me a warning to shut up. "Next order of business. Nerva's birthday is coming up next week, and the proper celebrations are in order."

"It's your birthday?" I whisper to Adrian. "Why do I not know this?" He just tilts his head and shrugs.

"A man's one hundredth birthday is a critical moment in his life, and since our entire family is together for the first time in decades, this occasion could not be more auspicious. We will be inviting the members of all our vassal houses to Seven Hills. My son's centennial shall be the event of the year." Augustus proudly raises his glass.

Octavia hurries around the table to hug Adrian, beaming with motherly love. "Happy birthday, Nerva! We are going to throw you the best party in history!" Adrian pats his mother's back, masking his lack of enthusiasm. The indentured servants bring us our dessert, and I fidget restlessly in my seat. I cannot stand to be in the same room with Augustus for another second.

When he finally dismisses us, I am the first one out of the room. I sense Adrian following me as I climb the ridiculous set of stairs to our bedroom. "Scarlett, what is wrong?" He asks.

"Do you even have to ask? Your family uses humans as slaves!" My words burn with righteous indignation. "How can you be ok with that?"

"Indentured servants," he drawls out the words. "It is much more practical than hiring help the regular way. This estate requires constant maintenance as you can imagine. A lot of those people were dying of terminal illnesses before my father approached them with the offer. In exchange for a new lease on life, they tend to all our needs without asking questions or revealing anything strange that they see."

"And that makes it ok?" How can he not be outraged by this?

Adrian closes the door and faces me like a schoolteacher to an errant child. "You know perfectly well what we are." His rare austerity makes me control my outburst. "The Shadow Kingdom views the human race as cattle. Do you think Samir Hassan even bothers to bargain with his servants? He kidnaps homeless children off the street and raises them to believe that he is a god!

"The world isn't perfect, Scarlett! Far from it! All the indignity that you are feeling right now, I have felt for my entire life! Sooner or later, you will have to realize that it is what it is. It becomes easier to tolerate the evil things that our fathers do over time."

"That's easy to say when you're the Shang crown prince. You'd have a totally different attitude if you were an indentured servant." Adrian sits and buries his face in his palms. I know it is not Adrian's fault, but his cynicism is something I simply will not abide.

"What would you have me do? Stand up to my father? Tell him to change his wicked ways, or else?" His eyes open wide as if to tell me that I'm being naïve.

I strip off my dress, sick of being tainted by the blood money that paid for it. I climb into bed, and for the first time, I'm not sure if I want Adrian next to me. "Why didn't you tell me that your birthday is coming up?"

"It slipped my mind." He waves his hand apathetically.

"A lot of things seem to slip to your mind. I always have to rely on someone else to tell me stuff."

"Scarlett, it's not possible for me to tell you everything about everything. My life is far more convoluted than a physics lecture. And besides, when you've had as many birthdays as I've had, they all lose their significance."

"This is your hundredth; surely, that must mean something." He scoffs and shifts his gaze to the far wall. "It's the first birthday that you get to spend with me. Does that mean something to you?"

His eyes freeze along with the rest of him. Trapped by my words, he is forced to concede defeat. "I'm sorry, Scarlett. Yes, of course that means something to me." He discards his suit and sits beside me on the edge of the bed. "This is a cause of celebration. Not because I'm becoming a centenarian but because I've finally found a reason to live." His kiss is filled with admissions and promises. "You don't feel awkward dating such an old man?"

A forgiving smile takes hold of me. "As long as I don't have to help you cross the street, I'll live with it." I lean up to return his kiss and lift up the bedding to let him join me.