I mentally cheered. That was real fatherly concern.
He finally bought my prior ‘illnesses.’
“I’m fine, Father. I feel splendid tonight.” I walked to his side, with confidence I didn’t feel, and slid my left arm into his right arm, linking us. With my heels on, we were eye-to-eye in height. “Shall we go? We’ll be late if Mother makes me change my necklace again.”
My mother sighed profoundly behind us—all pretended exasperation.
Father glanced down at the diamonds surrounding my neck. He snickered quietly, glancing back at his wife. “It’s a little much for a business party, don’t you think, dear?”
Mother shooed us out of my bedroom, strolling behind us, her tone clipped as she shut my door—too hard. “It’s beautiful. And I don’t want to hear another word about it, Samuel Kramer. Our daughter only has four years left until she’s twenty-five. We need to start thinking of a possible marriage match for her if she doesn’t find love soon.”
My head snapped back to her as Father continued leading me to the stairs. She had gone too far in the charade we were playing; she wasn’t as good at it as I was. Her nerves were making her babble.
Yes, I was already twenty-one years old.
By law, I had to marry by twenty-five.
But the businessmen at this party were monsters. They were not ideal in any way, and it wasn’t wise to put an idea like that into father’s head.
Mother knew it too, realizing her blunder too late as she cringed and quickly averted her eyes to her husband, waiting to see if he had been paying attention to her words. Half the time, he did not. They were no love match, married from a contract formed between their equally influential and wealthy parents. Nevertheless, they did have a fondness for one another—when it suited them.
Tonight, providence was not on our side.
Father’s gaze was thoughtful as he helped escort both my mother and me down our grand marble stairs. “Odette, I think I see the brilliance in the necklace now.” He turned, smirking in a flirtatious way at her. Attraction was never an issue between them. They had enough to fill our city townhome to the brink. It was stifling at times with my bedroom merely down the hall from theirs. “You and I do have one beautiful child together. The diamonds only enhance her charm.”
Oh, God.
If only I could fake an illness now and get away with it… Tonight would be a test of my best acting abilities if he started showing me off to all of his friends—more than he normally did. My parents were very proud of how I had turned out, both physically and mentally.
Father patted my hand over his forearm as our butler opened the front door for us to the twilight sky. “I think tonight will be great fun. I’m so glad you’re feeling better, sweetie.”
Nope. I couldn’t pull a fast faint on him.
I withheld my sigh of resignation and smiled, drawling, “Just don’t list all of my university achievements to the highest and wealthiest bidder. I hope for affection and respect in my future husband.” Most females were looking for the same so they wouldn’t be forced to marry a horrid male…and procreate.
We strolled down our walkway to our private train, our transport waiting in the pristine street. No dust or ash blew in our eyes, no considerable rubble or decaying corpses tripped our feet. New City was clean and immaculate while the world outside of our fair borders was still war-torn, no restored city quite as nice as ours. Corporations ruled our world now with the most powerful of them built in New City. Brilliant kings amongst a world full of peasants; our city was a shining beacon of hope for a structured future where lawlessness still ran rampant outside any city limits. Peasants now thirsted for law and peace when once before humans had argued vehemently about mundane political issues. The final war had opened their eyes to what greed, hate, and disorder could destroy. After the war, true anarchy and morbid devastation were still the current status quo to a majority of the world’s remaining population.
But those brilliant corporate kings…
They weremonsters.
Freaks of nature of the terrifying sort.
Father released my arm as I started up the black iron stairs of our hovering transport, the clean blue energy glowing underneath on the road. My mother followed behind me with my father holding her hips to steady her way up the stairs.
Or to stare at her ass.
I knew what his earlier playful banter meant.
I’d need to wear earplugs tonight.
AfterI partied with monsters.
