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by Robin Jeffrey

  Cadence blinked at her, saying nothing.

  Victoria reached up and gave her nose an affectionate tap. “Aw, she’s a shy one, is she?”

  I tilted my head to one side, wrinkling my nose. “Not particularly.”

  But Victoria was too engrossed in her new project to listen to me. “I’ll have her looking almost as pretty as me, don’t you worry.”

  Henry and I stepped back to allow the pair a clear path up the stairs, Victoria dragging Cadence along by the hand. Victoria blew me a kiss from the landing before they both disappeared into my rooms, closing the door with a snap.

  “When are you going to give it up and marry her already?”

  “Henry,” I scoffed, pushing his shoulder with my own. “I just met her!”

  Quick to regain his balance, Henry grimaced at me, and returned my push with a smack to the back of my head. “Not Miss Turing, idiot – Victoria!”

  “Oh.” I shuffled over to the banister, leaning against it as I rubbed my scalp. “One of these days I expect. Does it matter?”

  Henry shrugged, slipping his hands into his tuxedo trouser pockets. “You seem distracted, Chance. Everything alright?”

  “It’s just father.” I stepped closer to the stairs to allow a harried looking maid to hurry by with some canapés. “He’s just so damn melodramatic about everything.” The maid returned, this time carrying a large ladle. My eyes followed her as she passed. “I swear, if he keeps on threatening to die, he might find himself in the grave prematurely.”

  Henry sighed, head lolling low between his shoulders. He looked up at me from under his brow. “You do go out of your way to antagonize him, you know.”

  I glared, pulling my arms tight across my chest. “Just whose side are you on, chum?”

  Henry rolled his eyes and shook his head, adopting a soft smile. I swallowed, shifting where I stood, staring at the floor with all the petulance of a child.

  He walked over and stood next to me, his voice low. “It wasn’t over that lady friend of his again, was it? Deirdre or something?”

  “Desdemona.” The name dropped from my scowling mouth like a slug, making my lips feel dirtied with the mention of it. “She’s moved into the house you know.”

  “What? After three months?”

  “Why do you think I’ve been in town all week? You think I could stand being cooped up with that blithering ninny?”

  “Well.” Henry shook his head after a moment, a queer twist to his lips. “I can’t believe it; it actually sounds like things are getting pretty serious. Who would have thought?”

  “Thought what?”

  “That your father could fall in love.”

  I gave a loud bark of laughter, crossing my feet at the ankles. “Call it that if you like, but we all know a man scrambling for youth when we see one. Your mum said so herself.”

  “She just doesn’t like Desdemona very much.” He chuckled and sat down on the stairs. “She’s too flighty for her or something.”

  We were silent for a few minutes, an island of calm amidst the general hubbub of party making. I dragged my hand down my cheek, peering at him from the corner of my eye. “So…what do you think?”

  “About Desdemona?”

  I nudged his foot with my own, the corners of my mouth twitching. “About my newest acquisition – Cadence.”

  “Ah.” Henry leaned back against the stairs, resting his elbows on the step behind him. “You know, I’ve never been off-world, let alone to Paraesepe, but she seems to be unusually out of place here. Like a creature of different matter, a being of quintessence forced to tread on the ground with us lower forms.”

  “Henry,” I sat down beside him with a groan, “you’ve gone poetic again. But I think I know what you mean.”

  His head fell to one side. “What do you intend to do with her?”

  “As much as I can convince her to allow, dear boy, as always.”

  4

  Chapter 4

  I mounted the steps two at a time, unbuttoning my wrinkled shirt as I climbed. At this rate, I would be late, but I could dress for a party with my eyes shut. I passed my father at the top of the stairs, his rooms adjoining the ones I would be occupying for the weekend. My father was so intent on smoothing out his dinner jacket that I slipped behind him like a ghost.

  I disregarded his disregard as much as I could and entered my mother’s rooms without a word. Focusing my attention on the occasional twittering laugh of Victoria in the rooms on the opposite side where she was helping Cadence prepare for the night, I pulled clothes from assorted drawers and closets as quick as I could, ignorant of the care with which some well-meaning servant had just placed them there.

  A quarter of an hour ticked away and, presentable at last, I jogged downstairs. The sun lay nestled in the far-off mountains, the warmth of a summer day giving way to a cool, pleasant night. I made my way through the dining room to the veranda outside, where my father and Henry stood engaged in conversation.

  Smiling wide, my father turned to me, all the unpleasantness of the afternoon forgotten. “Chance, m’boy, come here! Henry was just telling me about a new paper he’s been working on; political, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, sir,” Henry reached behind him for a glass of xampany, the drink bubbling at its contact with the outside air. “I’m focusing on the success, or rather, the lack of success, the Inter-Planetary Commission has had in regulating humanitarian and environmental concerns within the system.”

  My father crossed his arms over his chest and began stroking his beard. “You know, my grandfather opposed the proposal for Arrhidaeus to join the IPC when it was first brought up in the Chambers, eighty, no, ninety years ago.”

  “Yes, sir, I did know that,” said Henry with a politeness our professors had always adored. “I’ve been reading several of the very interesting speeches he made before the Chambers about the risks he foresaw in joining such an organization.”

  “And he was damned right too. Inter-Planetary Commission – bunch of damn busybodies is what they are. Can’t have foreigners telling you what you can and cannot do on your own damn planet.”

  “Yes, Lord knows what would happen if we started listening to people who had other points of view.” I took a liberal gulp of the xampany Henry had passed to me. “Where’s Desdemona?”

  “She’s upstairs resting. All the excitement of the party; it wasn’t good for her nerves. She’ll be down in a little while, I’m sure.”

  “Mr. and Mrs. Solomon Davers, sir.” Behind us, the manservant stepped aside from the dining room doors to let our long-time neighbors out onto the porch.

  Henry greeted his mother with his usual burst of filial affection, striding forward and sweeping her into a warm embrace. My friend’s devotion to his mother was a sentimental quirk for one so reserved, but if there was any woman alive who deserved it, it was Minerva Davers. A sweet, spirited lady, she shared Desdemona’s petite frame and long blonde hair. Often ill, I could remember many times during my childhood when we feared she would die, but she persevered through every trial, and while her body had suffered, her mind remained as sharp as it had ever been.

  This mental acuity must have been what first attracted Solomon Davers to his wife. A tall willow wisp of a man, with bright, deep-set eyes, his resemblance to his son was striking. Solomon was young compared to my father, but in many ways, he had always seemed much older to me. Subdued and reflective, he stood with one hand hovering behind his wife, surveying the party scene with the dispassionate concern appropriate for a scientist of his standing.

  “Good evening, Felix,” Solomon’s narrow hand disappeared inside my father’s vise-like grip. “You’re looking well.”

  “Solomon.” My father pumped his employee’s hand with vigor. “Always a pleasure to see you outside of the office! Or should I say outside of the lab?”

  Solomon’s lips twitched up in a wan smile. “You don’t pay me to sit on my hands, Felix. I can’t help it if I’m passionate about providing
Halcyon Enterprises with the next great innovation in biomechanics.”

  “And we appreciate it, we do!” My father clapped him on the back before stretching his hands out to Minerva. “My dear, you are looking lovely.”

  “I’m feeling much better too.” Minerva leaned forward and kissed his cheek. “A little bout of Hepatic Flu can’t keep Minerva Davers off her feet for long!”

  She turned to me, smiling, cupping my cheek with her hands. “Chance, it’s so nice to see you. You haven’t been by the house in ages.”

  I breathed in the comforting scent of her rose perfume, patting her shoulder. “I’ve been busy in the city the past few weeks, Min.”

  “Busy! Yes, I’m sure.” She gave me a wink and slapped my chest with the back of her hand. “I’ve always felt that strapping young men should keep busy. You’ll have to tell me all about it later. I actually haven’t had a chance to change just yet,” she stepped back to my father, interrupting the conversation he and her husband were having. “I hope you don’t mind if I head back to the room and get myself spruced up?”

  “Of course not.” My father nodded towards the door. “It’s the usual one at the end of the hall.”

  She headed back, waving off the attentions of a maidservant as she went, and Solomon took the rare opportunity of my father’s distraction to address me, shaking my hand. “How are you, Chance?”

  “Just fine, Mr. Davers, thanks.”

  He patted my shoulder and looked as though he was about to say something else when my father swooped in, whisking him down the stairs and out onto the well-tended lawn, interrogating him about the quarterly sales report. I shook my head and crossed to the other side of the deck to rejoin Henry when I caught sight of Victoria making her way through the dining room.

  “Down so soon?” I peered around her. “Where’s Cadence?”

  Victoria adjusted her sheer green shawl and pouted. “Am I not enough for you?”

  I flashed a smile and planted a dry kiss on her forehead. Placated, she allowed me to take her arm and the three of us walked out onto the grass.

  “She’ll be down presently, I’m sure. She wouldn’t let me do much to her, I’m afraid. I’ve always been offended by women who presume they don’t need makeup; but ignorance is bliss, I suppose. You should have seen the way she was carrying on when the corset was lacing itself up.”

  I took a steadying sip of my drink, the thought alone making my pulse dance. “I certainly would have liked to.”

  Victoria stared at me with sullen eyes, taking a fruit hors d’oeuvres from the small table behind her. “Honestly, Chance, I don’t know how you function with all that pent-up lust.”

  “I have you to focus on, don’t I?” Pulling her against me, I stole a bite of the sweet treat in her hand with a growl.

  “And who said anything about it being pent up?”

  Victoria ignored Henry’s remark, turning her back to him. “Where did you say you found this girl again?”

  “On the AN-GRAV coming from the Mawson Docks.” I raised my glass. “I took one look at her and simply had to extend her tishos.”

  Henry licked his lips, tilting his head to one side. “You do know that’s a tradition that’s been defunct for almost five hundred years, don’t you?”

  “I do.” I tapped my glass against his. “But she doesn’t. And here you thought I never paid attention in history class.”

  Victoria giggled. “You are positively wicked.”

  “Yes,” I nestled my nose against hers, nipping at her lips with my teeth, “but you like me that way.”

  “Excuse me; I think I’m going to be sick in those hydrangeas.”

  Victoria tore away from me, scowling at the straight-faced Henry. “Don’t be jealous just because you haven’t got a girl!”

  “Growing up with you has given me ample time to learn why I don’t want one.” He sighed, looking into my eyes and placing his hand to his heart. “Chance is more than enough for me.”

  I put down my glass. “Hold me, my love.”

  “Anything you say, pet.” Henry took me in his arms and dipped me. Victoria flailed at us, ranting about how ridiculous we both were.

  The manservant’s drone broke through the comedic moment with practiced skill. “Miss Belinda Tanith.”

  Belinda swept out onto the veranda as only she could. Her long silk wrap billowed behind her, forcing all the servants to wait several moments before following her outside, lest they be entangled in the fabric sheaf, and her personality extended several feet in front of her, pushing Victoria and Henry out of her path before she was within shouting distance.

  “Chance Hale, you naughty, naughty boy!”

  “Aunt Be!” I soon found myself enveloped in the crushing hug I’d known since I was a boy. Belinda laughed, a deep rumble that massaged my senses with its familiarity. A substantial woman, she had skin the color of dried mud and muscle tone that men envied. Her work as a geologist had taken her all over the system, keeping her fit and active in her advancing years.

  Our customary greeting exchanged, she stepped back, squeezing my shoulders, and beaming at me with all the parental pride my father lacked. “Just look at you! Still the most handsome young man in Zahia.” She released me with a peel of surprised laughter when she noticed Henry behind me. “Oh, I am sorry, Henry, dear!”

  “It’s quite alright, Ms. Tanith,” Henry folded his hands, pretending to look somber. “I’ve always known that Chance was the handsome one; it’s why I spend all my time studying.”

  “Yes, well, women like a man of letters, Henry, don’t ever doubt it.” She winked. “We need someone to outthink us now and again.”

  I jiggled the thin gold band on my wrist, the face proclaiming it to be well past seven. “What could be taking Cadence so long?”

  Belinda lifted her brows. “Who?”

  “She’s my guest tonight. Vicky, do you–”

  “Last I saw of her she was still upstairs struggling with her dress.”

  I gave her a pointed look, eyes narrowing. “You didn’t think to stay and help her, dear?”

  “I’m not a chamber maid.” Victoria adjusted her wrap over her shoulders, exuding the casual condescension that was a source of constant amusement to me. “It’s not my fault your foreigner’s a simpleton.”

  Henry wasn’t getting into the spirit of things at all, standing to one side of me, looking as if he’d just sucked on a lemon. “Charity isn’t one of your virtues, is it, Victoria?”

  “Oh, Henry!” Victoria stomped her pump-clad foot, fist resting on her hip. “You have got to get your nose out of those books every once in a while and see the world the way it really is: there’s no room for charity anymore.”

  “That is so very true, my dear.” Belinda grasped Victoria’s wrist, shaking it in time with her head. “It’s eat or be eaten, that’s what I’ve always said, and I don’t see any problem with that! It’s the natural flow of evolution; if you’re not strong enough to hack it on your own, well then, to the rubbish heap with you! Can’t have everybody sponging off everybody else; the whole world would collapse on itself.”

  I could have used Henry’s clenched jaw to hammer in nails. He slammed his glass down onto the planter behind him. “Excuse me; I’m going to go check on Cadence.”

  “No, no,” I cut off my attentive friend, striding towards the veranda before he could take a step. “It’s alright, old chap, I’ll do it. She’s my–” I stuttered to a halt when she stepped out onto the patio. “Oh.”

  The light blue silk of the gown clung to Cadence’s curves like a needy child. As she moved, the breeze picked up the loose fabric of the skirt and sent it fluttering against her ankles, kissing her skin. The beaded sleeves sparkled in the waning light, and I indulged in a hazy fantasy of slipping them off her shoulders, down her smooth white skin, and onto the floor beside my bed.

  I didn’t even notice Minerva walking with Cadence until it was too late to hide my flushed cheeks and hungry eyes from her
sharp sight.

  “I believe this delightful young lady belongs to you, Chance.” Her grin was as sly as it had ever been, but she handed Cadence off to me without further comment, walking the last few steps to Henry and wrapping her arm through his.

  “I’m sorry I took so long coming out, Henry, but Cadence and I were both having some trouble with our ensembles. You know my hands; I just can’t do up those tiny clasps like I used to.” She massaged her thin wrists, glaring at them for a moment before nodding to Cadence, her face brightening. “We came to each other’s aid and bonded over our mutual dislike of formal wear.”

  Cadence, still picking at the straps of her dress, grimaced, nodding. “It is unduly complicated.” The shaky little smile returned to her lips as she looked at Henry. “Your mother was very kind.”

  “Yes,” Henry’s eyes bored into Victoria, “we’re a very charitable sort of family.”

  “Cadence,” I cleared my throat, leap-frogging over that chasm of social unpleasantness, and turning her away from the pair of squabblers, “this is Belinda Tanith, an old friend of the family. She and my mother went to university together.” I stepped away as if displaying a trophy. “Aunt Be, this is Cadence Turing, my friend from Paraesepe.”

  “A pleasure to know you, my dear, an absolute pleasure!” Belinda folded Cadence’s hand into her own, patting the back of it. “I’m always so thrilled to meet people from other planets in the system.”

  A lopsided smile hobbled over Cadence’s face. “Have you ever been to Paraesepe, Miss Tanith?”

  “Several times! For the Institute, of course.”

  “Belinda’s on the board of the Fernitate Institute of Geology and Earth Sciences.” I picked up two flutes of xampany, handing one to Cadence and the other to Belinda. “She travels quite a bit for them.”

  “A marvelous, marvelous institution. Always giving funds to support all kinds of scientists; even to Halcyon Enterprises, though I’ve never been quite sure why.”

  “All I know is Father’s more than happy to take their money,” I retorted.