The Deception Of Alexander Riotan #wattys2016

Chapter Three: More and less.

The ball was a huge success; Ladies left with their virtues intact, men didn't come to fisticuffs, the fruit punch didn't topple over, though Alex swore somebody pinched his butt. There was a huge crowd, but his mother had expected the extra party guests. The Riotan staff did a tremendous job, navigating the crush with discipline and finesse. The food was excellent with arrays of meats, salads, wines, and desserts. He'd promised them a bonus and a day off for a job well done.

Lea had been right, there was a lot of fishing being done by the families present, and it seemed like Alex was the big, fat, trout that everyone wanted. He'd always been on the receiving end of female attention in America but those women knew where they stood with him. The mark on his face wasn't as bad as Lea had made it to be, just a small mouse on his upper cheek, but seeing it made him smile. People were too proper to remark upon it, but several did. He had, apparently, been hit by a door. 

He had angled several conversations, inconspicuously, for his coffee colored assailant. Her name was Lady Leanna Ambriz, she was Spanish and one of the Girton Bluestockings along with his future brother in Law's sister (Lady Sarah). Her studies there were centered around social science and humanitarian law. The gasps that arose on the piece of information were enough to make Riot think that she was aspiring to be a cannibal rather than a human rights activist. Along with that what he could glean was that she was unfashionably tall, sweet, and was seen quite often in male company.

"Two of her uncles are well off lawyers she will be aiding them after graduation " Lady Sarah, a good looking brunette with somber black eyes, had said. 

"Very ambitious" Alex had remarked, carefully "A far fetched endeavor for a woman of her stature to attempt, don't you think?".

"Don't let her hear you say that. She is very sensitive about discriminating comments against women" Sarah said, chuckling,"She also has a very idealistic outlook on life that might seem naive to most"

Alex didn't say anything, and Lady Sarah idly spun her glass,

"Sometimes she makes me believe it. As if we can do it" she said, thoughtfully.

"Do what?" he asked,

"Become something more" she said with a wistful smile "Achieve something more".

Calliope had a smile on her face. She had politely,  thanked Alex for throwing the ball. The family settled in one of the private parlors, laughing and teasing about the different highlights of the night. It seemed a little forced, and Alex felt like everything was rehearsed, in painstaking detail, before it left their mouths. He still pretended for a while that this was how they used to be during his school years. 

They'd sit by a fire when Hunter and Alex came back for winter break; with a massive Chess set between them. Mother would regale them with the latest gossip,sometimes read from a book, and their father would roll his eyes but they all knew that he would be, avidly, listening. Calliope would sit down next to them with her toys, poking and prodding at their game. Sometimes Alex would find him moving a doll on the chess set instead of the bishop.

Even in the close circle they had unconsciously left a chair unoccupied, but they pretended that there wasn't a huge elephant stuffed in it. On his way back to his private rooms, he found himself stopping by the small kitchen. The cake still sat there on the table and his gaze landed where Lea had been previously sitting. He was impressed by what he heard about her, but even though her ambitions were heroic, they were just impossible. The world was a horrible place for a gentle soul. Lea was going to suffer her whole life in a hell of her own making, always looking up at the sky, clawing and pushing against walls that wouldn't ever give. Someday she was going to have to break that spirit of hers if she ever wanted to feel content between them.

Alex's room was, strangely, well lit when he entered it. It was huge; with a massive, four poster, bed, and windows covered by, rich, velvet drapes. They provided a spectacular view of the grounds and the driveway leading up to it. His eyes went immediately to the Riot industries's ledgers and correspondence spread, haphazardly, on his desk. He had left them in neat piles when he finished with them in the morning. Something moved in the corner of his eye, and his whole body stiffened. 

A man sitting in one of the chairs by the fireplace straightened.

"I'm going to bloody murder you" Alex said.

The grin playing on the man's lips fell. 

"Oh shit." Hunter replied.