“You called him ‘friend’ after he challenged you.”
“Why?”
Sebastian thought for a moment. “Because he’s more useful afraid than antagonized.”
Hawthorne’s lips curved slightly. “People are tools, Sebastian. Some need to be sharpened, others need to be stored carefully until needed.” He gestured to a chessboard on his desk. “Do you know why I prefer chess to poker?”
Sebastian shook his head.
“In poker, your victory depends on deception—convincing opponents you have something you don’t. In chess, true mastery comes from making them see exactly what you have… and still being unable to stop you.” He moved a pawn forward. “You can have brilliant bluffs. But the world always calls eventually.”
“Come,” Hawthorne said, gesturing to the chessboard. “Show me what you’ve learned.”
That night, Sebastian lay awake, listening to the rain. On his nightstand sat three books: a battered copy ofThe Princerewritten for younger readers, a slim volume of war strategy quotes, and a glossy illustrated biography titledGreat Leaders of the Empire. His father’s idea of appropriate bedtime reading. Next to them, hidden inside a hollowed-out copy of Great Expectations, was a small photograph of his mother, smiling in a Paris garden.
He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to feel anymore, but he knew what he was supposed to become.
* * *
A year into his new life, Sebastian stood beside Hawthorne on a receiving line at the embassy. His French accent had faded to an occasional inflectionthat his father now referred to as “cosmopolitan.” He’d grown three inches. His suits no longer pinched.
“Lord Hammond approaches,” Hawthorne murmured, barely moving his lips. “His grandson was just expelled from Eton—drugs. He’s sensitive about it.”
Sebastian nodded imperceptibly.
When Lord Hammond reached them, Sebastian smiled with practiced warmth. “Lord Hammond, Father tells me you’ve been instrumental in the new conservation bill. I’ve heard it’s the most progressive environmental legislation in a decade.”
The old man’s face transformed with pleasure. “Did he now? Well, between us, it was a battle getting those stubborn industrialists to see reason…”
As Lord Hammond continued, Sebastian caught his father’s approving glance. This was the game. Find the vanity, stroke it gently, watch doors open.
Later, in the car ride home, Hawthorne reviewed Sebastian’s performance while scanning documents on his tablet. “Better. You’re learning to read people. But next time, don’t press so hard on Hammond’s environmental interests—the man’s investments tell a different story than his public platitudes.”
Normally, Hawthorne kept such documents secured in his private briefcase, but tonight, after several glasses of scotch with the ambassador, he’d grown careless, leaving papers exposed as he shuffled through them.
Sebastian caught a glimpse of ministerial letterhead. A list of names. Figures with too many zeros.
Hawthorne noticed his gaze and snapped the folder shut. “Curious?”
“No, Father,” Sebastian lied smoothly.
“Good. Curiosity is for scholars and fools. Precision is for men of power.”
But Sebastian had already memorized three names from the list—one of which he recognized as a vocal opponent of his father in Parliament.
That night, Sebastian added the observation to a mental ledger of his father’s rare moments of carelessness. He wasn’t sure when or how suchknowledge might be useful, but he was his father’s son now.
He knew to save every advantage, no matter how small.
Later, as he lay in bed, he realized that the ache in his throat when he thought of Paris had dulled. The memory of his mother’s laugh was fading. In its place was a growing hunger—to impress, to calculate, to win.
He didn’t realize then that every compliment was a chain. And he wouldn’t feel its weight until he started trying to run.
22
Royal Research Assistant
The fireplace was low, throwing long, lazy shadows across the stacks of papers that had migrated across Alexander’s desk and onto the floor. He was still in his shirtsleeves, tie undone, the top button open — the “I swear I’m almost done” uniform he’d been wearing for hours.