Read Online The Far Bank of the Rubicon (The Pax Imperium Wars: Volume 1) by Erik Wecks - Free Book Online Page B

Maleks and Athenas could be the key to healing the unhealthy rivalry. He had been grateful for his father’s instruction. It meant this weekend would be several notches less stressful than if he had been instructed to keep his distance and watch his words.
    Still, he didn’t have much hope until he saw the girl as she climbed the stairs toward him. Somewhat surprised, he first noticed she hadn’t been aged up to look older than she was. The families of most fourteen year olds who came to the palace for their first visit insisted on trying to make their daughters look twenty—accentuated bust lines, plunging dresses, and hair pulled up. This was not a good way to make a first impression on Jonas’ dad, and Jonas recognized the acumen of the Malek family in avoiding this mistake.
    This wasn’t to say that young Lady Malek lacked appeal or that she had been made to look like a little girl. Rather, the light blue dress she wore acknowledged her modest breasts and the curve at her hips without trying to make them the center of attention. Jonas found the grounded self-confidence exhibited in such a choice refreshing.
    Of average height, with curly blond hair and pale skin, Jonas thought she looked somewhat like her mother, but it was hard to say since her mother had been strongly modified. He did notice that Sophia carried her father’s broad, strong shoulders. She was no bird—although she didn’t seem to share his apparent overindulgence of food.
    Despite her attire and the confidence she displayed, Sophia Malek stayed relatively close to her mother. To his trained eye, she seemed somewhat overawed by the palace, glancing up at it from time to time.
    The way she carried herself, and her simple light blue dress, gave Jonas the impression she still felt more comfortable navigating the world as an adolescent, rather than as an adult. He found this intriguing, as it stood in contrast to so many of the eighteen-year-old courtiers he was forced to deal with on a regular basis. “The regulars,” as he and his brother referred to them, irritated him. They wanted something from him, and they pushed. He had little patience for that.
    As Sophia followed her family through the receiving line, he found himself looking at a complex person not easy to categorize. Her body may not have fully matured, but her manner and expressions exuded liquid grace. This was no petty noble’s daughter, who practiced curtsies in the mirror of her middle-class home. Here was someone else who had spent her life at court. She smiled when she should and spoke on her own. She reminded him of himself, poised at the precipice of adulthood, already plunging ahead in many ways, and in others, still in the frost of childhood. For once Jonas felt the tables turn. He waited in anticipation for his introduction.
    In a moment or two, Jonas greeted Duke Malek, his wife, and their middle son Mark. Finally, Sophia stood before him. Lithe and beautiful, Sophia curtsied and bowed her head as she was introduced by her father. Jonas tipped his head slightly in return—a perfect ritual to please the Duke and the King and, more importantly, the assembled media.
    The introductions continued with the Crown Prince and finally the King himself. Once completed, they were scheduled to process into the palace where drinks and hors d'oeuvres would be served in front of the cameras.
    The King took the Duchess by the arm, and the procession began. Dorothea followed, walking next to the Duke. The Crown Prince came next with Mark, then Jonas and Sophia. Jonas held out his arm, which Sophia took with a smile. He was somewhat surprised to feel her trembling. Although most of the young women he escorted trembled, he hadn't anticipated that from Sophia.
    Usually, Jonas didn't give it a second thought. He would do exactly what all his family did in similar situations. He would work hard to put his escort at ease without investing anything of himself in the effort. By the age of sixteen,