Chapter 16: Lord Sapphire - 2
"Tell me, Kai. Do you find me... intimidating?" Lord Sapphire’s voice was a probing murmur, his eyes fixed on mine in the ever dimmed moonlight.
My mind quickly raced. It was surely another test. He wasn’t asking if I was afraid of him in this moment, but if his general presence, his aura, his past behavior, had intimidated me.
Olberic’s diary had complained about Lord Sapphire’s silence, his tendency to ignore the adopted son. This was my chance to address that, to play the part of a son who felt neglected. It was a risky move, but honesty, or at least a calculated version of it, might be more disarming than a polite lie.
"I wouldn’t call it intimidation. If I may say so, not to sound out of bounds..."
"You may," he permitted.
"Father," I continued, "you always act strange around me. As if I don’t exist. You usually ignore my presence... you don’t talk to me. That alone makes me feel unwanted."
I already knew enough about Obleric’s relationship with Lord Sapphire to craft a convincing answer, one that sounded just believable enough to pass.
Immediately I said those words, Lord Sapphire’s expression, usually so impassive, changed. There was a subtle widening of his eyes, a slight move of his lips. It wasn’t anger, or even surprise, but something akin to... intrigue. He hadn’t expected that. He had expected deference, or perhaps a polite evasion. Not a direct statement of how his actions had made me feel.
He turned fully towards me, his gaze genuinely curious. "Unwanted," he repeated. "That is... an interesting perspective. Most would simply say I am a man of few words, preoccupied with the affairs of the household."
"Perhaps," I said, trying to maintain my composure. "But even a man of few words can acknowledge the presence of his son. Your other children... you speak with them. With me, it has always been... silence." I pushed a little further, hoping to solidify the persona of the neglected son. "It leads one to wonder if I truly belong."