The Lost Princes of Ambria 06 - Taming the Lost Prince (5 page)

“Everyone was proud of you. You were heroes. The best. The brightest stars.”

She swallowed hard, then reached out across the coffee table and took his hand.

“And then, on that dark, rainy day in November, you took off together, as usual, but you … you came back alone.”

She blinked, wondering why there were no tears in her eyes. She usually had tears by now when she went over this in her own head. Why wasn’t she crying?

“I stood there and watched your plane fly in, and I knew in my heart what it meant. But I didn’t want to accept it. I kept thinking, no, he’ll be coming. He’s just had engine trouble or took a wrong turn or …” Her voice choked and she took a deep, shuddering breath. “I kept staring into the horizon, looking for that black spot to appear against the sky.”

Her words seemed to echo against the walls as they both sat quietly, waiting for the pain to fade.

“Eddie was the best guy I ever knew,” he said at last, his voice rough as a rocky beach. “It should have been me.”

“No …” She held his hand as tightly as she could, with both her own.

“He was true and honest and brave. Not like me.”

“No,” she said fiercely. “Don’t ever say that.”

His face was twisted with pain. “Kayla, Kayla, it should have been me.”

She was next to him on the couch now, and she wasn’t sure how she got there. But she had to be with him, as close as she could get. She had to remind him of his own worth, his own value. She couldn’t let him feel this way.

She took his beautiful face between her hands and stared right into his eyes. “Eddie was a wonderful man. But so are you. You’re just as good and precious and worthy.”

He looked at her and winced, as though the light was too bright in that direction.

“I would trade it all to have him back again,” he muttered.

She shook her head. “I don’t think you can make bargains like that. I don’t think you can trade yourself. What happens, happens. We have to use it to make ourselves into better people.”

“Yeah.” He tried to twist away from her, then gave it up. “But it shouldn’t have been Eddie. Not Eddie.”

Her fingers dug into his hair and he looked down into her eyes. He was going to kiss her. She knew it and she knew she should stop him. She tried. But as his arms slowly wrapped around her and he pulled her body close, she could only sigh and raise her mouth to find his.

The moment was electric. They’d come together as though it were inevitable, as though they were pulled by a force they weren’t strong enough to fight. Everything in Kayla cried out with need for Max. In this primal moment, he was hers and she was ready to surrender again. Just like before. She clung to him, clung and arched into his embrace, waiting for the touch of his tongue.

His face came closer. She could feel his warm breath on her lips. Closing her eyes, she sighed and offered her face to him.

And that was when the door to the apartment flew open and Pellea came storming into the room like a Valkyrie.

The two of them stared at her, mouths hanging open in shock, still tangled in each others arms. She glared back, her hands on her hips as the door slammed shut behind her.

“What the heck is going on here?” she demanded.

Max frowned, not letting Kayla go. “Doesn’t anyone ever knock in this place?” he quizzed right back at her.

“You’re a fine one to talk,” Kayla said, sotto voce.

Pellea’s nostrils flared. “I knocked. Nobody answered. I guess you were too busy with this … this …” Her hand waved around in the air but she couldn’t find a word that would suit. Still, her annoyance was clear.

Kayla began to pry herself loose from Max’s octopus embrace and rose quickly in order to show respect for Pellea’s position, hoping Max would notice and follow her lead.

“Oh, Pellea, don’t get upset,” she said, half laughing at the crazy situation. “We’re old friends. Max was Eddie’s best friend. They flew together in the Mediterranean.”

Pellea’s mouth made a round circle for a moment. She looked from one to the other of them. “Wow,” she said. “I had no idea.”

Kayla looked back at Max. He was grumpy and she couldn’t really blame him. But she was glad Pellea had interrupted them. If anyone needed an intervention, it was the two of them. She gave him a look and he slowly rose beside her.

“I didn’t realize he was the man I’d known until yesterday, when I first saw his picture in your office,” Kayla explained.

Pellea frowned suspiciously. “You didn’t say anything.”

“I … I needed some time to get used to it. You see, earlier I had thought he’d been killed in Somalia months ago and …”

“Wait.” Pellea held up her hand. “Your husband was killed flying for the Trialta National Forces, wasn’t he?”

“Yes. He and Max flew together there.”

Pellea looked skeptical. “And you never had any idea he might be royal?”

Kayla shook her head. “Never. I would have laughed at anyone who suggested it.”

“Hey,” Max complained in a low voice.

“Oh, never mind.” Pellea looked at Max, then at Kayla, and shook her head and her look turned thoughtful. “That just makes it all more interesting, doesn’t it?”

Kayla had to fight hard to resist rolling her eyes. “If you say so,” she muttered, wondering what the queen had up her sleeve now.

She was carrying a portfolio, obviously something she’d brought in to show off for some reason. But her attention had been diverted. She glared at the recalcitrant prince.

“I feel like I’m going to have to put a homing device on you,” she warned him.

He frowned, looking rebellious. He glanced at Kayla, then looked straight at the queen. “Is this prince job a twenty-four-hour commitment?” he asked suspiciously.

“Of course,” Pellea said sharply.

“Of course not,” Kayla said at the same time.

She certainly didn’t want to contradict the queen, but she thought they’d better widen the discussion a bit before Max said something he would regret. The look on his face already set the stage for handing in his resignation as a royal. She didn’t think the queen should portray it with quite such a heavy hand. Talk about scaring the quarry away! A little finesse was in order.

“The other princes don’t have homing devices,” she explained sensibly.

Pellea frowned at her. “The other princes don’t need them.”

Kayla shrugged reluctantly. “Good point.”

And don’t you forget it
, Pellea seemed to say with her flashing eyes, though not a word passed her lips. She turned to Max and her face softened.

“Did you enjoy the ball?” she asked him hopefully.

He hesitated. Kayla bit her lip and prayed. For once in his life, was he going to be good? She knew there was a struggle going on inside him.

“Yes, Your Majesty, I did,” he admitted at last. “You put on an amazing show. I was impressed.”

Pellea looked pleased. “There, you see? If you would just relax and see what we’re all about, you’ll learn to love us in no time at all.” She was smiling now, looking at both Kayla and Max with affection. “You’ll see,” she added, and then her smile faded and she took a deep, deep breath.

“But there’s something else,” she said, sliding the portfolio out from under her arm. “Take a look at this.”

Sweeping aside the things on the coffee table, she pulled a poster out and spread it out on the flat surface.

“All right,” she said dramatically, looking at Max. “Now explain this, mister!”

Max and Kayla stepped closer and looked down at the poster. Bright red with startling black writing, it displayed a large picture of Max and the announcement Max Arragen, Wanted, Dead or Alive!!!

CHAPTER FOUR

THE silence in the room was electric. All three seemed frozen in place. Finally, Kayla looked up at Max and asked simply, “What does it mean?”

He didn’t meet her gaze. “I have no idea,” he said softly, still staring at the poster. His mind was working like a buzz saw, cutting through all options and leaving shards of rejected possibilities behind. What could he possibly have done …?

Pellea crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. “Okay, if nothing comes quickly to mind, let’s go over the facts. As you can see, this was issued by the small nation of Mercuria. Have you ever been there?”

He raised his head and looked at the queen. This was a can of worms he would rather not have to deal with, but it seemed he would have no choice.

“Yes. I’ve been there.”

“When? What were you doing there?”

Kayla was glaring at him now, as well. Interesting that they both seemed to assume he must be guilty of something. But then, he probably deserved that. If he didn’t want people to suspect shenanigans, he should have lived a different sort of life. Was it too late to change? Probably. He frowned.

“I spent a few months there last year. I did some work for the government. Actually, I helped them set up their air force.”

Pellea’s eyebrows rose at that. “And then what happened?”

He thought about it for a moment. Funny how things that seemed so mundane at the time became so impossible to explain to anyone. This looked a little more serious than he’d expected. But try as he might, he couldn’t remember having done anything illegal while he was there. He hadn’t robbed anyone. He hadn’t run off with the royal jewels. He hadn’t stolen any plans. The only thing he could think of that might apply had been a broken relationship with a rather beautiful … Well, he wasn’t going to tell these ladies about that. They wouldn’t be happy to hear it. And anyway that had been over a year ago.

He faced them squarely and tried to look candid. “I have to think it over and see if I can figure out what they are actually talking about.”

“You can’t tell us now?” Kayla asked.

He looked at her and shook his head. “No. I’m sorry. You’re going to have to wait until I get a bit clearer on just exactly what they’re objecting to.”

Kayla and Pellea were both staring at him with wide-eyed wonder. Both sets of eyes contained the same horrified expression. It was pretty clear that they both thought that anything that couldn’t be explained right here, right now, in simple language, had to be pretty darn bad. He looked at them both and shrugged, hating to feel defensive this way. Why should he have to explain himself?

But he was trapped. Sooner or later, they would probably know everything about his life—even things he didn’t know. Still, why make it easy for them?

“I haven’t led a perfect life. I’ve done things I’m not proud of. Things I wouldn’t want to tell you about.”

Pellea nodded as though she’d thought as much, but Kayla appeared surprised and troubled. He regretted that. But he still wasn’t going to tell her everything he’d ever done wrong in his life. He wasn’t going to tell anyone.

“I’m sorry,” he said simply. “But I’m going to find out what they are accusing me of before I start spilling my guts and go admitting to every crime known to have happened in the last ten years. You understand?”

He looked at them. They looked back, and it was clear they didn’t understand. It was obvious neither one of them had ever done anything to be ashamed of in their lives. Or not much, anyway. They stared at him with huge eyes and didn’t say a thing. He groaned.

Suddenly, he was a little angry. “You know what? I didn’t ask for this gig. I don’t know much yet about what it means to be a prince. And I’m starting to feel like it’s going to crowd me a bit. I live my life pretty free and easy.” He shook his head, looking from one to the other of them. “I don’t know, maybe that sort of living is incompatible with royal structure. What do you think?”

They just stared and he began to feel uncomfortable. In his experience, women talked over everything. They never quit. What was with the silent treatment? Did they really think he’d done something so awful it couldn’t be talked about at all?

He was about to ask about that when Pellea made a move toward him. As he watched, she walked up and grabbed him by the front of his shirt, pulling his face down inches from hers.

“Promise me you won’t run away,” she said fiercely.

That was a tough one. “Um … for how long?”

There was a pause while she seemed to digest his attitude and realize he was close to an edge she didn’t want to reach. She closed her eyes for a second, then opened them again. “Promise me you will give this a month.”

A month. Could he take a month of this constant royal oversight?

He shook his head. “How can I do that?” he said, his tone almost sarcastic. “I may have to go serve time in East Slobovia here.” He gestured toward the poster, then pulled back and used his most disarming smile. “How about a week?”

She winced and made a concession to reality. “Two weeks.”

He glanced at Kayla. She looked like she was holding her breath. He drew in a long breath himself and nodded as he looked back at the queen.

“Okay. I can give you that.”

She let go and gave him a pat where she’d been grabbing his shirt. “Come to me tomorrow and be ready to tell me everything,” she said as she headed for the door.

“I’ll tell you what I feel you need to know,” he countered as she opened it.

She whirled and glared at him. “Listen, Max. I hope you understand that you must take this seriously. So far, I’ve been able to keep this nonsense out of the king’s notice. But if things get more dicey, I’m going to have to go to him with it.”

Kayla bit her lip, wanting to stop Pellea. Didn’t she see how he resented being talked to like this? Didn’t she notice the sarcastic twist to the corner of his mouth, the veiled anger in his deep blue eyes?

She was actually surprised he hadn’t said anything. He was used to talking back and walking out. It wasn’t going to be easy for him to learn to hold his tongue and take honest criticism. Was he going to be able to handle it?

“Tomorrow,” Pellea said. “And you will tell me all.”

“Or at least as much of it as I know myself.”

She threw back an exasperated look, but this time she didn’t stop. In a few seconds, the door was closing and he and Kayla were alone again.

She turned to him, her eyes huge and dark in the lamplight.

“Max, what did you do?”