Chapter 11 #2
“Stop,” Myriam cut in. “Just stop and swallow your fucking griffin pride already. I told you that she’s not what we thought and I misjudged her too. She put Father in his place and—we were wrong, okay? Just—fuck, I went out on a limb for you here. Can’t you just at least appreciate that?”
Velle flinched and chilled, clearly valuing her friendship with Myriam. She took a few deep breaths and met my gaze. “While I was studying and thinking it was all to take over our family business, my parents racked up a lot of debt. Like a lot of debt.”
Now I understood why Myriam had pushed so hard. Not only did she know I would be sympathetic to Velle… I would see my parents weren’t the only assholes out there who did this to their own children.
“Your parents are alive though, yes?” Treena hedged, glancing between us.
“Yes, but left me as the collateral basically,” Velle muttered.
“I graduated my last master’s program thinking I was coming back to train under my father to take over one day only to find out there’s nothing left.
Nothing but millions in debt with the wrong people.
When it was clear my dad couldn’t salvage anything, he took out a ton of loans from the wrong people and bailed. ”
“Bailed?” I pushed.
“Grabbed Mom and they’re gone,” she sighed. “They basically told me they were retiring and traveling the world with their ‘nest egg’ and to clean up the mess.”
I did some quick thinking and swallowed loudly. “Your program ended the same as mine, right?”
“No, a few weeks before. You had some extended extra thing with your doctorate,” she corrected.
“I found out beginning of June, and at first I thought it was some type of sick test to put my schooling into application. But then they were just gone. Very obviously not abducted or hurt and gone. Left me a damn manual of passwords to access everything. Lists of debts.”
“Well, that is…” Treena simply blinked.
Yeah, I didn’t know how to finish that sentence either. Really, I didn’t.
Wow.
“Okay, to start, I’ll need a list of debts or get them to Myriam if you’re uncomfortable with me knowing,” I said. “And I’ll handle it—or she can on my behalf, but I’ll loop in—”
“This is what fucking pisses me off about you, it really does,” Velle sneered as she tossed her fork onto her plate.
“You’re so full of yourself and—you can’t handle people like this, Sagan.
” She gestured all around. “You’re in your gilded pretty world while the rest of us are in reality and things are dirty and messy.
“You’re clueless as to the real world. No one I now owe money to will give a fuck you’re royal or queen.
They’ll laugh. It won’t change shit and—” she snarled when Myriam tried to cut in.
“No, come on. I know you said we were wrong about her, but I know you’re with me on this one.
You understand more than most. Your dad is like the people I fucking owe now! ”
“It’s not as easy as Sagan is making it sound, but she’s good, and if she says she’ll handle it, she’ll handle it, Velle,” Myriam snapped. “Stop fucking up your chance for help because the only other option is my father and that’s not better!”
I listened to them argue a bit, but they slowly chilled, and I realized it was because they felt the tension coming from Treena and me.
“What is happening here?” Myriam asked, gesturing between us.
I didn’t know how to answer, taking a bite of my food instead.
“We’re trying not to say you two are the ignorant ones,” Treena drawled. “And this is why I never liked you, Velle. This is why I told Myriam bringing you in was a mistake, and that before I knew you came with problems you’re too ungrateful to even accept help for.”
I blinked at my plate and then slowly looked at Treena like she’d grown another head.
She sighed and gestured to Velle. “She’s never been fair to you.
You were polite to her in undergrad, but people—it was always a sea of people who constantly just wanted to talk to us because we were heirs.
You’re a bigger nation than me and it wasn’t an ally of Thovudin.
You were basically a kid and people were horrible to you.
“You tuned a lot of it out, but she never took two seconds to consider any of that and just wrote you off as a spoiled, self-important princess. And she talked bad about you behind your back. I always liked Myriam because while she wasn’t your friend, she kept her mouth shut and her opinions to herself.
Velle was a brat who talked trash because she was jealous. ”
“I wasn’t jealous,” Velle snapped.
“You were,” I said the same time as Myriam, which surprised me.
Velle worked her jaw but then finally let out a slow breath. “I was. Fine, I was. I just—everyone was always focused on you. You sucked all the oxygen out of the room and there was none left for the rest of us. You weren’t the only smart or awesome one, but you were the only one who mattered.”
Treena sighed. “Velle, that was your own insecurities or fixation on her because I was in our class too and I matter. A lot.”
“Look, while I disagree with how Velle is bringing this up and handling it all, we know the world better than you guys do,” Myriam said.
Treena and I shared a look and I was glad we were on the same page. “Myriam, I say this with all the greatest respect and you know I value you. I’ve never treated you—”
“I know, Sagan. I do. But I’ve also shown you where you’re na?ve,” she cut in.
“Without question,” I agreed firmly. I waited until she accepted that and even Velle chilled. “While you never mocked our princess posse or whatever that others did, we’re trying to say there is a lot you also don’t understand. There are layers to who we are, what we know, and what we can do.”
“Yeah, wave your royal crowns,” Velle mocked.
“Shut the fuck up already because I’m ready to kick you out of here and I’m the one who brought you,” Myriam said with a snarl. “I don’t even know what is going on with you or who this bitch is in front of me, but I want Velle back. You didn’t like—”
“It’s stress,” I answered for her, feeling it oozing off of Velle.
“She’s drowning to a level that her body isn’t physically able to handle and she can’t control her responses anymore.
The shell of her is breaking and every little thing snaps her in a way she hates herself for later, but she can’t catch onto any semblance of sanity she’s spread so thin and beat up. ”
And all three of them knew I was talking about myself as well. That was the moment Velle finally lost her aggression and finally listened.
I focused on Myriam. “While the King of Protesia is sending his security to help here and act as your protectors, he also made it clear that if your father upsets me he’d take him out. That he’s a necessary evil holding others back, but he’d handle the Metcalfs if I wanted.”
“Yeah, what we’re saying is it’s not that easy,” Velle drawled.
Treena gave the same attitude back. “Right, but Sagan has an army. Probably the most powerful navy in the world. And they’re like fucking dragons. Everyone wants them on their team which means kings and leaders will do whatever she wants. They’ll make it happen. No matter what.”
Myriam held up her hand to Velle to hold her off. “Do you believe him? That he could do it? Take out our family?”
“Your father and the main infrastructure of your family’s power and wealth, leave whoever was left scrambling to hide with what they could,” I answered honestly.
“He’s not one to bluff, and—I told you that Father knew a lot more than anyone thought.
I knew more than you thought even if I didn’t hide where I was na?ve. ”
“That’s true,” Myriam confirmed for Velle.
I met Velle’s gaze. “We’ve never ignored that we’re privileged or we’re ignorant to a lot.
We know that. What always upset me is you thought the world you live in is the only one that mattered and we were all outdated and pompous figureheads.
So when I prove you wrong, you’re going to swallow your pride and finally pay attention to how na?ve you are.
“You’re going to agree to whatever Myriam wants because she needs at least an ally and help not drowning in the piles of problems I have because I’m not a pretty pretty princess sipping tea and giggling all day in my gilded castle.
And you will start acting with respect and as you should, not because I’m petty, but because that behavior spreads and leads to anarchy, which is dangerous. ”
Treena snorted. “And deadly for royals, so use your head.”
I was glad when at least Velle flinched.
She studied me for a couple minutes and then nodded. “Fine, prove me wrong.”
But she didn’t think I could. It was more than disappointing.
I thought it was pointless, and I gave Myriam a look that didn’t hide where my head was. Still, I’d made a deal and would honor it, pulling out my phone and scrolling until I found the number I wanted.
“Well, this is a surprise,” Prince Olwen’s deep voice said as he answered the call on the second ring.
“I assume a good one given how fast you picked up,” I chuckled. “Just to warn you, Treena’s here to.”
“Hey, Olwen,” she greeted.
“Lovely to talk to you too, but go away so I can flirt with Sagan. I’ve never flirted with a queen before.”
We politely chuckled and Treena said she was going to handle something with no intention to actually do so, the others still in the room as well.
“Seriously, how are you doing? I’ve been worried sick and—”
“I’m fine,” I chuckled. “I’m always fine. It’s the royal family way.”
He sighed. Heavily. “You don’t have to be and not with me, Sagan. I wish… Fucking Kole. That piece of shit didn’t deserve you. I’m going to skin him.”
I frowned at the phone but then mentally shrugged. “Thank you, but that’s—I’m fine.”
“No one would be even if it was just a political match. And they’re pressuring you to—”