Chapter 13 #2
“Did you see her too?” I ask, excited that someone else might have seen her as well and I’m not losing my mind. Or maybe I should be sad because it could mean that I’ve already lost my marbles. Shit. I don’t even know.
“Who?”
“The woman,” I shout.
“What woman?”
“The woman I was following,” I tell him. “She was tall and blonde, and she wore a blue dress.”
“I didn’t see her.”
“Rats. Neither did the people I asked.”
“You shouldn’t be questioning people like that,” he says. “It’s unseemly.”
“Who cares? I think it’s Suzanne,” I tell him as he leads me back toward the main part of the party.
“Why would she be at this function?” he asks.
“I don’t know, why wouldn’t she be?” I struggle to keep up with his long-legged stride.
“She knows she can’t get to the King through you or his sister,” he explains in a whisper so only I can hear and not everyone else. “Her better bet would be to go to the event that the King or his brother are attending.”
“Thanks for making me feel irrelevant,” I say.
Leo rolls his eyes. “That’s not what I meant. Besides, I thought you said she was dead.”
“She is dead.”
“Then why would she be at this block party on the far end of the island?” he asks like it’s the most rational question in the world.
“I see what you did there, and I’m not arguing with you about this.”
“That’s fine because it’s time to leave. You need to prepare for today’s investiture,” he says. “So, it doesn’t matter who was in the blue dress after all.”
“This feels wrong,” I tell him. “Something is very wrong.”
“And if that’s the case, then it will still be wrong tomorrow. Or better yet, next week when I can get a chance to look into it,” he says.
“By then I’ll be in some padded cell,” I tell him. Leo just stares at me. “Ugh, fine, I’m being annoying. I’ll be annoying again later.”
“I’m counting on it, Your Highness.”
“You better,” I tell him as I climb into the backseat of the car after Dahlia while the driver stoically holds the door open for me. The door shuts behind us, and I settle in for the drive back to the castle.
“What was all that about?” Dahlia asks as Leo and the driver climb into the vehicle and the rest of the protection detail assemble in the vehicle behind ours.
“I thought I saw Suzanne,” I admit to her, watching the world go by as we drive back through the villages that make up the island.
“I thought you said you thought she was dead?” she asks me.
“Why is that the first thing everyone always says?” I mutter to myself.
“Because you said you saw her die and she’s not dead,” she explains. “Everyone is super worried about you by the way. Hey, do you think we could get burgers on the way home, I’m starving.”
“Wait… What?”
“I asked if you think they’d swing through for burgers on the way home because I’m starving,” she says.
“No, not about the burgers, before that?”
Dahlia tips her eyes to the side while she thinks. “You mean when you asked why everyone asks why you think you saw Suzanne because you also said she’s dead?” she asks me.
“No, after that.”
“Um, the part where I said because she’s not dead?”
“Exactly,” I shout. “What do you mean that she’s not dead?”
“She’s at the castle,” Dahlia explains.
“What do you mean she’s at the castle?” I gasp. “Everyone has been looking for her since she tried to kill me at my wedding reception!”
“She tried to kill you?” Dahlia asks.
“Your Highness, that was need to know information,” Leo says pointedly.
“Dahlia isn’t need to know?” I ask.
“Yeah, why am I not need to know?” she snaps at him. The look on her face makes me think poor Leo is about to be in the doghouse with Sammy. Dang.
“Okay,” I say, clapping my hands. “Let’s get back to the part where Lady Thomley is at the castle. Did you know she was there, Leo?”
“No, ma’am, I did not.”
“What about the part where she tried to kill you?” Dahlia snaps.
“She gave me a lip gloss with bee venom in it,” I explain, and she lets out a gasp. “How do you know she’s at the castle? Have you seen her?”
“Ugh, no,” she answers. “I’ve been avoiding everyone other than the people in this car right now.”
“That’s entirely valid,” I tell her.
“Can we stop with the fecking group therapy? And Dahlia tell me how you bloody know that Lady Thomley is in the castle before I lose my fecking mind?” Leo snaps.
“Oof,” I say with wide eyes. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this mad.”
“He was this mad the last time I came home stinking drunk,” she says.
“That’s also valid because you were not being the smartest and I say that with all the love in my heart,” I tell her.
“I know,” she says, continuing our little bubble of conversation before leaning in and wrapping her arms around me. I instantly reciprocate and hug her right back.
“Someone start fucking talking,” Leo shouts. “This isn’t a bloody game.”
“Huh?” Dahlia asks.
“I think he wants to know how you know that Suzanne is in residence when you haven’t seen her,” I explain to Dahlia before looking back at Leo. He nods so I continue. “Also answer quick because the stroke vein in the side of his head is pulsating. I don’t think he’s happy with us right now.”
“I’m not,” he says.
“Oh! Well I’ve heard people talking about her,” she explains.
“Like what?” he asks.
“Mostly like how entitled she is or how demanding she is,” Dahlia answers.
“Who did you hear saying those things?” he asks.
“The household staff, mostly. I know I’ve heard Maeve mention her demanding her clothes be steam cleaned and ironed. Thought she could do alterations on a gown for the ball. Maeve was annoyed,” she says.
“I bet she was,” I mutter.
“We need to get you back to the castle for the investiture,” Leo says.
“This means no burgers, doesn’t it?” Dahlia asks.
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“Dammit,” she says, and I laugh.
“This is serious,” Leo says to me. “You need to be secured once we arrive at the castle and only open the door to known safe people: me, the King, and Maeve—”
“Ahem,” Dahlia interrupts.
“And Dahlia,” he says. “Safety in numbers is probably not a bad idea anyway.”
“Oh, yay,” she says with mock excitement. “We can die together like the lovers in The Notebook.”
I snicker until I get a look at Leo’s stern expression and then agree, “I won’t let anyone in no matter what.”
When we arrive at the castle, we pull into the private entrance on the far side of the building.
The vehicle containing the rest of our protection detail parks behind us, and men spill out to provide the security coverage Leo requested as we drove up the hill to the castle.
Once they’re in place, Leo pulls open my door and we slide out, ducking and rushing to the door.
I don’t bother to ask why we’re taking evasive actions.
No one has tried to shoot me; they simply tried to poison me and kill me in a manufactured car accident.
In fact, no guns have ever involved. Once we’re in the hallway, Dahlia’s suites come up first and she steps inside.
“I’ll see you in a few hours,” she says to me.
I nod to her before the door closes with a snick of the lock behind her.
Then Leo rushes me down the hall to my suite where I produce the heavy key from my purse and open the door.
He makes sure that the rooms are safe which, they are because Rhys is already in them with my sweet pets.
When Rhys sees the look on Leo’s face, he jumps to his feet from where he was reclined on the sofa and comes over to pull me into his arms.
“What’s happened?” he orders.
“I mean… what hasn’t happened?” I ask and then press my lips closed because flippant responses are not welcome here.
“I thought I saw Lady Thomley in the crowd during the block party we were at,” I explain. And when he looks at me with concern I continue. “Yeah, yeah. I know. One way trip to the funny farm… but not yet.”
“Hen,” he starts, but I don’t let him continue.
“That’s not all,” I explain. “She wasn’t there and no one saw her. I asked. But then in the car on the way home, Dahlia asked for burgers and honestly, I wish we had stopped because I’m starving.”
“Hen,” he warns.
“I’m nervous, all right?” I snap. “And a turkey sandwich wouldn’t hurt either. Anyway, she asked what Leo and I were mad about, and I said I saw Suzanne. She said, ‘I thought you said she was dead.’ And I said, ‘I did say she was dead.’ And Dahlia said, ‘That’s silly because she’s here.’”
“What?” he roars.
“I know, right?”
“We need to find her,” he tells Leo.
“I’m going to assemble a team and search for her right now,” he says.
“The investiture is this afternoon,” Rhys adds. “Until we know where Lady Thomley has been hiding and who gave her the orders to harm Stella, say nothing. We continue as planned.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Leo says before leaving.
“So, a turkey sandwich?” he asks me as he pulls me back into his arms and holds onto me tightly.
“I’m starving,” I tell him. “There was food everywhere and I meant to grab a cupcake, but I was dancing around the maypole with the kids and having a ball. I forgot to eat when I thought I saw Suzanne and I chased after her.”
“Stella—” he starts.
“I know, I know,” I tell him. “Leo already yelled at me. I know. No more running off.”
“Ever.”
“Ever,” I agree.
He picks up the antique phone in the sitting room and orders a late lunch. When he hangs up, he pulls my jacket off of me and tosses it aside.
I scoop up my cat and flop myself down on the sofa. Honestly, today has already been kind of a lot and it’s only half over. This life has a learning curve that I wasn’t prepared for.
He sits down next to me and grabs my foot, tipping me around so that he can slide my wedge off of my foot and then grabs the other to do the same. He rubs one foot and then the other while I snuggle my fluffy boy.
“So how was your block party?” I ask.
“A lot less eventful than yours,” he says just as there’s a knock on the door. “Come in,” he calls out.
A maid walks in and delivers a tray laden with huge club sandwiches, potato chips, and fruit along with drinks. She sets it on the coffee table in front of us before making her way out.