The Prince and I

by R. S. Lively

  “I hear your breathing, Rosie,” he says, walking further into the barn. My sacred place that I share with Luca. I don’t want it tainted because of Graham. I don’t understand what he wants. I haven’t heard from him in months.

  I cover my mouth with my hands and lie on my side. I’m not able to lie on my stomach anymore since the belly decided to show. I crawl with one hand to a light I see on the other side of the barn. It will take a few minutes, but I can get there. I may be able to fit through the divot between the ground and the wood.

  “You know, I’ve been watching you over the last few months. I’ve gotten to know your patterns. What time you eat”—he takes a step—“what time you go on your walks”—he steps—“what time you fuck.” His laugh sends chills down my body. “I bet you’re a good fuck, Rosie. It’s too bad I never got to find out. Why don’t you come out, and we can settle this?” His boot settles right over me, the floor bending and threatening to give from his weight. “I know you’re here.”

  He moves, finally walking to the other side of the hay stacks. I drag myself along the dirt with one hand, staying on my side so I don’t hurt the baby.

  “You know, when I hired you, I thought I had you figured out. But you’re nothing but a cock tease. Did you know, your little stunt cost me my company? I have nothing to go back to in the United States. So you know what I did? I watched you, because he took my company, and it is only fair that I take something that he cares about, don’t you think?”

  I’m so close to the light. I’m almost there. I can feel the sun against my hand. His boot falls over me and he punches through the wood, sending chunks of wood and splinters through the air. Some hit my face, cutting and stinging me, but I don’t have time to feel it. I bolt from underneath the barn, taking the split second that he can’t see me from the dust to run.

  I hold my stomach for support, pumping my other arm to try to go faster, but I can’t. Pregnancy slows me down.

  “You fucking bitch!” A gunshot rings out, grazing the tree in front of me. I trip, falling to my knees, crying out in pain.

  I shrug the backpack off and get my phone, hiding it in my bra. There isn’t a chance I’m going to get away from him. I want Luca to be able to find something, so when he sees the bag, he can see that my phone isn’t there and he can trace it. I hope he can anyway.

  I scream when Graham grabs me from behind. Knowing he has a gun and not knowing where it is, makes me freeze. “You know, if you would have just let me have you from the beginning, none of this would have happened, but you’ve embarrassed me. I have to make an example of you; you understand that, right?”

  “Fuck you.” The threat of my words falls on deaf ears.

  I feel his chest vibrate against my back as he chuckles. Voice void of sanity, he growls into my ear, “Not yet, my fox. Isn’t that what he calls you?”

  Panic and fear seize my chest, while my hands clutch my stomach; when he starts to guide me forward. I’m not worried about me. I’m worried about our little bean. How does he know these things about me?

  “I see the questions running through your mind. That night, when I was in your room, I planted a few mics around. I cut the power, so I knew I had time. You’re so naïve to think I would just let you get away from me.” He pins me against a beaten-up, rusted blue truck. “I want what he took from me, and you’re perfect leverage.” He wrenches open the door and pushes me into the passenger seat.

  He pulls away and I see Jesse and Michael running, no, bolting toward me from the castle, but they aren’t going to make it to me in time.

  Jesse skids to a stop and yells at Michael to do something. I don’t know what. Michael catches something in the air and runs toward the garage while Jesse runs back to the house. I’ve never seen him run so fast in my life.

  A pain cramps my stomach, stealing my breath for a minute. I pray internally, hoping I don’t lose my baby. The pain disappears a few seconds later, but the worry doesn’t.

  My instincts screamed at me to quit working for him, and I didn’t. That’s the last time I ever ignore my gut, because maybe I wouldn’t be in this situation if I hadn’t.

  A sob rips out of me, desperate for them to make it. “Oh, shut up!” He climbs into the driver seat before jamming the key in the ignition. As he stomps on the gas, all I can hope is that this is a nightmare, and when I wake up, I’ll be back in Luca’s arms.

  But the road to vengeance is a bumpy one, and it takes me away from the only sanctuary I’ve ever known.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Luca

  “Luca! Prince! Someone!” Jesse screams from outside. The crack in his voice makes me run down the hallway. When I get to the bridge, I see it is already lowered, and I see a speeding Jesse kicking up dirt, practically flying to the castle.

  Rosie.

  I meet him halfway, pumping my arms to gain speed. I knew it. I fucking knew not to let her go alone. “What is it? Is it the baby? Is she okay? Where is she?”

  He slides to a stop, spraying dirt all over my suit, but I don’t care about that. I can change whenever I want. He’s sweating, causing his long hair to stick to his forehead. “Rosie—” He gasps, trying to get air into his lungs. “Taken.” He bends over, stumbling into my torso. “Michael is following.”

  A loud, painful roar leaves my chest as I bellow my sorrow in the air. I never should have let her go alone. I’ll never forgive myself if something happens to her. I’ll live in regret for the rest of my life.

  “Where? What happened?” He takes me to the place he saw her get taken, and I fall to my knees. Her little knapsack she always takes walking is laying there. I dig through it, searching for anything that can help me find her. “Where’s her phone?” I empty the bag onto the ground, the dirt sticking to the plastic bottles.

  “I don’t know. We tried. I tried to get her, but he pulled away.”

  “He? Who?”

  “I don’t know. I couldn’t really see him. I’m sorry, Luca.” Tears fall down his cheeks and his entire body is shaking. “We can’t lose her. She’s all I have left. She’s the only family I have.”

  I grab him by the arms and pull him to my chest. I forgot how young he is. This must be terrifying for him. “Nothing is going to happen to her. I’m going to get her back. I promise. I swear.” Nothing will ever stop me.

  I debate if I want to call the cops. Do I want to handle the situation on my own and kill this bastard, or have the cops do it where he can rot in prison for the rest of his life? There are so many aspects. Prison can either be heaven for someone, or hell. He could still reach her if he wanted to, if he had the right connections.

  “Fuck!” I scrub my hand over face and press the tracker app I installed on our phones. A green dot moves across the screen, and I cry with relief knowing she grabbed the device before he took her. “Good girl. I’ll get you. I’ll get you.”

  “I’m coming with you.”

  “No, Jesse. You’re staying here. Is that understood?”

  “What? No, she’s my sister! I have every right to be there. Don’t do this. Please.”

  “What’s going on out here?” My mother clutches onto her husband’s arm. He holds a small handgun, searching for the threat.

  “Rosie has been taken.”

  “Taken! We have to call the cops.”

  “No, no time. I want to handle this.”

  “You can’t do that,” my father says.

  “I can and I will.” I take the gun from him and shove it in the back of my pants. “I’m not risking anything.”

  “Just because you’re royalty doesn’t mean you have the right to decide when to take a man’s life. He will get what he deserves. Don’t do this,” my father threatens as he bores his blue eyes into mine, pleading with me.

  “I can’t make any promises. Jesse! Get in the car.” I hop into the Range Rover and toss the phone to him. “Tell me where she’s going.” I don’t bother with a seatbelt. I throw the SUV in reverse and send rocks flying ba
ck, hitting another car, the metal clinking.

  “Take a right out of the driveway and go straight. That’s it for now. I don’t know where he is taking her.”

  I feel helpless. She wanted to have the freedom to go on walks by herself, and because I want her to have anything she wants, I allowed her to be alone. Never again. She will never walk alone. I don’t care what meetings I have to sacrifice; I have to keep her safe at all costs. Plus, it will be nice to get out of the house with her. After this, I’ll take her on all the picnics. I’ll wine and dine her even more.

  “He’s taking a left three miles ahead on Kenare Road.”

  I nod—I know exactly where that is at and where he is going. There’s an old abandoned warehouse nestled in the trees there.

  I switch gears, and the car jerks forward, speeding faster down the road to get to Kenare as soon as possible.

  “Okay, he has stopped,” Jesse says. “The green light isn’t moving anymore.”

  “I hope he hasn’t found the phone.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Well, if he has found the phone, he could have thrown it out the window. And if that’s the case…” I swallow, hating the realism of the situation. “I don’t know what we will do. We won’t be able to find her then. We would have to go through the proper channels.”

  “Fuck the proper channels!” he cries. “This is my sister. I have to have her back. I’ll do whatever it takes.”

  I grip the steering wheel to the point it creaks, so I let off, not wanting to break it while driving a hundred miles per hour. When Kenare is in sight, I pull off to the shoulder a few yards away and park.

  “What are you doing? You have to go down the road. That’s where she is!”

  “Jesse, we have to be smart about this. He can’t know we are coming, okay? We have to be stealthy.”

  “Right.” He rubs his palms on his jeans, sweating like a pig in a boiler.

  “That’s why you’re staying in the car.”

  “Luca—”

  “You don’t get to argue with me on this. Stay in the damn car, and if I’m not back in twenty, call the cops, understand?”

  “Yeah, I get it.” He doesn’t sound very happy, but I’m only trying to look out for everyone’s wellbeing. No big deal.

  I shut the door as softly as I can and take the first step into the woods. I watch every move I make. I dip below branches, step in places that have no leaves, aware of every move I make. Any wrong step, too deep a breath, a sneeze, could ruin everything.

  Pulling the gun from my pocket, I prepare myself for war, thinking back on the day when the note was left on the wall—I should have taken it more seriously. It was an oversight on my part that will never happen again. I searched the grounds, but I should have put a restraining order against him, I should have done more. And now this. God, if this ends badly, I don’t think I can ever forgive myself.

  So much had been going on in our lives, but that shouldn’t be an excuse. I should have been better for her. I need to always be what she deserves, and she deserved better than that man. I’m a prince, for fuck’s sake. My job is to hold myself to a higher standard. I’m not a regular man. People are always going to want to try to get money from us by doing anything necessary, like kidnapping.

  I’m assuming that’s what he wants.

  Considering I ruined his life, which obviously wasn’t enough on my part. Another oversight that I’ll never forgive myself for.

  I really dropped the ball on protecting her, but really, never again. The abandoned shack finally comes into view, and the door is wide open. I can’t see anyone yet, but I do hear his voice. He’s making threats and promises, ones that he will never keep. Not if I have anything to say about it.

  “How much money do you think he will pay for you? How much do you think you are worth?” Graham’s voice echoes out of the door.

  I try to make myself one with the wall and dip down to miss the window, so no one sees me.

  “Five hundred million?” he goads her.

  I almost snort out loud when I hear that number. That’s a drop in the bucket. That’s all his company is worth, or was worth? Pity.

  “One billion?” he asks again, ripping a sob from her. It breaks my heart.

  When she turns her head to look him in the eyes, I can see the fear in her face. Her clothes are filthy, and she is tied to a chair with tape around her mouth. Streaks from the tears, clear pathways down her dirt-covered face.

  “Think he will come for you? Or do you think he will find another whore to knock up?” He rubs the gun against her belly. “I can pretend it’s mine. We can be happy. I can fix this.”

  He is fucking mad.

  And what he doesn’t know is that I’m a perfect shot.

  I step into the doorway, gun drawn, and aim for his hand. I pull the trigger, blowing off half of his hand. Blood sprays against her face, and he falls to the floor, crying, puking from the pain. He crawls away from me as I step closer to him. Every step of my boot brings him closer to death.

  His road to life is going to be short-lived. I cock the gun again and press it against his knee. “You think you can take what is mine? You think you can take what belongs to me?” I ask, pulling the hairpin trigger.

  I blow his knee cap out and he shouts again. Rosie whimpers from all of the violence, struggling against her restraints.

  “You think you can want what belongs to me?” I put the hot barrel against his groin—the familiar sound of the lever cocking the gun is loud in the room, like a pen falling to the floor.

  “P-p-please. I’m s-s-sorry,” he stutters, spit dripping down his chin. “I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry. Please, don’t kill me.”

  “You didn’t let her go when you knew it was the right thing to do. What makes you think I care if I kill you right now?”

  Rosie yells something behind the tape, and sirens rip through the air. Damn, has it already been twenty minutes? “Looks like your plan is being cut short.” I run to Rosie and untie her, carefully pulling back the tape. She whines from it pulling on her skin. “I know, my sweet little fox. I know. I’m sorry.”

  “Luca!” she wails, throwing herself at me and sobbing.

  “It’s okay. I have you. I’m here.”

  “You came for me.”

  I push her back and cup her face, staring her with an astronomical amount of love. “Nothing will stop me when it comes to you. Nothing.” I bring my hand to her belly, worried for her and the baby. “Is the baby okay?”

  “I don’t know. I fell when I tried to run, but he caught me. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Luca.” She cries against my shoulder. I get one last look at the asshole that did this to her. I’m debating shooting him between the eyes when the police run through the door, along with paramedics.

  “Check her first. She is the victim. Let him bleed out for all I care.”

  “Right away, Prince Addington.” The paramedics rush to her side and load her on the gurney. When they see that she is pregnant, they want to evaluate her right away.

  Jesse runs into the house next and sees all the blood. His face is as white as a sheet, but he taps a cop on the shoulder. “My friend has been in an accident trying to get here. He hit a tree a mile back. It’s hard to see from the road. But he is there. I didn’t move him because of neck and spinal complications. Did I fuck up? Rosie! Rosie, are you okay?”

  “He’s going to faint,” she groans.

  And right as the words leave her mouth, his eyes roll to the back of his head and the cop catches him.

  “You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, Prince Addington,” one of the cops says.

  “It can wait until she is out of the hospital. She is my first and only priority.”

  He sighs, unhappy with the news. “Fine.”

  I hop into the ambulance with her, and they load Jesse into another one. I’m assuming one is already being dispatched to go get Michael. He deserves a raise after his chase. They slam the doors, lea
ving me inside of the metal can with the love of my life. I press my hand against her stomach, feeling a small flutter.

  “I think the baby is okay.” I choke a little on emotion I have been holding back for hours. “I thought I lost you. I love you so much.” I lean forward and kiss her stomach, holding onto the small bump.

  “Prince Addington, you have to let go so we can work,” the male paramedic says.

  Never. I’m never letting go again.

  Epilogue

  Luca

  Three months later…

  I slip on my mask and stare into the mirror, shoving her mother’s bracelet in my pocket. We have had so much going on that I forgot it was there. Along with the bracelet, I slip a blue velvet box into my coat pocket and take a deep breath. I’m going to propose. Holy shit, I’m about to propose to the future Queen of Belgium. Why do I feel so much pressure?

  The tux looks perfect. The mask—it is the same mask I wore the night I met Rosie. Tonight is going to be a night full of magic and excitement, I hope.

  She can always say no.

  “No, she won’t say no.” I rub the lapels of my suit; they are shiny, unlike the rest of it. It’s matte black, the same with the mask.

  I head down to the party and see the castle in full swing. Flowers are everywhere, the dance floor takes up the entire dining hall, and caterers are spinning in circles to make sure they don’t get knocked over.

  “You look so handsome!” My mother stands from her throne that is placed right next to my father’s. He hurries up and is there for her when she tries to steady herself. She does it. And a minute later, she is wrapping me in a big hug. “Where is the beautiful Rosie at?”

  “Probably still putting on her makeup or something. She wouldn’t let me see her before the party.”