The Secret King

by C. J. Miller

  “You would be queen in name and the Assembly would retain some limited powers.”

  Meaning she would be a figurehead with no power and no voice to speak for the people of Acacia. “I do not think that is an arrangement that will work for my country.”

  DeSante moved closer to her. Her guards were in the room, otherwise she might have felt threatened. “You will regret an alliance with the king of Rizari.”

  She would personally, but she believed it would be best for her country. “They have favorable trade arrangements with most of Europe and Asia. The king is offering us a part in those arrangements.”

  DeSante shook his head. “A part? Meaning you will sell what you have to him and he will take the lion’s share of the profits.”

  Serena wouldn’t listen to DeSante tear down every reason she was leaning toward a union with Rizari. “If you wish for me to consider your position, tell me why you are threatened by this arrangement.”

  DeSante leaned back in his chair. He regarded her carefully. Would he lay his cards on the table? Serena could guess why he didn’t want her to marry King Warrington. The two countries being united would put Icarus in the weaker position. A man like DeSante did not like being in the weaker position. “The king of Rizari wants control of the Mediterranean. He will take Acacia and it will put him geographically closer to Icarus. When Acacia and your father provided a buffer, I had some degree of confidence that Warrington would keep his distance. My country does not want to waste resources defending ourselves from Rizari. We have more pressing goals and objectives.”

  His explanation was what she had expected. “I do not believe that the king of Rizari has plans to attack Icarus.”

  DeSante stared at her as if she were daft. “You have a lot to learn, Your Highness. Your naïveté is refreshing, but I won’t like to see you taken advantage of, especially when it affects me.”

  “I am not alone in making decisions. I have my advisers and the Assembly.”

  “I will ask you to consider another offer that involves your secretary.”

  Serena was surprised he would bring up Iliana. Did this have to do with their blossoming relationship? She had no opposition to it as long as Iliana was happy. “What about Iliana?” She worked to keep her temper calm. She would protect her cousin at all costs.

  “I believe her loyalty to you is preventing her from being loyal to me.”

  “Why would she be loyal to you?” Serena asked.

  “I have power and am in a position to protect her.”

  “As am I. I would never allow someone to hurt Iliana. She is family.”

  “But you must realize that you do not know everything that happens in this region. I receive more intel. She is important and when critical information comes to light, she will need protection.”

  Serena didn’t follow. Was he referring to the assassins who had killed her father and sister? “Tell me what danger Iliana is in and I will see to it that she is safe.”

  DeSante shook his head. “Only I can ensure her safety.”

  “You seem certain of that.”

  “I am.”

  Was he making a threat against her? It didn’t sound as if he was implying he would harm Iliana, yet he was withholding important information. What game was he playing? “If information comes to my attention that makes me fear for Iliana’s safety, I will see to it that I counter any attempts to harm her. But if you are simply maneuvering to have a personal relationship with her, I will tell you that I have no objection to her being friendly with you, as friendly as she would like. You have helped her on at least one occasion. For that, I thank you. But her life and her choices are in her hands. I will not stand between her and happiness, wherever she thinks she may find it.”

  “Would you consider brokering a marriage arrangement between myself and Iliana in exchange for an alliance between our countries?” he asked.

  Serena blinked, feeling more than a little thrown. He could have knocked her over with a feather. “You want to marry Iliana?”

  “Yes.”

  A dozen emotions played through her. She would not pressure Iliana into accepting any proposal or offer her to DeSante in exchange for the union. It let her off the hook, but Serena would not sacrifice Iliana’s happiness for her own. Given her personal struggles, she wouldn’t put another woman in that position. “My answer is the same. It is my cousin’s choice to do what she wants with her life.”

  DeSante stood. “I will not take more of your time. Thank you for clarifying your position on Iliana. With regard to King Warrington, your future betrothed, I hope that you are correct and that he doesn’t have war on his mind. When you realize I am your best option, I only hope it will not be too late to come to terms.”

  Chapter 8

  Serena sat next to Iliana at the head of the table in the formal dining room. They were waiting for her lunch meeting to begin. Her uncle and her advisers wanted to speak with her. Given that she was newly crowned, it made sense to touch base on the most important issues the Acacian Assembly was working on.

  Iliana handed Serena her tablet. “Bad news.”

  Serena took the device from her. Splashed across the local news website was a split photo depicting her with Casimir and King Warrington. The headline said, in bold capital letters, Queen’s New Lovers.

  Serena groaned and scanned the article. The picture of her and the king had been taken in the rose garden before her coronation. His arms were around her. The second image was a compromising shot of her and Casimir. Her face was visible, while his was shaded. It was hard to tell what exactly she and Casimir had been doing, but it didn’t look innocent.

  “Can I ignore it and hope it goes away?” Serena asked.

  “Is it Casimir?” Iliana asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Serena, you have to be more careful.” Her rebuke was obviously out of concern.

  “I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have kissed him in the rose garden. But it may have been for the last time. He didn’t come by last night after the coronation.” And he hadn’t returned her messages. Was it over? She couldn’t imagine him abruptly ending the relationship, but she was unsure and saddened.

  “Is there a way to spin the story, perhaps explain that he’s a friend and the angle of the picture makes it look worse than it is?” Iliana asked.

  Serena didn’t like lying, but stating outright that she had been kissing another man on castle grounds would create massive problems for her administration and for her arrangement with King Warrington. “I should at least discuss it with the king.”

  Serena sent him a message, asking him to call when he had a free moment.

  The door to the dining room opened and her uncle entered. “Serena, you are looking lovely this morning,” her uncle said. He greeted her with a hug.

  Two more of her advisers entered and sat to her left.

  “Your Highness, I don’t know if you’ve seen the paper this morning,” one of her advisers started.

  Now was the time to stop this story from spinning out of control. “I have. I think it is a flagrant attempt to discredit me.”

  Her uncle took Iliana’s tablet from her and narrowed his eyes at the picture. “Have you spoken to King Warrington about this yet?”

  “No, but I will,” Serena said. She was tired of being questioned and prodded. She was capable of handling some matters on her terms.

  Did anyone recognize Casimir? It would be ideal if she could keep his name out of this. Serena didn’t know where they stood, but dragging him into a royal scandal would be the death of their relationship.

  “I want to stay on topic today. I will not address rumors about my personal life,” Serena said, channeling Iliana’s advice to remember her position and stand her ground. Not that she had any idea where she stood. Her uncle cleared his throat as her remaining two advisers entered the room. “The purpose of this meeting is to discuss your personal life and how it will impact Acacia.”

  She was the queen of Aca
cia and that held power. Letting herself be steamrolled by her advisers or lowering her head and nodding in agreement to the king of Rizari’s demands was unacceptable.

  Her uncle slid a thick document in front of her. “Legal has reviewed the terms and conditions and marked the clauses that need our attention.”

  “Is this the king’s marriage proposal?” she asked, glancing at the document. Not that she’d had high hopes from Samuel Warrington’s proposal, as he had failed on the romance side of their courtship spectacularly, but this was dreadful, not even conducted in person.

  “Not a marriage proposal exactly. The forms to become part of Rizari. Our laws must be followed and with your approval, the merger will be voted on by the Assembly. We’ve polled the members of the Assembly and we believe we’ll have majority agreement.”

  “I haven’t seen this document before,” Serena said, feeling caught unaware.

  “We didn’t want to worry you with anything before it was reviewed,” her uncle said. His voice was gentle and in direct contrast to how she was feeling.

  Worry her? She had been worried about this marriage since learning of its possibility. “I will need to read this.” And have more time.

  Her uncle frowned. “We don’t want the king to think we are not interested. The picture in the news this morning will start rumors and he might decide to believe them.”

  The king couldn’t think she would readily agree to anything he proposed. Unless he had deluded himself, he couldn’t believe she was eager to become his wife—or hand over the reins of her country. “I will address this matter with the king.”

  “A few days won’t make a difference,” her uncle said.

  A few days? She’d need a month. Or an entire quarter of a year. Her heartbeat quickened and she felt left out of an important conversation. Did everyone else in the room know about this contract? Was she the last to receive it? Why hadn’t she been told the moment it had arrived so that she could read it and bring her concerns to the king?

  She knew the answer and it saddened her. It was not brought to her because no one felt she was capable. They believed her only asset to her country was her gender because she could parlay it into a marriage to King Warrington.

  “We’ll start the marketing campaign immediately. We’ll need you to pose for pictures with King Warrington in our country and in his,” her uncle said.

  A marketing campaign? “Does the king know about this?”

  The men and women around the table exchanged looks. Her uncle answered. “Yes. He thought it was a good idea for Acacians to see him and Rizari as an ally. Same for the people in Rizari. We want them to trust you.”

  Trust her? She wasn’t the one drafting documents and negotiating with someone else’s life! She took a sip of the water on the table in front of her. The room felt small and crowded. “I need time.”

  When half the room started speaking at once, her uncle held up his hand to silence them. “Please give me and my niece a few moments alone.”

  After waiting for Serena’s nod, Iliana left reluctantly.

  Her uncle might be upset about the picture in the news, but Serena was still the queen. She could hold her ground. If she couldn’t with her uncle, how could she with King Warrington? Or Demetrius DeSante?

  When they were alone, Serena looked between her uncle and the document. “You should have told me about this sooner. I feel blindsided.”

  “And I feel blindsided by the knowledge that you’re rendezvousing with Casimir Cullen in the rose garden,” her uncle said.

  Her uncle had recognized Casimir in the picture. King Warrington may have as well. “Casimir and I are friends. He saved my life.”

  “That doesn’t mean you should sleep with him.”

  Outrage surged hot and heavy in her blood. “That is not an appropriate way for you to speak to me.”

  “Yet I don’t hear you denying it.”

  How had he known she had spent the night with Casimir? “What I do with my free time is none of your concern.”

  Her uncle appeared frustrated. “You are wrong, Serena. You are the queen now. Every moment of your time is the concern of the kingdom. Everyone wants to know what you’re doing and who you’re doing it with. If you’re smart, you’ll stay away from Casimir Cullen and any other man who decides to take advantage of your trusting nature.”

  “Does that mean I should stay away from Demetrius DeSante, too? Because he visited this morning. Do I have to worry that someone will accuse me of sleeping with him? Is that what I am? A woman who sleeps with every man she comes into contact with?”

  “Calm down, Serena. The president of Icarus went through official channels to meet with you. From the looks of your meeting with Casimir Cullen, he did not.”

  Serena held up her hands. “I won’t discuss Casimir with you. I need more time to think about the proposed arrangement with King Warrington.”

  “You don’t have more time. Demetrius DeSante is not backing down. He’s made his position clear.”

  “He thinks that Rizari will use Acacia to attack Icarus after my marriage to King Warrington,” Serena said.

  Her uncle quirked a brow. “That’s ridiculous.”

  “How do you know?” she asked. Had her uncle spoken to Warrington about that issue directly?

  “King Warrington isn’t spoiling for war. He wants to merge our countries for the mutual benefit of both nations. Putting Acacia in the middle of a war wouldn’t benefit us.”

  Serena didn’t know what to think about Samuel Warrington’s intentions. “I’ll need to speak with the king directly.”

  And Casimir. She needed to call him and warn him that their relationship was no longer just a matter of speculation. If the media believed the picture held any truth or if a story was buried inside it, they would dig, looking for information about Casimir and their affair. What other damning evidence was out there waiting to be revealed?

  * * *

  Casimir swore aloud when he saw his picture on the front page of the newspaper. From the angle and graininess of the shot, it wasn’t obvious who he was, nor was it obvious what he and Serena were doing, but it would raise questions.

  His phone rang. It was Serena. He had missed several of her calls, having been working on some issues involving Icarus and Rizari. And since he didn’t know where he stood with Serena, he had wanted to think about his next move.

  He answered with a greeting, trying to sound casual.

  “Have you seen the news this morning? There’s a picture of us in the rose garden.”

  “I saw it,” he said.

  “Are you upset?” she asked.

  It would drive a wedge between her and King Warrington, which helped his cause. But he didn’t want to be exposed to scrutiny by reporters and King Warrington either. “I wanted to wait and talk to you about it.”

  “The picture is hard to see clearly. I hope it will blow over without the media making it into an ordeal. Where are you now?” she asked.

  “In Thorntree.” He hadn’t left Acacia yet. He hadn’t been back to see his mother in a couple of weeks. He dreaded seeing what condition she was in and having to explain why it seemed no progress had been made. “Come by the castle?” she asked.

  He wasn’t sure how to answer.

  “You didn’t come over last night,” she said.

  “You’re the queen. That changes things.”

  She sighed loudly. “It doesn’t have to. Not yet.”

  The worry in her voice struck him. “It’s not a good idea for us to be seen together. Why don’t you meet me at the beach house?”

  “Thirty minutes? Key is in the lockbox attached to the railing.” She gave him the key code to open it and the code to disable the house alarm.

  “I got it. See you then.”

  Casimir drove to the beach house, plotting his next move. He and DeSante were still working diligently to destroy King Warrington, looking for solid evidence of his involvement in the death of Casimir’s father and u
ncle and proof of his launching a smear campaign against his mother. A scandal could bring their plans to a crashing halt. Problem was, he wasn’t sure he could stay away from Serena if he tried.

  Casimir entered the beach house and circled the front room, not touching anything, but taking in Serena’s decor. She liked pale, soft colors and delicate things. He took the stairs to her bedroom. Her bed was covered by a white comforter with ruffles. Her curtains were a lightweight, shiny material. On the porch were fresh potted plants, some in bloom, and an empty easel. She had another easel in her room, this one holding a painting of the sea. He could see the talent in her work.

  “Casimir?”

  He heard her voice from the main floor. Heard her drop her keys in the turquoise bowl on the entryway table.

  “Upstairs,” he called.

  Serena ascended the stairs and appeared in the doorway. “I have terrible news I wanted to tell you in person.”

  “Worse than the picture?”

  She nodded and looked on the verge of tears. “King Warrington sent over the agreement to unify our countries.”

  He didn’t like that, and not just because he wanted to see King Warrington fail. “Unify your countries, meaning you marrying him.”

  Serena nodded. She seemed out of sorts, as if she had not fully considered the implications.

  “What are you planning to do?” he asked. He had a response in mind. She would not sign the papers and she would stand strong and run her country alone.

  She tossed a folder on the top of her dresser. “Read it if you want. I’ll work something out that leaves me with power and ensures Acacia isn’t swallowed into Rizari.”

  She was considering signing the agreement. She would marry him. Casimir hated that on so many levels.

  The truth rose in his throat. Could he tell Serena the truth about who he was and what he’d planned? If he did, she might never trust him again. He didn’t have the proof of Samuel Warrington’s guilt and confessing his motives now could ruin what he and DeSante had planned and worked for. “Have you considered doing nothing?”