Crowns & Courtships Compilation Volume 1

by Carol Moncado

  “Look.” He pointed at their feet. “It’s kind of like it’s burying our toes, isn’t it?”

  Another nod.

  So the girl didn’t talk much, at least not to strangers.

  Then it hit him. Kensington knelt next to her. “Mary, have you ever been to the beach before?”

  “No.” The tiny voice nearly broke him.

  “You want to boogie board, because it looks fun, but you’re not so sure about the waves and everything because you’ve never been here before.”

  “Yes.”

  That settled it. They wouldn’t boogie board, not today, but they’d work on getting her comfortable with the water, and someday, he’d teach her. “Then why don’t we just sit here and let it get our feet. If you want to go out a little further, let me know.”

  They moved a few inches closer to the waves and sat down, with their feet in front of them.

  “Do you live in Cabo Juan-Eduardo?” he asked as the remnants of another wave rolled in.

  “No.”

  That surprised him. “Where do you live?”

  “Tiptonvillia.”

  Right in the middle of the big island. “That’s far.”

  “My school came.”

  That made sense. Some of the schools from lower income areas would have their children apply or be nominated to come to this event.

  “What’s your favorite thing to do?”

  Mary drew in the sand with her finger. “Paint.”

  “I bet you’re a good artist.”

  She shrugged.

  “Do you have friends you like to play with?”

  “Sometimes. All the kids in my class are bigger than me. They make me be the baby when we play family because I’m little.”

  “And you don’t like being the baby?”

  “No.” She leaned her head against the neoprene of his wetsuit.

  His head dropped as tears filled his eyes.

  “What’s wrong, Mr. Kenny?”

  He used his other hand to give her head a bit of a hug against his arm. “I have a little girl. She’s littler than you are, but she went away for a little while, and I miss her a lot.”

  “Does she miss you?”

  “I think she probably does. I haven’t known her very long.”

  The little girl nodded, far too wise for her age. “You’re her new daddy.”

  “Kind of. Her mummy and daddy were in an accident so she lives with her grown-up big sister. When I married her sister, she became my little girl, too.”

  “Then I bet she misses you as much as you miss her.”

  Kensington wrapped his arm around Mary’s shoulders. “Hopefully, she’ll get to come home soon, and we won’t have to miss each other at all.”

  “Prince Kensington took some time away from preparation for the Games and looking for his sister-in-law to spend time with children at the San Majorian Surf Festival.” The news anchor smiled. “One little girl in particular seemed to capture his attention.”

  Anabelle watched him walk into the surf holding the little girl’s hand. They only made it about to her knees before she started to shy away. Kensington picked her up and carried her out a little further. Anabelle would have to ask him about it later.

  She turned back to the lunch meeting. “So, we’re agreed on everyone?” she asked. Murmurs of assent came from the other three at the table.

  Holly, the first person she’d talked to, would be in charge of track and field, the largest venue. That decision lent credence to the idea that something wasn’t quite right about the agency. She was the manager of a large boutique that started on San Mediano and expanded to every major city in San Majoria, and a few minor ones, plus several stores in Islas del Sargasso. Her boss had approved six weeks off, if she needed that much time, to work for the Games. Holly wouldn’t get a salary from the boutique, but they were going to give the money to charity.

  It was a marketing coup and would generate goodwill around the country. They already had a reputation as a good place to work and reasonable prices for high quality products. This would only serve to improve on that, while enabling the souvenir stands to be run competently.

  Anabelle began making phone calls, asking all of their new managers to come in for a meeting first thing in the morning and plan to hit the ground running.

  When she finished, she turned to the others. “What else do we need to accomplish today?” Anabelle was overwhelmed by all of it.

  Mr. Lachappelle smiled gently at her. “Go home and get some rest. We’ll finish getting these schedules done and send them to you this afternoon. You can look over them after you take a nap. You’re exhausted.”

  He wasn’t wrong. Despite falling asleep quickly in Kensington’s arms, Anabelle hadn’t slept well. After a few more minutes of discussion, she left, driven by her security team.

  Once at the palace, she started for Kensington’s quarters, but instead went to his office. Bertrand sent her in. He was on the phone but motioned for her to have a seat.

  “Good! I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Thanks.” He hung up. “What are you doing here?”

  “The calls were made, and they sent me home to rest. I stopped here first to see how your day is going.”

  “It’s going well.” He pointed to the phone. “That was an update on a plumbing issue in the Athletes’ Village. It should be fixed by the middle of next week. I spent the morning at the beach, so I’d say it’s a good day, all things considered.”

  “I saw the video of you with a little girl.”

  He sighed and nodded. “I usually work with older kids on surfing, but today, I saw her standing there, and she reminded me so much of Gracie the first time I saw her. I worked with her instead. I don’t know how much they showed, but eventually, I got her to sit on a long board with her feet in the water. I was only in up to my knees or so, but she’d never even seen the ocean before.”

  “And she lives here?”

  “Almost the exact center of the island.” He tapped his pen against the blotter on his desk. “I got the impression she has a difficult life. Her school nominated her to come which means she likely comes from a poor family. She doesn’t seem to have many friends, and when I said I hadn’t known Gracie very long, she just sort of nodded like she knew what it was like to have new men in her life. When I told her we were married and that made Gracie my sister, she almost seemed jealous for a second.”

  He exhaled slowly. “It made me miss Gracie even more.” His phone began to vibrate. “And that means it’s time for the daily briefing. Do you want to come with me?”

  Did she? The nap sounded much nicer than sitting in a conference room and listening to some men say they didn’t know anything new, but she also knew she wouldn’t actually get any rest. She nodded and stood when he did. With her hand snug in Kensington’s they left his office and went to the security conference room.

  His father was already there. “Anabelle! Hello, dear. How are you?” He gave her a kiss on the cheek.

  “I’m okay. Trying to stay busy with the stuff for the Games to keep my mind off everything else.”

  “I’m glad. I’ve heard good things about the work you’ve already done.”

  Before Anabelle could reply, the head of security cleared his throat. She took a seat next to Kensington.

  “Unfortunately, as with the last few days, there isn’t much to report. We’ve tracked down a few leads and are working on many others. Dozens of new ones come in every day. Most of those are suspected sightings that turn out to be nothing.”

  Maybe she should have just gone to their room. To hear there was nothing really going on was far different than just thinking there probably wasn’t.

  “What about the employment agency?” the king asked.

  “Possibly,” another man answered. “Duchess, I’m glad you’re here today.” He tapped on a tablet. “Do you know this man?” There was a picture on the screen he held up.

  Anabelle gasped. “That’s him.”

 
“Who?”

  “One of the men who would be at my grandfather’s house. Not the one with the scar I told Kensington about, but he definitely knows my grandfather.”

  “He’s one of the owners of the agency. With your confirmation of a connection we only suspected, it seems likely they were planning to use the Games as a front for fraud and identity theft.”

  Anabelle’s heart ached. Was there no end to her grandfather’s tentacles?

  21

  “Does he have any connection to Gracie?” The heartbreak in Anabelle’s voice nearly overwhelmed Kensington.

  “Not that we’ve found yet,” the head of security told her gently. “We’re looking.”

  “It’s been almost two weeks.” Kensington put a hand on the back of Anabelle’s neck as she swiped at tears. “She has to be so scared.”

  “I know, but we have to keep believing that they’re taking care of her. Even if she’s not allowed to play outside, she’s getting enough to eat and drink and likely has toys to play with and a safe place to sleep.”

  “Safe except that she’s not home.”

  “I know. I meant she’s not in some run-down warehouse with a roof that might collapse in a couple days. She’s probably in a nice, suburban house with a nice bathtub and her favorite foods.”

  “It’s not the same.”

  Kensington massaged her neck lightly. “I know it’s not, sweetheart, but at least she’s safe otherwise.”

  Anabelle pushed back from the table. “Is there anything else I need to know?”

  The head of security shook his head. “I’m afraid that’s all we have to report, ma’am.”

  Kensington suspected they would go into more detail with his father after Anabelle left. She walked quickly to the door, with Kensington in her wake. Before they reached the outer door of the security office, she’d broken down. Kensington pulled her close, her sobs breaking his heart.

  “She needs me, Kenny. I need her.”

  “I know, love.” Holding her upright, he urged her out of the offices and toward a nearby stairwell. Though not the quickest way to access his apartments, it would get them there.

  Once in their room, Anabelle laid on the bed and cried herself to sleep. Kensington didn’t know what to do but sit next to her and brush the hair off of her temples.

  Jacqueline Grace texted him, and he let her into the sitting room while Anabelle slept.

  “I had a thought,” Jacqueline told him.

  “You’ve been thinking?” He tried to make light of something. “Sounds dangerous.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I know working on the Games has been good for both of you, but what about a support group? People who’ve been there, and really understand what you’re going through. I read some of the comments on the article about Anabelle attending that garden party. Someone mentioned they’d attended a group for parents whose children had gone missing. I wondered if that might help both of you.”

  Kensington went to look out the window. “We’re a fairly small country. Are there really enough kidnappings and runaways for support groups?”

  “Unfortunately, yes. Many of the children who are abducted are abducted by a non-custodial parent or other disgruntled relative. Some of the teens are runaways. Some are lured into leaving ‘voluntarily’ by predators. There are several support groups in the city. Some focus on just one kind of missing child. Some are open to anyone. I can send you the links.”

  “Thanks. I don’t know that either of us will have time until after the Games, and I pray to God she’s home long before then.”

  Jacqueline Grace slid her arm around his waist as she stood at his side. “I pray for that constantly.”

  Kensington looped his arm over her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. “Thank you.”

  They stood looking out the window for several minutes until Jacqueline Grace broke the silence. “Do you know what’s going on with Esther? I think it’s odd she hasn’t come home since all of this started. Even Esme came.”

  “All I know is she was acting odd in Eyjania before Anabelle and I flew off to Athmetis. Other than that, I don’t know.”

  “Father won’t say.”

  “He won’t tell me either. If Mum knows anything, she’s not talking.”

  “I’m sure she knows. He wouldn’t keep something like that from her. They’ll tell us when they’re ready, I suppose.”

  “I guess.” Jacqueline Grace leaned her head against him. “I miss her, though. Harrison, too.”

  He’d left the day after Gracie went missing to attend a summer program at Serenity Landing University. He would be home in time for the Games, but until then only two of the five children were actually living in the palace. It would have been just Jacqueline Grace if Kensington and Anabelle remained at Lowery House.

  “I must admit,” Jacqueline Grace said softly, “sometimes I fear becoming like Prince Harry.”

  Kensington blinked. “He’s grown up quite a bit in the last decade or so, but why would you be like he was in his younger days?”

  “Not then. Now. I’m quite certain William and Catherine both love him and vice versa, and they certainly seem to get along well, but to an outsider at least, sometimes he seems like the third tagalong, you know?”

  “You’re afraid of becoming a third, or fifth perhaps, wheel?”

  She nodded.

  “I find that highly unlikely. Some smart man is going to run into you somewhere, sparks will fly, and that will be the end of you as a single woman. Or maybe you won’t find him right away, but until then, you will continue to be the smart, successful, confident woman you already are. You’ll find a way to make a difference in causes that are important to you, with or without a man at your side. And I can guarantee that neither Astrid nor I, or our spouses, will ever see you as a third wheel.”

  “Thank you for saying so. I appreciate that.”

  He winked at her. “Besides, Prince Harry has a girlfriend, and by all accounts, is quite happy.” Kensington’s phone buzzed. “Duty calls. Do you have anything going on this afternoon?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing I can’t do from here. I’ll have my assistant bring my laptop over and work out here while Anabelle sleeps.”

  “Thank you.” He squeezed her shoulders again. “Love you.”

  “I know you do.”

  His phone buzzed again, but this time indicated a phone call. He stepped away from Jacqueline Grace and pulled it out of his pocket, stifling a groan when he saw who it was from.

  Another problem.

  It shouldn’t surprise him, but it didn’t mean he liked it. At least it hadn’t happened while he was sitting with a crying Anabelle.

  Thank God for small favors.

  Blinking, Anabelle pushed herself into a seated position. Her eyes burned from crying herself to sleep, and she knew Kensington was nowhere to be found.

  “Hey.”

  She turned to see Jacqueline Grace sitting in a chair near the window, working on her laptop. “Hi.”

  “Kensington had a call he had to take. Something about the Games.”

  She nodded. “I’m not surprised. It’s only a couple weeks away.”

  “How’d you sleep?”

  Anabelle managed a one-shouldered shrug. “Okay. Nightmares. Daymares. Napmares. Bad dreams.”

  Jacqueline Grace nodded. “I understand. I’ve had my share, though never in quite this situation.”

  Something about the way she said it made Anabelle wonder what kind of hurt her sister-in-law had experienced to make the pain sound so real. “It didn’t lend itself to a refreshing nap.” Anabelle reached for her phone. “I wonder if they’ve emailed me the information about the scheduling yet.” The message waited in her inbox. “Guess I need to get back to work.”

  “Perhaps, but Kensington did say something about having dinner with you tonight. I think there’s an event or something, but I’m really not sure. He hasn’t committed to much outside of the Games for the next few weeks, though there a
re a few things he would like to attend, I’m sure.”

  “I don’t think I’ll be up for going out in public.” She swung her legs over the side of the bed. “Besides, I’ve got work to do.”

  She headed into the bathroom then to the sitting area when she realized Jacqueline Grace had moved out there.

  “What can I do to help?” the other woman asked.

  Anabelle shook her head. “Nothing, really, but thank you.”

  “You need to ask when you need the help,” Jacqueline Grace told her gently. “That’s part of why we’re here, why you have an extensive staff at your disposal when you need it.”

  Anabelle nodded, but wasn’t sure how she felt about that. She had a job, finally, and needed to do it herself, not pawn it off on someone else.

  Jacqueline Grace looked at her cell phone. “That’s Kensington. He said to let him know when you wake up because you do have dinner plans tonight.”

  Stifling a sigh, Anabelle reached for her phone to call him, only to be sent to voice mail. A text came in telling her he couldn’t talk but that they were having dinner with some important guests in about an hour and a half. She needed to dress nice, but not formal, and they wouldn’t be leaving the palace.

  Anabelle couldn’t back out. She knew that. No more than she could have backed out of dinner with her grandfather at home. Such was part of the life with important people.

  I’ll be there, she texted back. Just tell me where I need to be.

  It took a few minutes for him to reply, but when he did he said he’d meet her in their quarters, and they’d walk over together.

  “Ma’am?” Brittany walked in.

  Anabelle looked up from where she was downloading the information into the scheduling program. “Yes?”

  “I’m here to help you with the program if you need it. Just let me know if you do.”

  “I will.” Anabelle thought she understood how it worked. She could see how many people they needed per day, then zoom in and see how many people they needed per day per venue. Zooming in more would show her how many people per day per venue per stand or store. Further in broke that down by shifts. “I think I understand how this works, but how do we know three people at a time is enough for this kiosk?” she asked pointing to one of the lines.