by Ember Casey
“Good people of Montovia,” I start again. “Forgive the interruption, but I have some important business to address.” My eyes are still scanning the room, still looking… There! Is that her near the south windows? I can’t tell from here.
“You’ve probably heard a number of rumors these past few days,” I continue. “Rumors about my father, about our royal visitors, and about me. I only wish to set things straight.”
The room had gone dead silent. Everyone is watching, waiting for me to go on. The woman-who-might-be-Victoria on the far side of the room is as silent and still as the rest.
“You may have heard a rumor that Victoria Simpson called off our engagement,” I say, never taking my eyes off the woman. “That rumor is true—but I want to make one thing clear. Victoria acted in what she believed to be the best interest of this country, because though she may not have been born here, her respect and love for Montovia and its people runs as deep as that of anyone here. And I love her all the more for it.”
The woman by the window doesn’t move. She, like everyone else in the room, seems transfixed by what I’m saying.
“I want to make one other thing clear,” I go on. “I still love her with all my heart. And I will continue to do so until the day I die. Never have I met anyone as selfless, as deserving, and so fit to be a future queen. And I will fight for her with every breath, for as long as it takes.” My eyes move from the woman to sweep across the rest of the room. “I won’t let King Maximilian or Prince Reginald bully us. I will fight for Montovia and for its people with all my heart and all of my strength, but I won’t sacrifice our honor and integrity to do so. At the end of the day, those things are what make us proud and great—and no matter what happens, those things will remain. If Prince Reginald and King Maximilian have a problem with that, they can take it up with me.”
My gaze finds Victoria again. “I love Victoria Simpson. And I’m prepared to do whatever it takes to marry her.”
I know this little speech might not make a lot of sense to those who don’t know the entire story and the extent of Reginald’s manipulation, but I don’t care. Victoria knows, and that’s all that matters.
But even as I release the microphone, the woman by the window is moving, sidling toward the door. I must stop her. Must speak to her.
I leap down off the dais, and people gasp and jump back, apparently startled by my wild actions. I can only imagine what the people in this room think of me right now.
But I’ll worry about that later, if at all. Right now, I need to get to Victoria.
I make it halfway across the giant ballroom before the microphone crackles again. At first I think it’s just someone turning it off, but then I hear a familiar voice come through. A voice that makes my blood run cold.
“Prince Andrew,” comes Reginald’s sneering tones through the loudspeaker system. “I believe you and I have some unfinished business to attend to.”
Victoria
My heart is pounding in my ears, and I’m sure I didn’t hear Andrew right when he made his little speech at the microphone.
He thinks I’m worthy of being a future queen. His future queen.
I know he proposed—I suppose I knew all along that he must have believed I was worthy of him. But there’s something about hearing him say the words out loud that makes my heart thrash in my chest and my stomach twist with something that isn’t guilt for once. It feels a lot more like…hope.
Until I hear Reginald’s voice a second later and remember why my relationship with Andrew can never happen.
I head for the door—if I can somehow manage to get away, maybe Andrew will let this all go. He might think our relationship is worth fighting for, but it definitely isn’t worth going to war for. Why can’t he understand that?
For some reason, the crowd parts for Andrew and he rushes toward me. I’m not quite to the door before his hand is on my elbow, and he spins me to face him.
“Victoria.”
I stare at him for a few moments before shaking my head slowly at him. “Andrew. Go have your words with Reginald. Remind yourself of why—”
“Andrew.” Reginald is nearly singing Andrew’s name into the microphone. “You aren’t afraid of what I have to say, are you? If you’re truly a man of the people, as you’ve stated since your birth, you’ll come up here and finish this. Explain to the good people of Montovia exactly why you won’t be marrying your precious Victoria.” He clucks his tongue. “Though, I imagine you aren’t half the man you think you are. Perhaps I could show Victoria exactly what she’s missing.”
His crass comments draw gasps from the crowd, and the partygoers seem to be turning their attention back and forth between Andrew and me at the back of the room and Reginald, who still stands on the stage.
Andrew’s voice is a low growl. “I will kill him.”
I reach out and grab him by the forearm, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Andrew.” I shake my head. “Don’t. It isn’t worth it. He isn’t worth it.”
“No, but you’re worth it.” He gazes into my eyes for a long moment. “Don’t you see, Victoria? We cannot allow him to bully us into not following our hearts. We cannot allow him to threaten our relationship or our country.”
The crowd around us has heard every word and starts chiming in their opinions.
“Prince Andrew is right. No one interferes with Montovia.”
“He’s right. We cannot let Prince Reginald have his way.”
“We should all stand up for what is right. We can take back the Amhurst Valley on our own.”
“Montovia! Montovia forever!”
Several people start singing the national anthem of Montovia and after a few moments, nearly the entire ballroom has broken into song.
People are taking off their masks and crowding toward the stage as the song comes to an end. They begin jeering at Prince Reginald. “We’ll fight for Montovia! We’ll not stand for this!”
“War it is then, people of Montovia.” Reginald laughs into the microphone. “Unless, of course, Prince Andrew would like to come fight this battle on his own.” He grins in our direction again. “What do you say, Andrew?”
Andrew doesn’t even glance at me this time. I reach out to try to grab his arm, but it’s too late. He’s already charging toward the stage, though the crowd doesn’t part for him nearly as easily on his way back as they did before.
He hasn’t quite reached the stage when a masked woman, dressed all in white, comes out of nowhere and places a hand on Reginald’s arm. She probably doesn’t intend it, but her voice is audible through the microphone, and I recognize it immediately as Justine’s. “Brother. We cannot do this. There has to be another way.”
Reginald growls his response. “I’m going to see that Andrew and Montovia get exactly what they deserve. And it’s going to start with me beating the hell out of Andrew, just like I should have done years ago.”
“Reginald.” The warning in Justine’s voice is clear as day, but it doesn’t seem to reach his ears at all.
Instead, Reginald charges toward Andrew, nearly jumping into the crowd to reach him before he gets to the stage. He pounces on top of Andrew, knocking him to the ground before he slams a fist into his jaw.
“Prince Reginald. Princess Justine.” A new voice comes from the microphone, and this time I recognize it as William’s. He pulls off his mask and looks over at the woman standing near the edge of the stage. “I believe I have worked out a different solution with your father.”
Justine turns to him slowly and narrows her gaze, but says nothing.
The two men on the ground seem to freeze, waiting for William to finish his statement.
“You see,” William continues. “After the events of the past few days, I’ve been in discussions with your father, King Maximilian.” He clears his throat, almost like he’s trying to hide his disgust at saying the man’s name. “And I believe we have come up with a solution where everyone benefits.”
Andrew rises to his feet,
straightening his clothing, and Reginald does the same. Both men turn to the stage to listen to William.
The crowd goes silent as well, and everyone in the room is listening in rapt attention, waiting to hear the solution William and King Max have come up with.
William is silent for far too long, glancing over at Justine a little too often. He finally clears his throat again. “Right. Well, we have reached an agreement that will satisfy both our countries. In exchange for the scepter and the rights to the valley, I will be marrying the Princess Justine. Her father requests that the marriage take place in three weeks. It will be a celebration, uniting our two countries for the first time in more than a century.”
Justine’s mouth falls open, and her hands ball into fists. She looks like Andrew just did, ready to throw a punch.
Andrew shakes his head at his brother. “William…” He shakes his head again. “You can’t. You just…can’t.”
William nods. “But I can. It’s already arranged. And this leaves you and Victoria free to pursue whatever it is you wish to pursue.” He smiles, but I can see it’s forced. “You’re free, Andrew. You’re finally free.”
Andrew
William is out of his mind. And to think I used to consider him the sane one of the family.
“You can’t do this,” I tell him again. “It’s absolutely absurd.”
“It’s already done,” he tells me. “The contract was signed this afternoon.”
How long has he been planning this? I glance at Victoria, who looks just as stunned as I feel.
“Why didn’t you discuss this with me?” I demand of William.
“It all happened very quickly,” he says with a dismissive shrug. “I thought it better to settle it quickly and quietly, without further embarrassment for either of our countries.”
So much for avoiding that, I think, glancing around us. The revelers are watching this scene intently, and I can only imagine how quickly this news will spread.
My eyes move to Reginald. He looks as shocked as the rest of us, but there’s still a tightness to his expression, and I know he’s barely containing his anger. My gaze darts about for Justine, but she seems to have disappeared.
“Perhaps we should continue this conversation somewhere private,” I say. “I’d like to hear exactly what you’ve agreed to.”
I know this disappoints the crowd, but none of them are bold enough to say so out loud.
William, at least, seems to see the wisdom in taking this discussion elsewhere. He nods and descends from the dais, coming over to where Victoria and I stand. I turn back toward the crowd.
“Please let us through,” I tell them.
They obey, if reluctantly. Victoria and William follow me across the ballroom. I’m furious with my brother—but if I’m being completely honest, I’m also relieved. He’s right—this does solve all of our problems. Our two countries would finally be at peace. And Victoria and I would be free to marry, without any guilt over the consequences.
I glance over at her. Her eyes are cast down, focusing on the floor a few steps ahead of her, and she’s chewing on her bottom lip as if deep in thought. Now that the initial shock has worn off, I wonder what she truly thinks of this brave move of my brother’s.
We finally make it to a small antechamber near the ballroom, and when I turn to pull the door shut behind us, I realize Reginald has followed us.
“This doesn’t concern you,” I tell him.
“Are you daft?” he says. “Of course it does. This concerns all of us, and you damn well know it.”
“Then perhaps you should go speak with your father about it,” I counter. “I suspect you’ll find a better reception there.”
Before he can argue further, I slam the door in his face, then switch the lock closed behind me. Yes, this conversation does concern him and his family, but my emotions are high enough already without having to deal with that bastard. I need to speak candidly with my brother.
I pause for a moment, waiting to see if Reginald will pound at the door and demand entry. Instead, I hear him mutter something—so low, for a moment I wonder if I’m imagining things.
“This isn’t over, Andrew.”
My fist clenches, but I don’t respond. A few seconds later, I hear his footsteps retreating down the corridor.
Once I’m sure he’s gone, I turn back to face William. He meets my gaze levelly, his jaw set.
So you’re going to be stubborn about this, Brother. I take a couple of steps toward him.
“I want to know exactly what’s in this contract you’ve so recklessly signed,” I say.
“I’ve told you the gist of it,” he says. “But I can certainly get you a copy. Never fear—I had the Senate review the terms before I signed it. And Mother, too.”
“Our mother knew about this? And she agreed?”
“She wasn’t…happy, exactly. But she understood.” William’s gaze locks on mine. “I did what I had to do, Andrew. And I’m honored to do it.”
“Honored. Ha.” I run a hand through my hair. This is madness. “You haven’t thought this through. We’re talking about marriage—”
“You were considering marriage to Justine only a short while ago.”
“But I’m the heir. And you…” I shake my head. “I was raised believing I would marry for the good of my country. I was mentally prepared…” I glance over at Victoria, and my heart fills with joy at the sight of her. “Life threw me a few surprises. And I realize now that the sacrifice would have been too great. But you… I don’t think you realize. I don’t think you have any idea what you’re giving up.”
William is silent for a long moment, and I shift my gaze from Victoria back to him.
“You always hated the idea of marrying a noblewoman,” I remind him. “And this isn’t just any noblewoman—”
“I understand that,” he says. “And I know you think I haven’t thought this through… Maybe you’re right. But I’ve made my decision. This is my chance to do something great for this country, Andrew. And for you. You’re not the only member of this family who gets to make sacrifices.”
“I’m the heir—”
“And you think I love this country any less than you do?” He straightens. “What else should I have done with my life? You’ve always had a purpose, Andrew. But me? My life is just an endless stream of dinners and fencing practice and the occasional Senate meeting. It doesn’t matter whether I’m here or not. But if I marry Justine, if I do this for Montovia…my life has a significance it didn’t before.”
I never thought of it like that, but his argument still doesn’t convince me. I start to argue, but then I feel Victoria’s hand on my arm.
“William’s already made his choice,” she says. “You have to trust him. He’s not a fool, Andrew.” She glances over at my brother. “If anything, we should be thanking him.”
She’s right, I know, but I can’t bring myself to say the words. Part of me still refuses to let him do this.
William has stepped closer.
“You’ve spent your entire life making sacrifices for other people,” he says quietly. “Let someone else make the sacrifice for once.”
It’s harder than it should be. But my brother’s gaze remains steady. Victoria is right—William is a strong, intelligent, capable man. I need to trust that he knows what he’s doing.
I extend my hand to him. “Thank you, Brother.”
He clasps my hand, a grin finally spreading across his face. “Thank you.”
I still have plenty of doubts, but now that I’ve accepted William’s decision, the hope I’ve been suppressing comes fluttering back to the surface. Victoria and I have nothing standing in our way now. We can be together without putting Montovia at risk.
I turn and look at her again, and I can see by the look in her eyes that she’s realized the same thing I have—that there’s hope for us after all.
“I…uh, I’ll leave you two alone,” William says, still grinning.
“You
don’t have to go,” I tell him. “We should go find Mother and—”
“And we’ll do that later,” he says. “Right now, I should probably go find Justine.” He rubs the back of his neck, suddenly looking awkward. “She…uh… Well, she wasn’t exactly privy to the discussions between me and King Maximilian. And she didn’t exactly look that pleased just now to hear that she and I would be getting married.”
Victoria’s eyes widen. “She didn’t know?”
William shakes his head. “As I said, it all happened very quickly.”
Well, that explains why she disappeared so quickly after William’s surprise announcement.
“Good luck,” I tell him.
His grin has fallen, and for the first time, I see a little worry behind his eyes. “I’m going to need it.” But his expression brightens when he looks up at us again. “I hope your night is better than mine.”
Before I can say another word, he’s out the door, leaving me alone with Victoria.
Slowly, I turn back to her. My arms slide around her, pulling her close to me.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” she whispers. “I can’t believe any of it.”
“Neither can I,” I murmur, running a hand over her hair. “But I want to.” I want to believe that she and I have a future together, that we’ve finally made it past all of the obstacles.
“Victoria,” I say slowly. “I know I’ve already asked you this, but I feel like it must be asked again.” I stare down into the depths of her eyes. “Will you marry me?”
She’s silent for a long moment, staring up at me, and my stomach seizes, thinking she might refuse.
Then, after an eternity, she nods. “Yes.”
Ecstasy fills me, and I lift her up off her feet. “You will?”
She laughs. “Yes. Yes, I will.”
I spin her around, laughing myself. Victoria is going to be my wife. Now and forever.
When I’m too dizzy to spin her anymore, I set her back on her feet.