“No,” I said, bile rising in the back of my throat. “I’m not going with him.”
“Relax, princess,” Duke Mackenzie said. “Nothing bad will happen to you in our care. This trip is strictly business, not pleasure. This is Robert Johnson,” he said, gesturing to a muscular man with a long scar from his cheek to his collarbone and a crooked nose. “And the man you’re having the adverse reaction to is Duke Hendrix.”
“No one will harm you,” Frank said. He shook each man’s hand and approached me on the stairs. “These are the best men for the job. And you’re the best person to keep Amelia from panicking. Everyone has their part to play. Can you do this?” He stared me in the eyes, nearly level with me on the bottom step and in high heels.
I nodded with a gulp. I wished Kale was there. Maybe he’d try to talk me out of going… and I’d listen to him. I didn’t have a panic device this time and would be getting into a jeep with two men who would need very little motivation to switch me raw in the hot desert sun.
Frank put his hand on my shoulder as he passed to go back inside. “Everything will be fine.”
“You coming, princess?” Mackenzie called while he climbed into the driver’s seat. “We’re wasting daylight.”
I took a deep breath, descended the last step, and walked carefully through the dirt to reach the jeep. Robert got in the front and Duke Hendrix climbed into the back seat opposite me. All my better senses screamed as I closed the door and glanced over at this new, abusive Duke.
He caught me looking and returned the gaze, first eye-to-eye, then his eyes traveled down my body.
“You have very pretty feet,” he said.
My skin crawled from the gravelly tone of his voice—the kind of voice that elicited nightmares. He must not have spoken during my short time in the limo. That voice would not have been easily forgotten.
I adjusted the skirt of my dress, which was not long enough to cover my feet, and crossed my legs toward the door. I turned my attention to the world outside the window and tried to focus on Princess Amelia, the whole reason I was there.
The men in the front seat prattled on throughout the morning, but Duke Hendrix and I remained quiet. Even though much of the drive through the Outlands was on an old highway, the road was cracked and riddled with potholes. I was glad I hadn’t eaten much for breakfast, but I was still beginning to feel nauseous. The air conditioning was running, but not much of the cool air made it to the back seat. I felt I’d be useless by the time we got to the palace.
After a few hours of deserted open road, we came upon another abandoned jeep. Duke Mackenzie stopped a few yards away from it and got out. Robert joined him, leaving me alone in the vehicle with Duke Hendrix. I felt far too claustrophobic and vulnerable sitting alone with him and burst out of the jeep seconds later.
Duke Mackenzie and Robert already had the doors to the other jeep open and were peering inside. All four tires were flat and several windows broken. As I walked closer, I noticed the splattering of blood on the road and shivered at the thought of what had happened there.
“Anything?” Duke Mackenzie asked, on the far side of the jeep.
“Nothing,” Robert said.
Duke Mackenzie walked around the jeep and out into the dirt. “He’d thrown his gun over here and it’s gone too.”
“What about the blood?” Robert asked.
“That wasn’t there when I left.”
“Who was here?” I asked.
“This is where your boyfriend ambushed us,” Duke Mackenzie said. “Ramsey is gone.”
“Dead?” I asked.
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you? He might be. It’s tough terrain out here. But then again, he’s a tough ol’ bastard. I’m betting this blood isn’t even his.”
I could only hope it was. Maybe it was always asking too much just to be rid of him; maybe the only way to fully be rid of Master Ramsey was for him to be dead. If they ended up finding him, then I was sure it would be the end of me. There seemed to be nowhere I was safe.
Robert took a pair of binoculars from the glove compartment and surveyed every direction.
“Anything?” Duke Mackenzie asked.
“Nothing,” Robert answered.
Duke Mackenzie was quiet when he got back in the jeep and we drove in silence all the way to the fence. As we approached it, Duke Mackenzie ordered me to lie down. I glanced at Duke Hendrix and scowled.
“There isn’t enough room back here,” I complained.
“Then put your head in his lap,” Duke Mackenzie said. I don’t care how you lie down, I just want you down, in a position where you won’t be recognized by the cameras.”
Now Duke Hendrix was grinning like a fiend.
There was no chance in hell I was putting my head in his lap.
I scooted down as far as I could with my head against the door as we approached the Westeria border fence.
Duke Mackenzie didn’t even have to stop at the gate. Peering up, I could see it opening and we drove straight through. It seemed we were entering the Kingdom legally.
While I was still down, I felt the back of my skirt lift up and a sweaty hand brush the back of my bare leg.
“Don’t touch me!” I yelled and jumped back to a seated position.
“What the hell, guys,” Duke Mackenzie said, exasperated. “We don’t need any extra attention.”
“I was just fixing her skirt to keep her decent,” Duke Hendrix said. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”
I scooted as close to the door as I could, fuming and terrified of my compromising position in the vehicle. A part of me was itching to pull the handle and jump out—but then I’d be on my own, or worse, I’d forfeit my supposed immunity.
After another hour of riding in relative silence, we drove up a winding driveway bordered by manicured shrubbery. A large estate loomed in the distance, somewhere between the Ramseys’ estate and the Queen’s Palace. We drove past the main entrance and followed the roundabout to a detached garage lined with many more cars than the Ramseys had.
Duke Mackenzie parked the jeep in an empty stall in the garage and instructed us all to exit. He led us away from the estate and around the garage’s far side.
“I take it we’re not going inside?” I asked.
“No, princess,” he said. “We’re on a mission.”
When we rounded the far side of the garage, I saw a long black limo—the limo. It didn’t have the sleek and gentle lines of the other limousines at the palace, but was rough and angular, with large and gaudy tires. It was the limo in which Master Ramsey had been waiting for me—as well as Dukes Mackenzie and Hendrix. I remembered there being a fourth passenger that night, another set of hands hungry to hurt me. Now I was just waiting for him to rear his ugly face.
“Don’t go frigid on me now, princess,” Duke Mackenzie said. “I can see your apprehension. It’s just a car; one that will more easily get us through the front gate and smuggle you into the palace inconspicuously.”
Of course, this was Duke Mackenzie’s limousine. I’d never seen it at the Ramsey estate. And no wonder it so easily got onto the palace grounds—without arousing suspicion.
My heart beat faster with each step toward the disreputable vehicle. I was voluntarily stepping back into that car with the same monsters that had wanted to desecrate my body and spirit… and this time without any sensible protection.
Robert walked around to the driver’s side and disappeared. Duke Hendrix climbed into the back while Duke Mackenzie held the door open, urging me to walk faster.
But I couldn’t walk any faster; I could barely walk at all. I almost wanted to turn and run to the estate, screaming for someone to help me. But what I’d learned from my years with the Ramseys was that I could scream all I wanted and no one would come.
“No one will touch you,” Duke Mackenzie said. “I gave Frank my word.”
“Like I can trust your word,” I spat, stopping before him, looking deep into the shadows of the cavernous limo.
“Everyone’s loyal to someone, even the most deplorable of us all. Everyone has a weak spot for someone. And I can guess who that person is for you.”
“Then I guess we both know each other’s secrets.”
Duke Mackenzie smiled rather than responding and gestured for me to enter.
“Not one finger,” I said, knowing there wasn’t much I could do if they did touch me—if they decided to fill our idle time with their version of fun.
Just to prove his dominance, Duke Mackenzie placed a hand on my back and nudged me inside before entering himself and closing the limousine door.
33
Victoria
Once we were in the car, Duke Mackenzie remarkably kept his word. I was on high alert the entire ride, ready to bite, break bones, gouge out eyes if either of them dared approach me. Adrenaline pulsed through my body at the level of that first night in the limo, like I was reliving the event. My nails dug into the flesh of my palms from clenching my fists so hard.
By the time we reached the palace gates, I was exhausted, but never before was I so relieved to reach a destination. The guards waved us through without more than a second glance, then I was back on palace grounds as we ascended the long driveway.
“I’ll go first,” Duke Mackenzie said. “The three of you will follow, but stay a few yards behind. If I come across anyone of importance, I will monopolize their attention and the rest of you will continue without me. You know the way.”
“Actually, I don’t,” I said. “I’ve seen the prints back at Frank’s, but don’t have the sub-levels committed to memory.”
“Keep up and you’ll be fine,” Duke Mackenzie said, opening the door. “And if you get stopped, I’ll intervene.”
That sounded ominous. I felt unprepared for this mission, but it was too late to worry about it now. The ride had kept me preoccupied with other problematic situations.
It was early afternoon and the palace was alive with activity. Tents were set up on the lawn for construction, staging, and breaks. An assortment of trucks and vans filled the roundabout.
We fell into line with workers and staff entering the front door. Since we had gotten through the gate, there were no more check points on entering the palace, no one looking to stop and question us. We seemed to belong as much as anyone else.
Duke Mackenzie’s stride was fast and purposeful, and I had to hurry on my clicking heels to keep up. Robert walked beside me, Duke Hendrix a few steps behind.
I nervously glanced around as we passed the front staircase, striding by room after room, expecting to run into someone I knew—or more appropriately, someone who knew me.
But it was Duke Mackenzie who got stopped, by the Queen’s assistant whom I’d seen numerous times during my time here; Tabatha, I believed was her name. She was never without her headset, never more than a call away from the Queen.
Duke Mackenzie took Tabatha to the side, avoiding blocking the hallway; he maneuvered himself so she was facing away as we passed.
“One down,” Robert said in a hushed tone.
We continued past the dining room, then the hidden library, which seemed to no longer be hidden. It was now an open doorway before a short hallway looking almost like an alcove. Beyond it, I could glimpse the bookcases and one spiral staircase. It had once led me to Princess Amelia… but now we were flying right by it.
We made a few more turns, dodging staff members carrying enough items to impair their vision, and we ducked from drones hovering overhead. The last thing I needed right now was to be cracked in the head by another of those infernal message machines!
Then I peered into the Event Room and saw someone I could only assume was Bethany, together with Prince Byron. The Prince’s back was to me, but Bethany glanced up as I noticed her and our eyes locked. I wanted to stop and talk to her, but knew that would only jeopardize what we’d come here to do. We couldn’t be seen together and needed to keep moving.
I was afraid she’d call after me, so I picked up the pace, racing to turn another corner.
“I thought you didn’t know where you were going?” Robert said.
“My sister was in that room. She saw me,” I said.
“Got it. We’re almost there.”
When we turned into another open entertaining room, I glanced back but didn’t see Bethany following us.
Robert marched to the far corner of the room, which seemed to be a dead end. But I knew nothing about this place was as it seemed. He maneuvered past two large, leather chairs kitty-cornered to each other. He bent down and lifted the back two legs of one chair; a section of wood paneling in the wall slid open.
I glanced back at the hallway from which we’d come. Staff members were passing by this room, but no one was paying us any notice, simply continuing with their current tasks.
“Watch your step,” Robert said as he entered the hidden staircase.
Like many of the others, it was a metal staircase spiraling down. A few feet beyond it were concrete walls with dim lights attached, reaching down to the level below. I was careful not to lose a heel on the metal mesh steps as I followed Robert to the cellar—or to what the palace plans had called Sub-level 1.
Duke Hendrix boomed overhead with the heavy footfall of his boots. I could feel him gaining on me and I hurried to keep the gap between us from closing.
“This way,” Robert said, now back on solid ground, gesturing to the right.
“I believe you’re mistaken,” Duke Hendrix said, pushing past me as soon as I stepped off the staircase. “This way will get us to the next staircase; we need to reach Sub-level 2.”
“I distinctly remember the staircase we need as being down this way…”
“It’s changed,” Duke Hendrix said, already starting in the opposite way from Robert. “The staircase is still there, but access to the North wing is now blocked from that direction. We need to go this way.”
I didn’t know who to believe and had thought they were all on the same page. Apparently, it was too much to ask for.
“I distinctly remember the map—”
“And I’ve actually been down here recently. The map has always been obsolete.”
“Fine,” Robert said with an exasperated sigh. “Lead the way.”
Duke Hendrix guided us through the dim cellar corridors. I expected there to be much less commotion down there, but there was plenty of construction work in progress, changing the very layout of this level as we passed. Soon, this way would become just another dead end and another path would be the correct one.
The Duke ended up being right. We continued down to Sub-level 2 and through more dimly lit corridors. There was less active construction on this level, but it was still far from silent and empty. When we came to the end of the corridor, Duke Hendrix turned to the closed door on the left.
“I suppose you’re the expert with this,” he said to Robert.
“It’s a useful skill to have,” Robert said, walking up to the door and removing some small tools from his front pocket.
This door did not have a turn lock on the outside, but merely a keyed deadbolt. Robert kneeled before the door and proceeded to pick the lock. Seconds later, I heard the click of the retracting deadbolt. Robert returned to his feet and stepped away from the door.
“Now it’s your turn,” he said, gesturing to me.
I longed to see Princess Amelia again, and she was just on the other side of this door. And she was no longer a secret.
I was so eager to free her from this prison the Queen had kept her in for all those years and I hoped she’d be better off in Frank’s care. I didn’t want to even consider I’d be making her situation worse. But looking around at my present company, I was no longer so sure.
As I turned the handle, I heard a voice echoing off the walls of the corridor.
“Looks like I’m just in time,” Duke Mackenzie said, strolling up to us.
Without waiting for him to reach the rest of the group, I opened the door and proceeded i
nside.
There was no music playing this time. Princess Amelia was sitting before her electronic reading desk. Her wheelchair turned at the sound of us entering, her pallid hand shaking on the joystick as she maneuvered her chair. I saw the light in her eyes at the sight of me, even though her excitement couldn’t make its way to the rest of her face. Her head remained cocked to one side, the same side of her face drooping like a balloon losing air.
“I thought I’d never see you again,” she said. “Mother said you were gone.”
“Yes, and now I’m back,” I said. “And you’re coming with me—with us.”
Princess Amelia’s eyes took in the rest of the small group, the light in them fading. “What do you mean? Who are these men?”
“They’re friends,” I said, though it was a hard word to swallow. “You’re no longer safe here. We’re going to get you to safety.”
“Where’s Mother? Is she all right?”
I could tell the subtle change in her expression had become one of fear. I had to keep her calm and get her to trust us. That was why I’d been included in this mission in the first place.
“Robert, help me with the tools,” Duke Mackenzie said.
They both disappeared into the hallway, leaving Duke Hendrix behind with the Princess and me.
“Mother’s fine,” I reassured her. “She’s already escaped.” I took a moment to breathe. “We’re taking you to her.”
“What about the doctors?” Princess Amelia continued. “They need to continue my therapy.”
She seemed to actually want to stay locked up down there. “They’re with Mother. All fine. But we don’t have much time.”
Duke Hendrix stepped past me. “My Princess, it’s an honor to meet you. I am one of your mother’s humble servants, the Duke of the 21st Ward. There is some urgency with this matter and we need to get you out of the palace. Will you allow us to assist you?”
Princess Amelia’s eyes moved between the Duke and me. She seemed uncertain but finally agreed. “Please take me to my mother.”
Royal Replicas 2: Royal Captives Page 16