by Krista Lakes
“All I was saying is that you should tell Marco he should repeat his childhood laws more often,” Magdalena said, faking an innocent voice. “It's very important.”
“What in the hell is she talking about?” Marco asked.
“The Law of Princely Marriage,” Carlo said softly. “It states that a prince or princess cannot marry someone who is not of royal blood.”
Marco's stomach dropped. “What are you talking about? I can marry whomever I choose.”
Magdalena leaned close and said, “No, Marco, you can't. It would be against the law.”
“Is this true?” Marco asked, turning to the king. “Is this a real law or something that she created?”
“It is a true law.” Carlo stood up from his seat as he spoke. “It's not a scenario that happens very often, so I'm a bit unclear on the details. There may be caveats.”
“Oh, I guarantee you there aren't,” Magdalena said. “Trust me. I've checked into it already. As soon as I got word that our young Prince was fluttering about with a commoner, I checked with the lawmen. You don't have to believe me. You can believe them.”
Marco swallowed and stared at his father. His heart sank.
What if Magdalena is right? What if the law really does say that a noble can't marry a commoner? What would I do then? he thought.
“I need to look into this before I can say what should be done,” Carlo said, taking a few steps toward the door.
“Why bother?” Magdalena said. “You'll find out what I already told you.”
“I'll see it for myself then,” King Carlo said shortly. “In the meantime, Marco, look for Sabrina.”
Carlo stepped out of the room. The door shut, leaving the queen and the prince to themselves. They stared at each other from across the table, like dogs about to fight. The tension in the air was obvious. It was silent for a few seconds, until Marco finally just stood up. He had better things to do then waste time getting in another argument with Magdalena. He needed to go find his fiancée and comfort her.
Chapter 20
Sabrina
Sabrina woke to the sound of rain outside her window. She opened her eyes and slowly sat up on the love seat. A pile of wrinkled tissues was next to her, which she had been using to dry the tears from her cheeks for the past two full days. She looked across the motel room, noticing a drip of water coming down from the ceiling and landing with a soft thud into the carpet. To have gone from spending time in a beautiful palace to this rundown motel at the edge of the island was quite a change for her, but it was the only place she could afford.
She'd managed to get away from Orsino Palace two days before. And after walking for over an hour along the highway and then hitchhiking several times, she found this motel. It was a total dump, but she knew that it would have to do. After what had happened at the ball, Sabrina wasn't ready to face any of the royalty again. In fact, she was still toying with the idea of leaving the island altogether and pretending like this part of her life had never even happened.
Maybe I just go back to Memphis and find a regular old job, she thought, stretching her arms above her head. Maybe this really wasn't meant to be.
“What do I do now?” she asked herself, as she walked to the sink to get a cup of water. “I hardly have enough money to stay here for a few more nights. There's no way I could afford the trip to get back home.”
Her parents didn't have any money, so it wasn't like she could have them buy her a plane ticket. Her Aunt Faye was in a similar boat, and even if Faye could afford it, Sabrina would never ask her to do something like that. So she was stuck. Out of money and out of options.
The only thing that had kept her sane in the motel room for two days was talking to Faye on the phone occasionally. But even that only did so much. Because it was during the nighttime, when Sabrina was left with only her thoughts, that she became extremely depressed about the situation.
She plopped back down on the couch and as soon as she did, someone knocked on the door of her room. She froze and held her breath, listening to the sound of her heartbeat. The knock came again, this time a little louder.
It must be Marco, she thought. Did he finally try to find me? Took him long enough.
She got up and walked toward the door, both excited and nervous to see him again. After a long sigh, she turned the handle and opened it up. When she saw who was standing in the doorway, she nearly fell over from shock. Her head cocked to the side and her eyebrow raised.
“Faye?” she said, looking the older woman up and down.
“Oh, Bean,” Faye said, stepping into the motel.
Aunt Faye was soaking wet from the rain. Her hair was a matted mess on top of her shoulders. She was dressed in just a simple t-shirt and jeans, and didn't even have a jacket on.
“Faye, I was just thinking about you. What are you doing here? How did you find me?” Sabrina asked, her eyes wide.
Faye pulled her close for a hug. “I have my ways. Besides, I've never heard you sound more upset than you did last couple of days. I knew that I had to see you, so I spent my money on a plane ticket and got here as fast as I could.”
Tears fell down Sabrina's cheeks as she held her Aunt. She was completely shocked to see her, but so grateful for her presence. Her broken heart began to feel a tiny bit better just having someone familiar there with her, especially after being by herself for two days.
“Aunty, I can't tell you how happy I am that you're here right now,” she said, between sobs. “You shouldn't have spent the money, though. That ticket must have cost a fortune.”
Faye pulled away and looked at Sabrina directly, her light purple eyes glowing. “It's just money, Sabrina. Some things are far more important. And your happiness is priceless to me. I'd spend every dime I have on it.”
“I still can't believe you're here,” Sabrina replied, looking her over. “You're soaking wet. Let me get you a towel.”
She turned and ran to the bathroom to get Faye a dry towel. When she returned, she found Faye sitting in the small chair near the front door.
“Here you go, Aunty.” Sabrina handed her the towel and Faye used it to dry her hair.
As soon as she was done, Faye said, “Now that I'm here, we need to discuss your situation.”
Sabrina replied instantaneously. “I want to go home.”
“Back to Memphis?” Faye asked, looking shocked by Sabrina's sudden decision.
“Yes,” she said. “I've been going back and forth for two days now, but seeing you makes me realize that there's still a place on earth where people love me. It's home. It may not be the nicest place in the world, but at least the people there understand me.”
Faye slowly pushed herself up from the chair and approached Sabrina. She seemed a bit weary and Sabrina placed her hands on her shoulders to help her balance.
“You should sit, Aunty,” Sabrina said. “You must be exhausted from the trip.”
“Nonsense,” Faye said. “I'm fine. But you must listen to me, child, because I didn't fly all the way out here just to take you home. In fact, I came here to do just the opposite.”
“What do you mean?” Sabrina asked.
“I've been alive a long time, Sabrina,” Faye said. “And during that time, I've been in love. Not all of the time, of course. But some of it. Enough to know that true love is a rare thing and not everyone is lucky enough to experience it.”
“It's very rare indeed,” Sabrina agreed. “But I don't know what you're getting at, Faye. I'm not in love, apparently. If Marco loved me, why isn't he here right now?”
“You are in love, Bean,” Faye said, with a smile that caused the skin around her eyes to wrinkle. “You might be upset right now, but that doesn't mean you're not in love. The way you spoke of Marco over the past few weeks told the whole story. I've never heard you so happy and excited about life.”
“That was before everything went to hell.” Sabrina wiped the tears from her cheeks. “That was before I learned how awful people can be. You should hav
e seen it, Faye. I've never been so embarrassed in my life as when Queen Magdalena ripped my dress and shouted at me in front of the entire party.”
“I know, love, but you're not seeing my point,” Faye replied. “This is one moment in time. Queen Magdalena ripping your dress and you running off and Marco not chasing after you. It all happened within a few minutes. But what's a few minutes in the scheme of things? It's nothing. Do you really want to sacrifice potential love and an amazing future for a few minutes of friction?”
“But Faye, you were the one who first warned me about dating a nobleman, remember?” Sabrina asked, putting her hands on her hips.
“Yes, but that was before I looked at the whole picture,” Faye said, walking toward the kitchen. “I've thought long and hard about this and I truly believe that you need to give Marco another shot.”
Sabrina followed her Aunt to the kitchen and watched as she made herself a cup of tea.
“Faye, he didn't even come and say anything to me after Magdalena attacked me,” she said. “He just stood there arguing with her. And I've been here for two days and he hasn't shown up. He's the Prince, for crying out loud. You can't tell me that he hasn't been able to find me. You found me, why can't he?”
Faye spun around and raised an eyebrow. “I found you because you told me where you were staying.”
“Fair enough.” Sabrina shrugged. “But still. If Marco wanted to locate me, then he could. His family owns the island.”
“Bean, I understand you're mad at him, but I'm asking you to try to forgive him,” she said. “I know for a fact that he would be here right now if he could be.”
“Why are you sticking up for him?” Sabrina asked. “And what do you mean he'd be here if he could be? What's stopping him?”
Faye strolled back to the living room and took a seat on the love seat. “Sabrina, there are things that you don't know about me. I'm sure you've wondered how it is that I knew so much about royal families. I never told you much about my past, because I never wanted to relive any of it.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, that if things went the way you say they did, he has to do damage control. Magdalena shouted to a ballroom full of powerful people that you only wanted to usurp the throne.” Aunt Faye shrugged. “He can't just go on national television asking for you, especially with the Law of Marriage hanging over him. Give him time to come up with a plan.”
Sabrina grabbed the chair next to the front door and brought it over in front of her Aunt. She sat down and leaned forward, listening intently.
“How do you know how this works? Tell me everything, Faye,” she said. “Please.”
Aunt Faye took a deep breath in and let it out with a long sigh.
“You've always known me as your neighbor,” Faye said. “And same with your parents. After moving into the trailer park, I told myself that I'd keep my past a secret. But now, my past seems more relevant than ever.”
“What do you mean?” Sabrina asked.
“You may find this surprising, but I wasn't always just an old lady living in a trailer. When I was younger, I was married to a nobleman. A lord to be exact.”
Sabrina lips parted from shock, but she stayed silent.
“Yes, I was part of a royal family when I lived in Britain,” she continued. “I was married to a British Lord by the name of James Dunhill. I loved the man deeply, despite the fact that he was arrogant beyond belief. I saw through that one fatal flaw the best I could and did everything I could to continue the relationship with him.”
“Faye, are you serious?” Sabrina asked. “How did I never know this about you?”
“Like I said, I never saw the need to bring it up,” she said.
“I didn't mean to interrupt,” Sabrina said, leaning in a little closer. “Please, continue.”
“I met James in a park one afternoon,” Faye said. “It was the summer after I graduated high school. I still remember the dimples on his cheeks when he smiled and the way his eyes first lit up when he saw me. We got to talking and one thing led to another. The next thing I knew, a few years had passed and we were married. I was part of the royal family.”
“What happened?” Sabrina asked.
“We grew up,” Faye said. “I never really learned to be a lady, though I did try. We had a daughter and after that, something changed in James. I couldn't ever figure out exactly what it was, but he just wasn't the same. He pretty much ignored me for the first year of our daughter's life and then one day, I was escorted off the palace grounds by the guards. They took me back to my old home in Britain and I was told to never contact James again, or else I'd be harassed by the law. That was when I decided to move to the United States. I wanted, and needed, a new beginning.”
“I knew you had a daughter, but I didn't know the circumstances,” Sabrina said, looking down at the floor. “I'm so sorry, Faye. That had to have been so difficult.”
“Don't be sorry for me, Bean,” Faye said, with a soft chuckle. “I'm glad things worked out the way that they did. Everything happens for the best and we can't predict the future.”
“I don't mean to be rude, Faye, but why do you want to me to continue trying to be with Marco when your similar experienced ended with such heartbreak?” Sabrina asked.
“Because I don't believe that James and Marco are similar at all,” she said. “What you've told me of Marco has painted a picture in my mind of a man who knows how to treat a lady. He sounds like the kind of man that any girl would be proud to be with. James wasn't a villain, but he certainly was never charming or kind. In fact, he was quite the opposite. I loved him, but it wasn't the same as you and Marco. I truly believe that what you have with him is something special and I won't allow you to throw it away without giving it another shot.”
Sabrina was surprised by the words. She thought Faye would have been delighted by the news of her wishing to return home. Clearly, though, her aunt saw something in Marco that even Sabrina may have overlooked.
“I guess you're right,” Sabrina said. “I suppose that I can forgive Marco, since he really didn't do anything that bad. But even if I do, what about Magdalena? If I am to stay here, how can I possibly get along with her? She hates me with every ounce of her being, Faye. She'd rather see me die than get married to Marco.”
Faye nodded and took a slow sip of her tea. “She'll get over it. It may take her a while, but she will. I'm confident of that.”
“How are you so sure?” Sabrina asked.
“She's my daughter,” Faye said, abruptly.
If Sabrina had been standing, she'd have fallen over right there. Faye's words hit her eardrums, but the reality of what she had said took a moment to soak in.
“You're going to have to say that again,” Sabrina said, shaking her head. “Because I'm pretty sure that I heard you wrong.”
“You heard me correctly,” Faye said, drawing out a long breath. “Magdalena is my biological daughter.”
“Magdalena. Like Queen Magdalena?” Sabrina placed her palms against her forehead. “You've got to be kidding me.”
“I wish I was, but it's true,” Faye said. “It's another reason why I wanted to fly out here to tell you everything. I had to tell you in person.”
“But you said that James left you when your daughter was only one,” Sabrina said. “How do you know Magdalena is yours?”
“My entire family still lives in Britain, Bean,” Faye explained. “They've kept me up to date on the latest gossip ever since I moved to the States. Although I never really knew Magdalena, she's still my daughter. I tried to learn as much as I could about her. I always hoped that James would raise her right and lead her to a good life, but all I've heard is that she's as spoiled rotten as they come.”
Sabrina leaned back and closed her eyes. The news hit her like a ton of bricks.
What are the chances of this? Is the world really this small? she thought.
“So let me get this straight,” Sabrina said. “You're the mother of Queen
Magdalena of Orsino?”
Faye chuckled. “Yes, Sabrina. I am. I know it's a bit of a shock, but I hope you can understand why I haven't been able to tell you until now. When you called me from Hawaii and told me that Marco, your new boss, was the Prince of Orsino, I nearly fell out of my chair. I've never met him, but I've definitely heard of him. I guess he's technically my step grandson.”
“And here I was, thinking that things couldn't get any more interesting,” Sabrina said, finally opening her eyes.
She sat for a moment, just contemplating everything. Then she turned to face Faye.
“Can I ask you a question, Aunty?”
“Of course, anything,” Faye said.
“How on Earth did Magdalena become such a rotten person when she had a mother as amazing as you?” Sabrina asked. “I know you weren't around to raise her, but certainly there has to be something genetic that could have been passed down. Something positive.”
Faye laughed hard and set down her cup of tea on the coffee table. “There's always a bad apple in every bunch. That's about the best explanation I have.”
Sabrina smiled for the first time in two days. Somehow, her Aunt Faye could always manage to find the humor in every single situation. Even if the situation was as bizarre as the one they currently faced.
“You really think I should fight for him, huh?” Sabrina asked, already knowing the answer. “Even with the law saying I don't have a chance?”
“I wouldn't have flown ten thousand miles if I didn't believe in it,” Faye replied. “Some things are worth fighting for, Sabrina. And if you give up on those things, you'll spend the whole rest of your life regretting it. Laws can change.”
Sabrina sat down next to her Aunt and wrapped her arm over her shoulder. She held her close, burying her face into her neck.
“I don't know what I'd do without you, Faye,” she said. “Thank you for everything you've ever done for me.”
“You're the daughter I always wanted, Bean,” Faye said, with a sniffle. “You're what gets me out of bed in the morning. So really, it's me who should be thanking you.”