As we were driven to the elite lounge in a hangar several buildings away, I shot off a quick text to my mother and was grateful that she replied.
Mum? Did Michael arrive? Is everything okay?
Oh, my darling girl, how your absence has pained me.
I know Mum, I am sorry. I just … couldn’t. I am too much like you to ever accept what Papa was forcing me towards. I love him, but I just couldn’t.
I understand. Yes, Michael is safe, for now.
For now? Please mother! Please keep him alive!
I am doing what I can. But we belong to our crowns and must consider what is required of us, first.
No! You must keep him alive! Please, mother, I love him!
I will do what I can. You are my heart, my love. Please, come to me when you can. I will find a way to get you in.
Only if I go in as myself. No more disguises. I am done with hiding who I am. I am the daughter of a king and a queen. I do not accept a life of living in the shadows anymore. It is time to let me live.
Oh, my sweet child, how strong you have grown. I miss our pillow tea talks. You must catch me up on everything, very soon.
I shut off the phone, unsatisfied with her uncertainty about Michael’s life and future.
I reached forward in my seat and touched Taylor’s shoulder. He leaned back to listen for what I might need to say.
“Please, take me to the palace.”
He turned more fully and looked me in the eye. His energy grave.
“If we do that, we put Michael at further risk. We also shift the balance of whatever negotiations he has in play, removing any reason for them to keep him alive.”
I brought my phone mindlessly up to my lower lip and turned to stare out the window. No, I cannot put Michael at further risk.
But the waiting was killing me.
Chapter 15
After three more trips of retching in the bathroom at the hangar, I exited feeling shaken and weak.
“Perri! You’re pale and trembling. Are you okay?!”
Taylor’s voice was filled with concern and he quickly crossed the room just in time to keep me from slipping to the floor. My legs failed and he gently helped me toward the nearest chair.
“It’s … nothing. I think I just picked up a stomach bug or something.”
Taylor spoke quickly into the security mic at his wrist.
“Get me a discreet physician, fast…”
Suddenly, his voice seemed very far away and my body slipped down as all the lights seemed to go out…
Chapter 16
I lifted the small envelope offered to me on the silver tray and opened it.
The King had summoned me to his private library.
This was a good sign. At least I hoped it was.
I returned the card and envelope to the tray and looked at the security officer stepping forward as the servant with the tray backed away.
“Please, follow me.”
I nodded and did as he said. We wound our way through the beautiful halls, across the enormous courtyard, and into the portion of the palace where the private residences were housed.
Once we arrived, I was ushered in and offered a seat. A single chair facing his royal desk, approximately ten feet from it; reinforcing how far I still had to go to earn a comfortable distance from His Royal Highness. Our relationship had always been warm, almost familial. Never before had he expected such formality.
The thought that my dear friend felt so betrayed that he needed this distance pained me, deeply.
After a very long wait King Hallella joined me. I stood.
He was quiet for a bit, but he eventually waived me into my seat.
“My country has begun to settle. You have angered my General,” he chuckled, “but you have helped shift us toward peace.”
He looked at me, his brow furrowed, as I struggled to read him.
Then, he smiled.
“You chose well.”
“Thank you, Sire. I was happy to be of service. You know how much you mean to me and I would always protect you and yours with my life.”
He grunted in acknowledgement.
“Now. Tell me about my daughter. And convince me again of her purity.”
I smiled broadly. Perri was my favorite subject.
“Come, join me in some tea.”
The King stood and moved to sit in the area in front of the fireplace. Like magic two servants appeared as we settled into the two overstuffed chairs and one offered a tray of freshly brewed tea and pastries as the other lit the fire.
For the next two hours we sat companionably and I shared with him the brilliance, fire, sass, and kindness of his daughter as she navigated the danger, challenges, and foreign experiences our time together had brought to her. How she had made fast friends with Maman, earned the respect of everyone onboard the cargo ship, and won my heart with her intelligence and the relentless command of her life.
Slowly, he warmed to me, proud to be experiencing these new insights and perspectives of her; ones he would never be privy to as her father or the king.
I think he was grateful for my candor and sensed the depth of my respect. I, in turn, learned how much he loved her, this daughter he had never acknowledged to me in all the long years I had shared space in his life.
Chapter 17
After leaving the King’s company I was escorted to my rooms. Before I reached them, we came upon the Queen in the courtyard.
She nodded to my escorts who immediately bowed and backed away to wait outside of earshot.
“Michael.”
I bowed deeply and waited for her acknowledgement as was the custom when things needed to be kept on ceremony.
“Please, you are still my friend. Join me for a chat. I wish for you to tell me of my Jannah.”
I rose and followed her to two benches near the central fountain, where the water would help provide an added layer of privacy to our words.
“I am so grateful you and the King have granted me space to be of service. I have missed you both very much.”
Her eyes tightened and I sensed she paused to restrain her emotions. She swallowed hard and blinked back what seemed to be the barest hint of tears before she turned to me.
“It has been very difficult without her. Not knowing if she was safe. My husband, her father, needed to take every action to have her returned…even if…it risked her harm. It was a mother’s pain even as it was a Queen’s understanding.”
I nodded in silence, knowing how difficult that must have been.
“Your daughter made you proud.”
She glanced at me quickly, testing me, needing to see the truth upon my face.
I grinned, wide, which caused her to join me.
“Yes?”
“Yes. She has grown and changed so much these last few weeks.”
Her laughter tinkled in the air between us and outward into the courtyard. She was a rare bird delighting the senses in every way.
“You do not have to tell me how spoiled she must have been.”
Now it was my turn; I hooted loudly, thoroughly filling the space with my delight at her understatement.
“Spoiled?” I chided. “That is a minimalization of the finest order. Did you know she swiped expensive items off a table, smashing them to the floor, when she did not get the hotel room she wanted?”
“Yes, that is my girl,” she chuckled into her handkerchief, blushing with happiness and chagrin.
“And when,” I was laughing so hard it was difficult to breathe, “the Catacombs put her in bad teeth and clothes…you should have…” I guffawed, “she had the eyes of a feral cat. I thought she was going to slash the tires of every car in sight!”
We laughed and laughed as I regaled her with my stories of the Challenges of Loving Perri.
But then it occurred to me she needed the fuller picture. She needed to know what had earned my respect, not just my delight.
“Wearing that disguise changed her.”
&nbs
p; My tone was somber; respectful; filled with awe and appreciation.
Rondenia watched me, wanting to understand.
“What started out as a fickle, headstrong young girl that would kindle any man’s infatuation became a woman sensitive to the plight of those in service and less fortunate. She stopped fighting personal discomforts and took them in stride for the larger cause. She pitched in to help me, working shoulder to shoulder with the crewmen saving us from pirates, unwilling to be sheltered in a room of gilded pillows, but rather a champion for what was right when every helping hand mattered.
“She began to see how her privilege held her back from more meaningful connections. She learned how to set aside personal comfort for greater need.”
I shook my head and looked away, tears welling up in my eyes.
“She is a force to behold. A Rondenia 2.0.”
Rondenia took a quick breath in at this last statement, grasping in an instant that she had raised a daughter that had sought the final experiences to ignite her stance in the world as an independent queen. Grasping that her daughter had begun to come into her own. That her daughter would soon surpass the great achievements even she, the Queen, had actualized in the decades of her life.
Her eyes sought mine for a moment and held them, questioning me without words, if this could be true.
I nodded quietly; resigned to the vulnerability reflected on my face.
In that instant she also knew unshakably how much I loved her. And, with it, how I would spend the remainder of my life both protecting her and championing any cause or path of power she sought.
Rondenia also realized I would never hold her daughter back.
Chapter 18
When I awoke, I panicked, ripping the oxygen mask off my face and trying to sit up.
Where am I??
“Relax, Princess. Please don’t get up. Your doctor is expected back any minute.”
It was a nurse in a white scrubs dress and matching hijab with gold trim, the signature outfit of my father’s royal physicians.
I pushed aside the mask she was trying to replace over my mouth and nose.
“Why am I here? What happened?! Where’s Taylor?”
“Your security escort is just outside, awaiting instructions. It is inappropriate for him to be in here with you, Princess. You need your rest.”
I sat up, fully, and yanked the mask off for the last time.
“I will not rest and you will tell me where I am and what you know.”
I was no longer the young girl that had been treated by these teams; I was now an independent woman who would not be denied my truth.
As if on cue the doctor entered through the automatic doors of my room smiling at me.
“Wonderful, I see you are awake. I am Dr. Shahan. It seems you passed out after taking ill, but thankfully your security team was available to prevent a fall. In that we are lucky.”
“Where am I?” I demanded.
“You are at a private clinic reserved for Royals. We have been assured you are a Princess, but have not been able to confirm your identity yet, so I am glad you are awake to fill in the details that will allow us to reach out to your family.”
I sighed, tremendously grateful for Taylor’s quick thinking.
I dismissed the doctor’s curiosity. I would not be sharing who I was with him, nor would anyone be alerting my family.
“I have not been feeling well for a day or two. What is wrong with me?”
Dr. Shahan looked at my chart before glancing back up to me.
“We did a battery of tests but not all of the results are in yet. It is possible you picked up a virus or are suffering food poisoning. Other than the nausea that was reported when you were brought in, and the lightheadedness that caused you to pass out, what are your other symptoms?”
I thought for a minute, trying to recollect what I noticed.
“A mild fever? The nausea and dizziness you mentioned, but also sweats and fatigue. Pretty bad, too.”
“Your blood pressure and temperature are both elevated, so it seems as if your body’s white blood cells are fighting off something, but as I mentioned we will know more when the remainder of the results come in.”
“How long before I can leave?”
He pointed to the IV drip bags next to me.
“Two hours or so. When that bag of saline is empty and the results are back. Until then sit tight. We can give you an antiemetic if you are still experiencing nausea.”
I shook my head.
“It seems to have passed. But there is also nothing left in my system, so that could be it.”
“Very well then. We will send you with the medication just in case it returns.”
An hour later he returned, looking somber, which immediately alarmed me.
“Your results have returned.”
“Yes? Did you figure out what it is?”
“I am afraid so. And it is rather disturbing.”
I gulped involuntarily as the nausea instantly returned.
Please, no! Not something that would take me away from Michael!
Chapter 19
Mum, it’s me.
Oh, my sweet one! Where are you? Still in Singapore?
No, I am here.
Here!?
Yes. Please tell me, how is Michael? I still have not been able to reach him and it is causing me worry.
He is fine, better than ever, I believe. I had a wonderful conversation with him and your father has begun to warm to him as well.
Relief flooded me as tears smarted in my eyes. After the news from my doctor I needed to know Michael was going to be okay.
Did you know he petitioned for your hand in marriage?
WHAT!? No! I had no idea! Oh, Mum!
Now the tears were threatening to choke me. He loves me, HE LOVES ME! It was the only thought my exhausted and worried mind could formulate.
Yes, he was quite proper, which impressed your father and eased much of his anger. I think he even earned a bit more respect.
Mum, I love him so much.
I wiped at my tears so I could continue to see the screen.
Oh, sweet one, as evidenced by what I saw he feels exactly the same about you. He is a man completely enamored, but, even more than that, he seems to be in awe. Not a bad place for a man to be with my daughter.
Perri pulled the phone up and pressed it to her heart as she wept.
But how would she be able to tell him about her dire condition? Was he the type of man that could handle such news and stand by her? Or, would he desert her at the first sign of physical difficulty.
I turned on my side, curled around my phone and the sweet words of him captured there, and sobbed as I hoped they would not be the last.
Chapter 20
This time I walked with one guard in front of me, the other behind. I had been summoned again, but, if these more formal protocols were any indication, then something very important was afoot.
Maybe they were ready to consider my petition?
Had the uprising been reignited?
Was I to be sentenced to exile for the entirety of Perri’s life?
The possibilities were too numerous to consider, so I simply did as I was asked and followed.
Gloom or glory, here I come.
When we walked into the Throne Room my stomach clenched and my heart began to race. I was not wrong. This was serious.
I was directed by the guards to resume my original spot from three days ago, some 20’ in front of the King and Queen, who were already seated.
The King lifted just four of his fingers from the hand curled around his armrest, and his guards exited the room. He nodded once, indicating I should move down.
I knelt again, resuming the formal posture required.
The King laid his hand gently on the forearm of the Queen who smiled at him with excited eyes.
Then in walked Perri, formally dressed, in a royal gown and jewels, worthy of a Royal Princess, her hair and makeup impeccab
ly done.
She joined them on the dais and stood behind her mother’s left shoulder.
It took all my effort not to focus my attention away from the King. All I wanted to do was drink her in, to tell her of all the hours I had ached to have her with me in the treehouse, to ask what she had seen and done in my absence, to hold her tenderly and pour my heart out upon her.
“Repeat your petition.”
I gulped, realizing they wanted Perri to hear it.
I would not let her down. She deserved to know what was in my heart, even if I were to discover it was not what was in hers.
“Your Royal Highness. I have come as your humble supplicant to beg your permission and blessing. In all my life I have never met a woman more deserving of esteem, more rich in heart and intelligence, more reflective of the greatness of the two of you…than your daughter, Jannah.”
“Enough. Speak in your own words.”
I nodded, understanding that he did not want the flowery words of formality, but rather my heartfelt vulnerability. I took a deep breath and let it out.
“I am in love with your daughter. She has broken me open and brought me into its unchartered waters. I cannot breathe without her. I pledge my life to her safety and care for as long as she will allow it. I want only her every happiness. Because it is in her happiness, that I find mine. I would give all that I own to be her husband.”
I broke rank and turned to look at Perri, the name I had playfully botched from ‘Paradise,’ which was the root meaning of her birth name, Jannah.
Perri was wiping away tears and smiling. I smiled as my tears shimmered too.
“You will care for her to the end of your life and beyond?”
I looked directly at Perri.
“I will.”
“You will forsake all others?”
“I have. And I will.”
“You will bring me grandchildren?”
I turned back to him and the Queen and realized they were grinning from ear-to-ear.
“Yes. If your daughter will allow it.”
The King scoffed but laughed, as Rondenia laughed delightedly and clapped her hands.
Perri was smiling and wiping under both eyes now.
The Obsessed Billionaire: Boxed Set (Complete Vols. 1-5, A Billionaire Romance Series) Page 16