by Milly Taiden
“Damn, I almost forgot.” He pulled a square, velvet-covered jewelry box from his pocket. Her heart picked up speed. What was he doing? He flipped open the top to reveal a shiny silver bangle bracelet. “This is for you. I want you to wear it all the time. Never take it off because someone will steal it. It’s brand new and fine to get wet.”
She was taken aback by such an extravagant gift. “I can’t wear that. It’s beautiful, but—” but she wasn’t dating him and had no plans to. Was she reading him wrong? She wasn’t getting any “love” vibes from him. He was a shifter. Maybe they were unlike human men. No, human men didn’t show love very well, usually.
Sheldon took her hand in his and slipped the bangle over her wrist. “I insist you wear it.”
Oh god. It must’ve cost him a fortune. The people in front of them were pulling down their carry-ons. She’d find a way later to thank him and give it back. Hopefully, he could still return it.
They stood and he handed her the bag from the overhead bin. His smile was awfully cute. From the plane’s entrance, she stepped onto a set of stairs butted against the door. Kari grabbed the rail with a death grip. This was something she would fall all the way to the bottom on.
“By the way,” he said, “the bracelet is a GPS tracking device.” Her cheeks warmed from the completely wrong romantic ideas she had about him. His sly smile made her entire body flame from embarrassment. “You didn’t think I gave that to you because I was sweet on you, did you?”
She didn’t know how she could be more discombobulated, but she was. “Of course not.” She tilted her head down to study her hands. Oh god, how could she look him in the face again and not die from mortification?
“This is different,” Kari said, looking around the area. A few bigger planes were sitting, but what surprised her was the number of small jets like Gulfstreams scattered about. Almost looked like a sales lot.
“Especially for a private airstrip,” Sheldon added. “Maybe there’s a big convention in town.”
She laughed. “You definitely don’t know much about Cloustien. There isn’t a place that holds more than fifty people. And that’d be the local tavern. It’s an old town, back when they built things small and compact.”
An airline employee unloaded the cargo bay at the bottom of the plane. Her suitcase was easy to spot. When she’d shopped for a new case, she’d wanted something that would be easy to find among a mass of black. As soon as she laid her eyes on it, she knew it was the one.
Everyone seemed to stare at the luggage, waiting to see who the owner of such a case would be. She sighed, used to the stares. It was the largest canary yellow piece of luggage she could find. With the handle extended, the bag was almost three-quarters her height. She thought about practical issues, not the color. Again, she couldn’t trust herself to do anything right.
She wrapped her fingers around the handle and pulled. The bag rocked, but remained standing, dragging her backward with it. She lost her balance, but straightened before making a big scene. This time, she used both hands and stepped back, tipping the suitcase onto two wheels. She’d have to get a bag with four wheels so she wouldn’t have to tip anything. Maybe something a bit smaller, and maybe not Tweety Bird yellow.
She looked around for Sheldon, her boyfriend for the next several days. When they got inside the terminal, she’d have to make a pit stop. She really needed to pee. That last soda got her. Instead, he stood among cars parked at the back of the building, holding the rear door to a car open. She’d just have to wait until they got to the hotel to use the restroom.
Snuggled into the backseat of the small car, she watched as they left the private airport behind. The driver was bald-headed and looked jolly. He smiled back at her and said, “You Americans?”
Sheldon answered before she could. “We are. We’re with a tourist group that came in yesterday. We’re a bit late.”
“Tourists,” the man said. “We love tourists. Not many come here because we’re so interesting.” His smile got bigger. “I give you small tour. Yes, I show you.”
She looked as Sheldon. He didn’t look thrilled. That made her laugh.
The driver started the expedition right away. “Cloustien is very old country. Oldest bone found here is six hundred thousand years old.”
“What?” she asked.
“Yes, ma’am. Is true.” They drove over a bridge that looked six hundred thousand years old. She glanced out her window and could see the river through the warped and cracked wooden planks. “This river is very old, too. There are places where water goes underground and disappears. Then come out somewhere else.”
He pointed out the window. “You see there?” She leaned forward to look out Sheldon’s side. On a hill in the distance sat a castle. It was so cool. “Our prince’s family used to live there. But now it’s haunted by the old, old King Alheim. My grandmother said the old king had found a way into hell. That he go there to get riches and power beyond the human world.
“The king’s rule began to spread far. My oma talked of war and great battles where many enemy died, but few of the king’s men were even harmed. Oma said it was the devil within the king that worked sorcery to win.”
“But Cloustien is so small,” Kari said. “What happened to his rule?”
“You know what happen when make deal with the devil. No good come from it. After time, his payment was due. Old king died. Then his much younger brother returned from Rome. Oma said they never knew of the brother, but he was kind and good for the people. They liked him.”
“And the land,” she said.
He shrugged. “In time, all things change. But at night, if you watch the castle, sometimes you see old King Alheim’s ghost walking the halls and lighting rooms. They say he’s angry because of how he lost everything. Stay away from castle. Those who go in sometime never seen again.”
Kari asked, “Your royalty doesn’t live there anymore?”
“Not for long time. No electricity or water. The prince lives in town in his modern palace. Beautiful home. He talks with people of our village. Others kings, no bother with common people. We didn’t see them much.”
“Prince?” she replied.
“Yes, Prince Goddard is good man. He take care of our town. Especially when money needed. He is very generous.”
“Does the prince hold any power in the government?” she asked.
“Some. But he mainly let us decide for ourselves. He is always busy with important people. Our prince very important and educated in world goings-on.”
Sheldon perked up. “Really, what kind of important people?”
The man shrugged. “Big military men, men with own planes, royalty. That kinda thing. In fact, earlier this week, I drive around several of them. Good people, give lots of money to driver.” He turned toward her and winked.
Sheldon handed the driver a picture of Bryon Day. Shit, just glancing at his gorgeous face got her hot and bothered. “Have you seen this man?” He stared at the photo a long time, and not the road. She felt around for the seatbelt. Twisting around, she squished her bladder, reminding her she needed to go. The driver handed back the photo.
“No. Never seen him. Does he live here? American, like you?”
Sheldon didn’t reply. She looked at him and he gave her a small shake of his head. The car jolted in a U-turn and stopped in front of a building. “We are here.” The man jumped out of the car and headed toward the trunk and luggage. She let herself out and looked around. This village was like nothing she’d ever seen.
This place was old. You could almost feel the time that had passed. The streets were made of worn-down cobblestones. The buildings were smallish and sat pushed against one other. No alleys. The door to the building in front of her opened and several people walked out. One woman carried a clipboard and wore a white visor. She looked at Kari and stopped.
“Are you Kari?”
That surprised her. She glanced at Sheldon behind the car getting the bags. “Uh, yes?”
> The woman laughed and waved her hand in the air. “You’re so funny, dear.” She looked at her clipboard. “Kari and Sheldon. From Virginia.”
Sheldon came up behind the tour guide. “Yes, that’s us. Sorry we’re late.”
“You’re just in time,” she said. “We have a short tour right now, then going to dinner at a local restaurant.” She stuck her head in the door and hollered. A boy came running out and tried to take the suitcases from Sheldon. He growled at the kid.
“It’s okay, Sheldon,” the woman said with an extra-white smile. “They’re going to check you both in so you can come with us now. Your suitcases will be waiting for you in your room when we get back.” The boy grabbed the bags again and rolled them inside.
“Okay, everybody, let’s go.” The guide had her hands in the air. “And we’re walking, walking.”
Kari looked at Sheldon. He shrugged and gestured for her to go in front of him to follow the group. They walked down the street looking like tourists. This might be fine, she thought. Then her bladder spoke again. Oh shit. How long would it take to get to the restaurant? They turned another corner and the area changed entirely. Instead of little old town, it was modern with concrete buildings and nice sidewalks.
She stopped and squeezed her thighs together. If she peed her pants, she’d just kill herself instead of letting Sheldon smell her.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing,” she said. The urge went away and she caught up with the group. They all stopped to look at something. She didn’t get to see it because she was doing the potty dance.
Across the street, a van was backed up to a large door to a building and people were carrying in silver warming trays and chafing dishes. Maybe she could sneak in, use the restroom, and get out with no one being the wiser.
She whispered her plan to Sheldon.
“What? You just can’t sneak in there,” he said. “It looks like a museum or something fancy.”
“If not in there where the public is welcome, it will be on your shoes. Choose.”
He stood silently for a second. “Do you need help getting over there?”
Chapter Seven
It was coming! Nature had called, and it had called loudly. Screamed. She gritted her teeth and bent over. Squeeze those Kegel muscles. Fuck. After this, her Kegels would be able to lift weights. The sensation passed.
“No. I got it.” She stepped off the sidewalk toward the building. At the van, she glanced in the driver’s side window and saw an apron and clipboard. Looking around and seeing no one watching her, she opened the door and grabbed both items. She tied the apron around her waist and put on a pained expression. People seldom talked to others who looked mad. If she came in like she was supposed to be there, then maybe no one would notice.
The fancy bracelet Sheldon gave her caught on the apron’s material. She slid it off and shoved it in her back pocket. It didn’t seem like women here wore anything expensive. In her back pocket, no one would steal it. She wasn’t going far. There’d be no need to be tracked.
When she walked around the back of the van, she was startled to see armed guards standing on each side of the door. She didn’t miss a beat, though. She pulled a pen from the top of the board, frowned and pushed down her brows, and looked at the ground as she walked in the door. The guards didn’t move. She wasn’t sure they were even awake.
Out of sight of the door, she hurried down a hall, checking each door. There were three doors down each side. Most looked like conference rooms with tables in the center. One room was filled with gold items. They shined like a thousand mirrors. It took her breath away. She slipped the apron off and set it on the floor inside the door. A couple catering employees passed her. They didn’t even look at her. She came to the end of the hall and found no bathroom.
The space opened into a huge lobby-like area with amazing artwork and paintings on the wall. This had to be a museum like Sheldon had said. Everything was too incredible, too ancient-looking to be anything else. There had to be a restroom in a public place. She tried a door close to the corner. The sight that greeted her almost made her cry.
She rushed in and never in her life had she gotten her pants down as fast as she did now. As she sat, she sighed. So much better. The room was very small. Must be for the staff who worked in that area. After washing her hands, she stepped out and closed the door behind her.
On the wall next to her was a beautiful framed painting. She couldn’t read the artist’s name, but it looked old, the paint faded. That would make sense. Museums weren’t for new things. That would be called a store.
Across the way, a group of men came around the corner. The one in front of the group was dressed in flashy clothing and looked important, but the others were wearing the same uniforms as the two guards at the back door. And they were dragging another guy who looked unconscious. The guy in the shiny clothes abruptly stopped and stared at her. Oh shit. He must be a manager.
He pointed a finger at her and yelled words she didn’t understand. That wasn’t what made her run. It was the guns leveled at her. She had no idea they shot people who didn’t pay for a ticket to get in. She should’ve never assumed this place was like the U.S., the greatest country in the world.
If she headed to the back door she had come in through, she’d never get out once those chasing her yelled to the guards outside the exit. She had to hide and find another way out.
She grabbed a doorknob and threw herself inside. She tripped on the carpet, rolled, then popped up to her feet and ran for the door on the other side. As she opened it, the door behind her opened with guards stepping in. This was bad. She couldn’t do anything right.
Slamming the door, she ran to another door. She didn’t see the guards, but heard the door open. This room had a twenty-person conference table in the middle. The room being somewhat narrow, and her not being narrow, she bumped into an antique buffet and went down. She rolled under the table, wondering if she could hide.
The door at the other end of the table opened. The swishing of clothes headed toward the door on the far side. The second door opened, then she heard someone yell a word she didn’t know, but the sound of moving clothes stopped.
Chairs clunked as they were moved around, scooted away from the table. She held her breath and squeezed her eyes closed and lay as still as she could. After several seconds of silence, the voice said another word and everyone left the room.
Air rushed out of her lungs. She reached up from where she lay curled up on the floor, pushed away from the table, and promptly rolled to the floor. She had extra padding, so nothing hurt, too much, when landing. After getting to her feet, she peeked into the room she just left and saw nobody. She rushed to another door, hoping to find the hallway to the lobby where she could walk out the front door. Bingo!
She stepped out at the same time one of the guards did two doors down. Shit! She dove forward into the room across the hall. The room was dark, no lights. Her hand slid along the wall which felt like books. She kept going, came to a corner. The door opened. She flattened herself against the wall.
Lights came on, but they were small spotlights shining on the rows and rows of books lining the walls. She was awed by the amount of leather and paper this room held. At the end of the shelf, she squeezed back, hoping they wouldn’t see her.
The small of her back rubbed against two small objects in the wall behind her. Wait, she wasn’t against a wall, but a double door. She quietly opened it and backed in. Her eyes stayed on the men on the other side of the room, searching for her. Her shaky hands eased the door closed with barely a snick. She blew out the breath she held.
A throat behind her cleared. She jumped and twirled in the air, then flattened against the doors, her heart beating way too fast. Standing behind a desk was the sparkly important man who had pointed and sent the men after her.
Perhaps this was her last time she couldn’t trust herself to do anything right.
Chapter Eight
Kari stood with her back against the double door staring at the man who would determine her fate. All this because she didn’t buy a ticket to get in? Time to beg. “I’m so sorry.” She unzipped her fanny pack. “Here, I’ll pay the admission price. Even more for a donation. I just had to use the bathroom very badly.” She stood in front of the desk, holding out money.
His brow raised, head tilted. “Are you American?”
Oh shit. If she said yes, would he kill her or throw her in jail? If she said no, could she fake an English accent? Her initial thought was to lie. But she knew her luck too well.
“Yes, I’m American.”
The man broke into a big smile, his arms spread wide. “Well then, welcome to my home.”
Her jaw dropped. Home? The only person in this town who could afford the kind of stuff on display would be the—oh, double shit. She was in so much trouble.
“I am Prince Goddard and this is my palace. What brings an American female to my doorstep?” The way he said “American female” sent a shudder through her. She smiled anyway.
“My boyfriend and I are touring.” The words sounded robotic even to her. She was so dead. On her first mission and gone missing, never to be seen or heard from again.
“Are you sure you’re not with the CIA?” he asked. Was he joking? A spot of red flashed in his eyes.
“No. We’re with ITA.”
The prince’s face took on a questioning expression.
“International Touring Agency. That’s the name of our group, I swear.” So much for being a strong spy. She wasn’t even being interrogated and she gave out information.
“That’s wonderful, Miss . . .”
“Oh, I’m Kari Tomlin.” She leaned forward and put her hand out to shake. He took her fingers in his soft ones and brought it to his mouth. Ever so lightly, he brushed his lips across her skin. Oh my god. She was in complete shock. Was this normal in this country for greeting females?