Fleeing Rendier had helped her discover the life she wanted to lead. Paul helped her find herself. She would miss him terribly. She already did. Paul would have wanted her to try to bring about change within the palace walls, and she decided she would do just that. More tears trickled down her cheeks.
The door opened, and Reginald Rawlings entered, along with Dr. Roth. Reginald walked over to her. “Sierra, I’m so happy you are safe. And I see you’ve recovered completely from your attempts to starve yourself, so much so that you were able to pull the wool over all our eyes and flee. I hope you’ve come to realize you can’t escape your duty to this country.”
Sierra said nothing.
Reginald continued. “Dr. Roth will ascertain your virginity now. I would hope you have guarded it with your life. I heard about the young man you were found with and how you had acquired quite an attachment to him.”
Again, she said nothing. Dr. Roth helped her lie back on the bed.
“Reginald, would you mind stepping out during the exam?” Dr. Roth asked.
“I do mind. I’m not leaving.”
Sierra turned her head to Reginald. “Would you at least turn around? I am uncomfortable with my future father-in-law seeing me undressed.”
Reginald’s expression surprised her, and he actually turned around. Perhaps it pleased Reginald to see that she had accepted her fate. Dr. Roth performed the exam quickly and confirmed her status to Reginald.
“Good,” Reginald said, then he left the room.
“What is this splint for?” Dr. Roth asked her once they were alone.
“I hurt my foot when I crashed through the ice.”
“Through the ice?”
“Yes, it was so thin. But in the end, it made it easier to get closer to shore. Paul pulled me out the rest of the way.” Her voice choked up, and tears filled her eyes.
“Paul?” Dr. Roth adjusted his horn-rimmed glasses.
“They shot him. When they captured me, they shot Paul. He risked his life for me. He was so kind and caring. He called me brave, but he’s really the one who was brave. He helped me realize that life is worth living. I’ll never try to take my own life again. I’ll stand tall, for Paul. I’ll be brave and live against all odds.”
“He must have been something else to change your mindset so dramatically in just a few days.”
“He was one of a kind.”
“I think we should x-ray that foot of yours and check on your other wounds. I’ll get the approval to move you to the infirmary.”
*****
Paul tried to open his eyes. He felt the cold stone floor against his cheek and tasted blood in his mouth. He had been beaten severely but not killed. Why? Why beat someone so badly but not kill them? He tried to push his head up off the floor, but the pain was too much. He observed his surroundings as well as he could with his limited range of motion. A stark cold room, perhaps a cell of some kind, a large door, a large guard — damn, he must be at the palace.
The guard exited the cell and yelled down the hall, “He’s awake!”
Paul heard the shuffling of feet down the hallway and watched black polished shoes walk into the room.
“Roll him over,” the deep voice of Reginald Rawlings ordered.
The guards twisted him on his back roughly, and Paul let out a yelp in agony.
“So, your name is Paul Bronson. You’ve kept Sierra hidden quite well for these few days. I must compliment you. She’s sometimes a danger to herself. In fact, on numerous occasions she has tried to end her life. I just can’t have that happening.”
Reginald walked over to the corner, where a tiny slit of a window let in some light, and continued. “You know, Paul, I see a different light in her eyes now than before she fled. You are, I think, the source of that light. I believe as long as you are here in the palace, she will remain here too.”
Paul grunted out, “So you’ll keep me prisoner till she gives you an heir?”
“Well, that’s a wonderful idea, Paul. I’ll tell her you came up with that one all on your own. We’ll let her cling to some far-fetched hope of escaping with you, and hopefully in that time she’ll get pregnant with a son.” Reginald walked back over to Paul and squatted down beside his head. “But we have a problem here. You see, my son has been robbed — by you.”
Paul narrowed his eyes in question.
“You stole his bride’s heart, and she will never love him the way she loves you. So I’m sure Victor will want to be compensated for his loss, and who am I to deprive him of it?”
“Compensated?”
“Yes, Paul. In whatever way that will satisfy him. I’ll let him stretch his wings on this one. He will rule this country some day, and he’ll need to learn how to be tough and hardened to emotion. What better way to accomplish that than by torturing you for revenge? You will be his training for leadership, Paul. Once Sierra produces an heir, I’ll have no use for her or you, and Victor will have complete free reign over you.”
“Victor doesn’t need training to become like you. It’s you who needs to catch up to him. I’d watch my back if I were you.”
Reginald’s head flew back in laughter. He turned to the guard. “Take the prisoner to the infirmary, and have Dr. Roth fix him up.” His eyes trained back on Paul. “You must have your strength restored a bit to withstand Victor’s rage, and we certainly cannot have you dying on us now, can we?”
Paul was dragged to his feet by two large men and taken down the hall to the medical room. He knew right away this was the same place Sierra had been taken after her beatings, and he surmised that the man wearing the stethoscope around his neck must be Dr. Roth.
“Reginald Rawlings ordered you to care for this prisoner,” the guard announced.
“Put him over here,” said Dr. Roth, pointing to an exam bed in the corner. The men dragged him over and sat him down. Dr. Roth gently pushed on Paul’s chest to lay him down. He reached across and fastened a wrist restraint to his left arm and then another to the right. “What’s your name, son?”
“Paul. Paul Bronson. Are you Dr. Roth?”
Dr. Roth’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “My reputation must precede me. You two can wait outside the door. He’s not going anywhere.”
The guards exited the room, and Dr. Roth looked Paul in the eye. “Where do you hurt the most?”
“My ribs. I can barely breathe. It hurts to be lying down like this. Can I sit up?”
“No. Paul, you need to listen very carefully to me. My position here is Reginald Rawlings’s personal physician. He trusts me, and anything Sierra has told you about me needs — no, absolutely must be kept quiet.”
“Dr. Roth, I understand.”
“I may be rude to you at times, and you may find yourself wondering if I’m who you think I am. Rest assured, what Sierra told you will never change.”
“My lips are sealed.”
“She thinks you’re dead.”
“She does? You’ve seen her then? Is she alright?”
“You just missed her. I had her down for an x-ray of her foot.”
“I missed her? How’s her foot?”
“Broken and healing crooked, probably because she can’t sit still long enough for it to heal.”
Paul smiled. That was definitely her.
“She thinks the world of you, Paul.”
His wide smile broadened even further. His ribs didn’t seem to hurt as much anymore. Love is the best painkiller.
“Paul, I’m going to level with you now. You are in for a long haul.”
“I know.”
“No, I’m not sure you do. You’ll be Victor’s personal punching bag for a while.”
“I understand, Doctor. When I found Sara, she told me a lot about her life here and the abuse she has endured. Her strength to survive will pull me through whatever lies ahead.”
“You just keep thinking that when you’re being lashed — and you will be lashed.”
“I love her, Dr. Roth,” he admitted. “I’ll go
through anything necessary to try to help her.”
“You’re a good guy, Paul.”
“Likewise.” Paul wondered how old Dr. Roth was. He didn’t look to be more than about thirty-five, and he didn’t even have gray hair. In Paul’s mind, doctors all have gray hair. The glasses fit the bill, but the age of the man didn’t match. What was it about Dr. Roth that Reginald trusted so much?
*****
Several people entered Sierra’s room, including Reginald, Victor, two guards, and a priest. This did not look good.
“Well, come on, let’s not waste any more time here,” Victor said impatiently.
The priest stepped up to the side of the bed and began reciting the verses of the marriage ceremony. When the time came for Sierra to answer with “I do,” she did so. Victor slid a large ring on her finger and gave her a rushed kiss, which she didn’t respond to. It was done. She would go on to defy the Rawlings family from within their own house.
Everyone left the room except for Victor.
“Alright Sierra, it’s the moment of truth.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Time to make sure you really are a virgin.”
“You don’t trust Dr. Roth?”
“I don’t trust anyone.”
“Forget it. I’m not sleeping with you.”
“You don’t have a choice. You’re my wife now.”
“Just as I thought. Marrying you would take away all my choices. It seems silly to me that a few words uttered by a man with a priest’s collar makes it okay for you to take me by force.”
“Those silly words make what we do right in the eyes of God and the land.”
“Now you answer to God? Or the land for that matter? You don’t answer to anyone except maybe your father, who owns the land and thinks he’s God.”
“Look Sierra, I don’t have to answer to my father. It’s you who has to answer to him. If he finds out you are refusing me, I think you know what you’ll have coming. Is that what you want?”
“What do you want, Victor?”
He had a strange expression on his face, almost as if no one had ever asked him what he wanted before. He looked at her and said, “I want you.” His youth and inexperience blazed out from behind his hardened exterior, and she almost felt sorry for him.
“Do you really? Because I think you just don’t want anyone else, namely Riley, to get me. I think you think you want me, but you really don’t. I also believe your father wants me more than you do.”
“That’s sick.”
“No, he wants my name. He wants his heir to be a Montgomery. Don’t you realize your father’s rule is failing? You are destined to take over a deteriorating leadership, one dependent upon my name. My name. It’s the King and Queen scenario all over again.”
“When I’m in power, this country will fear me. This is my father’s problem. He’s trying to make sure people approve of him. He’s weak. I won’t be like him.”
“You’re already not like him, Victor.”
“Thank you.”
“It wasn’t a compliment. Well, go on then. Do what you’ve got to do.” She lay back on the bed with a bored look on her face.
“Can you at least try to participate?”
“Why? I’ll never have feelings for you. You’ll never hold any place in my heart because you killed Paul.”
“What? No, I didn’t.”
“Just because you didn’t pull the trigger doesn’t mean you aren’t responsible for his death.”
“He’s not dead, Sierra. He’s here in the palace.”
She sat up quickly with confusion and excitement all over her face.
“But you told them to kill him. I heard the shots!”
“The informant. They killed the informant. I told you I would be bringing Paul with us just in case he had taken what was mine. Dr. Roth says you are physically pure, but it is obvious Paul has stolen your heart from me.”
“Even if I had never met Paul Bronson, my heart would never have been yours.”
“Well, now you are legally mine, and I will have you even if it’s just your body.”
“I want to see Paul first. I want to see with my own eyes that he’s alright. If you’ll do that for me, I’ll try to be more … accommodating.”
“I’ll do you one better, Sierra. I’ll let you see him daily if that’s what it takes to have you be willing.”
She nodded. Willing but not wanting.
Victor walked to the door and said something to the guard outside. He closed the door and walked over to a chair in the corner. “They’ll bring him up momentarily.” Victor watched as Sierra sat up and preened her hair. She had a smile on her face, and her cheeks had blushed naturally in anticipation of Paul’s arrival.
Victor waited for a reunion that would anger him beyond measure. He didn’t know if he’d be able to watch. Not that he really wanted Sierra. He only wanted the union so no one else could get her. She was spot-on with her assessment. His father wanted her last name, but deep inside, Victor knew his father was weak. What kind of a dictator worried about pacifying the people? The people should be scared to death of their ruler. That’s how it should be.
But something inside his gut twisted when Paul was brought into the room and Sierra rushed to him. She tried to hug him but stopped short at seeing his bandaged ribs. They said phrases like, “I thought you were dead” and “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again” and “I’m so sorry.” They kissed briefly, and Paul ran his hands up into her hair. He kissed the top of her head and told her he loved her. Of all the nerve! Saying something like that right in front of her husband!
Anger filled Victor’s veins to the point that he actually saw the color red. He began to feel physically ill when they started talking of escape. He stalked forward and tore them apart. “That’s enough! Get him out of here!” The guards moved in and took Paul out of the room. Paul strained his neck to get one last glimpse of Sierra as she sat down on the bed. Victor’s eyes met Paul’s, and as the door closed, he squinted to near slits as he said to Paul, “She’s mine now.”
*****
The next day, Sierra sat all alone at the long dining table and pushed the food around on her plate. Her stomach rolled and tumbled with the anticipation of seeing Paul again. Somehow, they needed to escape.
“Well, there you are.” Riley Stone entered the room and sauntered over to Sierra. He pulled one of the ornately handcrafted chairs out from the table and sat beside her. “See, you weren’t gone long. I told you it wouldn’t work.”
“Why are you bothering me, Riley? Didn’t you get the memo? I’m now Mrs. Victor Rawlings.”
He leaned forward as if what he had to say was significant. A sly smile crossed his face. “I can get you out of here, Sierra. I have it all figured out. I know how to hide you, protect you, and reinvent you. You only need to come with me, and I’ll free you from this life.”
“Why should I do anything with you, Riley? Last time Reginald caught us together like this, you stabbed me in the back to protect your own interests. You did it then, and you’ll do it again if you get the chance.”
“Don’t you see it was for your own good that I said what I said?”
“How was being beaten to within an inch of my life for my own good?”
“It taught you humility.”
“Leave me alone, Riley. I don’t need or want you in my life. If you persist, I’ll take this to Reginald myself.”
“He won’t believe you, but suit yourself. I think eventually you’ll come find me and beg me to help you escape.”
“I don’t understand the relationship you and Victor have, and I don’t think you understand it either. Who in their right mind would continue to hang around the guy who stole his girl? And who with a lick of sense would allow the guy whose girl he stole to continue to see her? Yours is a complicated relationship. I’m happy to say I won’t be a part of it much longer.”
“If you’d leave with me, we could both get out
of it sooner.”
“I’ll be out of this soon enough without you! It’s your fault I’m even here, Riley. I’ve never liked you, but that didn’t matter to you, did it? Then, your jealous friend decides he doesn’t want you to be happy, so he takes me from you, even though you never really had me to begin with. My father died because you couldn’t take a hint! I’m forced to live here because of you! Do you see how this whole situation is for me? I can’t stand either one of you, and yet here I am, stuck with both of you because you’re too stupid to back out, and he’s too stupid to keep you away. However, without all this drama, I would not have crossed the border.” And found Paul. “That’s the one good thing to come of it all, and it’s good enough for me. Now, leave me, Riley.”
“You will regret turning me down.”
Sierra let out an exasperated sigh, rolled her eyes, and shook her head as Riley left the room. Then she hobbled down to the infirmary to speak with Dr. Roth about Paul.
“Sierra, I’m glad you came. I need to speak with you as soon as I finish up with this patient. You can wait in my office.”
A few minutes later, Dr. Roth came in and said in a low whisper, “I’m working on something that will hopefully free you and Paul.”
“A plan?” Her excitement was electric.
“Yes. That’s all I can tell you right now. Keep it quiet, and don’t talk to Paul about it. Act normal around Victor, and be patient. It’s going to take a little while.”
“Victor promised me I would be able to visit Paul every day.”
“Your love for him is the only thing keeping him from being killed. They are so sure you’ll end your own life if Paul dies.”
“But we’re going to escape before that happens, aren’t we?”
The door to the infirmary opened, and their conversation ended.
*****
Paul sat in his room with his back against the wall. His body still hurt in various places from his beating at the gas station, but he tried not to dwell on it. His mind continually switched between his family and Sierra. He worried for their safety and for hers. Voices outside the door pulled him out of his trance.
“I am to evaluate the prisoner,” Dr. Roth said to the guard.
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