Her Royal Physician

by McKenna James

  HER ROYAL PHYSICIAN

  by MCKENNA JAMES

  COPYRIGHT© 2019 Her Royal Physician by Mckenna James

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted by U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior permission of the author. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, establishments, or organizations, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously to give a sense of authenticity. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  EPILOGUE

  ALSO BY MCKENNA JAMES

  MEET MCKENNA

  CHAPTER ONE

  Giselle

  Even though I wanted to scream, I didn’t. I was pretty sure there was a rule against princesses raising their voices when in polite company. In general, really. No cursing, no shouting, no laughing too boisterously. My old tutors back home would have scolded me if they ever heard my voice above a certain level of decibels. I could have sworn they carried little volume measuring devices with them, because they never failed to wag their disapproving fingers at me if they so much as overheard me sneeze two rooms over.

  So, when the first explosions violently shook the foundation of the villa, all my years of etiquette lessons gave me enough self-control to release the tiniest of gasps behind my hand.

  Yes, I was the epitome of ladylike.

  And pardon my saying so, but this whole princess-and-future-queen schtick was really starting to cramp my style.

  The first explosion was quickly followed up with three or four more. It was hard to tell because they happened in quick succession, overlapping with one another and echoing into the night. My father and I were in the middle of eating supper when the bombs started dropping. It was Nathanial, my father’s private secretary, who rushed into the dining hall to confirm everything.

  “King Maximillian, the Pramorian Empire has declared war on Weles,” he said quickly, but solemnly. “Air traffic has been banned. I have arranged a transportation via ship for you and Princess Giselle to head back home, but we must hurry.”

  Nathanial was a severe man. In all the years that I’d known him, I’d only ever seen him smile twice. Once when he found out he’d been promoted to the position of the king’s private secretary, and once when he received a stack of rare first edition novels for his fortieth birthday. He was always dressed in dark, tight clothes. I sometimes wondered if he was bitter and cold because the leather shoes he wore were too tight and uncomfortable.

  I looked at my father, who’d been sitting directly beside me at the dinner table. His head was balding, and what little hair he had left was turning silver. His bushy eyebrows and well-trimmed beard were almost the same shade of grey. His face was paler than usual, almost ashen. I couldn’t tell if it was because of his age, or if he was genuinely frightened to hear the news that Pramoria had broken their treaty with our allies, the Kingdom of Weles. The whole reason Father and I were even visiting Weles was to celebrate the peace negotiations.

  Short-lived negotiations.

  From out the massive dining hall window, I could see a streak of fire against the Welesian capital’s skyline. A plume of dark smoke erupted over tall buildings, dangerous flickers of orange and red licking upward as fire spread. The night sky up above was cloudy and dark, but when I squinted, I could make out the faint outline of a squadron approaching from the east. The bomber planes were almost impossible to see if not for the faint glow of the silver moon cracking through black clouds.

  I turned to my father and frowned. “We can’t just leave. Weles needs us.”

  Father rose from his chair, dinner long since forgotten. “There is nothing we can do, Princess.”

  He liked to call me princess as a pet name. It just so happened to also be the correct title.

  “What do you mean there’s nothing we can do? We can’t just abandon their people.”

  Father raised a hand, cutting me off. There wasn’t anything harsh about the gesture, he just needed me to be quiet. “Your safety is my only priority. Besides. There’s nothing we can do because we’re out of our jurisdiction. If we don’t leave now, we could be caught in the crossfire.” He turned to Nathanial sharply. “Lead the way.”

  We didn’t have any time to pack our things. It wasn’t like we’d brought anything with us that wasn’t replaceable. The second we stepped out of the dining hall, Father and I were greeted by several members of our cover security operations team. They ushered us out the back entrance where two black armored SUV were waiting. Father and I got into the back seats, Nathanial up front, while the rest of our security detail got into the follow car. The second the doors closed shut behind us, our driver slammed on the gas pedal. The vehicle lurched forward urgently, tires squealing in protest against the cobblestone driveway.

  The attacks didn’t cease. Over the vicious grumbling of the SUV’s engine, I could hear the whistling of bombs being dropped over the city. We were far enough away that our lives weren’t immediately being threatened, but we were still close enough to be concerned. One miscalculated drop, one strong push from the wind could line a bomb right over our heads. The wailing of horns off in the distance pierced through the quiet of the night, alerting residents to take shelter until emergency services could arrive. The haunting call of air raid sirens sent a shiver down my spine.

  Through the window, I saw all of the destruction that rained down on the Welesian people. Buildings were crumbling to dust while fires ravaged whatever was left. People scurried about frantically, unsure where their loved ones were. Some families were arguing with one another outside their burning homes, debating whether or not to stay hidden in their basements, take as much of their belongings as they could, or to simply run for nearby shelter. It hadn’t been very long since Weles and the Pramorian Empire had drafted their peace treaty, so there were still a number of bomb shelters up and running that they could turn to.

  We obviously had teams of people making sure that it was safe enough for us to travel abroad. Father and I naturally would have never made the trip had we had any inkling of knowledge that the Empire would attack. If something were to happen to either of us, if we were caught in the bombings and were killed, there was no on left in our family to take over the throne. It would have been chaos for Idolia. At best, the throne would fall to some distant cousin who didn’t understand our language or culture, leaving our people to struggle under the sudden shift in pow
er. At worst, the Empire could see our deaths as an opportunity to swoop in and take over our land, once again leaving our people in someone else’s mercy.

  I knew my father was right.

  There was nothing I could do to help, no matter how much I wanted to. We needed to escape, and we needed to escape now.

  We made it to the docks in record time. Weles was a small island nation, so it wasn’t as though traveling across would take us very much time. Weles had just undergone a major shift in power, having elected a new prime minister within the last month or so. It was the main reason Father and I visited in the first place. As future Queen of Idolia, it was my duty to meet with leaders and important dignitaries. Father believed that since Weles’ political state was beginning to steady, now would have been as good a time as any to introduce me.

  It was my father’s idea, of course. Reputation and outward appearances were everything. If I had my way, I would have spent my time partying, meeting handsome men, dancing all night, and shopping to my heart’s content. But such was the life of a future ruler. My life was not my own to live. And naturally, just as I was beginning to adjust to the time zone and really take in the sights and the unique culture of the Welesian capital, the Pramorian Empire just had to turn back on their end of the treaty and ruin all my fun.

  I was supposed to be headed to an extravagant ball later that evening, hosted by the Welesian Royal Family in our honor. I was supposed to be all dressed up in my pretty ballgown of golden fabric, jewels in my hair, dancing the night away with esteemed guest after esteemed guest. Father had promised me it was going to be an elegant fair, full of delicious banquet food, wonderous music, and an endless sea of interesting people for us to meet. Unfortunately, it looked as though those plans were going to be very much on hold –if the venue wasn’t already a smoldering pile of ash.

  We were ushered onto the ship quickly. The scent of salty sea water and fish filled my nose and left me a bit dizzy. The ship was a massive thing, though I wasn’t able to identify what kind it was. It was painted grey, the Idolia Royal Crest pressed to its side in vibrant colors. Just to the right of my family’s crest was the ships name: Obsidian Vow. As we climbed up the ramp to board the ship, several planes flew over us. My heart froze in my chest for a moment, but I instantly breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that they were painted in Welesian colors. I held on tight to the ramp’s metal railing for support. Last evening’s rain had left every surface on the dock slippery and treacherous.

  “We were lucky,” said Nathanial as he helped Father onto the ship. “The Obsidian Vow happened to be making a pitstop at this port for refueling. I’ve already spoken with the captain. He has arranged for the ship to return home immediately.”

  My father grunted. It was the noise he made when he approved. And also when he disapproved. Sometimes it was hard for even me to tell the difference.

  Just as I was about to step onto the deck, my foot slipped out from beneath me. I landed with a harsh thump. A shooting pain spread from my right ankle, the sensation of pins and needles spreading through me quickly. The terrible throbbing in my leg that followed was enough to knock the air out of my lungs and force tears to well up in the corners of my eyes. All I wanted to do was start crying, but I fought against the urge.

  Girls were allowed to cry. Future queens were not.

  Several security personnel offered me their hands, attending to my little stumble. Father had heard me land and had turned to take care of me.

  “Are you alright, Princess?” he asked.

  “Um, yes,” I mumbled. I attempted to get up on my own, but the pain was too great. I looked down to see that my ankle was already red and swollen. “I think I hurt myself.”

  “May I be of some help to you?” came a man’s voice.

  I looked up to find someone squeezing his way past my security team, hand outstretched. I swallowed at the dry lump in my throat as my eyes widened in pure, stunned amazement. The man before me was dressed in an Idolian Royal Navy Guard uniform, though he didn’t exactly strike me as a soldier. The deep blue of his pressed blazer and pants helped bring out the brilliance of his kind, bluish-green eyes. The longer I stared, the more the color of his eyes reminded me of the emerald-encrusted crown I was to one day wear as ruler. They also reminded me of the foamy seas we were sailing, when the light caught it just right and illuminated all of the plant life just below the water’s surface.

  My cheeks flushed with heat when I realized that everyone was staring because I hadn’t said anything for a good couple of minutes. When I slipped and fell, did I happen to hit my head too? It was the only explanation I could come up with that would explain my distractedness. That, and because the man was the epitome of handsome. . What was a man like him doing in a dreary place like this?

  He was a lieutenant, judging by the stripes sewn into the shoulder of his blazer. And judging by the white armband wrapped around his left bicep, emblazoned with a giant red cross, I guessed that he was a doctor. He wore his dirty blond hair cropped short, though I imagined that was because he had to adhere to the Idolian Navy’s strict dress code rather than a fashionable choice. Either way, his clean-shaven look really made the sharpness of his jaw standout.

  For the briefest moment, I wanted to know if his face felt as hard and chiseled as it looked.

  I finally managed to gather up enough common sense to answer, “Um, yes, please.” I reached up and noted how perfectly our hands seemed to slip together. A perfect fit.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Leo

  I was taking care of last-minute preparations before we set sail. My superior officer had informed me and the rest of the crew that we would no longer be continuing our mission to patrol the waters north of Weles. Instead, we were turning around within the hour to head home in light of the Pramorian Empire’s act of aggression. It was true that Obsidian Vow was a battleship, but we didn’t have enough supplies or ammunition to last very long in the region. We were only heading north to keep the peace along Pramorian-Welesian cargo trade routes.

  Now that the Pramorian Empire seemed dead set on wiping Weles off the face of the map, there was no point in acting as arbitrators. The Obsidian Vow was an old girl, one that wouldn’t survive facing off against the Pramorian Empire’s larger, newer navy. To most people, it was boring political drivel. But to everyone on this ship, it impacted our lives in more ways than one. Whether we went to war or retreated was entirely up to those in power. The only smart thing to do was to return home for the time being where we would await orders, preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.

  There was a nervous tension in the air. The crew was uncharacteristically quiet. I assumed the news of war had shaken many, even though we were seasoned Navy officers. It was only when I learned the reason we were stalled at port that I finally realized why everyone seemed so on edge. We were awaiting the arrival of His Royal Majesty, King Maximillian, and his only daughter and heir apparent, Princess Giselle. Our mission home wasn’t going to be so simple. We were carrying the two most important people of our nation. No words were spoken, but our crew understood the gravity of the situation.

  We had to make it home in one piece, no matter what.

  I happened to step onto the deck, on my way to report to my supervisor, Lieutenant Commander Briggs. I had taken extensive stock of the medical supplies we still had on board. As long as sailing was smooth and we didn’t run into any unnecessary conflicts, I was sure we had enough to make it back to Idolia. We were, admittedly, running slightly low on seasickness pills. The cadets were especially susceptible to spilling their guts, and the waters had been less than kind to us in recent days as we charged forward to port. I just had to cross my fingers and hope that the newer cadets could handle the stormy seas ahead of us.

  No amount of training could really prepare a person for life on the waters. It was an isolated existence, despite being surrounded by comrades. Out there, where the nearest bit of land was miles and miles away—a dot on th
e horizon—you could sometimes feel like you were alone in the world. There was nothing but the sound of crashing water against the ship and the howl of wind to keep you company. I would normally argue that you always had your shipmates to talk to, but any person willing to spend their life cramped on a ship for months on end usually weren’t the best friends you could make.

  I liked to think I was a bit different, though. Before I worked as a Navy physician, I was also an Army physician, working on land to help soldiers, civilians, and captured enemy combatants alike. I liked to think I could be quite personal. People rarely realized that it took a certain level of personability to be a doctor. If I had a nickel for every time a patient refused to tell me what was wrong, I would have been able to retire twice over by now. No, I needed to know how to apply the charm, to get people talking. If I couldn’t get a patient to open up to me, it would have been impossible to treat them properly.

  I shuffled across the deck briskly, moving out of the way of a couple of shipmates headed in the opposite direction. The rain had let up a little, but the bitter cold remained in the air as it pinched my skin numb. My mind was racing with all of the final checks that I had to complete once I made it back to the medical bay. I made a mental note to double check the locks on all of the medicine cabinets. The last thing I needed was a strong rock of the ship to knock the doors open, leaving little bottles to fly about everywhere. Not only would the captain have my head for wasting our dwindling medicinal supply, but it also would have been a pain to clean everything up.

  But that was when my mind blanked.

  My eyes fell upon her for the first time and knocked the breath right out of my lungs.

  She was gorgeous. Beautiful. I didn’t know nearly enough words to describe her and do her justice. The moment I laid eyes on her, time seemed to stand still. I wondered if I needed to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. Perhaps a bomb had exploded near us, thrown me off the side of the Obsidian Vow, and images of her were just a feverish hallucination. It seemed just as real of a possibility as the Princess standing before me.