Liam sighed, running a hand over his jaw. “I’m sorry you got mixed up in this, Lucy.”
Sensing he needed comfort, she pulled herself from my arms and hugged her brother. I watched as his arms tightened around her like a lifeline. “I’m sorry you did, too. But if it helps, Belleston will have the most badass king they’ve ever seen someday.”
While that comment elicited a chuckle from his chest, it stopped me dead in my tracks.
Today changed everything for our country. Lucy was implying that Liam would become King after his father. Obviously, Leo was psychotic and couldn’t be allowed to rule, but he had three children. How could they bypass them so easily? And if they did, that left Liam and Lucy as the remaining Remingtons in their family line.
That raised so many questions.
What would happen if neither of them had children? Who would rule Belleston?
Was our match more than what it seemed? Bloodlines were brought up more than once. Did they already know our children might one day be required to rule?
Why was Natalie so terrified at the prospect of her children being all that was left if something happened to Liam and Lucy? She always knew they were in the direct line of succession.
I had a feeling I was the only one in the room today who didn’t have the whole picture. They all knew something I didn’t. It was understandable because I was an outsider; I couldn’t be trusted with deep family secrets until I was officially a member of the family. But at minimum, I should have been alerted if there was a threat out there. I could have been more vigilant, more aware—especially today.
Liam kissed Lucy tenderly on the forehead before picking her up like she weighed nothing and placing her back in my arms. “I’ll have Amy get you something to wear, and then we can get you out of here.”
At the mention of Amy, Lucy groaned. “Oh, Liam. I’m sorry I ruined your wedding.”
Staring fondly at his baby sister, he shook his head. “At the risk of losing my tongue, nothing matters more than you do, LuLu.”
I could hear her swallow as tears threatened to overtake her again. “I love you, Liam. Thank you for saving me.”
Winking at her, he joked, “I know you’d do the same for me.” Then he exited the room, leaving us completely alone.
I owed Liam my life for stopping at nothing to see Lucy brought safely back to me. He risked his own life for hers. His loyalty and love knew no bounds, and if what Lucy said was true—that he would someday be our King—we would be lucky as hell to have him.
Holding Lucy close, I knew that while the imminent threat was gone, the aftereffects of her ordeal would plague her beyond today. It was my job to remain steadfast, to provide her with the support she needed and however she needed it. It wouldn’t be easy, but I loved her enough to weather the storm.
“Breaking news out of the small European country of Belleston today. Prince Leopold Remington has been admitted to the psychiatric ward at the Remhorn Mental Health Facility and is expected to remain there indefinitely, according to palace sources.
King Victor has petitioned Parliament that Prince Leopold is mentally unstable and unfit to rule. In response, they have removed him from the line of succession. Leopold has three children—two sons and a daughter—who reside in the United States with their mother. Former Princess Natalie has petitioned Parliament that they be removed from the line of succession, in addition to their father.
This leaves Crown Prince Adrian’s second son, Prince William, as heir behind his father and grandfather. Prince William recently married American oil heiress, Amy Michaels, and the pair have created many programs benefiting Bellestonians in need.
However, the future of the country’s longest-reigning royal family hangs in the balance as they wait to see if their youngest generation provides heirs to continue their line.”
Sighing, I turned off the news report on the television. It wasn’t every day that a country eliminated not one but four people from their line of succession, so it was bound to make international news, but it dredged up so many bad memories for the family to have it constantly brought up.
It had been two weeks since Amy and Liam’s ruined state wedding and Lucy’s kidnapping, and I knew so much more about the underlying issues that led to Leo’s psychotic break. Lucy told me that Leo wasn’t her father’s son, and only after herabduction did her mother share the details of her own assault that led to his conception. Liam knew before marrying Amy, but Lucy only discovered she was the spare when her grandfather asked her to marry me.
Leo hadn’t handled it well when he learned the news and disappeared shortly after. He felt entitled after thirty-five years of being groomed to take over for his father, but the signs that he was deranged became too strong to ignore, and they made the decision to bypass him. He was only raised as the heir to save Princess Adelaide from the trauma of having her assault broadcast to the world. She’d been through enough already.
Having Leo declared insane was the best-case scenario for the family. It allowed them to have him formally removed from the line of succession without bringing up the circumstances surrounding his birth.
No one knew about Lucy’s kidnapping either. The palace explained away the lockdown after the wedding as standard procedure, citing that they received an anonymous threat to the royal family.
The monster was in a padded cell, where he could never hurt anyone again, and the women would never have to worry about the public having private details about their trauma.
Adelaide, Natalie, and Lucy could finally heal without looking over their shoulders.
A soft shuffling sounded from behind where I sat on the couch in the private sitting room of our master suite. Turning my head, I saw Lucy, still in her pajamas, hair a tangled mess, as she moved through the room to sit beside me. Pulling her into my arms, I kissed the top of her head to comfort her.
Thank God Prince Adrian and Liam handled most of the press conferences due to Leo’s commitment to the mental hospital. Lucy wasn’t brought into focus much, which was a blessing.
Two weeks, and we hadn’t left the apartment once. We had the occasional visitor, but she wasn’t strong enough yet to venture outside the safety of our home within the palace. The bruises on her face had faded, but the emotional damage would take longer to heal—if it ever did.
