Page 18 of Six Types of Apology

Taking off his cap, Ryan ran his hand through his bushy black hair. “Anything’s possible, sir, but if that were the case then we’d have found the motherload of crystal seams. With what those geologist fellas mapped out with their fancy equipment, a seam that wide could go back miles into the mountains. It would be a huge find.”

Orion felt a surge of excitement. “Then we have to check it out. If you think about it, we already know we have a seam. We just have no idea how far back it stretches. If you’ve found another part of the same thing, or even a second one, that surely doubles the chances this could be a viable proposition.”

“We’ll head down that way then, sir.” Ryan held up his crystal lamp. “This should hold a while longer, although it won’t last forever.”

“Just think, Ryan, soon we might have our own crystals that can be powered up and used all throughout the country and possibly even as an export option.” Orion’s excitement grew as they headed down the way Ryan had indicated.

The caves were quite tall. There were very few instances where Orion or Ryan had to duck, and there were some areas where thecaves soared high above Orion’s head. Trailing his fingers along the dark walls, Orion’s smile widened as he saw the occasional glimpses of sparkles.

“Here, look at this,” he said, pointing upward. They’d just come through one of the narrower openings and the roof of the cave they were in shot up to a point. “See how some of that rock has recently fallen away? Does that look like exposed crystal to you?”

“Yes, sir, it does.” Ryan peered up. The glinting line in the rock was about three feet above their head. Then he glanced around, likely looking for something to stand on. “We need to come back with some ramps so we can reach it. There were a couple stacked up at the entrance to the caves.”

“You go ahead and grab them.” Orion winced as he shook out his foot which was starting to sting again. “The ointment on my blister must be wearing off. I’ll sit here and wait for you to come back. Go on, man,” he added as Ryan hesitated. “You’re not going to be longer than ten minutes and I’ll be fine.” Glancing around the cave, he chuckled. “I doubt anything else is going to be lurking in these cave walls. Clearly no one’s been here for a while.”

“If you’re sure, sir…” Ryan was clearly still undecided.

“I’m sure.” Orion brushed off a flat piece of rock that was sticking out from the wall and sat down. “Far better for me to sit here like an entitled royal, waiting for you to return with our equipment, than for me to be hobbling out to the cave entrance and then back again. If I walk much more on this foot, John is going to be very disappointed in me.”

“If you say so, sir. I’ll leave the lamp for your highness.” And this time Ryan had the hint of a smile on his face as he left the lamp on the ground and disappeared out of the cave.

Alone time. Utter bliss.Leaning his back against the wall of the cave, Orion closed his eyes. As a prince, being around people for ninety-nine percent of the time was normal. Orion was always expected to have at least John with him, no matter where he went. Apparently, crown prince consorts required even more protections. Orion quietly snickered as he remembered how appalled Vincent’s valet, Morgan, had been, catching him on his way out of the castle. He had been horrified that Orion refused to take any guards with him. According to Morgan, that type of refusal just wasn’t the sort of thing a consort should say.

The joke is on him.Inhaling sharply, Orion focused on letting that same breath out slowly. There had been more than a hundred times since he’d left Carntan where he wondered if he’d done the wrong thing or over reacted by leaving Vincent without even talking to him. But in a world where appearances meant everything, Orion knew that while he could never change his husband’s behavior, he also didn’t have to accept it.Think about something else,he reminded himself quickly. Vincent would never know how much his callous behavior had hurt Orion, and Orion planned to keep things that way.

Look at this outcrop.Opening his eyes, Orion patted the rock he was sitting on. It was honestly as if someone had chipped out a bench seat from the stone wall. The edges were all smooth, as though they’d been exposed for some time. Looking up he could see there were a number of sharp edges on the walls as if the whole thing had moved recently. There were fallen rocks and piles of stone chips at various places around the cave.

I wonder what caused that,but even as he thought it, Orion felt the wall behind him tremble, and a loud rumbling sound bounced around the cave. He jumped up, ignoring the pull on his heel, his only focus to get out of the cave. But as he moved toward the entrance, the rumbling got louder, and a stoneclipped the side of his head. As Orion fell to the ground, he had just enough time to roll under the seat as rocks started raining down around him.

Looks like I won’t be a problem for Vincent anymorewas the last thing he thought as the rock seat he’d been sitting on broke off from the wall and fell with a thud across his back.

Chapter Seventeen

“What in the name of the goddess of magic and steam is this place?” Vincent rode into the camp, where he’d been assured that his husband would be. But all he could see was a collection of rickety huts, a fire pit and a trail leading to some caves tucked up around the corner, on the opposite side from where he rode in.

“Your message from Crown Prince Onyx expressly stated that this was not the sort of environment you’d enjoy,” Morgan warned in a low voice. “Your husband is here for work, not socializing or partying, but genuine work that could benefit the people he was raised to feel responsible for.”

“That’s all very well and good, but if he’s supposedly here working, then where is he?” Swinging his leg over his horse, Vincent dismounted, letting his reins drop to the ground. His horse was well trained and wouldn’t wander. “You there,” he pointed to two of his guards, “find water for the horses, while you two, he indicated the other two guards, “fan out and find out where…”

“Crown Prince Vincent? Crown Prince Vincent?”

Looking up, Vincent’s eyes widened. Stumbling down the trail was his husband’s man, John. But gone was the prissy man who walked as if he had a broom handle up his behind, always soberly and yet immaculately dressed. Now, as the man hurried toward him, Vincent could see his clothes were covered in dust and grime, and his shirt was torn.

"Forgive my appearance, your highness." John bowed low. “I have no idea why you’re here, but it’s a godsend that you’ve arrived when you did. I need your guards. I need them to come with me now.”

There was no denying the urgency in John’s words. “What’s happened?” Vincent waved at his guards to follow them as he followed John back up the short hill. “Is someone injured? Have you been attacked?” That wouldn’t be unheard of in such a remote area.

But John was shaking his head. “It’s Crown Prince Consort Orion. He was in the caves, waiting for Ryan to come back with some ramps. They were checking out a crystal seam, you see. The earth moved. I know you won’t believe me, but the earth moved, and the cave the prince was in collapsed. We’re digging frantically, but we need more hands. I heard voices, so I had to come…”

“By the goddess.” Vincent started to run, and as he rounded the corner, he could see the cave entrance proper. Urgent voices were coming from one side, and he moved automatically in that direction. Passing through a number of caves that were littered with debris, it didn’t take long before the scale of the problem was clear. More rock walls, and where an entrance would likely be to another cave was nothing but a mass of rocks and rubble.

“Are you Ryan? Was anyone else in there?” Vincent grabbed the biggest man by the shoulder, forcing him to stop.

“No one else. Just the prince.” Vincent was shocked to see tears in the man’s eyes. “We’ve been calling out. John thought he heard a groan. But there’s just so much rock to move.”

“Guards, take over from these men, they need a break,” Vincent ordered. “Dig as if your lives depend on it. Morgan, see to it these workers have water and break out some rations from the cart. Ryan, think man. Is there another way in. Someway with less rock between this cave and the one my husband is in.”If he dies this will all be my fault.

Ryan was thinking, he didn’t just say no, which was a blessing because Vincent was thinking he was going to have to call in heavy machinery to move the rock mess he could see. And they didn’t have time for that. Not when Vincent’s future was lying under the rubble.

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