Page 86 of Royal Guard

KRISTINA

It’s lessthan ten miles from the palace to our nearest border, with the peaceful nation of Carlonia. For the first five or so, as we raced away from the city and along twisting mountain roads, we managed to stay ahead of any pursuit. My mother hurled the van around corners far faster than its designers had ever intended: she seemed to have an instinctual feel for just how far it would lean and skid without flipping over, and she pushed it to the very limit.

But as the hills grew steeper, we slowed down and she cursed. I could see military Humvees in the rear view mirror. Then the gunfire began, bullets chewing up the road around us. We were too far away and traveling too fast for them to hit us...yet.But they were gaining fast.

I already had the cell phone to my ear and was desperately trying to convince the Carlonian authorities that this reallywasthe Queen of Lakovia,calling the government’s main switchboard on a random cell phone number and begging to be put through to the Prime Minister. “I need you to open the border and let us through!” I told them. I had Garrett’s hand in mine and was squeezing it hard. I was pretty sure I was never going to let go of it again.

“Madam, we would need to verify your identity,” said the civil servant I’d been put through to. “Then you’d have to apply for a visa. When do you think your delegation might be visiting our country?”

“In about thirty seconds!”I yelled. “Open the border now!”

We rounded the corner and I saw the border checkpoint with its red and white barrier still closed across the road. Carlonian soldiers ran into the road as they saw us screaming towards them and pointed their guns at us, yelling at us to stop.

My mother cursed and stood on the brakes. We slowed... and the soldiers chasing us surged forward in our rear view mirror. We jerked to a stop, the nose of the van almost touching the barrier... and the first bullet hit us. It went straight through the bodywork and out through the windshield, shattering it. Everyone screamed and hunkered down. Garrett threw himself protectively across me.

On the cell phone, a different voice came on the line. “This is the Prime Minister.”

“Mr. Prime Minister, I met you at a garden party last year,” I sobbed desperately. “You told me about your son winning the tennis tournament. You said I reminded you of my father.It’s me! Open the border, please!”

There were muffled, urgent voices in the background. Two more bullets flew through the van.Then the barrier suddenly swung up and the soldiers dived out of the way.

My mother stamped on the gas and we shot forward just as bullets shredded our tires. We skidded, spun and finally lurched to a halt facing sideways...but we were in Carlonia.

The barrier swung closed. The soldiers who’d been chasing us were furious... but they weren’t going to start firing into another nation’s territory. We watched, panting, as they slowly retreated.

We were helped from the van by border security officers while two of the soldiers carefully unloaded my father from the back. Caroline and Sebastian climbed out hand-in-hand:no onewas going to split them apart again. The officers were polite but cautious and we spent the next hour answering questions. Then some men from the Prime Minister’s office arrived and everything became much more friendly. We were told that the Prime Minister had formally granted us asylum and that we could stay as long as we liked. An ambulance arrived to take my father to the hospital and my mother climbed into the back... but I held back.

My mother blinked at me, confused. Then she went pale. “Youarecoming with us?”

I shook my head and then nodded towards Lakovia. “My place is back there.”

My mother stared at me with incredulity and then jumped out of the ambulance and rushed over to me. Her perfect black hair was being tousled by the mountain breeze, but she didn’t seem to notice. “The people have turned on you!”

“That’s exactly why they need me.”

My mother shook her head, tears in her eyes. Themask she’d worn, ever since the war, was gone. “Please, Kristina! At least let’s go to the Carlonian government. They can intervene, they can level sanctions—”

“We don’t have time for any of that! The bombers are launching in a few hours.”

My mother turned to Garrett. “Please, talk sense into her. We can live in peace in Carlonia.” She glanced at me and then back at Garrett. “Allof us.”

I drew in my breath and looked at Garrett. He was staring back at my mother, his expression impossible to read.This is everything he’d ever wanted.I’d no longer be a queen, or even a princess: we could be together. My mother was willing to accept him. We wouldn’t be in danger anymore. And I knew our family had overseas bank accounts we could access. We could live more than comfortably.

All he had to do was convince me to give up my country.

He looked into my eyes for a long moment. Then, without looking at my mother, he spoke. “I’ll do what my Queen orders me to do,” he said at last. “If she wants me to stay here, I’ll stay here. But if she wants to go back, I’m with her to the end.”

I threw my arms around him and hugged him close. I was trying to hold back a flood of tears and it was difficult to speak. “Thank you,” I managed.

My mother stepped forward. “Mr. Buchanan….” It was the first time she’d said his name without that edge of disapproval. “I concede that I may have been wrong about you.”

Garrett turned to her and bowed. “Thank you, Your Majesty.” There wasn’t a trace of bitterness in his voice.

“Please,” said my mother, her voice cracking, “Take care of my daughter.”

I hugged her goodbye and she got into the ambulance. I looked at Emerik and Jakov and then at the ambulance. I wanted to let them know that they were free to go with her if they wanted.

They each took a big, deliberate step towards me. I nodded my thanks, a huge lump in my throat. Caroline and Sebastian stepped forward too, and the tears welled up in my eyes: even after being accused of treachery, both of them were still willing to risk their lives.“No,” I told them firmly. “You two have been through enough. And I want you to stay close to my mother and father, make sure they’re okay.” They reluctantly nodded and I embraced them, then watched as they walked off towards the ambulance hand-in-hand.

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