Page 40 of Guarding the Princess
The figure stands there for a few minutes longer and then a dark SUV pulls up. Two more men in suits get out and all three go inside the palace.
“How did they gain access to the palace grounds?” Mother snaps.
She isn’t happy and the security guard knows it.
“I can’t tell for sure, ma’am, but we had a lot of extra security teams on the property due to the dinner.”
“Who brought extra—”
“Stop!” My whole body freezes, my lungs no longer capable of taking in air. There, on the screen, are the three men. But they aren’t alone. This time they’re dragging a fourth man through the door and throwing him into the car.
“Ryker…” I whisper.
My chest aches knowing twenty-four hours have gone by and I had no idea there was foul play involved. I took Ryker’s departure to be a rejection of me, worried about my own fragile ego instead of his safety. A deep sense of panic prods me into motion. There’s no more time to waste. If my delay costs him his life, I will never forgive myself.
“Do you believe me now?” I don’t wait for my parents to answer. “We need to analyze these tapes to get a license plate number. I want a list of every security member allowed on palace grounds last night. And I want an investigator here in Regora to trace where Ryker could be. If we can’t find these three men, we’ll find Ryker ourselves.”
Mother barks further orders at the two security guards who jump into action. My father puts his arm around my shoulders and holds me steady.
“We’ll get the right people on it, Charlotta. Don’t you worry. We’ll find Ryker for you.”
He means well, but simple words can’t calm me now. Only the sight of Ryker standing before me without a hair on his head out of place will soothe the anger boiling in my stomach. Who did this to him and why?
I blink the thoughts away and the security guards rush out the door to do Mother’s bidding. There will be time later to discover why Ryker was taken from the palace, but for now, I can only focus on finding him unharmed.
Mother turns toward me, her expression unreadable.
“You love him?” she asks simply.
The chaos buzzing through my brain pauses and all I feel is certainty. If I doubted the intensity of my feelings before, it’s all clear to me now.
“Yes, I love Ryker. Nothing about that is fake. And, if I have to give up the throne to that lower-than-dirt cousin of mine to have Ryker in my life, then so be it.” I walk over to the door, needing to do something constructive to find Ryker. “I’ll find him, and then you have a decision to make, Mother. Mine has already been made.”
What I don’t see after I leave the room is the look Mother gives my father. Or the new set of commands she fires off into her cell phone.
16
Ryker
The backpack clutched in my sweaty hands has ridiculously bright patches sewn all over it. Wearing identifying clothing and accessories is against my nature as a bodyguard who thrives on blending in. It’s also against my personal code of fashion, but I’ll do anything it takes to look like a tourist here in Regora. Passengers slowly disembark the plane while I attempt to look relaxed, like I have all the time in the world. Just here to sightsee. Yep. Not at all on a mission to infiltrate the royal palace and gain an audience with the royal family before they have me kicked out with more severe injuries than the first time.
I finally step off the stairs down from the plane and onto the tarmac. The first breath of crisp winter Regoran air perks me up and helps me focus on the task at hand: finding Charlotte.
Thankfully, I didn’t check a bag so I fly through the airport and wave down a taxi cab at the curb in record time.
“Can you take me to the royal palace?” I peer inside the cab to the older gentleman at the wheel.
He gives me a jovial smile and waves me in. I throw my bag in the backseat and climb in, hoping I’m trusting the right guy.
“The palace, yah?” He turns around in his seat, blue eyes dancing like he has a good joke to tell. The accent is thick, reminding me of Charlotte.
I grab the camera hanging from my neck and lift it in the air. “I’ve heard the palace is beautiful this time of year.” I hope he’ll buy my tourist act and get us out of here before we attract unwanted attention. Until I know who did this to me, I can’t trust that the same person doesn’t have eyes out watching for my return. If the Queen is responsible, I’m sure she has the means to have spies everywhere.
He chuckles. “Yah, it is. Bit cold but you look like you’re a man of good health.”
With that compliment he spins around and pulls the car away from the curb into the flow of traffic. He turns on some music I don’t recognize. It’s pleasant, but does nothing to calm the frayed nerves that have plagued me since the moment I was dragged from the castle.
Days and nights have blurred together, the international travel not helping. Time zone changes are confusing enough without a lack of sleep and possible concussion. I should have seen a doctor before I came back but there was no time. The black dots in my vision are slowly going away so I take that as a good sign of proper recovery.
