Page 21 of The Broken Queen
Presley
Adrian pulled my hand into his lap and stroked his finger down the center of my palm. My eyes were trained on the man across from me, who was sitting right next to Alex. The man in question was smirking, and Alex looked like a plastic doll sitting next to him. Frozen in fear with her golden hair piled on top of her head, thick black lashes, and startling blue eyes.
Markos sipped his wine while Benni and Renzo filled in the rest of the spots around the table. If there were any additional soldiers, they weren’t visible. My stomach churned with nerves as I watched Alex for any sign of distress or abuse. Her skin was flawless, no bruises or scratches. Not even her eyes were puffy.
“So tell me, Presley.” Markos got my attention by setting his glass down and settling his gaze on me. “My Adrian is quite taken with you. Do you feel the same about him?”
The twins were right, and I wasn’t even sure how to process it. This man was dangerous, and I knew that Alex being with him wasn’t on accident. It was a threat, but I wasn’t sure yet how to approach it or what to say because she could get hurt, so instead I squeezed Adrian’s hand under the table and smiled.
“Of course I do. It took some time to warm up to him, but I couldn’t be happier about our impending marriage.”
Alex’s blue eyes lifted to mine and held my gaze for a few seconds before lowering them again to the table. Benni and Renzo helped themselves to the pasta dinner that was in a clear dish near the center of the table. A large green salad filled another bowl, along with a silver tray of fresh bread. There were no maid staff, no chef, no one else seemed to be here…it almost made me wonder if Markos had actually made this meal himself.
Markos glanced first at Adrian, who was sipping coffee, then next to him at Alex. “What do you think, Alexandria? Do you think Presley is fond of Adrian, or do you think she’s still smitten with your twin brothers?”
My pulse jackhammered as I watched Alex’s eyes plead with me for something I had no way of giving her. Before she could reply, Adrian cleared his throat.
“That’s enough, father.”
Hearing Adrian confirm his connection to Markos felt like a rock plummeting into water. How could he have kept this from me? Even if this wasn’t his biological father, according to the twins, this was the man who had raised my fiancé.
Sliding my chair out, I cleared my throat. “Excuse me, I’d like to talk to Alex alone, please.”
Markos tipped his head back the smallest amount, revealing a devious smile. “Of course.”
Alex slid out of her spot and gently set her cloth napkin down while she walked toward the hall. I met her halfway, feeling everyone’s gaze on our backs. We kept walking until we found a spot far enough away that I knew no one would be able to hear us.
My fingers intertwined with hers instantly as her eyes began to fill with tears. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to help you. Scotty said it would be fine, but when I arrived in Italy, this guy picked me up. I assumed Scotty had set it all up for me, so when he said he was one of Adrian’s drivers, I didn’tgive it a second thought. I just got in the car. I’ve been with Markos ever since.”
“So he kidnapped you?” I asked, pulling her closer.
Alex nodded briskly. “He hasn’t hurt me, just said we’d be reuniting after your engagement party. I wanted to be there for that, as protection. I know you can take care of yourself, but I wanted to ensure you had some backup. I tried using my phone, but I think he has a signal jammer going or something.”
I flung my arms around her as hers came around me. For two seconds, I allowed myself to be nostalgic and think of home. To remember what it was like to see her every morning and to train with her in the evenings. Alex was always like a big sister to me, and seeing her here really did make me feel better. Although, this would also be difficult because if Markos had half a brain, he’d know that Alex meant something to me, and he could use her as leverage.
He just picked up a hostage, thanks to Scotty.
“We’ll figure this out, I promise.” I released Alex and stepped back.
We’d have to get back to the table and act like nothing was wrong. Before we did, I gripped her hand once more. “Did he say anything to you, anything that would help us understand his motivation?”
Alex released me and stepped closer. “His motivation? Presley, come on, you know by now that my brothers were right. This is all an elaborate job to get revenge on your father. They’ll kill us because we’re allies and…well, there might be more.”
“More what?”
She flicked a quick look over my shoulder before leaning even closer. “He said something weird about my mom…like he knew her or something.”
“Presley, darling.” Adrian appeared behind us with his hands loose at his sides.
I turned and saw his worried expression.
“Yes?”
He reached for me, gently. “Come. Let’s go back and sit down.”
His hand was shaking, which told me he was nervous or possibly afraid. Glancing over my shoulder at Alex, all three of us walked back into the dining room and resumed dinner.
