Page 26 of The Last Strike

“Let’s hope it doesn’t backfire. I’ll need to let her know that Theodora is alive before Khalil says otherwise, although I’m sure he’ll be keeping this quiet to save himself the embarrassment of his daughter siding with Santina. Regardless, I will need to explain to Queen Victoria that I lied to keep Theodora safe. If she finds out from another source that the princess is alive, she will have reason to distrust me,” he said. “And that might cause a host of other issues.”

Abi nodded thoughtfully. It was a gamble for sure, but if only the people in this room and the men on the plane knew, Abi was sure they could keep it a secret.

It was a hard position to be in, not knowing who to trust. She didn’t envy Asher, but she was proud of him for stepping up to the responsibility. King Khalil might think he could insult Asher and destroy his confidence, but Abi had never been more certain that Asher wouldn’t break.

Abi turned back to the computer at the sound of James’s voice. “I suggest you get some sleep,” he said, speaking to Princess Theodora.

Theodora nodded but her eyes followed James as he walked to the back of the jet and sat beside Reed, who was lying on the couch.

She looked wary, and Abi didn’t blame her—she was on a plane with a team of lethal men and she was the daughter of the enemy. Anyone else, except Asher, might’ve had her thrown off the plane. Theodora would’ve known that was a possibility, and that’s why she had refused to talk to anyone but Asher.

“Do you know her?” Abi asked.

Asher raised his eyebrows. “Queen Victoria?” he asked, obviously still mulling over their previous conversation.

“No. Princess Theodora” Abi said.

“Oh, not really,” he said, shaking his head. “I met her a few times as a child, I think, when Santina and Adani were on better terms. But those relations have been frosty—to put it mildly—for most of my life. I didn’t recognize her,” he said, looking at the camera that had obviously been set up to look directly at her. “She looks like her mother. Maybe that’s why I didn’t recognize her.”

Abi realized she’d never seen King Khalil’s wife.

“Her mother died a few years ago,” Asher continued. “The king said it was a heart attack. I remember sitting in my father’s office as we watched the press release. I don’t think my father believed it, but he refused to say anything more. He said it wasn’t our business, that we had enough problems to deal with. He was correct, even if it doesn’t mean it was right. But I have a better understanding of the burden my father carried now. I wouldn’t have been rushing to investigate and make claims either. There would’ve been very little he could’ve done without autopsy reports, which would’ve been impossible to get.”

Abi nodded, but then wondered if that remained true. Samuel could get them, couldn’t he? Maybe this was something that they could use against Khalil. His reputation was hardly stellar, but if the queen had been loved by her people, it could be the icing on the cake at some point. King Khalil was not loved by his people, but the Adani people supported him—or at least the wealthy majority did, because his evil deeds ensured they lived well.

The poor were another story, but the king made sure they were oppressed and hidden in villages that were never shown on the international stage—even the wealthy in Adani had no idea how their poor really lived. Adani was considered the most powerful kingdom in the region; power and wealth could be an intoxicating cocktail, and the king and his people were drinking it in large doses. King Khali had ridden this wave with brazen assassinations and invasions of other kingdoms with no consequence. For years, he’d gotten away with murder and corruption. No one had stood up to him, not until Asher. Asher’s fearlessness in fighting back was a threat to King Khalil’s power, because it proved he wasn’t unstoppable.

But Abi thought it was also a threat to his narcissism.

“Was an autopsy done?” Abi asked.

“I highly doubt it,” Asher said. “If she died for genuine reasons, maybe—but if so there’s nothing to investigate. On the other hand, if she was murdered, there would have been no need for an autopsy, which would’ve been incriminating.”

Abi chewed on her cheek, mulling over that. If they could somehow prove he killed his wife, that would be a win for Asher. It would at least make Khalil less credible to his own people and make everything negative he said about Asher less credible.

Abi wondered if she was clutching at straws, but she felt like this was worth looking into, and she needed a project to make her feel useful.

Since stepping back from her rescue work with IFRT, she felt like she’d lost a little of herself. She needed to do something to better this world, to better Santina. She was not going to sit around bathing in the luxuries of royal life.

Abi was going to be an asset to Asher—not a decoration.

Santina had many problems to solve, but while they were under heavy threat from Adani, getting out into the community was limited without an enormous security team and draining the resources Asher needed to stay alive. She had begun working on relief efforts for the soldiers at the border, but she needed to do more. Researching the queen’s death was something she could work on, beginning with some basic internet searches. If she found anything interesting, she could give it to Samuel to delve deeper into, but she didn’t want to waste his time based on a hunch—she doubted he barely had time to eat right now. Abi needed to find something first then hand it over to him to hack into all the databases she couldn’t access.

Asher yawned beside her and she realized how tired he looked.

“Get some sleep,” she suggested gently.

He nodded, running a hand through his short hair. He looked to her. “Come with me,” he said quietly, and she nodded. Abi had no intention of napping, but she could research on her phone beside Asher while he slept.

They were escorted to their bedroom and Asher’s shoulders dropped when he closed the door behind them.

He groaned softly and drew her into his arms.

“What a day,” he said, his words muffled as he kissed the crown of her head. “I feel like I need one good day without some catastrophe, but every morning the sun rises with a new set of problems.”

Abi looked up at him through her lashes. She didn’t say anything, just held him tight.

He smiled as he looked down at her, standing an entire head above her. “You make this easier, all of it.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

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