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“Why?”
“I may have given up the idea of being Crown Prince, but a Baldasseri has been in charge of the mine for three hundred years. Now it’s my turn. I’m responsible for the entire operation. The men look to me for direction. What kind of a leader would I be if I let my problems defeat me? I need to do everything possible.”
She struggled to keep back the tears. “But all of that has been done.”
He stared hard at her. “Did you give up on me?”
Rini had made his point. “I understand, but I have a horrible feeling about it.”
“That’s your fear taking over.”
Yes. She was afraid. For him, for them, for their baby. If there was another quake or a cave-in, their son or daughter would never know him.
“Luna—I must do this.” She heard his determination. His vibrant voice resonated to her insides.
She could tell him the truth now, that they were expecting a child. The knowledge would probably force him to accede to her wishes. But that would be a cruel thing to do to him when he’d just made his first big, courageous decision to stand at the helm.
“I know you do,” she said at last, defeated by his excitement and that feeling inside him. “I’m sorry I had such a strong reaction.”
“Forgive me for upsetting you, Luna, but nothing’s going to happen to me. I’ll be home by the end of the day.”
Those were the very words he’d said to her before he’d left their bed to inspect the mine. To go through that horrifying experience again would be the end of her, but she couldn’t think that way.
“Of course you will, and I’ll be waiting.”
She wanted her husband whole and healthy in mind and body. He’d been born with this drive. Rini needed to act on it in order to thrive.
He may have lost his memory, but he hadn’t changed in the most fundamental way. Few men were natural-born leaders. His name had been preordained to be on a very short list. From an early age, he’d been revered. Now he was loved and respected by his country. This was his destiny.
Another quake could hit in the same region at the same intensity. But she couldn’t live in fear of that or she’d never get through life. To hold him back for her own selfish reasons would be wrong and unworthy of her.
“We’ll have today and tonight on the cruiser,” Rini reminded her.
“I can’t wait.”
They got busy and left for the port, taking food with them from the palazzo. After they arrived, Rini started up the engine and they took off for a fantastic day of fishing and sunbathing. By that evening they’d stuffed themselves with food and went to bed.
Rini rolled her on top of him. “We’ll make the most of this night. Tomorrow morning we’ll drive to the palace and I’ll take off for the mine in the helicopter. I promise I’ll be home by six for dinner.” Once again, they began the age-old ritual that brought both of them rapture. No woman ever had a husband as wonderful as Rini.
The next afternoon, as Rini walked through the claustrophobic labyrinths of the mine, the full realization of what had happened to him during the quake hit him. For the next few hours he and Pesco and the staff explored the area where the miners had been buried. It was an incredible sight to see all those boulders that filled the chutes. He lost total track of time because he was so deep in thought.
The massive damage was testament to the power of that quake. How he’d escaped death was absolutely astounding to him.
He’d studied the maps and found the shaft that led to the exit where he’d crawled out. Rini followed it and looked up at the sky. Maybe if he stood here long enough, a miracle would happen, and another quake would restore him to his former self.
He waited, but by eight o’clock he felt no tremors or rumblings. The ground remained solid beneath his feet.
“Rini?” Pesco murmured. “The men have gone home. Shall we go, too?”
He nodded and followed Pesco up to the surface of the mine. Of course the men had left after such a disastrous meeting! Rini could never blame them. He wasn’t the person he’d been pretending to be, and they knew it.
It would take him a lifetime to relearn what had taken him twenty-nine years to accomplish. There was no point in prolonging this nightmare. Not only couldn’t he speak fluent Italian, he also didn’t know what in the hell to communicate to the men. He knew nothing about running the mining world.
The only reason the men had treated him with the greatest deference was because they saw him as the Crown Prince, whatever that was. But Rini had seen the sadness in their eyes while he’d struggled to find words and come up with ideas that meant nothing!
They’d sent each other nonverbal messages when they’d thought he wasn’t looking. But Rini had known what they were thinking. What was this shell of a man doing in their mine when it was the last place he was wanted or needed? He thought he could just walk in like nothing had changed because he was the grandson of the King? Who did he imagine he was kidding?
After thanking Pesco, he walked to the helicopter and told the pilot to head back to Asteria. His wife would be waiting for him.
