AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Maxim
Once I deliver Cassie safely back to her family, I head off on an angry rampage. My fucking brother is messing with things he knows nothing about, and it’s time to put an end to it.
Making my way to my den, I’m relieved to find my three friends already there and as I storm into the room, Baron quips, “What’s up? Were your eggs not done to your liking again?”
Duke grins. “Maybe his coffee was a little cold. Shocking. I’d fire the maid.”
“Or maybe he isn’t getting what he wants from a certain woman he kidnapped and imprisoned and ruined her life. That could be the reason.” Gabriel grins and if I feel like punching anyone now, it’s his smug face.
Sighing, I sit behind my desk and tap my fingers on it angrily. “Victor.”
The looks on my friends’ faces are ones I’m used to seeing. They share my hatred of my brother and begged me to deal with him ages ago, but I always gave him the benefit of the doubt. Not now. Not now she’s here. I can’t take that chance because if anything happened to her because I turned a blind eye, I would never forgive myself.
“So, what’s the plan?” Gabriel looks eager to strike, and I lean back and sigh. “I wish this fucking wedding was over already. How can I deal with my brother with that looming over me? The other kings are arriving today and I’m expected to chair a meeting with them. The first one since I was crowned king and they will have many questions I can’t answer right now.”
“Then tell them, they could help.”
“Tell them what exactly?” I glare at Baron with the eyes of the defeated, and he shakes his head.
“They are your men, Max. They serve you, the crown, and the country. They owe you their loyalty and if you are having problems, you need to trust them.”
“Trust no one.” I stare him straight in the eye as the others reply, “And never betray that trust.”
As the Five Kings motto bounces around the room, it hardens my resolve. I never really understood what that meant until now. When I asked my father, he always told me I’d know at the right moment. Figure it out myself and do the right thing. It’s only now I realize that time will soon be here because Victor is the person challenging my crown right now and I’m in a tricky situation.
“What time is the meeting?” Ever the practical one, Duke looks at his watch.
“This evening, after dinner. We meet to discuss the future of the organization and voice any concerns and discuss the problems we’re facing.”
“Will you tell them?” Gabriel looks worried, and I shrug. “I’m not sure. I suppose I should hear them out first and discover what they know, but I know one thing. They will be worried because they have been struggling under some serious heat lately and still don’t know why.”
“What about Ryder, do you think he’s likely to kick off?”
Thinking of the man responsible for dealing with our problems, I shiver a little. Cold, unfeeling, an assassin. A man who heads up the gang responsible for cleaning up the streets under the radar. A contract killer of the most threatening kind and he is probably pissed beyond belief right now at the shit that’s been thrown his way. An attempt on his life, on his whole operation, and he will be looking for revenge.
Then there’s Lucas Emiliano, the Casino King. A man who survived an assassination attempt and has seen his business turned upside down. Then there're the others facing a similar pile of shit. They will all have questions and I expect no less of them, but the answers may not be the ones they were looking for.
Sighing, I turn on my computer and groan. “We should get to work. We don’t have long.”
The others nod and as they disappear off to their own offices, I thank God at least I have them who I would trust with my life, my mother’s life and now my queen’s.
Cassie
Luckily, the queen also makes her excuses and leaves me with my parents, and as soon as the door closes, my mom rushes over and hugs me hard. “Darling, you did so well, congratulations.”
Pulling back, she looks over me critically and smiles. “Such a fine ensemble. You obviously have the best that money can buy and the king, well, he’s rather easy on the eye, isn’t he? I imagine you are pinching yourself right now. It’s like a fairy story.”
She carries on chatting with an excitement that requires no actual conversation, and I resign myself to her excitable madness. This is her dream; it always has been and if anything, I’m glad that at least one of us is happy it all worked out.
As soon as there’s a gap in the one-sided conversation, my father says apologetically, “I’m sorry, princess, it’s not what you hoped for.”
“Not what she hoped for! William, are you mad? Of course this is what she hoped for, what any woman hopes for.”
Mom shakes her head as my father sighs heavily. “Cassie isn’t most women. I thought you knew that.”
“Not this again.” Mom sighs and fixes me with a stern look. “You have an admirable ambition, Cassie, but there are thousands of doctors around the world and very few queens. This is a calling that only a select few get. It’s up to you to be the best queen you can be and understand that you have an important job to do.”
For the first time I look at my mother will a little more respect and say, “But how?”
She pulls me beside her on the couch and her eyes shine as she says with excitement. “Be the strong person behind the king. Guide him, help him rule and make the right decisions. Deliver a compelling argument for women’s rights and persuade him to invest time and money in projects and organizations that will help our country. Look outside the palace walls and see the world, my darling, because you hold its fate in your beautiful hands. Encourage him to be better, to make a difference and be the strong woman we’ve watched develop over the years. Your dream of being a doctor is an admirable one. To heal the sick and make a difference in their lives. This way you make a difference to everyone’s lives, sick or healthy. You have the means to shape lives and make them matter. Don’t grieve your own future when you have the chance to make so many brighter. You were educated for a reason, Cassie, and it wasn’t to become a rich man’s plaything. Be strong and fierce and know we are behind you one hundred percent.”
I am completely floored by my mother’s speech. The tears that sparkle in her eyes and her passion. The fact she has surprised me is a shock I wasn’t expecting today and as my own tears join hers, I finally understand.
My mother also has a dream. A much bigger one than mine and far more admirable. She has demonstrated that she isn’t as shallow as I always gave her credit for and from the look in my father’s eye as he looks at her with pride, it appears that this is the woman he always knew and loved. A strong woman. A woman who feels deeply and wants to make a difference and for the first time in my life, I am so incredibly proud to call her my mother. Now I understand. Now I get where she’s coming from and I do something that shocks us both and pull her toward me and sob like crazy in her arms. It’s like a pressure relief valve has been loosened and all the anger, the disappointment and the hatred leave me in one violent moment of realization.
She’s right. I can make a difference in a unique and privileged way and suddenly it all becomes clear. I have it all. The opportunity, the lifestyle and a man who ignites feelings inside me I never knew I had. A strong, powerful, sexy man, who any woman would be proud to call her husband.
Pulling back, I laugh softly as she wipes my eyes and I do the same for her. The look we share is a different one because now I understand. I am a woman at last because I have purpose and an understanding of what lies ahead. Now it’s up to me to give her what she wants. To pay her back for the years of manipulation to get me to this point against my own wishes. She always knew, had a much bigger master plan for me and I love her so hard it physically hurts. As my father joins us and folds us into his arms, I enjoy this moment where my childhood disappears and our family unit changes forever.
