AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Until his mum.
Stuff and nonsense. He thought highly of Curt and Aliya, but he couldn’t understand their fascination with finding something that wasn’t real. There was no curse, no cure. His mum had been murdered, drowned in the lake. He suspected the other royals in the past had been murdered and their murderers had conveniently blamed it on the ‘curse’ as well.
“Lieutenant General.” Tristan nodded. “Enjoying the party?”
“Yes, sir, thank you. Everything is perfect. Kind of you to ask.” He took a quick breath. “Sir ...” He edged closer, which was unusual for Phillipe. “Prince Curtis and Princess Aliya have given me the honor of informing you that we had a breakthrough early this morning.”
“A breakthrough?” He rubbed at the condensation on his glass and wondered once again how soon he could sneak away to be with Jennifer. The draw to be close to her was insane, and that she needed his help made that need even more compelling.
“About the cure, sir.”
Oh, boy. Tristan didn’t want to dismiss a man as accomplished and dedicated as the lieutenant general, but the cure was the last thing he cared about right now.
“Oh. Well … You and Curt and Aliya can focus on that, I’m sure.” He forced a smile he didn’t feel.
“Sir. We have the coordinates. We found a map and a message in a cave we were exploring on a morning hike. But as we decoded the message—centuries old, mind you—we realized that the king and the crown prince are needed to unlock the cure.” His voice dropped even further. “With the queen’s wedding ring as the key, you see.”
Tristan stared at the man. It felt like Indiana Jones had taken over the lieutenant general’s body. Did one of their top military leaders really believe all of this? The zeal in his hazel eyes said he definitely did. What about Tristan’s level-headed brother Curt? Aliya was adorable but also sassy and a bit zany. He could easily see her getting caught up in the fervor, but not Curt.
“Interesting,” Tristan managed. He gestured around. “But tonight is obviously not the night.”
“Oh, yes. Of course, sir.” Philippe stepped back and crisply saluted. Tristan sometimes tried to tease him that he only needed to salute Ray, but Philippe rarely smiled at his joke.
He felt another pang for Henry. When Jennifer had said her dad was gone, did she mean kidnapped? He hoped not. Gone could mean he was chasing after Leslie and had a lead that was more important than appearing at the wedding.
Dang having to stand here and socialize when he needed to move, help Henry and Jennifer, look into her deep-brown eyes and see if she still loved him. How could they lose a love as deep as theirs had been?
“I’ll wait for you to plan a time with your father at your earliest convenience.” The words were respectful, but Philippe’s eyes pleaded to make it a very early convenience.
With all that was going on, Tristan wasn’t certain how searching for an elusive ‘cure’ could be a top priority for him or his father.
“Thank you. I’ll speak with him.” Tristan would speak with his father and try to make the treasure hunt happen for Philippe, Curt, and Aliya’s sakes, but they’d all agree that rescuing Henry and Leslie and reuniting with Jennifer took precedence. Well, maybe nobody else would see hours of uninterrupted talking and kissing as of utmost importance. All that mattered was that Jennifer agreed. After her parents were safe and the Rindlesbachers were arrested.
Philippe seemed reluctant to move on, but suddenly he straightened and saluted crisply. “General August, sir.” His voice went military stiff as Tristan’s twin approached.
“Lieutenant General Cordon.” Ray dipped his head deferentially. “All is well with security for the wedding?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Thank you. I appreciate your diligence.” Ray gave a half of a smile. Only Macey and Kiera got full smiles out of him, but sometimes Malik could make him laugh. “If you’ll pardon us, I need a word with my twin.”
“Of course, sir.”
Ray edged in and directed Tristan away from the crowd, close to a water feature that would mask their voices. His too-serious twin maintained his partial smile. The press would be snapping photos the entire night. Another reason Tristan shouldn’t be sneaking away, but he needed to be with Jennifer and try to help her.
“Jennifer’s still here?” Ray murmured, his eyes on Macey chatting with Steffan and Hattie.
“We have to keep it quiet,” Tristan said, taking a sip of his drink. “She was scared, Ray.”
“If William has her mum and now her dad’s disappeared, I can imagine she’d be terrified. I can’t believe Henry slipped away from my men. Stupid of him.”
“I’m sure William, or whoever he was meeting with, demanded it. You’ve got men searching?”
Ray nodded. “Through the entire country and the surrounding mountains. Every man I could spare who wasn’t here at the wedding, on border patrol, or guarding the military facility. Jensen and his people are helping as well.”
“Thank you. I’m planning to slip away as soon as the dancing gets going and return before the big sendoff. Hopefully I’ll have some answers from Jenn and we can hash it out privately after the wedding.”
“Okay. Where is she?”
