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Turning the lock, she stumbled the few steps to a couch and sank onto it. Tears pricked at her eyelids. Normally she wasn’t so emotional, but who could blame her with her parents both kidnapped by a masochist and wanting to reunite with the love of her life?
Trusting Tristan was instinctive, but she was terrified of doing or saying the wrong thing and somehow having it get back to William. They’d have to watch their backs, and somehow she’d have to convince him to not tell his dad or Ray.
The tightrope she needed to walk and the danger of a knife at her parents’ throats made it hard to relax, but Tristan’s scent and being in his space wrapped around her. No matter what, he’d never let anything bad happen to her. She felt safe for the first time in a long time.
Chapter Five
Tristan wondered if he would ever fully enjoy one of his brother’s weddings. Maybe Malik and Sophie’s nuptials would be a day with no extra drama. Steffan and Hattie had married in some jungle in South America with only her cousin, Sadie, and her husband Wolf attending, the ceremony performed by a church missionary. Ray and Macey’s wedding had been a nightmare because of William’s scheming, Ellery mistakenly trusting Naomi, and Henry acting as William’s puppet. Curt and Aliya’s wedding had been nice, quiet, in the mountains with some of the family there. He had relaxed and enjoyed that day.
Everyone but Mum was here now, and Tristan was so worried about Jennifer and aching to get to her that he couldn’t relax or enjoy this special time. He didn’t blame Jennifer. All the blame lay at William and Naomi Rindlesbachers’ feet. As usual.
He and Jennifer hadn’t had enough time to talk it all out, but she’d said her dad was gone and ‘they’ had her mum. It had to be William and Naomi. Jennifer needed to tell him all, and then they had to make a plan to rescue Henry and Leslie.
Could he spend some time comforting and kissing her during that planning session?
Tristan wiped a hand across his eyes. He had to focus. As much as he yearned for Jennifer in his arms, her parents’ safe return and the end of the Rindlesbachers’ plots had to come first. That meant the planning would have to be done with Ray, Jensen, his dad, and maybe even Lieutenant General Cordon and Chad. No kissing would happen with all of them around.
The dinner continued with speeches and toasts, lots of laughter, and too much delicious food. Sophie was an incredible chef, and she and her staff had outdone themselves.
After dinner and dessert, an informal reception line formed to hug and talk with the bride and groom and the other royals. Dancing would begin soon. Their crew would clear some tables and set up refreshments. Never enough food, apparently.
Could he escape yet?
He noticed Ray giving him the stare down. What did his brother know, and what was he thinking? He’d cleared Jennifer at the gate earlier. His twin was exceptionally protective of his wife Macey and their dad and siblings. He was also especially observant at knowing what Tristan needed or what dangers might be approaching.
Why always the danger with their family? Before Mum was murdered, they’d had an idyllic life. Had the Rindlesbachers simply been plotting and biding their time to create the perfect storm and dethrone the August family?
How much longer until he could sneak out of here and get to Jennifer? The thought of her in his suite had his skin prickling. Not that either of them would do anything out of line, but she belonged with him and in his life. If only he could talk her into eloping after they rescued her parents. Sadly, the crown prince would have to have a bigger wedding day than even this one. Dang. Even more sadly, Jennifer seemed far from loving him as she used to. Except outside the bathroom when he’d leaned in and she’d given every indication she would willingly return his kiss. Dang the interruption.
Lieutenant General Phillipe Cordon stopped in front of him and bowed respectfully. “Prince Tristan.”
Tristan used to shake the man’s hand or clasp his arm, but it made Phillipe obviously uncomfortable. He was a career military man and all but worshipped the royal family. Sometimes he went overboard and came across as simpering, but Tristan respected the man and was grateful for his dedication to the royal family—especially now, as they were questioning who might be secretly working with the Rindlesbachers.
The only royals Philippe seemed relaxed around were Curt and Aliya. The three of them had gotten ‘thick as thieves’ as Aliya would say the past couple months, patrolling the mountains above Curt and Aliya’s cabin that bordered Austria. They also researched and searched for the elusive ‘cure’ to the ‘curse’ that had plagued the women who married into the August family throughout the seventeen- and eighteen-hundreds. Supposedly the queen’s wedding ring, which a revered priest had blessed hundreds of years ago, had stopped the curse and protected the women.
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.
