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Gabriella’s face contorts in anger when he tells us about the debt. “This is the story that my grandfather told my father, who then told me. Gabriella, please correct me if I miss anything or if my facts are incorrect.” She narrows her eyes at him in response, but he doesn’t seem to care.
“When Ariella’s grandparents had been searching for a suitable match for Trevor, it had come down to Gabriella and another princess. Ties with Cothena have always been profitable, and it was important for Gabriella’s parents, King and Queen Marquet, to ensure that their daughter was chosen. Unfortunately, their coffers were dry, and they had little to offer in the way of trade.
“In a last-ditch effort to fill their treasury and present themselves as the more viable option as an ally, they approached my grandparents and requested to borrow enough money to achieve their goal.”
As curious as I am, Ariella asks, “What did they want in exchange?”
Jordain’s lips quirk up. “What do you think?”
“Raw opium,” I say. Things are starting to make more sense.
“Indeed. Gabriella was to urge her husband to agree to a trade alliance with Brachha and export the opium, which she only half accomplished. According to my father, her only saving grace was that Trevor agreed to an alliance, exporting the pharmaceuticals and training our doctors at no cost to my people. When I became king, my father said it was my duty to ensure that the bargain struck so many years ago was fulfilled.
“Gabriella bought her country time from my father’s impatience when she came to him and struck another bargain. She promised him that she would choose Julietta as Aaron’s betrothed and Ariella as Kiernan’s, thinking she would be able to manipulate them both into agreeing to give us the opium. Julietta did her best to convince Aaron that it was necessary, but Ariella proved to be as stubborn as her father and brother.” He looks like he’s entertained by the whole situation rather than upset.
“King Jordain, you know that Cothena will never willingly export raw opium to any country. We just don’t have enough of it to do so, even if I thought it was the right thing to do–which I don’t, and neither does my son.” Trevor tells him.
Jordain waves his hand dismissively. “I don’t really care about opium. Brachha is doing exceptionally well economically, and I never intended to pursue a debt almost six decades old. All it would manage to accomplish is break our alliance and cause a war. That’s not something I’m willing to do.”
Gabriella screams, “Then why did you even approach me about it? Why threaten to expose my secret?”
Jordain shrugs. “I wanted to see if it was true. Your actions after that proved that it was, even if they were all for naught.”
Trevor stares at his wife in disbelief, apparently unaware of this part. “I had assumed that you were coming after Ariella because you had learned of her marriage to Patrick. Why didn’t you ever tell me about the deal your parents made? I would have helped. I loved you.” It doesn’t escape my attention he uses the word in past tense.
Gabriella scoffs. “What would you have done? Would you have agreed to pay my parents’ debt?”
Trevor frowns, “No, I wouldn’t have. At least not in the way that they had intended.”
“Then why does it matter that I never told you? You didn’t love me enough to do what needed to be done,” she says, a tear escaping the corner of her eye. “I did all this because I love you and wanted to protect you!”
“What? How is this love?” he says, gesturing to the situation we find ourselves in.
“If our people had discovered that our relationship started on a lie and that their queen had come from a country stricken by poverty, what would that have said about you? I didn’t want to give them a reason to continue pursuing their endeavors toward a democracy instead of a monarchy. It would have ruined our family name and discredited Aaron, Ariella, and Jordain by association. We cannot afford to lose what power we have and let that happen!” she cries out.
Trevor walks up to his wife, and she points the gun at him to halt him in his tracks. With Gabriella’s attention solely on her husband, Ariella gets up slowly and moves out of her mother’s line of sight.
“Gabriella. Darling. It’s too late for that. After the bombing ten years ago, Aaron, Ariella, Kiernan, and I have been laying out the groundwork to establish a parliament. It was time for the people to have a say, which I had wanted to do long before that event. You were always against the idea, so we had to do it secretly. There will still be a king and queen, but their power will be limited—as it should be. Nobody should have that much power over the people, even if their intentions are pure. As Lord Acton once said, ‘Absolute power corrupts absolutely.’ I think the lengths you were willing to go to protect a power that is no longer ours is precisely what he meant.
She raises her gun slightly and says, “I can’t let you do that, Trevor. Cothena is meant to be ruled, not governed.” Just as her fingers curl around the trigger, a shot is fired. I search for the source, but it’s not until Gabriella’s eyes roll back in her head and she drops to the ground that I know who took it. Ariella shot her mother using the gun she had tucked away under her shirt.
Tears streaming down her cheeks, she meets my gaze. “Is she dead?”
I run to her and embrace her fiercely, comforting her the best way I can in my present company. “No, Baby. She’s not dead. The ‘simunition’ rounds don’t kill. The tips are loaded with a tranquilizer that incapacitates a person. Your mother will be okay.”
Okay is a relative term. She’ll be alive, but what happens next isn’t up to me.
Chapter twenty-seven
Ariella
Ican’t seem to comprehend everything that has happened over the course of the last few hours. I don’t know whether to be mad at my mother or pity her for what she has done. The question that remains is whether or not I can forgive her. It will take me time to recover from the sting of her betrayal, but how can I teach Alex to forgive others if I’m not willing to do it myself?
With Patrick’s arms still around me, I watch as Savannah and Jerry carry away my mother’s unconscious form. They’re taking her upstairs to be with the rest of the men who had been captured. Before my father followed them, he assured me that she would be taken care of. What that meant, I wasn’t sure. However, knowing the godly man that he is, her punishment will be fair and just.
“Daddy!” Alex shouts from the hallway when he sees Patrick standing next to me. He runs as fast as his little legs can carry him and jumps into his father’s arms. “You’re all right! I prayed that God would keep you safe, and He did!”
“He kept the whole team safe. Even your Grandpa is going to be all right. We need to make sure to thank Him for that.”
