“Ele,?
? he sighed, worry creasing his forehead. His unshaven jaw and generally disheveled appearance spoke to a bedside vigil.
“How long have I been out?”
“Just since last night. They gave you a sedative.”
“Oh.”
“Feeling foggy?”
“Yes. That explains it then.” Ele leaned into Jamie’s hand, happy to soak up his concern and feel connected to something. “What are you and Millie bickering about?”
“Let’s get you some water, Ele,” Millie insisted. She moved to the bedside table and picked up a pitcher.
Ele could discern Millie’s movements, but she kept her eyes locked on Jamie. He always provided an anchor when she was adrift, and she needed him now more than ever. But as his gaze roamed the room, refusing to meet hers, she grew concerned.
“What?” she whispered.
Millie came around the other side of the bed and sat, helping Ele to a sitting position. She practically shoved the straw into Ele’s mouth.
“Drink,” she ordered. Then, as an afterthought, “But not too quickly.”
Ele straightened her sleep shirt and then gathered her hair and wound it around, so it was all on her right side. When she was ready, she leaned forward and took a few sips of water. It was silly, but everything was so out of control, and choosing when to drink seemed like one tiny little way to exert her power. The water soothed her scratchy throat. She relaxed back against the pillows. Her brain was wrapped in layers of cotton. Blinking her eyes to dislodge the fuzziness, she took another couple of sips. She wished she were more alert, but it wasn’t going to stop her from finding out what they were holding back.
“Now,” she said, thankful her voice had come out commanding and crisp, “what has you two out of sorts?”
Jamie was careful to keep his face neutral, but Ele recognized it for the mask it was.
“They’ve reassigned Robert,” Millie blurted out.
Ele gasped. And her heart squeezed. And then her hands curled in on themselves, fisting. Her eyes narrowed, and ire boiled in her stomach like a nasty, acid brew. “I beg your fucking pardon?” she snapped.
Jamie blinked in shock, his mask shriveling under the heat of her anger. He turned his gaze to her, and she saw the shock. But it was fleeting.
Like the monarch he’d trained his whole life to be, he rose up from his knees and loomed over Ele. “He left his post and allowed you to be exposed in the worst possible manner. The transfer has already occurred, and there is nothing you can do about it. While you and Millie are caught up in the personal nature of your relationship with him, let me relieve you of the burden of feeling guilty. Robert understood his dereliction of duty. He did not protest the reassignment. He acknowledged his mistakes, packed his bag, and boarded the plane this morning.”
“You will get him back here,” Ele said.
“No, I will not. We should have reassigned him years ago, Ele. You two are too close to each other. He has increasingly given in to your whims and allowed you to place yourself in danger.”
“Where is he?” she asked, her tone reasonable, belying the fear, anger, and disbelief lurking under the surface.
“It’s classified.”
Ele kept her eyes trained on her brother. A sheen of film lingered between them, so she couldn’t see him clearly. What she knew was that her twin wasn’t with her; instead, his alter ego, Crown Prince James, stood in front of her, trying to shield her from the harsh world.
As much as it wasn’t the time for revelations as she floated in a post-sedative haze, they began to bombard her. She had as much power as he did, and she had something the queen would need desperately as the years went on. Because of the treatments for his leukemia, Jamie’s ability to have children was doubtful. Which meant it was her future child who would be heir to the throne. She could make demands, and the queen would have to honor them. But first … first, she had to deal with the past.
“I’m going to Chicago.”
“We’re sending you to Africa.”
Both of them paused, equally astounded at what had come from the other’s mouth.
Millie gasped from the other side of the room.
“Chicago?” Jamie repeated, brow furrowed.