Page 19 of Reign

Jeff spoke softly, and the people around him darted off in all directions like a school of fish.

“Jeff,” she exclaimed, the moment he stepped into the room. “I can’t believe…”

She started toward him, only to pause at his expression.

“Well,wecan all believe it because we’ve had to,” Jeff said wearily. “We’ve been living with this for weeks while you were off drinking rosé in the Maldives.”

At his words, she flinched. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Didn’t know?”he repeated, disbelieving. “Wherewereyou, Sam?”

“We sort of…went off the grid.” She fumbled for something she could tell Jeff without betraying Marshall’s trust. “We needed to be far away, to get some space.”

“Right,” Jeff said slowly. His eyes traveled to her hair, then her tanned, freckled arms. “You and Marshall neededspace,because everything has been so unbearablyhardon you. Because no one in history has been under the kind of pressure that you two have suffered.”

“I’m not—”

“News flash, Sam, you’re not the only one under pressure.Pressureis wondering if your older sister has taken her last breath!Pressureis taking an indefinite leave of absence from college while you rule in your sister’s place, because America is already hanging on by a thread, and what other choice do you have?Pressureis trying to keep those thoughts to yourself so that no one realizes how totally unequipped you are to deal with it all!”

He broke off, frustrated, and Sam was suddenly aware howmuch older her brother looked. The habit of command had settled over him, carved new lines around his mouth.

“I’m so sorry. I never meant for you to go through this alone,” she whispered.

“But I did go through it alone, Sam. We’ve all been calling and texting you for weeks without a single reply.”

“My phone has been off! I thought it was better this way. I never imagined…”

Jeff looked away. “I tore apart my room at Bellevue looking for a note from you. I kept thinking, surely Sam has left me some kind of explanation, or at least a goodbye. You wrote a note for Beatrice, after all, and Anju said you texted Nina.” His jaw tightened as he glanced swiftly back up. “You never even thought of me, did you?”

“I’m sorry.” Sam knew how utterly inadequate the words were.

Her brother turned toward the window. “I looked for you, you know. Even after Mom and Aunt Margaret and Anju all said to stop, that you would turn up when you wanted to be found, I kept looking.”

Sam felt like something had splintered in her chest.

Jeff laughed hollowly. “Do you have any idea how many false sightings there have been of you? You’ve been spotted at a club in Tel Aviv, buying healing crystals at a voodoo shop in New Orleans, working a fishing boat off some island in Hawaii. I had a team chasing down all the leads that sounded plausible, but they always came up empty-handed.”

Sam’s throat was closing up; she swallowed. “I know I didn’t make this easy on you, but it’s so clear that you’ve done a fantastic job managing things. I’m really proud of you, Jeff.”

“It’s all Daphne. She’s been helping me navigate everything.”

“About Daphne…I saw the news,” Sam said quickly. “You don’t have to do this, you know. Don’t get married just because Beatrice is hurt and you think you have to.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jeff protested, but there was an undercurrent of hesitation in his voice, if only for a moment.

She spread out her hands in a conciliatory gesture. “Look, if you and Daphne want to get more serious, that’s great. Why don’t you move in together? Don’t run off to the altar just because of Beatrice.”

They both glanced at the hospital bed, where their older sister lay quietly breathing.

“All I’m saying is, you shouldn’t feel pressured to rush anything,” Sam finished. “You’re not alone anymore, Jeff. I’m back now, and this is all my responsibility anyway. You and Daphne should slow down. You can go back to school, to normal life—obviously, things won’t be normal, but…” She trailed off at the look on Jeff’s face.

He swallowed. “Sam, you can’t take over. You’re not Beatrice’s heir.”

“Of course I am. You were her Regent during the League of Kings conference, but I’m older.” She tried to sound teasing, the way they used to, as she added, “Remember, I beat you by four minutes?”

“Yes, but—”

“Then it’s settled. I can take over from here.”