Page 44

Luc

“A lright, damn!”

The two guards, both of them hired help for the night, shoved me out of the front palace doors.

“Is there a reason you two are handling me like this?”

“King’s orders,” said one of them. “Told us to have you packing no more than an hour later.”

I checked my watch. Sure enough, it’d been exactly one hour since Alaric had given his order.

“Fine, I get it,” I said.

I sighed, luggage in hand as I turned toward the palace grounds ahead of me. A few dozen guests were there, all of them standing in the gardens with drinks in hands, no one saying a word.

“Nothing to see here folks. Go back to enjoying your evening.”

My commanding tone did the job, the guests returning to their conversations, if not a bit awkwardly. I glanced over my shoulder to see the two guards formed up in front of the doors, as if prepared for me to try and burst back in.

I made my way down the steps, trying to figure out my next move. The palace had been my home for decades. In a way, it was my world . The question of deciding where to live next was something I had a hard time even trying to process.

On top of it all, more clouds were gathering overhead. We’d had a brief respite from the downpour that had suddenly arrived, but it looked like that wasn’t going to last for long. Thunder boomed, the guests outside chatting among themselves in eager tones about making their way back inside.

Then there was the matter of Ava. Being banned from the palace meant that I’d never see her again. My heart ached at the idea, and I pushed it out of my mind as best I could. I’d have all the time in the world to mourn her now that I didn’t have a job.

The sky opened up, rain pouring down. The guests outside hurried back up the stairs, the guards opening the doors to let them back in.

“Hey, handsome!” A familiar voice called out to me.

I turned, greeted with the sweetest sight I could hope for.

“Ava! What on earth are you doing?”

A big grin on her face, she held up a pair of suitcases. “Flying the coop! Same as you!”

“Flying the… what?”

“Making a run for it!”

She hurried down the stairs and I noticed that she was still in her purple dress. The guests making their way inside stopped and stared, as if not able to believe that the princess they’d met only an hour or two ago was presently soaked to the bone and running off to God knows where.

“Alright!” she said once she was by my side. “How the hell do we get out of here?”

It was a good question.

“I know!” she said. “The royal garage!”

“What?” I asked. “Are you serious?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I believe that would be considered grand theft auto.”

She shrugged. “I’m still the princess, remember? And if my father wants to throw me in the dungeon, let him try.”

“I don’t like this idea.”

“I like it a hell of a lot better than walking all the way to… where is it we’re going, anyway?”

“Good question. And if we’re going to be stealing a car, it might be one that’s better asked when we’re not standing in the soaking rain.”

Together, we hurried around the palace and into the garage.

“There!”

She hurried over to a Green Volkswagen Bug, an original model that was over fifty years old.

“Now, this is my style.”

I paused as she hurried over to the board with the keys, my eyes on the car.

“Something wrong?” she asked as she came back over to me.

“No. Just that… this was your mother’s favorite car. Picked it out herself.”

Ava said nothing, a big smile on her face. “Then it was meant to be. Let’s go!”

I loaded the bags into the car and we were soon off, the rain still coming down hard as she drove us off the palace grounds and toward Old Town.

“Where to?” she asked.

I couldn’t help but smile at the idea of hitting the open road, no destination, just me and Ava.

“With the rain coming down this hard up in the mountains, we ought to take the night to think about it.”

“Then a hotel?”

“I know the perfect place.”

We drove into Old Town, the cobblestones of the winding streets causing the car to bump slightly. Townspeople were gathered under umbrellas and awnings, sipping coffee and eating their meals while watching the rain fall. Harvest decorations were here and there, and I found myself thinking about how beautiful this part of town would be in a month or so during the Christmas season.

Ten minutes later, we were checking into the Armstrong, a centuries-old inn near the center of Old Town, right across the street from Brannigan Park—the largest park in Lausanne. The rooms were quaint and cozy, with a few modern amenities. Once we were in the room, a fire roaring, we wasted no time drying off and getting into some comfy sleeping clothes from our suitcases.

Even dressed in baggy clothes and with her hair a wet mess, I couldn’t get over how gorgeous Ava was. We sipped tea and watched the fire. In those moments, despite everything that had happened, I was happy.

Ava, however, wore a worried expression on her face.

“You alright over there?” I asked. “Having regrets about what happened?”

She shook her head. “No. What we told my father was the truth. And getting the truth out in the open is never the wrong decision. Right?”

“Right. So, the conversation you had with your father…”

“It was rough. But it needed to be had.”

I nodded. “Same here.”

Her expression became grave once more.

“Speaking of the truth,” I said. “If I were to ask you if there was something else worrying you, would you be honest?”

Her eyes flashed, her forehead crinkling.

“I…”

I set down my mug, reaching over and taking her hand.

“Whatever it is, you can tell me. No matter what.”

My words brought a small smile to her face.

“I was planning on telling you, don’t get me wrong. It’s just that I was waiting for the right time. And… I don’t think that we’re going to get a better one than this.”

“What is it, Ava?”

She closed her eyes and swallowed, then took a deep, long breath, blowing it out slowly.

“I’m pregnant.”