Page 128 of Wanted

Felicita was right by her side. I doubted that she had realized what had happened just yet.

Denial was a stage of grief, after all.

There hadn’t been a funeral, and there wouldn’t be one with Spencer and Aram ruling the palace together. Jordan had assembled us in the Cross home, and we all paid our respects there until Jordan could figure out a way to remove Travis’ body from Katantia.

“If Spencer didn’t need my father to solve this mess, he would’ve kicked Aram out the day he announced he owned Katantia.” Our things were packed, and at any moment, we were ready to depart the palace. But that time hadn’t come yet. Jordan, who had taken over now as our advisor and the one man we trusted the most, didn’t think it was wise to leave with a target on our backs.

“What are we going to do? We can’t afford this. The palace doesn’t have enough funds to rebuild the South Side without Spencer’s help. Fuck, what am I even saying? We’re not in power anymore. We’re show figures.”

“It’ll be fine,” I said. To distract Weston, I approached him for a hug. He stared at me, bewildered at my offer. Then he accepted the hug, pulling me so close to him that I fought for air. I didn’t see him cry, but I felt his pain after he had spent weeks trying to understand mine. He wasn’t heartless. Death took a toll on a person.

Weston was less emotional than his other siblings, but after the Katantian catastrophe coupled with the eviction from the palace…

We were in a state of limbo.

And I had no idea how we would get out of it.

♥♠♥

TWO MONTHS LATER

The protests outside were the first thing I perceived every day. Sighing, I moved to get out of bed. The blinds were wide open as always.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Weston asked. His eyes were shut, but he was wide awake. He slept for a couple of hours every other day. Exhaustion had become second nature to him.

“There’s the dinner at the palace today,” I reminded him, stretching my arms above my head. Moving didn’t sting anymore. My physiotherapy had started to become more physical these days. I was slowly advancing into yoga territory. I’d never done yoga before in my life. “I have to get ahead of the day if I don’t want to gag the minute I see them in the palace.”

“We don’t have to go,” Weston told me. My eyes traveled from the faint stubble on his jaw to his toned abs. He didn’t work out anymore, but lucky him, he never gained any weight, nor did his six-pack suddenly decide to take a breather. Like a sculpture, he remained frozen in time. “We could stay inside and hide from them. They’d never know we’re missing.”

“Oh, but they would,” I retorted. His morning wood was a situation I couldn’t quite handle yet. I watched him take care of it on some days, but so far, I didn’t feel confident enough to have him touch me yet. The doctors assured me that I was back in shape. I did my pelvic floor exercises religiously. I could have all the Katantian fun I wanted to, but I wasn’t in the right mindset.

I didn’t want to have fun while the world around me fell into ruin.

“Half the people on this compound are either furious and ready to go to war, or they’re hiding away in their rooms. Aram and Spencer will notice if we’re absent,” I argued. I left the bed, heading for Weston’s bathroom.

As I brushed my teeth, Weston appeared at the doorframe. He rolled his lips, studying me while I observed him through the mirror. He suggested, “If you want dinner, we can go to the Italian place you like.”

Finishing up the brushing of my teeth, I set my toothbrush aside. I turned to face Weston directly. I said, “You’re saying you’d rather push through hundreds of angry Katantian protesters in the middle of the worst crisis ever than eat dinner with our dads?”

He nodded.

I sighed. “Me, too.”

Weston’s smirk brightened up my day. He asked, “Are you going to talk to Valentina today?”

“I’ll try.” Valentina wasn’t easy to access these days.

Pushing past Weston, I attempted to go stroll to the closet. He grabbed my waist, pulling me close. “I can’t wait to have you all to myself in our new home.”

His hands wrapped around the back of my skull. He massaged the sensitive flesh. Sleepy as I was, my eyes rolled back in relaxation. Weston planted a kiss on top of my head, and I couldn’t resist. I hugged him, not really wanting to let go.

I was already over the day ahead.

While Weston got ready for the day, I wandered away from his room. Mentally, I prepared myself to face Valentina. She didn’t deal with situations the way the rest of us did. I took deep breaths, counting down the seconds in my head.

Valentina chose to occupy one of the bland guest rooms of her home. She didn’t go near the bedroom she shared with Aris, and she didn’t touch the nursery. Felicita, Weston, and I went shopping for the baby, designing the best room for the little one. Jordan assembled the bed and everything else we threw at him like it was as simple as having breakfast.

I knocked on Valentina’s door. While I waited for her reaction, I remembered how alone I’d felt after the Cross family left Chicago. My body felt weak at the memory. I took a deep breath, and I knocked again.