Florida would target me first, the real risk to their reign. That would give me enough time to warn my family to scatter. And I wouldn’t go out without a fight, either. I sighed. “Way back when, a few of my relatives were royals. A certain royal family would not be happy to hear that there were survivors of my line. None of us are royal now.”
Melody snorted at that. “That’s wishful thinking on your part, Jack.”
“Well, let’s just say there’s bad blood between my family and a ruling family in the Royal States. We went into hiding, changed our name, and stay hidden, as the Royal States gets rather pissy about regicide. Even though we were the victims of it. Especially because we were the victims of it. If we’re discovered, that’s that. They’ll get rid of us to make sure the truth stays buried.”
“Your family was essentially wiped out so someone else could take your rank? After the war?”
“After the war,” I confirmed. “The bloodline weakened, but I was an early bloomer. My father and sisters have middling talents at best.”
“But your talent’s diverse—and strong. You left the Royal States when you were evaluated as a borderline elite?”
I nodded. “They wanted to do another evaluation. I left before the testing date. I haven’t been to Florida since.”
“So you can’t get your passport renewed, and you were afraid you wouldn’t be able to trick the examiners into believing you’re still borderline elite,” she stated, her eyes narrowing. “And this incident proves you’re not. It made the news, and anyone looking at your talent will recognize you’re at least an elite.”
“And that’s where I’m at. I don’t want anyone looking around into my family’s past.”
“Which state?”
“What do you mean?”
“Which state did your family rule?”
I grimaced at her question. “We were ultimately absorbed.”
With luck, she’d assume my family had ruled over a smaller state taken over by a strong family rather than having the state simply taken. Regicide had happened during the war as state battled state for superiority.
Had it happened during the war, it wouldn’t have mattered at all.
“Through regicide.”
I nodded.
“No wonder you have an allergy to royalty. I would, too. I’ll look into the situation and see what protections the Royal States has for families in your situation. I don’t know if there are any active laws on the books, as I thought all those lines were wiped out—or had willfully given up ruling powers and live as high-ranked elite despite having royal-level talents. They’re still technically royalty. Some even have RPS agents assigned to them by the state they live in.”
“They have RPS agents? But why?”
“They’re still royalty even if they’re not ruling. In theory, a daughter or son may wish to join a ruling line. We’d be stupid not to protect them.”
“I see.” I didn’t; I’d always presumed the RPS only served the ruling families and none other.
“Was your family a founding family?”
I sighed. Technically, there’d been more than sixteen royal families during the war, but only sixteen had opted to initially rule, becoming the founding families. Later, more families with the right talents had stepped forward, choosing to rule over unclaimed states. Roughly half of the original families remained, but the most notable ones ruled over Montana, Maine, Texas, Illinois, California, and New York.
I wasn’t sure what was so special about Illinois’s family outside of their wealth.
“Unfortunately,” I replied.
Her brows rose. “Unfortunately? Unless your family happened to rule over Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Connecticut, or Massachusetts, I don’t see the problem. And, for the record, I’m well aware none of the founding families had lived in any of those states.”
While weak and a little forced, I laughed over her listing of the states Maine had absorbed during the chaos following the war. “No, none of those.”
“Maryland.” Melody’s eyes narrowed. “No. It’s not Maryland. Had your family ruled Maryland, you would’ve freaked out the instant a New York ship showed up at the spill site.”
Jesus Christ. Not only was the princess a doctor, she was a walking historian, too. I’d learned the history of the Royal States as a matter of survival. Maine had been an ally of my family’s, and my father had always spoken well of the kingdom, which helped keep me from diving directly into a panic attack over my situation. I spluttered. “Are you going to list every absorbed state until you get it right?”
“There’s only two after Maryland. It’s not Maryland, though. And—” Melody’s eyes widened, and she leaned back, regarding me with interest. “You mean ultimately absorbed as in they took over your territory following your family’s demise, not as in taking over the state weakened from the lack of a ruling family. That would make your family the original ruling family of Florida, one of two documented cases of an entire royal family disappearing under mysterious circumstances. In the case of Florida, a hurricane took the blame for your family’s deaths. They were killed during the hurricane, weren’t they?”
“Most were, yes.”
“Escaped by sea? The logical escape route for a strong waveweaver family.”
I nodded. “Two people escaped. The youngest son of the line and his grandmother. They fled north.”
“Into New York? That would be the easiest state system for them. Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia were less hospitable to people moving into their states.”
I nodded. “Right before the ending of the registration cycle, so they registered as New Yorkers under a different name before returning to Florida, pretending to have a middling talent. They claimed they’d lost their documentation during the hurricane.”
“And that happens to a lot of people. The middling talents became a reality? Or just cleverly hidden until you were forced to try to salvage that tanker?”
“I wasn’t forced. I did it because I wanted to. But yes, that’s correct. The talent faded due to a lack of use. I’m the black sheep of the family.”
“Or you’re perfectly normal, but you decided to exercise your talent instead of letting it weaken from disuse.”
I shrugged. “That’s possible. My sisters and father only use their magic enough to satisfy the caste requirements. I’d always been more ambitious.”
“And that ambition resulted in magic too strong to realistically hide, so you fled to Europe to protect your family?” Melody smiled. “You’re one surprise after another. Now I regret we hadn’t bonded. You’re interesting.”
“Can I be a secret interest versus put on display for the curious?”
“The agents will keep it zipped, don’t worry. They’re probably freaking out, honestly, as you’d classify as an unidentified royal, and they’re trained to protect royals.” Melody pointed at the agent near the door, one of the younger men I’d seen on her detail. “And you will not go behind my back and make arrangements for a full detail for him, you. You’ll keep it zipped! Completely zipped, Kevin.”
“He needs protection,” the agent replied.
“Hire him into the RPS, assign him to my detail, and let him do his thing. Then the other agents on duty can keep an eye on him and he’ll be around other RPS agents all the time. He’s interesting and he’s qualified.”
“That’s not how this works, Your Highness.”
“Why not? He’s useful. He can train you slackers on survival techniques.”
The RPS agents looked me over like I was a freshly grilled steak nobody had claimed. I almost expected the one she called Kevin to start licking his lips.
“But I like search and rescue.”
“You can volunteer in your off time. You can even be put on the reserve list for challenging jobs. We loan out RPS agents sometimes. You can still do some search and rescue work. Maine is a huge territory, and perform get large-scale searches sometimes. It would be a good challenge for you—and r
elatively safe.”
“Uh, Melody, there’s nothing really safe about search and rescue work.”
“You have an excellent safety record. Tell him I’m right, Kevin.”
The RPS agent sighed. “Can I convince you to discuss the benefits of being hired by the RPS with your situation fully considered, sir? It need not be right away, but it’s not necessarily a bad idea.”
“I’m happy to discuss it, but I’m not sure I can get the right permits from Florida for it. They do some serious background checks in the RPS, don’t they?”
“Once we’ve verified your claim, we can make certain your background check reflects what we want people to see without revealing your ancestral identity.”
Ancestral identity was an interesting way to put it. “I’ll consider it,” I replied.
Melody rubbed her hands together. “Excellent. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s go mingle, Jack. Your team is eager to see you. They’ve been worried.”
Chapter Five
Louis reached me first, and the pilot swooped in for a hug before indulging in his French tendencies to kiss cheeks. I played along, although his enthusiasm wore me out almost as much as walking across the palace. “Hey, Louis. Didn’t they tell you I was still alive and kicking?”
“Royals,” he muttered. “All pretty words and evasiveness. They said, but we weren’t just going to take their word on it.”
At my side, Melody sighed. Her reaction to his words coaxed me into laughing. “Louis, this is Melody. She’s one of those pretty but evasive royals, and she’s also my doctor.”
“I said pretty words and evasive, Jack,” Louis muttered.
“My version’s better.”
While Louis and Melody faced off, I went through the hug and kiss ritual with the rest of the search and rescue folks who’d likely been dragged kicking and screaming to the banquet. “I’d say let’s make a break for it, but apparently the RPS agents are better trained than I thought—unless you dump them on a mountain during a blizzard.”
That got the team laughing, and we began our usual dance of trying to communicate with broken English, my worse French, and a general understanding we likely had no idea what we were talking about but determined to make a go of it anyway.
Things were easier in the air when we were all on the same page because we had a job to do.
After everyone had a round asking if I was really all right, we dove into business, discussing the wreck and how my magic had turned a catastrophe into a manageable mess.
“Jack?” Melody asked, drawing my attention away from the odd discussion on the different properties of water, oil, and ice, how they interacted with each other, and if we could use those interactions in a search and rescue context.
“What is it?”
“How on Earth did you manage to work search and rescue in France when your French is…”
“Absolutely wretched?”
“Well, I was going to say basic, but now that you mention it, yes. Absolutely wretched.”
I laughed. “Very carefully. I’m really bad at learning new languages, but I can make do. There’s always someone on shift who speaks fluent English, and once I’m in the water, I’m in communication with the English speaker. It works really well, as I’m able to help a lot of tourists when they’re stranded. There’s nothing like an English tourist trapped in the French Alps during a bad blow. So, I’m always called in when they know we’re after someone who speaks English.”
“I can see that being useful. I take it your colleagues know more English than you do French?”
“Thankfully, yes. They’re better at understanding English than they are at speaking it, but nobody really minds my French is terrible. I do try. I just can’t seem to remember the vocabulary. Did I mention I’m really bad at learning new languages?”
“You had, yes. You should sit. You’re looking more tired than I like. Your friends can join you at the table, of course.”
“When the doctor says sit, you sit,” Louis announced, linking his arm with mine and dragging me where Melody pointed, at the head table. “Where do you want me to sit him, doc?”
I almost laughed at how quickly she’d been absorbed into the group, although I wasn’t surprised. Everyone appreciated a doctor, especially when said doctor made sure one of us survived to see another shift. Once they found out I was being carted to Maine, they wouldn’t be quite as appreciative, but it wouldn’t take much to convince them I wouldn’t have been able to work during my trip to the Royal States anyway.
The truth sucked, as did the lengthy recovery process for severe talent exertion.
I was put closer to the center of the table than I liked, but Melody sat beside me. Small, folded slips of paper instructed everyone where to sit, and I was relieved I sat beside Louis.
Melody leaned towards me and whispered, “I asked for him to be seated there because his English is the best among the teams. I figured you’d be more comfortable. The French monarchs asked me to handle the seating arrangements near you.”
“Thanks. How’d you find out about their language proficiencies?”
“Their files; the RPS did an evaluation of everyone before scheduling the party.” The crowd, consisting of people I didn’t know, scattered to various tables, and the steady murmur of conversation filled the room. “This will be a fairly quiet night, although once the dinner itself is over, expect to be ambushed by elites and royalty alike, most European. You’ll be issued invitations to visit places, and you’re welcome to accept any invitation you’re offered, just make sure you specify it has to wait until you’ve completed treatments. If I were you, I’d politely decline and simply say you’re not sure what your upcoming schedule will be like. That’s the truth, too—but it makes sure you don’t show favoritism.”
“Let me guess. If I accept one invitation, I have to accept all invitations.”
“Essentially. There’s an exception.”
“There is?”
Melody tapped my arm and pointed at a tall, dark man standing on the far side of the room with a pale-haired woman almost as tall as him. The woman held an infant and a little girl clung to the man’s leg. “His and Her Royal Majesties of Montana. They were in Sweden when the invitations were issued. His Royal Majesty of Sweden suggested they be invited as well. Last minute, but honestly, everyone’s pleased they came. If you’re extended an invitation to Montana, you should accept, and no one will think anything of it if you don’t accept any other invitations.”
“That’s His Royal Majesty of Montana?” I asked, unable to mask the surprise in my voice.
He didn’t look like a monster to me at all. If anything, he looked like a contented man who enjoyed nothing more than being a doting father.
“He is. Their eldest daughter and her fiancé are in Montana with their second eldest child. His Royal Majesty can’t keep his hands off his wife. She’s pregnant. Again.”
I raised a brow at that, as the child she held didn’t seem to be very old to me. “How old is their baby? And the toddler?”
“Three months and a year and a half. I’m debating if I should spoil the surprise and tell them the gender.”
“You can tell?”
“I can. If you want to know the gender of an infant, you go to Maine. We can tell at a glance. I snooped when I shook hands with her this morning. She came to the hospital for a checkup. She’s decided I’m going to be her midwife this go around.” Melody grinned at that. “Honestly, she wasn’t sure if she was pregnant, knew I was here, and snuck off while her husband was watching the children. She claimed she needed just five minutes without a child underfoot. She escaped for three whole hours. So, don’t tell anyone until they’re ready to announce.”
I considered Her Royal Majesty of Montana, the little I knew about the Montana royal line, and chuckled. “It’s a boy. He’d be their fifth, I think, and the Montana line typically has a boy as the third or fourth child. It’s a part of the bloodline magic, right?”
/> “You’re not following current affairs, but your history is excellent, I see.”
“You’ll be going to Montana often, then?”
“Once a month until she’s close to delivery, then I’ll be staying there until the baby is born. I already told her I’d be glad to do it. She’s tired of the more invasive tests her husband insists on because he’s an overprotective freak. So, by having me do the examinations, she just gets someone to hold her hand and talk to her. She’s also getting older, so she’s worried her age will be an issue. She doesn’t seem to believe she’s aging at a remarkably slow rate compared to others.”
“Really? But why?”
“Good genetics? A little magic on His Royal Majesty of Montana’s part? That whole line has a ridiculous number of talents. It could be something as simple as a mutated waveweaver talent on his side. Healing talents are often mutated waveweaver talents; the body is a high percentage of water, after all.”
That I hadn’t known. “Wait, are you saying your magic is a mutated waveweaving talent?”
“Essentially. We can’t really manipulate water well, at least not on a large scale.” Melody picked up her water glass, set it between us, and held a finger over the rim. A thin stream of water rose, and she furrowed her brows. A moment later, the water thinned, spread out, and transformed into a blooming rose. “That’s the extent of my waveweaving abilities for water.”
My brows shot up at the demonstration. While I could do large-scale workings, I doubted I could make a rose out of water if I tried. “That’s impressive control.”
“Yours is more impressive.”
I shook my head. “I’m more like a battering ram, really. I don’t know if I could do something like that.”
“Once you’re ready to start attempting to use your magic again, I’ll teach you how to do it. Fine-tuned control is useful. You might even have an aptitude at working with blood; most waveweavers don’t, but most also don’t try. If you do have the aptitude, it’ll be useful for your search and rescue work.”
Bonds Page 6
