by Nana Malone
She shook her head. “Oh no. He’ll go scorched earth. Especially if it has to do with Ashton.”
“Exactly. Besides, ever since my father, I want to be sure before I go disturbing the delicate peace. Some members of the Council are looking for any reason to disband the knights, any little provocation. And they will demand proof. I want it airtight. If we’re going to take our shot, we better not miss.”
Zia nodded. “I’d feel more comfortable with proof. I'm thinking that we need to get into this room right here." She pointed at what looked like secure storage. There was a Faraday cage there, which meant any computer devices that we would need to hack into would be inside it.
I nodded. “That’s exactly where I need to be. I’ll be able to get personnel files too. To keep things honest, Sebastian has assigned a rotating staff of guards, so we need to know who is compromised and who isn’t. Hell, maybe they all are. But whoever has been helping Ashton, we need to be aware that they are extremely dangerous. They have been willing to aid Ashton in his plans to hurt his brother.”
Zia squinted at the map of the prison. "So, what you're telling me is we have to swim up, climb through the tunnels, set a small explosive, and blow our way in, all without being heard, seen, or detected, right?"
I grinned at her. "Now you're catching on."
Penny shook her head. "You're missing something. While you were away, I discovered something else."
My brows furrowed. "Jesus Christ, more?"
"Yeah, more. Okay, so you know how the Council hasn't been supportive of Tristan coming home?"
I nodded. "Yeah, which is why the knights are here."
"Yeah well, there is more to it."
"More?"
"Yeah. Lord Gilroy, he's an inherited seat. He has a daughter."
The hairs on the back of my neck stood at attention. "Something tells me I should be worried about this."
Penny nodded. "Yeah, you should be. His daughter went missing right around the time Tristan left. He insists Tristan had something to do with her disappearance."
I stared at her. "But how? Did he even know her?”
Penny shook her head. "I’m not sure. What I do know is that Gilroy insists that his daughter was in love with Tristan. And I dug around, and there is some evidence to suggest they had more than a passing knowledge of each other. But Gilroy’s claim doesn't make sense, because she didn't leave until two days after Tristan did. And since Tristan had planned for you to go away with him, it doesn't make sense that he would have lured this girl away anywhere."
I stared at her. "How old was this girl?"
She shrugged. "About our age. Lord Gilroy holds Tristan responsible. He says they were friends or something. He was convinced his daughter ran away to be with Tristan. But currently, there's no evidence to support that. She never showed up in Barcelona. There's no record of her flying anywhere. Lord Gilroy is convinced Tristan did something to her."
I shook my head. "That's ridiculous. He would never." But had I missed something? Had he made someone else promises?
"This is true, but there is evidence pointing to the two of them being friends. Text messages and things. They were communicating often. They had a lot in common, and neither had a great home life. Then Tristan takes off, and their communication stops. Gilroy is suggesting that they were supposed to run off together, but Tristan did something to her."
"Oh my God, that's ridiculous. Tristan would never have used his phone. It was being monitored."
Zia and Penny exchanged a glance. Was I being the crazy one? Had I fallen for a player who had strung two of us along, and I’d been the one left behind? Shit, was I miraculously in the exact same position? My gut twisted.
Focus on the facts. No matter what, evidence points to trouble. Focus on that. On the job.
"I'm just telling you the information I have from Sebastian. So, right now, Gilroy is pushing hard to exile Tristan. And not just to get him off the island, but to put him somewhere like Stanstit."
I blew out a long, slow breath. "But so far the prince has committed no crime. Nothing that warrants exile in Stanstit." Unless, of course, he was behind that girl’s disappearance.
Stop it. You know him. Or was this Ashton all over again?
He’d already proven he’d do anything to ruin his brother.
Penny continued. "He doesn't need evidence. At least not yet. If Tristan doesn't go quietly, the Council could just decide that he has to go back to Spain or somewhere with his parents. You can bet Gilroy is going to try the Stanstit route. Because Tristan is a royal, he can't actually be tried if he had something to do with the disappearance of Lord Gilroy's daughter. He’d have to commit a crime against another royal. But right now, Gilroy doesn’t care about the technicalities. He's out for blood. And someone out for blood concerns me. He could try to frame him."
"Jesus Christ, every time I turn around, there is some new threat. Some new big bad."
Zia sighed. "I know. This is so complicated."
I had to figure this out. "Okay, so what do we think actually happened to Gilroy's daughter?"
Penny shrugged. "I don't know. She could have just run away. But I think that if Ashton was willing to mess with your relationship, then maybe he was willing to mess with Tristan's other relationships as well. Or fake one with the girl. I know how Ashton works. He likes to isolate you, give you no other outs. Make it so you think that you are all alone, adrift, with no one to help you.”
"He is really a piece of work," I muttered.
"Yeah well, that's one word for him."
"Okay, so if Ashton had something to do with her disappearance, then you think we're also going to find that information at Stanstit?"
Penny nodded. "Yeah. It stands to reason. I'm just saying that if we’re already going in there for information, let's find something that will also exonerate Tristan."
"Yeah, okay. That gives me a slightly clearer picture."
Zia tapped away on her laptop. "Okay, so the incoming calls and texts from Ashton came from these numbers. We already know that. So, what I'll do is a work up on his guards. Do we know what we're going to do with the information we find? I mean, are we going to blow it all up? What's the plan?"
That was a good question. "Right now, all we've got are the phone logs, which at least prove that Ashton has been communicating with Tristan against prison protocols.”
Penny shook her head. "What the hell is wrong with that man? Why does he hate everyone so much?"
I sighed. "We'll probably never know. But it stops now."
Zia pulled up another map. "Okay, Ariel, you and I will fly into here."
Penny lifted a brow. "Wait a minute, you and her?"
Shit. "Penny, look, I need a tech head in there. If we're going to break in and have a good look around, we can't be seen. As good as you are, you're better on the man to man. I'm better with the computers, and Zia is damn good with them too."
Penny scowled at me. "Just because I’m not a white hat hacker and what not, it doesn't mean I'm useless."
"I never said you were useless. But, Penny, you have to be our eyes and ears and work out how to get us out if something goes really wrong."
"If I'm going to sneak away from this island, at least I want something to do. I mean, it's not as if you guys can walk right in there. Maybe I can provide a diversion. Maybe I—" Her brows lifted, and her eyes went wide. "Oh my God."
I frowned. "What?"
"Oh my God, you guys." She clapped excitedly.
It was Zia's turn to glance back and forth between us. "What is she talking about?"
I shrugged. "I haven't got a clue."
But Penny danced on her toes. "You guys, you are working out plans to sneak on to the impenetrable island prison. But you don't need any of that."
"What, we're going to just pull the information from a secure location via osmosis?"
She rolled her eyes. "Hardy-har. No. You are not going to do any of that because I'm going to walk you throu
gh the front door."
I groaned. She was right. Walking through the front door should be something that they would never expect.
Ariel…
When our plan was solid, I walked Penny out only to find someone else coming in.
Ian.
"This looks like perfect timing," he said with a grin.
I gave him the warmest smile I could muster. My brain was on other things, like plotting to break into Stanstit, which was completely insane but also might be just what we needed. If we could prove that Ashton was the one behind the attempts on Tristan's life, that would be something solid. We might be able to strip him of his title. And if we could do that, it would mean he was going to real prison with very real criminals. And he would stop having that cushy arrangement that he enjoyed at Stanstit. But that was getting ahead of ourselves. First, I had to get in, then I had to find proof, which was going to be more than difficult.
What choice do you have?
"Hey Ian, I didn't expect you."
"Well, I was in the neighborhood."
Penny gave me an air kiss and a smile. To Ian she said, "Well, Ian, it's a pleasure to see you again."
He made a little bow. "Your Majesty."
Zia waved goodbye at Penny and then made herself scarce, heading for the media room.
"Do you want to head into my office?"
"Yeah, sure."
I could have taken him to the living room, but then everyone would hear our conversation, and I wasn't exactly sure of the reason for his visit.
Yeah, you are. He wants to be friends. Very special friends.
I could still feel it, the underlying tension. Well, not on my part, but I could feel it coming from him.
"Can I get you something to drink?"
He took a seat on my couch that faced the view. I'd taken the office that overlooked the water. It was getting dark, so the water looked gray and moody. "Yeah, I'll take a bottle of water."
I reached into my fridge and grabbed a Perrier for him and one for myself.
"So, to what do I owe the surprise?"
"Like I said, I was just in the area. How was your trip to Chile?"
I hadn’t specifically mentioned where we were going, but the Argonauts game had been publicized. "Good. Actually, really good." I tried to keep the smile out of my voice.
Ian was sharp though. He picked up on something. I wasn't sure what it was. "You look like the cat that swallowed the canary."
"I have swallowed no such thing."
"Oh yeah, you have."
I had, but I sure as hell wasn't telling Ian that.
“So, what's up?" I asked a little impatiently.
"Oh, come on, you said we were friends now. Can’t I just pop in on a friend and check on her?"
"Um, sure, I guess. Honestly, I don't really understand how this friend thing works. Most of my friends are in the palace."
"Yes, I can see how that skews your experience. It's usually just 'Come on over to my castle. We'll bowl on the green.'"
I laughed. "Yeah, kind of, actually. Sebastian has a little bowling alley in the castle."
Ian laughed. "I don't like bowling that much."
"It's actually really fun."
"I'm sure it is, but to have it in the palace all the time, I don't know. I'd put it in some court or something."
"Yeah, there are some of those too."
"Well, it must be nice to have a castle."
I shrugged. "I wouldn’t know. It's not mine. Well, how have you been? You were recruiting that young kid, the eighteen-year-old, right?"
Ian rolled his eyes and groaned. "Ugh, God, that kid. Such promise. Such talent. I'm worried that he's going to get injured though, the way he plays. He reminds me of myself."
"Do you worry about all your athletes like that?"
"Yeah, I guess. It's because I know what it's like to have everything at your feet and then have to watch it all slip away."
"God, I'm sorry. It must be so difficult to even think about what you're doing with these young athletes."
"You know, it's not so bad, actually. I can steer some of them in the right direction when they're going off the rails, so it makes me feel like I'm doing something good, I guess."
"In my head, I keep picturing you like Ari Gold, you know, the agent on Entourage. Fast-talking, making deals."
"Well, I'm a fast talker, but not that fast. I didn’t always make the best decisions for my own career, so I pride myself on doing what's right for my people."
"I'm sure that's what makes you a good agent."
"Yeah, you know, plus I used to play."
There was a long pause. "This feels awkward, Ian. Can I just say that?"
He laughed. "I know, but I didn't want this to be one of those instances where we say we're going to be friends and then I just conveniently never see you."
"I know. I was just busy. We should, you know, grab an actual drink when it's not so insane."
"Look, I'm always available. But it's good to see that you look happy and refreshed."
"Yeah, I feel pretty good. I have a good job, and no one tried to kill my client in the last few days, so hooray."
He chuckled then. "It's the little things."
"You have no idea."
"So what's next for Ariel Scott?"
"Well, work as usual. I’m trying to keep my clients out of trouble."
"So, you think the prince is hard to control?"
"Let's just say he's a handful."
He pushed to his feet. "If there is anyone that can handle Tristan, I think it's you. You know, just look out for your heart."
I frowned even as I played with the cap of my water bottle, bending the aluminum to my will. "What do you mean by that?"
"Look, the guy gave me a shiner when I was giving you a hug. It's not hard to see the writing on the wall. You guys have some weird symbiotic situation. I'm just saying I know him well, probably in a way that you don't."
The prickly awareness of warning made me shift in my seat. "I can take care of myself." But can you? Didn’t Penny say he had a relationship with that girl? One you didn't know about?
"No doubt. I'm just saying, better to warn you than not. Tristan has a way of getting under your skin. You want to trust him. You want to believe in him. I just don't want you getting hurt."
I wasn't sure how to take that. After all, he was voicing a lot of my same concerns about Tristan and the things he was holding back. "Well, advice noted. Thank you."
"Okay. You can put this water back in the fridge. Next time, we're getting a real drink, yeah?"
I nodded slowly. As I watched Ian start to leave the room, he turned to give me a hug. "I'll see myself out." And then he peered over my shoulder as he leaned over my body and clasped me to him. "Is that Stanstit?"
I frowned and then whipped around, wondering how I could have been stupid enough to leave something out.
It was a brochure we’d been looking at when we thought about all the ways to infiltrate the prison. There were special diving tours that went to the island, by permission of the king only, so we had one of those flyers to research access points. The problem was climbing those cliffs would be treacherous. Good thing we no longer needed that option. "Well, I've always been interested in the island, and I’ve recently taken up diving. I hear it’s one of the best local spots.” I lied through my teeth.
"Wow. You know, I just never saw you for a diving kind of girl, but it's cool. Well, I'll see you later, beautiful."
"See you soon."
As I watched him walk out, I studied his gait. Confident. The world at his feet. He had everything he ever wanted, except for the career he longed for. Nothing he had told me should have given me a reason for pause, but there was something about him that I wasn't sure I could trust. Granted, there was something about Tristan I wasn't entirely sure I could trust either.
Maybe the problem is you, not the guys.
That was entirely possible.
Five
Are you sure you want to do this?
Not like I had much choice at that point. I knew what Ashton was doing. I couldn’t let him get away with it. I just couldn’t. I knew he was manipulating the situation. I just didn’t know why.
Soon I’d have answers.
"Earth to Ariel, you okay?"
I shook my head. "Ah, sorry about that. I’m fine. Let’s go."
Penny slid a gaze over to me, as she took the dirt access road around the palace and then basically jumped over a divider to join the main road. The sun barely peeked over the horizon. "You're sure you don't want to tell me? Because you’ve got that look that says you’re worried."
"No. Yes." I sighed. “I’m just thinking we are probably going to get arrested or worse.”
She grinned. “That’s half the fun.”
“When did you become such a daredevil?”
“I’m not. There is a very tiny part of me that is scared shitless. But you are following your gut. And your gut has saved my ass more times than I care to count. Where you go, I go. Did you decide to leave Zia at home?”
I reached into my bag and pulled out a relay node. “She’ll be back at Royal Elite downloading and analyzing the data. And it’ll be easier getting in with two than with three.”
I’d forgotten that Penny drove like a maniac, and I discretely held on to the handle of my armrest as she swerved to avoid a pothole and asked, “Any chance Tristan knows where you’re going?”
I shook my head. “You think we’d be going if he did? He made it clear that his nightmares were not up for discussion.”
“Sounds rational.” She rolled her eyes. “Men. But can we just both agree that we're on the same page about you and Tristan together now, because that would be awesome."
"Yes. We're together, I guess. I think... I don't know."
"Right. Okay, so... confusion, that's fine. If he's in a showmance with what's-her-name, then he's going to have to dissolve that. That’s probably going to be difficult for her, and Tristan is a good guy, so he's going to want to make it easy, right?"
