He nodded.
“When do you expect him back?” Ephraim asked.
“I asked him to contact me when he was in a secluded place and we’d teleport him home,” he stated.
“Where is he?” Ephraim asked.
“Boston,” Jeremiah answered. “I need to wait on the patio so he can contact me. He won’t be able to get through to me as long as I’m inside the palace.”
“Should I wake up Daniel?” Xavier called after his father as he ascended the stairs to their bedrooms with Ephraim close behind him.
“No, let the boy sleep. From what I’ve been hearing, he needs it,” he responded without breaking his stride.
Xavier looked at Loren as he flopped on the sofa next to him. “How did the rest of the hearings go?”
“Well, I’m afraid Daniel was the only child cleared of charges today. The other five children weren’t as innocent. One boy was quite scary, in fact. I think he truly believes in the Dark Army’s cause,” he answered.
He nodded. “Yeah, I imagine years of torture and brainwashing could do that, but it’s not their fault, Loren. The Council doesn’t understand what it’s like to be held captive and forced to do things you don’t want to do, but I do. They’re just kids!”
“I understand that, Xavier. I was there, remember. I saw what LeMasters and his evil concubine put those kids through. But let me ask you this: is that any comfort to the families of the people they killed? Would you have killed innocent people at LeMasters’ command?” he asked gently.
“No, I wouldn’t.”
Loren nodded and the two sat in silence for a moment. Finally, Loren asked, “So, how do you feel about having a cousin?”
“I think it’s brilliant. He’s a cool little guy,” he replied, grinning. “Do you think Uncle Mike will be happy to see him? I don’t want Daniel hurt. He was really good to me, protecting me. It’s my chance to return the favor.”
Loren didn’t have time to answer as a door on the floor above opened and closed.
Daniel shuffled out of Xavier’s room with puffy, sleepy eyes.
“Hey, Daniel. We’re down here,” Xavier called, and the younger boy scuttled down the steps yawning.
“I’m hungry,” he bleated, sounding pathetically small, as he cuddled up against Xavier on the sofa.
“Well, there’s an hour yet before dinner, but I’m sure Mrs. Sommers would give you a nice healthy snack. She’s always been big on those. When we were kids, King Wells always wanted to come to my house after school. I had all the good junk food,” Loren explained with a good-natured wink before patting Daniel’s head, standing, and starting toward the kitchen. The large man froze when the king’s bedroom door opened and three men appeared on the walkway, whispering feverishly.
“Sire?” Loren called up at the men. “The boy’s here in the receiving room.”
Michael’s eyes darted to the sofa where Xavier and the smaller boy sat. For a moment, he seemed incapable of moving.
Jeremiah nudged his brother toward the stairs and whispered, “Come on, Mike. Let me introduce you to your son.”
Xavier stood to face the men as they entered the room.
Daniel looked up at Xavier, bewildered. Then, he followed the older boy’s eyes to the men walking toward them. The king approached with another man at his side, a dark-haired man with grey eyes. Daniel’s stare widened with surprise and he jumped to his feet, unable to take his huge, grey eyes off of the approaching man.
“Y...You. I know you. My mom had a photo of you in her purse,” he whispered.
Michael stepped forward with a watery smile. “She did, did she?” he asked, his voice hoarse with emotion.
He nodded fervently.
“What did she tell you about me?” he asked.
“She...” Daniel studied Michael with an expression that was a spitting image of him. “She said that…that you’re my dad.”
“That’s right,” he responded quietly.
The small boy’s eyes grew enormous and plump tears flooded them. “It’s really true, then? You’re really my dad?”
Michael knelt in front of him, running a thumb over the boy’s wet cheeks as he nodded. “Yes, Daniel. I am your father.”
The boy launched himself into Michael’s arms. “Daddy! Oh, Daddy. Mommy said we’d try to find you one day. She said we’d escape from Master and we’d find you. She said you’d protect us because you loved us.”
“She was right, Daniel. I won’t let anything bad happen to you ever again,” he whispered, his voice breaking. “And I love you with all that I am, Daniel. I love you with all that I am.”
“Xavier? Let’s leave them to talk,” Jeremiah called softly, waving his son over to him.
He went to his father, who hugged him tightly to his side as he called, “Mike, we’ll be in the dining hall. Would you and your son stay for dinner?”
He nodded without a word as he sat on the sofa with Daniel in his arms.
Xavier, Jeremiah, Loren, and Ephraim entered the dining hall and sat around the table in silence for several long minutes. Finally, Loren whistled softly. “Lord, what a day!”
The rest of the group nodded mutely.
Mrs. Sommers entered the room and stared down at the group in surprise.
“Oh, I’m sorry, sire. Did you want an early dinner? It won’t be ready to serve for another thirty minutes...”
“No, Mrs. Sommers. We’re just giving Mike some privacy,” Jeremiah stated.
“Michael’s meeting his son?” she gasped, hurrying toward the door and peeking out into the receiving room.
When the men looked at her dumbfounded, the governess gave them an impatient sigh. “Oh, really, Jeremiah! You sent the boy home with Xavier! One would only need to look at the boy to know that he’s Michael’s. He’s the spitting image of him at that age.”
“Yes, I know. That’s what got me too. It was like looking at Mike all those years ago,” Jeremiah added.
“So, how many for dinner?” she asked, surveying the men.
Jeremiah looked at his generals; both shook their heads. “Four. Michael and Daniel will be eating with us this evening.”
“Oh, wonderful!” she chirped, clapping her hands together.
Twenty minutes later, Michael and Daniel entered the dining hall smiling.
“Xavier!” Daniel announced. “This is my dad!”
“Yeah, I know. Your dad is my uncle,” he told him with a grin. “We’re cousins, Daniel.”
His eyes nearly bulged out of his head. “I...I’m Prince Wells’ cousin?”
Jeremiah and Michael chuckled.
“Yes, Daniel. Your dad is my brother. So, you are Xavier’s cousin, my nephew, and one of the heirs to the throne. You are Prince Daniel Spencer,” Jeremiah explained, snickering as Daniel’s jaw dropped.
“Dinner will be served in five minutes,” Mrs. Sommers announced as she entered the room. “Michael! Oh, it’s so good to finally see you over for dinner. You stay away too much,” she scolded, hugging him.
“Hello, Mrs. Sommers,” he muttered with genuine affection. “I’d like you to meet my son, Daniel. Daniel, this is Mrs. Sommers. She has been the palace’s governess since before I was born.”
“Yes, I’ve known your daddy all his life,” Mrs. Sommers agreed with a teary smile. “Hello, Daniel. It’s so wonderful to meet you, dear.”
“It’s very nice to meet you, ma’am,” Daniel replied, extending his hand.
“A hand shake? No, no, no. Around here, we hug!” she announced, trapping the small boy in a breath-stealing embrace.
“Daniel, you can sit next to me,” Xavier called, pulling out a chair.
With a grin and still blushing from Mrs. Sommers’ attention, he shuffled to the chair next to Xavier.
“You’ll get used to Mrs. Sommers. But words to the wise, when she hugs you, tilt your head to the side so you won’t suffocate. I nearly passed out the first time she hugged me,” he explained, grinning up at the governess.
“Oh,
hush, you!” she tittered, swatting him with her towel. “You’d be an embarrassment to the throne if I didn’t press your clothes and wash your dirty underwear.”
“Mrs. Sommers!” he gasped, blushing, and the rest of the group burst into laughter at his expense.
“Well, now that I’ve thoroughly embarrassed Prince Xavier, I’ll go and check on your dinner.” She laughed.
“I’ll see you in the morning, Sire,” Loren announced.
“Thanks, gentlemen. Have a good night,” Jeremiah called, nodding at the generals as they left the residence.
“Wow, I can’t believe we’re cousins!” Daniel whispered when their fathers had settled into a conversation on how the kingdom’s repairs were going.
“Yeah, it’s cool, isn’t it?”
“Really cool!” Daniel agreed. “You must know my dad really well.”
Xavier recognized the prompt. He had done the same thing with Loren and Ephraim when he first met his father. “Yeah, I guess I do. I’ve only been living with my dad in Warwood for about a year, but your dad is the headmaster at Wells Academy and taught my telepathy class. So I’ve spent a lot of time around him.”
The smaller boy glanced at Michael, who was in deep conversation with the king, before looking imploringly at Xavier. “What’s he like, Xavier? Is he as nice as he seems?”
“Oh, yeah. He and my dad are a lot alike. Though, Uncle Mike is a little more serious than my dad. My dad will tease and goof around with me. I always thought it was kind of odd that your dad is the serious one when my dad is the king. You’d think it would be the other way around. Uncle Mike is really nice though. I don’t know if he’s as strict as my dad. I did something one time and it really made Uncle Mike mad. I thought he was going to spank me, but he gave me a second chance. He still yelled at me and made me feel like crap, but if it had been my dad, my butt would have been sore.”
Daniel smirked. “What did you do?”
He glanced at his father, making sure he was preoccupied before answering. “Garrett and I got caught destroying these mining carts at King’s Mountain, the mountain we hid in after LeMasters invaded Warwood. And Uncle Mike happened to be the adult on duty for the children’s dorms. He decided to punish us with extra chores. I had a moment of stupidity and challenged him, back talked. Man, his look was deadly. I still shudder thinking about.” Xavier chuckled dryly. “Anyways, he was yanking off his belt ready to beat my butt into oblivion when I finally wised up. I begged and pleaded for him to forgive me, and thank God, he did.”
Daniel snickered. “Wow. I bet it would have hurt a lot too. He looks really strong!”
“Yeah, it doesn’t tickle,” he noted with a shy smile.
He looked at his father and frowned suddenly.
“What? Got another question about your dad? Ask. I’ll tell you everything I know about him.”
“Well, yeah. I was wondering…what happened to his leg? He limps.”
Xavier glanced over at the men, who had gone quiet at the question. Daniel followed his gaze.
Michael smiled at Daniel. “I was badly injured in the attack on Warwood. If it hadn’t been for Xavier, I would have died.”
Daniel’s eyes grew turbulent. “The Dark Army attacked you? Who? Who did it? Was it one of the other kids?”
“No, son. It was William LeMasters,” Michael answered.
Daniel slumped back in his chair with a scowl. “I hate him! I’m glad he’s dead. He killed my mother, he nearly killed you, and...and...” The scowl was replaced by a pained expression and tears began to swell in his eyes.
When the small boy buried his face in his hands, Michael was at his side in seconds, lifting him into his lap. Daniel wrapped his arms around his neck. “Daniel?” Michael whispered with great tenderness hugging his son against him.
Xavier looked at his father watching the exchange and knew even without abilities that his father was reminiscing of a similar occurrence between the two of them.
Chapter 8: Celebration
The kingdom was fully operational by the weekend and as a reward, the king called for a day of rest and an evening of celebrating in the rebuilt Center Square. The entire kingdom buzzed with excitement over the celebration planned for later that night. Even the king had taken the day off and had been seen in Nottingham’s getting a new pair of slacks and shirt for the occasion. Many believed that it would be the party of the century!
Xavier and his friends spent the day in the royal residence playing video games, hanging out, and eating contraband junk food Beck and Garrett snuck in past Mrs. Sommers. Later that evening after everyone had left to get ready for the celebration, Xavier stood with a towel wrapped around his waist rummaging in his closet for something to wear. He had asked Robbie to walk with him to the celebration and was excited to spend some time with her. Between working to rebuild the kingdom, the trials, and his grounding, he’d seen very little of her the last week. He missed her and longed to kiss her. It had been weeks since he had done that. He smiled at the thought as he pulled a light green shirt from the closet and tossed it on his bed. There was a knock at his door and Mrs. Sommers peeked into the room.
“Xavier? Robbie is here. She’s waiting for you in the receiving room,” she announced.
“Okay, thanks, Mrs. Sommers,” he answered, pulling out a pair of khaki cargo pants. “I’ll be right there.”
Ten minutes later, he bounced down the stairs and into the receiving room to where Robbie waited. He nearly stumbled as his eyes raked down her body. She was wearing a very short skirt and a snug blouse that made it very apparent that she had grown…womanly. She was…hot!
Robbie shifted her weight under his gaping stare, fidgeting with the hem of her skirt. “Do I look alright?” she whispered, unsure.
“Yeah. You…you look awesome.”
She beamed. “Thanks! You do too.”
But when the king entered the room and saw Robbie, he was anything but impressed. He paused at the sight of her and surveyed her clothes disapprovingly before speaking. “Hello, Roberta. How are you this evening?”
“Fine, sire,” she answered, still smiling from Xavier’s compliment.
“Good. Did your mother happen to see what you chose to wear tonight?” he asked finally.
“Uh, no, sire. She wasn’t home when I left. She had to run an errand,” she replied unconvincingly, her smile vanishing.
Jeremiah nodded thoughtfully. “Well, in that case, I’m going to have to ask you to go home and change out of that provocative outfit.”
“Provocative? It’s not provocative…it’s sexy,” she responded.
“For a thirteen-year-old, provocative and sexy are the same things. Neither is appropriate,” he told her.
“I don’t want to change. I like how I look,” she retorted.
“I know you do as would most boys over the age of ten, but you will change into something more appropriate.”
“What if I refuse?” she questioned stubbornly.
“Then one of two things will happen. First, I could help you by picking out a suitable outfit, which I am certain will not meet with your approval,” he stated firmly. “Or you will not be permitted to attend the celebration.”
The rebellious girl stared mutinously up at the king as Xavier held his breath.
“Fine, I’ll change,” she muttered finally and stomped toward the door.
“Wait! I’ll walk over with you, and then we can go straight to the celebration afterwards,” Xavier called, hurrying to catch up with her. After opening the door for her, he called over his shoulder, “See ya over there, Dad.”
Once outside the palace, they began to make their way back to Robbie’s house when she muttered bitterly, “Your dad is such a meddlesome, controlling, bossy, old-fashioned prat!”
He stifled a laugh and answered as evenly as he could. “Yeah, I know! I live with him, remember?”
“I don’t understand why he feels it’s his responsibility to hover over me all the time. I mean, what
business is it of his if I wear this or not!” she growled.
“I think you look beautiful, Robbie.”
She grinned. “I could just grab a sweater to wear whenever your dad’s around.”
“I don’t know, Robbie,” he cautioned. “You could get into trouble.”
She frowned. “You like my outfit; don’t you?”
“Well, yeah...”
“It’s settled then,” she replied with finality.
After a brief pit stop at Robbie’s house so she could grab a sweater, they strolled toward Center Square. They heard the party long before they could see it. Once they were within a block of Center Square, voices flooded through the cobblestone streets of Warwood. Music drifted in the air, and a rhythmic beat vibrated the ground under their feet. Xavier turned to Robbie with a grin, took her hand in his, and hurried toward the sounds. The party was well underway and people were dancing around an enormous bonfire. Colorful Chinese sky lanterns floated and swayed in the air above the crowd. On the dais behind the dance area, there were several kegs and all sorts of adult beverages. Henrick Davies was supervising the table and shooed three teenage boys away from the beer as he handed a drink to Lucy Jefferson. Below the dais stood an elongated table filled with every kind of snack imaginable, and on either end of the table sat five large tubs of bottled drinks.
“Wow,” Xavier muttered before turning to Robbie. “What do you want to do first?”
“Let’s dance,” she suggested, tugging him toward the fire and throwing her sweater over a chair.
As they made their way to the dance floor, Xavier became very aware of the jeering looks, smirks, and whispers Robbie’s attire was receiving from several teenage boys and it bothered him a lot.
“What are you looking at?” he spat at Jonas, who was brazenly ogling Robbie.
Jonas smirked and gave him a wink as he taunted, “Nice, very nice, Pipsqueak! But why she chose to come with a little boy and not a man beats me. That chick is so hot she could have any guy here on her arm!”
He advanced on Jonas, but Drew beat him to it. “Hey, mate! That’s my cousin you’re talking about! Watch it!”
Jonas immediately backed down.
The Prince of Warwood and The Rise of the Chosen Page 6
