Royal Ransom

by Susan Kearney

  However, since Nicholas was so much in love with his American bride, he should understand Tashya’s feelings for Hunter. But another marriage to an American was not what Nicholas had wanted for her. He’d much prefer that she marry a man from one of their neighboring countries and seal Vashmiran alliances with either Moldova, Turkey or Bulgaria.

  When she finished dressing in the changing room, she brought Hunter fresh clothes, which she’d asked a servant to deliver earlier. “There’s food and—”

  “Where’re you going?” He asked the words in a lazy tone, but she couldn’t miss the curious look in his eyes.

  “To my office. To ask my secretary to make an appointment with Nicholas’s secretary for you two to talk.” Which was the truth. But she also intended to broach the subject with her brother first.

  “Really?” His instinct for rooting out deception never ceased to amaze her, but she didn’t give in.

  “It’s better not to interrupt him during an important meeting. We need his goodwill. It would be better to make an appointment.”

  While she considered whether she’d protested too much, he considered her explanation, then moved closer to the pool edge. In one swift move, he lifted himself from the water and stood. “Take the Secret Service agents with you. Keep them inside your office and apartment until I get back.”

  “Okay.” Her mouth went dry at the sight of him. If she stayed another second she’d be ripping her clothes off and seducing him again. She tossed a towel to him. “Love you.”

  And then she fled from the bathing room, but not before she heard him say softly, “I love you, too, Princess.”

  As she left, she extracted her cell phone from her pants pocket and dialed Nicholas. “I need to talk to you.”

  Her brother sighed. “I’m in a meeting with General Vladimir, can it wait?”

  “As long as we talk before Hunter comes to you.”

  She practically raced through the doors, then stopped, remembering Hunter’s instructions to take the Secret Service agents with her. She covered the phone’s speaker with her hand and spoke to the agents. “You two, stay with me.”

  When neither man answered her, she spun around. Both of the Secret Service men’s eyes were dilated, their movements sluggish. Their heads wobbled on their necks and they were either sick or drugged.

  Quickly she spoke into the phone. “Nicholas, something’s wrong.”

  “What?”

  “The Secret Service agents are drugged.”

  Before she could say more or return to Hunter, Major Stephan Cheslav and four soldiers rounded the corner.

  Oh, God. She had to get to Hunter. Warn him. She took two steps back toward the bath. Didn’t dare scream for then Hunter would come running, straight into danger.

  Tashya pointed with her phone to the drugged men. “These Secret Service agents have been drugged. Alex is in the bath alone and unprotected. You need—”

  Stephan roughly grabbed Tashya’s arm, causing her to drop her phone to the floor. General Vladimir’s aide pulled out his gun. When he pointed the weapon at her, she realized he wasn’t here to help.

  And Hunter was alone in the bath. She had to warn him. Or had to go for help.

  But Stephan held her so tightly that he bruised her arm. With the major’s men aiming their guns at the Secret Service agents and about to shoot, terror socked her hard.

  “Don’t shoot them here,” the major ordered. “Take the agents inside. I want the assassinations to appear as if these agents have shot the prince and princess.”

  His men grabbed the Secret Service agents and took their weapons. Tashya saw they all wore latex gloves. If the soldiers fired the agents’s weapons on Hunter and herself, only the agents’ fingerprints would remain on the guns.

  Obviously, Stephan had no problem revealing his plan to her since he expected to kill her.

  “Why are you doing this?” Tashya demanded, trying to stall for time.

  “With you, Alex and Nicholas out of the way, I’ll be free to marry Sophia—”

  “And be the power behind the throne,” she finished. Sophia’s children were still too young to rule.

  “Hurry,” Stephan ordered his men, shoving her toward the bath. “We need to be in and out in two minutes.”

  Tashya’s attempt to stall Stephan hadn’t worked, but she had to warn Hunter. Screaming a warning would be her last resort because she doubted she’d get much out before they knocked her unconscious and then she’d be no good to him. Instead she waited for an opportunity.

  When Stephan looked over his shoulder to make sure his men had the agents in tow, she took her chance. Ignoring the gun at her back, she stomped on Stephan’s foot and immediately realized her mistake. While she didn’t fear his shooting her out here, since he’d revealed his intention to drag her inside to stage the scene so it looked as if the Secret Service had done his dirty work, she still needed her foot stomp to be effective. But he wore boots. Hard, leather boots that protected his toes.

  She planted her next kick on his shin. Only managed a glancing blow, but it was enough for him to shove her hard toward the bath’s front door. With the major blocking her escape down the hallway, going for help was not an option.

  So she raced inside the bath, ahead of the men and toward Hunter. Any second she expected to feel a bullet in her back.

  But the doors had swung back into her pursuers’s faces, gaining her extra precious seconds. Hunter, bare-chested and barefooted had just finished buttoning his slacks.

  “Hunter.” She slid on the slick marble.

  Hunter steadied her, took one look at her face and before she said a word, grabbed her hand, scooped up his weapons and yanked them behind a stone planter.

  “How many?” he asked, his calm slowing her panic.

  “Five. Stephan—the general’s aide—is the traitor. He intends to kill us and make it—”

  At the burst of gunshots she stopped talking. Tile chips exploded near her head. Automatically she closed her eyes, then had to force them open.

  Hunter pressed a gun into her hand. “Stay down.”

  Then he squeezed off several shots. She heard a yelp and a hoarse scream of pain. Staying low, she peered around the planter. Two of Stephan’s men had taken cover behind the drugged Secret Service agents. Hunter had picked off one soldier. Stephan and the other three soldiers had taken cover behind thick ceramic urns that held potted palms.

  Hunter kept firing and tugged her close to him. “Don’t move, Princess.”

  She had to shout over the sound of bullets. “They’re trying to surround us.”

  Surely someone would hear the gunfire and send palace security to investigate. But would help arrive in time?

  She and Hunter crouched back to back. “Don’t waste your shots, Princess.”

  He fired and then she asked, “Are we low on ammunition?”

  “No, but I don’t have time to dig out more rounds for your gun. Make each shot count.”

  “Okay.”

  Hunter must have hit another man because for a moment the shooting slowed. Tashya held her gun ready, waiting for one of the soldiers to attack. Afraid to blink in the smoke-filled room, she first spied the gleam of a metal gun, saw fingers pointing the weapon, then the man stuck his head out from behind a column. She fired.

  She had no idea whether her shot found its mark, but the man didn’t try to shoot back. Gulping, she felt rather than saw Hunter ram another clip into his gun. In the split second he took to reload, two soldiers moved in.

  She fired, and they ducked back. Then Hunter was calmly firing and picked them off one by one. That left a single soldier and Stephan unhurt and on the attack.

  From above them, the soldier flung himself at Hunter. Somehow the man must have crept up unnoticed into the huge planter during the shooting. The soldier dived at Hunter and the two men rolled, punching, kicking, head butting.

  Tashya didn’t dare shoot for fear of hitting Hunter. And where was Stephan?

&
nbsp; She peeked between the ferns to see him crouching over one of the Secret Service agents. The major was about to shoot the drugged agent.

  Ears ringing, Tashya raised her gun. Fired. Her shot struck Stephan in his side. A second shot—one she didn’t fire—caught him right between the eyes, killing him where he crouched.

  Confused, Tashya looked across the room to see General Vladimir had fired the shot that had killed his aide.

  At almost the same moment Hunter took out the soldier, the sound of the man’s neck cracking leaving no doubt as to his fate.

  Then Nicholas and the general were running over to Tashya. “Are you all right?”

  The moment gunfire ceased, Nicholas, followed by protesting Secret Service agents, entered the room.

  Hunter reached her side before either the king or the general crossed the room, and she flung herself into his arms. “When Stephan grabbed me, I thought I’d never see you again.”

  And suddenly Tashya realized that she wasn’t acting like Alex’s sister, but like Hunter’s lover. But with Stephan dead, it no longer mattered.

  General Vladimir looked from Hunter to Nicholas and then at Tashya. While the king explained Hunter’s impersonation of Alex, she wound her arms around Hunter’s neck and kissed him.

  She needed to drink in his strength, needed to reassure herself he was unhurt, needed his arms around her. When Hunter pulled back from their kiss, he made no explanation to her brother.

  “I appreciate your showing up to help out.” Hunter told the general and the king. “How did you know…”

  Nicholas’s eyes narrowed with speculation. “Tashya was speaking to me on the phone. I could hear enough of the conversation to understand she was in trouble.”

  “She was calling you?” Hunter asked.

  Not her secretary, as she’d told him she was going to do. Uh-oh.

  Tashya needed a diversion. “Nicholas, how upset is Sophia going to be over Stephan’s death? The two of them seemed to have gotten rather close while I was gone.”

  “She’ll be fine. As a matter of fact, last night she asked me to transfer Stephan to another position. Apparently once the children were back, she realized that she didn’t have feelings for him. The general and I were discussing his transfer when you called.”

  Damn him. Nicholas had deliberately circled the conversation right back around to where she hadn’t wanted it to go. But she received another reprieve when Ira and his security team arrived and shooed them all out of the bathhouse. However, neither her brother nor Hunter appeared inclined to let her out of their sight until explanations were made.

  Nicholas ushered them into his private apartments and Hunter took the opportunity to put on Alex’s shirt. The general had stayed behind, leaving Tashya alone with Hunter and Nicholas. Once they arrived in the royal office, Nicholas offered Hunter a drink. He declined.

  Nicholas walked around his desk and looked out the window for a moment before turning to face Hunter. “What’s on your mind?”

  Tashya knew that Nicholas hadn’t forgotten her request to speak with him privately before Hunter did. That he would discount her wishes didn’t bode well for her. But interrupting would only irritate both men.

  Hunter, also, remained on his feet. “I’d like your permission to marry Tashya.”

  “And if I don’t give that permission?”

  “Your Majesty, you don’t want me to answer that question.” Hunter’s voice softened, but somehow the words came out with a hint of a threat in them.

  Nicholas, she couldn’t read at all. However, this might be the most important decision of her life and both men were talking about her future as if she wasn’t even there. Tashya simmered with anger, yet held her annoyance in check. She would speak her mind when the time came—but not yet.

  Hunter had thrown the ball back in Nicholas’s court and her brother thrummed his fingers on the desk, deep in thought. “I’d hoped to strengthen Vashmiran ties to our neighbors with a royal marriage. But I suspect it’s too late for that now.” Nicholas glared at Hunter.

  Unperturbed, Hunter held Nicholas’s gaze. “It’s much too late.”

  “My new bride happens to be quite perceptive,” Nicholas admitted. “And she believes people in love should marry.” Apparently, Queen Ericka had suspected the budding romance and had put in a good word for her countryman, but would that sway Nicholas?

  Tashya went to stand next to Hunter. She took his hand, realizing that Hunter was an excellent negotiator—especially since he wasn’t going to take no for an answer.

  “You’ll live in Vashmira?” Nicholas asked, and Tashya knew that her brother had just given in. But she withheld any outward sign of joy, just squeezed Hunter’s hand more tightly. She would continue her fight for women’s rights, live near her family and marry Hunter, too.

  Hunter turned to Tashya then, his look full of love. “We’ll live wherever the princess wishes.”

  Nicholas came around his desk, put one arm around each of them. “I wish you a happy marriage and years of joy.”

  Tashya hugged her brother. “There’s just one more thing.”

  Nicholas raised his brow. “Yes?”

  “Hunter has some ideas to help upgrade our security.”

  He kissed Tashya on the cheek. “I’d welcome his suggestions.” Nicholas turned to Hunter. “In fact, if you’ll accept a position in Vashmira, I’d be grateful for your expertise.”

  Hunter nodded his acceptance.

  “I’ll call Alex and fill him in.” Nicholas shook Hunter’s hand and departed, closing the door softly and leaving them alone.

  Tashya flung her arms around Hunter’s neck and plastered kisses on his lips and neck. “You were brilliant. You stood up to Nicholas with just the right combination of strength and respect.” She smoothed her palm down his cheek. “Just exactly what would you have done if Nicholas refused to allow us to marry?”

  Hunter flashed her a teasing grin. “I’ve learned from an expert. I simply would have agreed to do what Nicholas asked—leave Vashmira and forget about you.”

  “You would have left me?”

  “No, Princess, I would have agreed to leave you, but then I’d have smuggled you across the border.” His glance was mischievous and sexy. “I love you way too much to leave you.”

  ISBN: 978-1-4592-4300-2

  ROYAL RANSOM

  Copyright © 2002 by Hair Express Inc.

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