The Phoenix

by Jillian Dodd

“Like they thought you were crazy?” He chuckles.

  “No, more like they were busted. I think the coup is supposed to be a secret.”

  “Then, you, Huntley, are in danger.”

  “Why would I be in danger? I told them I heard it from President Spear. Although I did accidentally—on purpose—mention to McClellan that I had spent some time going through your personal quarters at the TerraSphere.”

  “Did he bite?”

  “Nope, but he was very ready to leave all of a sudden. I gave him a big hug good-bye, so I could put a tracker in his pocket. I called Terrance to see if he could listen in on McClellan’s phone conversations, and he said no. So, I told him to find out where he was staying and to bug it.”

  “You’re calling the shots now, huh?” Ares asks.

  “Something is up with them. The athletes move into the Village tomorrow. What if they take them as hostages? Could something like that cause a coup?”

  Ares lets out a thoughtful sigh. “That’s not a scenario we considered. How would that work?”

  “Absolutely no idea. You’re brilliant. Figure it out. I need to go finish my champagne.”

  “Do you think Huntley Von Allister could have accessed the vault?” McClellan asks, calling the leader of The Echelon as soon as he leaves the Sphere.

  “I don’t see how unless she had Dupree’s ring. Why do you ask?”

  “She was at the Sphere in Montrovia today, prancing around in heels, drinking champagne with Chef Dassi, touring the buildings, and apparently taking selfies. The girl is an enigma.”

  “In what way?”

  “At the board meeting, she went for my jugular. She seems to have killer instincts one minute, and in the next, she wants me to like her Instagram photos. She was babbling on about the combined social media influence of the people staying at the Sphere.”

  “Well, she is right about that. She’s also young and ridiculously rich, Harrison. She’s enjoying all of this. And I can guarantee you, if she accessed the vault, she would have put that on her social media. It’s how kids are these days. They think they need to share everything with the world just to prove it happened.”

  McClellan laughs. “Yes, I suppose you are right.”

  “I assume our timeline is still in place?”

  “Everything will proceed exactly as planned.”

  “Don’t let some girl cause you any worry then,” Maximillian Olivier states.

  When I get back inside the food kitchen, Intrepid, Admiral Lamonte, and Gabriel are laughing and eating with Dassi. Lorenzo has also returned, but he doesn’t seem to be nearly as amused.

  “Why did you leave like that?” he asks, pulling me away from the group.

  “Because I don’t want the media to talk about us. I was here for a simple tour of my father’s facility. You had more places to go see. Places there was no reason for me to have interest in.”

  “I hate this,” he says. “Have dinner with me tonight.”

  “I can’t. You need to be seen out on the town with Lizzie. I should have come here on my own. The papers will have a field day with this, speculating why Lizzie wasn’t with us.”

  “I’m sure she had her own obligations today.”

  “Regardless.”

  “I am desperate to be with you.”

  “And I am desperate to save your country,” I reply. “Speaking of that, just how well do you know General Agueda?”

  “Very well. My parents broke tradition and had a large wedding party, including Admiral Lamonte and General Agueda. The general is one of my godfathers.”

  “They were friends of your father. I get it. But what about you? How well do you really know them?”

  “I don’t understand what you are asking me. I’ve known both men my whole life.”

  “Was either man close to Alessandro?”

  He squints his eyes, trying to understand. “I don’t know.”

  “Is there any reason why the general might hate your dad? Like, when and why did the admiral get promoted over him?”

  “I really don’t know,” he says. “But I’ve never felt animosity between the two.”

  “Who would know?”

  “I suppose my mother.”

  “Anyone else?” I ask. She’s literally the last person I want to talk to. “This is important, Lorenzo. What if he is the one planning the coup?”

  He shakes his head. “I can barely wrap my head around the whole coup idea, let alone entertain the fact that one of my father’s best friends could be planning it. If anyone were to want a coup against the monarchy, it’d more likely be members of parliament.”

  “Who has been the most outspoken? Could he be working with someone in the military? Is he gearing up to try to take over?”

  “I hope not,” is all he says before walking away from me.

  I close my eyes for a moment, saying a little prayer for Lorenzo.

  And for me.

  My buzzing phone catches my attention. I look down and see it’s Ellis.

  “Hey, are you here?” I ask.

  “Yes. I have been outside for quite some time now.”

  “Oh, crap. I’m sorry. We’ll be right out.”

  I glance at Intrepid, who seems to be having a jolly good time, and decide he can find his own way home. I’m exhausted.

  When I get to the villa, I find Ari lying on the couch, playing video games.

  “Have you done anything productive today?” I ask. “Or have you and Daniel been playing Battleground all afternoon?”

  Ari lets out a snicker. “Daniel has not been with me today.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Lizzie just left,” he says with a smirk.

  I want to scream aloud, but instead, I run up the stairs.

  “Daniel, you’re such an idiot!” I say, entering his suite, finding him shirtless and lounging in bed.

  “I am not. It worked! I proposed today. Gave her the ring.”

  “Hang on. Rewind. Tell me what happened.”

  “She said she happened to run into me, but it’s a lie. I specifically posted a photo of myself, alone in the hotel bar a few blocks away, and tagged my location. I never do that.”

  “And then you brought her here? Did you leave the bar together?” I ask, horrified.

  “Well, yeah. She said she just wanted to talk to me in private, to explain—”

  “But it turned into more,” I say, eyeing the rumpled state of his sheets.

  “Yep.” He grins. “She’s going to call off the wedding. Tomorrow.”

  “No!” I shout.

  “Why not?”

  “Lorenzo’s mother is right. Lizzie is stable. They need to stay together until after the Olympics. You have to make her.”

  “No way. I got her back, and I’m not letting her go.” He folds his arms across his chest with a hmmph.

  I give him a defiant glare and then march out the door.

  “Hey, where are you going?” he yells.

  “Where do you think?” I stick my head back into his room.

  “Don’t screw this up for me.”

  “Daniel, I think you’ve screwed this up enough for both of us.”

  I call Juan and ask to be let into the castle, where I go straight to Lizzie’s quarters.

  “Seriously?” I say to her. “You’re engaged to Lorenzo. You meet up with Daniel at a busy hotel bar and then leave with him? Right before the Olympics? When the world’s eyes are on your country?”

  “Are you jealous?” she asks, one eyebrow raised, taunting me.

  “No. What I am is worried about your country. Do you know anything that’s going on, or are you too busy having tea?”

  “What do you mean?” she asks.

  I tell her what Daniel told me, what the American government is worried about, and why. How she can’t possibly break up with Lorenzo until after the Olympics.

  “I thought you’d be happy,” she says with a sniffle. “You can have Lorenzo now.”

&nb
sp; “I never wanted to marry Daniel, and Daniel had no intention of marrying me. He proposed for one reason and one reason only—to make you jealous in the hopes that you wouldn’t go through with it.”

  “He tricked me?” she asks, her eyes going wide.

  “He loves you and was desperate. It was a completely warped big gesture. He did what he thought he had to do.”

  “He loves me,” she repeats, softening.

  “Of course he does.”

  “I was so upset when you got engaged. Now, I want to rid myself of this place and be back in his arms. I don’t care about Montrovia anymore,” she says dramatically. “We’ll live in Paris or America.”

  “Yeah, well, that can’t happen. Lizzie, if you don’t stay engaged to Lorenzo and keep up your appearances until the Olympics are over, I’ll tell the queen and your parents what you just did.” I pause for effect. “And I have the video to prove it.”

  “What?” she says, her eyes as big as saucers.

  I give her a smirk. “You’re predictable.”

  She flops back onto the couch and sighs. “You videotaped us on purpose?”

  “No, but each room in the villa has secret cameras for insurance purposes should we encounter theft either from staff or outside sources. I got off the plane and went directly to my meeting. I would have turned them off this evening when I got back home.”

  “How embarrassing,” she says, grabbing a pillow from the couch and wrapping her arms around it in a hug.

  “I didn’t watch, Lizzie. I just know it’s there. And I will make sure it is destroyed after the Olympics. You agreed to an arranged marriage when you were in love with Daniel. Your country and Lorenzo mean something to you.”

  “Of course they do!” she cries out. “I’ll just meet Daniel when he stays at the Olympic Village. He said he could get me a pass to get in and that the press and media are barred from the facility.”

  “Lizzie, don’t be so blinded by love to think that the athletes won’t gossip and that you won’t be outed should you choose to spend time alone with Daniel in his room. And don’t forget that he will have a roommate. The Olympics only last for fifteen days. Consider yourself Lady Elizabeth Palomar, ambassador for your country. I’ll help you sneak out to meet Daniel, but you won’t announce anything until after.”

  “But you and Lorenzo could just get engaged—”

  “And how would that look to the world?” I ask, interrupting.

  She sighs again. Like she can’t make up her mind. “It would reinforce the whole playboy prince thing. And undermine his ability to lead if there were a crisis. I hear that from his mother every single day.”

  “Well, she’s right.” I nod.

  “Fine. I agree,” she says with a pout.

  Which is a good thing because I’m totally lying about the video.

  I leave her room and make my way down the hall to Lorenzo’s quarters, finding him in his study, looking stressed.

  “Lee,” he says, glancing up from the documents in his hand. “You said you couldn’t have dinner.”

  “That’s not why I’m here,” I say, closing the door to give us some privacy. “You have a large staff, and you can’t afford even a whisper of impropriety. I came here to speak to Lizzie. And I should also tell you that I lied to her.”

  “About what?”

  “She and Daniel slept together today while we were out touring.”

  “What? She’s engaged to me!” he says.

  I’ll be honest. His reaction catches me off guard, and my heart is ready to pack up and leave. I take a breath and try to keep my cool, but I’m not very effective. “So, it’s okay for you and not for her? Are you sleeping with her?”

  “No, it’s just”—he runs his hands through his hair in frustration—“things have been happening in my country over the last couple of weeks that being engaged to Lizzie hasn’t seemed to help.”

  “Like what?”

  “I’ve been getting pushback from the military. If it wasn’t for General Agueda and Admiral Lamonte, I’m not sure what I would do. The general has really stepped up his support. His men are quite loyal, and they seem to be following his orders, but I fear the rumblings. Admiral Lamonte is also worried. Add to that the political pressure from parliament.”

  “Today, Daniel and Lizzie were reckless, but I came to the castle to talk to her about it.”

  “What did you say? She doesn’t know that your engagement is fake. In fact, I’m honestly a bit let down by her moral turpitude. We have a contract that specifically states, until she has produced three heirs, she’s not allowed to have affairs.”

  “She loves him, Lorenzo,” I state.

  “Yes, but she has been my friend for years. I thought she was a woman of her word, and I’m disappointed by her actions. I also agreed to this initially because I believed she would have made a good queen had I not found love. It appears I was mistaken. I suppose I could reveal her infidelity and end the engagement.” He shakes his head and sighs. “While, personally, that would make me happy, I’m afraid how the country would react at this point.”

  “So am I, especially when Daniel told me she was planning on calling off the wedding tomorrow. So, I kinda, sorta blackmailed her.”

  Lorenzo gets an amused look. “With what?”

  “I told her that, while we are gone, the villa has cameras in each room for insurance purposes should we encounter theft either from staff or outside sources. That I have to turn it off when a guest stays in the room. But that I got off the plane and came directly here. And that I’d share the tape if she didn’t stay engaged until after the Olympics. She whined about it being so long, but we’re talking just a couple of weeks to get through.”

  “You did that for me?”

  I slowly nod my head.

  “La medida del amor es amar sin medida,” he says.

  “I actually have a way you can repay me,” I say with a grin. “I mean, I do love you, but I’m not sure about the whole love without measure thing.”

  He stands up, striding toward me. “I’m hoping I can repay you with my body.”

  “What I’d like is to go into the royal vault,” I say, forcing myself to back away from him.

  “If you want to visit your ring, it is still here.” He pulls the chess piece and ring out of his breast pocket. “Please, allow me.”

  “No.” I take the ring from his hand, put the queen back in his pocket, and pat it. “The queen wants to stay there, close to your heart.”

  Lorenzo takes my wrist, tightly gripping it, almost like he’s holding on for dear life.

  “But I want that ring back in the vault until the day it can go back on my finger. It’s too valuable, Lorenzo. It’s part of your country’s history.”

  He flips my hand over and kisses it. “Then, so it shall be.”

  Once we’re in the vault, Lorenzo leads me to the back. “This is where the oldest of jewels are housed,” he says, opening a case and nestling my engagement ring back in its velvet box. “It is my hope that, on our wedding day, you will choose to wear the matching tiara with its flaming heart design.”

  I can’t even properly describe how I feel when I see this magnificent piece of jewelry, the tiara’s design so delicate yet the stones comprising it quite large. Lorenzo hands me the accompanying journal.

  “Although King Alberto took the brooch from this collection and turned it into the engagement ring, no one has worn the tiara since Lorenzo the Magnificent’s wife, Marchesa.”

  “Is it cursed or something?” I ask, wondering why this gorgeousness hasn’t graced every Montrovian queen’s head over the years.

  “As I mentioned, many brides choose to have custom pieces made.” He waves his hand in the direction of all of them lined up. “Now, this one,” he says, pointing out a stunning diamond version, “has been worn by nearly thirty brides over the years.”

  “I can see why. It’s by far the most serious show of wealthy bling,” I say, finding myself being drawn back t
o the Arcadian tiara. I close my eyes and picture the dream dress with it. I pull out my phone. “May I?”

  “Of course.”

  He waits for me to take the photo and then pulls me into his arms. “I fear things will get worse in my country before they get better. I fear it might tear us apart.”

  I tenderly kiss him, fearing that he’s right.

  “No matter what happens, Huntley, remember that you, and only you, are my Arcadia.”

  “Speaking of Arcadia, there was another reason I wanted to come to the vault.”

  Lorenzo rolls his eyes, takes my hand, and leads me to the emerald Echelon ring. “Let me guess.”

  “Could I see the record?”

  He takes it from the shelf under the ring and hands it to me.

  When Lorenzo and I last looked at it, he flipped through it from back to front to find the first entry of when the ring was first worn. But, when I was thinking about it earlier, I realized the entry wasn’t on the first page, leading me to believe that something was written before.

  I open the old leather-bound journal to the first page to discover words probably hand-written by the first king of Montrovia himself.

  “Um, do you think I could, like, borrow this? I want to read it.”

  “Do you believe knowing what happened then will help us in our fight today?” he asks in a critical tone.

  I have no idea, but I nod anyway. “If for no other reason than to not make the same mistakes.”

  I go home and retreat to my bedroom, ordering myself a grilled cheese sandwich from the kitchen staff. I about cry when I find a glass of champagne on my tray along with a delicious-looking chocolate cupcake.

  My phone rings.

  “I modified your order. You’ve had a busy day,” Ares says.

  “Where are you?”

  “I’m here at the villa in Montrovia, shacking up in the basement. My father just arrived at your home in Paris.”

  “That wasn’t on the list,” I say.

  “Yes, well, that’s because Huntley Von Allister only recently purchased it.”

  “You bought it in my name? Is it pretty?”