Testament

by Katie Ashley

  I laughed in spite of my churning emotions. “Thanks, Laurel.”

  “No problem.”

  When I opened the suite door, Kellan stood waiting for me in the hallway. He was outfitted in black dress pants, a white shirt, and an electric blue tie, which brought out the color of his eyes. I fought to still my traitorous heart that sped up at how good he looked.

  Before he said hello, Kellan drank in my appearance, lingering over certain parts. Crossing my arms over my chest, I blocked his view and rolled my eyes. “And good morning to you, too.”

  His usual cocky grin slunk across his face. “Can’t blame a man for looking, right?”

  “I hold more fault with the memorizing.”

  He laughed and shook his head. “Come on, we don’t want to keep Father waiting.”

  While we took the elevator downstairs, Kellan’s hand kept brushing against mine. It was like he had to be touching me somehow. When the elevator door opened, he took my hand in his. I guess I looked accusingly at him because he said tightly, “We have to keep up appearances.”

  Richard was already seated at the head of the mahogany table. Newspapers and documents were strewn on the table, and he appeared ashen. “Father, what’s wrong?” Kellan asked, as he eased into a chair. He motioned for me to sit across from him. I would have rather sat beside him since I didn’t want to be close to Richard.

  “We’re about to face an attack.”

  Kellan’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “By who?”

  Richard hesitated. “I haven’t made this known to anyone outside my cabinet of advisors. Since the Believer’s Rebellion last year, militant gangs have been forming literally underground in the old subway systems.”

  “I thought those were destroyed in the Great Fall,” Kellan said.

  “They were destroyed for transportation usage, but they make a great place for rebels to live and unite. Through our intelligence, we’ve learned they’ve been receiving funds from a wealthy benefactor, but we can’t find out who that person is. Last night, two gang members were killed on the outer perimeter of the palace—we believe they were on a scouting mission.”

  I stared down at my plate. The Abir was already on the move. Why hadn’t Griff mentioned anything to me?

  “I can’t believe it.” Kellan shook his head and appeared thoughtful. “And who are these gang members?”

  “Believers,” Richard replied with disgust.

  The mention of Believers sent my tattoo burning, and I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. Richard misread my discomfort and smiled reassuringly at me. “There’s no reason to be alarmed, my dear. We have the best defenses here at the palace—the military is at our disposal along with a bomb shelter.”

  “That’s good to know, sir.”

  He turned to Kellan. “I’ll be doing a televised address to the province at noon. We’ll be going on Code Red precautions—a six pm curfew, electricity blackouts, neighborhood patrols.”

  “But we haven’t had a Code Red since the Believer’s Rebellion,” Kellan murmured.

  Richard nodded. “It’s not that serious, but at the same time, we want to do as much as possible to squelch any uprising.” He brought his hand down hard on the table and spat, “Mark my words, this will not turn into another rebellion.”

  “What about Roarke?” Kellan asked.

  “He’s being kept informed of what is going on, but I’m also having him followed.”

  Kellan nodded. “What do you need from us?”

  “After I’ve addressed the Province, I plan to call the two of you up on camera with me. It’s imperative that we keep the people calm and reassured. I will announce to the Province that you and Cadence will have a formal wedding at the end of the month.”

  I bit my lip to keep from gasping. Naomi had been right about there being a wedding and how quickly it would go off. My gaze skittered over to Kellan who appeared surprised, but pleased. “A wedding will unite the Province and give them hope for the future of this administration.” Richard turned to me and smiled. “Of course, if you were to become pregnant right away, that would work splendidly for us.”

  My eyes widened. “P-Pregnant?”

  Richard nodded. “I’m sure Kellan won’t mind helping you out in that department, will you, son?”

  Kellan turned on the charm for his father and smiled broadly. “No, I’m sure I’ll be fine with that.”

  “Good, it’s all settled then. When Cadence meets with my doctor, I’ll inform him you are not to be given any birth control.”

  In response, I stared down at my plate for the rest of the meal. Richard didn’t seem to notice or care. He rattled on to Kellan about all the security measures in order and then read him snippets from his speech.

  I wasn’t allowed to leave the table until he stood up. “I’ll see you both in the corporate suite in an hour.”

  When he was safely out of earshot, Kellan came over to me. “You look a little green.”

  “Yeah, it’s supposed to be a good color for redheads,” I retorted.

  He rolled his eyes. “At least your personality isn’t affected.”

  “Do you know when my birthday is?” I blurted.

  Kellan shook his head.

  “How about where I grew up? What my parents’ names were? What my favorite food is?”

  “No, I don’t,” Kellan replied.

  “If you don’t know even the basic things about me, how is it possible we’ll be married in three weeks?”

  Kellan shrugged. “How well does anyone ever truly know the person they’re marrying?”

  I sighed with exasperation. “I know nothing about you, and you know nothing of me. We can’t build a future on nothing.”

  “People used to have arranged marriages all the time, and they’re happening more and more after the Great Fall. We’ll work the kinks out.” When I didn’t appear convinced, he grinned. “Besides, we have three weeks of togetherness.”

  Pointing my finger, I said, “And don’t even think you’re knocking me up.”

  He raised his eyebrows and said with mock horror, “Are you saying that when we get married, you’re going to deny me a physical relationship?”

  “I don’t sleep with everything that moves like you do. I only sleep with people I’m in love with, and I’m not in love with you.”

  “But you will be,” he replied.

  I threw up my hands. “You’re so infuriating!”

  And then, I stomped out of the dining hall like an immature child.

  I had managed to calm down by the time I got off the elevator. Fortunately, Kellan had left me alone to cool off. I had just started down the hallway when someone grabbed me and shoved me into a linen closet. “What are you doing?” I demanded, when I could finally make out Micah’s features in the pitch black.

  “I have to talk to you.”

  “Um, there’s other ways of talking to me besides shoving me into a closet. Not to mention, it’s kind of suffocating in here.”

  “This is the only safe place I could think of. I’m not sure if some of the rooms aren’t bugged.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes, things are getting out of control, and the palace is pulling out all the stops. I guess you’ve heard about the Abir and the Code Red.”

  I nodded. “Richard told us at breakfast.”

  “We need to get away from here before they reach the palace. Griff has been in contact with Asher, the second in command of the Abir, and he sees no point in involving you in the original plan. Asher says he can’t control what the Abir does to avenge lost believers, and you’ll be in the crossfire being Kellan’s fiancée.”

  I chewed my lip, delaying the inevitable. “So, you’re really serious about leaving?”

  Micah’s voice became exasperated. “Yes, I am. I mean, do you need to see a gun battle between the Abir and the palace guards before you’ll come away with me?”

  We stood in a tense silence before Micah exhaled loudly. “What I want to know i
s even we weren’t in danger, would you still leave with me?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  He leaned in closer, pressing me against a shelf. “I’m talking about how you keep yo-yoing back and forth between being with me and Kellan. It seems awfully easy for you to adjust to your comfortable new life here at the palace with Kellan.”

  “It hasn’t even been a day, so I’ve hardly adjusted!” I snapped, before shoving him back. “And let me tell you something, you don’t know a damn thing about what I’m feeling on the inside. I would hope if you cared about me at all you would try to see what I’m going through.”

  “Don’t play that card with me,” Micah growled.

  “I have to go,” I said, fumbling for the door.

  “Cadence, don’t leave like this.”

  “What else do you want me to say?”

  “You’re in danger even if the Abir is defeated. My mother says they’ve asked her to start designing your wedding dress. Don’t you see what will happen if you stay? The life you knew will end, and you’ll be completely controlled. No matter what line of bullshit Kellan has shot you, he will not change.”

  “I know,” I whispered. Closing my eyes, I sighed and gave into my emotions. “I’m so mad at myself because I’m scared. I’m scared of running away into the unknown. I’m scared of Griff being involved in the Abir and getting killed. I’m scared of what might happen to us if we’re caught.”

  Micah’s hands slipped around my waist, drawing me close to him. His breath warmed my cheek. “Shh, don’t cry.”

  Even as he said that, I began to cry harder. “Didn’t I tell you I would take care of you?” he asked.

  “My parents said the same thing.”

  Micah’s arm tensed around me. “You know I can’t promise that nothing will happen to us.”

  “I know that.”

  “But as long as I have a breath in me, I will protect and provide for you.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t deserve you.”

  Micah laughed. “Sure you do. You deserve the moon and the stars.” He kissed across my cheek until he met my lips. “And I’m sorry for being an ass.”

  “You weren’t. You were giving me a well needed dose of the truth.”

  “I was still a jerk. I can’t imagine what the last three days have been like for you. I mean, my whole world has been turned upside down because of you and the pageant, so I can’t even fathom what it’s been like for you. My emotions get the better of me because I just don’t want to lose you.”

  I shook my head. “You won’t.”

  “So you’ll come away with me?”

  “Yes.”

  “Tonight?”

  “Yes.”

  I felt Micah’s smile against my cheek before he kissed me. His lips were warm and comforting against mine. “Okay, you better go. I’ll send a letter by my mother telling you the plan.”

  I nodded. “I’ll see you tonight then.”

  Slowly, I turned the knob on the door and cracked it. When I saw the hallway was clear, I walked out, but not before I grabbed up a few towels to not look conspicuous.

  Just as the clock struck noon, the light above the teleprompter flashed “Live”, and I plastered on my best smile. Kellan and I stood behind Richard who was seated at his desk. “Citizens of the American Province, I come before you with a situation that at first glance seems grave, but one that with your help and my leadership, we will overcome.”

  While we appeared the perfect couple, I still wasn’t speaking to Kellan. I’d ignored him while personal assistants fluttered around us, fixing our hair and makeup. I wished that Laurel had been there—she would have put me at ease. Although I’d been on television before with the pageant, it was still intimidating being in Richard’s office and thinking of the entire province watching.

  Richard continued rattling on, informing the citizens what would be done to take out the Abir and ensure peace and harmony, as well as what would be expected of them. Of course, it was more sacrifice on their part than his. “And finally, I leave you with news, which I hope will give you as much pleasure as it gives me. My beloved son, Kellan, and his bride, Cadence, will be married in a grand, state wedding at the end of this month. By joining their lives together, it will ensure not only their future, but the future of our great Province. I look forward to sharing the experience with you through province-wide holidays and other celebrations.”

  The camera light flashed off, and Richard exhaled noisily. “Glad that’s over,” he said, as he pushed himself up from the desk. He smiled and thumped Kellan on the back. “Good job. I’m sure the people will love the fact that you and Cadence were in the background.”

  “Thanks, Father.”

  I nodded.

  “All right, well, I’ll see you all later,” he said, before being whisked off with a flurry of advisors.”

  After he left, Kellan turned to me. “Look, I’m sorry about earlier, okay?”

  “Okay,” I replied.

  Relief appeared on Kellan’s face. “Do you want to do something this afternoon?”

  “Like what?”

  “How about a movie? You know we have a full theater on the grounds.”

  “You do?”

  Kellan nodded

  I hadn’t been to a movie in forever. Not only did I very rarely have time to go, but they were so expensive most people in the province couldn’t go. I wondered how it was possible I’d worked at the palace and not known about it, but then I imagined those were the kinds of extravagances I hadn’t been privileged to before.

  Even though a movie sounded like a lot of fun, I was hesitant. The thoughts of being alone in a darkened room with Kellan made me uncomfortable. But I was also aware that I had a whole afternoon and evening to kill, and if I didn’t have something to do, I would drive myself crazy worrying about everything.

  Kellan must have noticed my hesitation because he held out his hand. “Come on. I’ll show you.”

  Reluctantly, I put my hand in his. The theater was on the other side of the palace near the golf course and Olympic sized pool. “We can go swimming after the movie if you want,” Kellan suggested, motioning towards the pool.

  The image of my bare shoulder in a bathing suit exposing my tattoo to the world flashed before my eyes. I shook my head. “No, that’s okay.”

  When we got to the theater, Kellan once again used a magic keycard to open it up for us. It wasn’t as big as the one in my area of the Province, but it would still seat about a hundred people.

  Kellan led me up into the control booth. A computer with touch screen gadgets stood on a table next to the projector. “Why don’t you pick.”

  “Like that’s easy,” I replied, with a smile. Pointing to the screen, I said, “There are literally a thousand choices.”

  “Okay, how about something funny?” Kellan suggested.

  I punched a few buttons and began scrolling through lists of movies. Most of them were at least five to ten years old since there hadn’t been but a few movies made in the last few years, and those had to pass strict guidelines by the government. In the end, I chose Griff’s favorite Mel Brooks movie, Young Frankenstein.

  After we left the control booth, Kellan motioned for me to choose a seat, and I did. It wasn’t long before the humor swept my mind miles away. Kellan seemed to enjoy it too, and from time to time he’d say, “I love this part.”

  When it finished, he turned to me. “Want to do another one?”

  I grinned. “Yeah, that’d be great.”

  “Okay, but this time I’m getting us some snacks.” He hopped up from his seat. “Do you like popcorn?”

  My eyebrows arched in surprise. “You know how to work the popcorn machine?”

  He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I can actually do a few things on my own, surprisingly.”

  I laughed. “Then I’d love some popcorn—with extra butter.”

  “Go pick out another Mel Brooks movie, and I’ll be right back.”


  Nodding, I headed back into the control booth. This time I went a few decades ahead and picked Robin Hood Men in Tights. I returned to my seat and began watching the opening credits. It seemed surreal and almost like an out of body experience that only a few years ago I had watched the movie at home with my parents and Griff. Now, I sat in a movie theater at the palace. Everything about my world had shifted, and it was about to take another cataclysmic upheaval when I ran away tonight.

  I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, trying to stop the acceleration of my heart or the churning of my stomach. Kellan returned with a huge tub of popcorn and two drinks. Even though I felt slightly nauseous, I popped a few bites of popcorn in my mouth. The buttery goodness melted on my tongue and seemed to calm my nerves.

  When Kellan saw what movie it was, he grinned. “Good choice.”

  Once again, the movie spirited me away from my troubles. Remarkably Kellan acted the perfect gentleman and never once tried to even hold my hand or kiss me.

  He stood up and stretched. “Not a bad afternoon, huh?”

  “Nope, not bad at all,” I replied with a grin.

  “See you can stand my presence for long periods of time.”

  I rolled my eyes and started down the stairs. “Yeah, but this really won’t count since you didn’t have the opportunity to open your mouth much.”

  He laughed behind me. “Touche, Red.”

  I turned. “So, we’ve resorted with the name calling again?”

  “I can’t help myself. I like your hair, and I like calling you Red.”

  Shaking my head, I said, “Yeah, well, don’t ask me what I’d like to be calling you right now.”

  He grinned. “Ah, I’ll just use my imagination.”

  We strolled along through the grounds. The sun felt good as it beat against my back, warming me from head to toe. “So what do we do now?” Kellan asked.

  I grabbed his arm and glanced at his watch. “It’s not long until dinner. I guess I better go freshen up.”

  Kellan’s expression turned playful. “After all that popcorn you put away, I’m surprised you’re even hungry.”

  Smacking his arm, I laughed and said, “Watch it.”