Royal Desire(16)
He has to do right by his people.
Oh God.
I can only wait in our bed as he dresses and strides purposefully out of the door.
I don’t see a way out here. Either way, people are going to get hurt badly.
From his subtle withdrawal, I think it’s going to be me.
*
The next morning, I wake up alone in our bed. My face is sticky with dried tears. I have been crying all night despite telling myself to be brave.
Alex has not come back. His side of the bed has not been slept in.
Alarmed, I dress and go down to the breakfast patio. I can easily place a cellphone call to him, but I don’t want to appear the anxious fiancée. He’s got enough on his place without having to worry about my insecurities.
Is it so bad being Alex’s mistress? At least I get to see him every week, if not every day. At least I’m allowed to bear his children.
But is it the life I want?
All I do know is that I love Alex more than life itself. But is being second best enough for me down the line?
Jasper and Madame Fournier are at the breakfast table. Their eyes are bloodshot and their shoulders droop with fatigue. Alex is nowhere to be seen.
“Good morning, Ms. Turner.”
“Good morning, Jasper. Is Alex around?”
“He is having an audience with his mother, the Queen, and his sisters.”
Oh. It must be important at such an early hour.
Madame Fournier says, “Are you all right, Elizabeth? You look distressed.”
I sit down. “No, I’m not all right.”
I take a deep breath and tell her everything. Both of them. They listen attentively, and when I have finished, they exchange knowing glances.
“What?” I say. “What are you not telling me?”
Madame Fournier says, “The King will be making a public announcement soon. Last night, a Molotov cocktail was flung at the Ecclesiastical Castle.”
My pulse thuds at my throat. It is exactly as Alex has predicted. Some quarters are itching for an excuse to fight the church.
“Alexander feels responsible. We spent all of last night crafting his public speech. He will address the world at noon.”
At noon!
“He told me nothing of this speech,” I say faintly, “only that he has to calm the masses down.”
“He is doing exactly that.”
“He didn’t wake me. I could’ve . . . helped.” Even as I say that, I realize how lame it sounds. How can I possibly help to craft a King’s speech?
“He specifically asked for you not to be disturbed,” Madame Fournier says pointedly.
Of course. I would only mess up things. Crestfallen, I stare at my empty plate.
I have become a hindrance to Alex. No wonder he is distancing himself from me. I don’t blame him. Perhaps I should not have said ‘yes’ to his proposal. I should have stuck to the plan I made with Tatiana, left for Chicago, and everyone would be much happier. Even Alex, in the long run.
I am so woebegone that Madame Fournier reaches out to touch me lightly on the shoulder.
“Don’t fret so much, Elizabeth, about things out of your control. Just have faith in Alex to do the right thing.”
“Yes, I do.”
Even Jasper looks sympathetic. They do know something they’re not telling me.
How awful can it be?
11
At noon, we crowd around the TV in the parlor to hear Alex’s speech. He is at the station, ready to go on a special news segment that will be broadcasted live to the world.
“Where’s the Queen?” I ask Jasper and Madame Fournier. It seems strange that in times of such crisis, I am left with two of them instead of Alex’s family. Very telling, I know.
“The Queen is in her suite. But Marie is at the station with Alex.”
Oh. So he has decided to ask his sister to tag along instead of me. I don’t blame him. She’s a princess of Moldavia after all and she, like, has a political I.Q of 262. She would be a much better co-presenter for him.
Alex faces the cameras. He’s impossibly handsome, heartbreakingly so. They have combed his hair and made his dark circles disappear. His forehead is smooth and unlined once again.
He begins:
“I come to you, today, people of Moldavia, as a citizen. A few hours ago, I discharged my last duty as King.”
My hand flies to my mouth.
No, Alex, no.
“I will be succeeded by my sister, Marie Vassar, Princess and second born of Moldavia. My first words must be to declare allegiance to her.”
Why, Alex, why?
“The reasons which have compelled me to renounce the throne are for the greater good of the people of Moldavia. I do not wish to be the cause of a separation of the state and church in the hearts of the people. I do not wish to be a King who would revoke a law centuries old just because it inconveniences him today.