Olivier got out of the car and ran around the market district to find her, his heart pounding hard in his chest. He was afraid for her. When she was alone, she could be snatched by just anybody.
Finally, he found her in a boutique with more bags than she could carry. There were Yore store attendants who were helping her carry her bags out.
“Oh, good. You can help.”
Olivier was suddenly holding as many bags as he could carry.
“What are you doing?”
Phuong was signing something.
“What’s that?”
“It’s something that authorizes a charge on the royal accounts.”
Olivier’s eyebrows went straight up. Their father didn’t let them sign things straight out of the royal treasury. They had their own personal spending accounts. With their mating so new, they had neglected to set up proper accounts for their mate.
In fact, she hadn’t even met their father. Granted, their father wasn’t a huge presence in their lives, but it was probably the right thing to do.
“Put them in the levi-car,” Olivier sighed. “It’s right at the end of the street.”
He watched as the Yore with all of Phuong’s bags walked to the end of the street.
He stepped in front of her when she walked in the same direction. Olivier grabbed her hand, no easy task with all the bags he was carrying.
“What is wrong? Why did you go out alone?”
“You two are keeping something from me. You aren’t telling me everything. I realized that everything I owned was chosen by you or your servants. I want to wear clothing that I get to choose.”
“You can wear whatever clothing you want.”
“I don’t need your permission. I’m supposed to be a queen, but you have been keeping me in the castle.”
“To keep you safe.”
“I am a queen, not a coward.”
“We’ll help you, I promise. We know that you have a big destiny, but we want you to be safe. We have to get your blood back before we’ll feel safe.”
“I don’t want to wait. Marc is only a blip. I barely know who I am. But I’m going to gathe
r all the pieces and put them together, no matter what the price. I will protect the throne that my ancestors want me to guard.”
“What are you talking about? Did you have another dream? Phuong, you know that dreams aren’t that reliable.”
“It wasn’t a dream,” she protested. “It was a trance.”
Olivier looked at her. “Why didn’t you tell us about it?”
“I wanted to go through it on my own.”
“We’re here for you. We’re your mates, remember?”
“I know,” she said, but Olivier didn’t think that she really believed it.
50
Offering to Help