‘We will discuss it back at the palace. If you wish to say goodbye to your father, do it now.’
‘Did someone mention me?’
Zaid tensed at the intrusion. Then they both turned.
The eyes of a newly shaven, showered and dressed Jeffrey swung from her to Zaid. Then he executed a graceful bow worthy of an award-winning performance. ‘Your Highness, please allow me to express my gratitude for the kindness you have shown me.’
‘You have your daughter to thank for this,’ Zaid rasped.
Her father straightened and eyed her, the speculative gleam in his eyes intensifying. ‘Do I? I hope the cost wasn’t too dear. I don’t know what I’d do without her.’ His gaze returned to Zaid. ‘She’s the only family I have left, you see.’
Something passed between the two men. Something that made Esme’s hackles rise. But then her father smiled and the sensation shifted. ‘Are you staying for dinner, Esmeralda?’ he asked. ‘Your Highness, I would be honoured to have your company too, of course.’
‘She’s not staying,’ Zaid answered for her. ‘Neither am I. Remember, Mr Scott, that the only thing that has changed is the location of your incarceration. And this is only temporary. I’m sure you’ll also have noticed that there isn’t another dwelling for miles and no means of escape. There’s a security drone watching the house at all times. Attempt anything foolish and steps will be taken to stop you. As for future dinners with your daughter, that won’t be happening any time soon. After today, she will be permitted to visit you as per the usual regulations—once a week, in the middle of the day.’
Her father gave a curt nod. ‘Understood, Your Highness.’
Zaid turned to her. ‘We’re leaving.’ The command gave no room for refusal.
Even though a part of her was relieved not to have been forced into a lingering goodbye with her father, Esme was still bristling by the time she settled into the now-familiar seat of the helicopter and they took off.
* * *
He shifted in his seat and she jumped when his robe brushed her leg.
‘Do you have something to say to me, Esmeralda, or am I to be given the silent treatment for the whole of the journey?’
She turned her head, then wished she hadn’t when she noted just how close he was. ‘Did you have to talk to him like that?’
‘Like what? A man who doesn’t make his living from exploiting weakness in others? Tell me he wasn’t seeking to take advantage of the situation and I will offer my regrets.’
She couldn’t reply because she couldn’t refute the accusation.
Silence fell between them for another ten minutes until she couldn’t stand it any longer.
‘Whatever he’s done, he’s still my father. Would you turn your back on yours in my shoes?’
‘My father lived an exemplary life of honour and integrity. I would never have needed to make such a sacrifice,’ he stated, overwhelming pride stamped in his voice.
But that wasn’t what caught Esme’s attention. It was his use of the past tense. ‘Lived?’ she asked, the thought occurring to her that although she knew he’d inherited the throne after his uncle’s death from a heart attack, she hadn’t come across any information about his parents in her brief research. Come to think of it, information on Zaid’s own childhood and teenage years had been very sparse. Only his early professional life and later accomplishments had been documented.
She glanced at him at his continued silence and only then noticed the tension that gripped him. Even before he spoke, Esme knew something huge was coming. ‘My father has been dead for a very long time,’ he said.
Her chest tightened in sympathy. ‘And your mother?’
His mouth compressed, dispersing the momentary flash of pain she glimpsed in his face. ‘They perished together.’
Her earlier admonition to herself to stay away from personal subjects replayed in her mind, only to be ignored. ‘How did they die?’
In the semi-darkness of the helicopter, his face settled into ragged, haunted lines. ‘They were assassinated by my uncle as we drove home from my thirteenth birthday celebrations.’
Shock held her rigid for several seconds. ‘Oh, Zaid... My God. I’m... I don’t know what to say!’
‘In such circumstances there rarely are adequate words,’ he replied.
‘I shouldn’t have pried in the first place,’ she returned, horrified at churning up bad memories for him.
He shrugged offhandedly, although the eyes that probed hers were an intense dark bronze. ‘You have me wide open, Esmeralda. Ask your questions and I will answer them.’