He tugged her hair, forcing her head at a painful angle. “Just like that, the little viper puts away her fangs?”
Before she could come up with a plausible lie, the door on Walther’s side opened. He shot her another evil glare before letting her hair fall from his tight grip. He got out of the limousine without another word, obviously expecting her to follow. He stopped next to a pair of hulking men who looked like they shopped for suits at the same store as the Harbor City Giant football team’s defensive line. As soon as she stepped outside of the car, the duo flanked her. Neither even glanced her way.
“This is your security team,” Walther said. “Everywhere you go, they go. Right now you are late for your makeover. A team is waiting for you in your quarters to get rid of that awful hair color, those colored contacts, and your hideous clothing so you once again look like the Her Royal Highness Princess Eloise.” He glanced down at the deadly cuff on her wrist. “Don’t think I’m fooled by your little act back there in the car. Go ahead and run. I dare you.” He gave a curt nod to the guards on either side of her, turned, and strode away.
Elle watched him go, knowing it wouldn’t be the last time she’d see him. With any luck, the next time would be when he was begging for his life.
Chapter Fourteen
The sun had yet to turn the sky above Elskov from dawn’s pink and orange to bright blue when the jet touched down on an overgrown landing strip outside the capital. Dom had his seat belt undone before the plane finished hitting every one of the potholes on the unused tarmac. A single minute longer than absolutely necessary was too long for Elle to be in the Fjende’s hands. He didn’t have time to wait for the damn seat belt sign to flicker off. He needed to get to her now.
Major Bendtsen hung up his cell phone. “Our onsite operatives confirm the landing zone is clear.”
Good news, but it didn’t matter. He’d plow through a thousand Fjende to get to Elle. “The princess?”
“One of our undercovers in the castle has had visual contact,” the major said. “She says the princess is unharmed but being watched by two guards at all times.”
The jet jerked to a stop, and Dom bounded out of this seat, grabbed his duffel, and rushed to the door. Unwilling to wait for the flight attendant, he threw it open. The stairs unfolded automatically, and he was halfway down before he realized not one but two black sedans were parked along the west edge of the asphalt near where the jet had stopped.
The driver got out of the first sedan and opened the back passenger door. The first thing to emerge was the end of a wooden walking stick, emblazoned with the royal crest on its handle. A frail old man stepped out.
Dom sucked in a surprised gasp. Death clung to the king like dew on a fresh blade of grass. Painfully thin with dark circles under his blue eyes and gray-tinted skin, King Magnuz leaned heavily against his cane. Even his most trusted advisers from the days before the coup wouldn’t have recognized him. The driver/bodyguard didn’t offer his arm but positioned himself so he could reach out if His Highness needed help.
Shoving away his shock at the king’s transformation since he’d seen him a year ago, Dom strode down the stairs and executed a low bow. “Your Highness.”
The king motioned for Dom to straighten up. “You’re confident your plan will work?”
“Depends on your daughter’s willingness to play along.” Dom rubbed the back of his neck, unable to shake the feeling that no matter how many backup plans he had, when it came to Elle, surprises were a given. “We’ll need her to stay in place until the Kronig begins. Our agent inside the castle is getting a message to the princess when he delivers her breakfast this morning.”
“She’s a real spitfire—reminds me of her mother.” The king let out a weary chuckle tinged with regret and seemed to age another decade in a minute. “She’ll never forgive me.”
“Why did you want it this way?” The question was out before Dom could stop it. One did not make eye contact with the sovereign, let alone ask invasive question.
“In the beginning, it was because I really did think she was safest on her own with some guardian angels.” King Magnuz shrugged, obviously not caring about the break in royal protocol. “Then later I was afraid that if I did see her again, I wouldn’t be able to walk away. By then I already knew I was dying. There wasn’t a future for us, and it seemed she’d made peace with her new life. Who was I to take that away from her? I’m already her past. She needs to concentrate on Elskov and her future.”
“You think it was the right call?” Elle sure as hell hadn’t thought so, and Dom agreed with her. If it was the last thing he did, he’d find a way to make up for not telling her about her father.
“That is none of your concern.” The king looked up at him, a cool, imperial mask sliding into place over the pain etched into a father’s face. “What is, however, is ensuring my daughter’s safety. Do you think you can manage it this time?”
There wasn’t a doubt in his mind. “Yes, sir.”
“Good.” The king pivoted slowly toward the open car door, reaching out for his driver/bodyguard’s arm to steady himself. “I’ll expect an update. I’ll be flying out as soon as the Kronig coronation is complete.”
Dom started. How could the king go without seeing his daughter—why even bother to show up in the first place? “Why are you here?”
The king got into the backseat but didn’t turn toward Dom. Instead, he looked straight ahead, a stubborn tilt to his chin, reminding Dom of Elle every time she’d gotten pissed off at him during the past week.
Finally the king spoke. “You’re forgetting your place.”
“No, I’m not.” Fury on Elle’s behalf slapped him across the face, and he fisted his hands to stop from grabbing King Magnuz by the lapels and shaking him. “I’m your daughter’s best hope. I’m going to rescue the princess, and once she’s safe I’m going to tell her you’re here. It’ll be her choice to see you one last time or not.” He inhaled a deep breath, surprised at his own loss of cool control, and forced a deliberate calm into his voice that he didn’t feel. “You’re my king, but isn’t it about time you were her father?”
The king paled before an indignant flush hit his face. “Maybe instead of worrying about what I should do, you should get my daughter out of the predicament she’s in only because you couldn’t protect her in the first place.”
The truth punched him in the nuts, but the pain only served to strengthen his resolve. “There’s not a damn thing in the world that can stop me from saving Elle.”
Ignoring protocol that demanded he wait until the king dismissed him, Dom turned and stalked across the asphalt to the other black sedan, where Major Bendtsen waited for him.
“As queen, she can’t think about anything other than what’s best for Elskov.” The king’s weakened, wheezy voice still had enough power to carry across the tarmac. “She’s not for you.”