Chapter 10 - THE KINGDOM INSIDE THE WOMAN
Three days later, Daniel received an invitation.
Not from Helena.
From Prince Adrian.
VARENNE HOUSE.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
PRIVATE DINNER.
Daniel almost refused.
Then Sophie told him he was an idiot.
So he went.
The Varenne diplomatic residence did not look like a palace.
That surprised him.
It was elegant but restrained, a century-old limestone mansion behind iron gates.
Adrian met him without uniform.
“You look disappointed.”
Daniel frowned.
“I expected more gold.”
“My sister hates gold.”
Daniel smiled despite himself.
“I know.”
Adrian studied him.
“That is why you are here.”
Dinner was served in a small library.
No guards stood inside.
No diplomats attended.
Only Adrian and Daniel.
For an hour, Adrian told him about Helena.
Not Queen Helena.
Helena.
At twelve, she had hidden under a banquet table because six hundred guests had come to celebrate her birthday and she wanted to read.
At sixteen, she had broken royal protocol to visit flood victims without photographers.
At twenty-one, she refused to marry a duke selected by advisers.
At twenty-seven, she sat beside her dying father for fourteen straight hours.
“She did not become queen because she wanted the crown,” Adrian said.
“She became queen because our father died.”
Daniel looked down.
“When did that happen?”
“Fourteen months ago.”
Daniel froze.
“Before I met her?”
“Six weeks before.”
Adrian poured coffee.
“She was grieving when she came to America.”
“Why a bookstore?”
“Our mother used to take us to one when we visited New York as children.”
Daniel remembered the tiny shop where he had first seen Nora.
She had been sitting behind the counter with a pencil through her hair, arguing with a customer about Hemingway.
Nothing about her had looked royal.
That memory now seemed more precious, not less.
“Why did you call her Your Majesty if she was supposed to be living privately?”
Adrian smiled.
“Because Evelyn Hawthorne had thrown champagne at my sister.”
Daniel almost laughed.
Almost.
Then Adrian’s expression became serious.
“She loves you.”
Daniel looked away.
“She lied to me.”
“Yes.”
“You don’t seem bothered by that.”
“I argued against the entire experiment.”
Adrian leaned forward.
“But she lied about her title.”
“She did not lie about how she felt.”
Daniel looked at him.
“How do I know?”
“You don’t.”
Adrian’s answer surprised him.
“That is what makes this difficult.”
He handed Daniel a small box.
Inside was a cheap subway card.
Daniel recognized it.
Helena had used it during their first three months together.
“She kept that?”
“She kept everything.”
Adrian stood.
“You must decide whether the woman you knew disappeared when you learned her name.”
Daniel closed the box.
His phone rang.
He almost ignored it.
Then he saw Sophie’s name.
He answered.
Her voice came fast.
“Daniel, you need to get back to New York.”
“What happened?”
“I found Dad in Mom’s office.”
Daniel stood.
“Is he okay?”
“No.”
May you like
Sophie lowered her voice.
“He was burning documents.”
