“I can and I will, whether Papa drives me or not. And if you call and warn him, I’ll call Xander and tell him where he is.”
“You would turn on your own brother?” she demanded.
“He turned on me.” I didn’t blink as I stared at her.
She sighed and turned away as Papa got his keys. “Let’s go,” he said.
Unfortunately, we were too late. Both Kostya and Magda were gone, her parents unaware that he’d even been there. But she and the family car were gone, so it made sense they’d left town. Probably heading to Vinake, but there was no way to know for sure.
I was quiet on the drive back to the inn and Papa reached out to squeeze my hand. “It’s going to be okay. Whatever we have to do to clear your name, we’ll do it.”
“It’s not that simple. This isn’t just about me. If we can’t clear my name, you realize they’ll put us out of the inn as well? We’ll be homeless and jobless.”
“If necessary, I can get a job on the docks in Voda. Not ideal, but we won’t starve. Your mother is an excellent cook and can find a job at one of the many restaurants there.”
I sighed. “I’m so mad at him,” I whispered. “Like furious. Why would he do this?”
“I don’t know. We didn’t realize life in Vinake was so hard on the younger generation. We were happy to live a simple life, running the family business, raising our children… But I see now that the world has moved beyond that and most of you want to go with it.”
“I’m sorry, Papa.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for. You were making a wonderful new life for yourself and I hate that your brother has potentially taken it from you. But your young man…I don’t understand. Has he not defended you?”
I stared out the window, shaking my head. “Apparently not. His loyalty is to the Royal Protectors, not to me.”
“There’s a great deal of pride to be one of the Protectors and you’ve only known each other a short time. I suppose it’s to be expected.”
I didn’t respond, my heart breaking a little all over again. I’d diverted my pain over losing Axel to the focus on clearing my name, but it was still there, lingering in the background like an annoying headache.
“I’ll call friends in Vinake, have them looking for him. We’ll find him and get to the bottom of this. I promise.”
“Thanks, Papa.”
After two days of searching, I still hadn’t managed to locate Kostya. Everyone in Vinake denied seeing him and though I was almost positive he was there, hiding in the old community center, no one would confirm it. I’d been contemplating taking the bus up there to search for him when I was summoned to the palace. My stomach churned on the ride over, dread filling me. Were they going to arrest me? I had no idea what was going on and it was terrifying. Not just for myself, but my parents as well.
I didn’t know the guard they’d sent to pick me up and I was taken up the king’s private back elevator, which meant they didn’t want me to see anyone, or they didn’t want anyone to see me. Either way, it was depressing and made me want to cry all over again.
We took a staircase I’d never seen before, my heart pounding so hard I was sure the guard could hear it. Were they throwing me in prison? My knees almost gave out as we walked into a dark, dingy dungeon and I clutched the railing.
“Wh-where are we going?” I whispered.
“Prince Sandor wants to see you,” he responded.
I swallowed down the bile rising in my throat. I was going to puke and embarrass myself.
We rounded a corner and I was led into a small room. There was nothing but a table and two chairs and I whipped my head around. Was this an interrogation room? I was definitely going to puke. I sank into the chair and buried my face in my hands. No matter how many times I told myself I hadn’t done anything wrong, I was terrified.
“Solange.” Sandor came in looking intense. His long blond hair was pulled back in a ponytail, he wore the Royal Protector uniform of cargo pants, black T-shirt and black boots, and he had his shoulder holster on, looking seriously armed.
“What’s going on?” I whispered. “What’s happened?”
“A lot.” He sat across from me and gave me a direct look. “You’re either very good or very innocent.”
I wanted to say something sarcastic but my stomach was still on the verge of revolting so I kept my mouth shut.
Sandor drummed his fingers on the table. “In general, I can do an interrogation with my eyes closed. Torture, imprisonment, it’s all the same to me when it comes to protecting my family. But you throw a wrench in the machinery I’ve never had to deal with before. All the evidence against you is circumstantial and, believe me, we’ve tried to find something—anything—concrete that points to your guilt.”
“Perhaps that’s because I’m not guilty,” I whispered.
“We need your brother,” he said after a moment. “Do you know where he is?”
“I think he’s in Vinake. I’ve been looking for him also. I think he’s hiding with his ex-girlfriend in the old community center. Axel knows where that is.”
He nodded. “I’m sorry to do this, but we’re going to need to keep you here until this is sorted out.”
“You’re arresting me?” I almost burst into tears.
“Not officially. We need to keep you in the palace without contact to the outside world. Where you can’t get in touch with your brother or anyone else.”
“I just told you where I think he is,” I protested, swiping at my eyes. “This is…” I closed my eyes, trying to breathe.
“You’re not going to be in a cell,” he said, his voice gentler. “You’ll be in your old room, just without phone or internet access, and a guard outside your door so you can’t go anywhere. I realize it’s not ideal, but it’s not prison. We have to get to the bottom of this. If you’re truly innocent, you must want your name cleared? Yes?”
I nodded since I didn’t trust myself to speak.
“We’re going to send someone to get you some clothes, but you can’t speak to anyone, not even your parents.”
“My mother is going to lose her mind.”
“I’m sorry. We’re getting closer to the truth. If you’re innocent, Solange, you have to trust me.”
“How can I trust you? You all turned on me without even giving me a chance to give my side of the story!” I was getting angry now that I wasn’t being formally arrested. And I was innocent, dammit.
“Xander thinks you’re innocent,” he said gently. “And so does Samaria. If that helps at all.”
I wanted to laugh but it just broke my already damaged heart a little more. “But not Axel.” It wasn’t a question, just a statement of what I already knew.
He didn’t respond and I looked away. “Do what you have to do. Axel knows the place I mentioned since I took him there once. Make sure to go during the day because they’re probably out at night when most people are asleep.”
“Noted. Thank you.” He got up and motioned for me to walk ahead of him.