Throwing up her hands, Freya sighed. “I’m trying here, but I’m starting to think my brother was right. You are impossible to negotiate with. You’re not willing to meet me even a little bit.”
Again, Victor and Rafael argued. I turned to Belle. “What are they saying?”
“Victor is refusing and saying he would rather drink radioactive water than be forced to live with her. Rafael is telling him to sacrifice himself, but Victor says it’ll be over his dead body.”
While the two men kept arguing, a tiny smug smile flashed over Freya’s face, which told me everything was going according to her plan.
“Enough!”
We all turned to Aubri, who was red in her face and stood with her hands folded into fists near the doorway. “I’m not letting you men stand there and insult my cousin. My brother is keeping Belle and his child and that’s that. If you need a woman to stay, I’ll do it. Victor can keep his apartment to himself, but I have my own demands.”
We were all gaping at Aubri but before I could tell her not to fuck up Freya’s plan, my sister spoke again. “I want to join the Explorers and be on Banni’s team. They’re down two teammates and leaving on an expedition tomorrow.”
“Aubri, no!” I said. “You’re not staying.”
“An Explorer can’t carry a child, she won’t be any use to us,” Victor argued.
“Yes, I will.” Aubri walked forward. “We all know this ridiculous show of power isn’t about Belle’s child. It’s about you exploiting your chance to get revenge on our fathers. I’ll stay for six months and in return you’ll let go of all claims to Belle and her children.”
From the way Rafael’s eyes were glowing, it was clear that Aubri had hit the nail on its head. “A year. Give me a full year and then I’ll let Belle go right now.”
“No. Exploration work is dangerous. Aubri could die,” Victor objected.
Rafael’s smirk made me growl.
“That’s what he’s fucking hoping for,” Thor said and grabbed for Aubri. “You’re done here. We’re leaving.”
“No.” She rolled her shoulder to get free of his touch. “This is my chance to have some fun and go on an adventure. I’m tired of being treated differently because I’m a woman. My whole life I’ve trained to do something spectacular and this is my opportunity to clean the earth and have fun.”
“We’re not letting you go on an expedition with three men,” I protested.
“Why not? You know that if any of them touches me, I’ll kick their ass or throw them out of the drone. Let me prove that I’m not defenseless.”
I stared at my twin. “Dad will kill me if we return without you.”
“Mom went on an adventure capturing criminals. I want an adventure too.”
Indiana’s deep voice came with absolute authority. “If you’re staying, I’m staying.”
“I don’t need a protector. I’m strong.”
Folding his arms, Indiana glared down his nose at her. “I’m not going to stop you from staying, but if you think we’ll let you do it on your own, you’re crazy. I’m named after an Explorer and you’re not going to have all the fun without me.”
Jonah clapped his hands. “Well, it looks like we’ve found a solution after all. Aubri and Indiana will make an important contribution by joining your environmental cleaning crew.”
Victor shook his head as if his genius couldn’t keep up. “This is insane. People die in that job and you want to volunteer.”
“French people die. We Northlanders were born for the job,” Aubri boasted.
Thor growled. “This isn’t funny, Aubri. What do you want us to say to Khan and Magni? You know they’ll be furious and show up here to bring you home.”
Aubri looked thoughtful. “Tell them to come and get me in a year. To appease them, you may give my promise that as soon as I return, I’ll marry an Nman.”
CHAPTER 27
Price of Freedom
Belle
I felt guilty that my freedom had come with such a high price. Mason, Thor, Freya, and I were quiet on the flight home, while Jonah tried to cheer us up.
“Sometimes what seems like the biggest disaster can turn out to be a blessing in disguise. At least Victor was helpful in making sure that Aubri can come home on vacation this summer, and she’ll have the best housing they can find.”
“Stop talking, Jonah,” Thor groaned. “There’s nothing positive about this outcome. It couldn’t have gone any worse.”
“It’s my fault,” Freya muttered. “I should have signaled to Aubri that I had it under control. Victor was already pushing Rafael and if Aubri had given him more time, Victor would have convinced Rafael how ridiculous his claim was to keep one of us.”
Mason sighed. “Aubri was always too impatient for her own good. It was the part about Victor insulting you that got to her. I was close to punching him myself.”
Freya sucked in a deep breath. “She should have known I was baiting him though. I had him in a corner. My plan would have worked. How could she not see that I would have never offered to stay if I wasn’t sure Victor would fight it with everything he had. The only one who could have talked Rafael out of his claim was Victor, and he was doing just that. If only…”
Thor cut her off. “No, it was my fault. I should have never called you when the negotiations went bad. I just never in my wildest imagination thought that Aubri would do something this stupid.”
Jonah tried to cheer us up. “Done is done. I for one am happy for Aubri that she gets to go on an adventure. It’s all she ever talks about, and Indiana is with her. I’m sure that he’ll take good care of her.” Jonah turned quiet when Thor and Mason glared at him.
Once we returned to the Gray Mansion, I fled to my room while Mason, Thor, Freya, and Jonah went to tell the bad news to the family.
Even from the second floor, I heard shouting and screaming, which made me feel even worse. Convinced that none of them could ever look at me without anger for what I had cost them, I kept to my room mostly.
On the second day, Freya came to check up on me and asked if I was taking my vitamins. She didn’t admit to it, but I got the sense that Mason had sent her. While she was with me, she seemed pale and tired, as if she hadn’t slept much either.
I asked about Mason, but she shrugged and said that he and Thor were in a lot of trouble. As predicted, Magni and Khan had exploded when they were told of Rafael’s demands and Aubri’s choice to sacrifice herself. Khan and Magni had been ready to gather their army and invade Old Europe to get Aubri back, but Pearl and Jonah had talked them out of it, for now.
On the third day, Mason came to my room. He had a cut on his cheek that I asked about.
“It’s nothing.”
“Mason, it’s not nothing. What happened? Did your father hit you?”
“My mother threw a glass in frustration when I told them about Aubri. It hit me by accident.”
“Oh.”
“Anyway, I came to move you out of this room.”
“Where am I going?”