The Wedding Night They Never Had by Jackie Ashenden, Millie Adams

CHAPTER TWO

MAXIMUSWOKEREADYto kill. He reached for his gun and found it wasn’t there.

“I took it, obviously,” came a now familiar voice.

Annick.

He immediately remembered everything that had transpired. And he had...

He was a fool. One of the most beautiful women in all the world had attempted to seduce him earlier tonight, and he had brushed her off without so much as a second glance. Annick looked at him with her round, pale eyes and had begun to walk toward him after offering her virginity, and he had stood still. He had told himself it was to see simply what she would do next, but the fact of the matter was, he had let his guard down. Which was not something he had done in his life. Not ever.

If he had, he would be dead.

No.He had done it once before. And a woman was dead because of it. But never since.

Until now.

“What the hell did you do?”

“Chloroform,” she said, as if he were very stupid. “An old, but effective method to subdue. And now you are on my private plane.”

“I thought you had no money.”

“Not exactly. We have a limited economy in bad need of overhauling. And if selling a private plane would fix the problems I have, I would. This was obviously left over from the previous regime. The regime that no longer exists. Thank you for that. But like I said, you made this problem. I am pressed on all sides. It is not just Lackland who seeks to take advantage of my weaknesses.”

“This is kidnapping,” he said.

She spread her hands. “So it is. But I find I had no choice.”

“I hate to tell you this, Princess, but you can’t make me do what you want me to. I don’t answer to anyone.” He leaned back in his chair. “I’m no one’s bitch. Least of all yours.”

“What does this mean? Bitch? I do not wish you to be my ‘bitch.’ I wish you to be my guard and my counselor. Very clever of me. You can be all these things.”

“Why me?”

“You know why. You are sent out by your government to depose men. Bad men. You have never once carried out an operation against the innocent, and that is not a credit to any nation, but to you.”

“No,” he said. “I leave the atrocities to others.”

“But you don’t. You don’t leave atrocities. You handle them. You are Maximus King, this famous consultant and maker of social darlings. And you are The King, the military operative who has performed the most clean and precise removals of barbaric governments in modern history, whispered about and yet never really seen. Part of a branch of the military that may not truly exist. So many cover-ups, and coincidences, yes? And so you, specifically, are perfect for me. You will take a public position as my adviser, and given that I spent many years in a dungeon, it is perfect sense that I take an adviser. Adviser in public, guard in private. You are scary.”

“Not to you, it seems.”

“No, but,” she said, “you are to others. And anyway, don’t take it personally that you don’t scare me. I am not scared by much.”

She should be. She was small. Thin.

Her cheeks were round, but only because she was young. If he hadn’t known about her history, then he wouldn’t be able to guess. He knew about the royal family in Aillette. Their murders had been highly publicized at the time. Killed by a man who had their trust. An adviser to the King. That Princess Annick had been spared had been headline news. He had done even more digging into the royal family before he had gone to handle that bastard of a dictator last year. He knew that Annick was only twenty-two.

She was very pretty. Owed to a fine, aristocratic bone structure, and impossibly pale features. Her nose was small and pointed, her lips pale like the rest of her. Her lashes were nearly white, her eyes the softest of robin’s-egg blue. She looked fragile in every way. Like contact with the sun would make her burst into flame. And she was telling him that she did not fear him.

“I lost my whole family. I lost my way of living. I was a prisoner, knowing that my only hope in all the world was, someday, for someone with more power than I to change things. Now I have power. I have a plane. I have a title. That means something. I will not sit back. Not ever again. And if I must die for my actions, then I will. But I will not wait. Not anymore. I am not a coward. And I am very angry that I have had to act the coward in order to wait until I might be most effective. You, I do not fear. I fear a life spent free where I still behave as if I am in a dungeon. That is what I fear.”

He found the most grudging respect burned inside of him for Annick. Grown men feared him. As well they should. And this little Princess had kidnapped him. Something stirred inside of him, and the reaction gave him pause.

For he was not immune to feeling here.

Though for years now he had been.

Like tonight. Nothing, not a single thing, had stirred inside of him when Arianna had touched him. He couldn’t get a thrill out of the job he did in the public eye. He could not even get an adrenaline rush out of pulling a gun on anyone. But this, this was interesting. This was something new.

What angered him was the fact that she thought she was in control.

“If we are to work together,” he said, “you do not get the control. You cannot force me to do anything.”

“Eh, but I can,” she said. “With chloroform.”

“You cannot possibly lug me around to every event you have planned.”

She nodded her head slightly. “It is impractical, yes.”

“At a certain point you will need my cooperation. And let us dispense with your threats to my family. I don’t believe that you would do anything to put innocent lives in danger.”

She looked regretful. “I would not want to.”

“I don’t think you will. Because that would be the real tragedy, wouldn’t it? That they were able to make you into a monster such as them. Monsters who care only for their own goals.”

“My goals are the welfare of my people.”

“Every villain thinks they’re a hero.”

“Unfair,” she said.

“I didn’t realize we were playing fair.”

“We are not playing at all,” she said.

“I lie to the public to protect the images of shallow, silly people. I work in secret to rid the world of the truly vile,” he said. “So the bottom line is, I’ll do pretty much anything to line my pockets.”

She looked at him, her eyes glittering.

“Not true,” she said. “Or you would kill a bit more indiscriminately.”

“I follow orders, but I make sure that I am fighting for the good of humanity. I’m not loyal to any one country, but to freedom. Human freedom. Human dignity.”

“And that is what I want. Bring that to Aillette. Bring it to my people. And I will give you money.”

A chance to liberate an entire country in this way was an interesting one. And in truth... He was getting tired. He was getting tired of all of it. Of the farce that he ran every day of his life. Of the wars he was waging behind the scenes.

Of seeking out atonement when he knew he could never have it.

When it came to dealing with the military, his tenure with them was much more on his own terms now than it had been in the beginning. And the unit he was part of didn’t exist in an official capacity.

It was up to him what missions he did and did not take. If he wished to make Annick his mission for a time, that was up to him.

After all, if he left Annick in peril, everything he’d done up until now was a lie.

“There was an attempt on my life,” she said softly. “I worry. And coming up is my coronation. I am to become Queen, not just a Princess. What will happen then, I do not know.”

“You’re worried they’ll try again.” Instantly, all of his instincts sharpened.

An attempt on her life, he could not allow. Not because he had—as she’d said—played God and upset the balance without ensuring she had adequate protection. But because if he did, then what would the point of any of it be?

To spend a life avenging one woman, while causing the harm of another.

It was everything he despised. Powerful men playing games with the world and women falling victim to them. Not because they weren’t important, or smart, or strong at their core. But for want of that elusive power granted by society and the physical strength needed to fight off an enemy.

Annick needed muscle.

It could easily be him.

“Yes. The question is who do I trust, eh? I am left with a military, but who is loyal to me, really? I do not think I have the skills to ferret that out.”

She didn’t. Not like he did. She was small and pale and determined as hell, but she was not a military tactician. But he couldn’t help her like she truly needed him to. Not with limited power.

There was a path forward that seemed clear to him, immediately.

“You might have yourself a deal,” he said. “But I will have conditions.”

“Yes,” she said, waving a hand. “You would not be a good mercenary if you didn’t have conditions.”

“I’m not a mercenary,” he said. “Not technically. And anyway, aren’t you mercenary?” he asked.

“Clearly. To an extent. Would you like a drink?” She maneuvered around the cabin of the plane, the white outfit she was wearing flowing around her body, revealing curves that he had not realized were there. She had a generous behind, and her breasts were nicely rounded.

But that didn’t mean he’d take her up on her offer. There were always women.

He did not need this one.

“How do I know you won’t poison it?”

“I have already proven I have a willingness to poison you. It is whether or not you decide to trust me that I can help you with. I’m willing to do what I must to get you back to my country. You are already on the plane. So, why would I bother to do anything extreme now?”

“Whiskey.”

“That is this?” She held up a bottle with amber liquid inside.

“Yes.”

“I have never been allowed to drink,” she said. “It would not do. For I had to maintain a visage of...purity. That’s what it is. Pure, snow-white Princess.” She indicated her outfit. “The symbol of the spirit of Aillette.” She made a tutting sound. “Such lies.”

“Why did they do that?”

“Why? Because the people were restless with the monarchy, but it was not ever popular to kill my family, even in the name of a revolution. It was not that my father was such a great King, but tradition matters. And so demonstrating that I was still there, and keeping me as some kind of symbol, I think it was to give people a good feeling. Limited though my outings were. I am far too talkative.”

“Shocking.”

“And I suppose sometimes it worked. Though now the people are convinced I’m fragile. Even though I outlived the men who took over the country. So, who is fragile?”

“You’re not fragile,” he said. “Clearly.”

That pleased her, he could tell. Though she tried not to smile, she fairly beamed from the inside out.

“I’m not,” she agreed. “I’m quite ruthless.”

“That is apparent.”

“I do what I must. I am what I’ve had to become to survive. You understand.” The creature thought she was a sight more frightening than she was, that was obvious.

Though he did understand her. That was the problem he could understand all too well. What happened when you were left behind.

When a bullet meant for him had instead struck the woman he loved, everything had shifted. He had not been able to save Stella.

He looked at Annick. And he felt a grudging tug in his chest. As if Stella were there asking if all he could do was kill for her.

It’s so easy, isn’t it? To take out bad men and imagine the face of her killer every time. But that’s revenge. This is a chance to actually save someone.

A vulnerable woman.

“I think we can help each other,” he said.

“I knew you would see,” she said, brightening.

“Yes. I see. I don’t want your body,” he said.

She wrinkled her nose. “Well, that is fine in any case.”

She looked vaguely insulted.

“But I will take a share of what I’m investing in here.” In fact, he would welcome the chance to be rid of that farce he conducted in Hollywood. It had never been a game he’d enjoyed, but lately it had grown more and more tiresome. There was a limit to how much amusement he could extract from fooling the world.

The double life he lived was wearing on him. It offended him. To go and play at rehabbing images and then go off and take down another totalitarian regime.

And all he ever did was make the smallest dent in the world. Rolling a stone up a hill forever.

And here she was, offering him a chance at redemption.

Offering him power.

“I’ll help you, Annick.” And he was formulating an idea of just how she could help him. She wouldn’t like it. He didn’t care. “You don’t need my image. You need to create one of your own. I would be willing to help you with that.”

“Just for money?”

He inclined his head. She didn’t need to know about Stella. That was his business. His wound.

His debt.

“I am skeptical.”

“I will transform you into the leader your country needs. I will cow your enemies. Better yet, you will.”

He straightened as she handed him the whiskey. He swirled the liquid in the glass, doing his part to channel the Maximus King that everyone knew. It was easier. A more comfortable skin for him to act in. Annick had come face-to-face with the soldier. Few people knew of him. Even fewer who had met the soldier now lived to speak of it. But everyone knew this version of Maximus King. The Playboy. The one who took no one and nothing overly seriously. And why would he not take this job? It was a lark, after all.

“And if it is not fixed then? Then what? You leave—” she waved her hand “—and I am back where I was. No. I need more. I need you to stand in. I need you to keep my enemies at bay.”

“Trust me, I will make Aillette into a fortress of wealth and perceived power. I will ensure you are safe, Annick. You have my word on that.”

“I lived for too long, I survived for too long, to lose it all now. You cannot let it happen.”

She faltered, truly faltered, and he could see now that everything Annick had done up until this point had been driven by terror. By fear. And if he were a different man, he might’ve felt some guilt. Might have felt some pity. Instead, he felt anger. Anger was about the only emotion he knew. It was about the only thing he could manage. Otherwise... Otherwise his chest felt hollow. Dead. It was the rage that kept him going.

His grief had burned out years ago. Like the blood that had drained from Stella as he held her in his arms. As she had died. That grief was gone.

Replaced by the poison of hatred. It fueled him. It spurred him on. It had made him lethal. It had made him useful.

The sad thing was, he knew how to play the role of Maximus King so well, because it was who he had spent the first twenty-two years of his life as. A debauched playboy. A debauched playboy who had loved precisely one person in his life more than he loved himself. And she had died in his arms.

He had been Annick’s age then. And it had changed him forever.

And here Annick was, never having been silly or young. She had been a prisoner. And now she was being asked to lead a country.

“I won’t. I’ll protect you.”

And he didn’t need ask anymore why it was his responsibility. It clearly was. Nothing to be done about it.

He wasn’t a good man. And he was nobody’s superhero.

But when he made a promise, he kept it.

It was why he didn’t make very many.

“Good.” She seemed happy.

“Did you want some whiskey?”

She wrinkled her nose. “No. I think perhaps it is best that I keep my wits about me. That is a bad thing about alcohol. It takes your wits.”

He chuckled. “Not a problem I have.”

“Why?”

“I drink too much. And it has ceased to affect me.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“Don’t you have things you like to forget?”

She nodded, her expression getting very sad. “I have so many things I would like to forget. But I spent a great many years with only my own company, and I have been forced to go over the very bad things in my mind far too many times. Now... There is little point. It is too late. I have relived the past over and over again.”

“I’m sorry.”

Her lips curved upward. “I almost believe you.”

“I am,” he said, taking another drink of the whiskey.

“Do you feel it?” She touched her chest. “Here. Your sorry.”

He wished he could tell her he did. That, in and of itself, was a novelty. “No. But I don’t feel anything there. Except for maybe anger.”

She nodded. “I am well familiar with that. It burns. I have been so angry, for so many years. Sometimes anger is the only thing that keeps you alive. And everything else... It just hurts too badly.”

“Yes, you’re right. Anger is easy. Anger gets things done.”

“Pity is a pointless one. I tried that when I was twelve. Felt an endless amount of self-pity to go along with my grief. But then I remember, I’m the one that’s alive. Not my family. So pity is not something I should feel for myself. Angry is better.”

“Angry is better.” He lifted his glass. “And if you would drink, we could say cheers to that.”

“Say cheers?” She squinted and looked at him.

“A toast,” he clarified.

“It is not toast.”

“No. It’s... Salud.”

“Right,” she said, understanding.

“Where did you learn English?” he asked, intrigued by this woman who was such a strange mix of naivete and cynicism.

“From my governess. When I was a girl. So I had a lot of years when I did not use it. But I made a game in my head. To remember to speak French, and English, and German. So that I don’t forget any.”

“What was your life like?”

“Oh, it was not so bad. Except the loneliness. I had school. They could not risk me being stupid. But they also did not want me to be too educated, so they did not show me news from the world outside. I have spent the last year reading about everything that happened. Everything that happened in the world. It has been a strange and depressing time for me. But also, good.”

“I imagine. That many years of world history all in one go seems a little bit extreme.”

She smiled. “My life is nothing but extreme. That I can say.”

“How long until we arrive in Aillette?”

“Soon. Only maybe a half hour now. I had to give you a lot of chloroform. You’re very large.”

He laughed. “And you are certain you wouldn’t kill me?”

“I truly hope to not kill you, Maximus King. I need you too badly.”

And something reached down deep in his chest just then, something he hadn’t expected. Because he could not remember the last time someone had looked at him quite like that. He had been told a number of times by women that they needed him. They needed him to rehabilitate their image, which was essentially what he was going to do for Annick. That they needed him sexually. Yes, that was one of his favorites. His chest might be dead, but the rest of his body was not, and he did enjoy beautiful women. One of the perks of selecting the persona that he had chosen to carry on with his normal life.

Maximus King, the image consultant in San Diego, could have any woman he wanted. He took nothing seriously. He was charming and good in conversation. And he was even better in bed.

So yes, he was accustomed to women saying they needed him.

But not like this.

There was no greed in her eyes. No avarice.

There was an honesty there, that was what called to him. An honesty that was so different from anything he had been exposed to for an age.

It was simple. And clear.

She said that she needed him, and she meant it.

She also wouldn’t hesitate to use chloroform on him if she needed to.

He didn’t doubt that either. She’d do it again.

“But you were willing to risk it.”

“Well, if I could not bring you back to Aillette, then I would not have had you anyway.”

“Very practical.”

“I told you. I had a lot of time to think. I have had a lot of time.”

“And how did you find out that I was the one who performed the assassination?” That was very important. Because if he had been made by one of his contacts, then it was going to be a problem. There were very few people who knew his identity. As Annick had already said, those people had a vested interest in the outside world not knowing that they knew who he was. Or why they knew him.

“I’ll never tell anyone about you,” she said. “I swear it. And it is not important how I know.”

“It is,” he said. “I need to make sure there aren’t enemies out there we both need to know about.”

“No! It’s only me. And I needed you. It was what I had to use against you, so I did.”

“Good. You were desperate, and I will forgive you for that. But if you ever threaten my family again...”

“It is not a thing I want to do. I don’t want to threaten your family. I don’t wish it.”

“Good.”

“Ah,” she said. “We are descending. I look forward to welcoming you to Aillette.”