Rory fought with her consciousness in the backseat of the town car, jostled in Cordray’s arms.
“You killed that guy!” Cordray shouted, his volume uncontrollable in the aftermath.
“I did what I had to. He attacked the Chancellor’s daughter. They can’t be allowed to get away with that. Now they’ll all know that one of their men died trying to attack our family. They won’t be so careless next time.” Benjamin shook his head. “Broad daylight, too. Man, they’re getting desperate.”
“Who are ‘they’?”
“That’s classified.”
“What do they want with Rory?”
“Classified.”
Cordray growled in frustration. “Come on, Story. Open your eyes. Explain all of this to me.”
Benjamin called the mansion with the press of a button, and explained the situation in clipped, coded phrases that didn’t answer any of Cordray’s multiplying questions. “You need to get The Chancellor and his wife out of there. The palace? Sure. That’ll work. We’re too far from there, though. It may be that Rory’s the only target, but best be cautious and get Stefan and Leah out.” Benjamin paused, a shadow falling over his eyes. “I know where to take her that no one will come looking. I’ll confirm once we’re safe.” Benjamin glanced in the rearview mirror at Cordray. “This is your last chance to bail.”
“Bail? With an unconscious woman in my arms? You expect me to walk away from this and just leave her in the back of the car?”
Benjamin’s usual firmness with strangers dissipated slightly. “You really do care about her.”
Cordray glowered at Benjamin. “I’m this close to losing it over here. Tell me what I need to know, so this doesn’t happen again. I’m permanent, okay? I should know how to protect her without having to take off my gloves.”
Benjamin responded by focusing on the road, still refusing to answer any questions. “I’ll tell you this,” he said after a full minute of silence, “Rory is bait. Always has been. Whenever someone wants something from the Chancellor, they go after his daughter, because they know her parents would move heaven and earth for her. The mess you stepped in? This is the tip of the iceberg.”
“How often does this happen?” Cordray’s hold on Rory grew protective as he clutched her to his chest – a limp doll in his arms.
“Whenever there’s dissention in the council. A couple times a year maybe; she’s only been actually abducted eight times. Though it’s usually in the dead of night, and it’s an attack on the mansion. To go after her in broad daylight?” Benjamin shook his head, concern weighting his eyebrows. “It’s bad. I would send you away, but frankly, I could use an extra pair of hands in case they intercept us on the way to the safehouse.”
“Intercept us?” Cordray ducked down, his jaw tight as he tried to shield Rory with the solid mass of his body.
The phone rang throughout the vehicle, and Benjamin shot Cordray a look of warning to shut up when he answered. “Benjamin.”
A woman’s voice fretted over the phone. “Benjamin, put Rory on. Honey? Honey?”
“Leah, she’s alright. She got Pulsed by someone who won’t be a problem anymore. She’s unconscious, but she’ll be fine. Just like the last time.”
Leah burst into a fit of tears. “We’re headed to King Hubert’s palace. When will you be there?”
Benjamin choked the steering wheel, his voice grim. “I’m taking her to Adam’s castle. No one will look for her there.”
“Adam is horrible! I know Rory thinks he’s harmless, but the boy is mentally unstable!”
Benjamin exhaled a small portion of his frustration. “I realize that, but his castle locks down like a fortress. Until we can get to the bottom of who’s behind her attack and why, I want Rory safe. They’ll look for her at King Hubert’s place, so don’t let anyone announce that you’re arriving. Stay away from the staff. In fact, Prince Henry’s got a few chalets you can hole up in while we get to the bottom of this.”
Cordray stiffened when he heard Stefan shouting in the background. “I’ll not be forced into hiding! We all know the Baron is behind this. The palace is exactly where I’ll be heading to hold court with the king and report that, once again, my daughter was attacked! I’ll not hide away in some cozy chalet. Benjamin, get my daughter to safety, and I’ll handle the rest.”
Benjamin rolled his eyes. “Put Pierre on the phone. I’ll not argue with you about this again, Stefan. You’ll follow protocol, and that’s that.”
Cordray tried to piece together the bits of Rory’s world that made little sense to him, and fit better in the context of a spy novel. Whatever frustrations he’d held over her reluctance to take their relationship public, he began to let go.
She was a flaccid noodle in his arms, but when he moved his cheek to her face, he was overwhelmed with relief that she was still breathing, her shallow in-and-outs calming his heartrate. “Hang in there, Story. I won’t leave you.”
Cordray held tight to his promise, and to Rory, as Benjamin drove them away from the city. After a few minutes, Benjamin turned down a dead-end road, ignoring the sign, and driving on the dirt when the pavement ended. Cordray didn’t ask anything about where they were going, but he knew by the overgrown, craggy path the car teetered down, it couldn’t be anywhere good.