Protecting the Princess by Rachelle McCalla

Author:Rachelle McCalla
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Steeple Hill
Published: 2011-11-10T23:00:00+00:00

Kirk asked the bus driver to let them out at an alley a block from the hotel. Fortunately, given their proximity to the bus stop, there were plenty of identical bright red, double-decker tourist buses swarming around. Even if their pursuers had figured out they’d hopped a bus, Kirk hoped they’d at least be confused about which one they might be on.

As they stepped down onto the cobbled path, Kirk glanced around and, seeing nothing, slipped a protective arm around Stasi’s shoulders as they ducked up the alley toward the hotel.

A windowless steel door greeted them, and Stasi gave the handle a tug, smiling up at him as it opened. They stepped into a tiny foyer, where another, equally nondescript door barred their way. The side walls each held a door: one labeled Cucina, and the other Domestica.

The door in front of them was locked.

Stasi didn’t look surprised. “There’s a pass code, changed for every visitor. They give our family the same code every time we visit. If it works, that should tell us they’re up there.” She took a deep breath, but her fingers hovered over the buttons without pressing any of them.

Kirk leaned closer. “Do you remember the code?”

“Yes.” Her voice squeaked, and she looked up at him with rapidly blinking eyes.

Since his arm was already draped protectively around her shoulders, Kirk pulled her closer against him. “It’s all right.”

“I know.” She gulped. “The clock is ticking. I—I guess I’m just afraid. Why would they be here, hiding? Why would they leave me behind if they even suspected I’d survived? Surely they’ve seen on the news that Isabelle returned to Sardis. Why would they let her go alone?”

She trembled as he held her tight to his chest, and he wished he could calm the frantic beating of her heart.

“If you believe it may be dangerous, perhaps we shouldn’t go?”

Stasi gave her head a tiny shake and clung to him. Kirk had never allowed himself to dream she would do such a thing, and guilty as he felt for thinking it, he felt honored that she would trust him enough to look to him for comfort.

But then, who else did she have? If she’d been reunited with her parents already, she’d be hugging them, not him. He had to get her back to them. It was his duty to keep her safe from every threat.

Kirk cleared his throat. “Your Highness?”

If she budged at all, it was only to burrow a little closer against his shoulder.

Unwilling to let their interlude continue, Kirk tried again. “Stasi?”

She looked up, and a minuscule smile bent the corners of her eyes. “So you do know my name.”

“We need to keep moving. Either we try the door, or we need to seek safety far away from the men who are after us.”

“The door.” Stasi gulped a breath and punched a series of buttons, and they stepped through into a more lavishly appointed foyer, with a narrow set of stairs on one side and an elevator waiting with an open door on the other.

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