The Missing Monarch (18 page)

“If you want to live to see your son again, you’ll come with
me.”

Still hardly able to talk or breathe, Monica wasn’t sure how to
respond. She wanted
to get away from Octavian, to get back to her husband and
son. And yet, she was certain the tyrant behind her had been pushed to the
breaking point. He wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger.

He tugged her around a corner and froze.

Guards barred the way ahead of them.

Octavian cursed.

Monica sensed the man’s panic level reaching a critical state.
He was surrounded.
For a man who hated losing, who’d never given up the tantrums
of toddlerhood, a critical state of panic wasn’t an option.

The barrel of the gun jabbed deeper under her ribs.

Monica looked back down the hallway and recognized the small
storage room that led to the tunnel under the sea.

If she could convince Octavian to escape through the tunnel,
maybe he would cool
down. She could get away from him later, or Thad could find
her. Maybe. Or maybe she’d just end up giving away a national secret that had
gone undetected for hundreds of years.

As the smoke cleared in the hallway, the guards ahead of them
spun around, spotting them.

“Don’t come any closer, or I’ll shoot her!” Octavian had sweat
dripping in beads down his forehead,
sliding in slimy trails off his upper
lip.

She heard the thunder of boots up ahead. More guards were
coming.

Octavian’s grip tightened on her arm. The hand that held the
gun twitched more crazily the closer the guards came.

“I can get you out of here,” she whispered. “There’s a secret
passage.”

“No. The passage is up ahead.” He motioned past the guards.
“It
leads to the catacombs. I have a helicopter waiting at the other end.”

“There’s another passage behind us. Let me show you. It leads
under the sea.”

Octavian hesitated. More guards arrived at the end of the
hallway. There was no way Octavian would reach the passage he’d planned for his
escape.

He tugged her backward. “Show me the way. But if you try to get
away, I’ll shoot you.”

* * *

Thad scrambled through the smoke and flames toward the
spot where he’d last seen Monica.

She was gone.

The smoke rose slowly and he sank toward the floor, coughing.
The air was clearer lower down, and he could just make out a tangle of arms and
legs ahead of him. The man’s uniform looked familiar.

Struggling to breathe in
the poisoned air, Thad crawled across
the floor to the figures.

“Petrela,” he sputtered against the burn in his lungs.

The man rose slowly, revealing the child he’d held protected
against the floor. “Your son, Your Majesty.” The general lifted Peter to
standing, handing him over freely.

Peter rose shakily to his knees. Already the smoke had begun to
dissipate
through the lofty room, and Thad was breathing easier. He heard the
spurting of fire extinguishers around him as the guards put out the small blazes
that had erupted. Thad was nearly certain Octavian had only meant to create
enough of a diversion to allow himself an opportunity to get away—not enough to
risk any injury to himself.

If he’d meant for them to be killed, they
would have been.

“Daddy?” Peter smiled uncertainly.

“Yes.” Thad crawled closer and scooped the little boy onto his
lap.

Peter looked at him warily. “Where’s Mommy?”

Thad looked around. Most of the people had cleared out of the
room, except for the guards who’d extinguished the flames. He saw no sign of
Monica.

Petrela shook his head. “Octavian took her.
He was planning to
get away through a secret passage. I can show you the way.”

As they rose to their feet, Alec trotted over as quickly as his
orthopedic brace would allow. “All my men have checked in. The exits are secure.
Octavian hasn’t left the building.”

“Show us the passageway,” Thad instructed Petrela. He carried
Peter in his arms, the little boy clinging to
him as he ran after the general
down the hallway. A crowd of guards filled the corridor.

Thad recognized Linus, one of Kirk’s trusted friends. “Did
Octavian come this way?”

The guard nodded apologetically. “He was holding Monica
hostage. I couldn’t allow my men to advance—the man was desperate. He was ready
to pull the trigger.”

“They got no farther down the
hall?” Petrela clarified.

“They retreated back this way.” The guard pointed. “By the time
we came around the corner, they’d disappeared. We can’t find them anywhere.”

“Where could they go from there?” Petrela asked.

Thad looked at the general. He wasn’t sure how much he should
trust a man who’d worked closely with Octavian, but Petrela had kept Peter safe
and handed
him over, even though he’d had ample opportunity to escape with the
heir in the confusion.

Petrela seemed to sense Thad’s wariness. “I’ve been collecting
evidence against Octavian for the last five years. We can put him away on a
hundred different charges, but we have to find him first.” He pointed past the
guards. “The entrance to the secret passage is that way. If he
didn’t get past
these guards, he couldn’t have used it.” Petrela looked at Alec and Kirk, who’d
been checking in with their men.

“No one else has seen any sign of him,” Kirk confirmed. “All
the exits are covered.”

“Then he’s got to be somewhere in the palace,” Alec
concluded.

Thad felt his shoulders droop. The palace had more than a
hundred rooms. Searching
it could take forever. “Keep your men posted at all the
exits and windows,” Thad instructed Alec and Kirk. “Have the rest of your troops
do a thorough search.”

Isabelle and Levi ran up behind them.

“Where’s Monica?” Isabelle asked.

As Kirk and Alec dispersed to instruct their men, Thad hugged
Peter to his chest and explained, “Octavian took her. They’ve got to be
somewhere in the building. We have reason to believe Octavian knows about some
of the secret passages.”

“There are hundreds of places to hide in the palace,” Isabelle
moaned.

“Your father has a map of the passages,” Levi reminded her. “We
can take a look and start searching.”

“It’s not an exhaustive map,” Thad acknowledged, “but it’s an
excellent place to
start. You two get on that.”

As the pair ran off down the hall hand in hand, Peter
whimpered, “Mommy’s missing?”

“Yes.” Thad tried not to let his regret overwhelm him. His son
was in his arms, and he still held the scepter tight in one hand. Octavian
hadn’t won.

Not yet, anyway.

THIRTEEN

“W
e should pray for Mommy,” Peter
whispered.

Thad swallowed past the lump in his throat. “Yes,” he agreed.
“We should.” He wasted no time launching into a murmured prayer, his eyes
pinched shut as he begged God to protect Monica and help them find her.

Peter surprised him by joining in without hesitation. “Help us
find Mommy. And make it so
my daddy never has to go away again. And please, God,
can we all be together?”

As he listened to his son’s earnest plea, Thad felt tears rush
down his cheeks. Monica had been right. Peter didn’t hate him. He just wanted to
be a family.

For a moment, Thad’s thoughts flitted to the conversation he’d
shared with Monica in the tunnel that led under the sea.

And then
he thought about the tunnel, the most secret of all
the secret passages, which only he and his father and Monica knew about. And the
entrance, which was down the hall in the direction the guards had told him
Octavian had taken Monica.

Thad gave Peter and extra squeeze. “Let’s go look for Mommy.”
He trotted back up the hallway in the direction of the throne room and the
small
storage room where the tunnel entrance was hidden.

Richard and Sheila Miller hurried down the hall toward
them.

“Grandpa and Grandma!” Peter squealed excitedly at the sight of
two people he knew and trusted.

Thad handed him over. “Take care of Peter. I need to look for
Monica.”

Richard scooped his grandson into his arms. “If you can bring
my daughter
back, safe and sound...” He met Thad’s eyes, and Thad saw the
promise of forgiveness shimmering there.

“I’ll do my best,” Thad promised.

Thad ran back down the hall and ducked into the small room. A
shuffle of footprints on the dusty floor indicated pairs of feet had passed
through the space recently, but Thad couldn’t be sure whether he and Monica had
created the
prints the night before, or if they were fresh.

He slid back the wooden jamb to reveal the smaller, more secret
room.

“Find anything?” Alec asked behind him.

Thad motioned for his brother to take a look. “This tunnel
leads to Dorsi. It has a side branch that leads to a cave that empties out at
the cliffs north of the marina.”

“Do you think Octavian knew about
this tunnel?” Alec looked
skeptical. “I didn’t even know this was here.”

“Father’s the only other person who knew about it, until Monica
followed me when I went after the scepter.”

“
That’s
how you got back and forth
from Dorsi.” Alec put the pieces together. “If Monica knows about the tunnel,
she may have led Octavian inside.”

Thad pointed through the doorway
to where the wall had been
slid back, revealing the handle to the trapdoor on the floor. “I left that
closed when Monica and I came through. She’s been here. I’m nearly certain she
led Octavian this way and left it open so we would know.”

“I’ll get some men. We’ll go after them.”

“No.” Thad grabbed his brother’s arm to stop him. “It’s highly
unstable. The tunnel passes
under the sea where the peninsula has been washed
away. If we go tromping in there, the sides will most certainly give way. It
partially collapsed on me last night. We can’t risk further structural damage.
Once water breaches the tunnel, it will become a death trap. Monica’s in
there.”

“So what can we do?”

“Dispatch a team to the cliffs north of the marina. That’s
where the spur empties out. I’ll go in after Monica. I have the scepter. Maybe I
can arrange a trade.”

Alec gave him a doubtful look. “Do you at least have a
flashlight?”

Thad realized he didn’t, and shook his head.

“Here.” Alec slipped a penlight off of his keychain. “Get your
wife back.”

“Thank you.”

Thad slipped quietly down the stairs. Thankfully,
the penlight
his brother lent him provided just enough light to illumine a couple of steps
ahead of him, without giving away his approach. He’d need every advantage he
could get over Octavian. The guards had said the tyrant looked ready to shoot.
The last thing Thad wanted was for him to get nervous and pull the trigger.

Running, crawling, creeping sideways, Thad moved
through the
forgotten passage as quickly as he dared. When he reached the intersection where
the passage to the cliffs branched off, he paused, shining his light down the
side tunnel, looking for any clue that would tell him if Monica and Octavian had
gone that way.

But the side passage was void of footprints, and distant echoes
hinted at activity ahead of him along
the main branch. He headed onward as the
tunnel sloped deeper downhill, slowing his pace somewhat. Not only did he not
want to let on to Octavian that he was behind them, but he had to be cautious to
avoid damaging the tunnel any further.

Already the seeping cracks trickled with streams of water that
puddled on the floor. No doubt his excursion the night before had disturbed
things. And Octavian’s frantic flight was clearly causing additional damage.
Thad prayed silently that the corridor would hold up, at least long enough for
him to rescue Monica.

As he darted forward, he began to hear noises coming from up
ahead. At first he wasn’t sure whether he heard trickling water or voices.

Then he realized it was both.

“Maybe we should
turn back,” Monica suggested to her
captor.

“No!” Octavian’s fury nearly rattled the walls. “The palace
will be teeming with my enemies. We have to go forward.”

“But we’re underneath the sea. If these walls give way—”

“Then hurry!”

Octavian’s voice prodded Thad to move faster. He’d rather risk
being heard than arrive too late. Soon he heard splashing up ahead,
and came to
a low-lying section of tunnel where the water poured through a small crack
above, puddling in ever-growing pools on the floor, reaching as high as his
ankles in places.

Far ahead, he could see a bouncing light and the shadows of
Octavian and Monica running through the corridor.

There was no point trying to sneak ahead—not if it meant
splashing through
the puddles. They’d hear him coming. Besides, Thad had no
desire to go any farther into the unstable passageway. All he wanted to do was
grab Monica and run for the surface.

But first he had to face the enemy who had nearly destroyed his
kingdom and his family.

“Octavian!”

The light ahead stopped bouncing.

“I have the scepter!” Thad held it up, shining his brother’s
penlight on it so Octavian could see clearly that he wasn’t bluffing. “You have
my wife. Shall we trade?”

Water splashed as Octavian approached.

Was it Thad’s imagination, or was the water rushing in even
faster now?

His heart slammed inside his chest. The more the sea leaked
inward, the more it would push aside the stones. The deluge would only increase.
He had to get out of the tunnel. It was a death trap! But he couldn’t leave
without Monica. Couldn’t live with himself if he never got a chance to tell her
how much he loved her. And he had to be careful with Octavian. The man had never
been trustworthy, and on top of that, he was now desperate.

“You hand me the scepter—” Octavian spoke slowly as he
approached “—and
I will give you back your wife.”

“Agreed.” Thad held out the scepter. He wished Octavian would
hurry. They needed to escape. But Octavian approached warily, as though fearing
a trap.

Octavian stepped forward cautiously, his gun nearly trembling
as he held it under Monica’s ribs.

“Please.” Thad spoke slowly, smoothly, unwilling for the
reverberations of his voice
to further upset the delicate balance of the
volatile space they occupied. “Take the scepter.”

“But if I give you back your wife—” Octavian licked a line of
sweat from his upper lip “—how do I know you won’t turn around and tackle me?
How do I know you don’t have more men waiting in the darkness behind you?”

“I’m alone.” Thad tried to make his voice soothingly calm.
“This tunnel can’t withstand any more traffic. We need to get out quickly before
the sea rushes in.”

“This tunnel is hundreds of years old,” Octavian said,
shuffling closer through the standing water. “It’s not going anywhere.”

Thad tried not to let his sense of impatience get the best of
him. He moved forward, the scepter extended like an olive branch. If it hadn’t
been for Octavian’s gun, he’d have lunged forward, grabbed Monica and made a run
for it back up the tunnel.

But he couldn’t risk letting the man get a shot off. Not only
was Monica within point-blank range, but firing the weapon would undoubtedly
disturb the already fragile corridor. Even if Octavian’s shot missed both of
them, a single bullet could bury them all
in a watery grave.

“Here,” Thad said, coming within a couple of meters of
Octavian. “Take the scepter.” He held it out toward him.

“I believe I will!” Octavian pushed Monica back behind him and
lunged forward, gun extended, to nab the scepter from Thad’s hands.

Thad realized, a second too late, that Octavian was aiming his
weapon at him.

He kicked at the gun
just as it went off. The bullet ricocheted
off the side wall before slamming into the softer stone of the ceiling. The
light of their flashlight beams danced crazily. Octavian’s light, by far the
stronger of the two, fell to the floor with a splash and went out.

Thad could hardly see. Octavian’s hand’s closed over the
scepter, and Thad tried to pry it from his fingers.

Monica pulled on his arm, tugging him in the direction of the
palace, and safety. “Leave it! We’ve got to run!”

As water poured down from the ceiling, Thad realized she was
right. The gun had cracked a fissure in the unstable rock. Already the force of
the moving water was shoving the stones apart, widening the stream as the sea
sluiced in toward them. They had to
leave the scepter behind if they were going
to have any chance of getting out of the tunnel alive.

Thad scooped his arm around Monica’s waist and ran with her
back up the tunnel, his tiny penlight hardly able to illumine the path before
they ran through its beam, tearing up the passageway as fast as their legs could
carry them.

Behind him, he could hear Octavian’s
cries over the sound of
the rushing water. “The scepter! The scepter!”

“Forget the scepter!” Thad called out as he ran. “Run for your
life!”

“Just run!” Monica panted beside him.

The water rose quickly, nearly up to his knees before they
reached the section of the tunnel that sloped upward. Still, Thad knew they
couldn’t risk slowing down.

“This way!” He
pulled her in the direction of the cliffside
spur. “It reaches high ground more quickly.”

They raced upward, panting. A swell of water caught them just
as they reached the stairs, its soaking embrace overtaking them, lifting their
feet from the floor. For an instant Thad thought they’d be sucked back into the
tunnel. But the influx of gushing water pushed them upward,
buoying them toward
light and air and freedom. Thad kept his mouth closed tight and his arms around
Monica as the rising wave carried them upward.

Then the wave receded, beaching them on the rise of steps. Thad
scrambled to take hold of the wet stones.

“Are you okay?” Monica panted beside him.

He gulped a breath and tugged her higher up the stairs, in case
the
rising waters surged upward again. “I’m okay.”

She sagged against him, and he wrapped his arms around her,
peeling back the wet mat of hair that clung to her forehead.

“There’s light ahead.” She pointed.

Thad nodded and trudged a few more steps forward before his wet
shoes slipped on the steps and he fell forward with her in his arms.

“Monica?” he panted as he searched
for her face in the
darkness.

“Yes?” She blinked at him, and he realized she’d been right
there beside him the whole time.

“I love you.” His lips found hers, intending just to leave a
light peck there before declaring his intentions to marry her all over again and
never leave her side this time.

But somehow, the little kiss became a bigger kiss, and he found
himself instead trying to make up for six lost years, kissing her and
apologizing and declaring his love. She kissed him back fervently and did the
same.

Voices echoed above them.

“Did I hear rushing water?”

“Does this cave lead to the ocean?”

“Let’s keep looking.”

“No, wait, I see them. There they are!”

“Are they okay?”

“I think so.” Kirk’s relieved
laughter echoed through the
cavern. “I think they’re finally okay.”

* * *

Monica held her son on her lap as she waited for the
meal to begin. The afternoon had passed by in a crazy scramble of hugs and tears
and sodden sneakers. After a quick shower she was finally dry and warm.

Thad entered the dining room, looking handsome and clean
shaven. He crossed the room
toward her and wrapped one arm round each of
them.

Peter looked up at his father with admiration.

“How are my two favorite people in the whole world?”

“Great!” Peter declared.

Monica could hardly speak. She met Thad’s eyes, and saw warmth
and affection shining back at her. After so long, the man she’d fallen in love
with was finally back.

He bent his head
toward her ear and murmured quietly, “They’ve
found Octavian’s body.”

“Inside the tunnel?”

“Apparently the tunnel has washed out completely. His body was
found floating in the open sea.”

She found his ear, whispering so Peter wouldn’t be frightened.
“Dead?”

“Yes. He had the scepter inside his jacket.”

Monica startled backward and met her husband’s eyes.

He smiled at her and raised his voice with a newfound note of
triumph. “We got it back. We have everything—the crown, the kingdom...”