Disclaimer: I do not own the royals or any of its content or characters.

Author's Note: This is my first fanfic. I have read a lot and finally decided to give it a try. I am open to CONSTUCTIVE FEEDBACK. I hope you enjoy!

….

All the way back to the palace, they were silent. No one knew what to say at a moment like this. Did they all just have a hand in killing Ted? In one way or another he was a mentor to all of them. James finally broke the silence by telling them they would be arriving in five minutes. When they got to the palace, they would promptly be put on lockdown. He informed them that Liam had made it back safely and was waiting in his room to speak with Jasper. It wasn't the same as last time, they didn't have to stay in the bunker but the royal family and all staff were restricted to the east wing for the next 24 hours. Inside the palace, Jasper quickly escaped to find Liam while James escorted Eleanor to her room.

"Is there anything you need Princess?"

"I'd prefer to spend some time alone for now Mr. Hill. Thank you for everything today." She said.

He could see tears forming in her eyes. "Are you sure there's nothing I can get you?"

"No, thank you James. I'm rather exhausted. I think I'm going to take a nap."

"Alright then. You did good today Princess. I'm proud of you. If you need anything at all, I will be right outside."

Eleanor laid down in bed and quickly drifted off to sleep. A few hours later, she was being shaken awake by her twin brother.

"Len! Len…it's just a nightmare. You're okay. I'm here."

She opened her eyes and blinked back a few tears before she was able to speak.

"Liam! You're alive….I dreamt that Ted killed you in the car. I was at your funeral. Don't you ever leave me. I need you Liam! You're all I have left."

"That's not true Lenny. A lot of people care about you. Mom loves you very much. She's trying to make things right. And you know it's not completely her fault she's been awful all these years. And Jasper-"

"I told him to leave, Liam. I'm sorry. I know you trust him and he's done a lot to help us, but I just can't see him anymore. It's too hard. It hurts too much."

"I know Len. He stopped by to say goodbye. He cares a lot but he doesn't want to hurt you anymore. He's just very glad that he got to be there to help us find justice for Dad."

"So he's gone already then?" she breathed, looking out the window.

"Yea. James called the police to escort him home." Liam told her.

Without a word, Eleanor crossed the room to her closet and changed into her pajamas. When she came back out, Liam walked over and hugged her.

"I know it has been a rough year for you Len, for all of us. And know that I will always be here no matter what. But I think it's important that you find someone outside the family to rely on as well. It'll be good for you."

He reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and held out an envelope.

"What's this?" she whispered.

"From Jasper. Read it Len. I think you'll want to hear what he has to say….eventually it's going to matter to you."

She couldn't bring herself to take the envelope from her brother so he just sat in on her table.

"I'll leave you alone. I love you Lenny." He said before walking out.

She sat on the edge of her bed with her knees pulled up to her chest, staring at the letter. She knew that he had earned the chance to explain himself but she wasn't sure she was ready to hear it. She finally decided it would have to wait until tomorrow. After her nightmare, she decided to take a sleeping pill and she quickly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, she awoke to her mother bringing her breakfast.

"Hello darling! I wanted to check on you after the day we all had yesterday."

She rolled over, rubbing the light out of her eyes.

"I'm fine, Mom. But thanks for the breakfast…that's uncharacteristically motherly of you." She said.

"Well, get yourself cleaned up. We are officially off lockdown in four hours, but you'll be needed in the throne room in an hour for a telecast."

Eleanor glared at her mother while picking at her breakfast.

"Not to worry, dear. I will be doing all the speaking. But it is important that the people see we are all alive and well right now."

An hour later, Eleanor met her mom and Liam in the throne room for the telecast. She sat in a daze as her mother spoke about what their family has been through in the last year and asked for privacy as they continue to grieve.

"…that being said, Price Liam and Princess Eleanor are to have their paternity retested directly following this newscast." Queen Helena said.

Wait? What did she just say? Eleanor thought.

After the camera man called cut, she turned to her brother to ask what was going on. It was evident to him that her mind was somewhere else.

"Cyrus falsified our paternity test results. Our blood was never tested. We're getting retested to see if Dad is really our father." He reiterated to her.

The twins were taken into a separate room to get their blood drawn. They were told that their results would be back in a couple of days.

Like clockwork, two days later, Eleanor and Liam were called back to the throne room for another telecast. They and their mother received the results on live TV.

Why does mother insist on doing this to us? Eleanor thought. This should be a private family moment. Do we really want the whole world to see our reactions to these results?

….

He sat in his small flat glued to the TV. It was the only way Jasper got to see the princess now. As promised, he was packing up to leave. He wasn't sure where he was going to go yet but he would figure it out in time. Jasper had done everything Eleanor asked of him since the night of her birthday party. He wanted to finally be honorable to her so when she asked him to leave, he couldn't fight her on it. He knew she deserved better than anything he could give her, so as hard as it was, he walked away.

"Today we are coming live to you from the palace. We are with Her Majesty the Queen, as well as Prince Liam and Princess Eleanor to bring you the results of their paternity test." The anchor asked them a few questions before he finally got down to business. "It is with absolute certainty that I can tell you His Royal Highness Prince Liam and Her Royal Highness Princess Eleanor are in fact the direct descendants of His Majesty the late King Simon."

Jasper watches as Eleanor and Liam break down in tears hugging each other. What he wouldn't give to be there to celebrate with them. Liam had become like a brother to him, certainly the closest friend he had ever had. And his feelings for Eleanor were clearly not going away any time soon.

….

After many hugs and a lot of crying, Eleanor excused herself to her room to freshen up. All of the crying had done a number on her, so she decided to de-stress with a bubble bath. As she crossed her room to her bathroom, the blue envelope caught her eye. She walked over to her table and picked it up without a second thought. She stared at it as she walked to the bathroom. She drew her bath and lit some candles. She needed a relaxing hour before she met with Liam to celebrate the good news. She slowly lowered herself into the bath and them opened the letter and began to read to herself.

Dear Eleanor,

I know that I have hurt you a lot and I don't blame you at all for asking me to leave. I can only imagine how hard it must be for you to face me every day after what I did to you. I want to honor your wishes by leaving. I just want you to know that I am truly sorry for everything I have put you through.

My plan was simple, get a job at the palace, schmooze the princess, steal the diamond. I came to steal from you guys because I thought you didn't deserve it. I thought you were just some party girl bitch and that Liam was a dumb womanizer. I came to know you both along the way and I can say I have never been more wrong. I never expected like any of you, let alone fall in love.

When I escorted you on your charity tour, I realized what a big heart you really have. It was then that I realized I couldn't follow through with the plan. It may not mean anything now, but I stopped replying to Samantha then. She came to London because I went silent. She was going to make sure the con took place, even if she had to do it herself. I'm so sorry that we both hurt you so much. You never deserved that.

You are the most caring and compassionate person I have ever met and I feel so lucky to have known you. If I never see you again, I will find comfort in the memories I have of you. Just know that if you ever change your mind or need anything at all, I will be there for you. I need you to know that you can count on me. I would give up everything for a second chance to show you that you can trust me. Not many things have ever mattered to me as much as you and Liam. I care deeply about you both and wish you all the best.

Sincerely,

Jasper

After reading the letter, Eleanor called Liam to tell him she wouldn't be able to go out tonight. She told him that she had finally read Jasper's letter and she needed to sort through a few things first. Liam, of course, understood. He saw the way Jasper looked at her and knew how much he cared for his sister. He knew that they were good for each other and if given the chance, Jasper would make Eleanor happier than he'd never seen her.

After hanging up with Liam, she wasted no time texting Jasper. She wasn't ready to let him back into the palace yet, but she knew she couldn't lose him from her life either.

"I got your letter.

I'm sorry it took

so long to respond.

I wasn't ready to

read it until today."

"It's okay. I really

didn't know if I would

hear from you at all.

I certainly don't deserve

the light of day from

you but I couldn't

imagine the thought

of losing you."

"I have come to realize

I don't want to lose you

from my life either."

"If it's ok with you, I

would like to try

being friends for now."

She sent two texts without a response from him. She was starting to get antsy. Finally he text back.

"Friends?"

"Friends….some people

have them. They generally

share common interests

and do things together…"

"Sorry….habit. Is that ok

with you?"

"I can do friends. I would

do anything to have you in

my life Eleanor. Friends is

much easier than the

alternative of not having

you at all."

She smiled to herself. He really did care for her. Even though she already knew based on his letter, it was comforting to know he wasn't willing to lose her yet either. She sat her phone on her bed and headed to the kitchen for a snack. When she returned with pie she saw that she had another text from Jasper.

"You looked beautiful on

TV today."

"Don't do that..."

"What?"

"Be all sweet like that.

It's not fair."

"You said we could be

friends."

"Friends...and you're

walking a thin line."

"I know I have done

nothing to make you

trust me but I am trying.

I really am. What do I

need to do? I will do

anything"

"I know. I know that

you're trying."

"But it's going to take

time. I know nothing

about you. We're strangers. "

"You want to know me?

I'm not sure telling you the

sordid details of my

depressing childhood is

going to help me to win

your friendship."

"But I do want you

to know me so I

guess it's as good

a time as any."

Jasper stared at the text window for a couple minutes waiting for a reply before hitting the dial button. Eleanor picked up after only two rings.

"Are we really doing this right now?" she asked him.

"You're right Eleanor. We are strangers. I want you to know me. I want you to know where I come from." He sighed.

"Okay…."she breathed, "I'm listening."

'What have I gotten myself into?' he thought as he searched for the right words. Eventually he decided to start with birth; it would be easier to work toward the bad stuff. He told her how when he was born, they lived in a big house right on Lake Tahoe. His father was heir to a hotel empire and he and his mother were high school sweethearts. His mom was a nurse and while his parents were often gone and he and his siblings were raised by a nanny, life was good for them. He spent every holiday at his grandparents' house surrounded by his cousins. They were the All-American family, white picket fence and everything. It wasn't until his grandfather died when he was four that their life began to fall apart.

When his father took over the company, his mom decided not to go back to work. She became a stay at home mom to three children; Jasper, his 9 year old brother Alex, and his 2 year old sister Maddie.

"My mom, Leanne, she'd never been home with all of us alone that much before. She had a hard time after Maddie was born, adjusting to taking care of all of us. I remember a few times that she would stay in bed all day. Maddie would be crying in her crib and we'd be complaining about being hungry. She would just yell at Alex to make us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We lived on those things all summer."

As soon as she could, she put Jasper in school. He was always smart for his age so he loved being there. It was an escape from his neglectful mother that he barely knew. One day his aunt came to pick him up from school. She took him and Alex home and they stayed there for about a week before they knew what was going on. Finally, they met with a woman named Amy. She told them that their mommy was very sick and they would be living with their Aunt Hannah and Uncle Todd for a while.

"Finally it hit me, and I asked where Maddie was. They took us to see her in the hospital and she was hooked up to all kinds of machines and tubes...it didn't make sense. That night, I overheard my aunt telling Alex that there had been an accident. My mom had filled up the bath tub. Maddie loved bath time so she was eager to get in. I guess, when my mom left the room to answer the phone, Maddie climbed in. About ten minutes later, my mom walked back in to give Maddie her bath and found her face down in the water not breathing."

He told her how his mom called 911 and then tried to kill herself. When the paramedics arrived for his sister, they found his mother unresponsive in the kitchen. She had tried to overdose on her antidepressants. Because of the lack of oxygen, Maddie had a lot of brain damage. It was unlikely she would ever live a normal life. When his mother left to answer the phone that day, she found out that her husband had been arrested for connection to a ponzi scheme at his company. Hannah and Todd were given sole custody of Jasper and his siblings.

When he was 8, Jasper's father was released from prison for good behavior and he and his siblings began visiting their parents again. It seemed as though they're family was on the mend, and then six months later, his aunt and uncle were killed in a car accident. All three children went back to live with their parents in Vegas, but the damage had already been done. Life was much different then. No big house, no nice cars. They lived in a small two bedroom apartment and barely scraped by. His mom knew it was her fault for the way Maddie was and she compensated for her guilt with copious amounts of alcohol and drugs.

As it turned out, his father was in deep with a lot of bad people. This is when the conning began. His parents used his sister's disabilities as a way of getting money out of people. Jasper and his brother were expected to help bring home money so they would wander the strip conning, pick-pocketing and begging for money from unsuspecting tourists. If they didn't come home with enough, they were beat by their father or sent to bed without dinner. There were times when their parents would go out of town for weeks at a time. Alex was pretty much a parent to Jasper and Maddie.

When Jasper was 13, Maddie died of complications due to her brain damage. With no reason to be home, his parents often left him and Alex to fend for themselves. Alex tried to take care of Jasper, but he wasn't mature enough to handle it. Within five months, he was removed from the home. Alex was 18 by this time so he moved out on his own, but Jasper was placed in foster care. He was in seven different homes by the time he was 18. No one knew how to deal with his anger and resentment. He'd lost and been abandoned by so many people in his life, he believed that he was destined to be a loner forever. Somehow, he managed to graduate high school and went to a community college. He studied criminal justice for a couple years while he worked security at the casinos. That's when he met Samantha.

"And the rest is history...so to speak. I have seen my parents here and there since I was put in foster care but we have no kind of relationship at all anymore. I haven't even spoken to them in the last 4 years."

Eleanor sat in silence, not sure what to say. She had tears in her eyes. Why does life have to be this way? She thought. Why do so many people have to suffer?