Author's Note - WOOO! I got my update for today! I'm kinda feeling like this story is almost over with. Maybe one or two more chapters to go. Good news, Ideas are forming for a . . . wait for it . . . Sequel! Thank You to those who read and Thank You to those who review. Reviews make me happy and feel like i'm doing a good job. I love reading the reviews for this story. All of them have made me super happy and make me want to keep writing. Really, thank you everyone who has reviewed. Sadly I don't own anything in the story except for Olivia.
Enjoy!
"Nick! It's good you're here," Gerard said.
"I have some information you should know," Nick replied.
"So do I. Jeff returned. He's brought back some info from Picta that you need to hear," he told his comrade.
Nick sat down in Gerard's office next to Ray. Frank and Bob were sitting on the couch across from them. A man, Jeff, was sitting in a chair; all six of them surrounded a table cluttered with paper and books, journals and folders.
"I found out how Picta got a hold of the bombs. Please, don't be upset with me, I'm only the messenger," told Jeff.
"Why would I be upset with you?" Nick asked.
"The bombs that were dropped were made in Arrakis. Also, Picta didn't steal the bombs, they were sold," the man informed.
"We're also going to believe that you didn't sell them yourself. You have a traitor in your ranks," Gerard said to Nick.
"There is something you need to hear. Olivia was in library and found a book about the history of military generals of Picta. You should read this. Olivia and I believe that this man can't be trusted. Now I think that he is responsible for selling the bombs," Nick told the men, handing the open book to Gerard.
"That is when Alexander Kingston had been sent into exile to Picta from Arrakis. Kingston had been found guilty of treason, leading to the death of Princess Michelle of Arrakis. His wife, Amelia, and only son, Arthur, were allowed to stay in Arrakis. Alexander Kingston had joined the Picta Army, as a general," Gerard read out loud.
"Arthur? You believe it's him?" Frank asked.
"Yes," Nick answered.
"Where's your sister?" Bob asked him, concerned for my well being.
"I had her take one of my guards and go see Mikey. I assume that she'll be perfectly safe with him," he replied.
"Nick, I'll let your guards arrest Arthur Kingston for treason and we'll lock him up. After dinner you and I will interrogate the man. Because this is foreign soil we can only hold him for so long," Gerard told Nick.
"Tomorrow before we leave I'll have a troop of my soldiers escort him back to Arrakis," Nick said to him.
I sat in the empty seat next to Mikey's bed. My guard as well as a guard for Mikey was placed outside the medical ward. The nurses and doctors were instructed to not allow the advisors in, unless they needed to be admitted and then they would only be allowed in one of the front rooms. I held Mikey's hand in mine while he slept; sometime after I left he had fallen asleep. With his hand in mine and a book in my free hand, I curled up in the chair and read while I waited for him to wake up. About halfway through my book I felt the hand in mine pull away, grabbing my attention.
"Good evening lazy bones," I smiled at him.
"Good evening gorgeous," he yawned, receiving a laugh from me.
"How is your leg?" I asked him.
"It hurts, just a little though. Could be because of the medicine," he answered.
"It's the medicine. They said that you could sleep in your own bed tonight if you wanted to," I informed him.
"Not your bed?" he smirked.
"When was the last time you were in your bed?" I asked him.
"A few days ago," Mikey replied.
"And I don't think I have ever been," I winked.
"Oh really?" he asked suggestively.
"Someone needs to keep an eye on you in case your leg starts hurting," I answered him innocently.
"Have I missed anything?" he asked, yawning again.
"Well, not much. Just my brother and I found some evidence that points to Arthur being connected to the Picta Army and his father killed my Aunt Michelle, whom I didn't even know existed," I said nonchalantly.
He stared at me, gaping at what I told him.
"What'll happen to him?" he questioned me.
"I don't know. My brother went to go talk to Frank, Ray, Bob, and Gerard about it. Hopefully Jeff will have returned by now so that we can hopefully connect the dots," I replied.
"What ever happened to Jeff?" Mikey asked me curiously.
"Gerard had sent him to do some undercover work in Picta to find out how they got their bombs," I said in a hushed voice.
"I hope he returns. He's a nice guy," he replied.
"Me too," I agreed.
We sent there in silence. I placed my head on his bed and closed my eyes. We sat there together in a comfortable silence while he played with my hair. A smile played on my lips while words were waiting to form. A nurse surprised us by coming around the corner, resulting with me sitting up.
"If you don't mind, I need to check your wound. I'm going to clean it, re-bandage it and then you're good to go," she smiled.
I got up and was about to leave when she stopped me.
"Excuse me Your Highness, but would you like to see what to do, in case of an emergency?" she asked innocently.
"I'm not a fan of blood and wounds. I'm sorry. If anything he can tell me what to do while I'm freaking out," I laughed and left.
While leaving I could hear him laugh as well. I collected his jacket and received a small bottle of painkillers for him. A few minutes later he came limping out with the nurse trying to help him walk.
"He'll need help walking until he is fully healed. It might be easier if he uses a cane. He will have a limp for a little bit, but it won't be permanent," she instructed.
I walked over and swapped places with her, his arm now around my shoulders for support. We thanked them and started off our journey back to his room, each of our guards in tow.
"So I'm going to assume that tonight is my room?" he asked with a chuckle.
"You might be right," I replied with a light laugh.
"Are you going to come with us tomorrow? You have the final decision. I'll stand by you, whatever your choice is; but I want you safe," he said caringly.
"I'm going. Nick and Gerard had gotten in their little fight over whether or not I was going," I told him.
"Ah, I'm guessing Nick didn't want you to go?" he asked.
"You are correct sir. Gerard wanted me to go, but my brother is scared that I'm going to get hurt again," I replied.
"Well, it would be better if you were safe," he replied as we managed to walk down a small set of stairs.
"Don't even, I'm going!" I sternly told him.
"Then I'll stand by your side in that decision," he stated.
We finally reached his door and managed to open it. After successfully getting him onto the bed without bothering his injury too much I left to talk to our guards.
"So, you'll both be here the whole night then?" I asked them both.
"Sometime during the night we will both receive replacements Your Highness," One of them answered.
"We will only let your personal staff into the room, as well as family," the other added.
"Thank you," I said to them.
I closed the door and walked back towards the bed. Mikey had managed to change into his pajamas and fall asleep in the short amount of time I was away.
"Wow, you sure can sleep," I said out loud.
"Yeah well, when you get shot in the leg and pumped full of drugs you get sleepy," he replied with a yawn.
"I'll be back. I'm going to go take care of a few things. I'll try and find out anymore information that I can about Jeff and I'll let you know when I get back," I smiled as I kissed his cheek.
"Don't wake me up," he drowsily told me.
"Don't worry, I'll wake you up," I laughed as I left the room.
One of the guards had left their new post to follow me through the mansion as I went through my quick set of to-do's. I hurried to the library to collect all of my books and journals and rushed them to my room. One of the servants was in my room starting to pack my clothes and other items for tomorrow.
"I'm sorry miss," she apologized, believing she was in my way.
"No need, I just wanted to make sure that I packed these. Please don't let any of the advisors know about these; something isn't right with one of them," I explained.
"Yes miss," she smiled.
"Oh and I will be in Mikey's room for the night," I informed her with a smile of my own.
She nodded and went back to what she was doing. I rushed out of my room and down to find my brother. After checking his room I found him having a drink with the other leaders of the Black Parade.
"Hey guys," I greeted as I entered the room.
"Drink?" Frank asked.
"No thanks, maybe next time," I smiled.
"Any news on Jeff?" I asked them.
"Yeah, he should up earlier. We found that someone from Arrakis sold Picta the bombs," Gerard said openly.
"Who?" I asked.
"Who do you think," Ray said to me.
"Shit," I replied sitting down, placing my head in my hands.
"Everything is taken care of," My brother told me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"What did you guys do?" I inquired.
"These two motherfuckers locked up Arthur and then fuckin interrogated him," Bob slurred.
"How many drinks have you guys had?" I laughed.
"Who are you, our mom?" Frank joked.
"No, but we march to war tomorrow. And have you ever heard the phrase 'Loose Lips Sink Ships'? I'll let the security know that you'll all need a bit more detail tonight," I told them.
"How's my little brother?" Gerard asked me, joining me on the couch.
"Constantly tired, but it's because of the meds," I answered.
"So that's what you kids are calling it these days, meds?" Ray laughed.
"I am going to laugh at you all tomorrow when you are suffering from your hangovers," I said to them.
"Hey sis, I want you to know that you can come with us tomorrow. Arthur said that they were supposed to receive their new shipment of bombs tomorrow. We've already sent men to intercept them and stop the transaction, so it'll be one hundred percent safe for you," Nick slurred.
"A, your drunk. B, no one is one hundred percent safe in war. You guys be safe, I'll see you tomorrow," I smiled as I started to leave.
"And you and Mikey be safe tonight too!" Frank called after me before I opened the door.
I shook my head and left. After informing the security detail at the door that they'll need some more men to keep the inebriated men safe, I made my way back up to Mikey. When I was finally back in his room my night gown was waiting for my on his bed. The man in the bed was fast asleep, causing me to stop and watch him. Quickly, I changed and crawled into his bed.
"Mikey, hey Mikey," I nudged him.
He didn't move. I had to try different tactics to wake him up if he was going to be stubborn. I moved so that I was inches from him and pressed my lips against his. I could feel his lips react and press into mine. When I tried to pull away I was surprised that his arm had snaked it's way around me and held me to him. After a few moments we pulled away for air and I took the opportunity to tell him what I had found out.
"So, good news," I started before I heard him start to snore.
"Michael James Way! I know you are faking!" I told him as he started to laugh.
"What did you find out?" He asked looking at me in the dark.
"Gerard and Nick had Arthur arrested. He was responsible for Picta getting their hands on those bombs. They won't have any more though," I informed him.
"Good. I feel a lot better about you coming with us tomorrow then," he replied.
"So does my brother. By the way, Nick, Gerard, Frank, Bob and Ray are all pretty much drunk," I laughed.
"I'm missing out on the fun?" he joked.
"Yeah, you're missing out all right," I said as I kissed him.
When we woke in the morning our military uniforms were laid out for us. We quickly dressed, knowing what was in store for us today and the days that followed. The necklace Mikey had given to me yesterday was safely around my neck and under my uniform. With the both of us ready to go down to breakfast I grabbed his painkillers and slipped them into his pocket. The two of us had managed to arrive on time for breakfast, the mansion busy and slightly frantic with last minute details being thrown here and there. We sat the small table surrounded by the leaders of the Arrakis and Black Parade armies. This was the first time my brother had seen me in anything military, and let's just say he was a bit shocked at how natural I looked in it.
"What time are we leaving," frank mumbled as he showed up late.
"In an hour," Gerard informed him.
"How are your hangovers?" I smiled as I asked them.
"Shut-up," Ray grouchily said to me.
The advisors had already left to go back to Arrakis, seeing as how they never step foot in battle. Arthur Kingston was sent back to Arrakis in irons under arrest for treason and attempt at killing Princess Olivia and the leaders of The Black Parade.
Outside all of the soldiers of the Arrakis and Black Parade armies had finished preparing to leave and were starting to load weapons and medical supplies into their convoy trucks. When it was time to leave I found it harder than I had last time.
"You're in good hands," my brother said to me while he held me tightly in an embrace.
"I know. I trust these men with my life," I replied.
"I love you sis," he whispered.
"I love you too," I told him, kidding him on the cheek.
He walked away and entered an armored vehicle filled with a few generals. I joined the leaders of The Black Parade in watching them leave the mansion grounds.
"Why didn't you say goodbye?" Gerard asked me curiously.
"Growing up my brother would read me Peter Pan, my favorite book growing up. And there was a quote from the book: 'never say good-bye because good-bye means going away and going away means forgetting'. We never say good bye to each other, it's kind of like our own way of saying 'good luck, I'll see you soon'," I opened up.
"Here's our ride," Frank announced as a similar armored vehicle pulled around to us.
We travelled in the convoy of vehicles, still conversing about possible changes in strategy incase this happened or this happened. I know I should have been paying attention, but I was drawn to the window to watch the rain fall.
"Olivia, are you all right?" Mikey whispered as the others continued sharing their ideas on a Plan D.
"Yeah, I just want to watch the rain fall," I told him.
He took a hold of my hand and continued to converse with the rest.
