Some Goodbyes Are Easier Than Others

by A. X. Zanier

Alyx leaves the Agency

3. Meeting New People

Assume that Alyx is speaking to Piotr and Vasily in their native tongue, Kanvian, unless otherwise marked.

Darien

Catalina was nice, quiet, peaceful, and dead boring. I was quickly going stir crazy waiting for the
damn yacht to return to port so that we could search it. Hobbes was taking it all in stride,
however. He was joyfully hitting on all the pretty women who wandered by and pretending to fish off
the dock we had staked out.

We had a plan and everything, but we couldn't do a damn thing until the boat showed up. Apparently
we couldn't go out after them for some asinine reason. So far we'd been here four days doing
nothing but working on our tans and not catching any fish.

I was swiftly running out of patience, because of the near-constant bickering between Hobbes and
Jones, and time. I needed a shot within the next day or so or I was going to be getting really
cranky really fast. If the damn boat showed right now, me and the gland would be real useless.

"Hobbes, is there any chance you have some counteragent along?" I kept my voice bland, staring out
over the water through my sunglasses.

He sighed. "Don't tell me you've been playing Houdini in the bar again?"

I shook my head. He still wouldn't let me forget that one. It had been a lot of fun though, even
worth the headache and the royal ass chewing I had gotten from the Keeper the next day. "No. I've
been good. It's just about time for my shot is all."

"How far?" He asked after a moments thought.

"If the boat showed now, I'd have maybe ten minutes," I answered, wondering if he was going to
bitch because I hadn't thought to mention it sooner.

He muttered something under his breath that I didn't catch and then aloud, "No, damn it. The Keep
has decreed -- no kid, no counteragent."

Well, that was brilliant. Alyx gets sent away to who knows where and I lose my back-up Keeper.
Okay, so I was losing a lot more than just that. I hadn't realized how much until recently. "Better
call Claire and have her join us, because not only am I going to need one before, I'm probably going
to need one after."

"Yeah, I know." Hobbes shook his head. He didn't understand it any more than I did. "Why did the
fat bastard have to get rid of her now?" he griped to the sky, but then he pulled out his cell
phone and made the call.

While he was making nice and a few passes at Claire, the radio that sat between us came to life.
"Fawkes, Hobbes, pick up." Jones' voice came through only slightly static-laden.

I picked it up without any enthusiasm. "What now, Jones?" The guy had taken to radioing us just to
piss off Hobbes, and I was getting really tired of it. It's hard to sleep when the radio goes of
every thirty minutes just because Jones and Hobbes have a feud going on.

"We have heard that the boat is due in tomorrow. Meet us at the room at eighteen hundred. We need
to go over the plan again," Jones said in a flat tone of voice. He was treating us like we were
unwelcome family members that had come to stay unexpectedly. Without us, this little
investigation wouldn't happen. And he knew it.

"We'll be there," I said and turned off the radio, not caring if he had anything else to say.

I turned to Hobbes who nodded at me. "She'll be here in few hours with what we need."

"Good, 'cause we have a dinner date with Jones," I said with a smile. Hobbes groaned.

I laughed. Might as well enjoy ourselves while we could. The real work would be here soon enough
and we wouldn't have time.

The meeting with Jones and his guys went about as well as could be expected. He and Hobbes didn't
kill each other; that was the only good point. They argued, they screamed, they threw insults, they
did everything but come to blows . We were saved by Claire's arrival. Well, I was. I escorted her to
the room I was sharing with Hobbes.

"I take it things aren't going well with Agent Jones?" Claire asked me as she prepared the shot.

"They're both still alive. That's about as good as one can expect," I commented as she finished
prepping everything. "Sorry to drag you out here."

"Darien, it is my job." As gently as possible, she injected the contents of the syringe into my
arm. "I don't mind, really."

"Then why bother training Alyx to do this if she was leaving?" I asked her as she completed the
task and moved back across the room.

"She had been helping with my research," Claire said softly. "She offered to act as a back up so
that you guys could travel a bit more safely."

I was a bit stunned. After our last mission I knew something was going on down in the Keep, but I
had no clue as to what. I never would have guessed anything like this. "Helping? How?" I pulled a
leg up onto the bed and wrapped my arms about it.

Claire turned back to me. "Doesn't matter now." She came back over and sat beside me. "You doing
okay?"

I got to my feet. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" I walked towards the door of the room. "I better go
save Jones from Bobby."

"Darien, from what I understand the Official was forced into this. He did not let her go
willingly," Claire said. I paused with my hand on the door.

"And how does that change anything?" I didn't even turn to look at her, just opened the door and
left her standing there, wondering what exactly had gone on between the two of us.

Instead of heading back to Jones' room, I headed out to the docks. I was a bit irritated that Alyx
had been brought up at all, even though I had been the one to do it. I didn't want to think about
it, about her. She was gone. It was over. I leaned against one of the posts. Then why the hell did
it still bother me?



"That the boat?" I asked, pointing at the monster that was slowly making it way to its slip. It was
huge.

"Yeah, that's it." Hobbes was watching the boat through a pair of binoculars.

"Hobbes, there is no way I can search that entire ship. Not in the time I have," I commented. It
was true. If I went in with an IV hooked up to keep the counteragent flowing it would still take me
hours to search the entire yacht.

"Well the girl isn't likely to be down with the engines or in the crew quarters I don't think.
She'd probably be in the staterooms or living areas." Hobbes lowered the glasses. "The kid was damn
brave to do what she did."

I knew he was no longer talking about the kidnapped girl, but about Alyx.

"Where is that infamous partner of yours anyway?" Jones asked from nearby. "Heard she was making
quite an impression with a few agencies."

"Reassigned," Hobbes answered.

"Shame. I was looking forward to finding out exactly how she was impressing them. Was she going all
the way or just giving samples?" Jones said in a bland voice.

Both Hobbes and I went after him.

It was Bobby who got the punch in that dumped Jones on his ass. I was rather surprised. Didn't
think Bobby would bother to defend her, especially now that she was gone.

"What's the matter Bobby-boy, you didn't get any?" Jones said as he lay sprawled on the dock.

Not the best of moves. Even I could tell Bobby was pissed. I placed a hand on his chest to keep him
from doing more damage. Bobby actually gave a damn about his job; I couldn't let him toss it away
over someone who no longer needed to be defended.

"Jones," I said. "I would suggest you shut up before you find yourself swimming."

Jones got to his feet and spat blood out of his mouth. "Hobbes wouldn't dare."

I couldn't help myself. I was pissed off, upset, and generally angry at the world. I took two steps
forward and shoved the bastard off the dock into the water. He came up spluttering and coughing.

"I would," I snapped at him.

"Way to go, Fawkes," Hobbes said, patting me on the back.

I shrugged. "He deserved it." And it would get me into a lot less trouble than killing him.

Jones pulled himself out of the water and snarled, "I'll have your ass fired for this, Fawkes."

"I wish you would Jones," I replied with a smile. When he saw neither Hobbes nor I cared, he
stormed off -- to change clothes, I presumed. Once he was gone, I turned to Hobbes. "Will the Fat
Man care?"

Hobbes shook his head. "Nah. At least not if we rescue the girl." He looked over at the yacht
again. "Let's move. Jones can find us."

We made our way closer to the restricted docking area and watched as the boat was tied up and the
gangplank lowered. A few members of the crew came ashore and headed for a car in the nearby parking
lot. A bit of a crowd had developed just to look at the ship; it was very impressive and obviously
owned by someone who had more money than most third world countries.

Hobbes had been checking out the boat through the binoculars again. "Fawkes, the owner's cabin will
probably be up in the bow. Furthest from the engines. Top two levels will have the majority of the
living areas. Bedrooms towards the front. Dining rooms and lounges further back. Crew quarters will
be on the lower levels and closer to the engines." He paused for several minutes looking over the
boat some more. "There are probably two kitchens. The main one for the owner and the crew kitchen
down below. Plus freezers and storage for both."

There was a lot of ship to cover. "Where would he be keeping her?" I wanted to get in and out as
swiftly as possible with the girl, or at least with the knowledge she was never on board.

"I see two possibilities. Either he'll keep her close to him -- his cabin or one nearby -- or he'll
be hiding her down in the crew area." Hobbes lowered the glasses to look at me. "What do you think?"

Him asking me? I really looked over the ship now. Noted the excessive use of frills. Things that
could be easily damaged, and probably were quite often. The gold trim, the mahogany wood for
decoration. The obvious overindulgence in comfort and beauty. The ship proclaimed, 'I'm rich and I
want you to know it.' I'd love the chance to rob it.

"He'll keep her nearby. He flaunts his wealth and his prizes, and I'm betting he considers her a
prize," I answered turning to look at him. "She might even be with him when we go on board."

Hobbes nodded. "Not a bad assessment."

Jones showed then, so I didn't get time to enjoy the fact that I had impressed Hobbes. A rarity,
though it had been happening more and more often. Jones was dressed in a new suit and was
accompanied by the four agents who'd come with him. He glared at us as he spoke. "We need to move
on this now." He held out his hand and the necessary paperwork was handed to him by one of the
suits. "We found out they're planning to refuel, restock, and then leave."

"All right, Jones. We're ready." The entire group of us made our way to the guarded entrance for
the dock. After a few minutes of discussion, and some badge waving by Hobbes, we were in and
walking to the boat. The Captain, not the owner, of the yacht met us at the top of the gangplank
and made us go through the entire routine of explaining why we were there and very carefully read
over the papers we had. He eventually conceded that we did indeed have the right to search the ship
for illegal catch. We were escorted down to the main kitchen and from there several of the suits
were then taken to the crew kitchen to check there. I had a sudden thought.

"What about the cabins, or lounges?" I asked the gentleman escorting us.

"What about them?" he snapped at me. He was cooperating by doing the minimum possible to help.

"Are there refrigerators in any of them?" Hobbes had turned to look at me as if thinking I was
going to screw this up.

The crewman frowned. "Yes, why?"

Hobbes caught on just then. "Because we have to search..." he quoted from the warrant. "'Any place
where the fish could be stored or preserved.'"

The crewman ground his teeth in frustration. "It will be a few minutes for me to arrange an escort."

"No need," I said. "I think I can find them on my own." Before he could protest, I walked away and
got out of the kitchen. After a moment to orient, I headed for where the cabins should be and began
to search for the girl.

It was only minutes before I heard someone coming after me to baby-sit and keep me out of trouble.
Right. Keep me out of trouble. More likely to cause me trouble of the pain-filled kind. I
quicksilvered and watched him walk past, grumbling under his breath. I also noticed the gun he had
stuffed into the back of his pants. I reminded myself yet again to be careful. Even though I had
the advantage of being invisible, I was still mortal and that bullet would kill me just as dead,
quicksilver or no quicksilver.

As I went from room to room I wished Alyx was here. She probably could have pinpointed the girl's
location, greatly reducing search time. I passed the guy looking for me a couple more times and
noticed his increasing agitation. There was something being hidden down here, that was for sure.

When I did find the girl I wasn't that all that surprised by her location. She was in a small room
off of what had to be the owner's cabin. The owner was not in the room at the time, thankfully. Her
room was all interior, with no windows and only the one door, which was locked. After a quick look
for cameras, I desilvered and went to my knees as I got out the lock picks. In moments I had the
door open.

"Laney?" I called out softly, not wanting to frighten the girl.

She was sitting on the bed, looking at me in surprise and fear.

"Laney Goddard?" I asked again, moving towards her.

She nodded, still looking at me fearfully.

"My name is Darien. I'm here to take you home." Much to my surprise she launched herself at me and
held me in a death grip of a hug. Then she burst into tears. "Easy," I said holding her. "We need to
get you off the boat first. Can you calm down for me?"

After a few shuddering breaths, she stood back a bit and nodded. "I can do it." Her voice sounded
odd, but I let it pass for the moment.

"Good." I took her hand in mine and led her out of her room into the owner's suite. Opening the
door to the hall, I was not thrilled to see several crewmen out there discussing something. Two of
them had guns. They finally made a decision and came towards the room. I pulled Laney close and put
my finger to my lips and she nodded. With a breath to clear my head I let the quicksilver flow over
both of us. We watched as the crewmen came in and discovered her gone. I could feel her shaking in
terror, at both the men in the room and what I was doing to the both of us, but she held it
together and never made a sound.

One of the crewmen made a call and then they left, to search the ship more I figured. As soon as
they were gone, I desilvered us and checked my wrist. I was still okay for now, but should probably
wait to use more and only if necessary. "You okay?"

She nodded then cocked her head to the side as if listening to something. It reminded me eerily of
Alyx. "Engines," she said. "They've started."

I had some trouble understanding her at first, but I figured it out after a moment. "Aw, crap." I
looked about. "Do you know an inconspicuous way to get topside?"

She nodded and took my hand to lead the way. I guessed this was a private route for the owner, or
maybe his personal servants since it had access to several other rooms such as the kitchen and
linen storage areas. By the time we made it to the door that led to the deck we were well away from
the dock. I turned to her. "Can you swim?"

She nodded.

"Good. I'm going to do that weird thing again to keep them from seeing us." I looked at her, and
although she looked scared she nodded again. "When I open the door, run for the rail and jump for
it, okay?"

She thought about it and then shrugged. "If it gets me home, anything."

I chuckled. I had only a vague idea of what she had gone through, but I was impressed by how brave
she was being. I reached out and lay a hand on her shoulder and called on the quicksilver yet
again. This was going to max me for the day. I gave her shoulder a squeeze and then shoved open the
door. Several crewmen spun about and came towards the door, but thankfully we couldn't be seen.
Laney took off at a run and jumped over the rail, after taking only the time to look over and make
sure it was clear below. I was right behind her. On the way down the quicksilver flaked away and we
fell amongst the shimmering silver into the water below.

The crewmen must have heard the splash because when I surfaced they were leaning over the side
shouting and aiming their guns at us. I swam over to where Laney had come spluttering to the
surface and tried to support her a bit as we swam away from the ship. Then they began to fire at
us. I placed myself between Laney and the shooters and said. "Go under as deep and for as long as
you can."

She took a deep breath and did so, and I followed suit a moment later. I could hear the bullets
impacting the water as I swam down and away from the boat. Neither of us could stay down for long,
but we had gained some distance when we came up. The boat had gained speed and was still pulling
away from us and within moments we were out of reasonable range.

I moved closer to Laney, who was looking a bit tired. "You okay?"

"Okay," she said to me. "Thank you."

I was about to tell her not to thank me when a shout caught my attention. "Fawkes!"

Spinning in the water I saw Hobbes on one of those harbor patrol boats. "Hobbsey. Good of you to
come," I said as they pulled alongside of us. Minutes later we were in the boat, wrapped in
blankets and on our way back to shore.



Several hours later, Hobbes came back into the room grinning like kid at Christmas who just got his
ultimate gift. "We got him, Fawkes. Not only for having the kid, but for smuggling drugs and having
illegal catch."

I nodded. "Good. The bastard deserves everything he gets and more." I was tired and angry at this
point. Claire had been in a few minutes ago to give me my shot and let me know how Laney was doing.

"She's going home, Fawkes. That's the important thing," Hobbes said, trying to make me feel better
about the situation. "Her parents will be here in the morning, and then we head home ourselves."

"I know, but... That guy is sick. No punishment can be enough," I growled at him.

"Agreed, but it's out of our hands now. He'll get what he deserves, and he'll never do this to
anyone else again." Hobbes got up and headed for the door. "You coming for dinner?"

I nodded. "I'll be there in a couple of minutes." I watched him walk out of the room and sighed. I
had asked Claire about Laney and she had told me the girl was doing very well, considering.

You see, it turned out that Laney's speech problem was not natural. At some point the monster had
cut off part of her tongue to teach her a lesson.

I hoped the bastard would indeed get exactly what he deserved.



Alyx

"And do you, Ariana Goranov, take this man, Piotr Vallenchevski, to be your lawfully wedded
husband?" The priest spoke in the variant Russian they spoke here in Kanvia.

"I do," I answered in the same language.

I let the ceremony wash over me. I knew what to say and when, and did so. I watched this young man,
this king, Piotr, through my heavy veil. We had not met before today, and still hadn't, really. He
had a wry smile on his face, and I wondered what he was thinking. Here he was, marrying a complete
stranger -- not even his true betrothed, but a substitute he had agreed to for the sake of his
country. I had yet to decide if he was brave or a fool. Time would tell, I supposed.

I started paying attention again in time to hear the kiss the bride bit. Piotr lifted my veil and
smiled, really smiled, as if pleasantly surprised by what he found. Placing his hands gently on my
bare shoulders, he leaned in and kissed me. It was more than just a chaste kiss, but didn't go
outrageously too far. Just right, I thought. As he pulled back he whispered, "Thank you."

Joining hands, we turned to the congregation and were proclaimed husband and wife, King and Queen.
Just think, me a queen. Mom would be so proud.

Sheesh.

The reception was long and interesting. After being formally introduced to the room, we did the
usual receiving line -- okay so it took two hours, but we did it. It was a weird way to meet the
President of the US, that's for sure. I guess it was a good thing no one had told me who was on the
guest list. Presidents, Premiers, Queens -- you name it, I met it, or its official representatives.
The Royal Guard hovered over us, along with the Secret Service from the US. Agent James and his
goons hovered around the edges of the room.

When we were finally escorted to our seats, I leaned over to my husband -- husband, I had never
planned on having another one of those -- and whispered in his ear. "Am I to just sit and look
pretty or am I allowed to use my brain?" I asked with a slight smile.

He placed a hand on my cheek and gave me a gentle kiss, much to the amusement of the guests, who
cheered. "Since it is obvious that you have brain, I would suggest you use it."

"A man of intelligence," I said, looking him in the eyes. And what pretty eyes they were. "And
perhaps other languages?"

"Perhaps," he answered in German.

"Ah, a cultured man," I replied in the same language. This might turn out to be easier than I
thought.

"You are most definitely not what I expected," he commented as he pulled back from me to once again
face the guests.

"You have no idea," I said quietly.

He chuckled.

"Would you take some advice from your new bride?" I asked, as I raised my glass to my lips.

"If the advice is worthy," he answered. The poor boy was coming across as a bit confused. I think
he was expecting no more than just a face that filled the immediate need. Instead he got me.

I sipped the champagne, enjoying its taste. How often was I going to get to drink
two-thousand-dollar-a-bottle champagne? Placing the glass back on the table I dipped a finger into
the liquid and then ran it around the edge of the glass producing a lovely A minor. "Do not trust
Agent Dylan James."

Stilling my hand with his own, he leaned closer. "And why is that?"

"You'd not believe the number of bugs he had sewn into this gown," I replied. I hadn't been
thrilled to find them myself. I was liking James less and less every day, and my opinion hadn't
been all that high to begin with.

His eyebrows went up.

"Don't worry, they don't work any more. Some people just lack subtlety," I said squeezing his hand
gently.

He lifted my hand to his lips and kissed it, an amused look in his eyes. "My dear, you are most
surprising."

"I am most bored," I replied, smiling back at him. And I had thought my first wedding was bad. This
was so much worse, as well as so much more ostentatious. To be expected, given who I was marrying,
but still... It was just too much.

"Yes, I imagine you are. We need only endure another hour; then we may leave, protocol met." He
leaned in close. "I believe the time will be far more enjoyable than I had thought."

"You are far too kind. By the way, don't drink the champagne. It's poisoned." I planned on doing
my job, but my way. I knew not to trust Agent James; he truly made my skin crawl. But the man I sat
next to now was different. He really was a good man, and I decided then and there to help him any
way I could.

He froze in place, much to my amazement. I had expected him to jerk away. I brought my hand up to
his cheek, caressing it.

"How do you know this?" he asked quietly.

"A very good sense of smell," I replied. He needed to learn to trust me if this was going to work.

"Ah." He pulled back from me and I lowered my hand to the table.

At a subtle hand signal, one of the Royal Guard appeared.

I watched over the crowd before us as the Guardsman efficiently removed the offending glass and
took it to parts unknown. I could feel the anger radiating off of him. I placed my hand over his.
Reverting to his language, I said. "Be calm Milord. 'Tis your wedding day, after all." I leaned in
closer. "You must not let them see you disturbed."

"True. You are, of course, correct," he said quietly.

For the next hour, we chatted quietly, greeted those who came up to us, performed the obligatory
first dance. All the usual crud. Weddings tend to be boring for the wedded, and state weddings are
the worst. We finally left, cheers following us as the Royal Guard escorted us to Piotr's suite in
the palace. Okay, so it was really just a fancy country house, but considering what his country had
just gone through it would do for the seat of power.

There we were in the Royal bedroom, so to speak. I walked up to him and whispered romantically,
"The rooms are bugged, would you like me to deactivate them?"

Although he looked angry, he laughed as if I had said something wonderful. "If you please. On this
night, at least, we should have some peace."

I nodded to him. Feeling irritated, I mentally searched out the various bugs and sent power surges
to each, blowing out their systems. I had kept my eyes open during this process, and when I
refocused Piotr was looking at me strangely. I had forgotten again that my eyes tend to glow when I
do this stuff. Hey, it's not like I watch myself in the mirror when I do this. "Done. We can talk
now."

He began to unbutton his formal surcoat and I moved over to help. "So, who is she?" I asked
quietly. Not that I really needed to know, but it would be good to know who I was going to be
pissing off. I wanted no part of being hunted down by the jealous girlfriend because of a part I
had to play.

He stiffened. "What do you mean?"

I removed the jacket and laid it over the back of a chair. "You are a sweet boy, but I can tell you
are in love with someone. And I know for sure it isn't me."

"I will do my duty," he said, getting huffy.

"Don't treat me like a fool," I commented. "As you said at the reception, I'm not what you
expected. Do you think I'll be angry?"

"I'm not sure what to think." He sat down in the chair.

I reached up and began pulling out hairpins. It took a couple of minutes, but I finally managed to
free myself from the veil. I tossed it on the sofa nearby and then worked on freeing my hair. When
it finally fell free and I was able to run my hands through it, I sighed.

"Well, Ariana, it seems you've gained a few red highlights since we last met." He was smiling,
looking a bit more relaxed.

"Sorry, they tried three times and my natural hair color refused to stay hidden." I walked over to
him. I needed his trust, needed to trust him. "Could you help me with this damn dress?"

He stood up and began to undo the hundreds of buttons that held the dress closed. "Three hours to
get me into this thing. They wanted me to wear a corset, can you believe it?"

He coughed lightly. "No, I can safely say I can't believe that. You certainly have no need of one.
There, you are free."

The dress finally loose, I held it in place and headed for the bathroom, kicking off the shoes as I
went, then stripped and took a quick shower. I towel-dried my hair and threw on a robe. Picking up
the dress, I carried it out and laid it across the back of the sofa. Piotr was again sitting and he
was watching me, a smirk on his face.

"So, how shall we handle this night? The servants will be sure to gossip if there is no sign of...
um..." He trailed off.

"Am I supposed to be a virgin?" I asked, deciding to go with blunt.

He actually blushed bright red. It was sweet in a way.

"Don't worry, I've got it covered." I walked over to the bed and pulled back the covers. Climbing
onto the bed I assumed the position for a moment and then sat up. Reaching under the robe I pulled
out a butterfly knife Bobby had given me and taught me to use. With a practiced motion I had the
blade out and nicked the heel of my hand with it. After letting the blood pool a bit in my hand I
applied an artistic smear to the sheets. I refolded the knife and looked up to find Piotr standing
next to me holding a cloth.

"For your hand," he said, pressing the cloth to the cut. "You are quite resourceful. Did you have
the knife the entire day?"

"Yup." I held the cloth to my hand and climbed off the bed. After remaking it, I climbed back on
top of the comforters and leaned my head back into the huge pile of pillows. "Long day," I said.

He laughed quietly and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Hey, they got me up before dawn to get me dressed, and do you think they fed me? Oh no. Can't risk
ruining the 'fill in the blank,'" I said, poking him in the arm. "And they had kept me up half the
night going over the ceremony, which I had memorized days ago." I rolled my eyes. "Never again. No
more weddings for me."

"And now it is late. Sleep. We have the honeymoon to get to know one another. Even we can't do it
all in one day," he said, lifting one of my hands to kiss it gently.

"If you're sure?" I asked. Had to admit I was tired, and I was pretty sure no one would try
anything tonight.

He nodded. "Sleep. Very soon we will be too busy for such simple idleness."

I wiggled until vaguely comfortable and closed my eyes. Sleep came quickly for once.



Thinking back, my wedding night was probably my last good night's sleep. The month or so after was
absolutely nuts. Although Piotr and I were ostensibly on our honeymoon, we worked our butts off. He
consolidated his power, trying to start a constitutional monarchy. I schmoozed with power-hungry
idiots and guarded Piotr's back. His country was damn lucky to have him, and I was damn proud of
him.

Turned out we worked really well together, much to his true love's dismay. Yes, I figured out who
she was. Her name was Misha, and she was kind of Piotr's executive secretary, though that was a
poor description of her responsibilities. I mean, she quite literally helped him keep his life, and
therefore the entire country, organized. The poor woman tried so hard to be nice to me, but it was
obvious she wanted me gone.

At least I'd been able to be more than just decorative for Piotr. Between the two of us, we pretty
much redesigned his entire government. It wasn't easy. Those who had been in power before were
constantly trying to stop him by one means or another. If it wasn't by trying to stop some decree
or law, or refusing to sign an agreement, it was another assassination attempt. I was constantly
destroying or jamming listening devices, taking away glasses of drink that were tainted, deflecting
bullets away from him. Only about half of the assassins were caught. Every day was a challenge, but
also fun in a weird way.

When we had free moments, we spent them together. Sometimes doing nothing more than reading books
together, sometimes going horseback riding. Sometimes falling asleep on the couch in our private
apartments because we were exhausted. But we got the work done.

I accomplished a few things of my own as well. There were a select few that Piotr knew and trusted,
who knew that I was not Ariana, and I used this to my advantage. I was able to arrange a visit to a
doctor who was both discreet and totally trustworthy. Given everything I had been through I had
hoped that maybe, maybe something good had come out of it, but it wasn't to be. Had to admit I
wasn't all that surprised by the answer I received, but it left me with a dilemma.

The original intent was that I play Ariana for the rest of my life, fulfilling all the duties
necessary as well as the ones my government thought I should fulfill. That included providing an
heir, and I couldn't do that. I cared for Piotr enough to know that something had to be done to
correct the problem, but the choices were very few.

We were leaving for the States in the morning, where Piotr had to finalize the agreements he'd made
with the US. There would be formal receptions, tours, everything. I didn't want to go. Our first
stop was back home in San Diego.

I was in the midst of packing some personal things when I had an epiphany of sorts. "Piotr, what
would happen if your new bride were to die?"

He walked over to me and set his hands on my shoulders. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, what if I were to tragically be killed; would it hinder or help your position here?" I
asked, turning to face him. For all that we had been strangers a little over a month ago, we had
grown quite close.

"Ari, I would never wish..." he began.

"Hush. Think, please. Would it hurt or help?"

He thought, seriously thought about it, looking at me strangely the whole time. "Help, probably.
You'd become a martyr. The country would mourn with me and for me, and I would not lose the power I
gained by marrying you."

I nodded. "Good. Now what if I took an assassin's bullet for you?"

"Ari....!" he sounded shocked.

"You know they're going to try while we're in the US. Why not take advantage of it?" I said in all
seriousness. Yeah, it might be a little crazy, but crazy sometimes worked. As proved daily by Bobby
Hobbes. Yeah, I missed him. All of them.

"I'd have no more opposition. Even their supporters would fall away if they killed you," he said
suddenly, realizing where I was going.

"And after a suitable amount of time you could marry Misha," I said quietly. For all that we had
become together, it still wasn't enough. We were happier, but we both knew our true happiness lay
elsewhere.

"You are far too smart and far too sweet," he said, kissing me lightly on the forehead. "If only..."

"Yeah, if only... But neither of us own our hearts anymore." I rested against him with a sigh. I
truly did like him, even loved him in some small way, but it wasn't enough. For either of us. "I'll
gladly take 'friend.'"

"Agreed." He paused. "I'm not sure what you have in mind, but I would not see you hurt for any
reason."

"Oh, don't worry, I'm shooting for minimal hurt here." I moved away from him, mentally calculating
time zones. Ugh was what I came up with. "I need to use the secure line." I held up my hand. "You
can't know, Piotr. Plausible deniability. The less you know the better."

He nodded. "You're right, of course. I'll call down and have the room ready for you."

I grabbed a notebook and pen and ran out of the room. If the servants were surprised to see their
Queen running barefoot down the halls, they kept it to themselves. It wasn't like it was the first
time after all. All I knew was that, one way or another, I was going home.