A Fresh Start
Chapter Five
Three hours later, their plane lands in San Cristobel. As they walk into the terminal one of the royal guards approaches Jeffrey. "Mr. O'Neill."
"Yes." Jeffrey replies
"Right this way Sir." The guard says turning and walking through the terminal, past customs and out a long hallway to the waiting limousine beside the airport terminal. A driver is waiting by the car as Jeffrey, Ava and the guard walks out of the airport.
"Sir, ma'am." He says, bowing as he opens the door for them. "If you'll wait in the car, the guard will locate your luggage and we'll be on our way to the palace.
"Thank you." Jeffrey replies, helping Ava into the car.
A few minutes later the guard returns with their luggage and they are on their way. "You used to live here." Ava asks, as they pull through the gates of the palace.
"Yes, for a while."
"At the palace, you stayed at the palace."
"I stayed on the palace grounds and in the palace when I was impersonating Richard."
"Wow, I can't believe my father lived in a palace and impersonated a Prince."
"Yes, well Cassie wasn't too impressed with the fact that I impersonated Richard."
"I think she was more upset at Richard than you."
"No, there's more to it than that. I did something that she couldn't forgive me for."
"Well, I still say it was amazing to live here." Ava replies, as they drive up the driveway to the palace.
When they stop in front of the palace, Ava stares out the window as the driver walks around the car and opens the door open for her and Jeffrey. Holding Jeffrey's hand after he helps her from the car they follow the guard up to the palace doors as two pages pushes them open.
Inside William's assistants is waiting for them. "Mr. O'Neill if you'll follow me I'll show you to your room. His Highness is in a meeting but he'll be with you shortly."
"Thank you." Jeffrey replies, as he and Ava follow the young woman.
When they reach the upstairs, the young woman leads them down a long hallway till they reach two rooms that are side by side. "Mr. O'Neill your suite is in here, and Miss your suite is through that door.
"Thank you." Ava replies
"If you would like, you can wait for His Highness in the sitting room just down the hall."
"Thank you." Jeffrey replies, as the young woman nods and walks away. "Are you ready to see your room?" Jeffrey asks, nodding towards the door just down from his.
"Of course." Ava replies excitedly, walking past Jeffrey and down the hall to her room with him following behind her.
Opening the door, he watches as Ava walks into the room, smiling as amazement flash across her face as she looks around. "Wow, this place is bigger than my whole Beacon suite." Ava says, as she walks over to the window and looks out over the palace's private garden and the ocean beyond.
"It is quite impressive, your bedroom in through there." Jeffrey says pointing to the door to Ava's right.
Opening the door, Ava walks in as Jeffrey follows her. "Wow, look at that bed. It's huge." Ava says, staring at the massive king size bed in the middle of the room.
"You have a full bathroom through that door and the closet is through that door."
"You really know this place."
"Pretty much, most of the rooms are laid out the same way. We probably have connecting suites but I promise I'll use the hallway…."
"Afraid you'll catch..."
"I don't want to catch you at anything. I've already had that pleasure and it's not something I want to repeat." Jeffrey replies, with a slight shudder
"You don't have to worry, Mike's not…."
"And I don't want to know either. I'm going to wait for William." Ava starts to laugh as Jeffrey walks out of the bedroom with her following him "I have to unpack, so I'll meet…." Ava says
"The staff will unpack for us." Jeffrey replies. "Actually I'm going to meet you down there I need check in at City Hall and with the agency."
"Okay."
About ten minutes after leaving Ava in her room, Jeffrey meets her in the sitting room. She is sitting on one of the couches, flipping through one of the magazines when Jeffrey walks in. "Is everything okay?"
"Yes." He says, sitting down beside her.
"Did you realize there is a full size Jacuzzi tub in the bathroom?"
"Yes, every room has one." Jeffrey replies, as William walks in.
"Jeffrey, it's good to see you again." He says, holding out his hand.
"And you." Jeffrey replies, shaking William's hand. "Did Cassie come with you?"
"No, she wanted to take the boys to the Children's museum." William replies, as he notices Ava sitting on the couch behind them. "And who is this lovely lady?" he asks, as Jeffrey turns to Ava.
"This is my daughter, Ava. Ava this is Prince William of San Cristobel."
"Your Highness." Ava says, standing up beside Jeffrey.
"It's a pleasure to meet you." William says, talking Ava's hand and kissing the back of it softly before taking a step back. "Is this your first visit to San Cristobel?"
"Yes, I was born here, but I was only here for a few days before I was taken to the states by my adoptive parents.
"You were born in San Cristobel."
"Yes."
"I'll have to show you around."
"I know you're busy so you don't have to do that."
"I insist, but first I think Jeffrey had something he needs to tell me."
"Yes, I do."
"I'll just go to my room." Ava says, walking towards the door.
"If you like, I can have one of the staff show you around the palace."
"That would be great, if it's not too much trouble."
"Nonsense, they do it all the time."
"Great."
William walks over to the phone and pushing one of the buttons, he says. "Jodi, could you come to the family sitting room?"
"Yes Sir, I'll be right there."
A few minutes later, Jodi knocks softly on the door to the sitting room. "Come in." William calls.
"You wanted to see me Sir."
"Yes, I need you to show Ms…"
"Peralta."
"Ms. Peralta around the palace."
"Yes Sir, right this way." Jodi says, turning towards the door with Ava following behind her.
"We maybe awhile, so if you'll show her the gardens as well, formal and informal." William asks.
"Yes Sir."
"And if anyone calls, I'm in a meeting."
"Yes Sir."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome, Your Highness." Jodi replies curtseying, as she closes the door to the sitting room and William turns to Jeffrey.
"What's going on? From your tone last night and this morning this sounded pretty serious."
"It is it has to do with Richard."
"Richard! What about him?"
"First, he's alive."
"Richard, alive, he can't possibly be alive, they gave his heart to Rick Bauer."
"They gave a heart to Rick Bauer. It wasn't Richard's heart."
"I don't understand. How can he be alive? Reva turned off his life support."
"She did turn off the life support, but it wasn't Richard's. Let me start from the beginning."
"I think that would be a good." William says sitting down on the couch.
"Richard did have the accident and he was hurt badly. When the agency heard about the accident they sent a couple of agents to Cedars, just to check it out. They were never totally satisfied with how my operation down here ended. They weren't positive that they caught everyone that was involved with the threats made to Richard's life. And they wanted to make sure that this accident wasn't because of those threats. When they arrived the agents realized that Richards injuries, though severe were not totally life threatening, but they were well beyond the scope of Cedar's doctors, so they called D.C."
"Why?"
"A few weeks before Richard's accident two agents spotted a man outside a Chicago restaurant and that man looked exactly like Richard, and at first they thought it was Richard, until they reported in and found out that Richard was in Springfield. They decided to follow him and they stayed with him till about a week before Richard's accident, when he, himself was involved in a car accident. His accident was worse than Richard's and he was pronounced brain dead within a matter of hours. The hospital where he was, kept him on life support until they could harvest his organs."
"How is this guy tied to Richard?"
"When the agency heard about Richard's accident they approached the man's family and offered to pay for the man's burial if they would release him to the agency. They agreed, and after the agency took custody of his body they asked the hospital to perform a DNA test. They compared it to the sample we had of Richard's DNA. They were a perfect match, 100% identical match to each other."
"What does that mean?"
"That Richard had a twin brother, an identical twin brother."
"He had a twin brother that he never knew about."
"Apparently so, we were able to track down Richard's mother just after Richard's funeral and her son's funeral. It was part of the deal she made with Prince George when Richard was born. George would take one son and she would keep the other, but they would never know that the other existed."
"All his life Richard had a twin and he never knew."
"Yes."
"So, when Richard had his accident and the agency thought he could survive they switched Richard with his brother."
"That's correct."
"And that's whose heart was given to Rick, and whose life support Reva turned off."
"Yes. His brother's family helped to save Richard's life.
"Where is he?"
"He's in Washington, in the agencies private hospital."
There were several minutes of silence with William trying to accept the idea that his half brother was still alive and that he had been for the last five years. "There's more." William finally says, looking over at Jeffrey
"Yes, about three weeks to a month after Richard's funeral some agents raided a terrorist group based out of Chicago. One of the men they arrested claimed to have information about Richard's accident. When the agents questioned him he claimed that he was paid to tamper with Richard's car
"So, someone did try to kill him? Was it Edmund?"
"No, that was our first suspect so the agents showed the suspect a picture of Edmund, but he said it wasn't him. He said it was a woman. So the agents showed him pictures of every female acquaintance Richard had and he was able to identify the woman from one of those."
"So who was it?"
"Camille."
"Camille, Will's mother, Why?"
"Apparently she blamed Cassie for all the things that happened down here and for you rejecting her."
"She was just down here. I just sent her back to the States because she threatened to hurt Cassie and Will if I allowed Cassie to come back to the island." William says, leaning back.
"I know." Jeffrey says, as William looks up. "Camille was arrested a few days ago. She's in the agencies custody now. We had to wait until she was in custody because we didn't want to tip her off that Richard was alive, in case she had someone else working for her and have them come after you or Cassie."
"You didn't want to tip her off?"
"Because Richard survived the accident we can only charge her with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder."
"She tried to kill him…."
"And she thought she succeeded."
"It was premeditated murder, she planned this."
"I know, but he survived the accident. We can't make a murder charge stick when the victim is alive. If we charge her with more than attempted murder, she'll walk. And I want to get a conviction."
"Would the agency be willing to turn her over to the San Cristobel?"
"I don't know, why?"
"Because if you turn her over to me, I can charge her with treason and that is punishable by death in this country."
"Richard wasn't the Prince or the President when the accident happened. He wasn't the Head of State."
"No, but he was my Ambassador at large. He was one of my officials, by extension one of the crown. Attempting to murder a government official would constitute treason."
"I can call and talk to them."
"Please do, because if she's charged in the States she'll get at the very least 10-15 years. She'll be lucky to serve half that time. She tried to kill my brother. She deserves to be punished much more severely don't you think."
"Yes. I'll call and see what I can find out."
"Good, you have to tell this to Cassie."
"Yes, and I'm not looking forward to it, after everything else I've had to tell her about Richard and my time down here. I have to tell her he's been alive all this time…."
"She's going… I don't know."
"I know. I wish I could tell her that she wasn't told because Richard asked us not too, but he's in a coma and has been since the accident. The agency decided not to tell her. I had nothing to do with that decision."
"You know she's going to want to see him. She probably won't believe he's alive until she does see him. Will the agency let her?" William asks, standing up and walking over to pour a drink, turning to see if Jeffrey wants one.
"Please." Jeffrey says, as William pours him a drink and then hands it to him before sitting down again. "I don't know. He's not in a regular hospital. He's at the private hospital within the agency and they are extremely serious about security now, especially since 9-11. I'll have to talk to them." Jeffrey replies, after taking a sip of the drink.
"If you need my help, I can be there when you tell her."
"No, I think I need to do this alone."
"I think you'll be able to explain it. I'll help if I need to."
"Thank you."
"I have another meeting I have to get to." William says, downing his drink before he stands up.
"I think I'll go over to the villa and see if Cassie is back from the museum. Will you tell Ava where I went?" Jeffrey asks, putting his drink on the bar as they exit the sitting room.
"Yes, she looks like you, but she reminds me of someone else.'
"Probably Olivia Spencer."
"That's right. What is her connection to this?"
"She's Ava's mother."
"You and Olivia."
"Yes, it's a long story."
"That's why she was born on San Cristobel."
"Yes, Olivia gave her up for immediate adoption after she was born."
"Did you know about her?"
"No, we were both young and drunk. It was a one night stand. And there are other details that I can't get into right now."
"Does it have something to do with Edmund?"
"He's involved but how extensively I don't know." Jeffrey replies, as they walk out of the palace.
"Could you go fetch one of the palace cars for Mr. O'Neill?" William asks one of the guards standing outside the palace.
"Yes Sir." The guard replies, leaving immediately as William turns to Jeffrey.
"There's a possibility that he could be Ava's father, that's why you wanted the DNA sample."
"Yes, just to be sure. Ava doesn't seem to care, but after everything that happened after that one night, I need to know." Jeffrey replies, as one of the drivers arrive with one of the palace's cars.
"Do you want a drive, or would you rather…"
"I'll drive myself." Jeffrey replies, staring at the black Mercedes convertible parked in front of them.
"Alright, do you know how to get to the villa Richard bought for them?"
"Yes, it's about a half a mile up the coast road."
"That's correct I'll be here at the palace if you need me to help."
"Thanks. I'll be back in a couple hours maybe more depending on how she takes it." Jeffrey says, walking around the car and opening the door
"I'll be sure to tell Ava. Good luck." William replies, as Jeffrey slips inside closing the door behind him.
"Thanks." Jeffrey says again, as he starts the car.
"I'll talk to you later." William says as Jeffrey puts the car in gear. Putting his hand up, Jeffrey pulls away and William goes back into the palace.
"RJ, upstairs right now, you're in time out. Will I want you to…. The door bell ringing interrupts Cassie. "Go to the bathroom sweetie, and I'll be there in a few seconds.
"Okay." Will replies, still sniffling from crying after he fell.
Cassie goes to answer the door as Will walks into the bathroom. "Jeffrey, hi, I wasn't expecting you." She says when she opens the door.
"I know, but I need to talk to you."
"William said you were coming down, come on in. I have to take care of Will and then I'll be right with you." Cassie says, walking back into the house, heading towards the bathroom with Jeffrey following her.
"What happened?"
"He had a bit of an accident while we were down at the beach. RJ convinced him to climb up on a pile of rocks and jump off and when he did, he fell on some of the rocks and cuts his knees. He'll be okay." Cassie replies, as they walk into the bathroom.
"Hey Will." Jeffrey says, kneeling down when he walks into the room
"Hi, Jeffrey." Will replies.
"Wow, you remember who I am?"
"Yes sir, you help me come and live with my Daddy." Will replies, as Jeffrey moves back and Cassie takes a warm wash cloth and starts cleaning the cuts.
When she has them cleaned, she takes a bottle of peroxide, holding it up to the cuts along with the wash cloth as Will starts to cry. "No Mommy, that hurts."
"Here Cassie." Jeffrey says, picking up Will and then sitting him on his lap. "It's okay." Jeffrey says. "It'll only sting for a couple seconds and then you'll feel better."
"Okay." Will replies, reaching up to wipe away the tears as Cassie starts to pour the peroxide. After a couple minutes she wipes the cuts off and then puts Neosporin on them and a band-aid before Jeffrey puts him down.
"You can go play, but don't bother your brother he's in time out." Cassie says, as she puts the medicine away
"Yes ma'am." Will calls as he runs from the room.
"Thank you. You didn't have to help."
"You're welcome and I wanted to help." Jeffrey replies, as Cassie throws the wrappers from the band-aids in the trash and then she leaves the bathroom with Jeffrey following her.
"William said you had something you need to tell me."
"Why don't we go in the living room?" Jeffrey suggests, sort of stalling.
"Okay." Jeffrey follows her into the living room, taking a seat on one of the couches as she walks over to the mini-bar. "Do you want something to drink?"
"I'm fine." Jeffrey replies, as she pulls a bottle of water out.
"Okay, so what did you want to talk to me about?" Cassie asks, walking over to the other couch and sitting down.
"I don't know where to start."
"Why don't you start from the beginning?"
"Okay, this has to do with Richard's accident."
"What about it?" Cassie asks, looking a little shocked. Talking about Richard had been the last thing she expected Jeffrey wanted to talk to her about.
"The agency arrested the person responsible for the accident."
"How can anyone be responsible for his accident? It was raining that night and he lost control, that's what Frank told me."
"There was more to it than that, someone tried to kill him."
"What! Who?"
"Camille."
"Camille, as in Camille Johnson, Will's mother."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Apparently she blamed you for everything that happened down here with Will and for William rejecting her."
"But why Richard? He was always gentle and kind to her. I was the one that she hated. Why didn't she come after me?"
"She thought you would suffer more if you lost him, like she thought you had taken William and Will away from her."
"But she wanted to give Will up. As to William, we had nothing to do with that. It was his decision to divorce her."
"I know."
"How did you catch her?"
"She was identified by a suspect after he was arrested in a raid about a month after Richard's accident. She contacted him about tampering with Richard's car and paid him $100,000 to do it. When she returned to the states, agents arrested her in Iowa a few days ago."
"So, she's been arrested."
"Yes."
"What are the charges?"
"Attempted murder…"
"Attempted murder, why not murder? She killed him."
"There's more to it than that."
"What?"
"I don't know how…"
"Wait, you said that someone tried to kill Richard, not that he was killed."
"I know."
"Are you saying…? Did he…? He survived?" Cassie whispers, staring at Jeffrey.
"Yes." he replies softly
"Oh my god!" Sitting back and closing her eyes. There are thousand things running through her mind. "He's alive, oh my god he's alive." That was the only thought that she could hold on to. "What happened?" She asks the question so softly that Jeffrey didn't hear her until she repeated the question. "Jeffrey, what happened?"
"It's hard to explain Cassie."
"Tell where my husband is?"
"He is in Washington DC."
"In Washington DC, how long has he been there?"
"Since before his funeral."
"There is no way Richard is alive. They gave his heart to Rick."
"They gave a heart to Rick. It wasn't Richard's."
"Of course it was Richard's, I saw him lying in his hospital room after Reva turned the life support off. I touched him."
"You saw his twin brother."
"His twin brother, Richard didn't have a twin brother."
"Yes, he did. DNA confirmed it."
"DNA, when was there a DNA test performed on Richard?"
"There wasn't. The agency had a DNA test performed on his twin. They matched identical. Richard had a twin right down to the mole on his upper lip."
"How in the world did you find a twin to Richard? And what does your agency have to do with my husband's… survival?" Cassie asks.
"It was totally by accident that the agency found Richard's twin. Two of our agents were in Chicago a few weeks before Richard's trip and they spotted him then. At first they thought it was Richard but they soon realized that it wasn't. A couple weeks before Richard's accident this man also had a car accident, a much more serious one."
"So, how does that involve Richard?"
"When the agency heard about Richard's accident they sent agents to Springfield to investigate and they realized that Richard's injuries were far beyond the capabilities of Cedars. So they had his brother brought to Cedars and when Reva left Richard's room that day, they switched them."
"So, the man that's buried in Richard's grave, isn't Richard at all, it's his twin and Richard is alive in Washington DC. It can't be Jeffrey. If Richard was alive he would have contacted me. He would have moved heaven and earth to get back to me."
"He's in a coma. He's been in a coma since we moved him from Springfield."
"He's been in a coma for the last five years. You knew about this when you came to Springfield and you didn't tell me. You let me continue believing he was dead. I married his brother. I slept with you and…."
"We couldn't tell you. Once we learned that Richard's accident wasn't an accident at all but was premeditated and planned by Camille. We had to keep up appearances so she wouldn't get suspicious. We didn't want her coming back and trying to finish the job and possibly hurting more than just Richard."
"I trusted you Jeffrey. It's like finding out all over again that I slept with you here."
"Cassie, I didn't want to lie to you.
"But you did lie to me."
"We had no other choice. She tried to kill a member of the San Cristobel Government, the former head of state. We had to be very careful how we handled this situation."
"This situation, he's my husband. He's been lying in a hospital bed alone, probably wondering where I went and why I wasn't there. I don't give a damn about Camille. She can rot in hell for what she's done. But this… from you… I don't know what to say?" Cassie says, jumping up and running from the house.
"Cassie, wait. Cassie." Jeffrey calls, running after her. "Damn." He mutters as he turns to see Will is standing in the door way.
"Where did Mommy go?" He asks, as Jeffrey hears RJ call from upstairs.
"Mom."
"Where's RJ." Jeffrey asks Will.
"He's upstairs, he's in time out for my accident."
"Okay, why don't you go play?"
"Where did Mommy go?"
"She went for a walk, but she'll be back later."
"Okay." Will replies walking back into the playroom as Jeffrey goes upstairs to find RJ.
"Hey buddy." Jeffrey says, as he walks into RJ's room.
"Jeffrey where's Mom?" RJ asks, shifting positions a little bit.
"She had to go out? Is something wrong?"
"Yeah, I need to go to the bathroom, but I can't go until Mom gives me permission to leave my room. I'm in time out."
"Yeah, I heard about the accident on the beach. Go on and used the bathroom but come back here."
"Yes sir." RJ replies, jumping up from the bed and almost running to the bathroom. He returns a few minutes later.
"So, you talked your brother into climbing some rocks and jumping off." Jeffrey says, as RJ walks over to his bed.
"Yeah, I didn't mean for him to get hurt. It was just a game."
"But what if he had fell and hit his head, instead of his knees. What if the rocks had given way? Will could have been seriously hurt?"
"I know, but we were just playing."
"Even so, you have to be careful how you play. You're the older brother; it's your responsibility to look out for Will and to teach him."
"Yes sir."
"Now I don't know when your mom will be back, but I think it's alright if your time out is lifted as long as you understand that it's your job to look after Will and make sure he doesn't do anything to get hurt, whether you instigate it or not."
"Yes Sir."
"Why don't you go down and play with Will? I think he's pretty lonely down in the playroom."
"Yes Sir. Thanks Jeffrey." RJ says, leaning over to give him a quick hug. He starts for the stairs and then turns to Jeffrey "where's mom?"
"She went for a walk." Jeffrey replies, walking over to him.
"Okay." He says, heading for the stairs with Jeffrey behind him.
A few hours later, Jeffrey has fed both Will and RJ and they have both taken a bath. He is putting them to bed when Cassie comes back from her walk. She is a little surprised to see him there. She half expected to come back and find him gone and one of the maids from the palace there watching RJ and Will.
"I'm surprised you stayed."
"Where was I going to go? I couldn't leave the boys alone." Jeffrey says, walking into the living room.
"You could have called the palace and Alon… William would have sent someone over." She says, following him.
"I wanted to make sure you were alright." Jeffrey replies, turning to her.
"I'm fine, I'm sorry I ran out on you. Where are the boys?"
"In bed, after you left, I talked to RJ…."
"RJ, I forgot…" Cassie says, walking outside to the patio
"It's alright, I talked to him about what happened and he knows that he can't trick Will into doing things like that. I told him that it was his responsibility to look after Will because he's the older brother. We hung out, wrestled, and played video games. I ordered in and then they got a bath. I read them both a story and they are now fast asleep upstairs. Cassie, about what we were talking about." Jeffrey says, following her.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"We have to Cassie."
"I don't know what to think Jeffrey. I don't know if I should believe you. He's been alive for the last five years. You saw me with Edmund. You and I… You knew he was alive. But put all of that aside, what do I tell those kids upstairs. And how do I explain to Richard, if I ever get the chance to, about Edmund, and you, Tammy and Jonathan and that whole situation. Not to mention what just happened with Josh."
"Cassie, I didn't tell you this to turn your world upside down."
"But you did. I haven't even thought about how I feel knowing he's alive. What's going to happen? Will he ever wake up from the coma? Am I supposed to wait and see? What? I lived the last five years in an intense fog. That's why I'm down here. I was trying to clear my mind and get it back on straight and then you show up here and you tell me that the husband that I thought was dead, that I watched as they lower his casket into the ground is actually alive, not to mention that he had a twin brother that was buried in his place. What happened to his family? Did Richard know about him? And if he did why didn't he tell me?"
"Well, those two questions I can answer with one answer. No, Richard had no idea that he had a twin. That was part of the deal George made with Richard's mother. George would take Richard and raise him as prince and his mother would take the other baby and raise him as her only son. "
"Even then George was in control." Cassie replies, sitting down on a lounge chair.
"Prince George was a bit of a control freak, yes."
"A bit, he… I'm not even going to get into that. I have enough to think about without getting into what Prince George did to his sons." There were a few minutes of silence and then Cassie asks "Where is he at in Washington?"
"He's in the agencies private hospital."
"Can I see him?"
"I don't know Cassie the security at the agency is pretty tight, especially after 9-11. I don't know if they'll let civilians in."
"I'm not just a civilian, I'm his wife. He needs to know that I'm there and that I never lost faith in him."
"Didn't you loose faith?"
"No, not deep down, I have always loved him and when he died I went looking for that connection we had. And for a moment I thought I found it in Edmund, but then… well, you know how that turned out."
"And then there was me."
"And if I ever in the five years since his death have felt that connection it was with you."
"Thank you."
"Will you see if the agency will let me see him?"
"I can try."
"I would appreciate it."
"I'll call them before I leave for Springfield again."
"What happens to Camille?"
"Right now, she's charged with attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder."
"You said, right now."
"Yes, Alon… William wants me to see if the agency will turn her over to his custody to be tried in San Cristobel for treason."
"Treason, well she certainly deserves to be put to death for trying to kill Richard. Do you think the agency will do that?"
"I don't know. But if they don't are you going to be able to handle her only being charged with those two charges. Because Richard survived the accident, we can't charge her with murder one."
"I don't know. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. I'm tired. I think I'm going to go upstairs and take a hot bath and try to relax."
"Then I'll go back to the palace. Ava's probably wondering where I disappeared to."
"She's down here. Is Olivia as well?"
"Ava was with me in Washington, so I asked her if she wanted to come down here and as to Olivia, no she's not down here."
"I thought you two were an item."
"We were; I broke up with her."
"I'm sorry."
"Thank you, I'm going to go. If you want to talk, call me. I'll be at the palace." Jeffrey offers as they walk through the house to the front door.
"I will." Cassie replies, opening the door for him
Walking out, he turns to her and says, "Good night, Cassie."
"Good night, Jeffrey." Cassie replies, watching as he walks to his car and then pulls away from the house before she closes the door.
5.14