A Fresh Start
Chapter Two Hundred Eighty Five
"Hello." Emma says quietly, feeling the sadness in the room.
Releasing William, Ava turns to her. "Are you hungry?" She asks, as Emma nods.
"Then I'll fix you something to eat while you get ready for school, okay?" Emma nods again, not quite sure what's going on, but she's afraid to ask. Living with William and Ava has been the most stable home she's had, even living with her mom didn't feel as secure as living with William and Ava. "Go on, I'll call you when it's ready, okay." Turning Emma goes back to her room.
"We have to tell her what's going on." Ava says, turning to William.
"She knew Edmund."
"No, not directly. But she and Cassie stayed at the Beacon when they were together and I'm sure that she ran into him from time to time." Ava says, as William sighs.
"Okay, I need a minute to collect my thought. I don't know how…."
"We'll do it together." Ava says, slipping her arms around him. He hugs her to him, lightly kissing the top of her head. "Go get a shower and I'll fix us all something to eat, okay." He nods before he releases her, headed upstairs while Ava goes to the kitchen to make breakfast for all of them.
A short time later, Emma comes out again, dressed for school. She's still nervous as she walks into the kitchen. "It's almost ready, do you want to set the table?" Ava asks.
Emma pauses before she nods her head and goes to get the silverware and plates. She carefully carries them to the table. Setting a place for all of them. When she's finished, she goes back to the kitchen and watches Ava while she's finishing up the toast. "Here, take this into the dining room." She says, handing the plate to Emma. She takes it but doesn't leave the kitchen. "Is something wrong?"
"Is Wes okay?" Emma asks, trying to figure out what's happened since last night and William and Ava tucking her into bed.
"He's fine. He's sleeping. Why?"
"Something happened because you and William are sad and you weren't last night when you tucked me in. Did you and William have a fight and now he's leaving and you're going to get a divorce."
Putting the spatula down, Ava walks over to her. "We didn't have a fight and William and I are not getting a divorce, and he's not leaving. Why would you think he would leave us and we would get a divorce?"
"My friend Mia at school. She said that her parents would fight all the time and her mom was sad too just before her Daddy left them and they got a divorce. I don't want you to…."
"We're not getting a divorce and William isn't leaving us, okay." Ava asks, as Emma nods. "Now, go put the toast on the table and I'll bring in the eggs and bacon when it's finished. Do you have your backpack ready?"
"No, ma'am."
"Then after you take the toast to the table, get your backpack ready."
"Okay." Emma replies, feeling somewhat better but she still knows that somethings wrong, she can feel it.
Shortly after Ava finishes with the bacon, William comes downstairs with Wes. "He's hungry I think." He says, walking into the kitchen.
"I'll take him, and fed him. Breakfast is ready but we have to talk to her before she goes to school." Ava says, taking Wes from him so that he can pour himself a cup of coffee. "She asked if we had a fight and are we going to get a divorce." She says, as William looks at her from the coffee pot. "Apparently one of her friends at school said that her parents fought all the time and her mom was sad whenever they fought and then her Dad left them and they divorced."
"Do you think we should tell her this and then go ahead and send her school?"
"I think we have to tell her. If we don't she's going to worry about it and I don't think she was close enough to Edmund to warrant her staying home. She knew him and she might have said hi to him in the halls of the Beacon but they we're close even if she played with Rj while they stayed there. I think once she knows what's going on, it'll keep her from fearing the worse."
"Alright, we'll talk to her after breakfast and then I'll take her to school. I think we should explain to the staff what's happened."
"They should know, but I wouldn't make a big deal about it William. She didn't…."
"She didn't know him that well. Let go eat and then we'll talk to her." He says, carrying his coffee out of the kitchen with Ava following behind him with Wes, fussing for his breakfast.
"Let's eat and then we'll talk, okay." Ava says, as Emma looks at both of them.
"Are you going to eat?" Emma asks, looking at Ava when she goes towards the couch.
"I'll eat something after I've taken care of Wes. Go ahead and eat." She says, nodding towards the table.
Emma settles into her place while William fills her plate. They both eat quietly while Ava feeds Wes. She's in the process of burping him, when Emma finishes her breakfast. "Are we going to talk now?" She asks, looking at William and then over to Ava.
"Yes." William says, as Ava gets up and walks over to the table. Setting down beside William at her place. She continues to burp Wes. William looks at her, not quite sure how to start the conversation.
"Emma, do you remember William's brother Edmund."
"Yes, he was Rj's step dad. I'm not sure if Rj like him or not. I think he missed Richard."
"I'm sure he did and I'm sure he liked Edmund. It's just hard to let someone else fill a role that someone else filled for a while. Do you understand what I mean?"
"I think so. But what does that have to do with why you're both sad. You said that you're not fighting and William's not leaving, so I don't understand….."
"Emma, listen to me." William says, interrupting her. "If I can help it, I will never leave you, your sister or Wes. I love all of you and besides Richard, Cassie and the boys, you're my family, okay." William says, as Emma nods. "I'm sad because I heard some bad news this morning, something I didn't expect." He looks at Ava, not sure how to continue.
"Emma, do you remember Mr. Jackson that lived on the third floor of the Beacon." Ava asks, as Emma looked at her confused. "Okay, what about the maid at the Spaulding mansion?"
"You mean Ms. Clara."
"Yes, you know that she was sick for a while and then she passed away, do you remember that?"
"Sort of, Phillip sort of wanted me to come to the funeral, but mom wouldn't let me because I was never really around her and she thought that if I went to a funeral for someone I didn't know it would look pre…."
"That's right, she thought it would look pretentious. But that's not the point I was making. This morning we received a phone call from the Prince of San Cristobel."
"The Prince of San Cristobel, why would he call you? Are you going back to San Cristobel? Are you going to be Prince again? Are we moving to San Cristobel? I don't want to move to San Cristobel. Will's here and I like my school and my friends and I wouldn't get to see Lizzie or Jeffrey or..."
"No one is moving to San Cristobel and I'm not going back to San Cristobel either. I can't be Prince again." William says, getting Emma's attention. "Prince Silas called me last night to tell me something about Edmund." He says, keeping Emma's attention. "He called to tell me that he had passed away, like Ms. Clara."
"So he was sick and he died."
"No, he wasn't sick." William pauses. "I want you to understand that I'm not making excuses for Edmund's actions. Do you understand?" He asks, as Emma nods still confused. "Edmund wasn't a happy man and he did things to people, not very nice things to a lot of people."
"Why?"
"I'm not sure about all the reason he did some of the things he did. I know he was jealous of all the attention that was shown to Richard while they were growing up. I know he wanted to be prince and he tried to make it happened on more than one occasion. There are a whole lot of reason Edmund did the things he did, but what it comes down to was that eventually those actions got him into serious trouble with government of San Cristobel. And it became my job to punish him. That was a role I had when I was prince. Do you understand?"
"I think so. It's like when I don't do my chores, Ava is my parent so she punishes me because I didn't do what I was supposes to do."
"Yes, it's basically the same thing. Edmund did some bad things and I had to punish him for it. So I sent him to prison and to make sure that he couldn't make any more trouble he was kept separate from the other prisoners, understand?" He asks, as she nods.
"When I left the throne and the new prince took over, Edmund had his lawyer. You know what that is?"
"Like Jeffrey?"
"Yes, like Jeffrey. He asked his lawyer to ask the new prince if he could be allowed to see the other prisoners. But the new prince didn't think it was safe to do that so he said no and Edmund didn't like that."
"So what happened to him? If he was in jail, they have guards and stuff there. How did he die?"
"I don't know everything that happened, but I do know that he tried to run away from the prison and some guards tried to make him stop and when he wouldn't one of the guards shot him and that's what killed him."
There's a long pause before Ava asks. "Are you okay?"
Emma nods. And then she looks at William. "I'm sorry he died."
"Thank you, now I think it's time for us to head to school."
Emma notices for the first time how William is dressed. "Are you going to work?"
"No, I need to stay home today."
"Okay." Emma pushes her chair back.
"Brush your teeth after you take care of your plate." Ava says.
She nods before she picks up her plate and takes it to the kitchen. Rinsing it off, she puts it into the dishwasher before she goes into the bathroom. While she's taking care of that, Ava lays her hand on William's arm. He reaches for her hand and squeezes it gently. "You explained that perfectly."
"I'm not sure it was perfect, but I hope it was enough to set her mind at ease."
"I think she'll be fine." She says, getting up to put Wes down in his playpen so that she can clean up the kitchen while William takes Emma to school.
"Are you ready?" William asks when Emma comes back from the bathroom. She nods before she goes to get her coat and backpack. When she comes back from her room, he says. "Go tell your sister good-bye." Emma goes into the kitchen. Hugging Ava good-bye she returns a few moments later in her coat with Ava following behind her. Ava give William a soft kiss before they leave for Emma's school.
After William leaves with Emma, Ava spends some time holding Wes. He's only been here a few days and it still amazes her that they created this beautiful baby boy. Watching him sleep brings peace that she's never felt before. While she's sitting there, she thinks about Edmund. There was so much he missed out on in his life. She doesn't know everything that was done to him while he was growing up, but she knows that Richard and William both tried to be the best they could be to him. "I hope that as you grow up, you know that you're loved and valued for being you." She whispers, leaning over to kiss the top of Wes's head.
"He will be." William says softly, trying to keep from scaring her.
She looks up. She's surprise to see him there. "I was thinking about Edmund and all the things he missed out on. And how you and Richard both gave him chance after chance to be a part of your lives."
"We did." William says, sitting down beside them, gently caressing his sons head.
"What are you thinking about?" Ava asks, after a few moments.
"I was thinking about the child Camille lost." William replies, still slowly running his fingers over his son's soft hair. "I want to think that I would've accepted that child. That I wouldn't've followed in my father's footsteps and punished my child simply because I never loved that child's mother. And I never loved Camille. Infatuated with her, yes. But I never loved her. We got married on a whim and that's not the way to begin a relationship or have a family. My father's marriage to my mother wasn't on a whim. He was forced into it, but both situations resulted in events that changed everyone's lives, including a child's."
"You would've loved that child as much as you love Emma and Wes." Ava replies. "I know you would've because you're not your father. You lived a different life than Richard and Edmund and that life gave you a different perspective. I can't say that Edmund's life would've turned out differently." She pauses. "In the end, I'm inclined to believe that Edmund would've been Edmund even if his parents would've treated him different."
"Maybe." William replies, listening to Ava's thoughts about Edmund and the way he lived his life. "I know that in the end I really resented Camille and how she manipulated me and everyone around her. Edmund was the same way. He used everyone for his own gain."
William says, settling back with Ava and Wes in his arms. Turning his head, he lightly kisses Ava's temple. "I love both of you."
"We love you too." Ava replies, laying her head against his shoulder and letting him draw comfort and strength from the two of them.
They sit together for a while, holding Wes until he starts to fuss and William takes him. "I'll change him."
"While you're doing that, I thought I would call my dad and tell him about Edmund."
"Yeah, he should probably know about it, especially since he has some connections to San Cristobel and some of the things Edmund's done." William says, taking the baby and settling him into his arms. "We'll be upstairs when you get done."
The boys are up early that morning, Sam getting up when they do to let Jeffrey sleep. They've taken turns caring for the boys in the middle of the night, unless it was for a feeding, then Sam handled that, but luckily so far the boys have only woke up once a night for a feeding. She's downstairs when Jeffrey comes down. Scratching the back of his head as he stretches. She loves watching him after he first wakes up. And especially now, as she imagines her boys copying their father as they trudge down the stairs to meet the day.
"Why didn't you wake me up?" He asks, around a yawn.
"You got up the last time with them." Sam says, filling the coffee pot with water. Now that she wasn't pregnant, smells that bothered her then have disappeared.
"Are you going to open the window?" Jeffrey asks, walking over to the window above the sink.
"Don't worry about it." She says, stopping him as he reaches to open the window. "Now that I'm not pregnant, the smells that bothered me don't anymore." She says, pouring the water into the coffee maker and starting it. She's walking towards the refrigerator when Jeffrey's cell begins ringing. She turns to look at him.
"Sorry, I know. I should've left it upstairs. I grabbed it out of habit."
"It's okay, answer it while I start breakfast."
He kisses her quickly before grabbing the phone off the counter. Pushing the button to connect the call without looking at the screen, he says. "Hello, Jeffrey O'Neill.
"Hey dad."
"Hi baby, how are you? Is Wes okay?" Jeffrey asks, as he settles into a chair at the island dividing the kitchen from the dining room.
"Wes is fine. William is upstairs changing him right now. And I'm fine."
"Well, we're okay over here. Sam and the boys are…." His voice goes soft as he looks up and Sam and catches her dancing a little bit to a song only she can hear inside her head. Smiling, he swallows quickly and finishes what he was about to say. "Sam and the boys are great. So if you're calling to check up on your old man, I'm doing beyond great." He says, as Ava laughs softly.
"That's good to hear. I'm glad you're happy Dad. But that's not exactly why I called. I've got something I need to tell you." She pauses for a moment. Long enough for Jeffrey to feel a little unsettled.
"Ava, you're okay. You and William, he…."
"Dad, we're fine. William and I are fine. This doesn't have to do with us, well it does but now directly."
"Ava honey, you're not making any sense. Did something happened?"
"Actually yes, something has happened and it's going to be a shock so I hope you're setting down."
"Is it your Mom? Is she…?"
"I haven't talked to Mom. I thought you need to know this first. Last night, well actually early this morning, we received a call from the Prince of San Cristobel."
"The Prince called you, why?" Jeffrey asks, creases appearing between his eyes. He looks up when he feels Sam's hand on his back. He sits back slipping his arm around her waist.
"He had some news for us. I'm just going to tell you. Edmund is dead."
"What!" His tone startles the boys and they begin to whimper.
"I got them." Sam says, stepping away from Jeffrey.
Getting up he follows her, sliding the phone between his head and his shoulder, he takes one of the babies from Sam. "What happened?"
"We're not sure of all the details. The Prince couldn't tell us much."
"He was in segregation. There's no way he could be reached by the general population. Prince Silas assured…." Jeffrey pauses. "I just know that he wasn't going to be moved to the general population. So how did…?"
"Dad, I'll explain what we know, if you let me."
"Sorry, go ahead."
"From what we could learn from the Prince, Edmund tried to escape yesterday. The prince wasn't clear on all the details. There's still and investigation going on, but apparently, one of the gates was jimmied open for him. The alarm was silenced so it didn't immediately alert the guards that one of the gates had been opened without authorization. Apparently, while Edmund was in the yard, he was accompanied by to guards. Those guards happened to come around to where Edmund escaped from, just moments after he left the prison. They ordered him to stop, which he ignored and so they were forced to use force to stop him."
"How did the gate even get opened? How did anyone even get close to the gates to be able to jimmy one open for him and why wasn't an internal alarm sounded when the breach happened. I've been to that prison, it's not Alcatraz or anything, but it's very hard to sabotage, especially the gates. They are covered by guards twenty four hours a day, all week long. You can't get close to them without being spotted by the guards in the tower."
"The prince couldn't give us any more details than what he was given by the warden I'm assuming." Ava says, as William sits down beside her. She looks at him.
"He's asleep." He whispers and she nods.
"I know the prince is waiting for the conclusion of warden's inquiry before we're given any more information."
"And in the mean time?"
"I'm not sure what's going too happened. I would assume that either William or Richard will have to fly to San Cristobel and claim Edmund's body and arrangements will have to be made for his funeral."
"Of course." Jeffrey says, settling Aj in beside his brother before walking back into the kitchen where Sam is making their breakfast. "What about Olivia
"I haven't spoken to her, like I said. I called you first." Ava replies, leaning against William.
Closing his eyes, he takes a moment to collect himself before he speaks. "Do you want me to…?"
"No, I can call her. In fact given how things were between you when she left, it's probably better if I am the one that calls her." Ava says, as Jeffrey relaxes.
"I'm sorry, I know she's…."
"Dad, you don't have to explain. I understand about Mom and I'm sure that Sam would prefer you didn't have any contact…."
"Sam would understand in this situation. But if you want to call her, then I will let you. How is William and does Richard know?"
"William is, he's coming around. And yes, Richard knows. We called him first thing this morning."
"What about Reva? Does she…?"
"I'm assuming that Richard is going to tell Reva." She says, looking at William. He nods. "Yes, Richard is telling Reva."
"I can't believe he's…." Jeffrey pauses.
"I know."
"And a part of me is relieved. Edmund held grudges and I'm sure that he blamed me for Cassie leaving him, so I can only imagine what could've possibly happened if he ever escaped from prison."
"I think we're all just slightly relieved." She looks at William again. "As well as sadden by the life he threw away."
"If William needs anything, you'll let us know."
"Of course, but I believe he's going to be okay." She says, as he takes her hand and squeezes gently.
"Alright, I'll let you go. Call us if you need anything, promise."
"We will, I promise. Go enjoy your boys and Sam. We'll be okay."
"Love you." Jeffrey replies.
"Love you too Dad." Ava says, hanging up shortly thereafter.
"He was shocked."
"I think everyone's going to be shocked by this." Ava says, settling in beside him.
Jeffrey lays his phone down on the counter as Sam looks up. "What happened?" She ask, as she turns the bacon over.
"Edmund was shot." Sam looks up, shocked. "He was attempting to escape. Two guards caught him, ordered him to stop. He refused and they had to use force to stop him. That's all Ava could tell me from what the prince in San Cristobel told William when he was call this morning."
"Richard and Reva know?"
"William told Richard first thing this morning and Richard is contacting Reva to let her know, so I'm sure she knows." Jeffrey is silent for a moment before he says. "And I would assume they will let Jon know."
"How did he even get out of the prison? I've never been to that particular prison but foreign governments usually have much stricter security than we have here in the states."
"I'm not even sure how this happened, but you're correct. I've been to the prison where Edmund was being held. It's not Alcatraz but it's extremely difficult for security to be breached and from what William was told by the prince, it appears that either it's an inside job or something else happened, because the prince said that the gate that Edmund used to escape from had been jimmied open and the alarm was disabled. So if guards hadn't've been with Edmund at the time of his escape he would've been successful."
"What do you think happened?" Sam asks, plating up Jeffrey's breakfast first and then her own before sitting down beside him.
"I don't know." Jeffrey replies, reaching for his coffee. Sam looks at him and he can feel it. He glances in her direction. "What?"
"I heard you change direction when you were talking to Ava. You know something."
Jeffrey sighs. "I may have spoken with the agencies when Edmund's lawyer approached the crown to have his segregation lifted. I may have suggested that the agency step in and…." He looks at Sam.
"J!"
"We've done it before. I didn't know my advice would be heeded."
"The director listens to you J, you know he does." Sam says, as J looks away. "I'm not judging you, but it can cause a lot of problems with the agents still in San Cristobel if it comes out that we interfered with the inner working of their government."
"I'm not going to apologize for protecting the people I love, Sam. I wasn't kidding about Edmund holding grudges and he certainly would hold one against me, since I'm certain he would blame me for his marriage to Cassie falling apart. Edmund would've done something either to me, you or even the boys."
Sam lays a hand on Jeffrey's back. "I'm not attacking you. I promise, okay?" He nods. "I know you didn't have anything to do with what happened with Edmund. I'm only saying that it's risky to manipulate events within a foreign government to cover the agencies outlook on how that government should be handled. It's been proven, over and over again." Jeffrey sighs and nods. "Should you call the director?"
"No, it's probably better if it appears that the agency had little to do with this. If the director did order something, it shouldn't be questioned by retired agents." Jeffrey says, leaning over and kissing her. "Love you."
"Love you too." Sam replies, smiling softly.
After dropping the boys off at school, Richard goes to city hall. He's walking into his office with his phone to his ear. "Hold on John." Richard says, stopping at Amelia's desk. "Reva will be stopping in this morning sometime, please interrupt if I am in a meeting once she gets here."
"Of course, Sir." Amelia replies, as Richard turns away and back to his conversation. "I'm not using this for political gain, John. He was my brother. I'm only informing you because it's going to be in the papers and the press will have questions and the campaign needs to have an answer prepared."
"Yes sir." John replies, as he looks around the campaign headquarters. "I'll have the speech writers draft a press release and we'll release it as soon as we hear from you."
"Don't releases it until the story hits the news cycle. I don't even know if it's hit the news cycle."
John looks at the TV's playing in the main lobby of Richard's campaign headquarters. "I don't believe it has, not yet anyway."
"Alright, I've got work to get to and an important call to make in a few hours. I'll be ready for the campaign event this afternoon and Cassie and I will be at the other events later this week."
"Yes sir." John replies. Both hanging up as soon after."
As soon as her physical is over, Reva leaves Cedars for the City Hall. She walks into Richard's office not that long afterwards. Amelia looks up as she walks in. "Hello, Mrs. Lewis. Mr. Winslow is expecting you. He told me to buzz you through as soon as you arrive." She says, as Reva nods.
Pushing the button to buzz Richard, he answers immediately. "Yes."
"Sir, Mrs. Lewis has arrived."
"Send her in." Richard says, getting up from his desk. He's walking around it as Reva enters. Reva closes the door behind her and they meet in the middle of his office, hugging each other.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm adjusting." Richard says, leading her over to the couches below the window of his office.
"Is there any more word from San Cristobel?"
"No, I haven't heard anything else."
"Do you think Edmund set this up, somehow?"
"I don't know. I'm not sure how he could've. He was in segregation which limited his contact with anyone. He was only allowed visits from his lawyer, so I guess he could've arranged something through that avenue, but I can't see any attorney risking his license to help Edmund escape from prison."
"He would if Edmund blackmailed him, or one of Edmund's supporters blackmailed him."
"True, but honestly I don't think that happened, and I don't want to speculate about how this did happened. I think we need to let the prison officials run their investigation and let their findings tell us what happened. We need to focus on other things."
"How is Cassie doing? She was affected just as much by Edmund's schemes, as much as you and me?"
"I think she's feeling the same way we all are, sad but relieved."
"What about Will?"
"He was surprised, both of them where. Rj knows some of what happened in San Cristobel before we left. He might not know the details but he knows that Cassie's disappearance was caused by Edmund. And they both were around when Tammy died…."
"And you."
"Yes me, but they were still young when that happened. I'm just saying that they've lost someone close to them before so they understand what's going on." Richard says, as Reva nods.
Both are silent for several moments before Reva says. "As I was coming into town for my appointment. I was thinking about my time in San Cristobel. I don't think I've ever said this to you, but I don't regret it. I know it was messy in the end. Edmund manipulated us both and so did Josh, although I understand his motivation. I didn't help matters by bottling up and trying to ignore my feelings. You and Cassie both tried to get me to open up but I wouldn't."
"You were afraid and I clung to something that wasn't real."
"No, Richard it was real. We loved each other, but it was almost like a game of pretend." Reva says, glancing at him. He nods, letting her know that he understands her point. "I had other commitments and you deserved to have what Josh and I have had all of our lives. We sometimes have gotten distracted by something shiny and new, but it always comes back to us being together. I hope you and Cassie don't go through the missteps that Josh and I have in our relationship."
"I don't think we will. We lost five years together because of my accident and I know that Cassie tried to move on with Jeffrey, Josh and Edmund but her heart has always belonged to me. Do you want to call Jon now?"
"I supposes we should. But I want you to know that Edmund is not the reason our relationship didn't work."
"I know. It's like you said, it was like a game of pretend. And I think meeting you, brought me to Cassie, without that relationship I wouldn't've met her, fell in love with her and we wouldn't be married with our family."
"Good, then let's call Jon." Reva says, as Richard reaches into his pocket and pulls out his personal cell phone. Dialing, Jon's number from memory. He puts the call on speaker while he waits for him to answer.
"Hello." Jon says, as he watches Sarah getting ready for her school trip to the palace. Now that Prince Silas has taken over, the restriction placed in his asylum agreement on Jon's contact with the palace has been lifted.
"Jon, it's me." Richard says.
"Dad!" Jon says in surprised and Sarah looks up. "Keep getting ready Sar-bear, I'm going to talk to Poppa, okay?" Jon says, noticing her attention is on him. She nods and he turns way, walking into the guest room that he's turned into his office. "Dad, is something wrong with Cassie, did she lose…?"
"She and the babies are fine."
"So, she's going to have them. Is she in labor?"
"This isn't about Cassie, Jon." Reva says.
"Mom, you're there too. What's going on? Both of you have never called me at the same time."
"I need to tell you something about your Uncle Edmund."
"He's in prison. Did he… was he let go?"
"No Jon, just listen. Your Uncle William received a call early this morning from the Prince, Edmund was involved in and incident yesterday." Richard pauses. "It resulted in his death."
"Death, he's dead!" Jon squeaks, looking up to see if Sarah had heard him. Smiling briefly because she would've laugh at his squeak.
"According to what the Prince was able to tell William, Edmund attempted to escape from the prison. The guards attempted to get him to stop but he ignored their demands and they were forced to take forceful action to stop his escape. He was killed in the process."
"The guards shot him."
"Yes."
Jon's silent for a moment before he says. "I don't understand how this happened?"
"We're not sure on all the details yet. The prison is conducting an investigation to find out the facts but ultimately it doesn't matter how it happened, Edmund is gone and your mother and I felt that you should hear it from us."
"Ummm, thank you." Jon says cautiously.
"Don't be polite Jon, I know Edmund is the main reason you were given to and raised by Alfred and Olivia's sister and that decision directly resulted in Alfred's abuse of you." Richard pauses as Reva reaches for his hand, laying hers on top of his. "I'm mostly responsible or allowing Edmund to scheme the way he did, hurting you, your mother and Cassie."
"He hurt you as well." Jon says.
"He did, but I allowed the things that happened…."
"Dad, you're not responsible for your father's actions. Edmund made his own choices. You did not make them for him. And if there is one thing I learned from Tammy, it's that we are all responsible for our actions."
"Has anything been released in San Cristobel?" Richard asks.
"No, but I've been getting Sarah ready for her class trip to the palace. She's really excited for it."
"I remember those trips, all the kids coming to the palace." Richard says with a smile. "I tried to spend a few minutes with every class when I was Prince."
"She wants to meet Prince Silas, but I've told her not to be disappointed if he's too busy to see every class. And with this, it might be impossible for him to get away."
"I don't know if he'll continue that tradition, but if he doesn't, just reminder of her Poppa and Uncle William."
"I will, thanks Dad. Are you okay?" Jon asks, his tone softening.
"I'm like you, sad but relieved. Edmund's shenanigans were something that I've lived most of my life with. I'm not sure how things will move forward after this."
"I think with so much less worry. Even locked up, his potential to cause problems was only slightly controlled. Any one of his followers or his attorney could've been his go between."
"Like I told your mother, I think we need to wait till the prison concludes its investigation before we speculate as to what happened."
"Have you heard anything from Noah about what we talked about?" Jon asks, glancing at the door again."
"No, I haven't but if I haven't heard something soon, I'll contact him again." Richard replies, as Reva looks at him with a questioning look. He hold up his hand to stop her questions.
"I need to go. Sarah was getting ready for her trip and we still have to get to her school before their bus leaves."
"Go, we'll talk to her next time." Richard says, as Reva nods.
After speaking with William, Prince Silas doesn't get much rest. He's up rather early the next morning. As he walks into his office, several of his advisors are waiting on him. "Before we begin today's schedule, can anyone give me and update on the Prince Edmund situation?"
One of the advisors steps up. "Sir, we haven't heard anymore from the Warden."
"Have someone call the prison then?"
"Sir, it's only been a few hours since they informed up of Prince Edmund's death. We have a more pressing issue than determining the circumstances surrounding the cause of his death." The advisor replies. Prince Silas looks at him. "Sir, this will have to be announced to the country and it should be done quickly so that it doesn't appear as though the crown is covering up the death of the a former ruler of this country."
"Edmund seized control of San Cristobel…."
"It doesn't matter how he gained control, Sir. He was a member of the former royal family. He's entitled to certain accommodations that went with being a member of that family. Several of the titleholders will insist that he's treated with same respect that Prince Richard or Prince William would be treated with."
Turning to look out the window behind his desk, he quiet for a moment. "I will need to speak with Prince William and determine how he wants to proceed with the announcement. Can you please speak with the warden and ask him to hold off making an official announcement until I can speak with the Winslow family."
"I will get on that Sir."
"Thank you." Prince Silas replies. "Now to other business." He says, sitting down behind his desk as the other advisors surround him.
After a few hours of meeting with his other advisors about other issues needing his attention, Prince Silas finally has a moment to call William. Picking up the phone, he dials William's number.
William is coming downstairs after putting Wes down for his afternoon nap. Ava is resting on the couch after spending the morning supporting him and carrying for Wes. As he reaches the last step, the phone begins to ring. Rushing over to the table sitting behind the couch, he grabs the phone before it can finish the second ring. "Hello." William replies.
"Mr. Winslow." Prince Silas says, settling back into his chair.
He looks down and finds that Ava is still resting. Turning he walks over into the far corner of the loft to a small alcove situated behind the stairs. "Have you heard anything more about Edmund's escape attempt?"
"No, the warden is still looking into the circumstances surrounding it. However, I do need to talk to you about another issue."
"I'm not involved with the gov…."
"No, this is about Edmund. One of my advisor brought it to my attention that because Edmund was a member of the former ruling family, he is entitled to certain accommodations. And official announcement will have to be made and certain titleholders will expect that the benefits of his title are being met."
William is silent for a moment. "I'm sorry but I believe that Edmund forfeited those benefits after the many times he tried to disrupt and displace the government of San Cristobel as well as after his successful coup attempt that resulted in the kidnapping of a member of the royal family and the attempted murder of a prominent citizen here in Springfield."
"That is all true, Sir. But he was pardoned of those crimes after his brother was presumed dead and…."
"And I gave him the job as Ambassador at large for San Cristobel. Okay, he was pardoned for those crimes but he was arrested and convicted again of blackmail and coercion when he tried to use my nephew to get his wife to come back to him."
"I know Sir, but he's still a member of the former…."
"We don't even rule anymore." William says, sighing. "Give me some time, I'll need to speak to Richard and see what he is willing to do."
"Of course sir. I've spoken with the Warden and he has agreed to delay the announcement for a short time but a decision."
"I will have one to you as soon as I speak with Richard."
"Thank you. And again my condolences."
"Thank you." William says, hanging up and sighing heavily.
"What's wrong?" Ava asks from the stairs. William looks up.
"I thought you were asleep."
"I was, what's wrong?"
"That was the Prince about Edmund."
"Do they…?"
"No, the warden is still investigating. I need to speak with Richard about announcing Edmund's death. Will you be okay here with Wes for maybe an hour or so? I'm not sure how long…."
"Go, we'll be fine." She says, leaning up to kiss him.
"I'll be back as soon as I can." William says, kissing her again before he walks past her, grabbing his keys, wallet and coat before he opens the door and walks out.
Richard is finishing up a meeting as William walks into his office. He looks up and upon seeing William, turns to the gentlemen he was speaking with. "We'll be in touch once we've reached a decision. Thank you for coming." He shakes each gentlemen's hand before they leave. "Come inside." He says, to William leading the way into his office. "Amelia will you please hold my calls?"
"Yes sir." She replies, before Richard closes the door and turns to William. "Have you heard anything?"
"Not about Edmund's escape attempt but I have spoken with Prince Silas. He called me just before I came over here." William says, settling down beside Richard on the couch beside his desk.
"And he had nothing on Edmund's attempt and how it happened?"
"The warden is still investigating, but apparently one of his advisors pointed out that being a member of the former royal family Edmund is entitled to certain accommodations and he wanted to know how we wanted to handle it. Personally, I think it feels wrong to treat him as if he's an honored member of the family. He was involved in so many incidents and attempts to destabilize San Cristobel. He attempted to kill you on numerous occasions, as well as Reva. He kidnapped and held Cassie…."
"There's no need to list all of his actions. Many of which we have both pardoned him for. But he was a convicted felon and I agree that the normal provisions for the passing of a member of the royal family should not be applied to Edmund. Some of the hardliners will disagree but ultimately he was our brother we should handle his arrangements. The palace will have to make an official announcement, but it should be brief and generic."
"One of us will likely need to fly to San Cristobel to claim his body."
"I can't leave Cassie right now. She's coming up on her due date and…."
"No, I know. Wouldn't've left Ava before Wes was born. I can go."
"You have Wes. You can't leave Ava alone with him either."
"I have an idea. Let me speak with someone." Richard says, holding up his finger before he pulls his phone from his jacket pocket. Dialing a number, he waits for a beep. "I need to speak with you, call me back?"
"What are you planning?"
"Jon."
"He's in San Cristobel but he's under asylum from the crown."
"He wants to come out of hiding. I've spoken with Noah, my friend with…."
"I know who he is."
"Anyway, I spoke to Noah about arranging a secret meeting with Jon, Lizzie, Cassie and I at a discreet location. He was going to speak to his director and see if something could be arranged. Being as he's in the country, he cover could be bring Edmund's body to us and we would still be able to have the meeting between him and Lizzie and if anyone is watching from Alan's group of cronies, he would still be covered officially."
"Do you really think that will work?"
"I don't know but call Prince Silas, advise him of what we've decided about Edmund's announcement and that we'll be making arrangement to bring the body to Springfield and will advise him of the arrangements once they are made."
"Okay, I'll handle that." William says, standing up. He and Richard hug before William leaves Richard's office.