FATED

Disclaimer: I do not own Reign. If I did, I'd know everything about Season 2 right now.

A/N: Thank you again to everyone reading, reviewing and following this story. I hope you enjoy the new chapter.

Chapter 4

After bidding goodbye to the Stuarts, Francis stayed outside the house, watching as their guests' car disappeared completely from his sight.

He turned to go back in and was surprised to see his father waiting for him at the doorway.

"Dad?"

"It won't be so bad, Francis." Henry spoke calmly as he went to his son.

Francis remained silent, unable to look his father in the eye. While he couldn't utter a word, his brain was forming sentences he so wanted to spew.

"Mary is pretty. Perhaps you'll grow to love her," Henry suggested.

"Like you love Mom?" Francis faced his dad, his stare unwavering.

"I did love her. But…things change," Henry softly said, openly admitting the kind of relationship he and Catherine now shared.

"And now you're stuck. Pretending that you love your wife, yet we all know you'd rather be with your mistress. Is that the life you want for me?" Francis asked. "A wife on one arm, a mistress on the other?"

"I only wanted a secure future for you and your siblings." Henry justified.

"So you use me like a pawn to ensure that. You sold my happiness for a secure future filled with more money and power!" Francis was beyond angry. He was hurt, and most of all, betrayed by the people he thought would stand by him through thick and thin.

"Don't you know by now? We're all but pawns in this life. My father did the same for me—"

"And now you're doing it to me," Francis finished the sentence for Henry. He felt defeated and he solemnly asked, "Didn't you ever think that maybe I wanted to marry for love?"

Henry stood tall. He thought he could reason with his son and make him see that this marriage was right. It would be beneficial for everyone involved.

"Love can be taught. It can be learned. When you have your own son, do what you see fit. But MY son…will wed Mary Stuart." Livid, Henry went back inside the house, leaving Francis to his own thoughts.

Francis could only shake his head in utter frustration. He fished his keys out of his pocket and ran to the garage. He got in his car and the engine roared to life. Francis took off with no destination in mind.

oOoOo

At two o'clock, Sebastian's cell phone rang incessantly.

"Bash, answer it, please," Kenna mumbled, being woken by the noise.

Bash, who was sleeping peacefully, spooning with his wife, groaned. He picked up the phone without even looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?" His voice hoarse having just woken.

"Bash, sorry to disturb you so late. I need your help," the voice on the other end said.

"Dad? What's wrong?" Bash immediately sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"It's Francis. He's missing," Henry informed him, anxiety in his tone.

"What? What do you mean he's missing? Doesn't he have some of your security tailing him at all times?"

"The damn boy ran off before anyone could follow him, and now those useless guards are trying to scour the city looking for him." Henry growled. He was angry and tired. He felt guilty for the exchange he had with Francis, but his son needed to understand his station. And coddling him wasn't going to work. Yes, he wished he could have a simpler relationship with Francis, like the one he had with Bash. But Bash wasn't his heir, Francis was.

Bash stood up and started putting on a pair of pants while balancing his phone between his ear and shoulder. "Okay, don't worry. I think I know where I might find him."

"Thank you, son." Henry sighed.

"Not a problem. I'll call you as soon as he's with me. Go get some rest." Bash ended the call and pulled a shirt on.

"What's going on?" Kenna was awake after hearing the new drama in the Valois house. She was propped up on her elbows, a sheet covering her naked body.

"No one can find Francis. I'm assuming the dinner didn't go well." Bash leaned over and kissed his wife before grabbing his car keys and running out the door.

Kenna plopped back in bed and worried for both her brother-in-law and best friend.

oOoOo

It was well past four in the morning when Bash found him in an empty club. He was slumped on the bar, shot glasses littered all around him. No one dared throw him out, especially since everyone knew who he was, and more particularly, who his father was.

"Francis," Bash called, waking his brother up.

Francis sluggishly raised his head to look at the person who sat on the stool beside him. "Bash?" A lazy grin formed on his face. "My big brother Sebastian, have you come to join me in drowning my misery?" Then he took on a curious look. "Hmmm, maybe that's what I should do. Why stop at the misery, I should just drown myself completely."

"Francis!" Bash was surprised at where his brother's thoughts had gone. He grabbed him by the shoulders. "Francis, look at me. Was it really that bad?"

Francis smiled, though the light didn't reach his eyes. "No, no. Mary's gorgeous, if it's any consolation."

"Then what's wrong? Why are you thinking like this?"

"I don't love her, Bash. And I don't think I ever will. I'll be just like Dad, stuck, trapped in a cold married life," Francis said mockingly. "And… and… you want to know what I realized?" His eyes were wide and he was pointing at his brother.

Bash ordered a strong cup of coffee from the remaining bartender. He then focused on his little brother. "No, what's that?"

"We can't get divorced!" Francis laughed, giving Bash a light tap on his shoulder. "Isn't that just the best thing you've ever heard?"

Bash sighed. Since the day Francis was born, he had always looked out after him. When he wasn't allowed to play outside due to Catherine's fear that he'd get hurt, Bash would play indoors to keep Francis' company. When they were taught to ride horses, yet Francis wasn't allowed out of the paddock, Bash remained as well. When he wanted to learn about medieval weaponry and once again Francis was refrained from doing the same, he taught his brother everything he knew. But Bash knew this time would be different. While he was allowed to marry whomever he wanted, he couldn't sneak off with Francis and have him do the same.

"They're doing this for the money, Bash. It's all about making Valois Ventures bigger, richer, more powerful. And all for the measly cost of their firstborn," Francis scorned.

"Don't do this to yourself, Francis. You'll be happy, too, I promise." Bash pushed the cup of black coffee toward Francis and ordered him to drink it. While his brother was doing that, he sent a quick text message to their father, letting him know he found Francis.

oOoOo

Bash was almost dragging Francis along as they walked to the door of the Valois house. Henry was up, dressed in a robe, holding the door open for his sons.

"What happened? Where was he?" Henry questioned.

"At a bar. He drank his weight in alcohol, I think," Bash replied. "How am I supposed to get him up to his room?"

"Come on, I'll help," Henry said. Taking Francis' other arm, he placed it over his shoulder. He and Bash then both escorted Francis up the stairs and into his bedroom. Once they were there, they dropped him on to his bed, and Francis didn't even stir.

"Does he have any important meetings tomorrow?" Bash asked, looking at his passed out brother, then at his father.

Henry shook his head. "None that I know of."

"Good, because I don't think he'll be showing up. I'll look over his schedule and take over for the day," declared Bash.

"Thank God you're here," Henry commented.

"Don't," Bash ordered then went out of the room.

"What?" Henry followed, closing the door behind him.

Bash was already walking down the stairs, but Henry was quick and grabbed his arm to stop him. "Are you angry at me now, too? Did I raise such ungrateful sons?"

Bash looked at his father, appalled. He huffed, shook his head, and moved away from Henry's hold, continuing on his path out of that house.

Henry was still on his heels. "Don't you turn your back to me, Sebastian!"

Bash stopped at the door and faced his father, his fury expressed visibly. "Do you even see what you're doing to him? You've never treated him like a son. And now you're not even treating him like a person. You see him as some commodity you can trade. Francis is your son, he is your heir. You already have more money than you know what to do with. Why do you have to do this to him?" he yelled.

"I'm securing a better future for him," Henry answered crossly.

"That's not what he wants," Bash responded passionately.

"He doesn't know what he wants!"

"Did you even ask?" Bash shouted, staring intently at his father.

Henry had no words.

Bash pursed his lips, his hands were balled into fists and in that moment, he hated his father for the first time in his life. "You're making him suffer through the same mistake you and Catherine made. End the cycle now, Dad, before you lose Francis completely."

Henry looked at his firstborn head on. "He'll endure the same way I have."

Bash exhaled, losing all fight in him. He turned and walked out the door.

oOoOo

The elevator doors opened and Francis walked toward his office. He was surprised to find his secretary's desk empty. He threw the doors to his office wide open and was taken aback when he saw Sebastian dictating to a haggard looking Olivia.

"Bash," he called.

"Francis, you're here, good. We need to discuss a few things regarding that meeting you had with Vincenzo." Bash dismissed Olivia and started compiling the papers strewn about Francis' desk.

"What's going on?" Francis asked warily.

Bash looked toward the closed doors and then at Francis. "Well, little brother, I figured, since our generous father is doing everything he can to ensure a supposedly great and rich future for you, I suggest we do one better."

Francis walked toward the small bar in the far corner of his office and was just about to get himself a glass of scotch when Bash stopped him, covering the glass with his hand.

"Don't drink anything that will cloud your mind. I've got a great plan. Dad wants Valois Ventures to be at the top, for you, so he says. Then, we'll give him what he wants."

"What are you talking about?" Francis inquired, putting the glass and bottle of liquor back at the bar. The effects of his binge drinking still had some effect on him despite having slept the entire morning.

"We're going to secure the negotiations with Vincenzo, and you'll marry Mary Stewart," Bash told him.

Francis laughed out of desperation, thinking that his brother was lured to side with his parents. "How is that a great plan?" He walked toward the mini fridge and grabbed a bottle of water instead.

"We'll talk with Italy, then Portugal, and then the Stewarts to begin with. We'll acquire everything that's supposed to boost Valois' equities. And once that's done, you'll take over." Bash grinned, his eyes intense with mischief.

Francis, who had his back turned to his brother, quickly whipped around to look at him. This wasn't his brother Sebastian. He was always the happy-go-lucky, go-with-the-flow kind of guy. He wasn't manipulative and scheming, and yet the man standing in front of him, who looked and talked exactly like his brother, was.

"Yes, I will be taking the reins once Dad steps down. But that's years to come," Francis said anxiously.

Bash placed a firm hand on Francis' shoulders. "No, we're pushing ahead of schedule."

"Brother, what's gotten into you?" Francis finally asked.

Bash let go of Francis and began to pace. His anger began to pick up again. After bringing Francis home and that fight with their father, Bash went back to his own house, yet he couldn't sleep. He lay in bed and stared unseeingly up at the ceiling. As soon as the sun rose, he got up and headed to work at Valois Ventures, where he held the position of one of the marketing managers in the organization. He couldn't get the quarrel with Henry out of his head. And neither could he forget Francis' words, said in desperation. He remembered meeting his baby brother for the first time. Henry told him that he was a big brother and protecting Francis was his most important duty. And that was exactly what he was doing now, even if it meant taking everything away from their father.

"Our dad and his greed, that's what. I won't just stand by and watch them ruin your life. Yes, maybe he's also thinking about you, but I doubt if this plan of theirs was meant solely for your welfare. I don't know when it happened, or why I didn't see it until now, but Henry needs to be stopped."

Francis opened the bottle and took a large swig of water to wet his suddenly dry throat. "Henry? Now, he's just Henry to you?"

"Look, I still believe that you and Mary will be great together. You're exactly alike. You're both passionate, headstrong, and you told me last night that she was gorgeous. If the closeness you had when you were kids was any indication, I think you'll end up being in a very happy marriage."

Francis smirked and hit his brother playfully.

"What I don't like is the way they're practically shoving this marriage down your throats. Why can't they just let things progress naturally?"

"I can answer that," Francis said.

"Money." Both brothers spoke wryly.

"And that's why we'll use Dad's own greed to bring his downfall," Bash revealed.

"He'll have your head for this, you know? You're taking everything away from him. Valois Ventures is his entire life, his most prized possession, his whole kingdom." Francis said.

"Yes, I know, but he can't do anything to me if you're the king." Both brothers smiled. They were, after all, their father's sons.