Chapter 2: The Secret of Sophie
The wedding begins. Nate is wiping the sweat from his face. All stand up and Maggie shows a great happiness for her ex-husband and his girlfriend. The wedding march begins and the doors open when Sophie goes, it seems that everything stops in the eyes of Nate. Parker, Sarah and Tara Cole, the bridesmaids, help Sophie with her dress, until when they come to Nate, accompanied by Eliot and Hardison. Sophie delivers the bouquet to Parker ,also her maid of honor.
- You are beautiful… - Nate whispers to his beloved, and Sophie smiles.
- Dear friends, we are here today to witness the marriage bond between Nathan Ford and Sophie Devereaux -. Starts the priest, a friend of Nate that his team, help on a job.
- Do not want to understand, Lady Charlotte Prentice, Duchess of Hanover!? - A man appears with a black coat and a stylish air, you can tell by the accent, he is British. - Lady Charlotte, come with me, the Countess of Kensington wants to see you immediately. 16 years you've been missing, do not even think about marrying a civilian under a false name! Guards grab her!
-No, no. I am not Charlotte ever more. - Sophie becomes panicked when the guards grab it and put it her inside a limousine -Nate!
- Sophie! – Nate screams.
All the guests are furiously, and they begin attacking the guards including Quinn, Eliot, Archie Leach, Chaos, Hardison, Parker, Tara, Sarah, Nate and many others ... The guards grab Nate and put him in the limousine. They go.
- We have to follow them! – Sarah says very nervous.
- I'll get the car; they should go to England, Hardison get tickets for me, Sarah, Parker and you. The others, ah... Gabrielle and Tara tell you what to do and thank you for coming. - Eliot says very fast.
The Leverage team gets into the car and followed them to the airport where they get tickets at the plane that Nate and Sophie goes.
-Okay, Sarah, you are Tamara Peterson. Eliot, you´re Luke Peterson. Parker, you'll be Nancy McGreeves and I will be William McGreeves. – says Hardison to Leverage team.
- And me? - Tara appears behind them.
- Tara, what are you doing here? – Parker asks.
- I´ll help my friend, of course. – Answers the ex-partner of Leverage team.
- Ok, Tara. You will be Jane Parks, now we´ve to go. - Hardison says.
After 3 hours of travelling, Elliot, Sarah, Parker, Hardison, Tara, Sophie, Nate and the royal guards landing in London.
Soon after, the guards put Sophie and Nate in another limo with the team chasing them; they come to a mansion that Sophie suggests that she recognize by a dry swallow. They put them locked into a very large living room and Nate tries to escape.
- Is not worth it, Nate. They are probably about four guards behind that door. - Sophie says sadly.
- Sophie, what is going on? - Nate asks justifications.
- You're going to realize, dear. - Sophie affirms sadly.
However, Sarah, Parker and Tara dress up as maids of the mansion.
- They must be here. – Tara said after passing through a door with four guards. - With so many guards...
- Excuse me, gentlemen. But they gave us orders to deliver these trays to those guests. – Sarah says, trying to say in a British accent successfully.
- It is necessary to go three? - Says, or rather shouts, one of the guards.
- Oh, it´s our orders, sir-. Parker tells them.
-Hmm ... Okay, you can go .15 minutes!
-Thank you, gentlemen. -Tara said with a high voice.
Tara, Sarah and Parker enter into the living room and sees Nate and Sophie sitting on the big sofa still with wedding dresses.
- What are you doing here? - Sophie asks.
- Yes, how did they get? - Nate wonders.
-No questions, now we have to get out of here. - Tara orders.
- I cannot, Nate must know the truth! - Sophie exclaims.
- What truth, Soph? - Nathan asks suspiciously.
- I cannot tell you, I have no courage. Remember, three years ago, when I told you I had to bury Sophie? And that would be left only my real person? Well, Charlotte is my true person.
- That Charlotte Prentice, two years ago to deceive Keller? – Parker asks.
- Yeah, that one. - Sophie confirms, as if she was ashamed of herself. - I not only took seven years to create the character, took almost all life. For sixteen years ago, I was still Charlotte, 18th Duchess of Hanover. One day I fell in love with theater, but as my aunt used to say "Theatre is for fiction, you are a person with a noble title of reality." and also "Dear Charlotte, you cannot pretend you're someone else, you cannot hide who you are!", I wanted to show her that she was wrong, I could be a great actress more than Duchess. God, how I hated being that, as I hated being the nobility, the sweet and innocent Charlotte, recessed for everything and everyone. I had to prove that I was more than it seemed to be, but I could not. I did not want to see my dear uncle, drowning in drink.
- That's why you never liked to see me drink ... - Nate says, understanding now all that was happening.
- Of course not, I already loved, loved you. I already knew what I had to know about my uncle. I could not see another person I loved, drowning. Anyway, I knew the risks I was committing to escape but I could not let the only thing I liked to do, run away. Knowing that they would never leave me, I decided to change my name. – Sophie tells.
- For Sophie Devereaux? - Sarah asks.
- No, no, no, no. I later discovered that I had an also French origin, that's when I invented Devereaux. Regarding Sophie, was the name of my best friend who helped me escape, we agreed never to find ourselves again. I never heard anything more about her, there were rumors that she was arrested because of me, but I knew that my Aunt Emily would never do that to her. –Sophie answered, a bit pensive. - When I ran I did not take anything except my pig. But they never gave me a lot of money, because I was royalty. When I realized I was running out of resources, I went to meet a friend. Roger has always helped me, I met him when I took the plane to France, and we spoke during the whole trip. I discovered that he was a criminal, he teach me how to steal. During an art exhibition in Germany, there was a setback and I had to make an action, Roger was not good at it. I had heard about the Yellow Kid, so I tried a coup, I steal 6 artworks. He told me that I had a natural talent. And So Charlotte Prentice ceased to exist and came Sophie Devereaux, one of the best grifters in the world. It was with the news that I knew that my uncle died. Three years later I met you, Nate in Paris. – Sophie tells, wanting to cry.
- So your real name is Charlotte? - Tara asked.
- Not really. - Sophie explains. - When I was 14 my parents died when they came from Belgium. Plane crash. Private. The media were paid to not reveal how they died. Since then I was raised by my Aunt Emily. She is a noble woman, and when I was born my parents gave me another name and Charlotte is the middle name. So, my aunt decided it was better treat me by my middle name, because it was a noble name. They would start calling me by my real name. Since they killed, my aunt never wanted me to know what my name was. I never cared.
- So you didn't even know your real name when we wondered? - Sarah asks.
-No, not really. - Sophie replied.
- Here, put the headset to hear Eliot and Hardison. – Parker says.
- What are you guys doing? – Nate asks.
- Well, we were listening the story of Sophie, Charlotte, whatever ... - Hardison answers.
- Well, the story is over. Any ideas to get us out of here? – Nate asks. - I want to go back to my wedding. Then our wedding night passes, and I get very angry.
- Nate! - Sophie exclaims laughing.
- What! It's true! - Nate says with a mischievous air.
- Parker, do you have any extra rope? - Eliot question.
- No, no. No way I'm going to ruin this dress. – Sophie says.
- Which is, Wow! - Nate says. - Guys, seriously, I really want to have my wedding night tonight!
- Nate, I've never seen you like this! - Sophie exclaims, surprised.
- That is because you not waited 10 months for this night! – Nate says rushed.
- Ok, Mr. I have rush. – Sophie says kidding -. Wait, only 10 months?
- Guys, now we have to focus on getting out of here! We are on another continent! And we only have 10 minutes. - Tara explains.
