my weapons choices. Had I had the
option of wearing a jacket it would have
been easier, but Adriana had vetoed the
idea, saying that this really wasn’t that
type of an event. So I had a small gun in
my evening bag, along with breath mints
and a tube of lipstick.
“My parents are here this evening,”
Gunnar said.
Adriana gave him a startled look that
he ignored in favor of staring directly at
me. Looking at him, I saw that despite
his careful grooming, his face reflected
the strain of the last few days.
“My father asked for a word with you,
Celia. Apparently he has a message from
my grandfather.”
Adriana’s gulp was clearly audible
over the voices of the crowd and the
muted background music. Apparently I
was missing something important.
“Your grandfather?”
“Yes. You should be flattered. Odin
doesn’t often take an interest.”
Odin? Oh crap. Thorsen wasn’t just
Gunnar’s surname. He was actually
Thor’s son? His father, the God of
Thunder, was here at the party. Um, okay
then. Wow. It was my turn to gulp. I
suddenly wished I’d snagged one of the
flutes of champagne that had been
circulating around. I really needed a
drink.
I managed to choke out a response, but
it wasn’t easy. “Oh, I’m flattered. I’m
also alarmed.”
Thorsen threw back his head and
laughed.
“Shall we join my parents then?” He
winked at me. “I promise they won’t
bite.”
“Of course.” Adriana looped her arm
through his. I couldn’t read her thoughts,
but her expression was enough. She
wouldn’t miss this for the world. Gunnar
held out his other arm for me and I took
it. Not just for show, either. I needed the
support.
Thor, God of Thunder, son of Odin
Allfather, looked great in a tuxedo. Like
his son, he was big and blond. Unlike his
son, he seemed to be having a marvelous
time. He was all smiles as he introduced
his wife. “Father, mother, this is
Princess Adriana of Serenity, the
daughter of Queen Lopaka.” They
murmured their acknowledgment and
greetings. “And this”—Gunnar gestured
to me—“is Princess Celia Graves,
granddaughter
of
Queen
Lopaka’s
beloved brother, Kalino.”
“Ladies, it is a pleasure.” Thor
stepped forward. Taking Adriana’s hand
in his, he kissed her knuckles, bowing
just the tiniest bit at the waist. “King
Dahlmar is a lucky man.”
“And I, a lucky woman.” She smiled
as he released her hand. Then he turned
his attention to me; his wide blue eyes,
the color of a midnight sky with flecks of
starlight, took me in from head to toe.
He took my hand, as he had
Adriana’s, laying a gentle kiss on my
fingertips. I felt a jolt of electricity pass
from him to me and gasped in surprise. It
made him chuckle, a low, wicked sound
that earned him a poke in the ribs from
his wife. “Stop playing games and give
her the message,” she scolded. He gave
an exaggerated sigh, but released my
hand and slid his arm around her waist,
pulling her close to him.
“Very well. My father said to tell you
these words. ‘Have faith. The right
weapon can overcome what will come
against you.’”
That was encouraging, if vague. “I
don’t suppose he told you which weapon
or what is coming against me?” I put a
wheedling tone in my voice. It made him
laugh.
“I’m sorry. No. He probably shouldn’t
have said anything at all, but he likes
you. You remind him a bit of the
Valkyries.”
That was a serious compliment. I did
my best to remember what little I’d been
taught about the Norse pantheon back in
my university days so that I could phrase
my thanks properly. “My thanks to you
Thor, Thunderer, and to Odin Allfather.
I’ll endeavor to be worthy of such high
praise.”
He leaned forward, close enough that
his beard tickled my ear when he
whispered, “You already are. Your
exploits will someday be written on the
walls of our great hall. So it has been
foretold.”
What could I say to that? I was
literally speechless. Fortunately I was
saved from having to reply by the ringing
of the chime that signaled dinner was
about to be served. Gunnar, Thor, and
his lady melted into the crowd moving
into the dining room without saying
good-bye. Adriana, meanwhile, grabbed
me by the arm and began dragging me
bodily down the hallway to the back
entrance.
“Come on, we’re late! We were
already supposed to be in there at the
head table when the chimes rang.” She
wasn’t quite running, but she was
walking damned fast. At the end of the
hall, the Secret Service agents standing
guard came to attention. One opened the
door. The other pulled a small holy
water squirt gun to confirm we were
who we seemed to be.
“I’m coming. Will you relax? It’s not
like they’re going to start the party
without you. You’re the bride, for
heaven’s sake.”
She glared at me over her shoulder.
“Only you would say something like
that.” She offered her hand to be
sprayed. She passed, of course, and
scurried through the door and onto the
dais. I was seconds behind.
The head table was long and narrow,
with all seats facing the crowd. King
Dahlmar and Adriana were in the center.
I was seated to her right. Igor was to my
right. Natasha had the last seat on our
side. Dahlmar’s side consisted of the
king, Queen Lopaka, Dahlmar’s brother
Arkady, and, finally, Olga. I didn’t know
who’d made the seating arrangements,
but I was happy with them. I was near
enough to Adriana to protect her if need
be, and Olga was as far away as we
could decently manage.
While the tables below had only
candlelight to see by, we had stage
lighting. It made it difficult to see clearly
out into the crowd, but put us on display
nicely. Of course it also made me
nervous as hell. I so didn’t want to do
something hideous and embarrassing in
front of hundreds of people. And it
would be just my luck for it to happen.
I shook my head. Don’t even think
about it.
It took a few minutes for everyone to
be seated, but eventually the guests were
all in their places and only the servers
were on their feet, moving quietly among
the tables, filling wine and water
glasses.
“Ladies and gentlemen, honored
guests.” Dahlmar spoke without a
microphone, but his voice was clearly
audible throughout the room. All
murmured conversations ceased as every
eye turned to him. “I want to thank you
all for joining me in this celebration. I
am happier than I can even express at the
prospect of marrying my beloved, and
truly overjoyed that you have chosen to
join us. We met by chance and were
paired by duty, but have had the
extraordinary luck to find love.”
He turned to Adriana, and his smile
was warm and adoring. Either he truly
loved her or he was one hell of an actor.
“This morning the Princess Adriana was
baptized into my faith. I did not ask this
of her. It was her choice, her decision.
But I am most glad to know that she
shares my beliefs and the beliefs of my
people.” I heard gasps from several
places in the room. So Adriana’s actions
had been a surprise to some, at least. “In
honor of this, I wish to present her with
a very special gift.”
He gestured to Igor, who reached into
the jacket of his tux to produce a jewel
case, which he passed to the king.
Dahlmar opened the case, laying it on
the plate in front of Adriana. She stared
down at it, her eyes gone wide with
shock.
“The Eldritch Cross was one of the
great magical artifacts of my people. Its
powers are legendary. Its loss, during
the sieges of the Second World War,
was a devastating blow to our people.
The seers among us have stated that
there will be continuing strife within the
ruling family so long as it remains
missing.”
He turned to Adriana, taking her hand
in his. “Would that I had the original to
give you. Alas, I do not. But this, the
copy made for my mother by my father
with his own hands and his own magic,
is my gift to you.”
He let go of her hand to take the
necklace from its case. He held it up so
the crowd could get a good look. It was
a lovely piece, a large cross, encrusted
with emeralds, pearls, and golden topaz,
colors that perfectly suited Adriana’s
beauty. He fastened it around her
delicate neck, kissed her tenderly, and
turned back to the crowd.
“With your indulgence I have another
bit of business to attend to before we
eat.” He stood, and everyone in the room
followed suit.
“There is an award given to citizens
of Rusland whose actions on behalf of
King
and
Country
show
such
extraordinary courage and valor as to
provide an example for all to aspire to. I
am, perhaps, a bit tardy in bestowing
this honor on its recipient, for her
actions in thwarting not one, but two
political coups surely earned her this
honor long before now.”
He turned to me, and I found myself
blinking stupidly as cameras flashed
blindingly. “Princess Celia Kalino
Graves, I present you the Silver Eagle of
Rusland with my deepest gratitude, and
that of all my countrymen.”
He crossed the stage to stand in front
of me. He embraced me, then stepped
back. Reaching into his pocket, he
withdrew a loop of black ribbon with an
exquisite silver bird hanging from it. He
put it on me, settling the weight of it on
my shoulders before turning to face the
crowd. “I give you Princess Celia, hero
of Rusland.”
“Huzzah!” Male voices, scattered
throughout the room, called out the honor
the first time. But the second and third
cries were voiced by nearly everyone, a
joyous shout that echoed through the hall.
King Dahlmar hugged me again,
discreetly passing me a pristine white
handkerchief as he did. I wiped the tears
from my eyes as Dahlmar moved back to
stand behind his seat. “Now, our
business is done. Let us eat.”
26
The bachelorette party was scheduled
for a late start, but the dinner ran long,
so we didn’t have time to change before
dashing to the limo that would take us to
the docks. Milena, Adriana’s best friend,
was officially hosting the party even
though it was being held on Adriana’s
yacht. The Secret Service had derailed
the original plan of renting a cruise ship
and hiring caterers due to “security
concerns,” which I hadn’t been privy to.
Yet. So Adriana’s own crew and staff
had been pressed into service.
The limo was a little crowded, what
with me, Adriana, and our security—just
Helen Baker for me, but a team of four,
plus the driver, for the bride.
The day I’d arrived on Serenity, the
harbor had been busy but not too
crowded. Now … my, how things had
changed. Every slip was filled and more
ships were anchored offshore; their
passengers and crew probably used
the island. The landward ends of the
piers, this side of the security barriers,
were crawling with paparazzi and
crowded with onlookers hoping for a
glimpse of the princess. What a freaking
security nightmare!
When the car doors opened we were
buffeted by a wave of sound—people
calling Adriana’s name, and even mine
—and the flashes of dozens of cameras.
We each gave a brief wave before the
guards hustled us onto the yacht.
The sun was setting, bathing the low-
hanging cirrus clouds in a blaze of reds,
pinks, and purples that were reflected in
the ocean. We were met on deck by the
hostess and the other three guests.
Adriana introduced me to Milena, a
pretty redhead with lots of freckles and
the most amazing amber-colored eyes.
I’d wondered about Adriana’s best
friend from earliest childhood and was
surprised to find that she was mostly a
subdued, serious woman with an acerbic
wit. She soon had all of us in stitches as
she detailed how she’d been followed
around all day by none-too-subtle
members of the world press, many of
whom had offered her obscene amounts
of money for the “inside scoop” and
pictures from the party.
Nani and Naneka were identical twins
with honey-colored hair and blue eyes. It
would have been impossible to tell them
apart if Nani wasn’t hugely pregnant.
They
were
bright
and
cheerful,
chattering away like a pair of birds.
Keohi, on the other hand, was a sultry,
sloe-eyed, dark-haired beauty who hung
silently back, watching the others, but
only rarely saying anything. When she
did, it was worth listening.
Adriana noticed me watching Keohi
and spoke into my mind. You are right
to be impressed; Keohi is quite
brilliant. She works as a marine
biologist, studying the effect of oil
spills on ocean ecosystems and
developing natural methods to contain
the spills. She went on at length, talking
to me about her friend while laughing at
the jokes of the others. I found it
fascinating that she could carry on two
entirely different conversations at once.
Keohi once told me she was only able
to first become published in scientific
journals under a male pseudonym,
because people saw too much beauty to
believe she had brains.
I’d never had that problem. In the land
of the Hollywood butterflies, I’d always
been a useful brown moth.
But now you are royalty, Celia. A
pedigree has its own beauty.
Yeah, but that’s not the sort of fame I
ever wanted. Adriana looked at me
curiously, truly not understanding why
being royal had so little value to me.
I went back to chatting amiably by the
dancing light of a string of party lanterns
hung around the deck. The drinks were
plentiful, the conversation excellent. It
didn’t take long for the atmosphere to
lull me into a sense of complacency.
That’s why bodyguards are seldom
guests at the party, but to hell with it.
There were plenty of other guards there.
I decided to have a little fun.
I discovered, to my delight, that the
Michelin-star chef on Adriana’s yacht
had previously worked at the secure
facility where Vicki had lived for much
of her adult life. He’d once made me
Belgian waffles and syrup in liquid
form. Today I was treated to all the same
appetizers as the other guests, liquified,
in a trio of chilled martini glasses. I
found that both clever and touching—
someone, the hostess or the chef, had
taken time to think of me.
All four of Adriana’s buddies were
nice, funny, intelligent women. They