Commitments, Changes and a whole lot of Complications

Chapter 48

---------- Chapter 48 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Haden holds me to his side, rubbing my back gently.

            “It’s going to be okay,” he coos.

Yeah. Sure it is.

Now, it’s not only my crazy father who is after Haden, it’s my half-brother too!

This is insane!

            “Skye…I’m just going to go get your mum and sister, okay? I’ll be back in an hour. You stay in this room, you hear me? The palace is on lockdown. You’ll be safe in here.”

I nod my head and in the next instant, he’s gone.

Only then do I pay attention to Her Majesty on the throne. What do I do?

Maybe I should just leave the room? Surely she doesn’t really want me to be around to witness her sobbing.

            “Skylar,” she whispers, her voice hoarse.

Darn!

There goes my brilliant plan of leaving!

            “I need you to promise me something, Skylar,” she says.

I nod my head apprehensively. Whenever anybody asks you to promise something before they tell you what it is, it’s never a good thing.

            “Something has happened…and I cannot bear to remain here any longer. I must leave. But that would mean Haden would be alone here with nobody to look after him.”

            “Your Majesty…there are so many people who will look after him. You don’t need to worry about it. Must you leave though? Perhaps you should talk to Haden before leaving?” I suggest.

            “I cannot. He will try to make me stay. I don’t know how much you know, Skylar, but I have just discovered something troubling about my late husband. Certain indiscretions of his happen to be in the palace. And I cannot remain here with them under the same roof,” she says.

            “I know about it, Your Majesty,” I whisper.

The Queen closes her eyes, sighing deeply.

            “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that Haden’s told you. But what I was trying to ask was whether you would look after Haden, for me? He’s a smart boy, but sometimes he doesn’t think. He needs someone to be his voice of reason,” she says.

            “I’ll look after him,” I say.

            “Promise me you won’t let him become like his father!”

That’s a pretty loaded question!

            “Promise me, Skylar!” she demands.

            “I promise.”

She breathes a sigh of relief and pulls me into a hug.

            “Thank you.”

And with that, she leaves the room.

Haden is going to be so angry when he comes back. But I sort of hope the Queen manages to leave before he comes back. She’s obviously very hurt by the late King’s betrayal. She shouldn’t have to deal with meeting the Baileys.

***

Slightly more than an hour later, Haden apparatus back into the room with my mother and sister in tow.