“I believe it will make the family look too strong if this Siobhan is included.”

The group sat around a small scarred table in the back of a smoky bar, a pint of ale for each one of them nearly untouched on the table.

Lauriana, Americo, and Aguilar exchanged looks, attempting to figure out exactly what they could do with this information that Marcelín had just brought.

They were not in agreement about whether Siobhan’s arrival into the royal family would be a positive for their cause or a negative. They had to be successful in ensuring that Siobhan was seen as the enemy and not the savior of the country.

“It’s not like we have a choice. We knew she’d likely join them at some point,” Americo said darkly, unhappy with the outcome at hand.

Lauriana shrugged. “I think that if we raise enough suspicion in people about how she got there in the first place then they will distrust her just as much as the rest of the family. How would she relate to this country? She has never lived amongst the people, cried in their hardships, helped them in their greatest need? They will see her as an outsider with very little work.”

“Or they could see her as their saving grace,” Marcelín added dryly. “We will need some well placed concerns amongst the revolt to ensure that no matter what she says, they do not believe her. They need to see her as an outsider, someone who cannot possibly understand what the country needs.”

“We can make that happen,” Aguilar said, eyes flashing. “Kill them all when they are together. What could be better?”

The group raised their glasses, clinking them all together over the center of the table before taking a swallow of the frothy liquid.

When Ludwig arrived at the storefront which had taken the most damage, a rug shop, he joked with everyone good-naturedly but he was mostly excited to see Angelica, who promised to be there.

He was less concerned that she was in danger, and more concerned that someone, like her brother or mother, might derail her. He was under no assumptions that they were able to keep her participation in the rebuilding quiet. Angelica had insisted on not inviting the press, but he knew that people talked. And word of Angelica assisting with this project would reach the ears of her family.

And it probably hadn’t escaped anybody’s notice that she was spending more time with him.

“What are you doing here?” A blonde woman asked, coming up to him.

Ludwig studied her. She wasn’t anyone he had slept with previously. At least there was that. But he could smell something on her. She walked like a predator. She was very self-confident, even though she was dressed casually in jeans and a button-up shirt. “Who are you to ask?”

She narrowed her eyes and offered her hand with a smile. “Emma Borell, from Global.”

“Ludwig.” He took her hand and shook it, intrigued, to say the least, but guarded.

“Just Ludwig? Did you leave your title at the door?”

“It can sometimes get in the way.” That was like taking a cold shower. His intrigue slipped away and was replaced by a sense of danger. He took his hand back. “I hope you’re not here to start trouble.”

“On the contrary. I have information…Angelica requested.”

He didn’t miss the fact that she didn’t use Angelica’s title. “Are you here as a friend?”

Emma dropped her gaze to the floor for a moment before meeting his again. “I sometimes get the feeling she could use a few of those.”

That was an understatement. “So, am I to assume that you are?”

“I’m undecided.” She took in his appearance, and tipped her head to the side, crossing her arms over her chest. “I would really be interested to know your intentions here. Are you playing our princess?”

He bristled, but there was a part of him that liked the sound of those two little words. Our princess. “Nein.”

She raised her chin. “Am I to believe that you intend to retire your old ways?”

His eyebrows rose at her impertinence, but he answered in an even voice, “Already done.”

“And,” she said, narrowing her eyes, “you intend to stay here, to make a life here?”

“Ja,” he said softly. “If she will have me.”

Emma thought for a moment, and then blinked, giving him a soft smile. She leaned forward and murmured one word to him, “Elope.”  

The last person Angelica expected to see in the rug shop was Emma, who was helping to hold up a set of shelves on the back wall. I hope this isn’t a stunt. But Angelica knew better than to trust in the true intentions of others.

When Emma noticed her, she turned and smiled. She held up her hands and then gestured to the set of shelves with her head. “I decided it was time to get my hands dirty as well. Get over here and help.”

Angelica did as she was bid and came to stand next to Emma, helping her hold up the shelves, which were heavier than she thought they’d be.

Emma brought her lips to Angelica’s ear. “I have news of Abelardo that I think you might find interesting. How about we find a quiet corner and discuss it?”

Angelica pulled back to assess the reporter’s expression, which was honest and sincere. “How bad is it?”

“Let’s just say that you got very lucky when he left you.”

After they finished getting the shelf in place, Angelica led the way toward the back where they could speak privately.

“What did you find?”

Emma stayed close so that her lowered voice could be easily heard by Angelica. “He was already married.”

Angelica was stunned. “What?”

“You heard correctly. He was already married. He was attempting to get divorced, but she wasn’t letting it go. He was trying to get money out of her, some form of blackmail. I haven’t been able to figure out what he had over her.”

And he’d somehow managed to hide that from her? Why would he do that and then stand her up at the altar? If what Emma was saying was true, it sounded as though he had been preparing to actually marry her. “I don’t understand. We did an investigation on him. That never came up.”

“He was able somehow to get the records removed. It’s as if his marriage never existed.” Emma glanced around and keeping her voice low, she added, “What’s really bizarre, is that her body showed up several weeks later.”

Suddenly feeling weak, Angelica had to lean on the wall. “What? What do you mean? Several weeks after what?”

Emma pulled back so she could meet Angelica’s eyes. “Several weeks after he stood you up, his wife’s body showed up. They were able to identify her, and her file was closed as a suicide.”

That seems awfully convenient. “How did she die?”

“Drowned. The official report shows they suspected she fell off the bridge into the river.”

Angelica didn’t believe that. She didn’t know what to believe. She didn’t know what was going on. But she did have a hard time believing that. “What does your nose say?”

Emma smiled at the reminder of their previous conversation. “My nose is smelling manure.”

There had to be more to this. “Is he connected in any way to any political party?”

“If anything, he’s the least political person you could ever meet on paper.”

Which had been one of the reasons why her family had been so keen on choosing him. “How could we have missed all of this?”

Emma looked around and then shifted her body so that she presented her back to the room. “That’s the reason I’m pretty sure he is well-connected. Someone knew the channels that would be used to investigate him. All of those channels were wiped completely clean.”

What am I supposed to do with this information? Angelica felt as though her world had been bombshelled. Stay away from Abelardo, obviously. “Do you think he had anything to do with my father’s murder?”

Emma stood silent for a moment. “That fits. Whoever murdered your father, had to have someone on the inside. Your fiancé was the perfect cover.”

Guilt washed over Angelica.

“But you need to know that whoever is supporting him is very good.” Emma’s voice was firm. “You weren’t supposed to ever know. The only reason you know now is because you chose to trust me and I got lucky.”

That didn’t make Angelica feel any better. “These people are dangerous. Remember, they were able to kill a king. I doubt they’d hesitate to kill a reporter.”

“I know how to stay alive. This isn’t the first deadly investigation I’ve gotten myself mixed up in. Trust me. I’ve got this.” Emma’s expression was serious.

“Good.”

“Also, I did a little bit of research on Ludwig.”

That had been a little heavy-handed. “I didn’t ask you to do that.”

“I was curious.” Emma shrugged briefly. “And I felt I owed you.”

“Owed me?” Angelica was still reeling from the information Emma had provided about Abelardo. “You owe me nothing. If anything, I think I owe you.”

“You owe your life to luck. Plain and simple.”

Luck. Ha! This entire time she had felt humiliated and undeserving.

“Aside from the fact that Ludwig can’t keep his dick in his pants, he comes up clean.”

“He was only supposed to be a one-night stand.” Angelica didn’t know if she should be relieved. She had assumed that Abelardo had been clean as well.

“Good for you.” Emma smiled and lightly tapped Angelica on the shoulder. “But, if you ask me, he is going to struggle with being with just one woman. His love for you might last a week, a month. Maybe even longer. But at some point, he will cheat on you.”

“Does he have a record of cheating on women?”

“No. It’s just I don’t think he’s capable of doing anything else. He goes from one beautiful woman to another, never staying longer than a few months. When that kind of guy tries to settle down, it usually doesn’t work.”

“I see,” Angelica said, not able to hide the disappointment from her tone.

“Well, for as much fun as this was, I really do have to get back to work. I just wanted to share with you what I learned.” She looked around. “Are you sure you don’t want me to write an article about what you’re doing here?”

Angelica shook her head, still feeling dazed. “No. It would just be seen as me trying to do something for political gain.”

“That’s not what this is?”

“No.” Angelica looked up as Ludwig walked through the door. “If word gets out, there will just be protesters outside, and it’ll slow everything down.”

Emma nodded and took a step back. Then she stopped herself, turned around and gave Angelica a hug. “Don’t shoot me. But I thought you could use this.”