Johan’s mood continued to sour after he left Tracy’s apartment. He hated fighting with anyone, and doubly hated fighting with her. But what had his jaw clenched so hard his teeth hurt and made his knuckles white on the steering wheel was how he fought with himself. One minute he was convinced that dumping Tracy at home was the right thing to do. The next he wondered whether he was blowing things out of proportion. The whole investigation was easier to bear when she was with him.

He hadn’t found anything at the marina. Or rather, the marina had seen busier than usual traffic that evening, since so many people were off work to celebrate the royal wedding. Dozens of crafts of all sizes had set out into the bay to enjoy picnics on the water and the fireworks that the royal family had sponsored after dark. None of the harbormasters could say for sure if they’d seen anyone fitting Marina or Lindqvist’s descriptions slipping away in the middle of the festivities.

Johan had a bad feeling his aunt and Lindqvist had planned it that way. By the time he pulled into the palace parking garage—his sense of déjà vu deepening as he pulled into his space and cut his engine yet again—he was exhausted, out of sorts, and had a headache forming behind his eyes. He was ready for the whole fiasco to be over, not so much so that the royal family could deal with the inevitable scandal and move on, but so that he could make things right with Tracy.

The vast apartment that made up the family’s central living area was lit up and as busy as the middle of the day when Johan got there. Arne and Emma had the tv on and were channel-surfing, possibly on the look-out for any report about Lindqvist or Marina. Kristoff sat on the other sofa facing the tv, Cassandra asleep with her head in his lap. Alek and Toni were nowhere to be found. Viggo had sent him a text earlier, saying that he’d taken Stefan home and that Marcia was at Lindqvist’s house, assisting the police.

Johan tried to take a quick, much-needed nap. But even though he was utterly worn-out, he only managed to catch the bare minimum of rest. As soon as he was awake, he headed straight for the kitchen. He needed coffee if he was going to keep going the way he had been. As soon as he rounded the corner into the brightly-lit room, he found Mack and Gloria leaning against the counter, murmuring to each other.

“Johan.” Mack straightened immediately to greet him. He paused, then said, “Where’s Tracy?”

“I took her home,” Johan mumbled. He pushed past his brother to the far counter, where a pot of coffee was already brewed and keeping warm. Without looking at either Mack or Gloria—who he could feel watching him—he opened the cupboard and took out a mug.

There was a long silence before Mack went on. “Did you find anything at the marina?”

Johan went through all the motions of fixing his coffee before turning to them to say, “No. Not unless you consider the fact that half of Solrighavn is out on their boats celebrating the wedding as finding out anything.”

“They could have slipped through without anyone noticing,” Gloria said with a frown.

“Exactly.” Johan took a long draught of black coffee before facing the two of them fully. “But if they did escape by sea, they didn’t use any of the royal vessels or anything owned by Lindqvist. They’re all still moored.”

“That’s something positive,” Gloria said, glancing to Mack.

“They didn’t leave by air either,” Mack said. “The airport double-checked everything, and we’ve got a trusted insider going through all the surveillance tape just to be sure.”

“And Carl Gustavson confirms that no flights took off from the air force training field either,” Gloria added.

“So that means either Aunt Marina and Lindqvist are still in Aegiria or they snuck out by sea,” Mack concluded.

“What’s going on in here?” Viggo asked as he strode into the kitchen.

Johan was so happy to see his twin that he actually smiled for a second. “Aunt Marina didn’t leave Aegiria by sea or by air,” he reported.

“We’ve double-checked,” Mack said, then repeated everything he, Gloria, and Johan had just hashed out.

Johan tuned out for a second, sipping his coffee and feeling as though the bitter taste was a reflection of his inconvenient emotions. He should have been focused on the investigation, but he couldn’t stop thinking about Tracy.

He hadn’t known about her past. She’d barely mentioned her family before. If he’d known about her father’s criminal record…well, it wouldn’t have made a difference in the way he felt about her. But it did explain a lot of her behavior. Just because there was a reason she was so doggedly determined to uncover whatever information needed uncovering didn’t mean he could forgive her for being reckless, though.

He replayed the way the dogs had come after them at Lindqvist’s house, only his imagination played out what would have happened if she hadn’t been fast enough. He saw blood, heard screams of pain, snarls and snaps from the dogs. He would have been helpless to do anything to stop her from being hurt.

He couldn’t accept that. He loved her. And even though he’d been clumsy about telling her, it didn’t change the fact that he would have moved heaven and earth to keep her out of harm’s way. But that voice in his head—the one that had been nagging him since he’d walked away from her over an hour ago—whispered that it wasn’t up to him to tell her how to stay safe. He had a feeling she’d gone through more hell than she’d let on with her dad, which meant she could take care of herself. But that didn’t make it easy to swallow.

“Is something wrong?” Viggo asked.

Johan blinked out of his thoughts. “Hmm?”

Gloria looked oddly relieved. “We thought we’d lost you there.”

Mack nodded in agreement.

“Sorry. I was thinking about something else,” Johan said.

“I hope it was good.” Viggo sent him a brief, teasing grin

“Not really.” Johan finished his coffee and took a breath. Before anyone could ask what was eating at him, he went on with, “Okay, let’s assume Marina and Lindqvist are trying to get away right now. Where would they go?”

Mack and Gloria were quick to get down to business.

“They would have to leave the country,” Mack said. “Aegiria is too small for them to go undetected for long.”

“Does Aegiria have particularly friendly relations with any of its neighbors?” Gloria asked.

“We have excellent relations with everyone in the area,” Viggo said. “Sweden, Denmark, Germany. Everyone.”

“Which means they wouldn’t go there,” Johan said. The coffee was already doing its job and helping him to think. “Any of those countries would know to arrest them the second they set foot on their soil.”

“I think that’s what Alek is doing right now,” Mack said. “The Aegirian police are giving us until tomorrow morning, but he wanted to put out an international alert for this very reason.”

“So if Marina and Lindqvist did set out by sea, and if they can’t land in any of the neighboring countries, where would they go?”

“If it were me,” Mack said, “I would either head for Russia or stay out at sea and hope I went undetected.”

“But we know they didn’t take any of the bigger yachts,” Johan said. “At least, none that we know about.” He shifted his weight. “The harbormaster will have a record of everything moored in Solrighavn, but there aren’t that many vessels big enough to sustain a long time at sea.”

“What if they don’t plan to stay on a boat?” Gloria asked, a zip of excitement in her eyes. “What if they only needed to take a small boat out to something bigger?”

“Like a yacht that was already anchored at sea?” Mack asked.

“Or an oil rig.” Gloria reached for Mack’s arm, her eyes lighting up. “Remember that oil rig we spotted from the air when Carl took us out in the Reliant?”

Mack stood straighter, a smile spreading across his face. “The one that none of us thought should be there?”

“Wait, there’s an oil rig out there somewhere that shouldn’t be there?” Johan was on the alert now too.

“I was showing Gloria some of the shipping routes and fishing waters from the air,” Mack said. “I dismissed that rig because there are so many out there. But it didn’t sit right with me.”

“An entire oil rig out at sea that no one knows about?” Viggo frowned. “That doesn’t sound likely. Those things aren’t exactly easy to hide.”

“There are also plenty of old rigs out there that no one uses anymore but that haven’t been dismantled,” Mack went on. “If it was marked as inactive, then it could have been forgotten.”

Gloria reached into her pocket, bringing out her phone. “I made a note of the coordinates in my phone.”

Johan pulled out his phone, then moved to stand beside Gloria so that he could record the coordinates for himself. “I still say it’s a long-shot, but there are too many details that keep popping up for it all to be random.”

“Are you talking about Storm Holdings?” Mack asked.

“Yeah.”

“They found all those papers when they went to search Marina’s apartment again. Aunt Marina sure does have a lot of information about how that company works.”

“Does she?” Johan wasn’t sure whether to be disappointed or excited. If Tracy had been there, he was sure he would have felt a thrill at one more set of details falling into line. But the information rang hollow without her, and the investigation felt more like a painful chore.

“It’s not looking good for Marina,” Mack said.

Johan blew out a breath and rubbed a hand over his face. “All right. Do you mind if I take your Marex out to these coordinates to take a look at that rig?”

“You’re going to storm an oil rig by yourself?” Johan stared at him in shock.

“Absolutely not,” Johan answered. “I just want to get a look at it. If it needs storming, I’ll call in the police.”

“Sounds like a good idea to me,” Mack said. “I’ll get you the keys.”

The two of them moved into action, leaving the kitchen.

“I’ll stay here, if you don’t mind,” Gloria called after them. “I have some stuff to take care of.”

“We’ll catch up later,” Mack called back to her.

Johan marched on, a little jealous that things seemed so easy between Mack and his girlfriend when everything was such a mess between him and Tracy. He swore to himself that as soon as things were wrapped up with Marina and the royal scandals, he would make things up to her.

Before he could follow Mack to get the keys to the Marex, Viggo stopped him with a hand to his shoulder. “What are you doing, bro?”

Johan turned back into the kitchen, blinking at him. “What do you mean? I’m trying to get to the bottom of things.”

“Why are you, Mr. Cautious, suddenly trying to handle this oil rig thing by yourself?”

Johan frowned. “I’m not taking you with me. I won’t let you put yourself in danger like that. Not when things are finally working out for you and your family.”

Viggo crossed his arms in a mirror image of Johan. “I never asked to go with you. I asked why you’re trying to take on the world by yourself all of a sudden.”

“I’m not—” But there was no point in denying it. Johan blew out a breath, letting his arms drop. “Our family is on the line here. I don’t want anyone else getting hurt.”

“Anyone else?” Viggo narrowed his eyes as he studied Johan. “Who got hurt in the first place?”

A sudden rush of self-consciousness had heat rising up Johan’s neck. “I hate seeing our family suffering.”

Viggo shifted his weight, continuing to study him. “Is this about me somehow?”

Johan opened his mouth to deny it, but couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

“It is.” Viggo’s stance changed, loosened up as he inched closer to Johan. “Are you doing this to protect me?”

“You don’t need protection,” Johan said, though he couldn’t quite look Viggo in the eye as he did.

“No, I don’t.” Viggo nodded. “But that’s what you’ve been doing for, what, our entire lives?”

“I care about you,” Johan admitted. Maybe it was the lack of sleep, but he felt way more emotional than he wanted to as he spoke. “You’re my brother, my twin, my other half, and I love you. I hate seeing you go through all the pain you’ve gone through in the last several years.”

“Because of Stefan?” Viggo asked, defensive.

“No. Stefan is a great kid, and I’m glad he’s fully in your life now.” He paused. “It’s the way you had to stay away from him for so long, the way you’ve always sort of…drifted.”

Viggo rested a hand on his arm. “I’m okay, bro. Things haven’t always been easy, but they’re about to get so much better. And honestly, I don’t think I could have gone through everything I did without you by my side.”

Yep, it was definitely the lack of sleep that was making his throat close up and his eyes sting. “I don’t want anything like the last few years to happen ever again, but with Aunt Marina….” He clenched his jaw and glanced to the side.

“You don’t have to take Mack’s boat and go out there in search of her on your own just to keep the rest of us safe,” Viggo said. “Take Tracy with you. She’s your rock.”

Johan met his brother’s eyes with surprise. “I don’t want her to get hurt either. She takes too many risks.”

“Like you aren’t taking a risk by doing all this to begin with.” Viggo crossed his arms and sent him a flat look.

“That’s different. I’m doing this for all of you.”

“And who do you think Tracy is risking everything for?” When Johan didn’t answer, Viggo went on. “She loves you, Johan. And as you definitely know, people take risks for those they love.” He paused, studying Johan hard. “You risked your own happiness by being such a stick-in-the-mud for so long because you thought it would help me, didn’t you?”

“I was looking out for you,” Johan insisted.

“And I’m grateful. More than you could ever know. But we all have to stand on our own at some point.” He gave Johan a quick, manly hug. “We’re all gonna be okay. And we’re all looking out for you too, bro, Tracy included. Don’t do this alone, not when we’re all ready to stand right behind you.”

Viggo’s words hit home, but the stubborn part of Johan couldn’t let go of what he felt was his responsibility toward those he loved so easily. “I can’t wait until this whole thing is over,” he said with a sigh, crossing the room to grab one more cup of coffee.

The intensity between him and Viggo was broken, but Viggo followed Johan to thump his back with brotherly affection. “Do what you’ve gotta do, but seriously. You don’t have to do it alone. You’re too important to all of us, and we all want to back you up.”

“I’ve got it,” Johan nodded. He understood, but he still couldn’t shake the feeling that this was his battle to fight.

Tracy downed her second cup of coffee and raced back to her dining room. In the hour or so since Johan had left, she’d gathered up all the information she had about Princess Marina, Earl Herman Lindqvist, and Storm Holdings and spread it out across the table. She’d jotted down notes for everything she’d seen but didn’t have documentation for, including a few choice tidbits she’d gleaned from calls to friends in the press who owed her favors.

It all added up. Individual people had been noticing for years that both Marina and Lindqvist seemed to have more money than they should, though no one had ever spoken those thoughts aloud or pooled their knowledge to look for trends. There had been business trips to unknown destinations for both of them too. And while very few people had even a rudimentary knowledge of Storm Holdings, one of her contacts who worked for Aegiria’s famously discreet banking system whispered that he’d seen the name once—in connection with a massive bank account.

The proof of just how guilty Marina and Lindqvist were was spread out in front of her. All she had to do was to figure out how it all connected to the royal wedding, and then how to nail them for it.

In the middle of her thoughts, her phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket, figuring it was another of her contacts with more information. She was surprised to find Gloria’s name pop up on the caller ID.

“Hey,” she answered. “What’s up?”

“I just thought you should know that Johan is about to leave here to head down to the marina and take Mack’s boat out to an oil rig,” Gloria said in a hushed voice.

“What?” Tracy snapped. She left the dining room, heading straight for her apartment door and grabbing her car keys as she went. “Why an oil rig?”

“Long story, but there’s a chance Marina and Lindqvist could be holed up on an old oil rig that Mack and I saw from the air several weeks ago. There’s a good chance they snuck out of Solrighavn by sea, although nothing has been proved yet.”

“It makes sense,” Tracy said, unlocking her car and climbing in. “They can’t stay in Aegiria, and I can’t think of where else they’d be able to go.”

“Exactly,” Gloria said.

“But how dare Johan take this on without me?”

Gloria made a triumphant sound. “That’s exactly why I called you. Viggo tried to convince him to take you, but apparently Johan’s got the idea in his head that he has to be the champion by himself to keep the rest of us safe. Something told me you would have something to say about that.”

“I absolutely do. Thanks.”

She said a quick goodbye and ended the call before starting her car and peeling out of her apartment’s parking lot. Her building was close to the marina, and it took her less than five minutes to drive there. The parking lot was crowded with people coming in from an evening out on the water, but she managed to dodge through them to make it to the VIP section of the marina.

She was just starting to formulate a plan to get past the guards and out to where Mack’s boat was kept when she spotted Johan marching swiftly up from the VIP parking lot.

“Hey!” she shouted, turning her steps toward him. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, taking this on without me?”

Johan’s head snapped up from what looked like deep thought. He was just close enough for her to see his eyes widen in the light of the lampposts lining the marina’s edge. And for one heart-stopping moment, it looked as though he was glad to see her.

That gladness was quick to disappear, though.

“What are you doing here?” he hissed, rushing to meet her near the marina’s gate. “You should be at home in bed.”

“Not unless you want to come with me,” she said, so happy to see him that the joke popped out before she could hold it back.

His lips flickered into a hint of a smile, and heat shone in his eyes. At least until he shook his head to dismiss it. “I don’t need your help with this,” he said.

“I think you do,” she countered. “Gloria called me to say you’re taking Mack’s boat out to an oil rig somewhere, and that you’re doing it by yourself because you think that will keep the rest of us safe.”

Surprise flashed across Johan’s face before his brow knit in a frown. “She shouldn’t have called you.”

“I’m glad she did. It’ll save me the trouble of wrangling a boat to go after you.”

Johan let out an impatient breath. “What did I say about you taking unnecessary risks and putting yourself in danger?”

“That you are against it because you love me,” she snapped back. An incongruous burst of joy filled her. “And I love you too much to watch you acting like a total hypocrite in the risk department by trying to handle something like this on your own.”

“Tracy—”

“You need me,” she interrupted before he could form another argument. “We work better together than either of us do alone. I don’t want you to be a martyr for my safety, and I’m sure your family doesn’t want that either. And how do you know that I won’t do something rash and risky here on land while you’re out there at sea? Seems to me like you need to keep a sharp eye on me if you want me to stay out of trouble,” she finished in a rush before he could protest.

Johan let out a breath and dropped his shoulders. He fixed her with a hard stare, but there was excitement in his eyes, and an affection that warmed her to her toes. “I’m never going to be able to let you out of my sight again, am I.”

“Nope,” she answered without apology.

He rubbed his face and let out a half-groan. “All right, then. Come on.” He took her hand and headed out to the dock with her.