Women. There’s a reason the Nordian armed forces don’t allow women to fight. They can’t understand war, not even when it crashes their own wedding, or wedding night, in our case.

Doesn’t she realize that I have a duty to my people? Do I want to be the kind of prince who asks my own people to give their lives for Nordia while I cower in some luxurious bunker?

That’s not me. And now that Jane is a Nordian princess, I fight to protect her, too. If the Sydians attack and take the city, I don’t even want to think about what could happen to Jane then.

I reach the war room and step inside. I see Breivik and Magnus standing in front of a map, deep in thought.

“You’re late,” Breivik says.

“It was his wedding night,” Magnus says. “Cut him a break.”

Breivik scoffs. I’m sure Breivik has fucked―a lot―but he probably fucks while wearing his full uniform complete with all the medals pinned to his jacket. I imagine them jangling and clinking as he plows some woman from behind so he can do the deed and then be on his way.

I suppress a laugh, but I can already see Breivik scowling at me.

“We’ve secured the border,” Breivik says.

Then my father steps inside the room, the crown on his head.

We all snap to attention and salute.

“At ease,” he says, removing the crown and setting it down next to the map. “Tell me what we’re looking at.”

“They don’t have enough ground forces to break through our lines,” Breivik says. “We’ve called in the reserves and have secured the border fifty kilometers deep into Sydia, right on the Sydstrom River. They are out of artillery range, and they’d take huge losses trying to push through.

My father looks over the map. “There are six bridges?”

Breivik nods.

“We could destroy all but one,” he says.

“Father,” I say, forgetting myself.

He glares at me.

“Father,” I say, not backing down. “Destroying the bridges would make it extremely difficult to mount our counter attack.”

He stares stone-faced at us. “General Breivik, you are certain we can hold this position?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Breivik says.

“Rikard, Magnus,” my father says. “I’m considering letting them take Syida. Nordia and Sydia were separate for over two thousand years, and we’ve only been united for two hundred. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be.”

Rage boils deep within me, but I can’t let it show to the king. Even if he’s my father.

Magnus stays tight-lipped.

“Father,” I say. “They had a vote. It failed.”

“But now,” he says, “now they will feel differently. War does that. You’re married now, Rikard. Do you want to raise children in a country where terror reigns? Or do you want to become king of a peaceful kingdom? I bet the UK wishes they could go back in time and just give up Northern Ireland. This is our chance to do it.”

Half of a kingdom. Cut in half by traitorous terrorist assholes, and surrendered without a real fight?

“I believe you know my answer, Father.”

He scoffs. “I’m still king. I’m going to think it over for a day or two. Draw up plans for a counter-attack, in case I change my mind, and make one hundred percent sure we can hold the border. I want anti-air guns concentrated in the city centers rather than on the border.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Breivik says.

* * *

“But, that’s...good?” Jane asks.

“No,” I snap. “It’s not. We’d be giving up half our kingdom. Sydia is our largest and most populous province.”

Jane looks at me tight-lipped.

“Out with it,” I say.

“I…Rikard, I may be your princess, but consider that I only have been here a week.”

“The princess cannot be neutral,” I say.

I realize I’m being unfair, but I just want my wife to agree with me. Is that so much to ask?

“Look,” I say. “We let Sydia become independent. Then what if Ossia wants it, too? Any province can just decide it wants to leave, and we’ll have shown that we won’t fight to keep the kingdom together.”

“I understand,” Jane says.

Does she? Or is she just saying that to avoid arguing with me?

“Forget it,” I snap.

She grabs my arm to stop me, but then she squeezes, stroking softly. “Rikard, I know you’re under a lot of strain. Let me be there for you.”

“You are,” I say, feeling at least some of that strain melt away. Remembering last night with her certainly helps things.

We lock eyes for a long moment, and for a moment it feels like I should kiss her, but then I realize it’s more important to speak than to act.

“Jane,” I say. “I love you, and I can’t lose you. And as princess, you are part of this kingdom. If we have a weak position going into this war, it could end with them storming the palace. I can’t let that happen. Seeing the bombs hit the capital made that crystal clear to me. To protect you, I have to be proactive, I can’t just hide you away and hope no one hurts you, I have to fight.”

I see her swallow, and her eyes water a bit, but she holds the tears back.

“I don’t want to pick a side right now, Rikard,” she says. “I’m just tempted to agree with your father because it would keep us all safe. Safe right now.”

She still doesn’t understand. What’s the point of being safe now if it means we’ll live in fear for the rest of our lives, grasping hopelessly as the kingdom slips away.

My phone vibrates, and I check the screen. It’s from Magnus.

“What is it?” Jane asks.

“The other side has agreed to a temporary, three-day cease-fire,” I say.

“That’s good news, right?” Jane asks.

“It means they can regroup, and we can’t counter-attack them,” I growl.

Has the stroke made my father weak? Has he lost his stomach for a fight? Of all the times for him to go soft, this is not it. Siegfried must be feeling pretty proud of himself.

“I need to go,” I say.

“I’ll go with you,” Jane says.

I’m tempted to tell her to stay put, but she’s not an idiot. She wants to become informed, to learn about her new country, and she wants to actually understand what is going on. I shouldn’t deny her that.

“Good idea,” I say. “Let’s go.”