I’m frantic.

She couldn’t have gone far, I know. It’s the middle of the bloody night. But it’s also snowing outside, coming down heavier with every passing second.

I charge back out into the cold. I don’t know where she’s gone, but I’m going to find her if it bloody kills me. What was she thinking, going out into this weather on her own?

But I already know the answer to that—she must have woken up and found me gone. For all I know, she’s out there looking for me.

I curse to myself, running a hand through my hair to dislodge some of the snow. She still should have known better. She knows I can take care of myself—and I’m not the one who’s pregnant.

There are footsteps too small to be mine just outside the cottage. But as soon as I’m past the protective cover of the eaves, they disappear, already filled in with fresh snowfall. I have no idea which way she’s gone.

I stand on the path, looking in both directions. Everything is dim and gray. The garden lanterns offer just enough light to show me the mounds of snow stretching away in either direction.

“Victoria!” I call.

The crisp breeze carries my voice away. I stand still, listening for a response, but I hear nothing.

The question is, where would she go at this hour? Back to the palace or somewhere off the grounds? For the time being, I don’t let myself think about the possibility that she might have headed off the grounds—Victoria might be struggling right now, but I don’t think she’d leave the palace—or the country—without telling me.

I rub my hands together for warmth, trying to make a decision. If I’d thought ahead, I would have brought gloves and a scarf and some proper boots out here to the cottage, but I’m stuck with what I’ve got. I can worry about warming up again when I’ve found Victoria. And in the meantime, at least the cold distracts me somewhat from the pressure building up in my skull again.

Making a decision, I take a sharp right and head off down the path. When Victoria is troubled, there’s one place I can almost always find her. I move quickly through the darkness and the snow, ignoring the throbbing ache in my left buttocks that shoots down my leg from when I fell earlier. I’ll be covered in bruises and frostbite by the end of tonight, but I don’t care.

When I reach the gymnasium, I practically spring through the doors. But the building is dark inside.

“Victoria?” I call, just in case. My fingers find the light switch and flick it on, illuminating the large, high-ceilinged athletics room. But there’s no one here.

My stomach tightens, but I refuse to give up this easily. I flip off the light and return outside.

If she’s looking for you, where would she go? I ask myself.

The answer to that doesn’t help. She knows I often take walks around the grounds, making wide, sweeping circles through the gardens and around the orchards. If she’s looking for me, she could be anywhere.

I’ve lost feeling in the tip of my nose and at the ends of my fingers. The chill in the wind makes my eyes water, but I brush the back of my sleeve across my brow and keep going.

I don’t know where I’m heading. But I’ll stay out here all night if that’s what it takes to find her.

“Victoria!” I call into the darkness again. “Victoria!”

God, if anything has happened to her… I try not to let myself think of that. It makes me ill even to consider it.

“Victoria!”

The golden garden lights no longer seem warm and helpful. Instead, they look ghostly. Panic has made my throat tight, but I call again. I’ll call for her until I can’t speak. My head is throbbing again, and this exertion isn’t helping.

And then, just when I’m about to start losing my mind, I hear something on the wind.

I twist around on the path, nearly slipping again.

“Victoria?” I call once more. My voice is raw.

Again, I hear a voice calling to me.

I move toward the sound, hurrying along the path, my shoes sliding on the icy stones beneath the thin layer of snow. The voice continues to call out, pulling me along.

I’m heading toward the palace, I realize as the large shape of my home rises above me.

And then I hear footsteps coming toward me.

“Victoria,” I call again.

But it’s not Victoria who appears in the snow ahead of me, but rather a handful of Royal Guards.

“Your Highness,” one of them says, managing to execute a quick bow while still moving toward me. “Thank goodness we’ve found you.”

“Found me? Victoria—”

“Is safely inside the palace, Your Highness,” he assures me as he takes me by the upper arm. Another guard attaches himself to my other side.

“I don’t need your assistance,” I tell them. “I just want to see my wife.”

Both seem reluctant to let me go, but I wriggle from their grasps and hurry toward the palace. They’ve said she’s safe, but I won’t believe it until I’ve seen it with my own eyes.

One of the guards keeps pace with me.

“She’s in the physicians’ quarters, Your Highness.”

I nearly stumble. “The physicians’ quarters?”

“Yes, Your Highness. She…” The rest of his words are lost as I pull ahead, racing toward the palace. When I reach the steps, I take them two at a time. Then I sprint toward the physicians’ quarters. When I reach them, I charge through the doors.

And I find Victoria lying in a bed, an IV hooked up to her arm. All my worst fears hit me at once.

“Victoria,” I say, falling to my knees next to the bed, my arm around her. I bury my face in her hair, breathing in the scent of her.

“You’re freezing,” she says.

“I’m sorry.” I force myself to straighten, even though it pains me not to be closer to her. “God, I thought you were…” My voice is scratchy and rough. “Why did you leave the cottage?”

Confusion flashes across her face. “Me? You were the one who disappeared in the middle of the night. And then I woke up and couldn’t find you, and then the contractions started—”

“Contractions?” I grip her hand. “You’re having contractions? Is the baby—?”

“The baby is fine,” she says gently, stroking the back of my hand. “They think I’m dehydrated, that’s all.”

“Oh,” I say, sitting back slightly. “That’s…” I rub my hair. It’s wet in places and frozen in others. “You have no idea how worried I was. You never should have ventured out alone. Not in that weather.”

“Look who’s talking,” she says, eyebrow raised. “I could say the same of you.”

“That’s different. I’m not carrying a baby.”

“What was I supposed to do? Wait in that cottage for you? I had no idea where you were or when you were coming back. I was having contractions, and I—” She cuts herself off abruptly, shaking her head. “You know what? I don’t want to fight about this. I don’t want to fight at all.”

“I don’t want to fight, either.”

Her fingers run across mine. “You really should let them look at you. Your hands are so cold.”

“I’m fine,” I assure her.

“You’re shivering.”

“I’ll warm up soon.”

“The end of your nose is bright red, and—”

I silence her with a kiss. I feel her smile against my mouth, and I pull back slightly.

“What?” I ask her lightly.

“Your lips are freezing,” she says, smiling. “Promise me you’ll at least let them look at you.”

“Fine, I promise. But first, I want to look at you a little longer.” I weave my hand in her hair, looking down at her. All the fears that surfaced out there in the orchard come rushing back, but I push them down. I need to be strong for her, now more than ever. I can’t ever let her know how afraid I am. Can’t ever let her know that I nearly broke down.

I love her so much I don’t know what to do with myself. If anything ever happened to her…

“Everything will be fine,” I tell her softly. My voice is still ragged, and now that I know she’s safe, my head is aching again. “For now, though, maybe I should let you get some sleep.”

“Okay.” She grabs my fingers and gives them a squeeze. “Go let the physician look at you.”

I laugh. “I’m just a little cold, that’s all.” And probably a little dehydrated myself, given the pounding behind my eyes. Some warm blankets, some water, and some sleep should be all I need.

I’m still smiling down at her as I climb to my feet. As I straighten, though, all the blood seems to rush through me at once, making me dizzy.

“Andrew?” Victoria says, her eyes wide. “Are you—?”

“I’m fine,” I assure her again, giving a dismissive wave of my hand. But even that small gesture throws me off-balance, and I sag against the bed.

There’s a pounding in my temples as the room around me goes white, everything else disappearing.