Princess Thief: Stealing Your Heart (12 page)

“I
had fun, too.  In my line of work, I don’t get the chance to just relax that
often.”

“Your
line of work?  I thought you owned a flower shop?”

Juliette
panicked and began stammering,
“Yes, well, you see, as a small business owner-”

Sofia
rolled her eyes,
“Oh,
brother.  Even that’s a hoax?”

“Well,
no, not a
hoax
, exactly.  I
mean, I
do
own it-
”

Sofia
raised a hand. 
“Just
stop.  For both our sakes.”  The two giggled like schoolgirls, then Sofia
continued.  “Really.  Just who are you?”

Juliette
smiled sweetly. 
“Would
you like me to answer that?”

Sofia
feigned a look of horror. 
“I don’t think I want to know.”

“Good,
‘cause I wasn’t going to tell you anyway.”

Both
of them burst out laughing.

“Oh
brother!” Sofia paused with her hand on the doorknob and gazed at Juliette one
more time.  “Still, something tells me…”

“I’m
sorry?”

Sofia
shook her head. 
“No,
it’s nothing.  Good night, Miss Juliette.”

“Good
night, princess.”

Guillermo
shoved open the door to the King
’s Study and stormed inside.  Armand
followed and closed the door behind him.

“Can
you believe that guy?” Guillermo asked, pointing his thumb over his shoulder.

“The
baron, sir?”

Guillermo
nodded. 
“He
actually tried to use the situation in Africa to guilt me into giving the
throne to him.  The
throne
, Armand.
”  Armand helped
the prince out of his white uniform jacket and hung it neatly on the rack. 
“And then, he tried to drag Juliette into it.  That bastard.”

“Yes,
sir.”

“Well,
at least now we know what he wants.”  Guillermo chucked.  “All he wants is the
crown, that’s all.  The nerve of that guy.  Whoever heard of a baron suddenly
becoming king?”

“How
would you like to proceed, sir?”

“With
the baron?  Forget him.  He’s a pompous ass.  His idea is so far-fetched,
there’s no way anyone will take it seriously.”

“Very
good, sir.”

Guillermo
unbuttoned his cuffs and rolled up his shirt sleeves to the elbows.

“Will
you be heading to bed, sir?”

“No,
I have that meeting in the morning and I want to prepare.  Can you get the
records we discussed earlier?”

Armand
hesitated as if he wanted to object, but then relaxed and said,
“Very good,
sir.”

Juliette
sat all alone on the Persian rug in the Solicitor General
’s office and
wept.  She adored Sofia and she knew that the princess meant well, but, in her
heart, Juliette also knew that when Sofia became queen, nothing would change. 
There would be noble speeches and garish ceremonies and lavish picnics and
opulent ribbon cuttings and yet, somehow, none of the money would ever make it
to the poor; the orphanage would never have a new roof.

She
wept because this, finally, was the end.  Whatever doubts or hesitations she
might have had were gone now.  Good intentions were scattered everywhere; the
castle was littered with them.  Nothing had changed because she had been here,
nothing would change.  Palais d
’Or had been like this for 800 years; it would be
like this for 800 more.

Well,
no sense hanging around any longer.  Time to grab the necklace and go.

She
dried her eyes, blew her nose.  She stood just inside the door, took a deep
breath and forced a smile onto her face.  As she opened the door and stepped
into the hall, she nearly ran into Armand, carrying an armful of papers.

“Oh!”

“Sorry!”

“Are
you all right, miss?”

“Yes,
I was just startled.”

Armand
relaxed and smiled. 
“Very
good, miss.  Have a good night.”

“Yes,
you, too.  Good night.”

As
Armand walked away, Juliette was suddenly overcome with an urgent emotion. 
“Armand, wait a
moment,” she called after him.

“Yes,
miss?”

“Armand,
I-”

Careful,
girl!  You can
’t
say “good-bye!”

“- I
just want to tell you how much your kindness has meant to me,” she blurted out.

Armand
narrowed his gaze. 
“Yes,
miss?”

“And
Alicia and Emilia, too.  They’ve been so helpful-”  Juliette paused as her eyes
came to rest on the paperwork that Armand was carrying.  “Excuse me, but are
those from the children’s hospital picnic?”

“Yes,
miss.  The prince has a meeting with the director first thing in the morning.”

“Oh?”

“Yes,
miss.”  Armand sighed, “He already had a full day planned for tomorrow but he
was quite insistent that I set up a meeting immediately.  Apparently, you said
something to him about the way the picnic was being conducted?”

Juliette
was floored. 
“He
remembered that?”

“Oh,
yes, miss.  Your words carry a great deal of weight with the prince.  As soon
as he returned from the picnic, he asked me for the charity’s records.”

“I
had no idea…”  Juliette trailed off.

He
actually listened to me?

“I’m
sorry, miss, I must get these to the prince.”

“Oh…
yes… of course,” Juliette nodded.

Armand
took three quick steps down the hall, then paused. 
“Oh, miss?  Have
you ever seen the moon reflected off the chandelier in the foyer?  It’s quite
beautiful.  In fact, there’s a full moon tonight.  You should see it.”  Armand
began walking briskly away, then said over his shoulder.  “And take your time. 
There’s no rush.”

Puzzled,
Juliette meandered down the hallway following several steps behind Armand.  At
the point where one would normally turn right to enter the foyer, Armand
instead turned left into the King
’s Study.

“Ah,
you’re back.  Did you have any trouble finding them?”

Juliette
froze when she heard Guillermo
’s voice.

“No,
sir, but I did run into Miss Juliette in the hallway.”

“Oh? 
How is she doing?”

“She
seemed quite well.”

“Good. 
I’m glad.  I’ll have to apologize to her in the morning.  I never imagined that
the baron would bring his daughter along.  Olivia can be so difficult
sometimes.”

Juliette
tiptoed forward.

Is
it my imagination or is Armand intentionally leaving the door open a crack so
that I can hear?

Juliette
heard the sound of shuffling papers.  Guillermo snapped,
“
This
is what the
steering committee sent for our audit?  This is useless!  These are nothing
more than promotional pamphlets.
”

More
papers rustling. 
“Armand,
I’ve looked over all of the records for this charity and I can’t find answers
to even the most basic questions.  And they’ve been collecting donations for
that hospital for
eleven
years
. 
Where
’s
the money going to?  Salaries?  A bank account?  How long before they start
building?  Do they even have a plot of land chosen for the site?  No one seems
to know.”  Guillermo’s voice was filled with a mixture of anguish, outrage, and
frustration.

“Yes,
sir,” Armand responded.

“It
wouldn’t be so bad if this was the only charity like this but there are dozens
more.”  Guillermo sighed.  “Who am I kidding?  The royal charities are a
disaster.  They’ve been neglected for years.  No, for decades.  I can’t fix
this overnight.”

“Sir,
if I may, it has been a most tiring day-”  Abruptly, Armand pushed the door
shut leaving Juliette standing alone in the hallway in silence.

My
God.  Guillermo gets it.  He actually gets it!

Juliette
spun on her heels and sprinted up the stairs, the wheels in her head spinning
out a plan.

If
this works, I might leave here with more than just a necklace!

Juliette
paced back and forth in her bedroom. 

The
royal charities — including the orphanages — need some serious reform.  Sofia
is a dear but she would be overwhelmed with the task.  She
’s clever and
smart; there is always the chance that she could grow into the role — but how
long would that take?  10 years?  20?

The
charities can
’t
wait that long.

Guillermo
understands the problems
and
he has the skills to fix them.  But he
doesn
’t
want to become king because of his “broken heart.”  He’s just pushing the job
onto Sofia so he can run away to Africa.

It
sounds so weird saying that.  Guillermo with a broken heart?

And
besides, it
’s
not like Sofia even wants the job in the first place.  She was up crying all
night about it.  So we wouldn’t be taking anything away from Sofia; we would be
freeing her-

Juliette
stopped in her tracks.

Wait
—
‘we?’ 
Where did that come from?  “
We
would be
freeing her?
” 
When did I get pulled into this?

Juliette
resumed pacing.

Calm
down, calm down.  Guillermo just needs to be convinced to stay on as king. 
Armand said it himself: Guillermo listens to me.  There are 6 days before the
wedding.  That
’s
still plenty of time to convince him before I have to escape.

Juliette
nodded her head, her decision made: before she left the castle, she would force
Guillermo to see how much the country needed him to be the king.

*  *  *

Juliette
sat bolt upright in bed, gasping for air.

She
ran a shaky hand through her sweaty hair.  The alarm clock to her left read
4:11 AM in bright red numbers.

Stupid,
stupid, stupid!

She
pounded the bed with her fist, then flipped the covers to the side.  Sliding
her feet into her slippers, she cracked the window and stood there, letting the
cool night breeze waft over her sweaty neck and forehead.

How
could I be so dumb?

She
shook her head, took a deep cleansing breath, and forced herself to relax,
pushing the negative self-recriminations from her mind.

Calm
down.  Calm down.  Find your center.

After
a few minutes, she took one final deep breath, exhaled, and opened her eyes,
feeling refreshed.  She closed the window and began pacing the room.

The
problem was obvious.  She was more certain than ever that Guillermo needed to
become king — and
remain
the king well past one year.  However, if she kept
her promise to her uncle — if she left before the wedding — how would Guillermo
become king if he had no wife?

The
entire reason for her being in the castle was because he needed a wife to
ascend the throne.  If she left before the wedding, who would he marry? 
Olivia?  Juliette
’s
blood boiled at the thought.

That
woman?  Guillermo
’s
wife?  Over my dead body!

Juliette
frowned, pulled on her robe, and headed to the kitchen for a cup of chamomile
tea.

That
’s when she
discovered it, quite by accident: the gem room’s secret.  As she walked past
the gem room on her way to the kitchen, she noticed that the door was
completely unguarded!

Smoke
break?  Bathroom break?

She
continued on to the kitchen, located a cup and saucer, and heated some water in
the microwave.  She retrieved a tea bag from a tin next to the spice rack and
placed it into the cup.  As the tea was steeping, she crept down the hall and
poked her head around the corner: still no guard.

Well,
how about that?

She
returned to the kitchen and stood at the window; gazing at the stars and
sipping her tea.

I
could grab the necklace right now and be home before dawn.

The
thought filled her with sadness; to come this close to making a fundamental
change to the kingdom, only to be turned away at the last second; it felt like
failure.

If
only there were some way that Guillermo could become king without having to
marry
…

As
she took a sip of tea, an idea sparked in her mind.

Hey! 
I
’ve
been taking Guillermo’s word for this marriage requirement all along.  What if
there were some other way that he could become king, some way where he didn’t
need a wife?  I mean, Sofia is supposed to take the crown in a year and
nobody’s said that
she
needs a husband.  So why does Guillermo
need a wife?  Just exactly what does that law say?

Energized,
Juliette set down her tea cup and headed back to her room.  She glanced at her
watch as she approached the gem room: 5:29 AM. 

And
still no guards.
 

She
tried the knob; the door opened.  There was no one inside.  She put one foot into
the room then stopped herself.

Wait! 
Think!  If you grab the necklace now, you have to leave immediately.  Once they
discover the necklace is missing, they
’ll know it was you!

She
stepped back and closed the door.

But
if I don
’t
grab it now, will I get another chance?  Wait a minute.  Come to think of it, I
never checked the gem room after midnight…  Of course!  They must knock off
sometime after midnight once the castle has been locked up.  All of the
entrances are locked; there’s no way to escape the castle once it’s locked up
tight.  Well, no way for a
normal
person to
escape.  Now, a girl who grew up in the circus with a pair of night vision
goggles hidden in a backpack upstairs?  That
’s a different
story!

She
grinned as she climbed the stairs.

Okay,
new plan: we get a look at that law, find a loophole, convince the prince, grab
the necklace, then get out of here!

Juliette
paced the room, waiting for the clock to reach 6:30 AM.

She
had showered and dressed; jeans, tennis shoes, and a white sleeveless blouse,
her hair pulled back into a ponytail.

She
had given up on sleep almost as soon as she tried; her mind racing with all of
the possibilities.

I
have got to find that loophole as soon as possible!

The
moment that the clock ticked over to 6:30, she tugged on the bell pull next to
the door and waited. 

At
6:31, she heard a knock. 
“Come in.”

Emilia
entered the room, out of breath, her hat sitting slightly crooked on her head. 
“You
rang, miss?”

“Yes,
Emilia, I need to learn more about the coronation law.  Do you know where I
might look?”

Emilia
seemed puzzled for a moment, then said,
“Well, there is a big collection of law
books in the library, miss.  Would you like me to write a request for the
librarian?”

“We
have a librarian?” Juliette asked.

“Yes,
miss.  Mrs. Conde.  I believe she arrives at 9 AM today, if I’m not mistaken.”

Juliette
impatiently shook her head. 
“That’s too late.  I need the information now.  When
does the library open?”

“I
don’t believe the library is ever locked, miss.”

“Thank
you, Emilia.  Please bring my breakfast to the library, then.”

“Yes,
miss.”

When
Emilia entered the library at 7:20 AM, she found Miss Juliette reading a book. 
Two more thick books were stacked next to her right elbow.

“Oh,
hello, Emilia,” Miss Juliette looked up and smiled.  “Put the tray over there
for me please?”

“Yes,
miss.”  As Emilia set the food on a nearby desk, she glanced at the spines of
the two books: “The Royal Laws” and “The History of the Monarchy of San
Morrando.”  She made a mental note of them.

“I
checked with Miss Alicia,” Emilia said.  “Mrs. Conde, the librarian, will be in
by 9 AM today.”

“Thank
you, Emilia,” Miss Juliette replied.  “You’ve been a big help.”

“Yes,
miss.  Do you need anything else?”

“Not
right now,” Miss Juliette returned to her reading.

“Thank
you, miss.”  Emilia left the room and leisurely wandered back towards the
kitchen.  She liked Miss Juliette; she was unlike any other royal she had ever
served.  She felt guilty every time that she was forced to give a report on
Miss Juliette’s activities to Lady Olivia.  But Lady Olivia had left her no
choice; her father was old and proud; if he lost the job at Baron Amsel’s
mansion, it would crush him.  And with her mother gone… 

She
sighed.  If these silly royals wanted to spy on each other and gossip about
each other, so be it.  Her father was her blood and that was that.  Besides, it
wasn
’t
as if Miss Juliette ever did anything worth gossiping about.  On the contrary,
Miss Juliette was always very kind and respectful to her and the rest of the
staff.  She doubted that anything she might say to Lady Olivia would ever get
Miss Juliette into any kind of trouble.

“Emilia?”

She
spun around when she heard her name called.  It was Miss Alicia.

“Yes,
ma’am?”

“Stop
daydreaming, girl!  I need you to take these towels up to Miss Sofia’s room
right away.”

“Yes,
ma’am.”

Juliette
flipped the pages of her book back and forth, mumbling to herself,
“This can’t be
right…”

Her
breakfast sat untouched on the table where Emilia had left it.  She was so
engrossed in her research, she had even forgotten about her coffee.

“Oh! 
Hello.”

Juliette
looked up to find a woman standing in the doorway: mid-fifties, thin, round
silver glasses, gray hair pulled back into a bun. 
“Hello,”
Juliette responded.

“I’m
Gertrudis Conde, the royal librarian,” the thin woman introduced herself.

“Juliette
Thierry.”  The two shook hands.

“Can
I help you find something?”

“Yes,
I’m interested in learning more about the rules of succession, specifically any
laws concerning the coronation.”

The
librarian considered the request, then said,
“The books that we have in here
are mostly general reference material.  If you need something specific, I think
the books in the Solicitor General’s office might be more helpful.  Of course,
it might be faster just to ask the Solicitor General himself once he gets in.”

“He’ll
see me?” Juliette asked.

“Oh,
yes, miss,” Mrs. Conde assured her.  “He is the exclusive lawyer of the royal
family and, as Prince Guillermo’s fiancée, I’m sure that you qualify.”

Juliette
considered this carefully. 
“A lawyer, eh?”

“If
you’d like, I can make an appointment for you?”

“Yes,
please, would you?” Juliette asked.

Mrs.
Conde nodded. 
“Let
me go see when he’s available.  I’ll be right back.”

A
lawyer who is an expert on royal law.  This certainly simplifies things
…

As
she waited, Juliette turned her attention to her breakfast.  The eggs and
coffee were a lost cause.  She placed the cold strip of bacon between two
wedges of toast and washed it down with lukewarm orange juice.

Mrs.
Conde returned. 
“The
Solicitor General can see you at 10 AM.  His name is Señor Ordaz.”

“Perfect,”
Juliette said, standing up.  “Enough time for me to grab a quick cup of coffee
before the meeting.  Thank you, Mrs. Conde.”

“My
pleasure,” the older woman smiled.

Juliette
knocked and opened the door. 
“Señor Ordaz?”

“Come
in,” the man behind the desk ordered in a gruff voice without looking up from
his paperwork.  He was in his 60s; stocky, bulbous nose, strawberry blond hair
and eyebrows, brown eyes, wearing an expensive-looking light blue suit with a
red tie and gold cufflinks.

Juliette
shut the door behind her and entered the room. 
“I’m Juliette Thierry,” she
introduced herself.

“Please,
have a seat, Miss Thierry.  I’ll only be a minute.”

Juliette
took one of the plush leather chairs facing the large mahogany desk and waited.