📕 ANYTHING FOR RACHEL 💥
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•S v• Painter•√
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Episode_2 📡
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“Like hell are you taking my child away from me.” I snapped at him, and he titled his head back.
“Rachel, you don’t un-derstand.” He sighed. “She’s in danger, you have to let her go with me.”
I wi-de-ned my eyes at him. “In danger from who?” I asked, feeling faint. “I’m not letting her go anywhere without me.” I told him, crossing my arms across my che-st.
He reached out to place a hand on my shoulder but I j£rked away from it. “Let me come in and explain everything.” He told me. “We’ve only got a day, two at the most, before they come here looking for her.”
I cut my eyes back to the front door. “You can’t come in.” I whispered. “My fiancé, he doesn’t know anything about…”
“I see.” Pedro pursed hisl-ips. “Well, now’s a good a time as any I suppose.”
I shook my head to him. “I’m not telling him!” I said. “Are you insane, he’d think I’m a total psycho if I told him the truth.”
Pedro ru-bbe-d his scruffy jaw. “I don’t see what choice you have.” He sighed exhaustedly. “You’ve got to let me take Rose, and you have to return to Castrum de Petra.”
“No!” I told him again. “I’m not splitting up from her.”
“Rachel, the people who are coming alre-ady know about you.” He told me. “They know what you look like, your scent, where you live, all of it. You’ve got to let me take Rose somewhere she’ll be safe.” He explained. “They don’t know yet anything about her other than her rumored existence. The only chance at keeping her safe is to let her go with me.” The tears were alre-ady falling from my cheeks, and Pedro pu-ll-ed me into a hvg. “I know how scary this is, I may not have ever officially met her, but I love her too because she is a p@rt of you.” He whispered. “plea-se let me keep her safe.”
I wiped my tears and looked up at him. “I’ll come to Castrum de Petra if it will protect her, but you have to let me keep her with me.”
“You don’t un-derstand.” He said shaking his head. “The people don’t know that she exists.” He told me. “They only just found out that you are alive a few nights ago.” He explained hurriedly. “We don’t know who yet, but someone close to the council leaked the information that you were alive to the entire public.” I was still confused, but he continued. “Then they s£nt word to a small group of rebels that you are harboring the heir to the throne.” He said. “Now, right now, that is just a rumor, but those rebels will come to find her. The public doesn’t know about Rose, and I don’t think the rebels will give away the information, because they want her for themselves, so you can’t bring her with you to Ireland. If the whole public finds out, you’ll never be able to leave and yours and Rose’s chance at a normal life will be gone.”
My knees that had been threatening to give out on me, finally did, and Pedro caught me swiftly. “I can’t do this…I can’t let her go.” I whispered in horror. “She’s my baby, I nee-d to be the one to protect her.”
“Rachel, you are.” He told me, steadying me easily. “The best way to protect her right now is to just go with the plan.” He said.
“Calvin has an idea, and as long as everyone executes it perfectly, you will be free to go back to your life with Rose.” His bodied stilled and he looked towards the door. “Your friend is coming.” He whispered and I quic-kly tried to compose myself.
Logan cracked open the door and looked out at us with a worried look on his face. “Hey, babe, what’s going on?” He asked, then noticing my expression he c@m£ out onto the porch in his bo-xers to hold me protectively at his side. “Who are you?” He demanded of Pedro.
I sniffled, putting my hand up on his ba-re che-st. “Logan, this is my… uncle, Pedro.” I lied. “He, uh…He c@m£ to tell me my aunt died today.”
Logan looked down on me with a sad expression, and I could see Pedro’s look of disapproval out of the corner of my eye. “Oh, babe, I’m sorry.” He said, hvgging me ti-ghtly to his side. “I didn’t know you had an aunt, or an Uncle Pedro.” He said holding out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you,” He said shaking Pedro’s hand and I could see the surprise on his face when he felt how cold Pedro’s hands were. “I wish it was un-der better circu-mtances.”
He said softly. “Come on in.”
Logan opened the door for us and Pedro and I followed him into the living room. Logan held out his hand, motioning for Pedro to take a seat on the couch. “Thank you.” Pedro smiled politely, taking his seat. “You have a lovely home here.”
Logan beamed. “Oh, well, that has everything to do with that girl right there.” He grinned, pointing at me. “She is always finding new things to make the place feel even homier.”
Pedro nodded his head and an awkward silence fell on the room.
“Daddy?” Rose’s little voice flittered down the hallway. “I had a bad dream.” She called and Logan excused himself to go check on Rose.
Pedro turned his head, his eyebrows raised at me. “She calls him daddy?” He whispered to me.
I rolled my eyes at him. I had tried multi-ple times to explain to her when she first met him that she should call him Logan, but she’d always called him dad. “He’s been in her life since she was two, Pedro.” I pointed out. “And we’re getting married, so yes, she calls him her father.”
“I see.” He murmured, looking a little sad with his forehead wrinkled. “That will complicate things further.”
I shook my head. “When will things ever not be complicated for me?” I asked feeling the pressure of my whole life weighing me down again.
“Hopefully soon.”
I leaned forward in my chair, holding my face in my hands and trying to sort out my emotions. “You said the people just found out I’m alive.” I whispered. “Why did they think I was dead?”
Pedro peered up the hallway, then leaned closer to me. “Well, when Calvin made this decision to let you go-.”
“You mean make me go.” I interjected, and he gave me one of his looks.
“When you left, it was right in the middle of the chaos of the dungeon escapes.” He reminded me and I shuddered slightly at the memory of the carnage. “Calvin announced to the people that you had been one of the ones killed in the attacks.” He explained in a whisper. “He had hoped that it would give you one hundred percent freedom.” He said. “However, he did share the truth with a very small number of trusted officials so that he could be sure you’d be taken care of. Just people to handle your finances and to keep track of what was going on in your life.” I made a face, feeling a little like my privacy had been invaded, but Pedro narrowed his eyes at me. “He only wanted you watched in case you should ever run into trouble, financially, or otherwise.” He as-sured me. “Actually, he preferred that no one speak to him about you, because it was too much for him to handle, but then we found out about Rose.” He smiled proudly. “I’ve been personally watching out for you, just to ensure that no one would know about her.” He sighed then. “But, someone we trusted has betrayed us, and now you’re both in trouble.” He said.
“I don’t un-derstand why they can’t just leave us alone.” I said frustrated.
Pedro reached over, placing his hand on my knee. “I’m sorry, I really hoped that things would have worked out better for you.”
He said. “I’ve been so proud of all you’ve accomplished, and I hate to be breaking back into your life, but it’s necessary.” He frowned. “When Calvin told the people you’d been killed, the whole population mourned your death. You may not have known it, but the vast majority of the people had really accepted you, and saw you as a strong queen who they looked forward to serving un-der.” He smiled a little. “But now…When they found out you’ve been alive all this time…Calvin is having a ha-rd time controlling the people because they are angry they’ve been lied to.” He explained. “That’s why you’ve got to come back.”
I shook my head. “I don’t want to go back, Pedro.” I said softly. “I want to stay here.” I said a little more firmly, as the wheels in my mind began to turn. “I’ll let you take Rose into protec-tion, but I’m staying here, that way if people come snooping around, they’ll only see me here, with no child, and they’ll think the rumors are false.”
Pedro ru-bbe-d his jaw again. “I don’t think that is a good idea, and I highly doubt Calvin will agree to it.” He said. “I told you, he has a plan.”
“I have a plan, too.” I insisted. “I don’t want to go back there, Pedro. It’d be too ha-rd , and too dangerous.” My stomach did fli-ps just thinking about it. “I will stay here and deter any rebels from looking for Rose, he’ll just nee-d to come up with another plan on his end.”
Pedro shook his head, his eyes amused. “You are still just as ha-rd headed as you were five years ago.” I smiled a little despite myself and Pedro reached out between us, tapping me on the ti-p of my nose with his index f!nger. “I missed you.” He whispered.
“I missed you, too.” I told him softly, trying to hide my feelings down de-ep that I also missed some other things…p@rticularly a certain king.
Pedro’s smile was short lived, and he sighed. “He’ll never agree to this, you know?”
“You’ll have to make him agree.” I sad. “Tell him I refuse to come.”
“I will not tell him such a thing.”
“Well, I’m not going.” I said. “Just tell him…that I refuse to let him make any more of my own choices.” I told him, and in that moment I realized I was still harboring a lot of anger and hurt inside me for everything that happened, even though I thought I had let it all go years ago.
“That would break his heart.” Pedro whispered.
“Calvin doesn’t have a heart.” I replied quic-kly, my own heart in my che-st feeling like it splintered. I didn’t mean a word of it, but I knew that unless Calvin really felt that forcing me to do something would make me hate him, that he would just twist my arm to get me to do what he wanted me to do. “Tell him I don’t want to see him again.” I said, then stood up from the couch, an empty feeling taking over my b©dy. I really don’t want to see him again. I have no idea what something like that would do to me. I know I’m strong, but I don’t think I’m strong enough to go back to that place, and feel all the things I felt again. I can’t and won’t do it.
“I’ll see what he says, Rachel, but you don’t un-derstand.” He told me for the hundredth time. “He’s lost a lot of his control over the people because of his lie, and we really nee-ded you back at Castrum de Petra to smooth things over with the people and have you re-leased officially so that you and Rose can have a normal life when this is all over.”
I crossed my arms over my che-st. “I’ve come to find that I will never have a normal life.” I told him. “I’m always going to have to be looking over my shoulder and wondering what bad thing is going to happen next, so plea-se, don’t try to guilt me into coming back there.” I said. “It would be too ha-rd , just plea-se come up with something else.” I begged. “I want Rose taken care of, that’s it.” I told him. “My plan will work.”
“I don’t know.” He muttered.
“It will.” I replied. “If someone comes around, they’ll be looking for Rose, and she won’t be here, so they’ll just think the information they got was bad, and that’ll be it.” I said, shrugging my shoulders. “You said they alre-ady know I’m alive, so I don’t see why it matters if I stay here.”
“Rachel-.”
“No,” I said again. “I don’t want to uproot the life it has taken me this long to get going the right way.” I told him. “Help me protect my daughter, Pedro.” I whispered. “My plan is going to work.”
He relented, nodding his head to me sadly.
Of course, I should have known that nothing could come so easily for me.
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