"Not everyone," Royal corrected. A smile curved her pensive lips. Standing up with the necklace, she walked over to the Brigitte and grabbed her hand. "You are lucky to have a mother to care for, whether she is dying of cancer or not. You'll always have good memories. Treasure them."
"Oui," the maid agreed. "I am very blessed."
"Take this home with you today. Pawn it and pay for whatever your mother needs. Quit your other job and go home to spend more time with her before she's dead, because she will die. If the treatments aren't working, there's not a damned thing that you can do about it. Meanwhile, I'll talk to your gracious boss, Dmitry, about giving you a meaningful raise."
"But Madame… I can't. This necklace costs more than I make in a year."
Royal gripped the woman's hand firmly. "Then be smart, Briggy. Don't tell anyone that I've given it to you."
Brigitte fought tears. She was moved by the icy woman's kind gesture. Mistress Medlov was like that though. Completely unreadable.
"If you have a problem at the local jewelers, call me. No one will believe that you didn't steal it," Royal looked away from Brigitte, who wiped her tears quickly.
"Merci," the woman said softly.
"Don't mention it," Royal said curtly.
Like wind chimes on a gusty spring afternoon, Anya's voice carried as she called for her mother. Royal looked away from Brigitte to her beautiful daughter wide-eyed and smiling from ear to ear as she came running as fast as she could through the bedroom doors. Suddenly, Royal lit up.
"Ahh, there she is."
Royal caught her in her arms and picked her up to hold her close to her bosom. Rubbing through her long, black silky hair, she kissed her daughters forehead and sighed.
"Mommy, what are you doing?"
"Nothing, baby. What are you up to?"
"I had breakfast with Daddy."
"You slept in your room last night. I'm very proud of you, princess."
"I cheated, Mommy. Daddy slept with me."
Royal smiled and nodded to Brigitte to leave her alone to spend time with her one and only purpose, Anya.
"Anatoly is here," Anya tattled. "He and Daddy are downstairs in the… the… study. They told me I had to leave."
"Really," Royal said curiously. "What were they talking about? Can you remember?" She pulled the girl closer.
"Anatoly said that he had a problem that only Daddy could fix."
"Did he?" Royal placed her daughter on the disheveled bed. "And what did Daddy say?"
"He said I had to run along. Then he closed the big doors and locked me out." Anya pouted. "Why did he lock me out, Mommy?"
"Because he's up to something, baby," Royal took off her nightgown and threw it on the bed. She was going to get down to the bottom of this right now.
"Let mommy get dressed, and I'll come downstairs with you, so we can say hello to your long lost brother."
Chapter 2
Immaculately dressed, Royal arrived downstairs an hour later to have her breakfast in the great room with her bodyguard Davyd, while Anya played outside on the patio with her puppy.
The weather had taken a turn for the worse. Where the sun peaked out of the clouds only a half an hour before, now thick dark clouds rolled through the green plush countryside, promising rain and dreariness for the remainder of the day.
Dmitry's decision to take her half way across the world to a place that she had never seen had turned out to be a bad idea in her opinion. However, considering that to the only world that she had ever known, she was dead, her options were limited.
Royal sipped her coffee slowly and stared at the newspaper. Her thoughts multiplied by the second. What was that husband of hers up to?
Davyd watched Royal carefully as he sipped his own coffee and monitored Anya as she played. Royal was more than not herself today. Something else was going on. He put down his coffee and sighed. His blue eyes locked on her. How long would it take for her to tell him? He was her confidant, more so even than Dmitry. Being that, it frustrated him when she didn't just say what was on her mind, when she made him figure it out.
"Do I have to ask?" he uttered finally under his breath to make sure that no one would hear him.
"Anatoly is here," Royal said, smacking her lips together. "You know what that means."
"He wants to see his family," Davyd looked over at Anya. "You know how crazy he is about his little sister."
"Uh huh," Royal scoffed. "His little princess overheard him say that he needed his fathers help."
"You're always jumping to conclusions."
"Well see, won't we?"
"You should be focused on other things, Royal. Today, Anya's new teacher arrives. Dmitry said that she came highly recommended. Still, she'll be living in your home and helping rear your child. And that is much more important than what Anatoly wants with his own father."
"Mind your tongue, old man. I know my priorities."
"Mind your tongue and your attitude, Mistress Medlov. Sometimes, I think that you were born on wrong side of bed. And don't think that I don't know you slipped drink before coming downstairs. I can smell it underneath all that perfume."
Royal cut her eyes at him but did not respond. Davyd had become something of a vicar to her.
After the attack, he had been assigned to Royal day-in and day-out. And because of their time together, they had become family. She regarded his knowledge of the Vory, which he secretly shared with her, his familiarity with Prague and his experience with Dmitry with extreme reverence. He was like the father that she had never had at thirty-two years her elder and because of this allowed
