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Chapter 15 - Shane
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2024-10-29 19:42:56I glance up the front of my apartment building as the taxi pulls up and stops.
Ugh… The royal guards could have at least brought me back to my apartment. They didn’t even give me a chance to drive myself to the station.
I pay for the ride, but I hesitate for a moment and quickly scan the area to see if any of my neighbors happen to be outside. The last thing that I need right now is to answer a bunch of questions.
I breathe a sigh of relief.
I don’t see anyone.
Well, it is the middle of the afternoon and most of my neighbors should be at work. There are only a few in the building that don’t work during the day.
As I grab the car door, I look back over my shoulder at the driver and mumble, “Thanks.” I don’t wait for a reply before I dart out of the car and into the building.
With my focus on the elevator, which is straight
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I sigh as I look through the stack of applications. Our next batch of recruits needs to be selected so we can setup the interviews and have time to select the proper candidates before the training begins. However, with everything going on with the King and the attack, I really don’t have the energy or the desire to look through the applications and even pick any of them.I slide my hand across the stack and slowly slide the applications across my desk.How do I get the motivation to do this?I glance back to my computer monitor and the latest report regarding the King’s attack. I know that we could use the additional hands and help tracking the people who did this. However, initially it will take people away from our search to train the new recruits before I’m comfortable letting these new recruits help us with our efforts.My eyes slowly slide down the monitor to the words concluding that
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I blankly stare out the restaurant window beside me. I don’t notice the people hustling by. Instead, my mind is still on the conversation that my boss and I had this morning.A part of me is glad that Blane didn’t fire me. On the upside, he did come out and say that he understands, since all reporters who wrote an article about the King’s attack have been taken in for questioning. However, he did keep reminding me about the newspaper’s reputation and that the Glassbrook Times is the oldest newspaper in Glassbrook.I’m still not exactly sure what he was trying to imply, but I’ve already come to the conclusion that I need to stay away from any more trouble, which is mainly Chris.I have worked too hard to get this job, and I’m not going to risk it, not for anyone.I hope that Chris understands. If he is smart, he will be hiding somewhere far away from here.
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I shift around on the cold hospital couch while my gaze continues to stare at my father’s motionless body on the hospital bed.I don’t care how many times that I come here. As soon as I see him looking so helpless and frail, an overwhelming desire surges through me to capture the people responsible for this and make them pay. Slow painful torture is what keeps repeating in my thoughts.The evil part of my mind starts to churn and begins to plan all the various ways that I could get justice for my father. However, the ethical side of my brain softly reminds me that we can’t do that, along with the sound of my mother’s sharp tongue scolding me.My mother sits down next to me and gently pats my legs. “Darling, have you found any more leads on who did this? Each day, I’m hoping for two things. One is for your father to wake up, and two is for you and Charles to find out who did this.
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I sigh as I scan the little boutique. I don’t even know why I’m here. Wait. Yes, I do. My mother, the Queen, told me that I have to get a new dress for the upcoming gala event. No matter what I did, she wouldn’t give in. She has put her foot down and isn’t going to budge. I hate dresses. She wouldn’t even give in a little. I won’t feel so uncomfortable if I could wear a slack outfit instead. They have some really nice women’s suits, but my mother won’t hear of it. Her exact words are that I’m a princess and I should look like one. However, no one knows that I’m a princess. People know me as the cold and strict CEO of S & A. No one will think twice if I show up to a gala in a slack outfit. On the contrary, I might shock everyone when I show up in a dress. Not just any dress, but a dress that is fit for a princess. What is my
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My fingers hoover over the laptop’s keyboard as my mind runs through all the possible ways that I can take this story. Unfortunately, I can’t bounce things off my co-workers. With the threat of Chris sneaking around and trying to talk to me, Blane has given me permission to work from home for a while. However, he doesn’t know that I’m not actually at home. I’m somewhere where no one will find me.Luckily, he hasn’t asked me to go into detail about why I need to work from home, but I think he kind of has an idea. Afterall, he is the one that had to go down to the lobby and shoo Chris away from the front of the building.All I had to do is tell Blane that Chris is trouble and that I’ve already told the guards and reception desk not to let Chris into the building.I sigh and glance around the large living room. This is so different from my apartment, which feels like hom
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“DEE!! WE GOT SOMETHING!!”I whip my head up from my computer monitor towards the door. Trevor rushes in pushing his glasses up his nose. What could it be?As I turn my chair towards him, I gasp, “What? Anything that is good?”Trevor plops down in the chair in front of my desk and, once again, pushes his glasses up, as he frantically nods his head. He flashes me a big smile, as he lays his tablet on the desk in front of me. “Look at these.”I glance down at the tablet and my blood begins to boil. A group of men wearing all black and even masks are standing behind the crowd. I can’t see much of the surroundings, but I can already tell that it is the day of the attack.As I pick up his tablet and look closer at the image, I ask, “Where did you get this?”Trevor slides to the edge of the chair and swipes his finger across th
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I sigh and glance at my old phone sitting in the middle of the dining room table just out of my reach.The reporter side of me is itching to turn it on again and see if anything else has come through. However, I know that is a bad idea. No. It is a really bad idea.I can’t have my little hideout blown because of my own curiosity.I turn my attention back to my new phone, as I continue to type in my contacts. I can’t have anything linking this phone to my old one, even though it would be so much easier if I could download my contacts from my online accounts. This is almost like déjà vu from when I had originally left my family and ventured out on my own. My family still doesn’t understand me, but that’s all right. I don’t understand how they can’t quite see how snooty they are. Well, my parents aren’t that bad, except for my moth
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The limo stops in front of the venue, while I sit in the back seat and scan the crowd. I would rather be dressed in my black company issued outfit, instead of this dress. At least I’ve been able to find one without all the sparkles and sequins. Still this dress is not me.I hope I don’t have to go running after someone. I guess if things go bad, I’ll just toss my shoes off and still run in the dress. I know that my mother will shake her finger at me and probably roll her eyes too, but my priority is the safety of the family first.The flashes of the camera make me squint even through the tinted windows.Ugh… Reporters…. Besides the bad guys, reporters are the one group of people that make my job hard. Some of them are so good at getting things before we can put a tight lid on stuff.Page’s calm voice halts my growing desire to tell the driver to k
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I bite my lower lip as my fingers fidget with my pants. My eyes are glued up front at the judge as he turns to the jury box and the jurors. “Have you reached a verdict?” The court room falls into complete silence. A lady stands up and announces, “Yes, we have, your honor.” My breath catches. This is it. I silently pray that this is the end of this chapter of our lives. The judge nods. “On the first count of attempted murder regarding the attack on the King, what is your verdict?” I hold my breath as I lean slightly forward. “Guilty.” YES!! I turn to my side and huge my husband, Shane, as tears stream down my face. I have so many things I want to say, but I can only manage to mutter a few words. “Yes. Finally.” His strong arms wrap around me and hold me tight. His voice cracks as he replies, “Yes. We finally have justice.”
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As I bite the inside of my mouth, I take a deep breath. I need to stay focused. My eyes jump from one video to the next, hoping to spot my boyfriend and my uncle. However, I can’t find them anywhere. I bite down harder as my heart races. Please make sure Shane and my uncle are alright. Even though my mind is in a whirlwind and my heart is racing, I force myself to stay on task and finish what we have started. I keep my eyes on the various videos while I bark orders into the microphone. Each passing moment seems to stretch on forever. Periodically, I glance back at the video for my father’s hospital room, making sure my parents are still alright. My heart wrenches as my eyes stop on the various videos of people running and screaming. Even though I have the sound turned off on them, their screams still echo in my head. Several injured people are being helped away
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I look at the solid door for a moment as my heart squeezes.Thoughts rush through my head, imagining all the various things that could have happened to Shane.Please tell me he is alright. I can’t lose him now. I just found him.I take a deep breath.I’m surrounded by complete silence, which amplifies the banging from the earlier bullets which is still ringing in my ears.I have been around gun fire before, but this time seems to be different. However, the only difference is I’m now the queen instead of the head of security.A loud bang against the door reminds me that even if the room is a safe room, if Irene’s gang really wants to get me, they can find a way through the thick steel door no matter how many locks are on it or how much security is around.I take a deep breath.My mind goes back to our plan. I must follow the plan.&nbs
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To Protect the Crown Chapter 69 - Irene/Dee
Irene POVMy stomach sinks as I stare into Charles’ crazy eyes. His anger radiates off him and slams into me like a ton of bricks, along with the table.However, that doesn’t affect me. No. He is trying to bring my parents into this. He can’t do that. They have nothing to do with this.I did this all on my own. My rightful place is next to my husband as the country’s queen. I did this all on my own.Robert is so much better than Brandon and my husband desires to be the king more than his brother does. But because Brandon is older, he gets to be the king first. That is so unfair.Shouldn’t the better leader be the one to lead the country? Of course, I would be the queen then. Everyone would continue to look up to me instead of Katherine. She is nothing compared to me.The throne is meant for us, not th
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I march into Dee’s office and take a seat behind her desk, which is now my office and my desk. I didn’t think in a million years I would be back here. I thought once I retired, I would only be brought on the rare occasion something like what has when my brother has occurred. However, now, I’ll be back here every day. A small part of me is disappointed I’m coming back, but another part of me is happy, not because of the events which have brought me back, but because I can stop moping around the house. I hate to admit it but retired and I don’t work well with each other. Before I even turn on the computer, I yell out, “Page! I need an update! You better have something for me!” I’m not even done with my command when Page, Max and Trevor rush into the office. Max stops and stands in between the two chairs, while Page and Trevor sit in the chairs. Max clears his throat. “The agents a
To Protect the Crown Chapter 67 - Shane
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