<b>Chapter </b><b>165 </b>
The new people arriving or returning hadn’te in to see them. Keira turned to Alexei, realizing now they didn’t have <b>their </b><b>phones </b>The kidnappers must have taken them. Pretty stupid if they hadn’t.
<b>“</b>What time do you think it is?” she asked.
Alexei looked out the window where the sky was starting to lighten. “I would say almost 7 am.”
“I hate to think what my sisters are going through right now.” Keira stood looking up at the window.
“You are the one being held hostage and you’re worried about your sisters.” There was no mockery in his tone, just a quiet observation.
Keira gave him a look that spoke volumes. “My sister ir is pregnant.”
Alexei’s expression softened. He patted the floor beside him. “Tell me about your family.”
“What, now?”
“What, you have somewhere else to be?” His attempt at humor fell t, but Keira appreciated the effort.
She walked over to him, then sat down<b>, </b>putting her shoulder against his, seeking warmth as much asfort. “ir’s my middle sister. <b>She’s </b>married to Roman Kingston—”
“The billionaire?” Alexei’s eyebrows raised. “I’ve met him at several charity functions.”
“That’s the one. She’s expecting their first child.” Keira’s voice caught. “She worries too much under normal circumstances. This will be driving her insane.”
“And your other sister?”
“Sutton. She’s the oldest, the responsible one.” Keira managed a small smile. “She has a little boy, Miles. She was a model once, but she’s actually freakishly smart withputers. So I really hope she is involved right now. Her husband, Luca, owns Cyber10.”
“De Santis? Another billionaire?” Alexei whistled softly. “Your family doesn’t do things by halves.”
“It wasn’t always like that.” Keira leaned her head back against the wall. “Well, it was early on, things changed after our parents died. We got part–time jobs while at school. I think it was good for us. Not losing our parents but working to get by.”
Alexei stayed quiet, giving her space to continue or stop. The silence stretched between them, not ufortable but heavy with unspoken
words.
“What about you?” she asked finally. “Tell me about your family. Not the royal biographies. The real stuff.”
“Not much to tell.” He shrugged, wincing slightly from the movement. “My father is… well, a king first and a father second. My mother died
when I was young. My brother, Niko, is the perfect heir, dutiful, serious and married to the perfect princess. They haven’t had children <b>yet </b>and
that has put pressure on me.”
“And you’re the spare,” Keira supplied.
“The problematic spare.” His mouth twisted into something that wasn’t quite a smile. “The one who makes headlines for all the wrong
reasons.”
“Is that on purpose?” She turned to study his profile in the dim light. “The headlines, the scandals.”
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15:11 Tue, 12 <b>Aug. </b>
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He was <b>quiet </b><b><i>for </i></b>so long she thought he wouldn’t answer.
“Sometimes,” he admitted finally. “It’s easier to be the royal disappointment than to be nothing at all. I have to convince myself it’s not always my fault.”
This wasn’t the arrogant prince she was used to dealing with. This was just a man, and suddenly very human.
“For what it’s worth,” Keira said softly, “I don’t think you’re just a spare.”
A half–smile tugged at his lips. “No, you think I’m an asshole with daddy issues.”
“Well, you are.” She nudged his shoulder gently. “But that’s not all you are.”
The sound of footsteps approaching silenced them both. They tensed, exchanging wary nces as the lock rattled.
The door swung open, and a masked man entered, gun held casually at his side. “Good morning, Your Highness. Miss Warner. Hope <b>you </b><b>are </b>enjoying your stay with us.”
Keira muttered, “Five–star amodations.”
The kidnapper chuckled. “Feisty. I like that.” He tossed two bottles of water and a paper bag onto the floor. “Breakfast. Enjoy <b>it </b><b>while you </b>can.” Not stepping any closer.
Keira didn’t know what he was worried about; she didn’t think Alexei was in any fit state to fight.
“Any updates on our situation?” Alexei asked, his voice controlled.
“Negotiations are progressing.” The man adjusted his mask. “Your father’s people are being difficult, but we expected that. Warner’s sister<b>, </b>on the other hand, seem quite eager to pay.”
Keira’s stomach knotted. She hated bringing her family into this, but like Alexei had said, until they saw her value she had been expendable. Usable and of <i>no </i>worth. At least now she had a chance and maybe her family could save them both.
He backed toward the door. “Sit tight. We’ll be back soon with news.”
The door mmed shut, the lock clicking into ce.
Keira lunged for the water bottles, passing one to Alexei before opening the paper bag. Inside were two bagels and some packaged cheese.
“Not exactly the royal breakfast you’re used to,” she said, breaking the bagels into pieces.
“Better than nothing.” Alexei epted his portion, eating slowly. “Your sisters and husbands are smart. They won’t just hand over money without guarantees.”
“And your father?”
His expression hardened. “My father follows what his security team tells him.”
“So what happens to us?”
“We work on getting ourselves out.” He finished his water, setting the empty bottle aside. “Or pray someone <bes </b><b>for </b><b>us</b>.”
Keira hugged her knees tighter. “I hate waiting.”
“Let me tell you something,” Alexei said after a long silence. “We’re not just going to sit here waiting for rescue. We <b>need </b><b>to </b><b>explore </b><b>this </b><b>ce</b>. See what we’re working with.”
<b>Chapter </b>165
<b>Keira </b><b>looked </b>at him skeptically. The way he winced when he moved told her his head was pounding worse <b>than </b>he <b>let </b><b>on</b>. You <b>should </b>re t? <b>That </b><b>head </b>injury <b>isn’t </b>something to mess with”
<b>“</b><b>I’m </b>fine,” he insisted, though the tightness around his eyes told a different story.
“You’re not fine. I can see the pain radiating from your eyes.” Keira stood up, brushing off her ruined dress. “I’ll look around<b>, </b>You <b>rest</b>.
Alexei started to protest, but she cut him off with a sharp gesture. “For once in your life, don’t argue with me. Your royal stubbornness isn’t helping either of us right now.”
Surprisingly, he didn’t fight her on it. “Look for cameras first. We need to know if they’re watching us.”
Keira nodded and began a careful inspection of the room. She moved methodically, checking corners, light fixtures, any ce that might conceal surveince equipment. The bathroom was tiny, just a toilet and small sink, a shower with no curtain or screen, all grimy with age. No window, no mirror, nothing useful.
“No cameras that I can see,” she reported, returning to the main room. “They must be confident we can’t escape.”
On her way back, something caught her eye in the corner of the room–a small metal cot she hadn’t noticed before. It was partially hidden behind some stacked boxes. She had been looking up mostly.
“Alexei, there’s a cot over here.” She hurried over and tested it. The frame creaked, but seemed stable enough. “Come on, you need to lie down.”
He hesitated, that princely pride battling with obvious difort.
“Don’t make me drag you over here,” she warned.
That earned her a weak smile. “As if you could.”
“Try me.” She returned to his side and slipped her arm around his waist. “Up you go, Your Highness.”
Together, they made their way to the cot. Alexei sank down on it with a barely suppressed groan of relief. Keira helped him stretch out, noticing how he tried to hide his grimace as his head touched the thin mattress.
“Wait here,” she said, as if he had any intention of going anywhere.
She returned to the bathroom and found what she was looking for: a small first aid kit mounted on the wall. Opening it, she discovered basic supplies: bandages, antiseptic wipes, and most importantly, a small packet of pain relievers.
Back at Alexei’s side, she held out two pills and her water bottle. “Take these.”
“What are they?”
“Just acetaminophen. Not exactly royal–grade pain relief, but better than nothing.”
He epted them gratefully, swallowing them with a sip of her water. Their fingers brushed during the exchange, and for a moment<b>, </b><b>neither </b>pulled away.
Keira sat on the edge of the cot. She almost touched his brow but caught herself.
He caught her retreating hand, his fingers wrapping gently around her wrist. “Thank you.”
Something in his voice made her throat tighten. “Don’t get sentimental on me now. It’s just a couple of pain pills
“It’s not just the pills.” His eyes held hers. “You could have panicked. Most people would.”
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<b>15:11 </b><b>Tue</b><b>, </b><b>12 </b><b>Aug </b>
“Well, I’m not most people.” She carefully extracted her hand from his. “Rest. I’m going to keep looking around.”
As he closed his eyes, Keira continued her examination of their prison. She checked every inch of the walls, looking for loose panels or ventsrge enough to crawl through. Nothing. The window was too high to reach without something to stand on, and even then, the bars looked
solid.
She tried the door again, testing its hinges and lock. Solid metal, no give at all. The kidnappers had chosen their location well.
“Any luck?” Alexei’s voice came from the cot.
“Nothing yet.” She didn’t want to dash his hopespletely. “But I haven’t found any cameras either, and now I’ve looked twice.”
“That’s good. I hate the thought of being watched.”
“They’lle back eventually,” she said, returning to sit beside the cot. “You need to be okay.”
“Agreed.” Alexei shifted, making room for her to sit morefortably. “In the meantime, tell me more about your sisters. It helps to think about something besides this ce.”
Keira hesitated, then gave in. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything,” he said simply. “The things you never talk about at work. What were you <i>like </i>growing up?”
She began telling him about growing up with Sutton and ir, about losing their parents, about how they’d pulled together to survive. What they had found outter about their uncle. As she spoke, she watched <i>his </i><i>eyes </i>grow heavy, the pain medication finally taking effect.
“Sleep. It should be safe now. I’ll wake you every two <i>hours</i>,” she said softly. “I’ll keep watch,”
His hand found hers again in the dim light. “Wake me if anything changes.”
“I will,” she promised.
As Alexei’s breathing deepened into sleep, Keira remained beside him, her mind racing with escape ns and worries about her family. But beneath it all was the unsettling realization that even here, in the <i>worst </i>circumstances imaginable, she felt strangely safe with him nearby.
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