Page 2 of Royal Secret

“From Bergovia. That’s all I know. She never gave me any specifics. You know how she didn’t like to talk about life before she immigrated.”

I bite my lip. The tiny country in Europe that my grandmother lived in until she was fourteen was always a forbidden topic. I never knew why, but I assumed something awful must have happened to her there. The country has been extremely peaceful the last few hundred years, so it couldn’t have been some kind of political violence.

What, then?

I swallow down a knot that’s formed in my throat. The answer is one more thing I’ll have to live without — like my grandma’s laughter and her pumpkin bread.

“She told me a few years ago that you should have this when she died,” my mom explains.

She hands the necklace over to me, and I’m shocked at how heavy it is. How much does a sapphire like this cost? Thousands? Tens of thousands?

I blink at the object, still trying to make sense of it all.

How did an immigrant who was a public-school teacher come by something like this?

“Was it a family heirloom?” I ask.

“I wish I knew.” She sighs lightly.

I touch my mom’s hand. “I’m sorry. I’ll stop asking questions.”

“It’s all right, Courtney.” She tucks her wavy brown hair — so much like mine, except now it’s streaked with gray — behind her ear. “I’ve wondered all my life, too. She told my father about as much as she told me and you.”

I lightly sweep my fingertips over the jewel. The coolness of it sends an unexpected thrill through me, like there’s magic built into the gem’s structure.

“I’m going to get back out there.” Mom stands, the old bed creaking as she does so.

“I can come with.”

She pauses before opening the door. “I know you don’t want to. Take all the time you need by yourself. All day, if you want.”

I nod. We both know that she craves the comfort of people, loves being surrounded by others. I’ve always been somewhat of an introvert, uncomfortable around crowds.

The door closes behind her, and I stay where I am, looking at the necklace in my hands. It seems odd to imagine my grandmother — modest, humble Anna — wearing something like this. It would have never gone with her wardrobe of khakis and sweaters.

“What was your story, Grandma?” I whisper to the necklace.

Of course it doesn’t answer, and so I’m left with lying back in bed and staring out the window, wondering about what has been and how on earth I go forward from here.

CHAPTER 2

JAKOB

With a satisfied sigh, I close the weekly reports. There is little of note, which is good. In the national security department, that’s exactly the way that you want to end your week.

Of course, Bergovia has been this way for decades. There’s little to worry about here, hardly anything that goes unnoticed. The benefit of being such a small country is that it is fairly easy to keep everything in order, everything buckled up tight.

Standing, I turn the lights off in the office and head to the elevator. All around me, the air crackles with the typical excitement of a Friday. Everyone is looking forward to being with their families, going out, or spending time relaxing.

While I have a family dinner to get to, I wish I could be one of those people looking forward to it.

“Have a great weekend, Your Highness.” Frederick, one of the security guards out front, bows to me as I leave.

“Thank you, Frederick. Same to you,” I reply.

As I make my way to the parking lot, several curious pedestrians send long glances my way. It’s no secret of course that one of Bergovia’s princes is also the country’s director of national security. I knew years ago that I did not wish to just sit on my hands and hope for the crown to be handed to me. For one, I hate having nothing to do, and charity work and public appearances don’t fill that void for me.

For another, I am well aware that taking such an active role in the country’s security improves my father’s opinion of me, and since the crown is passed on according to the king or queen’s preferences, I must do everything possible in order to stay on my parents’ good side.

---