Page 86 of Royal Icing
The drawing room door squeaked as he opened it. He made half a mental note to grab the spray lubricant, then decided it wasn’t his problem. He was greeted by the smell of sausage and a nasty look from his mother.
“I know you’re angry at me,” Leo said before his mother could speak. “But I need you to hear me.”
“How—” the queen began.
“If any part of you has ever loved me, please listen to me now. This isn’t about last night. This is about the people of our kingdom. They need us. They needyou.”
His parents exchanged a look, and he took the opportunity to open his laptop. A 3D picture of the new community center loaded, rotating on the screen. There were dozens of slides, but he had a feeling they weren’t going to give him time to go through them. He needed to hit them with as much as possible, as quickly as possible.
“The domestic violence shelters in the city are woefully outdated. Peeling paint, flimsy doors, ancient wiring and plumbing. Women and children who are fleeing deserve to have a safe, welcoming space. Just like they deserve a new library, a community garden. A safe place to play. This village is our home, and we owe it to our citizens to invest in them. I have an architect, a contractor, a crew. All we need is the land and some support from the philanthropy fund.”
“What land?” his mother asked icily.
“The lot off of Willow Street.”
There was a pause.
The queen took a sip of tea and set the cup down. “We can’t. Even if we wanted to, we can’t.”
“What do you mean, you can’t? You’re the monarch.”
“The land is already under agreement, Leo.”
“Under agreement? By whom?” he sputtered.
“A ski resort. We signed the documents last week. The lease starts in January. It’ll do wonders for tourism. It’ll bring a much-needed boost to the local economy. The village will benefit. More foot traffic to the restaurants, bookings at the inns.”
Leo’s mouth fell open. It couldn’t be. The land was gone? This was worse than the worst-case scenario.
“We don’tneedanother ski resort, Mother. You know what happened in Southbridge after the last resort was built. People—working-class people—got priced out of their own homes and had to leave in droves. Gentrification isn’t going to help the village. Our people need our help. A shelter. A community garden. A library with books and toys from this century.”
“The land is gone, Leopold. I need you to accept that.” Her eyes were dark and cold, almost robotic.
His hands tightened into fists. This couldn’t be happening. What now? Did he scout for a new location? Accept that the village was about to face its doom? Everything had hinged on that green space. Now they were on the cusp of destruction.
“Incidentally, since you’re here,” she continued, “your father and I do have something we need to discuss with you.”
“It can wait,” Leo said, picking up his laptop and storming off in the direction of the door.
“You’ll want to hear this.”
He stopped in his tracks. That didn’t sound good.
“Your father and I have talked. Since you’re unwilling to do what’s required of you as a member of this family, we’re cutting you off.”
His heart dropped. He used his access to royal funds for repair work and community needs. He was the circumnavigator, bypassing things that could take weeks or months to repair or replace. If he lost access, it was their neighborhood that was going to suffer the most. Again.
He still had a trust, but it was structured to pay out only at the beginning of the month. He had investments, but nothing liquid. There had never been a need for a personal bank account.
In an instant, most of his money had been stripped away. He was powerless. And he hadn’t even been allowed to make his presentation.
“Well, I guess it’s time I moved out then. Merry Christmas.”
He slammed the door behind him, then almost ran headlong into Ruby. Her hair was still sleep-tousled, and she yawned loudly.
“Watch where you’re going, buttface,” she said to him.
He took a second to breathe so he didn’t snap at his baby sister.
