The whole falling on his sword thing 2

The whole falling on his sword thing 2
Jesse sped away from the scene, following Emily's car as she zipped through traffic like a crazy woman.

“What is going on?” I screamed into the phone when Troy called back. “What's the parcel? What are you and Emily into? Because the big, scary, angry dude with a shit ton of soldiers really wants it back!”

“Shit. She must have intercepted Dormer.”

“You mean the dead guy? Big, scary, angry dude iced some dude back there.”

“Wonderful. Of all fucking days for her to be one step ahead! Where is she?”

“Why am I the only one sharing here?!”

“Aaron, big, scary, angry dude is Dean, my brother. The new King of Wars. I need to get to what Emily took before he does. If he gets it, she's dead. Now where is she?!”

I hesitated. I just had a shitload of people shoot at me, around me, and I couldn't think. Who was I supposed to trust?

“Aaron!”

The anxiety was getting to me. Troy took a deep breath.

“This parcel is important to Aria. Losing him like this will crush her.”

Troy just had to mention her, didn't he?

“She's headed to the penthouse suite at Elegantor Ludo.”

“Stay on her. I'm coming.”

When I got to Elegantor Ludo, Emily had already made it up to her room. I walked through the doors like I owned the place, past The Purple Guard soldiers who didn't dare intercept a pissed off prince and banged on the room door. When she didn't open up, I shot the lock and kicked in the door. I walked straight up to Emily and grabbed her shoulders.

“Talk!”

“Trust me, you don't want to be involved in this,” said Emily.

“I'm sorry. Did someone else just save your ass? Explain yourself!”

Troy and his men showed up then.

“Secure the room. Find the kid,” Troy said, watching them fill the room.

Emily whipped her head in my direction.

“You called him?!”

“What kid?” I asked.

Emily and Troy exchanged heated glares.

“You know what? Forget this. What does all of this have to do with Adele?”

I meant to say Aria, but I was tired and confused out of my mind.

Troy gave me a surprised look.

“Since when do you use Aria's middle name?”

My grip on Emily's shoulders tightened. I could see it in her eyes. It was true. They were one and the same.

“You told me Adele was dead, Em. You said she died long before the war even began with the royal family!”

“That's because I thought she had,” Emily sighed. “But then—”

(Troy)

I took Aaron in, the rage, the devastation on his face. I heard from Ethan that there was a guy. Aria was apparently completely mad for him at the time. She did say she and Aaron were a thing a long time ago. So it wasn't that he forgot her after all. Seeing her after being told she was dead probably just fucked with his head.

I turned my eyes on Emily.

“You need help,” I said to her. “It's true that when the news of the royal family's deaths was initially reported, Aria Adele Maine was reported as dead, but obviously that's not what happened. She's very much alive, Aaron. You're not crazy. She's the woman you knew in Sartis Est.”

I knew I was messing with my chances with Aria by confirming this truth for Aaron, but Aaron had just saved Ethan from Dean. I was in his debt. Besides, letting the vulture weasel her way out of this one just seemed too cruel. If I was going to get the girl, it was going to be all me, not because Aaron Condor didn't know shit.

“This is so fucked up. I trusted you! I called my own fucking memory into question because of you! Do you have any idea how difficult it was to see her and keep telling myself it's not her because Emily confirmed her death?!” Aaron raged.

“Ronnie—” Emily said meekly, lip trembling.

“Why the fuck would you do this?! Why would you take me from her when she needed me the most?!”

“It was a fling! You were going to hurt her. She didn't—”

“I was in love with her! I was fucking in love with her!”

Aaron was in a state. Guessing and having it confirmed were two different things. He was mad as fuck. Destroyed. He looked like he wanted to rip Emily's throat out.

He looked Emily straight in the eye and said, “Stay the fuck away from her. We're finished. There's nothing here anymore. We're not friends, we're not anything. You're dead to me.”

By this time, baby Ethan had been found and I was ready to take him home. I wanted to rip into Emily too, but the shock and horror on her face said it all. This woman had already had her heart torn to shreds by a man she was clearly in love with.

“She'll be actually dead if you don't get her out of here. Dean will come for her. He'll come for this guy,” I said, looking down at baby Ethan.

“Whose kid is he, Troy?”

Aaron had already put two and two together, but clearly he needed shit confirmed for him. Lest he fuck up again like last time, when he let the woman he loved go to war without him.

“Diane and Ethan's.”

“Right. I want to see her, to tell her I never walked away. Not on purpose,” said Aaron.

“Get your shit together, Aaron. I'm taking her and baby Ethan to my base, where it will be safer for both of them. Give her a few days to deal with the kid.”

“You mean so that you can play happy family?”

I chuckled. “I doubt she's going to be too crazy about me for a while. I didn't tell her about the kid.” Troy shrugged. “If you want to see her and she wants to see you, I won't prevent it. You have my word.”

As I walked out the door with my men surrounding us, Aaron called after me, “I will come for her, you know.”
“I'm counting on it, Your Highness.”

“Let's go,” Aaron said to Emily with disdain.

“Aaron, you have to know—” she tried, but he shut her down.

“I don't want to hear it, Emily. Let's just go before I change my mind and throw you to the wolves."

Half an hour later, I had just arrived at the base when Dormer's name lit up the screen of my phone.

“You killed Neil? The Dormers won't be happy," I said, no doubt in my mind about who was on the other end of the line as I answered.

“Neil should have followed orders like a good boy. Where's the kid, Troy?”

Hearing his voice pissed me off anyway. Regret. Fear. Troy Pierce didn't do that shit. So I buried it under the anger and took my fucking win.

“I've had a long day, Dean. If you want to come for me, fucking come. Otherwise, kindly piss off,” I said, ending the call and pocketing my phone.

Baby Ethan and I were in the nursery. I held the child up, took him in, looked for the pieces of Diane in him. Relief flowed through me as I let everything else go to focus on the kid.

“You're oddly comforting, you know that? I'm sorry I couldn't save them for you, kid, but I promise you, I will save you. No matter what.”