Let the Wild Out (23 page)

Rachel
looked to where Lisbetha sat quietly glaring at her.

“It is
over. She will be punished.” Magda glared back at the woman. “Her father is
already being informed.”

Lisbetha
gasped and instantly shook her head in denial. “No, not my father. You can’t—”

“It is
done,” Magda stated. She silently urged Rachel to walk beside her.

“You
can’t send me back to my father’s keeping!” Lisbetha yelled.

“She’s
not going to be…?” Rachel glanced back to Lisbetha who held tightly to the
bars.

“Treason
means either death or exile. Since you were not officially queen when she
acted, it is exile. In this case, to her father’s keeping. He is a gentleman
scientist in the Amazon. For a lady of the court, it is as far from
civilization as we can send her. If she comes back to Europe, she will be
killed.”

“Magda.”
Rachel stopped and leaned against the wall outside the prison. The long, stone
corridor was cool and led to a row of stone steps in the distance. She took a
breath. “What happened? I don’t remember anything after Lisbetha asked William
to dance.”

“After
my anger cooled, I decided to check the footage from my private security camera
I have hidden in my suite. It’s a closed circuit, and Lisbetha could not know I
set it up. When I saw her snooping through my computers and filing cabinet, I
knew she was to blame. The guards checked her room and I checked her personal
bank accounts.” Magda quickly recounted what had happened at the ball, adding, “Lisbetha
has always been ambitious, but I did not think her capable of this level of
deceit. It is my fault she was able to access my room without suspicion. I have
known William since he was a boy. I had my suspicions about why he was going to
America, though he tried to hide them. Lisbetha read my notes and must have sent
St. Joan to watch the mountain sanctuary—the most natural place for the chiefs
to stay while trying to keep a low profile overseas. It was my decision to give
her so many responsibilities and to put her forward as a candidate for royal
marriage. Chief William is quite right to insist I retire.”

If it
had been anyone else, Rachel might have tried to say something comforting.
Magda’s expression did not welcome such sentiments. Instead, she said, “I’m
sorry your loyalty was questioned.”

“Thank
you, lady,” Magda answered. “Now, if you don’t mind, I believe your presence
with your grooms would be beneficial. The doctor has stitched them both up,
but—”

“Where
are they?” Rachel forced her sore legs to move up the stairs. She held onto the
wall but didn’t stop even as her muscles burned. Her heart beat in worry.

“Chief
William’s wing,” Magda said.

It took
all her energy, but the idea of William and Douglas in trouble propelled her
forward. She should have known something was wrong when she woke up without
them. No amount of duty would have kept them from her side. She was sure of
that fact.

Her
shoulder dragged against the wall as she neared William’s room. She heard the
low sound of voices inside and didn’t bother knocking. Douglas lay on the bed,
a bandage around his chest. William sat on a chair next to him, his shoulder
completely covered in white gauze. At her entrance, they both made a move to
get up.

“Don’t
you dare move,” she ordered, limping towards the bed. Relief filled her to see
them awake.

“Rachel,”
William said, “sorry we couldn’t go to you and you had to wake up in a prison
cell, but the sisters sent reports of their success. The cell was for your
protection until the poison wore off.”

“It’s fine.”
Rachel held on to one of the bed posts for support. “How are you? What happened
to you two? Magda said a doctor had been sent for?”

“You
bit me,” William said.

She
pursed her lips together. “I don’t remember…”

William
gave her a small grin. “It was kind of sexy, so I don’t mind. Plus, you owed me
one. We’re even.”

“And
you?” Rachel sat on the bed, too weak to stand.

When
Douglas didn’t answer, William said, “He took a knife meant for you.”

“That
is what Magda meant when she said Lisbetha tried to kill me tonight. I thought
she meant the poison dress.” To Douglas, she asked, “What did the doctor say?”

“To not
get stabbed,” Douglas answered wryly. “I will be fine. He ordered we both rest
for a few days until we’re well enough to shift.”

Rachel
touched his arm before making her way along the bed. She touched William as she
passed him. “It’s over, isn’t it?”

“Yes,”
they both said at the same time.

“Good,”
she mumbled tiredly, “because I can think of only one thing I want to be doing
right now.”

Douglas
grinned wickedly, even though his features were pale. She frowned. “Not that.”

“But…”
he protested.

“Sleep,”
Rachel said, crawling next to him on the bed. She left enough room on her other
side for William to join them. She patted the bed and gave him a meaningful
look. “Lots and lots of sleep. And I won’t be able to rest unless we’re all
together.”

William
made his way slowly, gingerly lying next to her. She touched both of them, able
to relax now that she was surrounded by the men she loved.

“But after we’re healed…?” Douglas asked.

Rachel gave a short laugh as she closed her eyes. “Yes.
After.”

Rachel looked at her two husbands and grinned. How could she
have ever doubted her love for them? Even with the Doubting Thomas potion Lisbetha
had used in her food, she should have known her heart. The very idea of not
being with them caused an instant tear to choke her.

Lisbetha had been shipped off to her father in chains,
completely disgraced and bitter. Though William apologized for his accusations
and offered to let her stay in her current position, Magda insisted on
retiring. She did not trust her own opinion after misjudging Lisbetha. The
older woman did, however, offer to come back and be the caretaker of the future
royal children. Rachel wasn’t so sure about the idea.

“It’s done,” William said, handing a rolled parchment to his
contractor. The man left the royal trio alone. “They break ground on our new
home immediately.”

Rachel grinned. It was the only condition she’d had on
marrying them. She wanted a joint home where they all lived together. She
didn’t want to split her time between the two men. She wanted a strong family
unit. She wanted to raise her kids under one roof. She also wanted to join the
clans in a way that didn’t demand the sacrifice of a joint marriage. Though,
seeing her current situation, she didn’t think a joint marriage was so
horrible. Still, one lucky, royal marriage did not make up for all the
not-so-good ones that came before.

Rachel pushed up from the chair in William’s study. Now that
they were all three alone, she moved to sit by Douglas on a small couch.
William instantly sat next to her. It was a tighter fit but none of them
minded. Sighing in contentment, Rachel closed her eyes and said, “I do hope the
house is done in time.”

“In time for what?” Douglas asked absently as he stretched
out his feet next to her. William angled his body so she fell against his
chest. Douglas pulled her legs onto his lap, turning her. He rubbed her calf
muscles.

“In time to start a family.” She gave a soft smile and
didn’t move.

“Family?” William asked. His fingers skated absently along
her arm.

“Don’t tell me you both are really so dense? We’ve had sex
how many times without protection?” Rachel chuckled.

It took the men a moment to react.

“Yes?” William asked, stiffening behind her.

“You are?” Douglas demanded, dropping her feet on the floor.
He reached to touch her stomach.

Rachel nodded happily.

The men looked at each other in excitement and said in
unison, “We’re going to be fathers.”

“We’re going to need supplies,” William said. “Diapers.
Milk. One of those jumping things that hangs from the doorway.”

“We’re going to need a bigger house,” William countered.
Rachel fell onto the seat as he abruptly stood. “I need to catch the
contractor.”

“But our house is already going to be huge,” Rachel said,
shocked as William ran from the room. To Douglas she began to speak, but he cut
her off.

“I can’t believe he’s worried about the contractor at a time
like this,” Douglas said.

Rachel gave a short laugh. At least one of them was going to
stay with her and celebrate.

“Especially when there are things we need to get first. We
need a bike, and a nightlight, and one of those children parks. The kid is
going to want a petting zoo. All kids love animals.” Douglas barely glanced at
her as he rushed after William. “William, wait, we need to talk about the
petting zoo!”

Rachel slowly closed her mouth as the shock of their
reaction wore off. Then, shaking her head, she stretched out on the couch and
smiled. She touched her stomach, whispering, “Ah, little baby, I do love those
two. You come from very strong roots and I’m going to tell you all about mine
someday, starting with my Auntie Elvie and the best advice she ever gave me,
‘let the wild out’.”

The
End

About The Author

Madelyn Porter writes sexy stories that push the envelope.
You can visit her online at www.madelynporter.com

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