Will she see him tonight?

He wanted to. In fact, in the last minute, not just once did he stop himself from turning on his heels to walk away from the white-coated professionals and the smell of antiseptic. It was the end goal, wasn’t it – to make Sophia Keller realize that she made a mistake, make her understand that she could not beat the crown prince at his own game? That was the very reason why he asked his betrothed to make a surprise appearance despite the doctor’s advise that she should rest for the day. Judging by the way the actress had reacted, she felt threatened and was poised to protect her territory. It was probably how she thought Luke would respond to her pronouncement that while she loved him, she could not bear to be a royal’s mistress. Maybe she wanted him to say that he would do everything to expedite the expiration of the farmer. Instead, pig-headed as the prince was, he paraded the said farmer to a formal event as if to tell the actress that she had no business changing the rules of the game and that he did not negotiate with terrorists. 

Nevertheless, it was entirely false to assume that Luke had given up all hopes that his relationship with Sophia would lead to a happily ever after. It was in fact this hope, despite the responsibility to follow tradition, that made him want to turn around and leave that very building even when his selfish, though quite brilliant, idea endangered the life of an innocent human being. 

He remembered being in that same place when he was a boy. Callista was just a baby then. It was the same set of automatic smoked glass doors that separated him from the man who, up to that moment, he thought was invincible. He remembered sitting alone on one of the benches lining the walls, praying to whoever would hear his desperate pleas, bargaining even with his life, for one more day with his father.  

The doctor who came out of those doors years ago wore a rehearsed expression of sympathy as he shook his head and broke the news to the young prince who could barely see through his tears. Luke was afraid that history would repeat itself that night.

“You always tell me to not worry about things that are out of my hands,” Callista consoled after noticing how far away her brother’s stare was. She leaned her cheek against Luke’s slightly slumped shoulder then patted his knee. “Everything will turn out okay. The doctors will say that she is alright.”

She may not be alright. Cally was spared from the grief of losing a father, only because she was too young to remember the funny faces, strong arms, and warm kisses of the man. Had it been anybody else who tried to reassure him with those kind words, he would have retorted with a bitter remark. Then again, it was his sister, therefore Luke bit his tongue and patted her cheek playfully in response. “Why are you here, Cally?” 

The princess shrugged. “Mum panicked. Even Nico was escorted back to the castle against his will. Philip, on the other hand, was already with mother when the news reached her. I assume that she sent for you as well.” It wasn’t a surprise that the queen acted that way. There was a lot of negative things that could be said about Queen Camilla, but it was universally accepted that she loved her children fiercely. “How about you? Wouldn’t you rather be partying with those boring old businessmen?”

Luke opened his mouth to comment about the ‘boring old businessmen’ statement when a female doctor emerged from the door. The prince instantly recognized her as Elena Villani. She was not in one of those protective hazmat suits, which he thought to mean that Rhiane’s condition was not contagious. Still, it was not an indication that everything was alright. He came prepared for the worst. Much as he wouldn’t want to admit it, the farmer’s well-being had an effect on his and his mother’s popularity as leaders. If Rhiane died, or would sustain a permanent physical impairment, then others might come to interpret it as weakness of the ruling house.

The siblings got to their feet and met the doctor, but it was only after her second sentence did Luke released the breath he didn’t notice that he was holding in his chest. Callista sighed audibly. Both listened attentively as the older woman filled them in on the findings about the substance that nearly killed the princess elect in addition to her health status. 

“I do have questions, but it can wait. There is a team looking into this incident and I am sure that they will be in touch with you on the identity and composition of the poison soon.”

“Uhh… What he means to say is thank you for taking care of Rhiane, Dr. Villani,” Cally chimed in sweetly. Her brother glanced at her sideways, but failed to make a comment. “He is truly worried. We both are, but now that my future sister’s condition is stable, we would like to see her.”

Elena smiled. The princess’ cheerful energy was contagious, but she had to tell the bad news. “You may see her, but be mindful that the patient needs as much rest as she can get. Therefore, I strongly advise to a one-visitor policy. Besides, Mr. Lavanchy is already in the room with her.”

“Tobias?” There was a time when Luke was glad that there was a Tobias Lavanchy who would fill in his shoes and escort Rhiane when he was busy doing something more productive than babysitting an adult farmer. Then again, it was becoming more and more apparent to him as the hours ticked by, that this man was going the extra mile for his commoner. Nobody did that anymore, not without ulterior motive anyway. 

“Yes, your highness. Mr. Lavanchy has been very helpful. The princess elect seems to trust him and listens to him more than she listens to us.”

But Luke was already on his way to the door even as Elena stepped aside while she finished her sentence. Much as she would like to personally see that Rhiane was well, the princess was left with no choice but to hang back and let her brother have his time with his future wife. “You didn’t even bring her flowers with a note that says, ‘get well soon’,” she called after her brother, who ignored it.

Behind the frosted door, he was met by a nurse that led him to where the princess elect was recovering. Tobias was indeed with her. It was is job, but Tobias was a man while Rhiane was an undeniably beautiful woman even for a person who came face to face with death. He nodded once to his second cousin. 

“How are you feeling?” An IV stabbed the vein at the back of her left hand. It was connected to a solution above her head that was meant to give her energy as she recovers. He dragged a chair to the side of her bed. “It looks to me that being princess had only since brought you bad luck. First the ankle, then this.” His attempt to engage her in a light conversation still sounded morbid. It reflected the thoughts that had been running in his head since he saw her on the bathroom floor. “Your doctor implied that had it been anybody else, she could have already died at the amount of poison you ingested. From now on, we will be taking extra measures to ensure that there will be no repeat of this event.”

Luke stationed himself at her bedside, propping his arm on the mattress, but careful not to touch her. He felt as though she would break, or maybe his touch would hurt her. “She also said that you are not happy to be here, but I’m happy to be able to speak to you again regardless of where we are at.” There was that smile that was a product of relief, joy, and a bit of sadness. He paused, considering the emotions which he convinced himself to be just chemical reactions in his brain. “I will stay with you tonight, but we both stay here where the doctors can monitor you.”