"It shouldn't sound weird since it always happens when someone close to you leaves! But again, it's okay if you haven't missed me, nobody does anyway, and nobody will", she let go of his hand,
She slowly turned back and started walking to the car. But that was before Uk reached for her arm again,
"Wait!", he stopped her,
Without looking back at him, she remained standing up front, her lips now pursed from the embarrassing scene a while ago. She just hoped he'd forget about it sooner,
"If that's how you feel, why did you send me to the marketing team?", he managed to ask,
"Because you're a nice guy",
"What does that have to do with working for you? I get it, you're difficult to deal with, but didn't you judge me rashly this time?",
"Ukraine, some things aren't what they seem",
"I don't know what you're talking about", he stood in front of her, still holding her hand, "Everything I saw was normal, maybe you just don't like me",
Kro looked up at him, a wistful smile resting on her face,
"Do you know that even working for the marketing team means you're working for me?", she scoffed,
"I know_ but still, it's different",
"How? Because you can't see me?",
"Exactly",
"Why do you want to see me?",
"Because _ err _ because", he sighed, it's a bad idea to talk, he thought,
Kro pulled her hand off his grip, she smiled,
"That answer that you're not able to say is the same reason why I sent you to the marketing team",
Her phone started ringing on cue. It was her PA calling. She kindly looked up at Uk again,
"Go wait for me in the car, okay? This won't take long",
Ukraine nodded and headed back to the car with a heavy heart.
He started figuring out what answer Kro thought he had in mind. But he couldn't understand why the mission wasn't the first answer he had when she asked him that question.
....
AZARADAN
Night
Kro paced from one chamber to another, all the palace resting spots she knew of, but the crown prince was nowhere to be found. She did that from the moment she arrived at the prince's chambers and finding his absence.
It was chaotic, the maids pacing from place to place, but even a print of his boot on the sand wasn't seen. Kro had to control the mess from reaching the king's chambers, she had to find him soon, very soon,
"Listen to me, I want you to go to the kitchen, fetch his food and bring it to his quarters. Tell no one about this, act like everything is fine, alright?", Kro ordered the maids,
"Yes, captain Kro!",
The maids rushed to the kitchen as they were told.
Now Kro had to work her instincts all at once. She carefully walked, keeping her calm to avoid creating suspicions from the people she met. She walked a long distance from the royal quarters, not giving up one bit.
Finally, she stopped by the kingdom's bell tower, catching a breath from all the walking and thinking she had been doing for almost an hour. She put the bow and arrows on the ground and took a breather,
"Where the hell are you, Buk?", she inwardly thought,
Petals suddenly started falling from above like a spring street shower. Kro stretched her palm out to catch one of it. Petals from the sky! She quickly looked up thinking it's a miracle from the gods, and that was when she noticed Buk seated at the bell tower balcony, raining her with the petals he filled in a piece of cloth.
She had mixed feelings. Her hands rested on her waist as she bent down exhaustedly, exhaling deeply after seeing him safe and sound,
"KRO! COME UP!", shouted the prince from the top of the tower, putting the petals aside,
"I'll be right there",
Kro cracked her knuckles and stretched her back. She took a brief moment to study the tower. The door to the stairs was already locked, so she had no other choice than to use the shortcut.
She jumped from one brick to the other, making it look easy from a distance. She reached for a tree branch near the tower, and from there she reached to the top.
All that time, Buk's mouth was fully opened with amazement. He stared at her like that until she took a seat beside him. A laugh escaped Kro's mouth when she saw him staring at her like that, he looked funny,
"Close your mouth please, bugs will get in", teasing him, she said,
"What good deed did you do in the past for you to be this perfect in the present?", still amused, Buk asked,
"Isn't this how you climbed up too? The door was closed",
"No, I came before they closed the door then I guess, I found it unlocked",
"Oh!",
She now saw the petal filled cloth resting beside the prince, a fun way to start a conversation. She cleared her throat,
"Why did you have petals with you?", she asked,
"You won't believe me if I tell you",
"Try me",
"These petals were a gift to someone who found me first",
"Did you have anyone in mind?",
"Yes, I'm looking at her",
Kro shifted her gaze to the starry sky, but Buk fixed his gaze on her, wondering which god blessed him with her presence.
He had so many questions in his head, and she was the only person he could share them with. Not that he didn't know the answer already, but wanting to know what she thought too,
"I had a conversation with my dad today, a very serious one", he began,
"Are you sure it's wise to tell me about it?", asked Kro,
"It is, because it also concerns you",
Kro stared at him,
"Me?", she asked, a bit taken aback,
"Yes",
"How?",
"Soon, I'll be crowned the king of Azaradan. But before that, I need to marry, I need to find a crown princess before the coronation day",
"Yes, I'm aware of that. It's how things are done in the kingdom. You need someone to stop you from hiding in towers at night",
"No Kro. What I need is someone who finds me whenever I hide in towers at night, someone who finds me before anyone else",
She knew what he meant; his gaze was pretty obvious. His eyes displayed yearning.
"I already know who I wa_",
"What's your definition of a queen, Buk?", boldly, Kro questioned him,
"You! You're my definition of a queen. I know I'll be a better king with you by my side. I don't want to have a queen who says yes to anything I tell her, I want someone to challenge me, someone who says and does unpredictable things, someone who recognizes me even in disguise",
"My prince, I'm the captain of the kingdom's army. I cannot be your crown princess or your queen. My duty is to lead my warriors to victory in every battle, not birthing kids and wearing makeup all day, waiting for my husband to visit my chambers twice a week. That is certainly not me",
"I never said you'll stop being the captain. I never said I'll need kids right away, and I never said I'll visit your chambers twice a week. Imagine a kingdom whose queen is also a warrior, imagine a kingdom with an unbeatable army. My version of Azaradan changed when I met you, and I know Azaradan deserves you as its mother".
Kro got off the balcony,
"You should start doing poetry, your words are really something", she scoffed,
Buk quickly walked to her,
"I, Buk, the crown prince of Azaradan, adore you Kro. There you have it; I officially confessed my feelings to you. You stole my heart from the first day I saw you. So, I'm begging you, be my queen, please",
"Buk _",
"I'll do anything you ask me to. I promise I won't force you to carry my kids or wearing dresses, I won't interfere with your army or the training. As long as I end up sleeping in the same bed with you at night, I won't be a burden during the day",
Cold silent wind blew between them.
"Can I tell you something?", said Kro,
"Yes, tell me", curiously, Buk neared her,
"You look good when you're begging", she laughed, "I have a condition", she continued,
"What is it?",
"I miss my family. It's been long since I had a home cooked meal. I also miss late night drinking with my friends. Can you allow me to have my life back",
"DONE! From tomorrow, I won't be needing a guard anymore. You will go home or go have fun, what _whatever you like",
"REALLY?",
"Really!",
Kro got overwhelmed with joy, but Buk didn't look so happy. He was blue while walking back to the balcony. Thinking Kro would walk away quietly, he was startled to feel her rock body pressed against his back, her hands wrapped around him gently. His throat suddenly became dry, vibrations running from the tip of his toes to every nerve in his body,
"It's our last night together, how do you want us to spend it?", whispered Kro, her head softly resting on his broad shoulder,
Her question delighted him. Buk put his hands on top of hers,
"Does it mean this beautiful warrior is ready to be the mother of this kingdom?",
"I need to think about this, I need to think about this hard. And you need to think too, if you're sure about it",
"I'm certain. But for now, how about we make this night memorable?",
Kro grinned.
…..
Morning
The old bell ringer unlocked the doors and climbed the stairs to the tower. The sun dramatically rose. It was time to wake the kingdom up.
Reaching the top of the tower, the man was startled. Two people laid on sacks, their naked bodies cuddled up together, with just a silk cloak covering them from their ankles to the waist. He had no idea that it was Kro and the crown prince, and they were dead asleep.
....
Present
MD's Office
Sue had to take matters into her own hands, she was a mother after all. Letting her young daughter suffer in the hands of her evil grandma was no longer on the table. She needed to show the world that she wasn't the weakling, she wanted her daughter to be proud of her, wanting her daughter to never feel lonely again, she wanted her daughter to know she has the best mother in the universe.
She had Leo on the phone, already having a plan to save Zoe. The only thing she needed was Leo's help,
"So, that's how my life is", concluded Sue, after spending almost 15 minutes telling him her situation,
Leo was now filled with pity. She was the perfect example of people fighting huge battles silently and alone,
"Sue, I really never thought you're going through something like this. How long has it been since you last saw your daughter?",
"2 years",
"You didn't even attend her birthdays? How evil is this mother-in-law? Is she insane?", he was absolutely shocked,
"Let's just say I'm paying for something I did to her",
"You know what? Tell me what you need, I'll do whatever I can to give it to you",
"I need spies. I want to know where that witch hid my daughter",
"It's an expensive operation. Are you sure you can afford it?",
"I can get a loan from a bank if that's what it takes_",
"Hear me out Sue. I suggest you go tell Kro about this first before you burden yourself with loans. Tell this to her and if she agrees with it, I'll contact my people",
Sue dug her fingers in her thick curly hair, stressfully wanting to pull it out. She exhaled heavily,
"Leo, the more I delay, the more I imagine my daughter being tortured. I just want Zoe to be safe with me",
"Trust me, I can guarantee Zoe's arrival back to your house. We will find her, but I'm sure there's an easier way, just involve Kro in this",
"I can try to ask her for some advice and hear what she'll say",
"Good. Be a little patient, everything will go back to normal soon",
"I hope so. Thank you Leo",
"You're welcome, anytime",
Leo hung up first.
Sue's phone was now on home screen, her daughter's photo was the wallpaper. It was the photo she took almost 3 years ago and staring at it was always bittersweet. She couldn't take it any longer.
She already went to deeper depths once for the sake of her daughter, and she was going to do it again.
.....
EVENING
The parking lot
"YOU WENT TO SEE MY DAD!?", asked Misaki, completely shocked,
"It's not what you're thinking, he actually apologized to her", said Ukraine, "He really wants to be a good father to you this time, he swore",
"This is so hard for me to believe. My dad said that?",
"He did, Misaki. You'll start seeing the changes in no time",
"Gosh! I'll pop a bottle of champagne to celebrate this achievement. Kro really changed him, I'm so happy",
Ukraine looked around. Fortunately, the coast was clear,
"So, did you get a chance to talk to the new PA?", he finally asked,
"I almost forgot", Misaki snapped her fingers, "First of all, her name's Karina",
"Mh, nice name",
"She smells good too. Anyway, I found two strange things about her, very strange",
"Now that's what I'm talking about",
"Did you know that she got the job through recommendation?", she whispered,
"Recommendation? How? I thought the HR department did an interview", Ukraine was surprised,
"Nope! The reason behind that was her resume. She said she once worked as a PA for a minister. But do you know what's weird?",
"What?",
"She said it's the minister of archeology",
"She worked for your father?",
"Look at me Ukraine. Do you think that's true? I know everyone who worked and still works close to my father, and she's absolutely not one of them. If she was then she'll know I'm his daughter. My father always introduces his employees to his family first",
"That's strange!",
"Why do I feel like there's more to this girl? More shocking truth",
"Instead of assuming, how about we watch her more closely?",
"I agree",
Both now had a bad feeling about it, not wanting to say it out loud to avoid jinxing it.
*****