"I have faith in her abilities to discriminate between someone who is genuine and one who is manipulative," he said, not missing a beat.

"Thank you for your opinion," she said. Maybe she was too hard on her daughter and maybe she should reserve judgment, at least a little bit until she met him. "As soon as you have that report," she said, smiling.

Gerald nodded without emotion and was gone.

Gerald was certainly used to keeping secrets and lying to the Queen, but usually the lies were dictated by the Underground. This time, he was making up the fake history of Joe Merino.

"He is from a middle-cla.s.s family in Kansas City, was able to finish high-school and has been working for Kelly Boys for many years. Just as Shayla indicated, he specializes as a meeting scribe, especially for large groups. He is noted for his accuracy in those environments," Gerald said, as he surveyed the Queen's reactions.

"Hmmm... No Taser record?" she asked, squinting, which was her tell-tale sign of great pondering.

"No, your majesty," he said, trying to decide whether to fabricate additional details about him. "He is nearly 22 years old and has attended many POAs in Kansas City."

"Dating history?" she asked.

"He has dated a number of women via the POAs and the women who choose him are often business women," Gerald said.

"Yes, but they don't keep dating him, now do they? n.o.body has proposed to him, to the best of our knowledge, isn't that true? There must be something wrong with him," the Queen said, clearly searching for any crumb leading toward disapproval.

"Permission to speak frankly, your majesty?" he asked. His heart beat wildly, as he rarely offered his opinion without her asking, but knew he needed to put her mind at ease about Joe Merino.

"Of course, Gerald. Please," she said invitingly.

"I think he is a fine young man, and Shayla seems happy," he said, trying to choose his words carefully while maintaining the neutral facial expression he honed over the years, to mask his truth.

"Thank you, Gerald," she said, in a way that he knew meant the Queen didn't want to hear anymore.

He nodded, feeling relieved, and slightly concerned, as he opened the door to leave.

"One more thing. May I have the written report of all you've found out about Joe Merino? I'd like to look it over a bit," the Queen asked casually. Gerald's heartbeat quickened as he answered.

"I don't have it with me, but..."

"Actually, never mind. You told me all I need to know," she said interrupting him, sounding defeated, as she waved him away.

He stepped outside her office, feeling the small beads of perspiration at his temples, and hoped she hadn't noticed. He was pretty sure she bought his story. In any case, he had done all he could, but he still had to report back to the Underground.

He left the Palace later that day to take a walk. The brisk autumn Washington D.C. air was refreshing.

"I think I convinced her that Joe Merino is a good guy, or at least he's not a bad guy," Gerald told Simon on the phone.

"Let's hope so because he's going to be there tomorrow and it's a miniscule window to win her approval."

"What happens after tomorrow?" Gerald asked.

"I'm not at liberty to say," Simon said, curtly.

Gerald thought this was getting ridiculous. He had dedicated his entire adult life to the Underground, and felt severely insulted that all-of-a-sudden, this young guy comes along and starts acting like Gerald isn't trustworthy. Simon seemed to be on some sort of power trip that made Gerald want to pummel him sometimes. Of course, there would never be that opportunity. They'd never met face-to-face and probably never would.

"Understood," Gerald said with the air of professionalism that revealed nothing. "One more question, sir," he said.

"What is it?"

"May I reveal myself to Joe Merino when he arrives?"

"Absolutely not!"

"I was simply asking," Gerald said, holding back his anger. When he dealt with Chester directly, there was a great deal more respect, but that contact ended nearly two years earlier. "It's too dangerous," Chester had said.

Not only did he miss the respectful exchanges, but he missed his friend. Their bond went back to the castration recovery room where they met, laying side by side. Gerald trusted Chester, but he couldn't say the same of Simon.

Despite orders, Gerald had half a mind to call Chester at the bakery. He took a deep breath, and reminded himself of the goals.

Simon was just one cog in the wheel. The years of sacrifice involved many, and Gerald needed to take one more for the team.

Chapter 31.

"I can't wait for you to meet Gerald," Shayla said, her eyes bright. Nathaniel didn't feel the luxury of any excitement with regard to his pending visit to the Palace, no matter how wonderful Gerald might be. All he could think about was the Queen and the dangerous waters he would enter the moment he stepped into the Palace.

"What if she finds out who I am and turns me directly over to the C Center?" he asked Shayla.

"You're with me. My mother would never hurt anyone I care for, no matter the circ.u.mstances. Don't be so nervous," Shayla said, as though he was being silly. What person wouldn't be nervous meeting the Queen? And he wasn't just anyone. He had secrets.

Nathaniel admired Shayla's confidence, but wasn't certain that Shayla's upbringing could give her clarity about the Queen.

"Come here," she said, hugging Nathaniel. He knew she was trying to rea.s.sure him, but he would need more than a hug to feel at ease in front of the Queen. Despite Shayla's insistence that her mother didn't care about a missing manual laborer from Cambridge, Shayla didn't know the truth and couldn't possibly think of her mother objectively.

"What should I call her? Your highness? Your majesty? Ma'am?"

"Call her 'Your Majesty.' For now, that is. In time, things will be different," she said before kissing him pa.s.sionately. He didn't share her casual att.i.tude toward his visit to the Palace. He couldn't help but think about the Underground, and he was downright terrified. They explicitly forbade him from contacting anyone he had ever known prior to entering the Underground.

He didn't seek out Shayla, but even though their reunion was serendipitous, this was only true to a degree. The Underground certainly wouldn't condone what he had divulged to Shayla.

Had the Underground caught wind of the fact that he was dating the Queen's daughter? He hadn't heard from them since Garrett disappeared.

Sometimes he felt a set of eyes on him as he walked down the street and felt like he was being followed. Was it his imagination? If it was real, would they punish him for divulging Underground secrets to Shayla?

"You're going to be wonderful. Use your gentlemanly skills. I love you, Nathaniel DeLuca," she whispered softly. He looked into her eyes and his worries fell away as he grew hard.

"I love you, too, Shayla Smith," he said before kissing her as he guided her hand toward his fly. She unzipped it and wrapped her hand around him, moving quickly as he looked into her eyes.

"I want you, now," he said. She led him to the bedroom and they each threw their clothes onto the floor. "I can't wait," he said, moving to take her.

"Lie down," she said, teasingly, as she pushed him away. He quickly climbed on the bed, and she slowly kissed him on the mouth, as she lightly touched his b.a.l.l.s, causing him to moan quietly.

"I can't take your teasing," he said.

"I'm going to make you wait," she said, laughing, as she kissed him one more time before moving down to take him in her mouth, fully, deeply, over and over.

"I'm gonna come," he said to her, and she withdrew her mouth and smiled at him.

Before she knew it, he grabbed her hips and positioned her on top of him. She cried out in pleasure as she moved up and down, feeling him inside of her in a way that felt just right. He couldn't hold back and she felt the warmth as he finished. She collapsed on top of him.

"Sleep tight, my love," she said, as he fell asleep wrapped around her.

"...Remember, I might need the favor returned," Garrett said, his face bloodied, as he looked into Nathaniel's eyes.

Nathaniel bolted upright, his heart pounding as he looked around the room. He was in Shayla's bedroom, and there she was sleeping peacefully beside him, the sheets having fallen off, exposing one of her perfect b.r.e.a.s.t.s. He lightly touched her, just to be sure she was really there. He looked at the clock. The red digital numbers read 3:15 in a blood-red color that reminded him of Garrett's b.l.o.o.d.y face. He looked away and flinched, accidentally hitting Shayla.

"What is it?" Shayla said.

"Just a bad dream," Nathaniel whispered, trying to downgrade it to Shayla and to himself. He wondered what was going to happen when the Underground found out he was sleeping with the enemy's daughter.

He heard Shayla's breaths return to a slow peaceful rhythm, but his eyes remained wide open.

Until he went into that Palace, and returned home in one piece with Shayla on his arm, he would not be able to shake these thoughts.

With Shayla's hand entwined in his, Nathaniel walked down the Palace corridor. The intricate plaster medallions that sat in the middle of the ceiling complemented the crown moldings that were unlike anything Nathaniel had ever seen. The grandeur was beautiful a and intimidating. As they made their way closer to the security desk, he felt Shayla pick up the pace. His instinct was to run the other way, as he felt like he was entering a prison where he'd be interrogated.

"Good afternoon," Shayla, the guard said smiling, not acknowledging Nathaniel in any way.

"How are you today?" she said, with as happy a tone as he had ever heard her utter.

"I am well. The Queen is expecting you, of course."

"Thank you," she said just as Gerald walked toward her.

"This is Joe. Joe Merino," she said, feeling his new name become more natural as she said it.

"Nice to meet you, Joe. I'm pleased you've decided to join us. The Queen apologizes she can't be here to greet you, but she is finishing up an overseas call."

"Oh, I certainly understand," Nathaniel said. Nathaniel couldn't help but notice that he was a Spot. The purple tattoo appeared to be old, blurring at the edges, but clearly visible nonetheless.

"Come and I will make you comfortable," Gerald said, turning to lead them.

"Actually, I was going to give Joe a little tour of the Palace. I want to show him my quarters," Shayla said.

"Of course," Gerald said, formally as he motioned for Shayla to lead the way. "Would you like me to escort you?"

"I'll just walk him through and then meet up in mother's main living room in a little while," she said to Gerald who nodded and walked in a different direction.

Nathaniel watched him walk away. From Shayla's description, Nathaniel thought Gerald would be more relaxed and casual, but he was very formal. Maybe he was different when he was alone with Shayla, and not officially working. His intimidating height also struck Nathaniel. He had to be 6 foot 3.

"How'd I do?" Nathaniel whispered to Shayla when Gerald seemed out of earshot.

"You were perfect," she whispered back, before kissing him on the cheek.

"He's not what I expected, kind of off-putting," Nathaniel said.

"He's serious, but kind and gentle," Shayla said with affection.

Although Nathaniel knew it would be lavish, he was not prepared for the Palace to be so intimidating. The walls were decorated with breathtaking portraits of previous queens, large and luminous.

There was even a childhood portrait of Shayla, looking unhappy.

When they reached the portrait of her father, Nathaniel stopped.

"What is it?" Shayla started to ask, but then she noticed what he was looking at. "You would have liked him and he certainly would have liked you," Shayla said quietly as her father's towering likeness looked down on them. Nathaniel noticed a glimpse of Shayla in the shape of his face and the dark hair color, perfectly coifed. He looked more serious than the portrait of the Queen. Nathaniel understood why. Living a double-life left little room for laughter.

Shayla squeezed Nathaniel's hand and led him forward.

I hope he will watch over me from wherever he is, Nathaniel thought as they walked away.

"Well h.e.l.lo, darling," the Queen said as she walked toward them. Her smile was perfect, just like he'd seen in every photo of her. It was strange to see her in person. She was shorter than he imagined, but her presence was p.r.o.nounced, accentuated by the shimmery silk sari that made her sparkle in a way unlike anyone he'd ever seen.

"Hi mother," Shayla said, before quickly embracing her mother. A brief brushed ceremonial kiss on each cheek completed the greeting.

"Mother, this is Joe Merino," Shayla said, standing back, smiling proudly.

"It's a pleasure," the Queen said, holding out her perfectly manicured hand that was cold to the touch.

"It's really an honor, your Majesty. Thank you for the invitation," he said, stopping himself before he laid it on any thicker than he already had. Relax, he told himself. He bowed his head, showing proper respect to her, the way Shayla rehea.r.s.ed him.

"Shall we dine?" the Queen asked.

"Thank you," he said, as the Queen led them to the dinner table, just as two white-gloved servants quietly entered. One had a bottle of wine and a pitcher of water and the other had a basket full of bread that smelled like it was just out of the oven. They sat silently as the servers poured water and wine and the bread server placed a steaming roll on each bread plate. Nathaniel couldn't help but notice the Queen's crest embossed on the perfectly sized roll. It was the same crest that was on Shayla's father's jacket from the portrait they pa.s.sed in the hallway.

"So Joe, how did you decide to work for Kelly Boys?" she asked with the interest of asking someone the meaning of life.

"Mother... please. This is not an interview!" Shayla said.

"Shayla, it's okay," Nathaniel said putting down his fork. He heard his Underground instructor whisper in his ear. "Look them in the eye with confidence, and the other person will sense it."

"I have been working for Kelly Boys for a while and I enjoy the variety of the work and the travel that allows me to see different places," he said holding her gaze dead-steady.