Accidental Surrogate

Chapter 419 – The Threat of War

Ella

Cora and Roger stay in the meeting room for a little breakfast as Henry escorts Sarah and Jessica from the room, wheeling beside them as they discuss some preliminary plans for Jessica’s schooling and Sarah’s own desires and ideas about her future life. I smile as Sinclair and I walk slowly behind them, Rafe curled protected in the curve of his father’s arm. I wave to my new friends as they and Henry take a left when Sinclair and I have to go right, towards our rooms.

And then, as we make the turn and are finally on our own, I huff a little sigh. Sinclair, as always, notices.

“What’s wrong, little queen?” he murmurs, moving closer to me as we walk. “I thought you’d be happy with the result of that. You did a good thing for her and, I imagine, will keep doing so. Plus, we got some very useful information about Xander.”

“Was it anything we didn’t already know?” I ask, looking up at him with a frown.

“A few things,” he murmurs, giving a shrug. “But more importantly, she’s a witness we will be able to charge Xander, formally, with…well, I guess we’d need a lawyer to spell out specifically which crimes he committed in switching sperm at a sperm bank and then attempting to kidnap the resulting child.”

Rafe gives a little burble right at that moment, making me laugh and smile over at him – my sweet baby, almost as if he knew he was being talked about.

“Well, that’s something,” I murmur, considering it. “Will we charge him, though?”

“I’m not sure,” Sinclair says. “Not that I want to let him off the hook for everything he’s done – we just…need to figure out the best way to go about it, especially as he’s now with the Atalaxians.”

reached the door to our room now and Sinclair twists the knob, pushing the door open and allowing me to enter first. I head immediately to our gigantic walk-in closet to get changed into more comfortable clothing,

Sinclair murmurs as he follows me into the closet, sitting down on a chaise lounge that I had placed in here just

say, tugging off my dress and sighing as I put it back on its hanger. “It’s…it’s the Atalaxians I’m

settling back on the chaise and listening carefully. I give him a little smile and a pulse of gratitude down the bond. It means so much

pants, “that I’m not sure we should be…messing with them. I mean – you heard everything that Sarah said today about what life in Xander’s household was like – it was an absolute nightmare for her, and for Jessica, and her mother. Just years

of sorrow. “The idea that Xander would go to the Atalaxians, hat in hand, and they would see him

head, pursing my lips. “It makes me really uncomfortable, Dominic. I…I don’t want anything to

in supplication. ” Part of ruling is dealing with people whom you intensely dislike. Atalaxia is a powerful nation no matter how much we disagree with their policies, we can’t just…ignore them, or

I ask, understanding him but unable to resist pushing back a little bit. I come close to my mate then, reaching out and running my fingers through his dark hair as I look down into his face, and then down at my

no

murmur. “I mean, I had one conversation with one woman in a refugee camp, and we have testimony against Xander now. If abuse is as widespread in Atalaxia as I’m being told it is, would we even really have to scratch the surface to find proof of

we did,” Sinclair murmurs, looking seriously up at me.

talk you into anything, Dominic, or persuade you one way or another. I just…I know that to not oppose tyranny is in some ways to accept it, support

it?” he asks, quiet but genuine. I go pale at

is to build my life, and

I buy that piece at the expense of others? Would I allow innocents to suffer so

to cup my cheek, his thumb tracing my skin. “I’m sorry, love,” he sighs. “That wasn’t a fair question –

shaking my head and covering his hand with mine. “It’s…it’s the reality though, isn’t it? If I’m saying to

war either way,” he says, his voice soft and

ask, my stomach