Damn, he was loud. My eardrums were already ringing. “What groundwork? Everything you did was either wrong or so out of date it was unusable. I had to start from scratch.”
Victor whirled on me, still screaming. “Lies!”
“Go look up the proposal that was passed, if you don’t believe me.” I shrugged because I knew he wouldn’t. He didn’t actually care what had passed. He wanted a scapegoat and was determined to make me into it. “We used an entirely different set of plans.”
King Patrick’s voice grew deeper, a sure sign his own temper was fraying at the knot. “Victor, whatever your opinion of James, here’s the truth of the matter: We do not find you to be fit to be crown prince.”
Victor heard that royalweand his anger immediately segued into fear. The redness in his face drained away, leaving him a sickly yellow-grey. “Wh-what? You’re not replacing me!”
“I don’t know what I’m going to do at the moment”—King Patrick sighed—“but keeping you as crown prince isn’t doinganyone any favors. You’re not even trying to go into your office anymore. You wake up in the afternoon, eat something, wash and dress—and then you’re right back to your parties and gambling. It’s pathetic, Victor. You are pathetic. You have nothing to show for your life. You have a single month to straighten up and start fulfilling your duties. I suggest you start today. Failure to do so will result in your immediate removal from your position.”
Victor looked…panicked. Panicked about covered it. As he should. The status of crown prince had offered him a great deal of protection, clout he didn’t deserve, and more money than a standard prince—which was why he’d been able to afford all his gambling, parties, and whoring for so long. Without the title of crown prince, his budget would be reduced by half.
He seemed to have forgotten the extra money was meant to be a reward of sorts, to compensate for all the work and responsibility that came with the position. He’d been given the money for a reason but done nothing to earn keeping it.
He could go piss up a rope and suck the wet end for all I cared.
Victor didn’t say a single word. He turned around and staggered back the way he’d come, looking as if he’d just lost his soul. The shock of hearing his father’s threat was genuine and made me wonder—did it take an ultimatum to get through to him? I knew his parents had tried to wrangle him and given him punishments, but nothing had seemed to stick. Was an ultimatum the only thing able to impact him?
I’d been accused of being hardheaded, but Victor took the fucking cake.
Queen Beatrice’s fan snapped shut, high spots of color in her cheeks. “I cannot believe that son of mine. Patrick, do you really think giving him another chance will work?”
“I hope so, now that James can light a competitive fire under his ass,” King Patrick corrected, also looking upset.“And he’s going to hit certain benchmarks before I’m willing to even consider reinstating him. If he doesn’t start attending his meetings and getting proposals passed, then he’ll lose his position entirely. My hands are tied on that, he must start doing the work. I think, hmm, at least three proposals.”
Queen Beatrice squeaked in alarm. “Wait, three?! Isn’t that too much?”
“Our son has hadyearsto get these passed,” King Patrick pointed out sourly. “James managed to get three proposals passed in a month and he didn’t have any established backing, drafts of the proposals made up, or any groundwork already laid. If he can do that, then why can’t our son get three things done that he’s supposedly spent years on?”
Man made a very good point. I wasn’t trying to show anyone up—I mean, I was, but it didn’t take much effort to manage—but Victor really hadn’t been trying. He’d not even gone through the motions of trying.
King Patrick turned to me. “James, do you think it’s too much? What benchmarks would you set?”
“I can give you my opinion, but honestly? I wouldn’t waste the time. Even if you somehow browbeat Victor into the work, it would be a short victory. Your son doesn’t like to work. That’s the long and short of it. He’s lazy, he doesn’t want responsibility, and nothing you do or say will change his nature.”
Both parents winced but notably didn’t disagree.
“Of your three children, Helena is by far the best candidate.”
Queen Beatrice screeched, “Helena?”
“Yes, of course. I’ve been working with her on my proposals.” I gave Queen Beatrice a look like this should be obvious. “I didn’t know the players here, after all, or who all to confer with. Helena has been a tremendously helpful partner and she’s been working with me side by side, especially on the seawalls project. In fact,she was in council with me and managed to turn the tide of the vote in our favor.”
King Patrick gave his wife a shrug. “She did do a good job in council. I watched her work. But James told her what to say—”
“I did not tell her what to say,” I cut in. “She doesn’t need me holding her hand. She knew what to say because she spearheaded the project with me.”
Look at them, two gaping fish without a word to say. Truly, what the hell was wrong with these two? They were okay as rulers, but damn, they sucked as parents.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll keep saying it.” Though I doubted the words would penetrate. Still, had to be said. “The only child you have who’ll make a decent ruler is Helena. Victor’s a lost cause. Royce can’t people enough to get the job done. He’s not stupid or lazy, he’s just bad with people, and trying to force him into a role dependent on diplomacy is doomed to failure. Helena, though, has all the natural talent of a leader. She’s smart, good with people, and quick on her feet. I saw her adapt things on the fly during the council meeting and do so successfully. Give me even a year to teach her what I know, and she’ll be formidable in her own right.”
Queen Beatrice still looked flabbergasted, at a complete loss for words. King Patrick, though, seemed more thoughtful. Like he was truly mulling over what I’d said.
Maybe I could get Helena on the throne after all. It wasn’t like they had much choice in the matter. Their sons couldn’t be depended on and they couldn’t make me king, which only left them one choice. As obvious as it seemed, I’d still have to somehow convince them. Ha, fun times.
If Edwin was any less cute, I might have second thoughts on being prince. It was certainly a lot of work. He was incredibly cute, though, so I guessed it was worth it all in the end.
I cleared my throat and deliberately changed the subject. “Now, let’s talk about other proposals I want to make. I’ve got something of a list. Let’s start with…”
