They rode in a Mercedes van to the airstrip where the royal jet waited. The monstrous thing was unlike anything she’d ever seen, complete with a movie theater, lounge with recliners, and cabins. She and Apollo had been ordered into a small, private area at the back that had a couch, table, and chairs.
“Do you know where we’re headed?” she asked.
“Nairobi first,” he said. As the plane took off, he flipped a black folio toward her on the table. “There’s the itinerary. Would’ve shown it to you last night…”
Yeah, nice way to rub in that she’d given him the cold shoulder. Already regretting talking to him, she glanced at the folder and opened it. Definitely did not want to know when he planned to mess up everything. As she thumbed through it, she could not help but gape. “Nairobi, the Serengeti, Masai Mara in Kenya…” She breathed a laugh. “Is this even real?”
“It’s extravagant. Guessing cost is upward of fifteen or twenty grand,” he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Per person.”
Shocked, Leighton faltered, letting her gaze drift over the royals and their entourage at the front of the jet. “Seriously? But there’s like twenty people on this plane!”
“Eighteen.” He shrugged. “When money’s no object…”
“Not how I would spend money for a bachelorette party.” She drew her legs up onto the couch and crisscrossed them. Watching as he reclined, slouching and resting his head on the back of the chair, she wondered how he’d slept last night. Had to have been better than the floor he used the previous night. Did he hate her?
She didn’t care. Not true. She did care… He resented her, no doubt, because of her refusal to let him mess everything up. But she wasn’t going to go quietly.
Right, she could just see that—him trying to get her out and she wrecks it. And someone would get hurt or killed.
Of course, there was a great way to avoid that—not trying to escape in the first place. Which was her preference.
No…not her preference—her need. I want to go home.
But…Ummi… Was it possible Ummi really was safe? If she believed him and he was wrong or had lied to her…the consequences—it’d be her fault. And what if he tried to get them out and failed? They’d get caught and Faruq would be enraged. Feral.
Elbows on her knees, she braced her head in her hands. She had no idea what was the right thing to do. She’d always followed Dad’s instructions. He always had good explanations as to why she should do this or that. And always with love. “Did you see my dad before you came?”
Apollo opened his eyes and rolled his head in her direction. “Your dad?” He seemed to be shaking the dregs of sleep off. “You mean Na?—”
“No. He is not my dad.” Leighton recalled the hug Dad had given her when she’d flown out. “It wasn’t until I’d finished my sophomore year at Carnegie Mellon that I decided it was time to meet Ummi in person. My parents made all the arrangements. They were really cool about it, but…”
“You feel guilty.”
“Maybe a little, especially now. But I’m worried about them.” She shook her head. “All my life, I’ve lived in fear of this bad king”—she bounced her gaze to the royals to be sure nobody was close enough to hear her—“coming after us. Now, he has…and I wonder how my parents are doing.”
“Sorry, I haven’t communicated with them.” He shifted, leaning forward in his chair as he threaded his fingers. “Your bio dad brought me and my dad into this.”
Though Leighton wanted to ask what Navas was like, she wasn’t really sure she wanted to know. Dad once let it slip that Navas was a mercenary. Not much else she needed to know beyond the fact he killed people for money. Yet his blood pumped in her veins, so…
“Look, I think our best course of action on this safari is to simply keep our distance from the royals. Heads down, mouths closed. Don’t draw attention. Enjoy the trip, but?—”
“Don’t die doing it.”
One side of his mouth quirked up. “Not dying is my MO.”
She tried to smile. “This plan is because of what Prince Rayan said to you last night…”
His expression changed, morphed into something dark. “You heard…” He nodded. “It wasn’t just about your behavior at Omnia but the threat that exists to your person—though he did not use those words specifically. Easy to read between the scowls.”
Though she felt the words as if they’d been struck with a sledgehammer, she remained still.
“So, let’s fly under the radar as much as possible, yeah?”
Four hours of a turbulence-free flight delivered them to the thriving metropolis of Kenya, where they climbed into vehicles and made the drive out of the city. The quaint safari lodge that would be their home for the next few days sat on a working farm perfectly situated against the forested slopes in a conservation area.
“Mercy,” she murmured as they entered the ultra-modern facility with a coffee shop. “God does love me.”
“I could’ve told you that,” Apollo muttered.
