Kaori
I didn’t want to leave like that. I’m sorry. Please call or text when you get this.
I hesitate, then write another message.
Kaori
You’re my person. If I’m Meredith, you’re my Cristina. Or the other way around.
I wince. Bad reference. He’s probably never seenGrey’s Anatomy.
Kaori
Correction. We’re Jim and Pam. Or Dwight and Angela. Your choice.
I drop the phone into my lap and lean my head back against the seat.
“Everything all right, ma’am?” Yamada-san asks from the driver’s seat.
“I don’t know.”
The phone buzzes against my leg. I jolt upright, hope surging so violently, it’s painful—but it isn’t a text. It’s a news alert.
BREAKING: PRINCESS KAORI ESCORTED FROM EXCELSIOR PARKS HQ IN LONDON. COO HINTS AT AN INTERNAL INVESTIGATION.
Below the headline is a photo of me being hustled into the car, hair disheveled and expression sheer, unadulteratedpanic. The caption is even worse—Sources suggest internal misconduct or a significant breach of protocol.
He didn’t waste any time, did he?
Another alert follows.
LIVE UPDATE: EXCELSIOR COO CLAIMS “THE COMPANY WAS BLINDSIDED.” INSIDERS QUESTION PRINCESS’ INTENTIONS.
Intentions? To do what? Be too meticulous with my stress-strain calculations? Actually fix the design flaws his team ignored? I know better than to click it. I know it’s a trap designed to paint me as a villain. I tap it anyway.
The article loads.
Unnamed employees have expressed concerns about the Japanese Princess Kaori’s unusual presence in the attraction-design division. One insider claims she “withheld key information” on one of the engineering firm’s projects, known as Vortex Rise. Another insists she was “stealing trade secrets” for Excelsior Park’s top Japanese rival, the Tanaka Group.
I feel a wave of nausea.
Chief Operating Officer Cuthbert Harris stated that he “acted swiftly to protect the company.”
Another line follows.
As for how the princess was able to gain a spot on the project team, a source close to the COO hinted at “unprofessional entanglements.”
Early reports suggest the princess will face several criminal charges.
He’s better at this game than I gave him credit for. Theo’s father isn’t just deflecting blame—he’s rewriting the story. He’s turning me into a spy and a liability. And by tying me to “unprofessional entanglements,” he’s found the perfect way to finish Theo off. If Theo defends me, he’s a traitor to the company. If he doesn’t, he loses me.
Outside, the scenery shifts from the gray stone of government buildings to the quiet, tree-lined streets of Kensington. We pass through tall iron gates into the embassy’s underground car park. My phone rings.Imperial Household Agencyflashes across the screen.
I exhale slowly and swipe to answer.
Things are about to get much worse.
Inside the Japanese embassy,I leave behind my identity as Kaori Minami and transform into Her Imperial Highness Kaori, the Princess Sorahino.
