An Errant Prince

The Secret

"It's not a secret. Everyone knows he never properly fucked her."

Startled, Kash Meswari lowered his drink and stared at the rumpled figure sitting next to him in London's luxurious Beaumont bar. His handsome face became a mask of repugnance. "Excuse me?"

"I said, he never properly fucked her." Privately, Kash wondered if the stranger sitting next to him could have been an aging James Bond. With his stretched out vowels and Welsh accent, he emitted an air of self-reliance and intelligence. His mysterious, low-key demeanor was at odds with his sing-song speech.

Bahar's infamous Royal playboy immediately regretted letting curiosity lure him out of his alcohol-fueled pity party. "Confound it, who let you in here?" He frowned at the stranger's disheveled attire, his cultured voice dripping with disapproval. "This is a private wedding." Brushing luxurious black hair back from his high forehead, he grimaced. His head still ached from last night's octane fueled bachelor party, while the upper he'd taken an hour ago buzzed through his bloodstream. What he desperately needed was eight hours of uninterrupted sleep.

"I have my invitation right here." A tubuculer cough erupted from the gaunt figure, causing his shoulders to shake. Wiping his mouth with a linen handkerchief, the white-haired man pulled a heavy pressed creamy invitation stock from his coat pocket. He laid it on the glossy wood bar with a shaky, liver spotted hand.

Kash delicately picked up the the elegant invitation with long fingers and examined it. After a minute he apologized. "I'm sorry, Mr. Johnson, but you do have the air of a feral vagrant. He slid the invitation back to the man. "If you must speak, tell me who's sex life you're ranting about?" He looked over his shoulder at the crowd of wealthy individuals milling about London's esteemed Lotos room. Noisy excitement filled the air as high heels and polished shoes clicked on the white and black diamond tiled floor. His older brother Samruth, the newly married crown prince of Balari, and his wife Ahnu, were graciously accepting toasts by a glistening fountain of bubbling champagne. Kash fixated on the fountain, remembering a majestic waterfall he'd swum naked in as a youth. He imagined swimming himself through a pool of champagne. "However spoiled my older brother is, I'm sure he'll be a good Prince for Balari and attend to his bridegroom's needs."

"I'm not talking about your brother. I'm sure he's an excellent lover." The older man nodded in the direction of The Prince of Wales and his reviled wife, Camilla. "I meant that braying donkey."

Kash glanced towards the Senior Royals swilling martinis and slurping oysters off half shells. "You mean Charles, the Loony Prince? Princess Diana's first husband?" When he said the famous woman's name, Kash felt an aching sadness remembering her tragic end.

"That's who I worked for for fifteen years. The regal Princess Diana. I was one of her body guards." The stranger's eyes grew misty before he took a sloppy sip of whiskey. "Do you want to know the ugly truth? They ripped Diana's title away.  Sanctioned her assassination because of that old hag, Camilla." Sequestered at the far end of of the bar no one else heard the scandalous statement. Another deep, ratcheting cough erupted from the stranger, convulsing his whole body.

Kash recoiled as if he'd been struck. "You're daft! Or so inebriated that you don't know the difference between reality and fiction. Everyone knows Princess Diana died under the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris. Where were you when the whole world was mourning her death?"

"You think I'm the drunk?" The man's green eyes blazed with indigence. He finished his drink and stared defiantly at Kash. "I recognize you. You're Kash Meswari." He poked the younger man in the chest. "You're the drug addicted rogue who's an embarrassment to the Balari Royal dynasty." Kash dropped his head, not even trying to defend himself. His inebriated exploits were splashed all over social media. A smile broke out on the old man's once handsome face and he laughed without malice. "Don't feel bad son. My family loathes me too!  We're two peas in a pod." The man grinned, showing white capped teeth. "All in all, being one of the most eligible bachelors in the world can't be that bad. Why do you hate your life so much?"

"I've never fit into the role of a being a playboy, or a prince." Kash sighed, signaling the bartender for another drink. If he had to listen to the old fool, he needed to dampen the adrenaline speeding through his body.

"Me neither. I'm Sam Johnson." Kash found himself accepting a surprisingly strong hand and shaking it. Instinctively, he knew this shell of a human with the purplish, puffed bruises sagging under each eye didn't have long to live. Like a conspirator, the ex-body guard leaned closer and lowered his voice. "Tell me. Why aren't you over there toasting the new groom and his bride?"

The handsome, dark haired playboy shrugged his shoulders. "I have trouble with authority figures and the status quo."

Sam laughed, jovially. "So do I. Listen, I like you. You're a good fellow." A few minutes later, Sam stopped raising his second drink to his quivering lips. He looked intently at Kash. "I'm going to tell you a secret, even though this particular secret could get us both killed." He paused, checking to make sure no one else could hear him. "Princess Diana's not dead." He looked expectantly at Kash. "She didn't die after the accident in Paris. She requested sanctuary from the Queen." The man set his drink down on the bar making a sharp bang that hurt Kash's head.

"You're insane!" Kash growled.

"Someone needs to defend her memory. It's being defiled by that dog, Camilla. Look at the bitch. She even styles her hair like Diana!" The older man had tears in his eyes now. "You remind me of her. A caged tiger that's been raised in captivity all its life."

Unsettled, Kash tried to ignore the man's torment, but deep down the old drunk's passionate spiel had moved him. I am a caged tiger.

"Listen. You're drawing unwanted attention to both of us. I think you should leave. Let me walk you to your car." Anxious to to stop the drama, Kash rose and paid for both their tabs.