Above All Else

Chapter Thirty-Nine

I see him from the plane window, walking across the launch pad. His steps are slow and calculating. My feet are running forward toward the door before I know it. I sprint through the entrance, stopping at the top of the stairs.

He's with Billie and two other men, but they are walking far behind him. He gets to the bottom of the steps, stopping for a moment. He looks up then, almost as though he senses me there already.

I smile, feeling overwhelmed with relief. When I heard he had business to handle, I didn't know what to think. My eyes search the launch pad, and I slowly take in the fact that Nicole isn't with him in handcuffs.

Henry doesn't smile, which scares me. Instead, he climbs the steps, his face hidden from me. When he is near enough to touch, I reach out, pressing my hand to his chest.

His hand curves around my wrist, gently. "I need a shower. I... need a minute," he whispers, without meeting my gaze. I gape slightly when he pulls my hand away and walks by me into the plane. I look to Billie, unsurely.

"Where is she?" I whisper. He stares at me, breathing in.

"Not here anymore," is all he says, pressing his lips together. I nod, biting my lip worriedly. They are waiting for me to walk back inside so I do, glancing at the babies in two attendant's arms.

I take the first seat I see, my eyes glued on the back of Henry's head as he sits near the back of the plane, staring out the window. I don't know what's happened to him, but it's bad. It's affected him. The minute we're in the air, he unbuckles and walks down the long hallway of the plane towards the King's bed space.

I cannot stop moving in my seat, panicking. I shift between holding Alexander and Samuel to give the attendants some time. When they are holding the two sleeping babies again, I garner up the courage to stand, smoothing my hands over my dark jeans.

I almost consider knocking on the door but decide against it, realizing how ridiculous that is. Although it's been almost thirty minutes, I still hear the shower on. Swallowing, I run my hands through my hair, unsure of what to do.

I stop at the bathroom door, breathing in nervously. The shower in the plane is just a compartment in the bathroom, no curtain, no door. The water pours into a drain in the middle of the room. Henry is there, his back facing me, his head and hands pressed against the tile.

I hold my hand to my lips, horrified by the dark bruise the size of a basketball on the lower part of his muscular back. It's swollen, already multi-colored and brutal-looking. I can only imagine how he got it- and how painful it truly feels. I try to compose myself, wiping my tears quickly, breathing in bravely.

"Henry," I whisper, softly. He doesn't move an inch.

"What?"

"Are- you alright?"

"I will be," he answers, after a moment. I know that's my cue to go, but I can't. I can't leave him like this. I'm scared to. I don't take off my clothes, I don't feel it would be right. Instead, I walk straight into the water, resting my hands gently on his hips, pressing my face to the part of him that isn't black and blue, my clothing falling heavily at the weight of the water against them.

"It may do you good to talk about it," I whisper. "I can only imagine what happened before I got there... and what happened after I left."

"I killed Nicole," he utters, immediately.

My eyes open slowly in silent horror. "You mean... you had her killed?"

"No. I mean, I murdered her. I murdered two people tonight, Mia."

Oh fuck. I nod, slowly, trying to come up with something to say, even though my heart has begun racing with nerves. "She almost killed you... she kidnapped our baby."

"She didn't die for almost an hour," he says, his voice sounding detached... detached from reality. "I can- still hear her cries, pleading for us to end it all from the other corner of the house. I didn't give the order."

My hairs are raised in fear. My tears mix with the water. I hear him exhale, shakily.

"Are you afraid of me?" he asks.

"Afraid for you, Henry," I whisper. "There is a difference."

"I feel this darkness, this hatred in m-my soul and... I can't seem to let it go. I am- angry."

"You did this for us, Henry," I whisper, pressing my lips to his back. "You can't let it consume you. We're alive, Samuel and Alexander are back with us."

"It frightens me how far I can go."

"For us?"

"Yes."

I inhale, running my hands up over his abdomen, pushing to turn him towards me. "Come here."

He moves without argument, his hand curving around my waist when he's facing me. I do the same with both arms, closing my eyes tightly when I feel him rest his face against my shoulder, his arms tightening.

"We can get through anything," I whisper with breathless force. "Anything. You and me."

His head nods, silently.

"You are their protector," I whisper, spreading my fingers over the unbruised part of his back, embracing him tighter. "You are my protector."

He pulls back enough to clasp my face, his haunted eyes searching mine. For what I'm not sure. "And you are mine."

...

My finger is caught between both of Samuel's weakly. He can't grasp onto anything yet, too small to. He's wide awake, Alexander has been sleeping for over an hour now in Henry's arms. We're seated side by side on the silent plane.

I stare down at Samuel's face, smiling softly as he yawns, his small lips going white for a split second before color comes back into them. Aware of the brooding man beside me, I catch Henry staring out at the storm outside the window, lost in his head. I think tonight hurt him, more than I'll ever comprehend. He's a man who's been forced to make impossible choices to protect what he loves- the monarchy and his family. I think my duty is to make him forget the choices he's made- or maybe it's to make him see a reason to protect those choices.

I reach out, resting my hand on his thigh, rubbing gently. His face turns from the window to me and he smiles, breathing in. His emerald-colored eyes lower to Samuel's face and his gaze lingers on him.

"He was always meant to be ours, wasn't he?" Henry whispers suddenly, after a moment of silence. I stare at Henry, wide-eyed. Did he just-

"We're going to keep him, Mia," Henry says, firmly, looking to me. I feel my chest expand. He nods, smiling at my bewildered look. "I will do everything I need- to make sure we can legally adopt him. He belongs with us."

"Are you serious?" I whisper, emotional.

"I am."

I lean forward and he does too. Our lips graze softly, comfortably with a gentleness that makes my heart flutter. If the babies weren't between us, my hands would have no restraint.

"We can do this," I utter confidently, nuzzling my nose against his. He hums, nodding.

"We will."