CHAPTER 34: THE EVE
The English castle was absurd.
Actual castle. Stone walls that had stood for centuries. Grounds that stretched to the horizon. The kind of wealth that bought history and called it a wedding venue.
Shiv had chosen it. Of course she had. Political statement wrapped in romance. Look at us, the Roys, American royalty playing at being actual aristocracy.
I stood in what used to be a guard tower, looking out over the grounds. Guests arriving in expensive cars. Staff scurrying with flowers and champagne. The machinery of a society wedding.
Tomorrow. The wedding was tomorrow.
And tomorrow night... the crash.
My stomach tightened. I'd had two weeks to figure out how to prevent it. Two weeks to find a way to save that caterer's life. To stop Kendall from making the worst mistake of his existence.
And I had nothing. No plan. No strategy. No way to stop what I knew was coming without revealing knowledge I shouldn't have.
Footsteps on the stone stairs behind me.
"Thought I'd find you up here."
Kendall. He stepped onto the tower platform. Looked out at the same view.
"Needed air," I said.
"Yeah. Me too." He was quiet for a moment. Then: "Tomorrow."
"The wedding."
"The vote." He looked at me. "You know what I'm doing. You've seen the signs."
I had. The last two weeks, Kendall had been building a coalition. Board members, investors, executives. Quiet conversations. Private meetings. A takeover attempt against Logan.
It would fail. I knew it would fail. I'd seen this episode. Watched Logan crush the rebellion effortlessly.
But Kendall didn't know that.
"Yeah," I said. "I know."
"Are you with me?" Direct. No games. "Tomorrow, when I make the move—are you with me?"
The question I'd been dreading.
If I said yes, I failed with Kendall. Lost Logan's trust. Destroyed the positioning I'd built.
If I said no, I broke the brother bond we'd just started building. Became another Roy who chose sides over family.
The smart play was no. Stay with Logan. Survive.
But I'd promised. If things get bad, I'll tell you.
Things were about to get very bad.
"Kendall," I started. Stopped. How to explain the impossible?
"I know what you're going to say," he said quietly. "That it's a bad idea. That Dad will destroy me. That I should back down."
"Will you? Back down?"
"No. I have to try. I have to prove I can do this. That I'm capable of leading this company." He gripped the stone wall. "If I don't try, I'll always wonder. Always be the son who was too scared."
I understood. In his position, with his knowledge, the takeover made sense. He didn't know it would fail. Didn't know Logan had already secured the votes. Didn't know tomorrow would be the beginning of his complete destruction.
"I need to think," I said. "About tomorrow. About which way to go."
"You're not giving me an answer."
"Not yet."
He looked at me. Hurt flickering beneath the determination. "I thought we were building something. Brothers. Alliance. Support."
"We are. But this..." I gestured vaguely. "This is complicated. Picking sides against Logan is a death sentence. You know that."
"Or it's the only way to actually become something." He turned away. "Think about it. But know that if you're not with me, you're against me. There's no middle ground when you're trying to topple a king."
He left. Footsteps echoing down the stone stairs.
I stayed. Looked out at the castle grounds. The ancient hedges. The manicured lawns. Generations of English aristocracy had walked these paths.
And now the Roys were here. American money pretending at dynasty.
The absurdity wasn't lost on me.
The rehearsal dinner was in the great hall. Long table. Too much food. Everyone in formal wear, performing civility.
I sat between Connor and Greg. Safe seats. Away from the power dynamics at the head of the table.
Logan held court. Marcia beside him. Shiv and Tom playing happy couple. Kendall quiet, barely eating.
The Empathy Engine hummed. I kept it passive. Didn't want to feel the room's emotional weight. Not tonight.
Greg leaned over. Whispered: "Is Kendall okay? He looks... off."
"Pre-wedding stress," I said. Not entirely a lie.
"Oh. Yeah. That makes sense." Greg went back to his food. Relieved to have an explanation.
Connor talked about his campaign. Presidential run. No one was listening except the unfortunate cousin on his other side.
I ate. Drank moderately. Watched.
Tomorrow would change everything. The takeover would fail. Kendall would be crushed. And tomorrow night, someone would die.
Unless I could stop it.
But how? I couldn't tell Kendall not to drive without explaining how I knew. Couldn't warn him about the crash without revealing the meta-knowledge.
The only option was physical intervention. Stay with him all night. Make sure he didn't get in that car.
But that wouldn't save him from the takeover failure. Wouldn't save him from Logan's retaliation. Would only delay the inevitable spiral.
Maybe that was enough. Maybe delaying was all I could do.
Gerri had texted earlier: How's England?
Me: Complicated. Will explain when I'm back.
Gerri: Be safe. Whatever's coming.
She didn't know. Couldn't know. But she sensed something.
The dinner dragged on. Toasts. Speeches. Tom trying too hard to be funny. Shiv performing perfect bride.
Around midnight, people started retiring. Long day tomorrow. Wedding at three. Reception after. The whole performance.
I headed to my room. Stone walls. Ancient fireplace. Absurdly expensive bed.
Lay awake for hours. Thinking about tomorrow. About choices and consequences and the weight of knowing too much.
Eventually, exhaustion won.
I slept. Poorly. Dreams of crashes and consequences I couldn't prevent.
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