Free Ambrosia Shore by Christie Anderson Page A

these two years past have been most tiresome and have caused much grief at times, yet our small settlement continues to grow at a steady pace and we are nothing short of optimistic for our futures.
     
    I was so engrossed in my reading that when the phone in my hand began to buzz, I flinched and almost dropped the book to the ground.
    I tried to clear my head from the shock, fumbling with the buttons to answer. “Uh…hi, Jax.”
    “Okay, I talked to my father,” Jax began without taking a breath. “So, would you like the good news first…or the bad news?”
    I closed the book in my lap. “You mean there’s bad news again?”
    “Um, yes,” he continued matter-of-factly. “So the bad news is my father is not going to help me get my border clearance back at the moment because he’s the one who suspended it in the first place.”
    “It was your father?” I groaned.
    I could practically hear Jax’s eyes rolling as he said, “Apparently, he feels my, quote, vacation , has gone on long enough and it’s time for me to get back to business like all the other hard-working Scouts in Banya.”
    “He’s not going to fix it for you then?” I complained. “That’s just great . So was there really any good news, or were you just trying to make me feel better?”
    “Actually, there is some good news this time. My father was already aware of Rayne’s arrest. Before I even called him he stopped the Border Patrol on their way back to Banya and took Rayne into his own custody.”
    “Are you sure that’s a good thing?” I asked in alarm. “Rayne told me—”
    “Sadie, love,” Jax cut in. “My father is the third most powerful man on this planet, and he also happens to be a close, personal, long-time friend of Ambassador Fairbanks. He assured me that he will do everything in his power to ensure that the Ambassador is notified, as soon as possible, that one of his most trusted agents is being held in custody without his knowledge. I assure you, you have nothing to worry about.”
    “Well, okay…” I said, hesitating. “I mean, he is your father. If you feel sure that we can trust him in this situation…”
    “I’m sure,” Jax insisted. “In fact, he even offered to get you into the Court of Ambassadors to see Rayne if you wanted.”
    My eyes bulged open. “Jax! You told him I was involved?”
    “He already knew, Sadie. I’m telling you, my father is no idiot; he’s Head of Security over all of Ambrosia. He knows everything.”
    My fingers clenched around the phone. “What exactly did he say about me? Did you tell him where I am?”
    Suddenly, Jax started to laugh.
    “What’s so funny?” I demanded.
    “Oh, Sade,” he said. “You are too adorable. My father doesn’t know that you’re involved. I just can’t control myself from teasing you sometimes.”
    “Wait, so you were just joking?”
    “Well,” Jax explained, “he did seem extremely interested in finding out who this mystery girl is that would cause Rayne Stevens to go on a rampage to bring her across the border, but he doesn’t know it was you.”
    I took a deep breath and let it exhale slowly.
    “Although…” Jax went on, “I do know who this mystery girl is, and I’m very curious as to why the Ambassador was so concerned about getting her back to Ambrosia in one piece.”
    I really didn’t like where Jax was going with this. Rayne made it very clear that I shouldn’t tell anyone who I really was, including Jax.
    Then again, sometimes I wondered if I even knew the answer to that question. Who was I really? Rayne always made it sound like he was protecting me because I was something special, but after I had a chance to really think about it, I realized I was basically the illegitimate love-child resulting from some secret affair the Ambassador had with an Earth woman.
    I had to wonder…was Rayne really protecting me like he believed he was, or was he sent to protect the Ambassador’s dirty little secret? Just thinking about it