A death that wasn’t what it seemed ... A kidnapping that isn’t what it seems ... Time is running out.<br><br>The morning after his wedding night, Prince Marcelo thought he’d be embarking on a journey to his own personal fairytale happily ever after with his husband Efren, the crown prince of Zioneven. But when news arrives indicating his sister’s death wasn’t as accidental as previously thought, that journey becomes fraught with danger.<br><br>Enmeshed in political intrigue, death, and a kidnapping that might not be what it seems, will Efren untangle the web of misleading clues in time to save the na?ve young man he’s already come to admire? Or will Marcelo dig deep to discover a previously untapped inner strength and determination to facilitate his own survival?

The Best-Laid Plans

Instinctively, he bent his body forward and brought his left arm across his torso. He tucked his head, down and to the side, chin to chest. He landed exactly as he’d engineered, on the back of his left shoulder, and rolled to the side of the road.


Marcelo’s eyes watered, and his breath hissed in and out. He grabbed his shoulder and rocked as pain seared through him. That bump at the front of his shoulder was not normal.


A tear dripped down the side of his face into his hair as the pounding thwacks of the horses’ hooves rumbled into the distance. He’d been so hopeful, and now he was a sitting duck.


Chapter 28