*     *     *

She felt it was almost like admitting defeat, waving a white flag. When Friday night came Brianna Bedford could be found at the Windsor party. With her grades slipping and her parents frowning on her new attitude towards the Windsors she didn't want to provoke them any further. They paid the bills and she had to live with them. Bri smiled as she entered the large room and people murmured, "Haven't seen you in a long while" and "Where have you been hiding?" Was that what she had been doing with William? Hiding?
"Thank you --" she said to a woman who told her she had grown prettier since the last time they met. Big smile. Show the teeth... Brianna felt like puking.
"Oh my goodness you came," Marcia and Olivia squealed, surrounding her. The woman was squeezed away.
Bri scowled. "Strictly parental influence, I assure you." She showed them th new bracelet her parents gave her as an added bribe.
The girls gushed over it.
"William will be glad to see you," Olivia informed, admiring the fine gold chain.
"I'm sure he will be," Bri's teeth gnashed at the expectation.
Marcia looked around the room. "Where is William anyway?"

"That's right. That's right." William said as he pivoted in front of the mirror.
Tyler was on his knees attending to a hem in the prince's trousers.
"Tyler are you gay?!" the prince snapped, loud enough for the other people in the room to hear.
"No... Your Highness," the servant stuttered, feeling his face get hot.
"Then kindly keep your hands off my bum!" William admired his reflection once more. He headed out the room. As if he had a second thought he went back to Tyler and displayed a tenner between his thumb and forefinger. "Here. Not that you deserve it --" William yawned as if he had exrted some great effort. " -- but someone's gotta make a living." He crumpled it, let it drop at Tyler's feet beforing walking off.
Tyler looked at the crumpled bill on the floor. He longed to defiantly leave it there. Then again, the other boy was right. He needed the money.
Prince Harry came up and recovered it from the ground. "Keep it," Harry pressed it into his hand. He added a twenty of his own.
They both turned their heads towards the doorway William had exited.
"Tyler!" a yell came from the kitchen. "You good for nothing boy! Get your arse in here on the double!" There was a muttered, "Lazy piece of..."
"Ignore him," Harry whispered to Tyler.
Tyler streatched his neck and sighed. He tucked the money into the inside pocket of his jacket and sprinted to the kitchen.

There was no fanfare to announce his entrance but everyone looked up anyway.
Atop the stairs was Prince William dressed in the classic black and white. He stood erect, his blue eyes regally surveying the room. An amused expression came over his features as he observed his domain.
Marcia, Kayla, and Olivia abandoned Bri to swoon at his feet.
Bri forced indifference. Had it been so long since she last saw him in a tux? She shouldn't have forgotten. The way his broad shoulders made the black coat hang so nicely on his fit body... the white button-down... the bowtie... and of course, a smile to compliment everything. He laughed at something one of the girls said, most likely flattery. Okay, so the lad was handsome, Bri wasnt denying that. She felt a blush tinge her cheeks. Yes, she shouldn't have forgotten...
Above the heads of her friends, William caught her looking at him.
Under his gaze Bri felt trapped. She had this strong urge to leave the room. Be anywhere but here. Run. Since when did she allow William to turn her into such a coward?
He nodded as if he needed to approve her presence in the room. He returned his attention to his circle of admirers.
Bri took a full champagne glass of a tray of a passing by waiter and attempted to sip it with lady-like grace.
William cast her a look from the corner of his eye. The girl who was batting her eyelashes at him didn't notice.
To hell with that plan! Bri downed the glass.

Bri's hands were held primly behind her holding her fan and her small purse. People who knew her smiled at her. She smiled back. "Bri," a voice behind her.
Bri jumped. Then cursed herself for doing so. Why did she expect the worst when she was in Williams sight?
It was Harry (whew!), a frown was on his face.
"How are you?" he asked. He darted a look in William's direction.
Bri followed in suit. "I'm fine."
Harry nodded. "Good." Not knowing what else to do he gave her a quick hug.
Bri hugged back, not knowing why.
"I'll be around if you need me," Harry promised. At the invitation of his friends, he was gone.
Alone, Bri caught William looking at her. No wink. No smile. Just this intense stare.
Harry, I need you, Bri thought.

"Harry," William stepped into the conversation. He nodded to the rest of the group.
In unspoken understanding, the group dispersed and left the two by themselves.
"William," the other boy spoke his counterparts name with a matching tone.
Taking a deep breath he turned his head and looked the other in the eye. "William," he stressed the name in an almost sneer.
William laughed for no purpose. He adjusted his brother's tie, tightening it at the neck. "What were you telling, Bri?" He brushed his brother's shoulders. He kept the smile on his face.
Harry felt the constriction but wouldn't let it show. He answered. "Nothing."
William kept the smile. "Just reminding you that..."
Harry waited for the threat. "What?"
"Nothing," William echoed his answer.
An over-eager mother came over and took William by the arm to meet her daughter. "Catch you later, Bro!" He called over his shoulder.
Harry let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

The sound of rattling champagne glasses caused Bri to turn around. Tyler was manuevering his way toward a table, his knuckles white as he clenched the edge of the round tray and his eyes were on her. Glad to see an ally, she approached him.
"Miss Brianna. You look -- you look," he gulped. The tray landed on the table with a bang. Some not-quite-so-empty glasses tipped over and spilled. None broke.
"Hey, Tyler. How are you? And it's Bri, remember?" She helped him with the glasses.
"Bri, you look -- you look--"
"Yes. Bri." The voice was clipped. "In the observant words of Tyler... you look-- you look--"
Bri turned around to see William. With his angelic disposition and long-eyelashes she was tempted to call him effiminate. Biting her tongue, she turned swiftly around to face Tyler. She placed her hands over her chest. At the sight of her father shaking his head from across the room, she dropped her arms. Her foot started tapping by its own free will. Unable to stop it, Bri sat down.
William leaned against the table. "Aren't you supposed to be working?" he addressed Tyler.
Tyler stood silent.
William dipped his finger in the spilt puddle of champagne and flicked it at Tyler, hitting him in the eye. "I thought so." William looked around the room. He snapped his fingers, then pointed at Tyler.
"C'mere boy," The man approached and dragged him by the arm.
"But--" Bri protested.
"He won't be bothering you and His Royal Highness again, Miss," the man promised.
"But--"
William smiled wolfishly at Bri.
Bri suddenly became very aware how much the dress revealed. The straps on her shoulders were so thin they could snap at any moment. The simple black color gave her the image of both the classic and modern female. The slinky material it was made out of enhanced every advantage of her body and left little to the imagination. Why did her father chose it? At the look on William's face it was hardly a mystery. Bri waited for the lewd sexist remark.
Instead he just nodded in approval and said, "Nice dress."
She waited for an added "Why don't you take it off?" or "I'd like it better at the foot of my bed."
It never came.
"As much as I enjoy your company," William began, smile spreading at a liesurely pace. "I have to mingle. Ah, the joys that come in being a prince." He walked toward the crowd, hand in his pocket. He cast her back glance. When he faced forward his shoulders shook.
Bri suspected he was laughing.

"The children seem to be getting along quite nicely," Prince Charles told Mr. Bedford after witnessing the short exchange. One hand was inside his coat pocket.
"I agree," Mr. Bedford nodded. "I think Bri's finally matured."

Unnoticed, Harry and Tyler had met together. They worried for Bri.

"Mal, dance with me," Bri approached the Etonian. Egad, I sound like a panhandler asking for spare change! Bri thought to herself.
Mal looked uncertainly at Wills.
You don't need his permission! Bri wanted to shout.
The prince was leaning against the wall and chatting with two other friends. Tennis by the sound of the words. "Did you see the match..." "That backhand..." "Should get another doubles partner..." As if he were aware he was being talked about, the prince's gaze fell on them.
"Wills really likes you," Mal told her slowly.
"What does that have to do with anything?" Bri responded testily.
Mal took Bri's hand in his and patted it. "I don't know what kind of lover's tiff you guys had. But work it out." He left to join another set of boys.
William winked. Looking into his champagne, sipping it enjoyably, William's shoulders shook again.

Someone tapped her playfully on her bare shoulder. "May I be of some assisstance?" He looked at her and the boy she had been staring at.
"Tyler!" Bri breathed gratefully, hand over her chest.
Tyler held out his arms in waltz position and Bri smiled walking into them. At her questioning expression, he looked back at the kitchen entrance and replied, "I'm on my break." He held up his wrist up and set his black digital watch. "Thirty minutes starts... now." He grinned goofily.
"Mmmmm," Bri smiled as his arms went back around her. She spoke out her worries, "Don't you have to eat or rest or anything?" Bri caught William watching then and she pressed herself closer to Tyler.
William sipped his drink, looked down on the floor, and turned his attention back to his chatting companion.
Bri rested her head against Tyler's chest.
"I just inhaled five of those anchovy thingies," Tyler assured. He glided her gently around the dance floor. "Just don't try to kiss me or anything. My breath reeks of onions."
They both laughed.

From his place near Charles, among the cigar and brandy drinkers, Mr. Bedford watched his daughter dance with the St. James' servant. His lips frowned his disapproval.

Chapter Eleven
"You should tell her, " Harry said, sitting at the corner of the bed, dangling his feet. His tie was wrinkled from constant twisting which he did when he was nervous.
The other boy sighed, hanging up his tie and his coat for later use. "What am I going to say? 'Hey. Bri, the reason why I'm acting so weird is--" he closed the closet door and shook his head. It sounded so dumb when you say it outloud. "I hated seeing her with him, tonight."
"Wills..." Harry dragged his name. He angled his head sympathetically.
"You didn't believe me!" the boy reminded.
"At first!" Harry added.
"I-I" the boy stammered, he sat next to Harry and fluffed the hairline tickling his neck. He let out a breath and flopped onto the bed.
Harry sighed leaving the room. He hated seeing his brother so helpless.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. But I am. I'm surprised," Bri informed as she saw Tyler doing homework. William's homework that is. She shuffled through the papers.
Tyler took them from her guiltily and placed them back on the table. He couldn't meet her eyes.
Bri leaned over the desk and asked, "Why are you doing this for him?"
Tyler looked at a point ahead of him. He clasped his hands in front of him and calmly replied, "I am... his servant."
Bri let out a breath, picking up the papers again. "So you're the one behind Prince William's dynamic grades. Oh, wouldn't the tabloids love to get a whiff of this story."
There was sufficient pause before Tyler spoke, "You forget, I'm not there at Eton. I am not the one taking his tests for him."
"I'm sure His Royal Highness found a way around that."
Bri was correct. In Eton it was Malcolm and the rest who kept William's grades from slipping.
"Why?" Bri asked. It didn't sound as if she was talking to Tyler in particular. Maybe if people let William suffer the consequences of his actions he wouldn't have turned out the way he did.
Listen to me, thought Bri. I'm acting like he's a lost cause. She looked back at the papers. At Tyler. Maybe William was.
Suddenly, the servant wished he could tell her everything. "Bri..."
Bri stood up. "I can't stay," she told him.
And he watched her go.

Bri stepped outside of the servants quarters. Her gaze went to the bushes under the windows. Could William be hiding in on of them? Her steps quickened.
"So you know my secret." he would say. Laughter under the words.
Bri hugged herself. She slung her purse over her shoulder and pushed against the harsh wind that swept up the walk way. The grass was wet, newly sprinkled.
William would then pin her against the wall of the building.
"William, let me go!" she would order.
"I don't want you to move," William will say, whispering into her hair. His body pressed against her back. "And don't plan on calling Tyler." He'd know she was thinking this because he's able to read her mind. "I made sure he was summoned to the main palace."
The place was far away from any of the other buildings on the grounds. It was unlikely that someone would just happen to pass by. Bri felt her heart beat more rapidly. She was aware of the clicking sounds her heels made on the cement.
"Wills." She would coyly use his nickname to disguise her panic. "This isn't a game."
"Who said it was a game?" he would asked. He would press closer to her. His nose nuzzling against her wavy dark tresses.
"I'm going to--" She would attempt to break free.
Pinned against the wall, his weight making it impossible for her to move, he'd grab her arm and twist it behind her back. He'd press his face against her cheek almost crushing bone. "Bri," he'll say her name sweetly. "What did I tell you not to do?"
"You told me not to move." She would smell the stone of the brick building.
"Then why did you?" his tongue would tsk in his mouth. "Do you want to make me angry?"
Bri's hug around herself grew tighter. She looked behind her. To her right. To her left, certain that William would appear at any moment. Though there was no place for him to hide. No trees, no bush along the pathway. Bri was sure he'd be able to appear out of thin air.
Tears will spring as the pain on her arm becomes evident. "No," she'd manage to rasp.
He'll kiss her on the cheek. "I've been very patient with you, Bri."
She'll remain silent, the feel of gravel on her jaw and cheek.
His kisses would move to her neck. Traveling slowly down, then up. "Waiting... Waiting for the right moment. When you'll be ready. I've never done that with another girl. You're special."
"Wills-"
His hand will move below her. "Can Tyler make you buzz like I can? Can he?"
"Wills, please," she'd beg. How she hated his touch.
He'd whisper in her ear. "I told you I love it when you speak to me that way. Thank you."
She'd shudder.
"Shivering," he murmured caressing her skin. "I like that. I really like that." He twisted her arm a bit more. "Tell me you want me. Say it. I want to hear it."
"I-I want you." she'd call out without knowing why.
Above her, the sun was shining brightly in a clear blue sky implying that nothing was at all wrong with the world. Bri gulped, swallowing the knot of fear her imagination placed there. She ran faster toward the house.
The pain he'd apply would incline to unbearable. She'd be desperate to cry.
"Say it again," William would hiss. "Say it with my name." He'd spin her around so that she'd face him.
"I-I want you, William," her voice would shake.
William would then look at her tear-stained face. "You're so beautiful, Bri." He'll take her face in his hands and kiss her.
I hate you! I hate you! her mind would scream as his lips violate hers. But then... she would find her body responding. Kissing him back. Finding his lips sweeter than sweet. She would taste wine on those full lips. Her head will reel as if she could get intoxicated by the taste of his mouth alone. Damn! he would know just what to do. He would. Her searched to find his but hands found they had found a more urgent purpose. Her hands then limply hang on her side. He'd bend her backwards. A moan will escape from her throat.
This will excite him.
"Wills," she'd say his name. It would no longer be a protest...
Bri's hand was on the doorknob. She stared at her hand. She was imagining Wills doing those things to her? Why? Because she wanted him to? No... No...
Not opening the door, Bri sat on the steps, buried her head in her arms and cried.

Chapter Twelve
"No. No. No. NO!" William said the word repeatedly as he marched down the hall.
"William..." Queen Elizabeth II was at her grandson's heels convincing him to go out with a prominent businessman's daughter. To keep up appearances, you know how it is.
"I don't like her. She's not even pretty," William whined.
Behind them were the Bedfords, Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Tyler, and two public spokespersons waiting for William's decision. Several servants leaned in from their workstations to eavesdrop.
Bri gritted her teeth. Wills never cared about those things before. Before, Wills never cared for beauty or anything so superficial -- Bri closed her eyes. She had made a vow to stop thinking like that. About how things were before.
"I'm not asking you to like her. You're just have dinner with her. I'm not particularly fond of Tony Blair but I have to have luncheons with him once in a while." The queen stuck her lower lip out indignantly.
William looked at her which Bri would describe as a glare. "The tabloids will describe it as a date. Then ugly girls around the world will think they actually have a chance with me. I mean, c'mon! I'm Prince William."
So, you keep reminding us, Bri thought dryly.
"I've been doing this longer than you have, boy," Liz pointed out the fact to him.
Go Liz! Bri cheered silently, glad someone in the family was showing some backbone.
"And let me tell you, you're not always going to have your way. You may think you're hot stuff now--"
Bri and Harry exchanged a look at Liz's attempt to do teen slang.
"-- with the public support. But one day they'll turn on you. You're going to have to wisen up --"
Charles had heard his mother give this speech a thousand times before.
William sighed, looking away.
Liz smiled, thinking she had finally gotten through to him.
William slapped the queen hard across the face!
"William!" Bri screamed. She ran to the old woman. She looked back at the crowd. At her father. At Prince Charles. At Harry. Why were they just standing there, staring, looking stunned? She looked at Elizabeth. "Are you all right?" she asked, supporting her head.
Elizabeth looked up at the girl from her position on the floor where she had fallen. Her eyes were surprised and dazed as if she had no concept of time and place. The palm mark on her wrinkled cheek throbbed red.
William stood in front of them. His hand was still raised. He had the courtesy to look confused.
"Have you gone mad!" Bri shrieked at him. "She's your grandmother!" The Queen of England... She held the old woman's hand. She would've rushed to get some ice for the swelling but didn't want to leave her side.
William curled his fist to his side. "She upset me," William explained simply. "Damnit! I am so sick and tired of people telling me what to do!"
Bri's head snapped to his direction. Was he going to show any remorse for what he had done? Was he even aware of the magnitude of it?
Two servants rushed to the Queen's aid.
"This mustn't get out," was all that Charles said as he looked at his mother's leaving figure.
Bri stood up. Was that all that they were worried about? Public scrutiny? Didn't they care at all that William had a temper that was resulting into physical violence? Bri walked up to Charles. "I say let the public find out." She held his gaze defiantly.
"Young lady..." Mr. Bedford started.
Bri stared at the group in disbelief. "It's not going to go away! Ignoring this won't make it go away!"
William looked as if he were stifling a yawn of boredom.
Bri looked to Tyler and to Harry hoping to have some backing but they avoided her eyes.
"I am soooo sick and tired of everyone covering up his royal-raised behind!" She pointed to Wills accusingly not allowing them to forget that he was the criminal involved.
"Young lady, that's enough," her father lectured. He turned to the prince with kind eyes. "William knows he did something wrong and he won't do it again."
"I won't," the prince smiled sweetly.
"Damn! What does he have do to show you that this problem is serious?" Bri's voice
rose. "Murder somebody? What does he have to do to get your attention?" She threw up her hands. Oh, that'll be a great one to tell the judge. William saying: Your Honor, I did it to get attention... She ran past her father, past the stares of everyone, and out of that room. She sat at the bottom of the stairs.
Surprisingly, maybe not, the only one who came after her was William.
She glared at him.
He sat beside her and was about to put his arm around her shoulders.
"Don't you touch me!" she seethed, moving away.
He tsked his tongue. "My my. I try to be nice and this is what I get? I might have the mind to never do it again." He placed his arm around her waist. "I can be nice to you, Bri..."
She wanted to cry.

"Dad you saw what he did! You saw!" Bri screamed at her father when they arrived home.
Mr. Bedford took off his hat and coat and handed it to the servant attending. "William realized that what was wrong and gave his word that he'll never do it again."
"You know it meant BULL!"
Her father gave her a stern look. "Now that's enough."
Bri wanted to say more but bit her lower lip.
"The Windsors will be opening a park tomorrow. For little children."
Bri knew what was coming up. "No, Dad, don't ask me to. Please, don't ask me to."
"You are going to be there."
"Dad..."
"William's going to be there."
"Dad..."
"Be nice." He went to his study and closed the door.