Lena ensured the pipe was still in her jacket pocket before she zipped it up. The hospital wasn't cold enough for her to need it, but she knew stepping outside would be a different story.
"The deal that Richard spoke of? I thought that was one of them that Samuel would take care of." Did she need to be reminded of that right then and there? Absolutely not. Her uncle bringing it up didn't make it any better.
"That was in the past before all of this took place. Right now, it would be a fool move to let someone without experience try to take on something like that." Lena's tone held a sharp edge one could take as condescension or annoyance at being questioned. However, neither of these was why she spoke in such a manner.
"I want as few extra people dealing with this as possible. That includes Samuel. If he's currently with his cousin, that's the best place for him to remain for the time being." Lena gave her uncle a knowing look. Not the best excuse but a viable one for putting off trying to talk with her fiancé and reconcile things. The loss of human life too precedence over trying to fix a relationship.
"I don't mean to question your choices, princess. Do you truly believe, though, that it would be a bad idea to involve Jovani? At this point, more allies would make handling this situation easier." Allies, huh? Could Jovani honestly be considered one of their allies? Her expression once more reflected her feelings regarding this matter. The dark shadow and downturned features let Romeo know he'd asked something that should've been left alone. For now, at least.
"I still stand by what I said before; I don't want him or anyone else outside of who already knows about this incident involved. If there comes a time later on that we do need more people, we can come back and visit this topic. For now, I want you to focus on dealing with what I told you." If Lena enjoyed alcohol more, she'd likely have a few drinks tonight to go along with the pipe and coffee to help her get through the next few hours. Things were turning out to be more troublesome without anything started yet.
"We can wait until we get a few answers to figure out what to do next. I do, however, agree with Romeo on this, Lena. Jovani would be a good ally to have in this type of situation. We could rely on some resources from his side that others might not know about." Julian interjected himself into the conversation once more. What was it about Jovani that only Lena could see that there were reasons that he shouldn't be so involved with everything?
She refused at the current point to believe that it was her personal bias getting in the way at the current point. Guilty until proven innocent was the verdict that she would be sticking with. But, she could concede without giving if that's what everyone else thought.
"We can leave it at a standing topic to get back to. Do as I asked for now and we will come back this." They could talk the matter over at another point in time. Right now, the princess wanted results. Sitting around and discussing irrelevant matters wouldn't lead to that.
Romeo agreed to comply with Lena's request. Something about his response indicated hesitation to the princess. She couldn't place exactly what it was, but she could feel it regardless. Lena gave the other a look over once more.
Chalky complexion, stiff as a board, his face looked fine though there was a shadow of something in his eyes. Exhaustion? No, Romeo never let hat kind of thing impact his behavior. The man spent more a few days working back-to-back twenty-hour days, sometimes more when he first worked with Zane. No. It had to be something else. Lena's eyes widened a fraction as a thought flashed through her head.
The princess moved to walk past the bodyguard, blocking the door before the man could turn and leave. She used her small frame as a barrier to prevent Romeo from getting past. Despite standing at least a good foot above her, she knew the bodyguard would never try and push his way past her. Not if he valued her life and role.
"Take off your shirt." Romeo's eyes widened as he stalled in response to the request.
"Princes, I-" He stopped mid-sentence when the other folded her arms as she stared the body guard down. Her expression and stanch told him that she would take them off herself it came down to it. She would actually manage to do it too. Size didn't matter when it came to the princess doing as she pleased. She would get what she wanted one way or another. Romeo's eyes made their way over to Julian as to silently request assistance from the other man. The grim expression on the bodyguard's didn't garner him any pity from the other man. Julian simply nodded his head in Lena's direction as though ordering the other to listen to the order.
"Princess. I would much rather not. There are far too many things going on right now that any more wasted time could cause extra trouble." Romeo straightened himself out, his gaze directed at the princess without looking her directly in the eye. Romeo knew that he moment he did, he would cave to whatever she wanted. Lena's eyes brewed with a special kind od fire when she wanted something. The kind that most people struggled to resist. Some out of fear, others out of a desire to please and not lose her respect.
"Romeo. I gave you an order. I am well aware of the kind of situation we are in. The sooner you do as I say, the sooner we can get to other matters. Take off your shirt." The princess pressed once more. If he didn't listen in five minutes, she would go about doing it herself.
If he couldn't follow a simple order, that meant he had something to hide. Something he knew that the princess wouldn't like.
"As you request, Princess." The words came with no small amount of hesitation.
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