I'd always marvelled how my friends had mums who looked so much older. Not mine though. She seemed somehow perpetually poised somewhere in her early thirties. I didn't know her age for certain, because whenever she had a birthday, she wouldn't tell how old she was. Either way, she looked great… especially when she was on the verge of handing someone their arse.

She wore off-white pants and a casual, pale pink sweater, the only pop of color in the room. Jean Claude stuttered. "L-look, I didn't really kidnap him, obviously. He's fine."

"Yes, but you tried?"

"I didn't try. I had to keep his skills fresh. Both of their skills fresh. We are on the cusp of something great. Your Majesty—"

She put up her hand. "Jean Claude, I have told you to stop calling me that. I am not 'Your Majesty.' I no longer have my title, remember?"

He pursed his lips. "But we can change that."

She sighed wearily as if it was an old argument between them. "Jean Claude, my cousin sits on the throne. It's not a throne I have known. It's not even a throne my mother knew. We aren't close to it."

"But you are. There's a lot of talk. People are dissatisfied. They want the old line of monarchy back."

"And that's nice for them. But my cousin has made it clear he has no intention of stepping down, so we have to live in reality."

"Look, you live in reality, and I will act as if the future can change."

She sighed and sat back. "Lex, are you all right?"

I frowned. "You should see the other guys." I was sore, and I had a cut under my eye, which was healing. The scrapes on my knuckles had healed days ago. So I was basically fine. Pissed off, but fine.

But Xander eyed me sceptically. "And when you say we ‘should see the other guys,’ how many others were there?"

I shrugged. "Three."

Jean Claude rolled his eyes. "Lex, apparently, we need to work on your restraint. I suggest you go back to training."

I shrugged. "You can train me all you want, but I will show as much restraint as I feel like at the time."

Jean Claude winced. Xander just smirked. "You took on three guys by yourself?"

"Yeah, where were you, brother? I was worried maybe you'd gotten kidnapped."

"Me? I think the whole world knows better than to fuck with me."

I winced inwardly at his reference. The whole world took him as the dangerous one. The whole world thought he was the one who was out of control. And he was out of control or had been for a time there. But it was me, the second son, who was the true menace. But no one knew it.