Levi’s thoughts raced, and his action followed. He grabbed his phone cord, hurried outside onto the balcony, and pulled the french doors closed behind him. He then used the cord to tie the two handles together to create another barrier between himself and Darius.

A knock sounded on Levi’s bedroom door.

Levi checked out the only guard visible below. The man’s back was turned, his focus on the wide expanse of lawn that separated this side of the palace and the ocean that lay beyond.

Levi put his hand on the stone railing that separated his balcony from Cassie’s. With another glance at the guard below, Levi climbed the four-foot-tall barrier and ducked down outside Cassie’s balcony door.

He curtailed the instinct to knock before entering Cassie’s apartment, afraid that the guard or Darius would hear him.

He pulled on the door handle, but it was locked. He retrieved his lockpick kit from his pocket and, ten seconds later, opened the door.

“Cassie?” Levi called out softly. No answer. He pushed the gauzy white curtains aside and closed the door behind him. “Cassie?”

His gaze swept over her bedroom. Walls the color of toasted almonds, a mahogany bed offset by an off-white bedspread, and a love seat in pale blue. The laptop on the bedside table told him what he already suspected; Cassie wasn’t in the residence.

Ever thorough, Levi passed through her bedroom and checked the main living areas, but they were empty as well.

A shout sounded from the room next door, followed by a loud thud.

A sense of urgency enveloped him. He had to find Cassie before anyone stopped him. Or he had to at least find Theo.

An alert sounded on his phone. Levi glanced down. A proximity alarm had triggered along the east perimeter, the same place the new fencing was being installed. Had a construction worker strayed a little too far from the construction zone, or did Theo have friends here to help eliminate Cassie? Unwilling to take any chances, Levi headed for the door. With any luck, Darius was still in his quarters, which meant he wasn’t in the hall.

* * *

Shouts sounded from the hall. A heavy fist pounded on the door.

Alejandro set aside the report he held. “Come.”

Darius rushed into the room. “Levi is gone.”

“Define ‘gone.’”

“I escorted him to his quarters to pack. When I went inside a couple minutes later, he was gone. It looks like he escaped through the balcony doors.”

“Find him. He can’t have gone far.”

“There’s something else,” Darius said. “Levi asked about Theo and wanted me to put a guard on Princess Cassandra. Levi insisted your daughter is in danger.”

Alejandro’s heart picked up speed. Had Levi misinterpreted information he had uncovered, or was a new threat present?

“Sire, the last time I saw Theo, he was with the princess.”

Alejandro’s hand fisted. Had he made a mistake in giving Theo a place in his home? Or was Levi jumping to conclusions? Alejandro couldn’t take a chance with his daughter’s safety. “Find Cassandra. I want her back inside her apartment with two guards posted until we sort this out.”