Jackelle 2.0

The tour was a whirlwind as they traveled from one town to another, but Jack couldn't help but notice Brielle's shine beginning to dull a little bit. She kept her head in her work and was a bit quiet at events, usually excusing herself when Jack was caught up in too big of a crowd. He felt terrible about it, but any time he would ask her if something was wrong, she would just smile and shake her head. And yet, she would still roll away from him in bed at night.

He started to fear that this sudden surge in attention was bringing her down, and she was beginning to regret marrying someone as ambitious as Jack. He always knew he was a major step down for someone like her, and maybe she was starting to realize that. Not to mention her family being alienated from certain places of high society because of their endorsement of Jack.

They finally had a little time to breathe at their stop in Faybell, which was a small but elegant little town littered with boutiques and cafes. Jack asked Brielle if she wanted to go for a walk to do a little shopping, but she told him she was feeling a little too tired. She must have noticed Jack's disappointment, but gave him a smile and a kiss to reassure him everything was fine. Not that Jack was convinced. Instead, he went and did a little shopping on his own.

When he returned in the afternoon, he found Brielle sitting at the desk and writing out a schedule with an incredibly stressed look on her face. Jack had told her it wasn't necessary, but she insisted. He knocked on the doorframe to get her attention, then took a small bouquet of roses out from behind his back.

She set her pen down with a soft gasp.

"What's this for?" she asked.

"Do I need a reason to bring my wife some flowers?"

She smiled and accepted the bouquet as he pulled up a seat next to her and placed a kiss on her hand. She noticed a small box carefully tucked among the roses and removed it from the bouquet.

"Jack, what is this?" she asked.

"Open it and find out," he told her.

She opened the box and lit up when she saw the necklace inside. It was white gold with a delicate round pendant, decorated with a glittering diamond. She slowly removed the necklace from the box, and her eyes looked a bit damp.

"Jaxie..."

"Do you like it?" Jack asked. "I know it's a small diamond, but I thought you would like the more delicate look."

"It's perfect. I love it."

She handed it to him and brushed her hair to the side so he could fix the clasp for, and it sat perfectly around her neck. Jack placed a kiss on the back of her neck before sitting back down and taking her hands in his.

"I just want you to know I haven't forgotten you," he said. "I know things have been a little different. Crowded. Everything is moving in a blur, and sometimes it feels difficult to keep up. I want to make sure you still know that I love you, and you will always be my priority. And I hope you know that you can tell me if something is wrong."

For a moment, it looked like she did want to say something. Then she just smiled and leaned in to kiss him again, then wiped some tears from her face.

"I love you," she said. "And I love this necklace. It'll go perfectly with my dress tonight."

"We don't have to go to the dinner party," he told her. "If you would rather spend the night in, I can cancel. I feel no shame in doing so."

"No, we should go," she said. "You've put so much work into preparing your speech, and I know there are a lot of people waiting to hear it. And now I have a beautiful bouquet of roses to reinvigorate me."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

He still felt like something was on her mind, but she was smiling like a fool and that was progress. She looked dazzling as ever when they left for the dinner party in Faybell, where they would dine with some of Faybell's elected officials and a few of Jack's higher ranking supporters.

He offered some champagne to Brielle, but she quickly declined and accepted water instead. Jack would have asked what was wrong, but another noble who seemed to know Brielle came over and hugged her enthusiastically, sweeping them up in conversation.

By the time Jack's speech rolled around, he was feeling a little more confident that Brielle would be alright. She was still twinkly eyed as she applauded when Jack ascended to the podium set up on stage, and he gave her a quick wink. She returned the wink by blowing him a little kiss, which gave him the energy he needed to start speaking.

Thankfully, everyone seemed to be smiling and happy as they listened. That is, until one of the waiters dropped his tray and ran towards the stage. Everyone gasped as glasses and plates shattered.

"Fuck you, son of a farmer!" the waiter shouted.

Jack was still confused, but he heard a woman scream and it distracted him from the waiter pulling a knife out of his jacket pocket. The waiter threw the knife and Jack managed to dodge to the side so it missed his chest. Unfortunately, it did bury itself into his shoulder and knock him to the ground. He heard another scream, recognizing it as Brielle crying out his name this time. He briefly saw her being held back by some others who had been sitting at their table, keeping her away from the danger.

Then the waiter reappeared on top of Jack, pinning him down and yanking the knife out of his shoulder. He raised the knife to stab Jack, but security managed to grab him and wrench the blade out of his hand. He was dragged off kicking and screaming, and Brielle was released. She ran over to Jack as he struggled to sit up, holding his bleeding shoulder.

"Fuck, that hurts," he grumbled. "Was the speech that bad?"

"Don't move too much," Brielle said, tears streaming down her face.

"I'm okay," he reassured her. "It's just my shoulder."

One of the security guards rushed over to them as everyone else was evacuated from the banquet hall, and helped Brielle lift Jack to his feet and carry him to a room in the back. Marnie and some other local members of Jack's campaign were there to help him. As he removed his shirt and jacket for a medic to look at the wound, he noticed everyone was looking frightened and dazed.

Marnie had an arm around Brielle, who was choking back sobs. Jack reached his free hand out to her and offered her a reassuring smile.

"Hey, it's okay," he told her. "Bree, look at me. I'm okay. It's just a cut, right?"

"You'll need some stitches," the medic said. "Stay still, please."

"See?" Jack said. "Just a few stitches."

"He was going to kill you," Brielle said, looking at the local campaign members who had organized the event. "How could this happen?"

"We had heard rumors, but we thought we had properly vetted our staff," one of them, Eric, said with a grimace. "We are so sorry, my lady. We never thought this would happen."

"Rumors?" Marnie asked. "What sorts of rumors?"

"We thought you knew," Eric said. "There were some whispers about Senator Ridley empowering the 'wrong people', and that he needed to be stopped. We didn't think one of our waiters would attempt an assassination."

One of the security guards walked back in, removing his cap and nodding to Jack and Brielle respectfully.

"That was no waiter, actually," he said. "The proper authorities arrested him, and we found out it was Arthur Burton. He's the youngest son of Lord Russell Burton. One of the major landowners in Faybell. I imagine he'll be bailed out quickly."

"He'd never attempt something like that a second time," Marnie said. "He's lucky if he ever gets to show his face in proper company again."

"He may not, but the Burtons aren't the only ones peeved about Jack's win," Brielle said, chewing on her fingernail. "There's no telling what these inner circles are planning."

"Regardless, we won't make a scene," Jack said. "We won't even acknowledge it. It was a little accident but I'm doing well, and we will continue the tour as planned."

"Jack, I don't know if that's a good idea," Marnie said.

"Is it better to let this sloppy assassination attempt send me cowering into the shadows?" Jack asked. "We can't show those tightwads that they've made any impact on our cause. Not only does it humiliate us, but it takes away our credibility and the peoples' trust. If we can be shut down so easily, how can they ever rely on us to stick to our promises?"

Everyone went quiet. No one liked it, but Jack was right. As the medic finished Jack's stitches and bandaged it, he casually shrugged back into his shirt and jacket to show he was okay. It hurt like hell and he couldn't raise his arm over his head, but he pretended to be unbothered to make his point. Brielle had gone silent, tears dried down on her cheeks as she toyed with her necklace and stared at her feet.

"Fine," Marnie said. "But before we leave, I'm going to hire a personal guard to join us."

"I don't need a-"

"I'm not asking."

Jack sighed and shrugged, then winced softly when it hurt his injured shoulder.

"Fine," he said. "Just make sure you do it before we leave tomorrow afternoon. We stay on schedule. Brielle? I think I'm ready for bed if you are."

He held a hand out to her and she clung to him like she was afraid he would float away from her. He did his best to stay cool and calm in front of her, but he couldn't help feel fury bubbling up inside. He was finally having a good day with Brielle before stupid Arthur Burton ruined it.