The President's Secret a Royal Bloodline: Who Should Be King? an Untold Story

By Michael V. Roberts Sr.

Once you begin reading this book, your impression will allow you to connect with the story immediately. It is instantly vivid from beginning to end. The many plots are engaging and captivate the reader, making one crave for more. The love descriptive and colorful words are touching. One could literally taste the food/ingredients, feel the Bahamian breeze, as described, or envision as if you are in a Metaverse world and attached to a Virtual Reality headset while reading. The author incorporated the island’s texture, aesthetics, lingo feel, and warmth. While taking you back and forth from The Bahamas to the United States and the United Kingdom, the author keeps you in a mindset of anticipation. Not forgotten and much appreciated are the underlying and undeniable romance stories woven throughout, which are very alluring. This, side by side, with the lessons for all walks of life, whether royalty, wealthy or working class. This is a must-read and the basis of a trilogy or a blockbuster movie.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jun 23, 2022
• ISBN: 9781665561761

Michael V. Roberts Sr.

Dr. Michael V. Roberts, Sr., has successfully built several companies and traveled extensively around the world. Widely acclaimed as one of America’s leading and most influential businessmen. After writing two Best-Seller business books, Action Has No Season and Action Has No Season 2.0. Dr. Roberts returns with a novel integrating love, mystery, politics, international intrigue, and murder. Dr. Roberts, a graduate of St. Louis University School of Law and an attendee of The Hague Academy of International Law at the World Court, The Hague, Holland. He is a high-demand keynote motivational speaker who has been heard by thousands of people from university commencements to not-for-profit fundraisers, and community neighborhood groups to corporate boardrooms. He is a Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Laurel Wreath laureate and a 33° Mason. He is a major real estate developer in St. Louis and The Bahamas. Throughout his rise in business, he owned and managed, with his brother Steven, 12 full-power TV stations; 13 hotels, commercial and residential properties; a wireless digital telephone company, and actively participated in taking three companies public. His passion to write a novel, connecting personally with visited places, and watching history unfold, unleashed his imagination to write this book.

Book preview

PROLOGUE

Shouts ricocheted off the thin plaster walls. All could feel the pain and agony of their fellow tortured captured men in uniform. The sounds of heavy arms firing in the distance. The Middle East heat was sweltering making breathing feel as if you were suffocating. This was a living hell and one questioned whether death would be better.

The guards stationed above the make-shift jails, scramming and spitting at the soldier prisoners. Usually, for pure sadistic enjoyment, they would urinate on the prisoners as they made them lay face down on the dirt floors. They treated them like animals completely violating the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of war. Of course, this was minimal suffering compared to the slow and agonizing death penalties most prisoners faced in northern Afghanistan. This hidden prison location is an isolated area for those caught advancing in this territory.

Considering just a few days prior, they were both senior commanding officers, Monte from the United States and Peter from the United Kingdom, who were on duty, serving their countries, and fighting the war on terrorism. Both men are highly trained combat officers who were captured in a surprise raid and then jailed in this remote place; hopeless and with no apparent way to escape. They were prisoners of war in a foreign country. Worries lingered at the thought of not seeing their family or friends or returning to a life of normalcy.

A pain began to creep up the American’s leg and through his spine. His thoughts became blurry and diluted. The pain, heat, and lack of water and food were taking over his conscious state of mind. His thoughts were necessary to keep his mind in a semi-conscious state.

The wounds, that had been inflicted by Russian made AK 47s, upon both officers, had turned into an intolerable level of excruciating pain. The electric sting of agony that jolted through their bodies mixed with dirt and blood from lack of treatment began to transcend the mind into an almost delusional state. The blood had begun to coagulate around each of their wounds forming a discussing puss-like jell on top of the wounds.

The odds of receiving medical attention were slim to none. Even though they were being held captive, they were fortunate because they were not brutally tortured like many others, due to their rank. It was questionable if their common posts knew exactly where they were, but the odds of being liberated would improve once their military units pinpointed their exact location. This would require their liberators to discover where they had been captured by Al-Qaeda soldiers.

Until their location was identified their hope of survival continued to be pessimistic. With the injuries that had been incurred, it was imperative they receive medical treatment sooner rather than later to prevent permanent disabling damage to the body. Especially, with a metal bar that ran adjacent: one for the arms and one for the feet. These bars were reinforced with shackles that were attached to the wall. This made any type of movement slow and extremely painful for a prisoner.

The guards began to shout and bang on the jail cells, which were more like animal cages. The tin walls went up about fifteen feet or so. There were metal barbed wire sheets that covered the top. Thick locks were used to reinforce the cells, which could be seen by the prisoners from below, as the sun beat down on their faces by day and the cool air chilled them to the bone at night. There was a bucket for bathroom usage, that appeared to have been there for weeks without being emptied. Feces had spilled over the top and the smell was revolting. Both Monte and Peter had experienced dire conditions on the battlefield but this was beyond the pale for a prisoner of war.

The two had figured out by the tone of the guards’ voices and the time of day that it was mealtime. The guards would take buckets of water held in wooden containers and pour them into the jails. The water smelled similar to a sewage septic tank and had a muddy texture as if it had been taken from a far-off swampland filled with rotten carcasses. This was followed by crumbs of stale bread and almost rotten food being thrown down.

Regardless, to survive, the two had to feed on it like dogs being served table scraps. Of course, eating was an added challenge with the restraints that had been placed on them. It required them to get down on their hands and knees and crawl around as if they were some kind of reptilian species. While sliding across the earth floor of their jail cell, an occasional rat or insect of enormous size would slither past their faces or scurry across their backs. The smell of blood forced them to constantly fight off the unrelenting rodents.

The food tasted terrible as usual. After three days of being captive, and two days of this once-a-day bird meal, the two had all they could stand. Unfortunately, they had no choice. At least they were several feet from the guards, who had used the back end of their AK-47 automatic weapons to inflict further pain to their wounds by jamming the butt of the gun into their punctured skin as they interrogated them.

This newly and uniquely minted friendship of these two officers, from very different backgrounds, Peter from the United Kingdom with royal origin, and Monte from a United States inner-city community, sat with three things in common: they both were serving their country, prisoners of war, and wounded. Ironically, the common ground that they both shared made it bearable versus being alone in these conditions. Isolation at a time like this could cause one to go insane. From what they could gather as they were brought into the prison grounds, they had a stroke of luck sharing a cell together. When the United States Delta Force arrived, the prisoners were freed. Now safely on the rescue helicopter Peter and Monte, who for weeks comforted and protected each other, pledged to stay in contact and cultivate their friendship.

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CHAPTER 1

The sound of the ocean waves collapsing against the white sand created a rhythmic, almost harmonic tone. The color was so radiant, as if the sun had transcended into water form. The light enhanced every wave and with each glimmer of sun, the ocean became more beautiful. The combination of the blue-green gin-like pristine Bahamian waters created the sound of a melodious pulse. Shadows of the tall majestic royal palm and coconut trees cascaded over the flawless white beach. The breeze blowing through the clouds, with the smell of jasmine and bougainvillea flowers, permeated the air. The clouds swooned through the sky as if each one held a special treasure for the eye.

While this rare and extremely serene place was so beautiful, for Edna, it was a place where she worked and slept with her Mom. Windermere Island was all she had for childhood memories. Her strolling on the sandy beach while feeling the ocean breeze seemed to be so far into a locked and sealed past. Memories started to seep back into her thoughts. A notable one was how Mom would place food aside so she could take her on a spontaneous picnic.

She would prepare the meals for the day with the utmost care. The sound of the ceiling fan ran mixed with the ocean breeze coming through the window. The summer heat steadily increased as the day progressed. The tranquil feeling of watching her Mom cook while sitting in a white wicker chair that sat right outside the pantry. It was the perfect view to watch Mom work her magic in the kitchen.

The sound of Mom’s soft, but a rather peaceful humming. The soothing vibration it sent through Edna’s soul. After a long day at work, she and Mom, would go and lay down a quilt blanket, that incorporated all the colors of the earth. They would sit and stare at the beautiful, crystal clear body of water, with its waves that gently moved in front of them. It was these subtle and delicate memories that kept Edna’s mind at ease in the absence of her mother now. She remembered that day as if it happened just a few moments ago.

It was like a constant sunrise in her mind and a sunset for her dreams. The memories of her sustained each day that she resided on the island. Despite the land’s beauty, she felt a never relenting pain that inflicted a fight between abandonment and finding happiness in a world that, was foreign to her. Windermere was an enchanting and exotic place. It provided serenity and isolation. It was owned by the Royal family of England. No one could enter the island without permission. It was a place British Royals could come and shut everything else out.

Edna was blessed because her Mom had worked for the Queen of England for many years. Even though she and Mom worked hard for the family the moments she had to wander the royal grounds could be compared to exploring her very own fantasy fairy tale. The estate for the royal family was built like a fortress. The location was extraordinary. Every day, one could view this incredible spot-on earth where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Caribbean Sea. The mansion was three stories high. The primary color was white. The Queen requested that the residence be an all-white building with a lime green trim. It was the Queen Mother’s favorite color. The top of the mansion had a rooftop veranda. It was a well-suited area to enjoy the tropical breeze at high tea time. Since the mansion sat on a hill the view from the rooftop was breathtaking. From that vantage point, it appeared as though the ocean extended forever into the horizon.

Inside the mansion, there were ten bedrooms and eight bathrooms. The color pallet that the Queen chose was bright pastels. She wanted it to be a reflection of The Bahamas. She did not want it to resemble Buckingham Palace, but rather a Bahamian royal resort. They had a rare amenity at that time which was an infinity pool. The pool ran so close to the water that from the right angle, it appeared as though it was part of the ocean.

Edna and her Mom stayed in the servant quarters located in the rear of the mansion on the third floor. The room had two small beds, a dresser, and a small closet. At the top of one corner, there was a small window. While it was not officially considered a bathroom according to the Queen, they had a small one with the basic amenities. Still, this far exceeded the accommodations of their friends and relatives on the neighboring family islands. Edna had the rare privilege to grow up closely entwined with a family that, to the rest of the world, was almost untouchable. Occasionally Edna would find a way to slip away and explore Windermere. There was a screen door at the back of the pantry. It would tend to squeak a bit but if she opened it ever so slowly, she could slip away without Mom noticing. There was a pathway that was about thirty feet or so from the shoreline. It was covered with pink sand. There were stones that surrounded each side of the sand trail and behind the stones were young palm trees that created a stunning walkway. Off to one side of the trail was a path that led up to a library that was built with screened windows on all four sides.

In the morning, young Prince Charles would be arriving at the island. While many items of business were more relaxed here, the Queen had planned an extravagant banquet for his arrival. The menu would consist of all the fixings of a typical royal state dinner. Summertime was special for the Queen because the Prince came to the island after spending the year at his very elite boarding school.

Preparations had been going on for about a month. The past three days had required extensive care. The Queen expected everything had to be pristine. The silver had been polished into the early morning hours. The cutlery had been set out. The stemware was selected and the napkins were crisply pressed. Each place setting had to be seventeen inches in diameter. It was set before the Prince arrived. There was a formal dining room at the estate. It was down a long corridor just off the kitchen. The main entrance to the dining area opened onto a patio that overlooked the water. Edna took a quick break from her duties to look outside when she was startled. The Queen spoke to her from behind. Hello my dear, how are our preparations, going? As a child the Queen watched Edna growing up and had a fondness for her. With a slightly embarrassing smile, Edna responded with her head bowed yes your majesty all is well.

The menu consisted of a spring pea soup made with chives, roasted artichokes, sweet peppers, and baby carrots. The wine had been selected and imported to the island from France. The Queen had chosen a Chardonnay from the Alsace region. She also requested several bottles of her favorite Pinot Noir by Nicolas Idiart a famous artisan winemaker from the Loire Valley. A royal feast would not be complete without several loaves of Mom’s fresh-baked bread.

Edna had a rare treat that night. Even though tomorrow was a very big day, all the chores had been finished ahead of schedule. Mom decided to take Edna outside for a walk before her bedtime. The sun had just set over the horizon and the stars glistened and sparkled over the water as the waves softly rolled in and out. The wind lightly blew over the night sky. She loved it when she would get to take these walks. Mom would tell her the most fascinating stories about the royal family. She had a way in which each story seemed to be a magical point in time.

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CHAPTER 2

The sun shined down through the window. Mom was already up and, more than likely, downstairs completing the final touches for Prince Charles’ arrival. She could hear the other servants talking and moving around in the kitchen. Today is the big day Edna, Clarice said in a nonchalant tone. She was eighteen, just three years older than Edna. Her Dad tended to the outside maintenance work at the estate. She and Edna would talk every now and then, but she was not the most pleasant person to be around. Her Dad used to work at