H.R.H.

The next two months flew by as Christianna attended to her duties with renewed zeal. She wanted to do everything as perfectly as possible, before she left for Africa, if nothing else than to show her father how grateful she was for letting her go. She spent two weeks in Geneva, for her Red Cross training. She already had a certificate in advanced first aid. Most of her briefings were about the country where she would be living, the local tribes, their habits, the potential dangers of the current political situation, the things she had to look out for, the faux pas she had to be careful not to make, so as not to offend the locals. She got an intense crash course about AIDS, since the facility where she would be working was specifically for that purpose. And then there were several warnings about insects to be aware of, diseases she had to be vaccinated against, and how to identify a wide variety of poisonous snakes. It was only during that part of her training that she wondered, though only for a fraction of an instant, if Freddy was right. She hated snakes. They told her what kind of equipment she needed, what her responsibilities would be, and what kind of clothes to bring. Her head was swimming with all the information by the time she got back to Vaduz. The palace doctor had already begun giving her the necessary vaccinations. In all, she would have to have nine, several of which she had been told might make her sick. She was having vaccinations for hepatitis A and B, typhoid, yellow fever, meningitis, rabies, and boosters for tetanus, measles, and polio. And she had to take antimalarial drugs while she was away, as well as before and after. It all seemed worth it to her. The only thing that still worried her a bit was the snakes. She had already ordered two pairs of stout boots, and had been told to shake them out when she got out of bed, before putting them on, in case something unpleasant had crawled into them during the night—not an appealing thought. But everything else they had told her sounded fine, particularly the work. She was going to be helping the professional medical and other workers, as a kind of general assistant during the time she was there. As a result, her job was a little hard to define, and she would learn more about it once she was there. She was ready, able, and willing to do any task she was assigned. In fact, she could hardly wait.

Two weeks before Christmas, right after her training in Geneva, she and her father went to Paris for a wedding. One of her Bourbon cousins, on her mother's side, was getting married. A princess was marrying a duke. The wedding itself was spectacular, at Notre Dame, and the reception was in a beautiful hôtel particulier on the rue de Varennes. The flowers were exquisite, every possible detail had been thought of. The bride wore a magnificent lace gown by Chanel Haute Couture with a cloud of veil that covered her face. There were four hundred people at the wedding, which was attended by royals from all over Europe, and the cream of le tout Paris, the most fashionable people in Parisian society. The wedding was at eight o'clock at night, and the groom and all the male guests wore white tie. The women wore spectacular evening gowns. Christianna wore a deep-blue velvet dress trimmed in sable, with her mother's sapphires. She saw Victoria there, who had just broken her engagement to the Danish prince. She was wilder than ever, and single yet again, she claimed much to her relief.

“When's your naughty brother coming home?” she asked Christianna, with a wild look of mischief in her eye.

“Never, at this rate,” Christianna answered. “He says not till spring.”

“Damn. What a shame. I was going to invite him to come to Tahiti with me over New Year's.” She said it in such a way that Christianna suddenly wondered if Victoria was zeroing in on him for a fling.

“Maybe he'll meet you there,” Christianna said, glancing around. It was one of the prettiest weddings she'd ever seen.

The bride had been attended by a flock of little children, carrying satin baskets filled with flower petals, as was the custom in France. “I think he's already in China,” she said vaguely. She had just spotted a friend across the room, whom she hadn't seen in years. Her father left at two in the morning, while the party was still in full swing. Along with most of the young people, Christianna stayed till nearly five A.M. The bride and groom were still there at that hour as well, dancing up a storm. The car was waiting for Christianna outside, with her bodyguards, and she got back to the Ritz, where she and her father were staying, at nearly six A.M. It had been a fabulous event, and she hadn't had as much fun in years.