He tightened his hold around Kendal and kissed their head. “How are you doing?”

  “Getting angrier by the minute.”

  Kean smiled. “You’re a hellcat, aren’t you?”

  Kendal bared their teeth. “And don’t you forget it.” They turned to Freddie. “I want to see him.”

  “He’s being brought here as soon as Brady says he can,” Freddie said. “Brady wants to keep Andrew’s presence quiet and out of the media where possible. At the moment, Andrew is secure, and no one knows he’s there.”

  “I have first dibs on kicking his ass,” Kendal stated.

  “Second!” George shouted.

  “No, Kean gets second,” Freddie said. “Then it’s me. I’m not ready to be King.”

  Damon slid his arms around his fiancé. “Yes, you are, but I hope you don’t have to be for a while yet.”

  “What else needs looking into?” William asked.

  The room settled down again, and Brett exhaled. “Neil and Gia are still working through Daniel’s files, but none of us believes they’ll find anything. He’s too careful. We’re basically at the waiting-for-information stage now. I’ll be requesting marriage certificates for Jeremy’s parents, which will then give us Ernest’s parents, in theory. We’re waiting on the searches from Brady for the two houses. We have people interviewing staff and friends of both John and Charlotte to see if they have anything for us.” He spread his hands. “I don’t know what else we can do at the moment.”

  “Thank you, Brett. And everyone,” Freddie said, scanning the room. “You’ve been great, and we appreciate your support.” He stood, clapping his hands on his thighs. “And we’ll even give you a pass at Andrew when he’s well enough.” He winked.

  A ripple of laughter went around the room. Kean helped Kendal to their feet, and the entire royal entourage left the security team to their jobs. They trailed down the hallway to the receiving room in silence, everyone settling into seats.

  “Andrew has a lot to answer for,” Victoria said as William handed her a glass with golden liquid in it.

  Eddie went to the coffee machine and started handing out hot drinks to everyone who wanted one. Kean had a coffee as he needed the hit of caffeine, and Kendal had a tea, though they opted for a decaf version.

  “I wonder if he even saw Charlotte,” Damon said.

  Kean leaned back and closed his eyes, resting his mug on his thigh. Exhaustion filled him, but he couldn’t rest until he knew Andrew was in one piece. He knew what he’d been getting into when he agreed to a relationship with Andrew, and his gallivanting off on a suicide mission, was not it. He didn’t care if Andrew was their dominant; when the man got home, Kean would have a lot to say about it.

  ****

  Chapter 27

  George

  George settled himself into an armchair in the corner of the receiving room, away from everyone else. He couldn’t be drawn into the conversation right then. He needed to wallow in his pain, and he couldn’t do that when people were talking. Staring out of the window into the gardens, he breathed. Even that took effort. He’d lost his mother in a car bomb and had almost lost his father in an explosion. He wasn’t sure how much more he could take.

  Arms slid around his back and under his knees, and he was lifted before someone sat in his chair and cradled him against their chest. George closed his eyes, not because he didn’t want to see Timothy, but because he didn’t want him and Eddie to see the pain undoubtedly filling his gaze.

  Timothy pressed his lips against George’s forehead, and Eddie rested his head in George’s lap. It was a position they had taken many times, and it helped soothe him. Being surrounded by those he loved was everything he needed at that moment, and both of them knew it. They didn’t try to soothe him with platitudes; they were just there. Holding him together. It was that, more than anything else, that helped his words come.

  “I’m going to destroy them. I swear to god.”

  “We all are,” Timothy said. “They will not get away with this.”

  “We’re close. I can feel it,” Eddie added.

  And even that wasn’t a platitude because George felt it, too. Their attacks had increased, and though they appeared to be focused solely on his father at that moment, he knew they were getting desperate. The more people they arrested in connection to the treasonous parts of the family, the more information they were piecing together. It took time granted, but they were getting there. Soon, there would be nowhere for them to hide.

  George’s fingers played with Eddie’s hair as George rested his head against Timothy’s shoulder.

  “I want our ceremony to be before Christmas,” he blurted. “Not too close, but close enough to wipe away some of the pain from what happened last year.”

  Timothy squeezed him. “How about November? We need to make sure we don’t hit anyone’s birthdays.”

  George nodded and smiled. Of course, he’d been thinking about it. Timothy was a planner. “Any day you’d thought of?” he said, peering up at him.

  The corner of Timothy’s mouth curled. “18 November.”

  “Any reason?”

  “It’s between Henry’s and Kendal’s birthdays and not too close to Christmas.”

  George chuckled, glad they’d helped him find some humour after such an awful event. “Done.”

  “Don’t you want to check it doesn’t clash with anything?”

  “Does it?”

  “Well, no. Not that I know of. But you might want a different date.”

  George kissed his cheek. “It’s perfect for me. Eddie?”

  “Same here,” he said in a tired voice.

  “I’ll let everyone know,” George said.

  Happy to have a date set, he focused on the view from the window again. It helped distract him, along with ideas of how he wanted the ceremony to go until his father arrived. And when he walked through the doors of that receiving room, a weight lifted from George he hadn’t realised was holding him down. Just seeing his father in one piece, albeit a little bruised and battered, was the balm he needed to patch the cuts in his soul.

  They would do this. They would find them and bring them down. They had to. There was no alternative.

  ****

  Chapter 28

  Kendal

  As everyone waited for Andrew to return, Kendal sat on the sofa, working through their thoughts. Angry was a benign term for how they were feeling, but it was the only one they would permit themselves to use in polite company. Truthfully, their insides churned and roiled while their lungs battled for air and their heart raced for a finish line somewhere. Even though Andrew was safe, Kendal’s brain couldn’t process it until they saw him. Understandable.

  The problem Kendal had was that they wouldn’t be able to forgive Andrew straight away. Granted, it wasn’t his fault the place blew up, but it was his decision to not tell them and Kean where he was going. If it had ended differently, they would’ve never had the chance to say anything to him.

  For most people, that might make them more inclined to forgive and forget because the person was alive and well. Andrew knew, though, that there were dangers all around, and he still chose to leave without telling hardly anyone about it. If things had turned out badly, no one would have known he was in the rubble of that building until they potentially found his body. Andrew would’ve just disappeared.

  And that pissed Kendal right off.

  They were supposed to be a team, a triad working together to live their best lives under difficult circumstances, but instead, Andrew went off “half-cocked,” as Brett had called it earlier to Freddie.

  Therefore, Kendal waited patiently on the sofa, minding their own business and ignoring the lighter conversation that now surrounded them.

  Their eyes focused on the door when everyone stood, but they didn’t move. They saw Andrew enter, and the air trapped in their lungs slowly dispelled. He had a few scrapes, dried blood on his clothes and messy hair, but he was in one piece.

  Andrew hugged those who greeted him, shaking hands with others, and then Kean was in front of him. He punched Andrew on the arm, then dragged him in for a kiss. Kendal rose, slowly making their way over to them. When they came up for air, Andrew focused on Kendal. He held out his hand. Kendal took it and rose on tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

  “I’m glad you’re okay,” they said, then let go and walked out of the room.

  “Kendal!” Andrew called.

  Kendal stopped but didn’t turn to look at him. “Yes?”

  “Are you okay? Where are you going?”

  Hardening their resolve, they faced him and slid their hands into their pockets. “I’m going to see if Brett needs any help with information gathering,” they said, ignoring the first question.

  Andrew stepped forward, but Kendal stepped back in time with him. Andrew paused, eyebrows lowered. “What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t do this right now, Andrew. I’ll be back later.”

  Kendal turned and walked away, though they wanted to throw themselves in Andrew’s arms and never let go again. But that wouldn’t solve the tumultuous emotions swirling inside them. They needed to work through them before they could explain them to anyone.

  When they arrived at the security team’s base, they knocked on the door. Felix opened it, eyebrows shooting up.

  “Your Highness, is everything okay?”

  Why did everyone keep asking that?

  “Yes, everything’s fine. Andrew has returned in one piece. I wondered, though, if you needed some help with the family tree or locating other information?” They smiled and cleared their throat. “I need to keep busy for a while,” they explained when Felix opened his mouth to no doubt decline.

  Felix snapped his mouth closed again and glanced over his shoulder. “Sure. Come in.”

  Kendal crossed the threshold and found half a dozen people working at computers. Ford jumped up and crossed the space between them.

  “Your Highness. Is everything okay?”

  Kendal gritted their teeth, swallowed the answer they wanted to give and nodded. “Yes. Just here to work.”

  Ford frowned. “I thought His Maj—”

  “He has. He’s with his family.” Kendal looked past Ford to Brett. “Would you like another pair of eyes?”

  Brett licked his lips but nodded. “Sure. We’re still waiting on the marriage certificate for Jeremy’s parents, but we want to look further into Daniel’s mother and her family. We don’t want any more surprises.”

  “Understandably.” Kendal glanced around. “I have some connections through work, which I may be able to use to get information through social media. Although you’ve probably already got that through Mav.” They weren’t sure how much help they could give them, but they needed something to do.

  “He has provided some, yes, but we welcome any information you can find.” Brett handed them a piece of paper. “This has a list of all the people we’re looking into and the information we already have on them. Pick whichever you want and go hunting.” Brett smiled.

  Something inside Kendal loosened. Brett had been trained to see more than the naked eye, so they were sure he understood what Kendal needed without them having to say anything, and they couldn’t be more grateful for the distraction.

  “Where would you like me?”

  Brett pointed to a laptop in the far corner, and again, Kendal was grateful that he knew what they seemed to need. They settled themselves down and studied the paper and attached photographs. Daniel March. Anne Denison. Jeremy Blatch. David Blatch. Nora Blatch, nee Dyer. Ernest Dyer. Charles Sutcliffe. Juliet Sutcliffe, nee Mountford. Arthur Sutcliffe. Isla Sutcliffe, nee Bonner. Elizabeth Sutcliffe. Ian Sutcliffe, nee Trenton. The list went on with all known and potential suspects in the treason plot. Kendal exhaled and picked Anne Denison, as Brett had mentioned wanting to know more about Daniel’s mother.

  They accessed the internet and started a general search for the name to begin with. There were a lot of results, and Kendal got to work checking each site and the information on it. Every time they found something they weren’t sure if it was related or not, they saved it into a new internet folder to find again later. Then they focused on social media. They didn’t expect Daniel’s mother to be on there because it was more for the younger generation, but they might get lucky.

  They had no idea how long they worked for, but Ford brought them tea regularly and a snack of fruit at one point, too. When Kendal finally pulled their gaze from the screen, they stretched their arms to the ceiling, hearing their back click in several places. They chuckled when two guards blinked at them with wide eyes.

  “Sorry, I’m getting old.”

  “If you’re getting old, Your Highness, I have no hope,” Brett said, heading towards them. “How are you doing?”

  “Good. I’ve found a couple of things from my searches. Anne Denison was born in Catterick to an Army Sergeant father on the Army base. And…” Kendal exhaled. “Ernest Dyer was stationed at Catterick for two years when he was twenty-five years old. He married Anne Denison the following year.”

  “They were married? How did you find this?” Brett said, rounding the desk.

  Kendal snorted. “People put all sorts of photos up on social media now, reminiscing about times gone past. Someone put a photo up of their wedding, tagging Anne in it. Now, she didn’t have a very active page, but she was still on there. And there are some people older than the rest of them who could be parents, but I don’t have names.”

  “Please tell me he was still married to her when he married Charlotte?”

  Kendal shook their head. “Sorry, no. They divorced after a year.”

  “Then how did Daniel turn up?”

  Kendal hummed. “Well, it just so happens… Anne Denison, who reverted to her maiden name, moved shortly after Ernest left the Army, which was at the same time as the divorce. Do you want to have a guess where she moved to?”

  Brett met their gaze. “Edinburgh.”

  Kendal nodded. “Edinburgh. Where Ernest started working as a teaching assistant just before he met Charlotte.”

  “Jesus Christ. ‘Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive.’”

  Kendal smiled. “I love that quote.”

  “It’s so true in this case,” Brett said, then sighed. “Okay. You’ve done enough tonight—or should I say, this morning—so get some rest. You’re welcome to come back at any point to help. You’ve been invaluable.”

  “I’ve enjoyed it.” And they had, and it wasn’t just because they needed an escape.

  “Great minds must think alike,” Brett said.

  Kendal frowned at them and saw their attention on the other side of the room. Andrew and Kean stood in the doorway, looking a lot more unsure of themselves than Kendal had ever seen them. Andrew had changed clothes and looked a lot less grimy than he had. They glanced at Brett.

  “Thank you, Brett. I appreciate it.”

  “You’re always welcome.” Kendal left the desk as it was and headed for the door, but Brett called after them. “Did you happen to log which websites you found this information on?”

  “It’s all in the folders titled ‘Assholes.’” Laughter rang out behind them, and Kendal reached Andrew and Kean with a smile on their face. “Hello, my liege. Hello, honey.” They closed the door behind them, hiding them from the security team.

  Kean grinned. “Are we in a competition for who can make the best nicknames?”

  Kendal tilted their head. “I don’t know, are we?”

  “Are you ready to leave?” Andrew asked.

  “I’m ready for bed.”

  Andrew worked his jaw and squinted at them. “With or without me?”

  Kendal slid their arms around Andrew’s neck. “With, of course.”

  Andrew’s arms banded around them, and his face rested against Kendal’s neck, so they could feel the enormous breath he let out. “I wasn’t sure you were coming back to us.”

  “Of course I am. We made a promise to each other. One which I intend to keep.” They pulled back and pointed a finger in Andrew’s face. “But that does not mean we are on good terms right now. I’m pissed at you. Extremely pissed, and it will take a lot of grovelling to make me not pissed.”

  Andrew smiled. “Understood.”

  Kendal lifted their chin, waiting for what they knew they both needed. Andrew lowered his mouth to Kendal’s, and tingles spread from their lips to the rest of their body. Their mind spun, and they tightened their grip on him. Too soon, Andrew pulled back.

  “I hear you’ve been busy,” he said, breathing heavily.

  Kendal blinked and licked their lips. “Uh-huh. I found out that Ernest was actually married to Daniel’s mother, but not when Daniel was born.”

  Andrew’s eyes widened. “He must’ve been hiding a lot of things because I know for a fact Father wouldn’t have been happy about that had he known. He was not one for having his children marry divorced people, and he would’ve checked. Thoroughly.”

  “Either Ernest is good at destroying evidence, or he had someone help him,” Kean said.

  “How did you know where he’d been?” Andrew asked as they started walking towards their suite.

  “I didn’t. I was looking into Daniel’s mother. A picture came up of a wedding, and I recognised Ernest. When I realised that, I went looking at the service records. I couldn’t find anything, so I checked the ancestry websites. They have a lot of service records on there, but not always new ones. I couldn’t find his record there, either. I started checking through social media for Army groups stationed in Catterick and found photos they’d uploaded. One said something about newbies, and there was a photo of Ernest.”

  “You’re amazing. I didn’t realise you were so good with computers,” Andrew said.