Page 25 of Royal Caleva: Luis

“Controlled…you mean illegal drugs?” Eve was insulted, even as she understood why the questions were being asked. “Of course not.” The closest she had was the Prozac prescribed for one of the cats.

“Has anyone other than you and your daughter been in this house in the last twenty-four hours?” Mikel continued.

“No,” Eve said as she mentally reviewed the last two days. “Certainly not since I met with you and your…boss at the law office.”

“Thank you,” Mikel said. “My apologies. I meant no offense.” He sounded neither grateful nor apologetic, but that didn’t surprise Eve.

She was relieved when he and his colleagues removed themselves from her kitchen. Leaning back against the countertop, Eve tried to shake off the unpleasant sensation of enduring the Spanish Inquisition. This was the dark side of Grace’s newly revealed heritage, and Eve was glad her daughter hadn’t seen it.

Glancing up at the kitchen clock, Eve gasped. She opened the refrigerator and pulled out the ingredients for the Iowa sweet corn soup. While she cleaned the leeks and carrots, she watched out the window as Bridget made friends with her three-legged golden retriever and Grace’s pit bull, handing out treats and ear scratches until the dogs stared up at her with adoring expressions.

Footsteps sounded over her head while she chopped the vegetables. She wondered what they were doing up there, prowling through the four bedrooms—one of which she and Grace used as an office/study space—and two bathrooms. She heard the telltale metallic protest as someone opened the retractable stairs to the attic space. They were being thorough, that was for sure.

By the time Eve added the chicken stock and sweet corn to the garlicky sauteed vegetables and turned them down to simmer, Bridget had disappeared from her view.

As Eve lined up the dessert ingredients, Mikel and Ivan vanished down the cellar stairs. Eve didn’t mind because she kept the basement clean, as well as stocked with emergency supplies, since it was also a tornado shelter.

She was carefully stirring the Rice Krispies into the corn syrup and peanut butter mixture when Mikel returned to the kitchen. “That’s a nice setup you have down there.”

Eve poured the gooey mixture into the baking pan and patted it down. “My grandmother believed in being prepared for the worst.”

Mikel peered at the contents of the pan. “That smells…sweet.”

“Oh, it is, but it gets even better when I add the melted chocolate and butterscotch chips on top. They’re called Scotcheroos, Iowa’s signature sweet treat for every potluck, picnic, and bake sale.” She grinned. “Don’t worry. I made plenty for you and your team.”

“I also smell garlic and…onions?”

“Leeks, but close. That’s the sweet corn soup. There’s also more than enough to share.”

He smiled. “You are very generous, but my team will have eaten before the king arrives. However, I don’t think they would turn down some…Scotcheroos to take back to the house with them.”

“The house?”

“We have rented a house for the king to use during his visit.” He obviously wasn’t going to tell her the address.

“Ah, I wondered where a king would stay in Ames, Iowa.” She dumped chocolate and butterscotch chips into a bowl and put it in the microwave without turning it on. “Probably wherever he wants to,” she said.

Mikel chuckled politely. “I would like to introduce you to the people who will be stationed around your house until the king departs. Is now a good time for you to come outside to meet them?”

There were more security guards, and they would be stationed?

“How many more people are there?”

“Eight, plus Bridget, Ivan, and myself,” Mikel said. “We have kept the number small in order to avoid attracting attention.”

Eleven people, and he considered that a low number. Her property wasn’t that large, about half an acre that had been retained around the house when the farmland had been sold off by her grandmother. Most of it was taken up by the fenced backyard where the dogs roamed.

If eleven people were barely enough to keep the king safe on a secret visit to Ames, Iowa, how many guards would it take to keep Grace safe? A cold chill ran through her.

She was glad that Mikel Silva took his job very seriously.

“Okay, let’s go meet your guards.” She rinsed off her hands and followed Mikel out her back door, where the dogs greeted them. Mikel pulled treats out of his pocket and earned Trace’s and Army’s undying devotion. “They’re terrible watchdogs, aren’t they?” she said with a grimace.

Useless for keeping a king or princess safe.

He ruffled Trace’s floppy ears. “If I attacked you, I’m willing to bet they would act to protect you.”

Eve looked at Trace’s blissfully goofy face. “Maybe Army would.”

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