Page 76 of Trained Royal
He hadn’t meant to fall asleep. He’d only meant to give Patrick some reassurance, but he woke, alone, in a dark room.
“Patrick?”
No answer.
Groggily, he climbed from the bed, his ass barely smarting at all, and drew on some joggers and a T-shirt, along with some shoes, without socks. He left Patrick’s room and wandered to the music room, thinking he was probably playing, even though he should be resting his wrist, but he wasn’t there either. It was late enough that most of the household staff would be in bed, and he didn’t see anyone he could ask.
His heart picked up speed. Where was he? Had something happened to him? Had someone taken him from the building? Kieren shook his head. No way. No one could’ve taken him from the house without someone seeing.
He broke into a jog and checked his own room, the kitchens, the dining room, then exhaled roughly when he arrived at the sunroom. Patrick was curled up on a sofa with a blanket covering him while his mother watched over him. She caught his eye and smiled, beckoning him over.
“I couldn’t sleep and found him in here,” she whispered. “We talked for a while before I told him to sleep. I knew you’d come and find him. I kept watch until you did.”
Kieren dropped to his knees beside her, leaning against her chair but staring at Patrick. “Sometimes my fear of him not being with me is too hard to handle,” he admitted.
Continuing in a soft voice, she said, “I can imagine. I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to any of you.” Kieren glanced at her, but her gaze was on her son. “What she’s planning…” She shook her head. “I don’t know who that is. She’s not the sister I grew up with. I don’t know where she got the lofty ideas from because it sure as hell wasn’t us. Father brought us up to be compassionate, understanding, patient. I think the only thing she took from that was patience because she seems to have that in spades.”
Kieren frowned. “When did she start to change?”
Victoria huffed. “In her late teens, I think. She became more opinionated, more defiant.”
“Had any of your circumstances changed at that point?”
“No. Mother was still with us. Father was on the throne. Oh, Andrew had married Louisa. Nothing else that I can think of.”
Something was niggling in the back of his head. “When did she meet Ernest?”
“She was twenty-two and was at university in Edinburgh. She had refused to go to any universities that we went to. She said we would ‘cramp her style.’ Ernest was one of the assistants there.”
“Isn’t he older than her?”
Victoria nodded. “Yes, nine years older. Too big of a gap if you ask me, but they seemed to get on well. Ernest was always willing to do Charlotte’s bidding, and she was never afraid to tell him to do something. A slight off-balance relationship, in my opinion, but each to their own. I don’t have to live with either of them.”
“Whose idea was it for them to get married, do you know?”
“I don’t know. They came to Father just after Charlotte’s twenty-third birthday and said they wanted to get married. Father could see no reason to deny it.” Victoria narrowed her eyes at him. “Why do you ask?”
Kieren pursed his lips. “I’m not sure, but something isn’t adding up. I can’t put my finger on it, though. I understand teenagers can change, but usually, they settle down again once their hormones have balanced out again. For her to continue, there must have been a catalyst. And potentially a continuous one at that.” He tapped his fingers on his thumb. “Unless she’d met Ernest earlier than you all know, and he’s hiding something, there’s something else we’re missing.”
“Hmm. I’ll speak to Andrew and see if we can think of anything. My brain is not like it used to be.” She chuckled.
“There is nothing wrong with your brain, my dear,” Patrick Senior said, entering the room. “I came to see if you wanted to try to get some sleep now.”
Victoria uncurled herself from the chair and removed the blanket covering her legs. “I think I will try.” She patted Kieren on the cheek. “Will you be okay here?”
Kieren smiled. “All good. Get some rest.”
They left, but Kieren noted the way Patrick’s father wrapped his arm around his wife and pressed a kiss to her head. They were still in love, even after all these years. It was something he could only wish for. He loved the thought of spending years to come with Patrick. What could they accomplish in a lifetime?
****
Chapter 23
Patrick
It was becoming a weekly thing that Patrick visited with Freddie or Douglas while Kieren dropped in on the security meetings every Monday and Friday. But this visit had a purpose. As he settled himself on the sofa opposite Freddie, his cousin narrowed his eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Freddie asked.
