Page 93 of Trained Royal
“But would that make them think we know, or just that we were being extra careful?”
“Have we been extra careful at the smaller events?” Brett grimaced. “Exactly. If they’re looking for clues, we’ve given them a big one.” He didn’t say that he’d told Brett. They’d discussed increasing security for each event, not just the targeted ones, but Brett wouldn’t agree on the extra manpower for the smaller ones.
“You were right. I’m sorry.”
Kieren held up his hands. “I might not be. They might have no idea, and it was just because they couldn’t get a replacement scapegoat at such short notice.”
“But you don’t believe that.” It wasn’t a question.
“Nobody understands how she thinks. I doubt even her husband understands why she does certain things, but we have to cover all the bases now. They could be in more danger with how unpredictable she can be.”
Brett cursed. “We need to end this.”
“We will. It’s just taking longer than we thought.”
“I should have you as my second in command.”
Kieren snorted. “No, thanks. Too much like hard work.”
The room filled up as more and more people came. The security team and the princes and their partners took up plenty of room. But when the king, Patrick’s parents, and Prince William and his wife joined them, even the large room suddenly felt a lot smaller. Patrick and Kieren found a chair, and Kieren sat at Patrick’s feet.
Andrew clapped his hands together. “All right. What do we know?”
Brett talked them through the event, what Kieren had done with replacing the staff, what the event had been like, and his initial feelings. Each member of the security team who had been present at the event gave their thoughts on it, as did the princes.
“Kieren?” Andrew asked.
He glanced at Brett, who gave him a slight nod. “I think, after tonight’s event, Charlotte knows that we have something or someone who’s been telling us what events she’s targeting.”
“Why?” Andrew said. “How would she know?”
Kieren peered at Brett again. “It’s my fault, Your Majesty,” Brett said.
“How so?”
Brett sighed. “Kieren came to me with concerns about me focusing on the events that we knew to be targeted. He explained his thoughts about showing our hands and hiding our knowledge behind all the events, not just the targeted ones. I listened but disagreed, not wanting to stretch the team too thin. I think I made the wrong choice.”
Andrew remained quiet for a moment, then spoke to Kieren. “What makes you think she knows?”
“We’ve been too obvious. We had extra security at Douglas’s and Henry’s events, but not at the smaller ones, like visiting the schools or hospitals. If we didn’t know which event they would strike at, we would’ve increased security for all visits and events and replaced staff at all events, not just some.”
“He’s right, sir,” Brett said.
“Maybe, but that doesn’t mean you’re at fault, Brett,” Andrew said. “Increase security for all events from now on. If you need extra staff, ask, or if you need us to reduce the number of events, we will. Until we have her, we have to be careful.”
Patrick’s grip on his shoulder tightened, and Kieren reached up to cover his hand, squeezing.
Eric cleared his throat. “We found a couple of suspicious staff from the group that had been replaced at Henry’s event. We have investigated them in more detail, but we can’t find anything concrete.”
“Where are they now?”
“Still being held. We wanted to know what you wanted to do with them, considering the plan to use Charlotte’s potential allies as bait.”
“I think we should give them some information. Something only the two of them knows, but with a slight difference in each case,” Christian said. “If we focus it on something close to us, maybe like Christmas, then if something happens, we will know if either of them went to her.”
“We know she used to use the rooms at Sandringham for her…” Henry blanched as he spoke. “Could we say something about what we found there? She might be willing to risk retrieving it if it would point the finger at her.”
“Yes,” Freddie said. “Something with her fingerprint on it, maybe? Or Charles’s? Would she fight for her son or leave him to the wolves?”
