Alexander & Rebecca (Royals of Valleria #1) (4 page)

Her Mom huffed. “You don’t need to worry about your father. He thinks just like I do, and don’t you spend another moment worrying about us.”

“But what if someone gets upset at him over this?”

“My dear, the world is made of ‘what ifs’ and ‘if onlys’, but that doesn’t mean we need to pay any attention to them.”

Rebecca smiled; her mother had a clever way to put things into perspective.

“You have never, ever given us cause for concern, Rebecca, and this doesn’t qualify either. If anybody says anything to you, you just give me or your father a call. All right?”

Rebecca held back a laugh that wanted to escape. “Thank you, Mama, and tell Papa thank you as well.”

“There’s no need to thank us for being your parents, though we’ll take it just the same. Now then, tell me how the last few days of the trip went.”

As Rebecca leaned back and began to tell her mother anecdotes about the small island of Ilva, she felt more relaxed that she had in hours, if not days.

***

Alexander walked towards his offices with his typically quick, purposeful strides, despite being lost in his own thoughts. His security men, which only numbered two now that he was inside the palace, followed behind. Alex and Catharine had returned to the palace only minutes earlier. He had foregone the gentlemanly duty of walking his sister to the royal apartments to instead head straight to the office under the guise of a time-sensitive work issue. It wasn’t entirely untrue; to Alex, Rebecca’s safety was of the upmost importance.

As he entered the main door to his offices, he heard Tavin speaking on the phone. He gave a quick knock to alert Tavin to his presence, who then promptly stood and bowed his head. Alex had to agree with Catharine that all the bowing became too much for everyday life. Alex walked into Tavin’s office, then through an adjoining walkway to his own office.

All of the royal offices were decorated in the same tones to ensure consistency. Alex’s office, the largest room in his suite of offices, also boasted a hidden doorway near his desk. It opened onto a narrow hallway, which eventually led to his father’s office. Though it was a relic of some centuries past, the hallway had been very useful when things were better discussed in person, and in secret. The hallway could also lead him to the queen’s offices, currently his mother’s, though he hoped one day they would belong to Rebecca.

As Alex sat down, he noted his security taking their post outside his door, and having a quiet discussion with Tavin’s security. Arranging for Rebecca’s security would be his first order of business, despite the organized piles of work Tavin had left on his desk. He would have to be careful not to arouse suspicion where Rebecca was concerned.

“Your Highness,” Tavin said with another head bow before entering Alex’s office. “How was your journey? I take it the tea luncheon went well?”

“Yes, it was fine.”

“Excellent, sir. If you could just sign this thank you card, I’ll have it sent to the proprietor.” Alex scribbled his long winded royal name quickly.

“Shall I go through your messages, sir?”

“No. Sit down. There’s something we need to discuss first.”

A startled look crossed Tavin’s face, and the arms carrying several crisp folders sagged just a little. “Sir?”

“Sit down, Tavin,” he said a little more gently. Though Alex liked being in charge, he wished he had a chance to be himself more often.

After Tavin sat down, Alex continued. “I need to talk to you about security. What are the current protocols regarding my family and their staff?”

A look of surprise and relief crossed Tavin’s face before he asked, “Then you’ve already spoken to Prince Marcello, sir?”

Alex quirked an eyebrow at the reference to his brother, fourth in line to the throne and who currently held the post as Minister of Security and Defense on the Royal Council. He’d earned the title through his intuitive sense when it came to security matters as well as his years of military service, during which he earned the respect of those he’d led into battle. Marcello had earned the post of Minister despite his royal connections, not because of it. “I haven’t spoken to Marcello today. Why? What’s wrong?”

“He wished to speak with you, sir, regarding a personal security issue. I assumed your question was in relation to that.”

“It wasn’t, but I’ll give Marcello a call shortly. In the meantime, tell me about the current security protocol.”

“Well, sir, you, as heir apparent, have heightened security at all times, as do the reigning king and queen. The future queen would receive similar security, whenever we are lucky enough to wish you joy on such an occasion.”

Alex waved his insinuation away. Even Tavin had started teasing him for a lack of a bride. “All right, move on. My siblings.”

With a broad smile, Tavin continued. “Yes, sir. They receive lesser protection, and by that I mean only in the number of people following them and escorting them on royal duties. Were the line of royal succession to change at any time, then security is adjusted accordingly.”

“You mean if I die.”

“I mean if you have children, sir.”

That was Tavin, always optimistic. “And royal staff?”

“The king’s chief of staff does receive additional security provided by the state, as do all the ministers on the Royal Council.”

“But not you.”

“No, sir.”

“Then why have you hired your own security? I apologize for not realizing before now, but I assumed they were agents from our own Royal Protection Service.”

“Sir, there’s no need to apologize at all. I have, in the past, received certain messages of concern. I made both the Royal Protection Service and the Vallerian Bureau of Investigation aware of these, and they have followed up appropriately. No harm was come to anyone, and none of the messages were deemed a credible threat.”

“That’s a very diplomatic way of saying you were threatened, handled it on your own, and then both you and the agencies decided not to tell me. Is that about right?”

Tavin looked a little abashed. “Yes, sir. We weren’t trying to keep anything from you, honestly. Prince Marcello felt that this was the best way to go.”

“Well, I’ll have my own chat with Marcello. I think it’s ridiculous that you and the other royal staff aren’t protected. God only knows what other threats are received by them on a daily basis.”

“Thank you, sir,” Tavin said as he stood up. “Shall I get the Prince on the phone for you?”

“No, thanks. I’ll call him myself. Shut the doors on your way out, would you? And Tavin?”

“Yes, sir?” Tavin said just before he closed the last door.

“Don’t keep things from me in the future. Marcello may have asked you not to tell me, but I’m the future king, not him. Is that understood?”

“Y-Yes, sir,” Tavin said with a stutter and quietly closed the door; Tavin rarely stuttered.

Alex flipped out his cell phone and called Marcello directly, knowing he would be more likely to pick up if he thought the call was unofficial.

“Finally back, Alex?” Marcello asked on the other end. Despite years in the military facing brutal battlefields and modern war, his voice had personality had remained light and playful. In contrast, Alex’s time in the military had left him sounding particularly more somber at times.

“Are you in Valentia right now?” Alex asked.

“Of course I am. Didn’t you hear? Mama’s decided we need a family dinner, and everyone has been told to attend.”

Alex nearly groaned. Though he loved those rare moments when his immediate family found time for each other, lately those moments had been filled with comments about Alex needing a wife. He could almost bare it with a small subset of his family, but with all eight of his siblings plus his parents and Nonna hurling taunts at him, he’d never get a word in edgewise. He became a future king who couldn’t even control a family dinner. “When will this evening of torture commence?”

“It won’t be so bad, Alex,” Marcello said, and Alex knew he was smiling on the other end. “But you’ve got a few days reprieve. We’ve got to wait until Ethan comes back. His ship’s set to dock soon,” Marcello said, referring to their youngest sibling, who was a doctor steadily moving up the ranks in the Vallerian Royal Navy.

“They’re heading back from the Philippines, aren’t they?”

“Yes, though he wanted a mission to Africa, so he’s still pissed at me about that. They did good work in the Philippines, though, where they’re still recovering from that earthquake and typhoon that hit back-to-back over a year ago.”

Alex paused, knowing what Marcello really wanted was his baby brother safe and sound. They all held a soft spot for little Ethan, who wasn’t so little anymore. Alex had been barely a teenager when Ethan had arrived, Marcello had been just a few years younger. All of their siblings had helped to raise him. “He’s ninth in line to the throne, capable, and a damn good officer and doctor. He would have been fine in Africa.”

“I’m in charge when it comes to security, both national and personal for the royal family,” Marcello said, anger laced through his words. “Don’t tell me how to do my job and I won’t tell you how to do yours.”

“Ethan will be fine,” Alex repeated calmly. “And you tell me how to do my job on a daily basis. You tell Papa, too, come to that, though you tend to listen when he tells you to back down.”

Marcello snorted a laugh. “Can’t really talk back to him, can you? Especially not with other people in the room.”

“Unless it’s just us, which it will be in a few days. Anyway, Tavin said you needed to speak with me.”

“Yes,” Marcello said, his tone suddenly somber. “We’ve received a threat, specifically against you.”

“We receive threats against me all the time, and against you and Catharine, and our parents. Why are you and the Royal Protection Service concerned about this one?”

“We’re concerned because this one’s credible.”

“How do you know it’s credible?”

“Look, I don’t want to talk about this on the phone. Meet me in the Situation Room, and I’ll tell you more there.”

“All right. I’ll head over now if you’ve got the time.”

“I do. I’ll see you in ten.”

After Alex hung up, he headed to Tavin’s office and overheard him ordering a tea service. He stopped when he heard Rebecca’s name.

“Yes, would you send it to Princess Catharine’s office, please? Yes, Rebecca’s working late again. Thank you,” Tavin said before he hung up.

“Rebecca’s working tonight?” Alex asked as he continued walking towards Tavin

“Yes, sir.”

“Any particular reason why?” The last he’d heard, the driver had left her at her apartment. What had been so important that she’d come back to the office?

“Well, sir, she’s concerned about the video that’s making the rounds.”

“There’s a video of her tripping and my catching her this afternoon, is there?” Alex said, picking up on the situation immediately.

“Yes, sir. It’s not bad, just embarrassing. However, she’s concerned about the things the press are saying. She came into wrap up any loose ends, she said, just in case.”

“Just in case of what?” he asked, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “Does she really think we’d fire her over something as trifling as that?”

“Sir, she would give up her position herself, if she felt it was best for the royal family. She takes her duty to the crown very seriously.”

Alex felt a surge of pride at that statement. It was simply more proof that Rebecca would be an excellent queen one day. “Does anyone else know that she’s here this evening?”