Except once.
As Victoria shook the hand of a woman with long gray hair, she felt a tug on her skirt. Looking down, there was a little boy, no more than four or five reaching for her.
Crouching down so she was on his eye level, she greeted him. "Thank you for coming today, kind sir."
His somber face didn't change. "My mummy and papa gone too." He held his hand to his heart. "It hurts here."
Victoria took his other hand. "My papa is gone. I know how much it hurts."
"Is your mummy?"
"No. My mum is still with us, but I know she misses my papa terribly."
Before any of them could truly take in what was happening, the little boy flung his arms around Victoria, burying his head in her shoulder.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see one of the security team start to interfere, but she held up a hand to stop them. There was no danger. Only a little boy who missed his mummy and papa.
She'd heard something a long time ago. At the Disney parks, Walt had insisted that no character ever let the hug go first. Those children - and even adults - would determine if it was a quick hug or a long one. The cast members had no idea what might be going on in that child's life and how much they might need that hug. She'd heard the same thing about Taylor Swift and her genuine interactions with fans. Victoria was certain there had to be exceptions to the rule, but for this moment, this little boy would let go first.
It probably didn't last as long as it felt like to Victoria but eventually the little boy loosened his hold and stepped back.
The woman with the gray hair rested her hand on the top of his head. When she looked up Victoria could see tears streaking down the woman's cheeks.
"Thank you," the woman whispered. "it's very recent for him."
"You both have my deepest condolences," Victoria told her as she straightened and reached for the woman's hand to give it a light squeeze. "Thank you for being here today amidst your own grief."
Before she could say anything else, someone jostled them and the connection was broken. If she was still in Southern Santiero, Victoria knew she'd be able to give a look or a sign toone of their staff members, and within hours she would find out who they were and anything else she needed to know. She looked around but didn't see one of them looking at her.
Surely the interaction had been recorded and would make its way onto social media and news sites before long. That would help her get the information she needed.
What she would do with that information remained to be seen, but it would be available to her.
Together, with her new family, she worked her way down the line back toward the gates where they'd exited and would reenter momentarily.
The emotional toll of an outing like this would exist long after they returned to the palace.
And yet, there was an exhilaration as well. A buoyancy of lifted spirits and camaraderie that came from such intimate contact with supporters and well-wishers.
Once they reentered the palace proper, Victoria unexpectedly found herself alone.
A group of aides had quickly separated Enzo from the rest of them and ushered him off, probably to his office. The other siblings went their own ways, likely with none of them realizing she'd been left behind.
There were a couple of staff members, the ones who'd opened and closed the doors for them, standing awkwardly nearby.
A thought came to mind. "Could you please point me toward the main kitchen?"
Relief washed over their faces as she gave them something they could do.
"I would be happy to escort you, ma'am." The one who appeared to be senior held a hand out toward one of the passages leading off of the vestibule.
Victoria gave him a nod of thanks and followed him through several corridors including two flights of stairs until they reached a set of double doors.
"Thank you. Perhaps one day soon, when things are a bit more settled, you would give me a tour of the palace and tell me some of its tales?" Her curiosity had been piqued the first time she walked through the doors a couple of days earlier, but she still didn't know much about any of it.
He bowed at the waist. "I would be honored, ma'am, but there are others who are far more knowledgeable than I am. I will be happy to let them know you'd like a tour soon."
She nodded her thanks again, having suspected his answer would be something along those lines. Pulling the right side door toward her, Victoria slipped into the industrial kitchen used to serve state dinners as well as intimate family dinner parties. After only venturing a step or two, she stopped and looked around. Her heels were most definitely not suited for this sort of floor and though her hair had been pulled back, there was no hair net covering it. She knew enough about kitchen safety to know those things were a must.
