“Even if he was using your lessons, there wouldn’t be any reason for you to have known. You didn’t know him well enough to know if he was acting off. Even if he was, there could be a million reasons for it. Everything from not getting enough sleep to an ill family member or any number of other things.” He clasped one of her hands with his. “If you’d noticed anything truly concerning you would have told someone, right?”
“Of course.”
“Then you have nothing to be worried about.”
“I’m not worried, necessarily. Just...” She wasn’t quite sure what the word was.
“Feeling guilty?” Quiet understanding filled his voice.
“Yes.” How had he been able to understand when she couldn’t quite understand herself?
He let go of her hand and slid across the bed until he was close enough to her that he could kiss the side of her head. “You spent a couple of hours a day with him. You had no baseline for his regular behavior, so you couldn’t know if he was acting off. It’s not unexpected that you would have noticed anything - if there was anything to notice. Those like Jeanette, who worked with him regularly, didn’t notice anything off. He may have been a bit quieter than normal or perhaps a little bit less patient, but nothing so out of the ordinary they were concerned.”
“Mostly, I know there’s nothing I could have done or should feel guilty about, but at the same time it’s hard not to believe that.”
“I know.” He settled his head on the pillow near hers.
Victoria shifted until she faced him again. With his arm wrapped around her, she finally drifted to sleep.
When she woke, the first thing Victoria realized was that she was alone. At some point, Enzo had slipped out of the bed and gone... somewhere. A glance at the clock on the nightstand toldher that she’d slept longer than she meant to. What happened to her alarm? It should have woken her up nearly an hour earlier.
Not that she’d strictly needed to be awake that early, but she’d wanted to get a few things done before going to the archives. Nothing of great importance, just a short workout and taking her time waking up and getting ready. Usually, she wasn’t able to do that and generally had to hurry through her morning routine.
Unfortunately, she had to do the same thing this time, despite her plans.
The apartment seemed to be empty. The door to the suite Anthony and Madeleine had used stood open. Enzo was nowhere to be found.
Victoria grabbed a breakfast bar and coffee before heading for the archives. By the time she reached the main doors to the Hall of Kings, both were gone. The gallery was dimly lit as usual, but the light coming through the observation window showed her where everyone had gathered.
She joined the group though she remained on the outskirts of the group, leaning against the doorway as Jeanette introduced Madeleine to all of them. They went around the room until everyone had said their name and area of expertise for the other historians while the rest of the palace staff shared where they normally worked.
Then it was her turn.
"Victoria. I've only been here a couple of months and am still learning exactly what my role is." She couldn't keep the smile from her face.
Most of those in the room turned, wide eyed and slack jawed while scrambling to bow or curtsy in her direction.
Except Madeleine who hid her own smirk.
Jeanette gave a nod her direction after everyone turned back to the front of the room. "Thank you for your help, Your Majesty. It is greatly appreciated."
Victoria gave a slight nod, but didn't comment further.
"I've assigned all of you to teams of three - two historians or other experts and one assistant to help with the inventory paperwork." She began calling names and handing folders to one from each group of three. "Your assignments are in the folders. The historians and experts who work directly for the palace will be in charge of each team."
Did that mean some of them had been brought in from the outside like Madeleine?
"If you find anything anomalous, please contact me or Mrs. Woodward Middleton immediately." Jeanette gave another nod. "Thank you all. Let's get to work."
Victoria moved out of the way of those exiting the meeting. They all looked a bit uncomfortable walking so close to her so she took another step back.
That was one thing she hadn't missed while being on her little sabbatical. No one had known who she was so no one treated her special because of who her parents were - or, in this case, who she was married to.
Once the room had cleared, she went back inside. "Where do you need my help?" she asked the two women.
Jeanette shook her head. "The king sent enough help that you're not needed as an assistant, but we would appreciate you working with us as reports come in from the others."
It stung, just a bit, that she wasn't going to be actually helping like she'd offered to. In a way, it made her feel...
