"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it-always."
― Mahatma Gandhi
"Need any help with that, Elsa?"
Anna walked into Elsa's room as her sister was putting the final touches on her makeup and hair. It was the day before the Spring Equinox festival, and there would be a non-stop whirl of balls and parties into the wee hours of the morning.
"Nope, just finishing." Elsa smiled at her sister. The queen was in a dressing gown as she sat at her vanity. Anna was already dressed for dinner. "All I need is a dress!" Elsa grinned as she stood up, threw her robe onto the bed and waved her hand to create another ice dress for the dinner and ball tonight.
"Whoa. I never get tired of watching you do that, Elsa! It's gorgeous, as always."
"Well, what good are magic powers if you can't do something spectacular with them every now and again?" Elsa loved making dresses for herself, although she only indulged in the practice for special occasions. "Let's go, our dinner guests are waiting!"
After dinner, Elsa kissed Anna's cheek as her sister and Kristoff prepared to leave for an evening of socializing. Elsa was hosting a ball at the castle, and Anna and Kristoff would make the rounds of all the parties that wanted a royal in attendance. Since this was the first Equinox Festival since Elsa's coronation, the kingdom was going all out to celebrate.
"Have fun, honey! And, you, too, Kristoff," Elsa said.
"Ah, yeah. Fun. Tight collar, pinchy leather boots, and I bet she'll want me to dance, too." Kristoff rolled his eyes, but he smiled at Anna. He would never be as enthusiastic party goer as she was, but being with her made it all worthwhile.
"I'll check in when we get back, Elsa," Anna said. "No matter how late. Or early."
"As long as you don't announce your presence by squishing me, that's fine!" Elsa had a twinkle in her eye as she said this, knowing that it was a forlorn hope.
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"Your Highness, Master Kristoff, how kind of you to grace us with your presence this evening!" Georges Couthon greeted Anna and Kristoff at the entrance foyer to Pierre's town house. It was festive with lights, and Anna could hear dance music being played and the sounds of laughter from the party goers. Considering Pierre's main line of business, Anna was sure that the cognac and champagne were flowing freely.
Pierre's event was the last one on their list for the evening. When Anna had set up their plans for her and Kristoff with Elsa, she had 'accidentally' forgotten to mention this one to her sister. "Why worry Elsa? I've got the guards with me, what could happen at a party?" Kristoff was none the wiser because not sharing Elsa's concerns was the one thing Anna did according to the queen's instructions.
"We wouldn't miss it for the world, Georges, you know that!" Anna had been to three more 'tasting parties' with Couthon while Kristoff was up in the mountains surveying the lakes for ice. She had managed to drop hints to Georges that Anna was reluctant to let either Kristoff or Elsa know that she was seeing him. She made vague comments about how stuffy and overly protective Elsa was and how jealous Kristoff could be.
Her plans to infiltrate whatever scheme Pierre was planning hadn't yet resulted in anything tangible. Her conversations with Georges were filled with hints and innuendo, suggestions that she was jealous of her sister and perhaps amenable to deposing the queen and taking the throne. Subtlety wasn't really Anna's strong suit, but she thought she was managing it – the high stakes were a powerful motivator. For his part, Georges had shrewdly encouraged her feelings as the younger sibling, forever in the shadow of the Snow Queen. His reports to Pierre were smug in his analysis of his influence on the princess.
Tonight, Pierre had planned to approach Anna himself, with a modest proposal that was couched in terms so ambiguous that if she reacted badly it could be brushed off as a simple misunderstanding due to Pierre's poor language skills.
But first they had to separate Anna from Kristoff and her bodyguards.
"Master Kristoff, Princess Anna, I am humbled by your presence!" Pierre bowed and gallantly kissed Anna's hand. Kristoff suppressed his jealousy, although it was easier with Pierre, who was older and not as handsome as Couthon. "May I extend to you the hospitality of my house? Please, enjoy all that I have to offer." He waved expansively at the tables laden with food and drink. "We have some very special liqueurs and dainties, just arrived from Lübeck."
"Thank you, Monsieur Pierre. We shall certainly do so." Anna blushed as she always did when someone kissed her hand. She wondered if there was some tactful way to suggest to Kristoff that it might be a habit he could cultivate. Maybe a suggestion to Kai so he could bring it up during their etiquette lessons.
For the next hour Anna and Kristoff mingled with the other guests and enjoyed the delicacies of Pierre's table. Kristoff made a point of staying away from the more potent beverages, and Anna stuck to champagne while using the tricks Elsa had taught her about appearing to drink more than she actually was. Even without alcohol, Kristoff decided he needed the privy, and he asked a passing servant where to find it.
"I'll be right back, Feisty Pants. Try to leave some marzipan for the rest of the guests, okay?"
Anna just scrunched up her nose at him and reached for another cherry cordial.
Pierre had been waiting for this opportunity and signaled one of his 'servants', who was actually a trusted collaborator. Another signal, and a second man moved to approach the two bodyguards who were watching over Anna.
"Pardon me, gentlemen," he whispered. He looked around as though checking that no one was close enough to overhear them. "One of the stable hands just came to monsieur Pierre to report that he saw several men approaching the house from behind the carriage house. They are all dressed in black and he thought he saw the glint of a knife."
The two guards looked at each other. If this was a threat, they needed to investigate. But they were not supposed to leave Anna unguarded. The senior of the two cursed to himself and wished they had brought four guards, but the guard contingent was shorthanded because their Captain had chosen to have most of the guards at the castle to protect Elsa.
He looked over to where Anna was laughing and talking to Georges Couthon while indulging in the dainties on the buffet table. Surely she couldn't get into any trouble while the two of them went out back to check on the reported intruders? He gestured to his partner and they followed the servant out.
As soon as the two guards left the room, Pierre sauntered to join Couthon and Anna and murmured, "Your Highness, I see you enjoy these confections. May I offer you some very special delights that I reserve for very special patrons?" He offered Anna his arm to lead her to another room, Couthon following close behind.
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Elsa stood on the dais of her throne room and watched her guests enjoying themselves. She was tired, it was late, and the party showed no signs of winding down. She thought she'd give it another half hour and then signal Kai to start ushering people towards the doors.
Captain Gunnarsson approached her with a worried look on his face. "Your Majesty," he whispered, "We may have a problem. The Admiral is in your study and needs to speak to you immediately."
She smiled and nodded at him, not wanting to alarm anyone in the ballroom. "Let us join him, then, Captain." She stepped down and they made their way through the crowd, Elsa nodding and murmuring pleasantries as they moved to the doors.
When they got to her study, the Admiral was there with another man dressed as a common laborer. They both bowed to Elsa as she seated herself at her desk. "Admiral? What is so important as to call me out of the ball?"
"Your Majesty, this is Rolf Tellefsen, one of our agents working in Rob Pierre's warehouse. He came here with rather disturbing information, and managed to convince the guards at the gate to call me to identify him and bring him to you. Rolf, please tell Queen Elsa what you told me."
Tellefsen seemed uncomfortable in the Queen's presence. He gulped, then began to speak.
"Your Majesty, I've been working at Pierre's warehouse for about six months. I'm not the only one of your agents there, but we don't know each other for security. I've not seen anything suspicious until recently. About a month ago one of the fellows got crunched when a barrel fell on him. After they took him away, I got a look at the rope that was hauling the barrel up to the storage area, and it looked cut to me, not frayed or weakened." He shook his head. "That … made me think it wasn't an accident, and I started watching even more carefully for … odd things."
Continuing his story, he said, "The last couple of weeks there's been a lot of whispers and … furtive meetings. Then a 'special edition' of bourbon got delivered on the ship from Le Havre. There was a lot of it, more than usual, and they locked it up in a special room that no one except the bosses had access to."
"Is that significant?" asked Elsa.
"Yes, milady. None of the stuff they've brought in before was locked away, no matter how expensive the spirits were. I kept watching that room for anyone going in or out, but no one ever did, at least, not during the shifts I was working. Yet, there was a lot of activity around the rest of the warehouse, because they were stocking up the taverns and the inns and the parties celebrating the Festival. Didn't make sense." He paused. "So I decided to do something drastic."
Elsa gestured at him to go on.
"Tonight, once the day shift was done, the whole crew was given the night off so they could celebrate with the rest of the kingdom. The bosses even gave everyone a bottle of wine, not the very best, mind you, but not rotgut."
"So after I collected mine, instead of leaving with the rest, I ducked behind some big barrels of ale and hid out until everyone was gone. I waited until I hadn't heard anything or anyone for a couple of hours, then checked out the special room." He looked embarrassed.
"How did you do that, Rolf?" Elsa asked.
"Uh, I picked the lock, Your Majesty. It's a knack I picked up when I was younger." He waited for her to seem shocked, and continued his story when she just looked thoughtful. "The room was very odd. There were no lights or lanterns in the room, but it had a glass panel in the ceiling, and there were lanterns hanging above the window, which gave me just enough light to see shelves of barrels of the 'special edition' lining the room. Only, about half the shelves were empty."
"So I picked up one of the barrels, and it wasn't liquor. I tapped the bung to see what it was, and this is what I poured out." He dug into his pocket and pulled out his handkerchief, twisted into a knot. Untying it, he laid it on Elsa's desk and unfolded it. "Gunpowder, milady. And there are enough barrels of the stuff left in that room to blow up that whole end of the town."
Elsa felt faint as she stared at the black powder.
"Your Majesty?" She looked up at the Admiral. "We need to move quickly. It is now clear that Pierre has something horrific planned, something that will kill a lot of people if we don't stop him."
"What do you think it is?" Elsa could hardly force the words out through a suddenly dry throat.
Colonel Nordholm chose that moment to arrive at Elsa's study. The Admiral had sent for him once he had heard Tellefsen's story. "I may have an idea about that, Your Majesty."
"Go on, Lars," the Admiral said.
"It seems that the reviewing stand for tomorrow's Blessing of the Fleet was built by a subsidiary of Pierre's. I suspect if we go and check it out, we will find the missing barrels stacked neatly underneath it." Nordholm's face was grim. "Her Majesty, the Council, most of the rest of the nobility would be on that reviewing stand tomorrow. Not to mention the crowds surrounding them at the docks."
All of the self-control Elsa had learned over thirteen years was the only thing that allowed her to maintain a dispassionate demeanor. Her inner turmoil was invisible.
"Admiral, we need to act, but we need to be circumspect while arresting Pierre and his accomplices," Elsa said. She was surprised that her voice was calm. "It would do no good to create a panic. How shall we go about it?"
"We'll send a squad to that warehouse, quietly, to insure that those barrels of gunpowder stay exactly where they are. Another squad will check out the reviewing stand, again while avoiding any fuss that would tip off Pierre. Once we know those places are secure, we need to go arrest Pierre. It is my understanding that he is hosting a large party at his townhouse tonight."
"Very well, see to it immediately," ordered Elsa. She rubbed her temples, then looked at Captain Gunnarsson and said, "Captain, send four of your guards to bring Anna back immediately." She rummaged through the papers on her desk and picked one up to read. "According to this itinerary, by now she should be at the Weselton Embassy, the last stop on her rounds tonight."
Gunnarsson saluted and left. So did Nordholm and Tellefsen, leaving Elsa alone with the Admiral.
"Admiral, I need to get back to the ball and gently shoo my guests out for the evening. If you wait here, it won't take long." She left to instruct Kai, knowing that he would tactfully let it be known that the party was over.
Once she returned to her study, Elsa and the Admiral spent the next hour waiting for reports from the warehouse and the docks. A messenger from Colonel Nordholm confirmed that the missing gunpowder was indeed stacked underneath the reviewing stand, and that it was now under guard until it could be safely removed.
When Captain Gunnarsson returned, he was rather agitated. "Your Majesty, Princess Anna was not at the Weselton Embassy. Lady Kluge told us that the Princess had left about an hour before we got there, mentioning that she had one last event to attend."
"What? What event?" Elsa demanded.
"Lady Kluge didn't know, Your Majesty. The Princess was not specific."
With a sudden flash of intuition, Elsa knew exactly where Anna was. "Oh, no," she whispered.
"Your Majesty, what is it?" asked the Admiral.
"She's at Pierre's. She and Kristoff are with that … monster."
Gunnarsson and Naismith looked at each other, then Naismith said, "How do you know that, Your Majesty? Perhaps she and Kristoff decided to stop at the Guild Hall on their way back, we could send men to –"
"No, I … just feel it. Anna wanted to help us find out if Pierre was involved in the assassination attempts, she felt she had a connection with his young colleague. I told her no, in no uncertain terms, that it was too dangerous." Elsa had gotten up and started pacing in front of the window. "For the last several weeks, she's been rather … vague about where she's been going while Kristoff was up in the mountains." The Queen wrung her hands and turned to the two men. "I should have realized she was up to something. Anna only gets vague when she's up to things she shouldn't be."
After a moment of silence, Gunnarsson spoke up. "If she is at Pierre's, we'll have to be more circumspect arresting him. Not that we could have gone in there with guns blazing, endangering the no doubt innocent guests who have no idea what their host is." Naismith nodded in agreement.
Elsa paced across the room twice more before she stopped and looked at them. "I think … that Monsieur Pierre is about to get a most distinguished guest, albeit an uninvited one."
"Your Majesty?" asked Naismith.
"Let us gather your men, Captain. Ten or twelve of them. A suitable escort for the Queen, I think."
She didn't wait for them to recover from the shock of what she was proposing. Elsa swept out of the study and threw a last comment over her shoulder. "I won't wait for you, gentlemen. Are you coming or do I rescue my sister alone?"