When the concert at Windsor Castle came to an end, Trent took a moment to check his phone, and saw that he had a message about ten minutes earlier from the Vice President. He took a breath, and opened it…
'Have spoken to the relevant authorities; the property in Mexico and the appropriate percentage of cash assets linked to legitimate business affairs in said nation will be returned to the lady. Request had been made to expedite the process; to that end, a member of consular staff at the nearest consulate will be paying the lady a home visit this afternoon, to inform her of the decision. It is our intention she should have access to the house by the end of this week at the latest, and that cash transfer should be completed sooner. She will of course be informed that all is on the condition that she hands over the master tape so that no more copies of the DVD can appear.'
Trent let out an audible sigh of relief then, as his prayers had been answered and he would be able to call Thad and give him good news for a change. Then he noticed that there was still more to read.
'As for the other issue that you had mentioned to me, the three actual stars of that movie have been checked out, and all now live very different lives. In the case of two of them, they are in careers where they are unlikely to wish their past to be exposed, so this resolution is fortunate indeed. It was noted that none of them were actually paid for their work when the records were checked, also as a consequence of the assets seizure, so all will be receiving an unexpected tax refund to the equivalent amount in the post. I think that we can say without hesitation that this chapter is now closed.'
Trent laughed at that news, and if he fistbumped the air at that point, then he deserved to do so. It had been a traumatic 24 hours, and now he would be able to share the best possible news with his friends…
He decided that his first call should be to Nick, as he had been through the most stressful time of all of them, given his obvious concerns over Jeff and indeed his son. He was aware that Nick might not be able to talk at once though, so he was ready to leave a message if he had to. His call was answered quickly enough, and the greeting he received from his friend did sound quite cheerful. "I felt that I had to call after I saw two people spinning around on the television," he began, and that made Nick laugh out loud.
"I have to be honest and say that I did join in with them eventually, but I am guessing that the television footage had moved on before that happened," Nick replied, "I am grateful for that in so many ways. The two of them are currently chatting to the Princess of Wales, and whatever you do, don't tell Rory, but they might be getting to meet Kylie Minogue as well…"
"I will definitely not mention that, as his jealousy would know no limits in those circumstances! Okay, so now to the purpose of this call. This morning Thad was handed a letter by Dex, who had gone in to check Adam's apartment. It was addressed to you, obviously wrongly delivered by the mailman. It had a Mexican stamp on it, so he opened it; I think that you can guess what it was…"
"It was the missing blackmail note; look, whatever they want, I will pay it to get this nightmare over with," Nick blurted out, and then went silent. Trent knew his old friend well enough to know that he would now be standing or sitting in Windsor with his bright red face bowed to the ground, guilty that he had spoken out loud and given in quite so easily.
"Nick, you don't have to pay out one cent; it wasn't your finances that she was attacking. All that she wanted was you to intervene on her behalf with the government to get the return of property and cash seized by them from her erstwhile husband, money to help her raise her twin children." He paused, as he realised that Nick wasn't aware of the identity of the lady in question, so he explained, "It has come to light that the demon Principal, Jeff's step-uncle, was actually married to a woman in Mexico, and although they are definitely estranged, she is the one behind it all…"
There was silence again, then a low whistle, before Nick said, "He was married! Well, I must confess to being shocked to discover that, and curious as to why he never brought her with him to Dalton. My only thought there is that he had a Jekyll and Hyde like existence; she saw him as a kind, gentle, caring man, and he did not want her to discover the cruel and sadistic regime that he had imposed upon us at the Academy at that time…"
"Why he never brought her with him will always be a mystery, although your assumption might be accurate. The good news is that I have already spoken to the relevant people, and she is going to get everything that she wants on condition she hands over the master copy, so this should be an end to it once and for all…"
Again there was silence, then Trent thought he heard a strangled sob at the other end before his friend spoke. "Seriously? It is all over? Oh, thank God for that because I could not have coped with any more developments. Okay, I need to go as they are coming back, but thanks for everything, and I will text you later…"
Nick rang off, and Trent could picture his anxious expression as he had seen the two other members of his little family come into view. With a smile on his face he decided to call Thad next, and as soon as the Head Warbler answered the phone, he uttered the words, "It's done!"
"Hallelujah for that! Even the prospect of this carrying on into tomorrow was frankly too much for me to handle. Honestly, I do not know quite how Wes used to cope with all of the drama that he had to when we were all teenagers at Dalton and still manage to stay so calm and get the marks he did for his schoolwork. So, what happens now?"
"Someone is going to go and see her from our local consular staff and arrange the handover of the majority of the cash and the house that our government seized from her husband when he was arrested and subsequently incarcerated. The latter is the most important thing for her, as the place she is currently living in with her two children and I believe her grandmother, is from what I was told rather rundown and very small to boot. It is not ideal for a mother with two growing children. The cash will allow her to both give up one of the jobs she is holding down to have more time to care for her children and indeed her grandmother, who has been a rock to her for so long but is now quite unwell. The cash will help fund her treatment too. I do not believe that she did what she did out of malice; it was desperation. There is no intention to charge her with any crime, unless she puts more packages into the mail. I don't think she would anyway…"
"I have no issue with that, nor do I believe that Nick or Sebastian would wish for that; it would only bring it all out into the public eye. Well, once again when a crisis comes, it has been our Robin that has saved the day; what would we do without you, Trent… Now, I order you to relax and unwind, and enjoy what is left of your vacation time!"
"Oh, I intend to; Rory has ordered that I do the same thing, and he is currently looking at me disapprovingly, as we are supposed to be heading out for some family time. Now, I have spoken to Nick, but can I leave Sebastian to you? I will tell you the full story once I am back in Washington, because there are a few other minor facts to relate, which are not all that important now…"
"I shall await that call with bated breath; for now, go and enjoy your afternoon!" Thad replied. The call ended, and he let out an enormous sigh of relief, which earned him a miaow of protest from Caleb…
Sebastian was every bit as relieved as Thad had been when the Head Warbler informed him that the nightmare was over but did wonder why he had not received any sort of blackmail letter himself when he had just as much to lose as Nick and Jeff. "You don't think that it might have been sent to my old place in Maplewood?" he wondered out loud after Thad told him that Nick had been sent a letter that had been misdirected.
"Whilst that is possible, I think it unlikely, as they knew that you were performing in Ohio, so they would surely know that you now lived there. It may well be that the letter is languishing in a sorting office and will be noticed eventually and sent on. I would look out for anything in the mail with a Mexican stamp on it…" Thad replied.
There was no immediate response from Sebastian, and Thad was about to speak again in concern when the other man broke his silence. "They must have thought that I would not be quite so concerned for my reputation as Nick and Jeff would be, but they knew someone not a million miles from me that would be concerned about collateral damage. When I was at Dalton yesterday, I noticed there was a lot of mail in your pigeonhole, so I took it and left it in your apartment when I went in to check on it. It didn't register at the time, but I am now almost certain that there was an airmail envelope with a brightly coloured Mexican stamp on it amongst all the usual brown envelopes, circulars and journals. They sent the blackmail letter to you, not me, because they knew you would be concerned about the potential effect on the reputation of everyone, including the Warblers and Dalton itself. They knew that you had the contacts and the influence to join Nick in pressing for the reversal of the asset seizure. However, they had not expected that you would be in New York, and unable to open the letter…"
Thad sighed and shook his head. Had there been another person able to look after Caleb, then he would not have been catsitting in New York, and he would potentially have been able to stop everything in its tracks. Still, there was no use in thinking about that now; what was done was done. Then it struck him, and he felt his blood run cold as she realised that it could actually have been much worse. Mrs Carmichael had offered before he left to collect his mail and open it so it would be ready for his return. He had declined, but had he not, she would have been the one to get the blackmail letter…
Trent was able to relax now that he had, with help from his friends, sorted out all of the drama, but he had to admit that there was a part of him that was curious to meet the lady behind it all. She had obviously been desperate to have resorted to a blackmail attempt of this sort; even now, there would be some that would expect her to face criminal charges for what she had attempted to do. That she would not, would be largely down to the fact that everyone involved knew that neither Sebastian nor Nick would wish to have their day in court, as that would only draw the attention of the world to what had occurred. In the case of the latter, there was also the fact that doing so would mean Jeff finding out, and as well as being upset about what had happened, the blond would be traumatised at the fact that he had been left in the dark…
The lady would receive the majority of what she had asked for, but she would also be given a rather stern warning that she should not attempt to pursue any of the Warblers ever again. Then there was the master copy of that film, that she would be forced to hand over. That would be placed in the safe hands of a trusted person; that person was Trent. That fact, agreed between himself and the President was one small fact that he would be keeping firmly to himself…
As for Nick, he too was finally able to relax and unwind again. Such was the change in his demeanour that Jeff remarked upon it as they sat on the train back into London from Windsor that evening. Nick smiled, and said, "Well, I guess I have to be honest and say that whilst I have enjoyed every minute of our trip, and have been so honoured to be invited to the Coronation as an official guest of The King, it will nonetheless be a relief to get home to the West Village…"
Jeff giggled, and said, "Me too, because I have been missing Caleb a lot. Don't get me wrong, Lady Alice is lovely, but she isn't my cat…"
"I will be glad to get home as well, because I have missed Evie and all of the others. On a plus point, I will have so much to tell everyone when I get back to school," piped up Wes. His parents smiled at him, then settled in silence as the train continued on. What Nick did not know was that his son suspected that he was not telling his papa about something, and that made him a little upset…
Not too far away that evening, in the city of romance, Lawrence had to admit that he was feeling a little tired and overwhelmed in all honesty. They had been late in getting to bed the previous evening, their trip to the Sacré-Cœur being followed by the most perfect of dinners in an authentic and intimate bistro, which might well last have seen any alteration to its décor in the height of the Belle Époque. The menu had not been extensive, but the food was exquisite, the simple plat du jour was to die for and the dessert that followed was rich and decadent.
Afterwards they had strolled past the Moulin Rouge, the area crowded with tourists wishing to see the famous cancan dancers in the venue where it was reputed to have begun. They took a selfie from the other side of the street, but then moved on to a quiet side street in the heart of Montmartre and a small café that had been recommended by the patron of the bistro as being just the kind of place that Lawrence was dreaming of. Soon enough they were sat at a tiny metal table on the pavement, both with a glass of vin rouge, listening to a group of earnest looking young men and women discussing the politics of the day in low voices…
To be honest, neither of them was sure of the latter, because they did not recognise every word, but they did hear the name of the current French president, and those of several other important European leaders; then they heard the word Roi, and knew that it meant King, which implied that they were now discussing the events of that day in London…
They lost track of time a little, and it was nearly 1am by the time that they returned to their hotel room. They washed and headed directly to bed. "Sitting in that café tonight felt just like sitting in a black and white French New Wave film," remarked Lawrence as Adam joined him in bed.
"Yes, but it could also have been that scene in Les Misérables, where the young men sit in their meeting place and discuss the plans for the forthcoming revolution," quipped Adam. "Let us face it, the French are a volatile people, and in the heat of summer, so much can happen, especially in Paris…"
"Well, as long as they wait and start the revolution on Tuesday, I will be 100% behind them," said Lawrence, which made them both chuckle…
They rose relatively early the following morning, and after a breakfast that was again so very traditional, they headed for the metro to start their busy schedule. The first stop was the beautifully restored Notre-Dame de Paris, which they explored quietly in the gap between the two main morning masses. So painstaking had the restoration process been that they could not tell what was new and what had been there from the time it was built. From the cathedral they headed to a nearby pier on the River Seine to board one of the tourist vessels that would convey them along the river to the pier for The Louvre, which they arrived at in good time for their designated slot to see the most famous painting in the world, the Mona Lisa…
Like most people, Lawrence felt that it was much smaller than he had expected it to be, but it had still been a privilege to see it, and then explore the neighbouring galleries to see some of the other great art that was part of the collection. That done, they returned to the river, and sailed along again to the pier for the Eiffel Tower, which they ascended to the top to enjoy the panorama over the city…
With that ticked off, they headed back down and to the metro, which took them across the river and on through the tunnels on the much higher north bank to the Arc de Triomphe, sat in the centre of an exceptionally busy road junction, where even now the infamous kamikaze drivers of the city seemed to be out in force. They did not attempt to cross the road to stand under it, instead taking a stroll down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, calling in at an elegant patisserie to enjoy the most beautiful of cakes that seemed to melt in the mouth. They did not eat too much, as they still had another gastronomic dinner to eat that evening…
For the majority, Monday morning and the arrival of the new week meant it was time for a change of location. Nick and Jeff were up reasonably early, their son not far behind them, as they had to head across town to Heathrow to catch their flight home to New York. Jeff still complained about the time, but in reality, he was just as ready as his husband to head home, albeit for very different reasons; he wanted to get back to the comfort of his own studio to start on his Coronation drawings properly. He had tried to make a start in the hotel, but nothing compared to the sunlit room at the very top of the West Village house in terms of comfort, plus there he would have ready access to anything that he might need.
He had decided that he would start work that very evening and announced to his husband over a light breakfast in their suite that he intended to sleep for the majority of the flight home. That immediately placed the brunet in a situation as he also had plans to be asleep for the entirety of the flight if at all possible and thus hopefully avoid the worst of the head pain that any long-haul flight now seemed to give him. He decided for once that he would pull rank on his husband and reminded him that he had not been sleeping well the last few nights and had fully intended to try and catch up on the plane himself. Someone had to be awake and keeping an eye on their son, and as far as he was concerned, it was not going to be him this time…
However, he was spared from having to do so by a sudden and unexpected knock at the door of the room. Nick went to answer it and was surprised to see Burt standing there. Before he could ask what was happening, the older man spoke and explained that he had just received notification from the airline that his scheduled flight back to Washington DC that morning had been cancelled; they were extremely apologetic, and he had been booked onto the same flight to New York as the Sterling-Duval family instead. He went on to say that the airline had been so contrite for the inconvenience that they had told him they would do whatever he wished to compensate him, so he had arranged for the Sterling-Duvals to be moved into the Upper Class cabin with him, all of them sitting together…
Nick nodded, although he wondered if Burt had taken advantage of his position as Speaker of the House just a little, but then it dawned on him what it meant; he would have a lie flat seat to sleep on, which would make his slumbers all the more restful. Then something else dawned on him, so he decided to ask the Congressman; as he expected, Burt was only too happy to take care of Wes if both of his fathers were needing to catch up on their sleep…
Carole would of course be staying in London for another 6 days in the company of Pam; she had moved her belongings into the second bedroom of the Hummels' suite the previous evening when she had arrived home from Windsor in a chauffeur driven limousine. It had been one final gesture from a very grateful Queen Consort when Pam had finished her role with the last appearance of the royal couple at the concert. She had also presented her with a very personal gift as she had been about to take her leave; an item of jewellery that had belonged to the late Queen Elizabeth II. It dated back to the 1970s, and was very much of its time period, but it had been chosen for Pam as it had a special significance, as the Queen Consort explained to her.
"In 1976. Her Majesty paid a visit to New York, and amongst the other events that took place at that time was one which involved reversing the traffic flow on ten blocks of one of the city's main thoroughfares, just so that Her Majesty's car could pull up on the correct side of the road when she reached her destination, something which I don't believe had been done for anyone before, and has not been done again since. The avenue in question was Lexington Avenue, and the destination was a store called Bloomingdales. She was wearing this brooch that day and that gives it an extra connection to yourself; it thus seemed ideal as a gift to you for your service from the entire family."
Once she had moved all of her belongings into her new room, she had shown it to Carole, Burt having already retired to bed as he had an early start the following day, and the other woman had been very impressed. "To receive something like this was completely unexpected, and although it might not be quite to my personal taste, it is something that I will treasure. I am also looking forward to the expressions on the faces of the board of directors and my seniors at the store when I show them this and tell them that it has already been in the store over fifty years ago, worn then on the clothes of its owner…"
Carole laughed at that, and wondered if there would be any of those older board members that might actually have been around at the time of that visit. She did not say anything out loud though, as Pam went on. "Of course, Blaine was excited beyond belief that I was now the proud owner of a piece of the late Queen's jewellery, as was Kurt for that matter. In fact, your stepson suggested that Isabelle Wright might like to know all about it; the gift will be made public of course, as it is part of the royal estate. I would also assume that somewhere in the archives of Vogue magazine there will be an image of the late Queen wearing this brooch on that very visit…"
As it happened, Isabelle would actually call and leave a message for Pam first thing the following morning, which was handed to her as she sat with Carole at a table for two in the restaurant for breakfast; the rest of the group they had been with had of course left for the airport by then. She laughed at it, and wondered at first if the magazine editor had been given a tipoff by someone at Buckingham Palace about her gift; Carole then told her that as Isabelle could also hear angels, it was much more likely that Kurt might have mentioned it to her instead…
As they had plans made for the later in the day, Pam asked that a message be conveyed back to Isabelle that she would be only too pleased to see her this morning, but they would need to make the meeting as early as practicable, as she had other engagements that day. Carole had listened as Pam said those exact words and wondered if being in the royal household even for such a short time had rubbed off on her. What neither of them expected was a reply that Isabelle would be there to see her at 9am, but thinking on it afterwards, given how close her hotel was to their own, it was no great shock really.
When Isabelle arrived and Pam mentioned the brooch, it soon became apparent to the two ladies that it was news to her; she admired it, listened to the back story, and sent a message to Gideon's work account that his first job that morning was to search the picture archive for an image of the late Queen at Bloomingdales in 1976. She asked Pam if she would mind putting on the brooch, and she agreed, pinning it one with Carole's help, and then allowing Isabelle to take a picture of it on her, with and without her face. "I know that I hinted at it before, but I would like to interview you now in the aftermath of the event about your experience as the official make-up artist to the Queen Consort, if that is allowed of course. That is not my main reason for coming here, however…"
Pam listened in increasing surprise as Isabelle explained that the current expert that wrote the main column on make-up and beauty trends was retiring, and after a discussion at board level, she was there to offer the role to Pam. She was greatly taken aback as it was not something that she had ever dreamed of doing; indeed, not something she felt capable of doing. Isabelle had expected that, and offered her the services of a ghostwriter that would turn her raw ideas into the required column, but her initial response was still a firm, but polite, no.
Then she suddenly heard her son's voice in her ear, telling her that she had to accept the role…
Pam shook her head and replied, "I don't have to do accept it, Blaine; sometimes you just know that something isn't right for you, and this is one of those times. I also don't think that my bosses at Bloomingdales would be all that happy with me for taking on more work in any case…"
"Actually, I have to hold up my hands here and admit that I have already run the idea past them," interjected Isabelle. "I thought that it was only right of me to speak to them before I talked to you, as it would potentially have an impact on your work at the store. As it happens, their reaction was actually very favourable, and they would be more than happy to accommodate you if you wished to take on the role."
Pam laughed out loud then, before saying, "That doesn't actually surprise me in the least, because I am certain that they probably believe that I would recommend the products that they wanted me to because they had a lot of stock in store! If I was to do something like this then I would need fully independence to recommend the products I approve of, even if it is only available in Macy's. I will put it on record now that I firmly believe that some of the No. cosmetics range that originated with the Boots chemist chain here in the UK are far superior to the much-hyped big brands. Indeed, and this can go on record, I used a number of them during the last week on the Queen Consort, and she was very much in approval of that."
Isabelle smiled, and replied, "Oh, I agree; I have stocked up on a few lines from the store in question whilst I am here. However, I have to say that contrary to what you expect, I told them that I would want you to be free to make any suggestions without influence from them, and they said yes; all they asked was to be informed in advance what you were going to tip in the next month's issue so that they could ensure they had adequate stock in place to avoid disappointing their customers."
Pam looked thoughtful then but said nothing. Instead, it was Carole that spoke next, saying, "I must admit that there is nothing worse than seeing a product in a magazine like Vogue and then discovering that it is out of stock in every store I visit… I expect though that what Isabelle is looking for is less a column of things to buy this month and more you sharing your expertise with women of all ages and all pockets so that we can all achieve the best look possible for less…"
"Exactly, Carole, that is what I want. If I wanted an 'As recommended by Pam Anderson' column, I could buy your name and have Gideon create it. What I envisage is more a column in which you tell people how to achieve a certain look in a series of simple steps. I will be honest; I think it is what our readers would clamour for from the woman that is the focus of such attention in her field right now…"
Pam laughed again, flattered nonetheless, knowing that there was some truth in what Isabelle was saying; she was at the very top of her game right now, the envy of so many in the business, the woman that had done the make-up of the new Queen Consort of the United Kingdom for her Coronation Day… She sighed, then said, "It would be one column, once a month, and I would have the freedom to focus on what I felt was relevant that month?"
Isabelle smiled a little, knowing that Pam was cracking. "Yes, that would be what I would require, although I might ask you for your input into the big features from time to time. You would also be able to select your own ghostwriter and would have the final say over what they have written before it is submitted to the magazine for publication."
"I think that the perfect ghostwriter for you mom would be Kurt," Blaine suddenly blurted out. "He would literally be perfect as he is an actual ghost, so to speak. He would be able to write things up beautifully for you as he has actual experience of working for the magazine, and he could submit them directly to Isabelle which would save time."
Before any of the three ladies in the room could say anything to that suggestion, they all felt a draught in the room, and then heard Kurt's voice. "Much as I love that concept Blaine, it is probably not all that practical in reality. For a start, your mom might not like the idea of sitting there and talking to space, then seeing words materialise on a sheet of paper as I took notes, or on the screen of a computer as the keys move seemingly on their own…"
"Okay, you might have a point there, my love, I will admit it, but she has managed to get used to being able to hear us…"
Pam laughed at her son's response and the tone in which it had been delivered. "Blaine, my darling boy, it is one thing hearing you - and I am still finding that a little strange actually even now - but quite another to sit there calmly as a pen floats in midair, or the keys of a laptop clatter away as it sits unattended across the room. I would struggle with that I think, because that is more like being haunted! Still, I have to say that Kurt would indeed be the perfect person to act as my ghostwriter, if circumstances were different. If I could see him and not just hear him, then I would accept him in a heartbeat…"
Pam closed her eyes then for a moment, then accepted the inevitable. "I suppose that I could give writing the column a try; perhaps have me advertised as just a guest contributor until I am certain I could do it every month…"
She heard a whoop of delight from Blaine almost at once, followed by the laughter of both Carole and Isabelle, and a sigh of disapproval at her son's behaviour from Kurt. She opened her eyes, and saw that he was shaking his head and rolling his eyes as her son tried to master an expression on his face which was the perfect crossover of excitement and innocence…
