Malice at the Palace (The Royal Spyness Series Book 9)

 

“No, I told them not to bother and I came down to have it in the kitchen. When it comes on a tray you only get one slice of cake.”

 

The thought of Queenie coming down the stairs at just the time that Princess Marina was obviously arriving made me go cold all over. “I’d prefer it if you stayed put, Queenie.”

 

“But it’s lonely up here all by myself. And it’s a bit creepy too. I kept hearing noises last night.”

 

“I’m sure it was just the wind,” I said brightly. No sense in telling her about the ghosts. “But now I have to get ready for dinner at the palace so please get out my blue evening dress.”

 

“Your blue one?” she asked.

 

“Yes. The cornflower blue silk with the beading. The one my mother bought for me in America when my best clothes were lost in the fire. And those nice silk evening shoes too. I have to look my best.”

 

There was a long pause. A feeling of doom began to creep over me. “Queenie, has something happened to my evening dress? You didn’t try to iron it, and melt it, did you?”

 

“Oh no, miss. Nothing like that. It’s just that . . . it ain’t here.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“I must have left it behind when we had to get out of your friend’s place in a hurry. I remember that I couldn’t fit all of your things into the wardrobe in the box room, so I shoved some into Miss Belinda’s wardrobe. I suppose I must have forgotten them.”

 

“You’ve forgotten my one good evening gown?” I tried not to shriek. “Queenie, I’m about to dine at the palace with the king and queen. All I have here are the burgundy and bottle green velvet and they are decidedly old and unfashionable and there is that place on the skirt where you ironed the velvet once. Queenie, you are hopeless. And it’s too late to send you round to Belinda’s in a taxi now.”

 

“Sorry, miss,” she said. “My old dad only said the other day that I’d forget my own head if it wasn’t attached to my shoulders. That was when I forgot to turn off the gas and nearly blew up the house.” And she gave an apologetic grin.

 

“Well, I have to make the best of it, I suppose,” I said. “I’ll wear the burgundy I wore last night.”

 

“Oh, that one?” She was looking sheepish again.

 

“Please tell me something hasn’t happened to the burgundy velvet dress.”

 

“Not exactly,” she said. “It’s just that you wouldn’t want to wear it tonight.”

 

“And why is that?” Doom was enveloping me in a shroud.

 

“Well, you got a little spot on it at dinner last night and I was sponging it off and I turned around and me bum knocked the basin of water off the washstand. And it sort of went all over the skirt. So, I’m afraid it’s a bit wet.”

 

“Queenie, I should sack you on the spot,” I exclaimed.

 

She hung her head. “Yeah, I know, miss. But accidents happen, don’t they? Remember that time you bumped into someone with the tray of wine?”

 

I’m afraid she had me there, reminding me of my own clumsiness again. Maybe she wasn’t quite as thick as she pretended.

 

“Go and find the bottle green dress and if you’ve damaged that one I’ll throttle you personally.”

 

The bottle green dress emerged from the wardrobe undamaged, but it had certainly seen better days and there was that patch of skirt where Queenie had ironed the velvet the wrong way. I now owned a silver fox stole, courtesy of my mother, so I planned to drape that over as much of me as possible. I was in low spirits when I went down to await Marina. And they sank even lower when she appeared in a stunning white dress dotted with pearls.

 

“Nobody will pay any attention to you anyway,” I told myself.

 

The Daimler arrived and we set off.

 

“I’m very glad you are coming with me, Georgiana,” Marina said in a whisper. “I am a little nervous about dining with my future family. The queen always seems so haughty and severe. Rather frightening after my own family, who are so easygoing.”

 

“Yes, they can be rather alarming,” I said. “I am invited to the palace quite frequently and every time I tremble at the knees. The king and queen are very hot on protocol. I always have to remember to curtsy and call her ma’am.”

 

She took my hand. “Then you and I will support each other.”