Archie the Royal Hot Water Bottle

  Chapter 32

  Jeff parked his bike in the courtyard and laughed as Riordan pulled up beside him,

  'You ran that last set of lights, you'll get a ticket for sure,' he said.

  Riordan smiled back and said,

  'No I won't, you will.' Jeff didn't understand so Riordan enlightened him,

  'I had Sir Robert register my bike in your name. If you're going to try and lose me out there you'll get the tickets, not me.'

  'You bastard.'

  Riordan became serious and said, 'Jeff, if I can't stay with you it gets dangerous.' He looked up as the courtyard door opened and an elegant gentleman in a morning suit stepped onto the gravel and hovered, 'Speak of the devil.'

  'It's only eight o'clock, what could I have done this early?' Jeff mumbled as he went to meet his Private Secretary.

  The next twenty minutes in her Majesty's breakfast room was a mixture of sweet and sour. The Queen kissed him good morning which was sweet of her and indicative of their new strong relationship but then she tried to ground him, which was a bitter pill. 

  Crystal and Jeff were to stop their private jaunts, the Queen told him. She would hear no argument,

  'You could have been killed in that bistro debacle. It wasn't your fault but we can't take that kind of risk. He won't be the only one out there, will he?' 

  Jeff could only shake his head; it was true; he'd made some enemies. 

  'Well, I'm sure you understand that your duty to support Crystal and not get yourself stabbed comes before gadding about town.'

  Jeff felt like a naughty child but it wasn't over. In a tone he'd come to dread, her Majesty said,

  'And, Crystal does not have an heir. You two should get on with that and leave the bike in the shed.'

  When Jeff related this extraordinary conversation to Crystal who was still in bed, she ignored the grounding aspect and said,

  'I'm up for a little heir making. Even a lot, if that's what it takes. How about you?'

  Jeff's intended response was interrupted by Smith clearing his throat at the door,

  'Excuse me Sir, your shower is ready.'

  Jeff whispered to Crystal,

  'I'll get to you later.'

  There still remained the question as to how Murdoch had known Jeff and Crystal were in the restaurant. The likelihood of Jeff going there was very small so he must have been tipped off. Special Branch understood people snapping a photo on their phone and then calling a newspaper but conspiring with Murdoch to attack a member of the royal family was quite another, very serious, thing.

  The Police had been able to track down nearly all the diners that night but there was no result: no-one had an obvious connection to Murdoch and as the only remaining option of accessing everyone's phone records loomed, one of the restaurant staff went missing: Jeff and Crystal's waiter, the bright student type.

  He'd disappeared. It took weeks to track him down; the boy, who was only seventeen, had run away and was tramping around Europe with a haversack and sleeping rough. When he was found in rural France he was very frightened and easily convinced to tell his story,

  'Murdoch was a friend of my mother's old boyfriend. When he got out he came round looking for Mum's boyfriend but he'd moved on. He said he was looking for a way to get at the Duke. He knew I worked at the bistro and he said the Duke used to come in there. I'd never seen him but I've seen them on television.'

  'Murdoch seemed to hold a grudge about doing time for something and made me promise that if the Duke came into the restaurant I'd call him because he'd hurt my Mum if I didn't.

  'I thought they'll never come in, so I didn't worry. When I recognised them that night I phoned him. I didn't know what else to do.'

  Jeff's only comment was, 'That bastard Murdoch.' As for the boy he said, 'If any charges are laid against that kid I'll have some heads. Get the poor little bugger home to his mother.'

  Later the same morning Riordan, Sergeant Dave Riordan, also spent some time with Sir Robert. Riordan had been brought in to head Jeff and Crystal's protection because of Jeff's short career as an undercover officer in the Police Force. He'd been very effective but there were always the ones that got away. It was Jeff's loose ends that concerned Sir Robert who were 'out there', waiting for his security to slip, exposing Crystal and Jeff to things Sir Robert didn't want to contemplate.

  Dave Riordan hadn't known Sir Robert before his transfer to the Palace but he had heard about him. Sir Robert was a legend in military circles where he'd served in the ranks of special forces, and not as an officer. He'd risen to his current position only in part because of his family connections, all of whom had been horrified when he eschewed the officer class he had been groomed for and entered the army as a private.

  Sir Robert had served in the Gulf more than once, the last time gathering intelligence after passing himself off as an arms dealer to a group running a training camp in the desert. His team had come in behind him and dealt with the situation but he had been compromised and unable to return to direct contact with terrorists. The action he saw afterward was in the mountains of Afghanistan with a small team hunting extremists, who were, in army parlance, neutralised. The team then slipped away into the hills to neutralise more threats.

  When Sir Robert was concerned about anything Special Branch listened very carefully and had agreed to him briefing Riordan directly. When he called Riordan in Dave waited for the bad news that was sure to follow. Sir Robert came to the point very quickly,

  'The tour to the US next week is going to be tricky. We have intelligence that a sleeper group likes their chances of kidnapping them both. The rest of the information is sketchy but we hope to have more soon. I'm sorry Riordan; this makes your job even harder. We'll talk again tomorrow; we're chasing down a lead that may be able to be taken out of the equation. I'll phone you as soon as I know.'

  But the lead disappeared and remained untouchable by the considerable forces mounted to track him down. Sir Robert fretted and planned. Riordan decided to take some steps to beef up his detail's vigilance. With Sir Robert's help Dave brought in some heavyweights to work with him on the tour. Jeff and Crystal were told nothing because Crystal was pregnant and it had been announced. On her doctor's orders nothing was to be said that would put her under more stress than visiting ten states in six days and undertaking fifty wardrobe changes.

  For her part Crystal was dreading it. Unlike her last pregnancy she was very ill with morning sickness, so ill Jessie was attempting to wrap her in cotton wool. Truly she was suffering a great deal and as she said to Terri in one of her non throwing up moments,

  'This kid better be worth it.'

  Crystal went to war on the morning sickness, determined to have it over before the tour began. She tried everything: her diet was a model of bland low fat, high protein and vitamin B rich foods. When that didn't work she took up yoga and meditated, visualising her stomach as a calm flat sea. Nothing; she had to leave the meditation and run for the bathroom. Ginger tea and sniffing lemons cleared her sinuses but didn't work.

  Finally Jeff said on the Sunday morning at Claremore before leaving on the tour,

  'Stay there, I'm going to make you some toast with Vegemite and a cup of tea. You have it before you put your feet on the floor. My Mum swore by it.'

  'Not Marmite?'

  'Nope, it's not the same, besides it tastes like…'

  'I get the idea.'

  It's hard to believe but it worked. Crystal had the toast and tea, let it go down for a while then got up and did not throw up. It was a miracle. She felt human again for the first time in weeks. So long as she didn't go near raw meat, seafood or anything with a strong smell she was fine.

  Still ignorant of the threat that so concerned Sir Robert and Dave Riordan, Crystal and Jeff went back to town ready to cross the Atlantic to meet and greet thousands of Americans eager to catch a tiny a glimpse of them.

  The schedule with maps of the routes their vehicles would take as well as the times and ve
nues of the events had been in the media for weeks. This is all normal for a royal tour, particularly one with a newly married Princess and her handsome Duke.

  The fact that Crystal was pregnant just added to the fascination. Endless articles appeared speculating on the baby's sex, its name or hopefully numerous names, whether Crystal would show a baby bump and what her maternity wardrobe would be.

  'As I'm not even showing, they're going to be really disappointed,' she told Jessie who was to be Crystal's wardrobe mistress during the trip. Jessie had spent weeks compiling lists of events, the outfit to be worn at the event, the outfits that Crystal could wear between events, what she could wear while travelling from event to event, what she would wear on planes, trains and in automobiles. The newly married and very much in love Jessie said to her spouse, Reggie,

  'Does he have as much to take as Crystal does? I have never packed so much for her before. Even the Africa trip wasn't this big.'

  Reggie gave her a kiss and a hug and went back to his own military operation. Jeff had less but his tour wardrobe would still fill a number of travelling trunks.

  Sir Robert had his own nightmare to contend with; should he tell Jeff and Crystal of the threats against them? The larger question of the viability of the tour had kept him awake for many nights. As Crystal was eating her toast he took his problems to Her Majesty's Private Secretary who went immediately to his boss.

  The Queen heard both of them as they related the latest intelligence Sir Robert had received that morning,

  'We're not sure where or when the attack will take place. We do know the names of some of the terrorists involved and we know they're serious. The leader dropped out of sight last week but three of his group has been picked up. Our best outcome would be if the leader lost his nerve and gave up the scheme but we have nothing to indicate that is the case. None of the group who are in custody are talking.

  'The Americans have found some bomb making equipment that could be used by a suicide bomber. If the terrorists' plan is to use a human bomb the exposure is extreme unless everyone who comes within a certain perimeter is screened. With our present arrangements screening on that scale is just not possible.'

  'What is your recommendation Sir Robert?' For the first time in many years Sir Robert felt his palms begin to sweat as he prepared to give Her Majesty a most unpalatable piece of advice. He looked at his sovereign and said,

  'From a security point of view, putting aside any political considerations, my advice is to cancel the tour Ma'am. The risk is now extreme and it is not just to their Royal Highnesses; there is the impact on other persons in the party, local dignitaries and the public.'

  'We don't give in to terrorists Sir Robert.'

  'I know that Ma'am.'

  'When do we have to decide?'

  'By six o'clock.'

  Her Majesty left the room without a word. She wanted to speak to her husband.

  After lunch Sir Robert and the Queen's Private Secretary were shown into her Majesty's sitting room where Jeff, Crystal and her grandparents were waiting. The atmosphere in the room was calm; overlaid with an air of quiet determination. It was Crystal's grandfather who, in the no nonsense manner he was famous for, gave them her Majesty's decision,

  'Gentlemen, we all appreciate the risks the trip poses and the very great demands it will place on the security service. However, the tour will proceed, with one change.'

  Her Majesty's Private Secretary said,

  'Sir?'

  'Her Majesty and I will be accompanying their Royal Highnesses.'

  Sir Robert suppressed a gasp; 'It's unthinkable,' he thought, 'the whole family exposed?'

  The Queen's husband, who had seen more crises than Sir Robert, and dealt with many threats to the family from both within and without, was clear in the message the family intended to convey,

  'If they want to blow us up, let them try, but we will show those bastards how decent people behave.'

  Her Majesty's Private Secretary was nearly reeling with the diplomatic implications and requirements of a spontaneous state visit. Her Majesty could see his mind whirling,

  'I've spoken with the Prime Minister and the President who has extended an invitation to us for the visit. He has his people working on the arrangements.' She smiled, 'He even offered us the use of his car but I think ours will be adequate. There is only one more thing.'

  'Ma'am?' Sir Robert asked.

  'I want the press to be completely informed of the reason for the change in our plans so the public knows what is going on. We have to show everyone we will not be cowed by hole in the wall thugs who let women and children destroy themselves for their fanatical ideas.

  'But gentlemen, my primary concern is to allow people to choose whether or not they want to expose themselves to danger by coming out to see us. The risk is to everyone, not just ourselves. We can't keep this a secret and I think there's no advantage to us in doing so.' She paused, 'You never know, the public may help you find the terrorists. They have to be somewhere; someone has to know something.'

  Sir Robert felt himself stand up a little straighter, if that were possible. He was in awe of his sovereign and what she had said gave him an idea. He looked at Jeff and Crystal who were standing behind her Majesty: Jeff nodded; Crystal gave him a small, nervous smile. She said,

  'You see Sir Robert, my child shouldn't grow up afraid. We have to defeat these cowards. Our personal war starts now.'

  'Yes Ma'am,' he said.

  'Thank you gentlemen,' Her Majesty said, 'I won't detain you any longer, there'll be plenty to do before we leave in the morning.'

  Outside in the corridor Sir Robert said to his counterpart,

  'We need to speak to the head of MI6.'

  'I'm already here Sir,' a voice said from behind him. 'Her Majesty asked me to be here after you got the news. Shall we go to your office? I have a few of my team with me.'

  In the next two hours the Head of MI6 laid out a plan to put a protective ring around the royal family that any suicide bomber, or any threat for that matter, would have to penetrate for the length of the tour. He told them there would be all the usual security but he also had the co-operation of the American Secret Service and the consent of the President to put MI6 agents on the ground,

  'They've already left for the US,' he said. 'As far as anyone is concerned they'll be ordinary citizens: we want them to be able to mingle and speak to people.' He told them the Secret Service would also be providing personnel. The essential element of the plan was to have agents in every crowd the royal party would encounter. They would go in the day before an event and watch and listen. As people gathered they would be assessed; if they posed any risk whatsoever they would be removed, quietly of course. The Americans were already detaining known threats.

  'While we're doing that the FBI has some new leads on the group we're after and with the publicity about the reason her Majesty is joining the tour we may have more.'

  Sir Robert was white in the face but committed to carrying out her Majesty's wishes,

  'Can I suggest something else?'

  'Of course.'

  So Sir Robert spoke very precisely for the next fifteen minutes, after which the MI6 team left. It was a very long night and Sir Robert didn't sleep until the next day when, on the second of the aircraft carrying the royal family, their retainers, five tons of luggage and a large media contingent to the US, he collapsed with exhaustion.

  Archie and Terri watched the whole thing on television; they watched as an incredible movement unfolded and were, with millions of other viewers, witnesses to six days of enormous tension and ultimately, goodwill.

  Sir Robert's suggestion to the Head of MI6 that an appeal be made to the Muslim community for their support brought people onto the streets. Hundreds of thousands of previously silent and invisible Muslims who did not condone or support violence came out in cities all over America and in cities throughout the world to stand up and say, 'the violence has to stop'. Television stations
carried hour by hour coverage of peaceful demonstrations and gatherings of Muslims wherever the royal party went. Pictures of the royal family mingling with Muslims on the first day served to bring even more people onto the streets which became choked with families, off duty policemen, firemen, doctors, nurses, working people and school children, who came out and held up banners saying, among other things, 'Blow yourselves up, not our children.' A few hippies even came out for an airing with battered nearly vintage placards saying 'Make Love not War'.

  The analysts on television said the display of support for the royal family was unprecedented; the public rejection of violence and the public's embrace of moderate Muslims a turning point in cultural relations between Christian America and Islam. Talk show hosts were on air day and night with people of all religions discussing the use of violence for political or religious causes. At the end of a few days a public consensus seemed to be reached that the royal family had been a rallying point and instigator of a movement for peace that would continue.

  As the tour progressed police and intelligence agencies started to receive a great deal of information on the missing terrorists. The net began to close on a group of five men and a girl of fifteen who were found in the city where the royal family were due to appear the next day. The girl was the intended human sacrifice to their group's cause. The information as to their location had come from a relative of one of the men; a man appalled at the use of the girl as a suicide bomber.

  When the group was apprehended every detail of their plan was published and analysed. The girl had been groomed since childhood by a fanatical relative to die in his cause. She had never been to an ordinary school or allowed to mingle with other children. The bomber's vest she was to wear to her death had been rigged with a remote control; even had she wanted to she could not have changed her mind. Because of the intense security presence the plan was for girl to get as close to the royal event as possible in as crowded a place as possible and then detonate the bomb.

  At the end of the six days the family returned home exhausted and exhilarated; their incredible gamble had paid off. Sir Robert was given two weeks leave which he used to go home and attend to the weeds in his country garden and drink some good wine as he contemplated the ways of people.

  Jeff and Crystal went home to Claremore for three days of rest and as Jeff said to Archie and Terri,

  'I thought I was pretty tough but Crystal's family make me look like a pussy.'

  'Not quite,' thought Terri. In the six days he'd never left Crystal's side; if anyone was going to hurt her Jeff made it plain they would have had to get past him first.

  Crystal's grandfather said to his wife in the privacy of their bed,

  'Well my love, that went off quite well, don't you think? I mean for a spontaneous event it wasn't bad at all.'