"Good. Start the process. Have Europol investigate. And Karsten, I want to see a draft of a strongly worded private statement to the German Prime Minister ASAP." The Foreign Minister nodded. "OK. Everyone get to work." She stood, and everyone else in the room did the same, waiting for her to leave the meeting before they went off to do what was necessary.
*
Outside the gates of the palace, angry protestors carried signs insulting Sophie both for offering to sell out the country and for the filmed sexual acts. Despite the generally progressive politics of Klippenberg, where marriage equality had been allowed for years and abortion was legal despite the influence of the Church, there was still a streak of conservatism which held that certain things were private, and should be conducted privately. This belief was even more ingrained when it came to the royal family, which was expected to act with discretion.
When asked what to do about the protestors, Sophie decided, against her mother's suggestion, simply to have security monitor the protests to make sure that no one breached the gates. She figured that eventually, if there was no push back, people would get bored and go home. She also directed that the protestors should be provided with water, and otherwise treated respectfully, as long as they behaved peacefully. Although the Constitution guaranteed the right to free speech, the Justice Minister had informed Sophie that there was a provision that had not been used in modern times which allowed the suppression of speech that insulted the royal family. Sophie made it clear that she had no intention of invoking this provision, and told the minister to remind her, when this mess was over, to discuss removing it from the Constitution.
Sophie met privately with her press secretary, Tatjana Brase, who was confident that if they could prove that Sophie was set up and drugged by the Germans, she could turn public opinion around, although they agreed that the initial contact about possible abdication was problematic. They also recognized that Sophie would have to take ownership of the contact, but fall back on her initial shock and reluctance to take the position after her father's death and hope that the country would show compassion.
The situation continued to be tense over the next weeks, as the legal, investigative and diplomatic wheels turned. Sophie decided not to make any public statements or appearances until she could present the country the facts, with supporting evidence. Protests continued, although in decreasing size, but criticism of Sophie continued online. For the first time in decades, an organized opposition group of nationalists and religious conservatives began to make noises about running a slate of candidates for the Council.
The first time Mark tried to visit Sophie at the palace after the leaks, he was abused by the protestors for continuing to support Sophie, despite the sex tape, and he was under strict orders not to respond. After that, it was decided that the best course of action was for Mark to stay away from the palace until the situation stabilized, adding to Sophie's unhappiness. One Friday evening, feeling lonely and depressed, Sophie gave Mark directions to the spot that she used to sneak in and out of the palace. When he finally arrived, her pent up anger and frustration at the situation led to a night of love making that alternated between explosive and tender, until both Sophie and Mark collapsed, exhausted, into each other's arms.
The following day, after another round of sex in the morning, Sophie and Mark were having a late breakfast with Charlotte Marie, who, Mark noticed, appeared to have aged years over the past weeks. She and Sophie were back to barely exchanging small talk, often snapped at each other, and it was clear that the tension was getting to all of them.
"Sophie, Duchess, after breakfast, I have some interesting news—at least I think that it's interesting—which I'd like to share with both of you, if there's time."
"If it doesn't have anything to do with leaks or Germany, then sure," Sophie muttered.
"I guess it has a little to do with Germany, but not recently," Mark replied, trying to maintain the suspense.
"Mark, I don't have any patience for games right now. Please, just tell us," Sophie responded testily.
"Yes, Mark, please," Charlotte Marie replied.
"Ok. I have to get something from my bag. I'll be right back." Putting down his napkin, Mark pushed the heavy wooden chair back and ran out of the dining room and up the stairs. Returning slightly out of breath with a slim portfolio, Mark could hear Sophie and her mother arguing in German, so he couldn't understand what they were saying, although he was happy not to hear his name mentioned. As he entered the room, the women stopped arguing. Noticing that the dishes and food had already been cleared, he sat down next to Sophie. "Duchess, if you wouldn't mind coming around, I want to be able to show you both this," Mark requested, pointing to the portfolio.
Intrigued, and happy for what she hoped would be a pleasant diversion, Charlotte Marie came around the table and sat next to Mark, on the opposite side from Sophie.
"When I first visited here, Duchess, we discussed my family, and I noted that I knew very little about my ancestry. During the period that Sophie and I were not seeing each other, I had some spare time, and I visited with your genealogist, Herr Eichel, and hired him to investigate my family tree. And he found some very interesting information."
Mark opened the folder, and pointed to the papers inside. Most of my ancestors, on both sides of my tree, are pretty ordinary. Farmers, merchants, tradesmen, both here in Europe, and in America. One line of my family emigrated from England in the 1600s, which is very early for America, but there's very little to distinguish my line."
Mark noted that both Sophie and her mother already appeared to be getting bored, so he decided to get right to the good part. "But my father's mother's line was a little more interesting." He turned the page. "This page shows just that line, and you'll see that 11 generations ago, I'm descended from Count Horst von Waldenberg." He paused to let that sink in, and looked at Charlotte Marie's face as the awareness dawned on her.
"So we are distant cousins?" Charlotte Marie stated, slowly, as if she was having trouble reconciling the thought in her mind.
"Wait—Mark—What the fuck?" Sophie blurted out, punching Mark in the arm. As Mark rubbed the painful spot, Sophie grabbed the sheet and examined it, before handing it over to her mother, who took out a pair of reading glasses from a pocket in her dress and examined it closely.
"All of these descendants are legitimate births? And confirmed by Eichel?" Charlotte Marie asked.
"Yes, Duchess. As you can see here," Mark pointed to the next sheet in the folder, "Herr Eichel states that I am eligible to be considered as a member of the House of von Waldenberg, not that that is really valuable anymore, but I thought you both might be amused."
Charlotte Marie paused and weighed her next comment. "Actually, Mark, you know that because of this, if you and Sophie decided to—"
"Mother—" Sophie interrupted. "Don't get started."
"All I was going to say, Sophie, is that if you and Sophie decided someday to get married—and I'm not saying you should or will—but if you did, it would comply with the law."
"And I wouldn't have to change the law. That is, if someday, you know... Because right now, trying to change it might be difficult—not that I've given that any thought, you know."
Mark was trying desperately to hold in his laughter. He knew Sophie well enough by this point to realize that she was pleased by the development, even as she tried hard not to let on. And surprisingly, Charlotte Marie looked happy. "Duchess, don't worry. Sophie and I have no plans to marry. Not now, at least." He gave Sophie a big smile, and raised an eyebrow at her, to let her know he was teasing.
"Well, cousin," Sophie began, in a mocking tone, "welcome to the family, I guess. Now, come with me." She led Mark away, before he could grab his papers, and they left while Charlotte Marie continued to pore over them.
*
Through the one way glass, Sophie noticed that Janine looked terrible. She had not slept, she was not wearing makeup, she had been crying, and the harsh light of the interrogation room was not flattering to anyone. If Johan Mueller had his way, Sophie wouldn't be at the national police headquarters, watching the questioning, but Sophie overruled him, and so she sat in the observation room with two members of the national police, one operating the recording equipment, and the other taking notes.
