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“I’m afraid Miss Bright has had a very difficult few days,” says Wiggs suddenly. “Unless you have any further questions regarding her single brief meeting with Aoife Marsh, then I must insist that you allow her time to rest.”

My eyes are blurry with tears of frustration now, but I can still see Singh watching me. I want to say more—I should say more—but Wiggs is right. I have no evidence. I have no proof that Ben is behind any of this, only a bone-deep certainty that every terrible thing that’s happened somehow points back to him. But he has an alibi for all of it, and while Ben may be many things, he isn’t the kind of reckless that would ever let him slip. At least not where anyone else could see it.

“Yes, I think it might be prudent to continue this conversation at another time,” agrees Singh, his dark eyes still on me as he closes his notebook. “For now, I would suggest you remain in the comfort of the royal residences, Evangeline. We don’t have a full picture of what the Army of the British Republic’s intentions are, nor what other plans may already be in motion, and it’s best not to give them any opportunities.”

Opportunities. “You mean chances to try again,” I mumble, and he nods.

“Yes, among other things.”

I stare at the grain of the polished wooden table as all the fight and stubbornness drain out of me. If I stay at Windsor, then I won’t be able to sit with my mom at Alexander’s bedside. But the thought of making her a target, too, is enough to nauseate me all over again, and I take a deep breath and nod.

“Everyone’s going to think Kit and I were behind this, aren’t they?” I say in a small voice.

“It’s likely, for the time being,” says Singh plainly. “Should this all be a misunderstanding, however, no doubt the public will be relieved to hear it.”

That’s definitely not true. I’m still being blamed for Jasper’s death in plenty of corners of the internet, and no matter what happens next, I know that those same people will latch onto these accusations like leeches until there’s nothing left of the truth to believe. And by the time this is over, even if the prime minister himself declares on national television that I had absolutely nothing to do with this, it’ll be too late.

Everyone in the world is going to think I tried to kill my father. And I have no way to prove I didn’t.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

BOMBERS CLAIM EVANGELINE BRIGHT AS ALLY

—BBC News, 13 January 2024

AMERICAN PRINCESS REPORTEDLY INVOLVED IN ROYAL BOMBING

—CNN, 13 January 2024

HEAD OF ARMY OF BRITISH REPUBLIC: THANK YOU, EVANGELINE

—The Daily Sun, 13 January 2024

ROYAL FAMILY ON LOCKDOWN—EVANGELINE REMAINS AT WINDSOR

—BBC News, 14 January 2024

PRESIDENT PARK WISHES KING ALEXANDER SPEEDY RECOVERY, CONDEMNS TERRORISTS RESPONSIBLE FOR MUSEUM BOMBING

—CNN, 14 January 2024

EVANGELINE NAMED OFFICIAL SUSPECT IN BOMBING BY HOME OFFICE

—The Daily Sun, 14 January 2024

EVANGELINE REMAINS AT WINDSOR WITH PRINCESS MARY DESPITE CONNECTION TO ROYAL BOMBING

—BBC News, 15 January 2024

PALACE INSIDER REPORTS EVANGELINE FROZEN OUT OF ROYAL FAMILY

—CNN, 15 January 2024

PRIME MINISTER ISSUES STATEMENT SUPPORTING KING, CALLING FOR FULL INVESTIGATION INTO EVANGELINE’S CONNECTION TO ABR

—The Daily Sun, 15 January 2024

OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS, I’m practically a ghost.