Chapter Text
Summer was beginning to fade, and the early signs of autumn were creeping into existence around Balmoral Castle. The scenery had always been breathtaking, but this time of year, it seemed to radiate beauty and color even more. Yet inside the castle itself, a shade of gloom was beginning to settle in. Queen Elizabeth II had confined herself to her favorite home since mid-July. Unbeknownst to many, her health had been in a slow decline over the past year, and since mid-summer, it began to deteriorate even faster. Family and some staff members knew it would not be much longer before the end of a monarchy era and a new would begin, a change dreaded by many. Within the past week, The Queen had elected to remain in her bedroom with periodic visits to her study and other areas. Members of the Royal Family would trickle in and out for visits yet, per her request they kept the façade of attending to their regular duties to try to distance the media as much as possible from what was really going on behind closed doors. Even though it was a journey, at the end of every day’s duties, The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip would fly up and often stay, with her mother.
While it was very well known that Princess Anne was the favorite child of her father, whom she was very close with and took his death very hard, during the past year, her bond with her mother had intensified, and many evenings, she did not want to leave. Though the Princess was fiercely strong and determined, Queen Elizabeth worried about her daughter, who was the hardest working member of the family and did not seem to know what the words stop and slow-down meant. She was grateful to have her daughter spend the evenings with her, yet The Queen saw signs that her daughter was secretly struggling, so she decided to act.
During the past week, Queen Elizabeth summoned Princess Anne’s husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, who also used to serve on The Queen’s staff as one of her equerry’s, to come to Balmoral. Queen Elizabeth knew her end was near, and she was at peace with that, but she knew that Anne would need someone to support her, and the only person who could do that was Tim. He was her rock, her steady yet silent strength, the beacon for her own lighthouse. While their relationship was initially questioned, and even scandalized by some, eventually many knew that Tim was what Anne needed. He was the calming force in her hurricane like life. He understood her better than anyone else. As they aged, they did not even have to utter words. They could communicate with looks and feelings alone. They were so in sync, not just in stride, but seemed connected by brainwaves in every aspect of their lives. So that Monday evening when Anne returned to Balmoral, she instinctively knew her husband was there, even though he had not alerted her that he was heading there when she had been at their home, Gatcombe, with him over the weekend.
As she entered her suite, her husband stood by the fireplace. It was a bit nippy, so he had started a small fire. She entered quietly, but he knew she was there as he turned to smile at her. She headed in his direction, and he could tell by the look etched across her face that she was tired. She would never admit it, but he knew. He memorized every detail about her, and those beautiful blue eyes showed signs of tiredness and sadness, yet a brief flicker of contentment shot through as he took her hand in his own and brushed his thumb across the top of her hand while giving her a brief kiss on the lips. At 72 years of age, she was still as in love with this man as she was the first day that she lay eyes on him. She would never get over his good looks, charm, his intelligence, his way with words, the way he held her when she needed him most, everything about him she craved. He had clearly swept her off her feet, a thing that no other man had been able to do. He made her feel things about herself and life that she did not know could be felt. If soulmates really existed, he was truly hers and so much more.
“Hi,” she quietly whispered and stared up into his green eyes.
“Hello, my darling,” he stated while helping her with her bags and her jacket. “Have you eaten?”
She smiled faintly in response. “I had a little something after visiting Mummy. If you’ve not eaten, we can request something be brought up.”
Shaking his head in response, she knew he had found something to munch on or had picked up something along the way. For the next little bit, they sat down on the sofa and talked about their day. As they chatted, he tried to think of something to make his wife laugh or smile, both of which he had not seen lately. He knew her mind was preoccupied with everything going on, and oftentimes, he wondered how his petite wife could carry the weight of the world on her shoulders. He was beyond proud of her, but he also was very worried about her, too.
Slowly, she began to undo the pins that held her signature hairstyle in place. Sensing how tired she was, he grasped her hands in hopes she would let him take her hair down.
“Relax a little, darling, and let me take care of you,” he whispered in her ear as he undid the pins and handed them to her watching as the longer strands of hair fell upon her shoulders. He was one of the rare few who now got to see her hair in its full length, and while it was now frizzier and a mixture of dark and silver, it was still as beautiful as it was many years ago. Sometimes he wished she would style it differently, but sometimes, he was glad she reserved moments like this just for him. After finishing with the hair, he slowly massaged her shoulders kneading the tension out.
“How is she?” he asked referring to The Queen.
Anne paused for a moment and relished in the moment of allowing her husband to dote on her. He was likely the only person that she would be so vulnerable with as she was proud of being known as fierce, independent, and strong. Yet every so often, especially with him, she wanted to be loved and cared for, and this was one of those very moments. Having settled back beside of her on the sofa, she leaned into his shoulder, and he draped an arm around her and pulled her to his chest.
“She’s very weak, Tim. I really don’t think it will be much longer. The new Prime Minister is coming up tomorrow. I’m not so sure this is a good idea, but Mummy is determined to meet one more.”
“What can I do?” was his simple response. He wanted to do it all, but he knew his role was to always support his wife, and that is what he intended to do, but sometimes, he needed to know what.
“This. Just this. Be here with me and by my side as you always are. You are too good to me.”
He placed a kiss on her temple and pulled her tighter against him.
“I’m the lucky one, darling. I promise you that I will not leave your side in the days and weeks to come. I know how you feel about PDA, as well as the protocols, but I’ll always keep my eye on you and anytime you need a bit of reassurance, you know where to look. I’m not leaving you, Annie, not now, not ever.”
A small smile crept across her face, which made his heart melt because she had finally smiled a genuine smile with her mouth and eyes. She slowly eased herself off him and kissed him.
“I’m blessed to have gotten you. We’ve had our ups and downs, but you are my true lighthouse. You are my haven. I know I don’t usually say things like this, so you know I’m getting all sorts of emotional feelings running through my veins, which I am having to fight to keep under control. Thank you for never failing to be by my side.” He watched as she slowly stood up and extended her hand toward him. “I’m exhausted. Can we go to bed a little early?”
Grasping her delicate yet strong small hand in his much larger, he stood towering over her. “Whatever the Princess wants is what she gets,” he jokingly stated which earned him a glare that instantly turned into a smirk on her face before she tightened her grip on his hand and headed off to the bedroom together for the evening.
The next day, Balmoral was a buzz with the new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, arriving to greet Queen Elizabeth. Photos were made, and those photos instantly went public and great speculation commenced about the bruising on The Queen’s hands and her frail condition. The Princess Royal had not been at Balmoral during the day, but she could not escape the chatter from those around who were seeing the photos as they hit the wire. Eventually, cutting her day short, she retreated to Balmoral to find her husband seated downstairs in one of the reading rooms with a book in hand.
“Of course, I would find you in here,” Anne stated while peering over his shoulder to see what he was reading. “Another geographical book? Tim, how many have you read? I mean geography cannot change that much, can it?”
His rich chuckle sent shivers down her spine. She loved his voice and his laugh. It was rich and deep, and she would never get enough of it. “Someone’s back early?”
“Ugh! It was an unusual day, so I finished up and elected to head back here earlier than normal.”
She sat down in the room with him and continued their small chat about his day, the Prime Minister’s visit, and her engagements. While they were talking, one of The Queen’s younger assistants entered the room. Assuming they were looking for her, Princess Anne stated, “Good afternoon, Richard. Is Her Majesty looking for me?”
The young assistant paused and glanced between The Princess Royal and her spouse before responding. “Umm no, ma’am. Her Majesty has asked to see Vice Admiral Laurence.”
Tim’s eyebrow arched as he glanced briefly in the direction of his wife. He stood slowly and walked toward the assistant as Anne stepped close behind.
“I’m sorry, ma’am,” the young assistant interrupted, and Tim braced himself for a full onslaught. “Her Majesty has asked to see the Vice Admiral alone, ma’am.”
Tim glanced back toward his wife who tried to hide the astonished look upon her face. Secretly he wondered why The Queen, his mother-in-law, wanted a private meeting with him. But naturally, he assumed that it was to ask him to keep a watchful eye on her daughter. He could not read the expression on his wife’s face but watched as she slowly turned and grabbed the book he had been reading and took a seat in the chair he had previously occupied. He breathed a sigh of relief for the young assistant’s sake and followed him down the hallway to where Her Majesty was located.
Toward the end of the hall, Richard stopped and opened the door to Queen Elizabeth’s suite and stepped inside.
“Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, Your Majesty,” Richard responded before stepping back out and allowing Tim to enter the room where he found his mother-in-law seated in a small chair in the seating area of her suite. Tim made his way over to her and bowed his head before bending down to place a kiss on her cheek. He could not help but see the sheer exhaustion as it was etched across her face, but she smiled at him and patted his hand gently before motioning for him to take a seat.
“Your Majesty. It is always a pleasure to see you, ma’am,” he greeted her as he took a seat in the chair across from him. He watched as she smiled at him, and he saw a brief twinkle in her eye.
“It never fails that even though I am your mother-in-law, you still refer to me in that way,” she responded and watched as he nodded in response.
“Ma’am, how are you feeling? Is there anything I can get you or do for you?” he politely questioned.
Waving him off as he stood to get her some water, he sat back down in the chair. “No, Tim, I’m quite fine,” she responded referencing him by his first name which was not something she did very often. “As you well know, my health is declining, and I personally don’t suspect I will be around much longer. Meeting with the Prime Minister today thoroughly exhausted my strength and energy. I won’t admit that to many people, but I hope you know whether as my equerry or as my son-in-law, you mean a great deal to me. You are almost like another son to me. I see how you carefully watch over Anne. The love the two of you have is very evident. I am truly blessed that your love continues to blossom and grow.”
He smiled at her in response. “There is nothing in this world that I love more than my wife. It was an honor to serve as your equerry, as well as within the Royal Navy. I’m equally honored to be your son-in-law. I do often look at you as a second mother, as well.”
She studied him carefully for a few moments before stating. “There is something you can do for me,” she stated and paused waiting for his reaction which she gauged as his face showed a brief look of interest.
“Anything, ma’am.”
She carefully reached over to the end table beside her chair where a large packet had been laying. He had noticed it before, but assumed it was something that had been delivered for her. She retrieved the packet and placed it in her lap where she folded her hands on top and looked at him very seriously.
“I know you know about Anne’s secret, and you’ve likely known longer than any of us, if what I suspect is true,” she paused and stared at him intently waiting for a response to which he remained stoic.