Page 64 of Ruthless

“No.” He gestured to the boards. “Anything?”

“Nothing more than I had before. I thought with Iris’s message, I might see something in a new light. No such luck.”

He went to her and drew her into his arms. He didn’t like seeing the worry in her eyes. “We’ll figure it out.”

“I know. I just hope it’s soon enough.”

He steered her to the board where she’d listed everyone who knew about her father’s visit with the French president as well as her return to the castle. As suspects went, it wasn’t a long list, but he knew each person was either a beloved family member or a valued and trusted employee. No matter who had leaked the information, it would cause the family pain.

“Let’s talk about your list. How are you going to narrow it down?”

“I’m hoping Serena can help me with that. I thought if someone was selling the intel, digging into their financials might help.”

“I agree. But money isn’t always the motivator.”

“Yeah. Nonfinancial motives worry me the most.”

He squeezed her shoulders in comfort. “We’ll dig until we find the connection.”

“How do you think Ash took the news?”

Considering the five seconds of silence after Eve’s confession that she was a member of the royal family here, he knew the news had been a shock.

Gideon shrugged. “About as well as could be expected.”

“At least he still called me Eve and not princess.”

“Ash isn’t going to treat you any differently than he has before.”

“Yeah.” Setting her shoulders straighter, she turned her attention to the list before her and began to talk about each one.

“Marc Lambert is my father’s bodyguard. He’s been with him for over twenty years. Has three beautiful children, a lovely wife, and a new granddaughter. He’s highly paid, and if he needed money, no matter how much, Papa would give him whatever he asked for. I just don’t see it being him.”

“Okay, let’s move on.”

With each person on the list, she explained why it couldn’t be them. Gideon had a feeling the king would likely agree. Each person, blood-related or not, meant a lot to the family, and seeing them as something other than loyal and devoted wasn’t something they could easily do.

“Let’s talk about the emoji.”

“That’s really bugging you, isn’t it?”

“Yes. Quite a lot, actually.”

“It’s a cartoon face, Gideon. An easy, throwaway insult. It’s nothing.”

“It represents evil, Eve. Against you.”

“Then I’m at a loss, because none of these people I’ve listed could have anything against me. I haven’t even seen some of them in over a decade.”

“It might not be against you personally, but you’re the beloved, only daughter of the king. Hurting you would hurt your father.”

“Yes, but hurting one of my brothers would hurt him just as much.”

“You might look like an easier target.”

She smiled at that, her blue eyes gleaming like sapphires. “Looks can be deceiving.”

Laughing, he pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “Yes, they can.”