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Okay so maybe his crush was more than little.

While his heart yearned for them, it just wasn’t possible. They were royalty and he was just a lowly detective. Oh! And their new bodyguard as well, but Edward wasn’t very good with weapons, so he ignored that promotion. Nothing would happen on the ship anyway so the promotion didn’t matter. Point being, it’d never work out. His two friends had a duty to their country and no one in either of their families would allow them to marry someone who wasn’t royalty.

So he pushed his yearning aside and focused on his duty. He’d just have to spend as much time as possible with them until the boat reached land and he had to settle for watching over them from afar.

* * * * * * * *

Lucky for Edward, the Queen didn’t demote his bodyguard status when they reached land! She had told him that since he had done such a good job saving them, for bringing them home in not only one piece but also unharmed, she’d allow him to stay their bodyguard.

“To give me peace of mind as well,” she told him. “I trust you to keep them safe, detective Gold.”

Edward had never felt so giddy. He didn’t have to watch them and yearn from afar! He was allowed to stay in the castle, close to the both of you! And it was great!

Nearly every routine the three of you had made on the ship stayed. You still read aloud to him some nights but with new stories this time. You still wrote him new stories about his detective work. Matthew still gossiped with him with a new found passion, having more material now. He dressed Edward up in even more clothes now that he had more access to newer outfits along with outfits that actually fit Edward.

On one occasion, the three of them snuck down to the kitchen late at night. With no one around to tell either royalty what they could and couldn’t eat, the two of them ate whatever sweets they could find.

Edward stood by the entrance, of course, filling his role by keeping an eye out. He’d hate for them to get caught and punished. You and Matthew just looked so happy doing something so simple. He wanted to remember the way the two of you smiled and giggled forever.

“Would you like some, Edward?” Matthew asked him.

“Hmm? Oh! No, no thank you. I couldn’t possibly take some,” Edward told him.

“Why not?” You asked.

“There’s not much here and it makes the two of you happy. How could I possibly deny that to you?”

Edward realized how that last part sounded and lightly blushed.

Neither of you seemed to notice.

“Oh that’s nonsense! There’s plenty enough for us to share. Here, try this chocolate cake! It’s amazing!”

Matthew hopped off the table- this was one of the rare times the prince wasn’t following rules or manors and followed in your lead- and brought him a plate with a slice of chocolate cake along with a fork.

“Try it!”

Both of you looked at him with such wide, eager, and hopeful eyes. Who was he to deny the two of you the satisfaction?

The night ended with the three of you sneaking back to your rooms, stuffed with sweets. Well, Edward was mostly sneaking and keeping a look out for anyone. You and Matthew weren’t too interested in truly making sure no one found out what you all did. That was okay. It was simply one of the reasons they needed Edward around, to protect them.

He couldn’t protect them from other royalty themselves so he had to be vigilant in making sure they weren’t caught.

And that was where the problems truly began.

Ever since you and Matthew had come back from being kidnapped in America, it was as if many of your relatives from your respective families were…. Disappointed. Edward couldn’t understand why. Why would so many people in your families not be happy to see you? How could they not be filled with sheer relief that neither of you had been killed or maimed?

He was a detective and yet he couldn’t solve this. It drove him mad. No, it made his blood boil.

Every time he looked at either of you he couldn’t help but be relieved that he got both of you home safe. That the small group of bandits hadn’t hurt either of you beyond humiliation. It was so very obvious that many of the royals didn’t feel the same. They mocked and humiliated you and Matthew. Sneered at both of you and asked nasty, vile questions.

Sometimes Edward wanted to do nothing more than to strike some of the royals. To scream at them and shake them. Ask just what was wrong with them? But that would surely end with his execution so he had no choice but to watch. So often did he have to bite his lip to keep his mouth shut, saving his energy for consoling either of you after the person left.

Then the assassination attempts started.

The very first one scared the shit out of Edward. Fear pooled in the pit of his stomach and he swore that he could feel it in his bones. During a party, a man had rushed at the two of you with a large dagger. It was sheer luck that Edward was able to trip him and dislocate his arm.

The second time he almost wasn’t so lucky. A glass chandelier had missed Matthew’s hair by inches. And the third, his luck had run out. Almost.

Someone had tried to smother you in your sleep. If Edward hadn’t decided to pop in real quick to check on you, you’d be dead.

It haunted him. He didn’t want either of you to die! And one night as he guarded both your rooms, it hit him. They’re going to die if they stay here, he realized. Someone wants them dead and won’t stop until my dear beloveds are cold in the ground.

He had to come up with a plan and fast. Time was of the essence. And despite this, he was still forced to take a night off.

“Detective Gold, your dedication to your job is very admirable but honestly, you have to take a day off,” one of the royals told him. “Last thing we need is you getting sick of Matthew and them, huh?”

So on his first night off, he was filled with nothing but stress. Edward absolutely hated being away from you and Matthew but he had no choice. His job required him to take a few days off every so often, so he wouldn’t grow tired of either of you. Of course, he never would, but everyone around him insisted that he leave the castle and spend a night at a pub.

Sitting on a stool in a dark corner, he never noticed the two figures sitting down next to him.

“Fancy seeing you here, detective Gold,” a familiar voice drawled.

Edward looked up from his beer mug in surprise. “Oh! Sheriff Thompson, it’s good to see you! How long have you been in England? And sorry, I never got your name?”

Seeing Thompson was a very welcome sight. While Edward was in America searching for you and Matthew, he’d grown quite close with the sheriff. Not close enough to exchange letters, but he’d consider them acquaintances.

The man beside Thompson flashed Edward a smile. “S’alright, I don’t normally like people knowing my name when I’m behind my bar’s counter. Names’ Todd.” He shook hands with Edward as Thompson rolled his eye.

“It’s been just fine here. Weather’s much nicer than it is in America right now. I don’t want to beat around the bush, but you look like hell,” Thompson said bluntly.

Edward raised a hand to his cheek. “That bad huh?”

“Absolutely. Ya’ look dead.”

He slumped down in his seat and took a sip from his mug. For a moment he pondered if he should share the situation. It wasn’t currently public knowledge that the royal families were dealing with multiple assination attempts, but Sheriff Thompson wasn’t one to gossip. Letting him in on what was going on wouldn’t be so bad.

“Things aren’t going so well at the castle,” he explained. “Someone keeps…. Someone keeps trying to kill the two royals.”

Todd whistled. “The two you rescued from the bandits back in Spitbucket?”

Edward nodded gravely. “Yeah.” He runs a hand through his hair and as he leans closer over the table to the two of them, he lowers his voice. “I can’t prove it, but I suspect someone in both families wants them dead. Multiple people, actually. Just this week there've been three attempts on the prince and royal’s lives.”

Thompson and Todd share a look with each other.

“That’s…. Incredibly shitty. What’re you going to do?”

“I don’t know!” Edward grips the edge of the table, scowling. “There’s not much I can do besides trying to be there for both of them every second of the day. I’m just. I’m terrified of the day I’ll hear the news that we have to lower the two of them in the ground.”

“Pardon me for asking this, but if you’re so worried about them, why are you here?”

“I was forced by another royal to take the night off. I didn’t have a choice and believe me, I’d much rather be keeping an eye on my beloveds,” Edward muttered.

Again, Thompson and Todd shared a look with each other.

“It sounds like you’re close to them,” Todd said.

“I am. They’re both my friends. But sometimes I wish…..” Edward shook his head. He finished the rest of his beer and gave the two of them a sad look. “I can’t help but yearn for what I can’t have. Is that wrong of me?”

Thompson shook his head.

“Not at all.”

This time, it was Thompson leaning over the table, speaking to Edward in a low voice, his gaze calculating. “What if you could take both of them far away from here? Where no one could ever hurt them again.”

“I’d do it in a heartbeat.”

Thompson leaned back into his seat looking pleased. He made a gesture Edward couldn’t see to Todd and suddenly, Todd was unbuttoning three of his shirt buttons to slowly pull the top down and reveal a tattoo.

Edward stared at him with wide eyes. “You’re the Red Bandit?”

“In the flesh. You’ve heard of me?” Todd asked as he buttoned his shirt back up.

“Nothing more than rumors. You’re uh, much more active in America than England. What do you…. Why are either of you actually here?”

“We’re here to help you with your little problem. You want to love and protect the two royals, yeah? We want the same. Ya’see, Thompson, and I took one look at them and fell head over heels. We want…. We just want to keep them safe.”

All the tension left Edward’s body. He looked relieved.

“You see it in them too, right?” he asked.

They both nodded.

“Of course,” Thompson said softly. “How could we not?”

Edward stared at them for a minute as his mind raced. This could be just what he was looking for, the perfect solution. If he ignored the fact that Todd was a very dangerous wanted criminal, and Thompson an accomplice, this could work out well. As the Red bandit, he had an entire organization at his beck and call. No one would be able to hurt either of the royals again without facing torture and death.

If someone ever tried to kidnap the two royals, Todd could find them in a heartbeat with his network of men.

Edward leaned forward on the table, resting his chin in his hands.

“Great! I think I have a plan.”

* * * * * * * * * *

“It’s awfully terrible that Edward couldn’t join us on this fine evening,” Matthew complained as he led you to the garden, arm linked with yours.

“I agree, but he does have a right to have a few nights away from us. We could always show him the garden another time.”

Matthew sighed dramatically. “Yes but it’s so pretty this time of night! With the sun setting like this, it really makes the brightly colored flowers pop.”

You roll your eyes and pull your arm away. “Save the dramatics for when he returns. He can tell us all about what he did on his lovely day off and we can describe the sunset in horrid ways until he calls us out on it.”

Matthew snorts and then breaks out into giggles. He watches as you disappear behind one of the large flower bushes before raising his voice and asking, “How long do you think it’ll take him?”

He waits a moment, but he receives no response. He clears his throat as loud as he can but you still don’t say anything.

“Are you playing a new game?” he asks.

Silence.

Matthew pouts and moves to join you behind the bush. “Did something cause you to be speechless? Are you looking at something new-”

A hand covers his mouth and yanks him through another bush. He barely has any time to try to fight back, only managing to nudge his attacker with his elbow before his hands are tied behind his back, the rope extending halfway up his arms.

“Quiet or your friend gets it,” a voice growled into his ear. “Nod if you understand.”

Matthew quickly jerks his head into a nod. Not again, he thinks frantically. This cannot be happening again!

A cloth is shoved into his mouth and a strip of tape is firmly pressed over his mouth to stop him from spitting it out.

“Let’s go,” another voice drawls.

Matthew is spun around. He only catches a glimpse of a man in red before he’s being picked up and thrown over his shoulder. It’s much gentler than his last kidnapping, all things considered. The other three had slammed something against his knees before sitting on his back and tying him up.

The man in red joins his partner, who from what Matthew can see is in blue, and they hurry off with you and him. Now that he knows for sure that they have you, he stays as still as he can. Just because the man didn’t didn’t hit him doesn’t mean that the pair aren’t meaner than the last group that kidnapped both of you. You had dark bruises on your legs for such a long time after that. He didn’t want to see them on your skin again if he could help it.

Watching the ground move beneath him causes Matthew to feel dizzy so he clothes his eyes. He feels nauseous. His heart won’t stop pounding and his stomach feels as if he ate metal.

He’s not sure how much time has passed when the men gently sit the two of you into the back of a wagon. They climb in, blocking the way out. Neither of them talks, just stare at the two of you as if you’re a pair of precious jewels.

Matthew tries to memorize how they look so if he can get you two out of this situation he knows who to tell the authorities about, but the men are well covered. The man in red has a red bandana covering most of his face and his red hat covers his hair. Only thing visible are his silver eyes. His partner is decked out in blue, with a blue bandana covering most of his face and his hat is pulled down over one of his eyes.

Distantly, he notices that you’re shaking beside him. Looking at you, your eyes are shut.

His heart pangs with guilt. With his mouth gagged, there’s nothing he can say to comfort you. So instead, he wriggles himself into sitting up as straight as he can before leaning against you.

The two men stare curiously and so he shuts his eyes. Your trembling lessens so he stays there. Somehow, he falls asleep.

When he wakes, it’s to being over the red man’s shoulder again. Only this time, he’s being carried onto a boat. A sense of déjà vu rolls over him. Unlike the last ship he was forcibly brought on, this one was much larger. Grander as well.

People stop to stare as the two of you are carried aboard, but both men wave a hand and they go back to what they were doing.

Anxiety hits Matthew harder. More people meant he had to be even more vigilant in keeping them away from you. In the last group, he was lucky that only Juan was interested in the two of you, and distracting him was easy enough. This was definitely not going to be easy.

The red man stops in a hallway below the deck. He unclips a key from his belt and pushes it open with his foot. He walks in to gently set Matthew down onto a bed, next to another person.

Matthew doesn’t have to wonder who’s beside him for long when he turns his head and sees Edward.