“I actually think I have an idea. Something that will help steer me in the right direction to connect with more traditional voters…”
“Secret weapon up your sleeve, huh?” Her eyebrows go up. “And what might that be?”
I pull in a deep breath. “Not what.Who.”
Chapter Twelve
By the following afternoon,a mob has gathered at the gates.
They don’t arrive all at once. It is a slow accumulation — grains of sand piling up at the bottom of an hour glass, their numbers increasing each hour in a steady stream.
When Riggs calls me from my chambers and leads me to the bank of windows overlooking the castle grounds, my heart is full of trepidation.
Hundreds of people at the gates? Holding signs? Chanting in unison? That can only mean one thing.
A protest.
After all, it wasn’t long ago this same palace was besieged by Black Bandanas waving “FUCK THE MONARCHY!” banners.
I brace myself for their return, wondering how I’m possibly going to deal with antimonarchists on top of everything else on my plate… but when I catch sight of the throng, gathered in the fading afternoon light, the breath snags in my throat and the panic dissipates from my chest.
This is no protest.
The signs they bear are not full of slurs or death threats. They are not calling for my head in angry shouts, banging on the bars with clenched fists, throwing flaming Molotov cocktails at the guards tasked with my protection.
They are…
Singing.
Hundreds of them. Hundreds ofwomen, I realize as my eyes move across the crowd, young and old and every age in between. Schoolgirls hand in hand with grandmothers. Sisters’ arms linked with friends.
Every generation.
Every race and ethnicity.
Every body type and hair color.
Their voices weave together into a fabric that floats up into the air, blows across the grounds, and settles around my shoulders like a warm blanket.
As they sing, I mouth the words along with them, the refrain of our national anthem as familiar to me as my own name.
O glorious Germania
Honor we offer thee
From first breath to eternal rest
We pledge our loyalty
O glorious Germania
Our voices shall carry
From mountain range to river fjord
For our crown and country
O glorious Germania