Chapter 5 - The Letter Their Mother Hid
After Avery returned from the rescue, she sent her mother a sealed copy of the commendation.
Not the classified details.
Just enough to explain why her face was injured and why she would be unreachable during the investigation.
Their mother kept the letter in a locked cedar box.
Madison found it while organizing the estate after the funeral.
Inside was a photograph of Avery receiving the Navy Cross from a rear admiral.
A handwritten note on the back read:
For Harbor Seven, whose courage saved a king who could never publicly thank her.
Madison understood immediately.
At the time, she had been dating Julian for only four months.
He had introduced himself as a European investment adviser.
Madison later discovered he was the Crown Prince of Norland traveling privately in the United States.
Instead of telling Avery, Madison studied everything she could find about the rescue.
She learned that King Edmund had spent years searching quietly for Harbor Seven.
Then Madison began feeding Julian a carefully altered story.
Her brave older sister had died after saving a royal passenger.
Her family had been too devastated to discuss it.
Madison even showed him Avery’s medal photograph—cropped so the nameplate was invisible.
Julian told his father.
King Edmund believed Harbor Seven was dead.
His gratitude shifted toward the surviving sister.
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Madison accepted every invitation, every gesture of royal affection, and every opportunity created by Avery’s sacrifice.
👉 But the lie that secured Madison’s engagement required one more deception: making sure Avery never learned whom her sister was marrying.
