Hollywood Zenith

" Hahaha, this is why I like you. No one ever dares to be this blunt with me, but you don't have to worry about anything. Nothing will happen to you here." The Queen chuckled.

" I, too, always look forward to our meetings." Samuel was obviously only joking, but it gave sufficient insight into her impenetrable poker face. He gathered that situation was salvageable.

" It was funny, but the stunt you pulled yesterday was not. I can't for the life of me figure out why you were so stupid in your approach." She sighed. She had a certain understanding of Samuel and knew he was one of the most brilliant youngsters she had ever met. Which only made her wonder even more.

" So you know about my plans?" Samuel asked with a surprised face.

" Of course, I know about you. You and your intelligence organization are inferior to what this country has built for ages. When someone starts digging into a noble of this country, you best believe I know about it." She elaborated. It also meant she willingly transferred those files to him.

" I had my suspicions but thank you for confirming it. I was fairly confident this time I could fly under your radar. It seems like there is much work to be done. But the question still remains why?" She was surprised that he was probing her for more information. Did this boy not have any fear?

" That's what I would like to know too. Some people came with few theories, but I like hearing them from the horse's mouth." She asked. Samuel told the whole story for a third time today; he felt it would have been better to just record it and play it whenever someone asked for his reasons.

" It feels like she means a lot to you. I also heard about the others; you know we banned it in this country?" She chuckled.

" Fear not, I am not trying to bring back a medieval age practice. It is also embarrassing to talk about my love affairs with my grandmother, so why don't you stop the information from flowing out?" It was his personal life, so she also dropped the subject. But the Queen liked her dramas which made it fairly certain she would be kept informed about the situation.

" Ok, as I told you. Modern power is dictated by information; while we are talking here now, someone somewhere in this country is trying to devise a plan to eavesdrop on this conversation. That's how vital it has become; you should know that as an investor in several well-known social media sites."

" Now you are just gloating." Samuel shrugged.

" Sometimes I do wonder how you manage to surprise me every year. You always seem to be in the right place at the right time." She paused like she was confirming something before continuing.

" Moving on, as you very well know, I have tried to steer away from the traditional monarchy during my rule, and from the looks of it, I believe I have succeeded in achieving a few of my goals. For my failures, I have a certain degree of control over those deemed harmful for aristocrats."

" In simpler words, you hold certain 'means' to get you the 'end.' Was Charles getting out of hand?" Samuel asked.

" In a sense, yes, he is not very influential in the circle, but these powers coagulate, which in turn threatens the balance. It's a constant push and pull; sometimes, I must move some pieces to maintain that structure. Giving you information was part of that plan."

" But you didn't anticipate that I would go public with it. Now both parties feel threatened and demand answers from the one on the top. Right?"

" Clever as always, I know the Rothschild family is influential, but even then, they are considered an outsider in these matters. They feel this is an attack and are asking me for your intentions. It was very modest this time, but certain secrets would tear apart this country if made public."

" I understand that I have put my family and me in a predicament, but sometimes I feel it is better to rebuild it than to patch a broken house." This was the biggest surprise that he had given her. She would laugh it off if someone else said it, but knowing Samuel's history, if this young boy put his mind to it, he could achieve it.

" Change takes time. It's a slow process; look at me; I have gotten old and cannot see the horizon line of this arduous journey. I just hope you don't self-destruct chasing fictional demons." She could only warn him; the rest was up to him.

" Okay, so what should I do now?"

" Don't do anything. I will talk with them and tell them you don't intend to harm them. I believe the Earl will be more than eager to corroborate with me. Just expect some friction in the future; as I said, change takes time."

" As you wish. Will you be coming over for tomorrow's party?"

" No, but I will pass over an excellent gift for Greyson. You should go too; your friend must be waiting for you."

" Yes, I will visit some other time under less stressful circumstances but don't hold my word for it."

" I won't."

After he left, she sat down while looking outside the window, seemingly lost in thought. It was not an easy solution as she had told him to be. She could only keep them at bay, but it was hard to predict as their powers were getting increasingly daunting each day.

She was also informed before this meeting that Rothschilds were specially propped up in the media for being the 'hero' in all this. Like someone was intently gearing the limelight toward them, especially Samuel. It was sufficient to say he got their attention.

It was only a matter of time before they would come after him. She had to be ready when that happened. He was only a naive child who knew nothing about how this world worked. If they tried to nip the bud early, she would never know what type of miracles he would show her in the future.