Send in the Cavalry

An Assassination Attempt

The attic had a dusty haze to it as the three of them walked in. There were old brown boxes stacked neatly along the edges of the room. Furniture items that were no longer used in the house were scattered in the middle of the room with white protective sheet over them. Thick layers of dust covered everything.

"Alright boys, pick a box and sort the contents into two piles: rubbish and things to keep," The eldest man instructed, the boys' grandfather.

The teenager, Chase, pulled one of the covers off of the closest white blob that look vaguely like a chair. As soon as he did, he entered a coughing fit from the dust in the room.

"No. I think I'll just sit here, thanks." Chase said nonchalantly after the coughing had ceased.

He pulled out his phone, the glow from the screen creating a bright, whitish-blue hue to the room.

"You're so mean, Chase." The youngest of them said, while selecting a box.

Chase stuck his tough out at Austin, not taking his eyes off the screen.

Several hours later, Austin and Grandad Bill were only half way though the box.

"A little help would be nice, Chase," Grandad Bill suggested.

Chase grunted but ignored him otherwise.

"What's this, Grandad?" Austin asked holding up a medal.

"That is a medal of bravery. I won it protecting the Queen and civilians from an assassination attempt." Bill explained.

Chase looked up from his phone for the first time since he arrived.

"Interested, Chase?"

"No, of course not! Why would I be?"

"Can you tell us the story, Grandad?" Austin interrupted. "Please!"

"Of course, Austin." Grandad Bill replied. "The Queen was coming into town to go to a party, I think. I can't remember very well."

Chase scoffed.

"Anyway, my regiment – which is like your family while you are on deployment – and about four others were given the task of crowd control. There were twenty of us in each regiment.

"We were stationed at two-meter intervals along the streets of London. There were barriers of course, but it was so busy at the doors of the building and in the streets that they needed five regiments!

"I had been stationed next to the Captain. I had been in the cavalry for about five years at this point and we had been given so many different Captains that we lost count eventually. But this one was by far the worst.

"He was completely new to the job, although he tried to hide it. He refused help with making decisions and was very rude to us. We didn't like him much.

"We were right next to the doors where everyone was trying to get a last glimpse of the Queen before she went in, so it was really hectic.

"I knew there was something wrong. I just had this feeling. It was unsettling, as if something big was about to happen – something bad. But I shrugged it off, I didn't think it would be that major."

Chase had finally put his phone down, listening intently to Grandad Bill.

"I spotted a man dressed in an all-black suit. He was skulking at the back of the crowd, in the shadows. He looked suspicious." Bill continued, lost in the memory. "'Male. Straight in front, twelve o'clock. Looks like trouble.'  I said to the Captain and my comrades around me.

"'Sighted. Keeping an eye on him.'  My comrade said, understanding what I was saying and wanted from them. But the Captain just ignored me.

"'Captain?'  I questioned.

"'You should wait for my command.'  Of course! He was trying to say that I did something wrong.

"Half an hour later, the Queen arrived. As she walked up the street, there was a scream, not an excited one, a terrified one. Looking around franticly, I couldn't see the man from before.

"'Where did he go?'  I yelled to no one in particular. I looked back at the Queen, hearing more screams from the crowd.

"'Get Her Majesty in –'  My words died in my throat: there was the man in black with a dagger pointed at the Queen.

"I jumped into action, pulling the Queen away from him and into another one of my comrades, who pulled her into the building, just as the man threw it, landing in the – now locked – doors.

"People were screaming more as I drew my sword – yes, a sword, Chase. It was a different time back then.

"We managed to surround him and arrest him after a bit of a fight, resulting in him with several server cuts on his arms and chest. And the Queen was safe too. The party carried on as if nothing happened, while the man was arrested for treason and imprisoned for life. I got the medal from the Queen and promoted to Major!" Grandad Bill concluded.

"Woah!" Both Austin and Chase breathed. "That's so cool!"