As the ceremony concluded, the Royals mingled briefly as is customary. However, Kate took Meghan aside for a private word. Meghan, there is something you need to know. I cannot in good conscience keep this from you any longer," Kate said, her expression serious. Meghan glanced nervously around but followed Kate back inside the palace gates. "What is it? You're worrying me now," she said. Kate took a deep breath. "It's about the Queen and her past. There is a secret that has been buried for decades, but the truth needs to come to light," she began.
She then shared a flashback sequence describing Queen Elizabeth's youth and early romance with a man from a working-class background before she became Queen. Despite their love, he was deemed unsuitable for her position, and their relationship ended abruptly on the Queen Mother's orders. The brokenhearted Queen buried her pain and did her duty, marrying Prince Philip and taking the throne. But she never forgot her first love or fully recovered from the loss. In private moments, she looked at old photographs and wondered what might have been.
"All these years, the Queen has kept this a secret, even from Prince Philip. Only the royal family knew the truth. But now, as she grows older, I believe she regrets not being honest and open about her past. She deserves to have the full truth about her life known," Kate explained. Meghan was stunned. "I had no idea. How terribly sad. But why are you telling me this now?" she asked.
Kate took Meghan's hands. "Because I want you to help the Queen set the record straight. You and Harry give me hope that the monarchy is changing with the times and becoming more transparent. The people deserve to know the real Queen, not just the duty-bound figurehead," she said.
Concerned about upsetting the Royal establishment but also wanting to give the Queen comfort and peace in her later years, Meghan decided to gently broach the topic with the Queen herself to get her perspective.
That evening, Meghan requested a private audience with the Queen over tea. She gingerly brought up Kate's revelation. To her surprise, the Queen sighed wistfully.
"So, Kate told you, did she? I should have known she'd work it out. She's very perceptive and kind-hearted too," the Queen said.
She went on to confirm the full story, sharing vivid memories of her long-lost love. For the first time, Meghan saw emotion beneath the Queen's polished public persona.
"Not a day has gone by that I didn't think of him. But I made my duty and did what was expected of me. Now, at the end of my life, I wonder if keeping this secret was a mistake," the Queen admitted.
Meghan persuaded the Queen that opening up could bring her solace and allow the people to see her humanity. The Queen agreed on the condition that Meghan helps shape the story in a sensitive way.
The news was broken with tact and empathy. Public response was overwhelming, with support and appreciation for the Queen's candor. In the aftermath, the Queen seemed at peace for the first time in decades.
Harry and Meghan's optimism about changing with the times had unlocked this healing moment for her. Palace officials admitted the revelations humbled and strengthened the monarchy. And Kate felt joy that her intuition had helped right a decades-old wrong and given the Queen comfort in her final years. A new chapter of openness and honesty for the Royal family had begun.
As for the Queen, well, she had kept this painful secret bottled up all these decades. One can only imagine how she must have felt having to choose duty over family. And now, unwittingly, Kate may have lifted a huge burden from the Queen by sharing the long-kept truth, even if it happened in a quarrelsome moment.
