Former staff members who worked for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during their time in the Royal Family are considering legal action if the Duke's upcoming memoir is inaccurate.
Last week, it was announced Harry will release an "intimate and heartbreaking" biography next year which will supposedly cover his entire life, including the scandalous Megxit events of last year.
But a small group of staffers who worked for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are wondering if his book will promote a false narrative of how the pair were treated in the UK.
There are further concerns the book, for which Harry is reported to receive a £14.7 million (NZ$29.3 million) advance from publisher Penguin Random House, could take hostility to the next level.
"Harry and Meghan's former staff members are convinced that this book is being written to settle scores and will likely include a lot of detail about their time within the Royal Family," a royal insider told the Daily Mail.
"Conversations have already started about what steps they might be able to take to protect their own reputation and that of the monarchy post-publication."
While staff members are bound by confidentiality provisions, the royal insider says there may be an arrangement made for workers to respond to claims they believe are inaccurate.
"Maybe a blind eye could be turned if staff members used friends or family members to correct the record on their behalf," they say.
"These are the sorts of conversations going on at the moment and, of course, legal remedies are always available too if the book smears any individual staff members unfairly."
Another royal source told the Daily Mail that these staffers wanted the best for Harry and Meghan, but many secrets the workers know are "explosive" and would "blow up much of the victim narrative so carefully crafted" by the pair.
"For example, some of these staff members were aware of commercial conversations that were going on when they were still full-time royals - they were clearing the way to make millions long before Megxit was revealed," they say.
It comes after school and Army friends of Harry's warned him not to reveal their secrets and instead threatened to dish out royal gossip in return.
"It feels very hypocritical given Harry chucked people out of his friendship group for talking to the press," one friend said.
"There is a fear that he's going to reveal details of his hedonistic youth which some worry will play havoc with their careers and personal lives."
Another friend said ominously that Harry's friends have remained loyal to him "so far".
The Duke said he was not writing the book "as the prince I was born as, but as the man I have become".
"I've worn many hats over the years, both literally and figuratively, and my hope that in telling my story - the highs and lows, the mistakes, the lessons learned - I can help show that no matter where we come from, we have more in common than we think," he said in a statement.
"I'm deeply grateful for the opportunity to share what I've learned over the course of my life so far and excited for people to read a first-hand account of my life that's accurate and wholly truthful."
