Visiting Sinaia at the time of the royal coup d'état, Helen found her son the next day at Craiova. Back in Bucharest on 10 September 1944, the king and his mother moved into the residence of Princess Elizabeth, whose relations with Helen remained tense despite their reconciliation in 1940. With the increased instability in Romania, the queen mother was extremely concerned about the safety of her son, fearing that he could eventually be killed, like Prince-Regent Kiril of Bulgaria, shot by the Communists on 1 February 1945. The queen mother also disapproved of the influence of Ioan Stârcea over the sovereign and, following information from one of the palace servants, accused him of espionage on behalf of Antonescu. She was also concerned about the machinations of Carol II, who apparently waited for the end of the war to return to Romania, and observed with anxiety the political crisis that prevented King George II from regaining power in Greece. In this difficult context, Helen had the joy of learning that her sister Irene and her little nephew Amedeo were alive, although still in German hands.