The Chronicles of Caspinar The Social Circle -- (Author) Caspinarian

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 5, 2018 at 2:51 PM
Content: This is the third in my fairy tales about the Pampered Princes of Caspinar. I tried to write this so that it's not necessary to read the previous ones first, but it's recommended that you do so. You can read the first one here and the second one here. Enjoy, and please let me know what you think!

Chapter One
The Play Date
Vibrant green pastures and hills rolled by as Prince Noah stared out the window. His twin brother Sebastian, who was usually called Bastian, sat beside him on the seat. The boys’ nanny, Sigrid, sat on the other side of the car with their security detail. One guard was a tall, thin man named Roland, and the other, Adrian, was so big and strong that he was usually called Bull, which was short for Bulldozer. The nanny and the guards had all been with the royal family for quite some time, but the guards had a special history with the boys.

Roland had been there when Bastian had discovered Noah on the street during a visit to the neighboring country Marganta, where the prince had lived for eight years after being kidnapped as a newborn from the hospital. In fact, Roland had been the first to suspect the boy’s true identity and had played an important part in his rescue, bending protocol somewhat to take him back to their hotel to meet the mother he’d never known. Once they were sure he was the long-lost Noah, they took him home with them to Caspinar and showered him with love and support to help him recover from the trauma he’d suffered from Gustav, the abusive man who had raised him as his father.

Bull later rescued both of the twins when Gustav managed to get into Vaskerton Palace, where he attempted to steal his “son” back. The intruder was unlucky enough to be discovered by the large man, who was Noah’s personal bodyguard. Bull gently removed the boys from harm’s way and made short work of Gustav, who then wound up in prison for his invasion of the palace. The family was understandably very fond of the two guards and considered them among their most trusted staff. The nine-year-old twins thought of them as close friends as well as faithful protectors and loyal confidants with whom they often talked about a wide variety of things.

At the moment, though, there wasn’t much talking going on in the car at all. The boys were on their way to the home of a media mogul named Albert Wickert who had a son and daughter near their age. Prince Alexander and Princess Eleanor had recently met Mr. Wickert and his wife, and the parents all thought it would be a good idea for their kids to meet and spend some time together to see if they might become friends. The twins’ social life had become a concern for their parents, especially in Noah’s case since most of the boys’ friends were actually Bastian’s friends who would also hang out with Noah as he happened to be there. Even worse, since the boys were part of such a small social circle, they really didn’t have many friends to begin with. It was one of the unfortunate drawbacks of being royalty, part of a very exclusive group that lived under great scrutiny.

The twins were feeling anxious about meeting their new playmates Isabelle and Nils. Children are often apprehensive about new kids their parents have arranged for them to meet, but there was more to their nervousness than that. Thanks to a congenital weakness of their bladders and nerve damage from a virus they caught a few months ago, both of the boys wore diapers to manage incontinence, so they naturally worried how other kids might react if they found out. Fortunately, this usually didn’t happen since they wore loose-fitting pants that hid the bulk, and nobody thought anything of their nannies carrying large bags with them when they accompanied the twins, nor did anyone question what was in those bags. But Noah had another reason to be nervous. Having only recently begun the education that the kids with whom he now associated had received all their lives, he felt disadvantaged and was often afraid of saying or doing the wrong thing and embarrassing himself or his family.

The twins often visited large, finely-appointed houses, but they never got tired of seeing them and the endless variety they presented. Noah, who had not seen as many as his brother, especially enjoyed it, and the Wickerts’ home was no exception. Surrounded by a guest house, a pool complex, and a large greenhouse, the main house was a sprawling structure divided into two wings joined by a large center section and bordering a courtyard in back. It had a serious look to it, with exterior walls all colored in shades of gray, but the big windows, lush lawn, and abundant flowers and plants lent a beauty to the home that tempered its rather grim atmosphere to a stately elegance. It was indeed an obviously luxurious house, but the boys immediately felt that they should be on their best behavior while they were there.

Mrs. Wickert, Isabelle, and Nils were waiting in the kids’ playroom when the twins, their nanny, and their detail entered.

“Welcome to our home, little highnesses,” Mrs. Wickert said with a warm smile as she shook their hands in turn. “And your staff as well. Make yourselves at home.” She turned to her kids and introduced Isabelle, a finely-dressed and cheerful little girl who seemed to be a bit younger than the twins. The girl smiled and curtsied enthusiastically, saying that she was very glad to have them visit. Nils, who was apparently the same age as his guests, smiled and shook their hands politely, saying only a shy hello.

“Would anyone like a snack or a drink?” She motioned to a silver tray arrayed with plates of cookies and fruits as well as three pitchers of water, orange juice, and a red liquid that the princes assumed was some sort of punch. Having been taught to recognize someone’s efforts at hospitality and accommodation, the twins each took a cookie and a glass of punch, thanking their hostess. “Now, you kids be nice and play well. Rose should be able to take care of you if you need anything else.” Mrs. Wickert motioned with a broad smile to a chubby, middle-aged nanny in a uniform who had just entered the room. “And I’ll be in my office if you need me. Have fun!” said the finely-dressed lady as she exited, leaving her nanny to tend to her guests’ needs. Noah noticed as she left that she glanced at her kids with a more serious expression, one he took to be a warning against any misbehavior.

The twins’ detail, always wanting to give their charges as much privacy as possible and not wanting to intimidate their hosts, excused themselves to find seats just outside the room. Sigrid, however, sat on a plush armchair at the edge of the room and struck up a conversation with Rose.

“Wow, it’s so cool that you get your own guards!” Isabelle said once Roland and Bull were gone.

The princes agreed, but Bastian added, “We like them a lot, but sometimes it sucks having to go everywhere with a guard.”

“Even at home?” asked the little girl.

Managing not to laugh, Noah said, “No, of course not. That’s what the wall is for. Bastian’s talking about when we go out, which isn’t very often. We can’t just go ride our bikes or even walk down the street if we want. Security has to plan everything out.”

“Oh. Well, what’s it like living at the palace? It must be very nice!”

“We like it well enough,” Noah replied modestly. By now, he’d learned to be careful not to boast about his position.

“I bet you do! I wish I could see it some day!” Isabelle said.

“But you have such a nice home here! I’m sure you have lots to do. Speaking of which, why don’t we play something?” Bastian said in an attempt to change the subject.

“Yes, let’s play. You guys are the guests. What would you like to do?” the girl asked.

“Well, why don’t we play a game?” Bastian suggested.

“Oh, that’s a great idea! We have a lot of games,” Isabelle said, gesturing to boxes stacked on shelves. “Which one would you like, your highnesses?”

“You don’t have to use our titles. We’re just here to play,” Noah said. He always felt awkward when his playmates addressed him officially. It made things more serious and less fun. As he said this, he glanced at Nils, who had barely spoken since they’d arrived and still wasn’t saying much. He didn’t seem disinterested or bored, only timid, and Noah wondered why he should be that way. “Why don’t you pick a game, Nils?”

The little boy brightened. “Okay! I know just the game too!” He went to the shelves and pulled out a boxed-up Game of Life. “This is my favorite. Do you want to play it?” Isabelle looked rather irritated, but she didn’t say anything after seeing that the princes wanted to play, so Nils carried the box to a little table and unpacked it, setting up the board and dispensing the little plastic cars. He became more talkative as they played, but his sister would often interrupt him to talk to one or both of the twins, asking them questions about their lives, making suggestions that she no doubt meant to be very helpful, or complimenting them in some way. More than once, she seemed to get confused about whose turn it was to spin the wheel, prompting Bastian or Noah to spin when it was actually hers or Nils’ turn. The twins, polite as ever, would gently remind her of the correct order, and the game would proceed.

After Bastian finally won some time later, they all decided to play hide and seek. Hearing this, Sigrid cautioned them to limit their game to the immediate area of the house so they didn’t disturb any of the grown-ups. The game’s borders were quickly determined, and it was decided that the winner of the previous game should be “it” first. Bastian closed his eyes and counted while the others scattered, then set about finding them. He found Isabelle first, then Noah, but he couldn’t find Nils, who made it safely to base and won. Isabelle was then “it,” and she spent a long time looking for the twins with no success before the game ended abruptly when Sigrid announced that it was time for the princes to go home.

Bastian and Noah thanked their hosts for having them over and letting them play. Nils shook their hands, inviting them to come back some time. Isabelle hugged both of the twins, enthusiastically telling them that they would always be welcome. Mrs. Wickert appeared just in time to say goodbye, and Sigrid and the boys all told her that they enjoyed their visit.

“I’m so glad! Please, come and see us again. I’m sure Nils and Izzy would love to see you,” she said with a big smile.

Back in the car on their way home, Noah said to his brother, “What did you think of them?”

“Well, Nils is pretty shy, but I like him. Isabelle, though, she was too nice.”

Noah looked at him with a slight grin. “I thought so too! Why was she like that?”

“Daddy calls them sycophants.”

“I’ve heard him use that word. What does it mean?”

“It’s someone who sucks up to you to get something out of you.”

Noah smiled again. “That’s Izzy, all right! Poor Nils, though. He has to live with her!”

“He kind of reminded me of how you used to be.”

“Oh, yeah, I guess I was pretty quiet back then.”

“Like a squeaky little mouse!” Bastian said, teasing his brother.

They both laughed, and the conversation died out, leaving everything that had happened and everything that had been said to sink into Noah’s mind as he turned to look out the window. He looked to the horizon as the scenery rolled past, and his eyes glazed over as he stopped seeing the scenery, his mind drifting off to another place entirely. He sat quietly like that, staring blankly through the glass, for the rest of the ride, deep in thought.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 6, 2018 at 3:52 PM
Content: Chapter Two
The Distinguished Visitor
Vaskerton Palace was a relatively new home built by the twins’ grandfather, King Harold, while he was still a young man and a prince himself with money earned from his business ventures. It was a large, sprawling complex, a collection of buildings both large and small, all beautifully decorated and immaculately maintained. The grounds were covered with lush green grass and colorful flowers, and the yellow-tinted white stone walls were decorated with ornate windows and accents. It looked strong and stately yet warm, inviting, and friendly, reflecting an optimism for Caspinar and its people.

Maintaining the house and the grounds required a lot of labor, as did caring for the royal family. Alex and Ellie employed a large staff, paying them very handsomely, to keep them and their kids safe and comfortable. In fact, the jobs at Vaskerton made a significant contribution to the economy of Ordan, the city it called home. After they got home and Sigrid changed the twins, Bastian went outside to play, while Noah chose to stay in their apartment on the third floor of the house and watch TV in their sitting room. He hadn’t been sitting there long when there was a knock on the front door. He called “come in,” and a young, slightly chunky maid with light brown hair walked in.

“Hi, Marta!” he said with a smile.

“Good afternoon, Your Highness,” she beamed. Noah had become the most popular member of the royal family among the staff because, having lived most of his life around people just like them, they felt familiar to him, and he often spoke to them amiably. The family as a whole was kind and generous, but Noah took a genuine interest in them and their personal lives. He considered many of them, including Marta, his friends, and he told them so. They felt that he had become the heart of the palace, making it a cheerier place than it had ever been. “I’m just bringing up some clean clothes.”

“Thanks. How’s everything been around here today? Anything interesting happen?”

“Not really. Oh!” she giggled slightly before going on to say, “There is one little rumor that’s started. Supposedly, one of the cooks went out with one of the butlers last week, and they’ve struck up together. Some of the other maids say they’ve seen them huddle up here and there, but, you know, people always say things like that.”

“Do I know them?”

“I expect you do. Don’t you know all the staff, sir?”

Noah thought for a second. “If there was someone I didn’t know, how would I know it if I didn’t know them?”

Marta laughed. “You’ve got me there, clever boy! So, I give up. The cook’s name is Hilma, blonde hair, very pretty.”

“I do know her! She let me hang out with her in the kitchen for a while one afternoon. She let me sneak a few bites of chocolate too,” Noah added with a little grin.

“Oh? She must be sweet on you, then!”

“You think so?” he asked seriously. “But what about the butler?”

“I wouldn’t worry about him; how could he compete with a prince?” Marta said.

Noah squinted slightly as he looked at her. “You’re teasing me, aren’t you?”

“Just a little,” she said smiling and almost pinching her fingers together.

“So, who is the butler?”

“You know the tall one with the really short hair? Linus?”

Noah gasped. “Really? Hilma’s going with him?”

“That’s what they say.”

“I don’t believe it!”

“People can surprise you sometimes. Linus may not look like much, but he’s very funny. Maybe she just likes guys who can make her laugh. Some girls do.”

He shrugged, “I guess I just don’t understand girls.”

A while later, the twins were playing in the offices on the first floor when they heard voices in their dad’s office just down the hall. Curious, they both went to investigate and saw that their dad was talking to Lars Morlund, the current prime minister of Caspinar. Noah had met him before, of course, and he didn’t like him. A tall, thin, middle-aged man with receding gray hair and gaunt, chiseled features, Morlund was courteous but cold. Whenever Noah saw him, he wondered how he could have been elected as the leader of Caspinar’s government.

Morlund saw the boys and nodded, saying, “Hello, Your Highnesses,” in his usual flat monotone.

They both said hello, and Alex said, “You two go play somewhere else. I need to talk to Minister Morlund.”

“Sorry, Daddy. We didn’t mean to interrupt,” Bastian said. The twins had been taught that they were to give their parents privacy for meetings like this one, and they wouldn’t have gone anywhere near Alex’s office if they’d known who he was talking to.

“It’s all right, I know. Just go play.”

The boys ran off with the intention of finding something else to do, but they couldn’t put the meeting out of their minds. It was rather unusual for the Prime Minister to visit Vaskerton since he lived at National Manor in the capital city Margale. His duties often required him to visit the royal family, but most of the time, those occasions found him speaking with King Harold or the twins’ uncle Crown Prince Frederick.

“Why is he here to see Daddy?” Noah asked.

“I don’t know. Nobody said anything about Morbid Morlund coming to visit,” Bastian replied. “Maybe Daddy will tell us what it’s about when they’re done in there.”

“Maybe Mummy knows.”

“Yeah! Let’s go find her!”

Vaskerton Palace was like an enormous maze, large and full of twisted, winding corridors leading to a few hundred rooms. But it was rarely difficult to find someone amidst the many rooms and passages, especially a member of the family for whom the house was named because, of course, the royals did not use most of the rooms in the house, generally sticking to certain one. On the rare occasions when someone might be somewhere else in the house, some of the staff members they relied upon would always know where to find him or her, and any other staffer could easily find out with a quick phone call. Still, the twins almost always enjoyed looking for themselves, making a game out of finding whoever they were looking for, and this time was no exception. After searching for several minutes, they finally found Princess Eleanor discussing plans for a project she was working on with her assistant Marie.

“Mummy!” Noah exclaimed as the boys ran up. “Minister Morlund is here talking to Daddy!”

“Yes, darling, I know,” Ellie said, glancing up momentarily.

“What is he talking to Daddy about?” Bastian asked.

Ellie looked up at her little boys and sighed slightly, looking serious and sad. “It’s the flooding in the Blackholm Province. It’s worsened in the last couple of days. Many people have lost their lives, and many more have lost their homes. You know that we’ve donated a great deal of resources to helping those people, and Minister Morlund knows it too. He’s being criticized for not doing enough about the problem, and he wants Daddy to put in a good word for him with the people, to help him look better because he knows people trust your dad.”

“Why is he doing that?” Noah asked, shocked. “Why doesn’t he just help the people?”

“He is, at least a little, but he’s concerned that what he’s doing isn’t getting enough attention so that people know about it. He’ll be running for reelection next year, and he wants to look as good as he can. He’s here to offer to send more public aid if Alex will endorse him for reelection.”

The twins glanced at each other, Noah looking sad and confused, and Bastian, turning back to his mother a bit angrily, said, “That’s pretty selfish of him!”

Ellie smiled at him sadly and said, “I’m afraid that’s how things are in politics, baby.”

“Is Daddy going to do it?” Noah asked.

“Well, it’s a bit tricky. On one hand, he wants those people to get the help they need, but on the other, he doesn’t want to give the Prime Minister an endorsement to see that it happens. He feels that Mister Morlund should increase the disaster relief first, especially since there’s nothing to say that he won’t go back on his word after getting the endorsement he wants.”

“Why don’t we just help them, give them whatever they need?” Bastian asked.

“The PM, as our government’s representative, has access to agencies and programs that we don’t, so he can do things we can’t. Besides, it’s important for the government to take care of its people and for the people to feel that their government cares about them. If we did all the work, they could lose faith in their government, maybe even our democratic process itself.”

“But how can he get away with this?” Noah said, his voice rising with outrage. “Don’t people know their PM isn’t helping them?”

“He’ll blame someone else. That’s another thing politicians do a lot of. Lately, he’s been saying things about Parliament to make it look like they’re the ones holding back the aid.”

The twins were silent for a long moment, looking upset and bewildered. Finally, Noah spoke up, “So, what is Daddy going to do?”

“Right now, he’s trying to talk some sense into that stubborn old buzzard. If he can’t, I don’t know what he’ll do. I don’t think he does either.”

Discouraged by the news, the twins chose to stay with their mum for a while, hoping for news from their dad and his meeting with the Prime Minister. Noah was especially quiet, having returned to the sullen mood he’d been in when they returned from their visit to the Wickerts’ house.

“What’s wrong, Noah?” Bastian asked when he noticed.

Barely looking up with sad little eyes, Noah replied, “I’m just sad for all those people. I hope Daddy can fix it.”

After a while, Alex appeared, and the boys looked up hopefully.

“What happened, Daddy?” Bastian asked. “Did you work it out with Mister Morlund?”

Alex looked at his wife questioningly.

“They wanted to know why he was here, so I explained it to them,” said Ellie.

Sighing, he looked at his little boys and said, “I couldn’t get him to agree. He still refuses to provide any more aid without an endorsement.”

“Are you going to give it to him?” asked Noah.

“I haven’t decided yet,” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

That night, the boys were on their laptops when Bastian noticed that his brother was crying. He looked over and realized that Noah had been staring at the same picture for a long time. It was a news photo of a flooded neighborhood that already looked like it was in bad shape. The water was obviously a few meters deep, reaching halfway up front doors and touching the bottoms of windows. “Noah, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

The tears flowed even faster, accompanied now by sniffling, but he didn’t answer.

“What is it? Why won’t you tell me?”

Noah sat sniffling for a long moment before finally breaking his silence and saying in a pitiful voice, “It’s Lucy.”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 7, 2018 at 4:25 PM
Content: Chapter Three
Lucy
“Lucy?” Bastian asked as he leaned toward the screen for a better look. “Where?”

“No, I don’t mean she’s in the picture!” Noah said peevishly. He took a breath to gather his patience and his composure. “This neighborhood reminds me of my old one back in Talma.”

“And that makes you think of Lucy.”

“Yes.”

Lucy was a little girl who was the same age as Noah, and she was his best friend, indeed his only real friend, when he lived with Gustav and Sonja. When all the other children his age laughed and made fun of him for wetting his pants, she stuck by him, telling him it wasn’t his fault. He loved her for it, more than he loved the man he thought was his father, and they played together every chance they got. After he went to live with his real family in Ordan, Ilsa, one of his nannies, helped him write her a long letter explaining what had happened to him. Over time, as the novelty of his new life wore off, his mind returned to his old friend, and he began to think of her more and more.

“You miss her. That’s why you’ve been so sad lately,” Bastian said.

Noah only nodded, his eyes watering again.

“Why didn’t you say so? Why didn’t you tell me or Mummy or Daddy. Somebody?”

A little sob escaped as the answer came, “Because I didn’t want to sound like I wasn’t happy here or like I wasn’t grateful. I am, Bastian, really! It’s not that at all! I love you and everyone else! It’s just that Lucy was my best friend. She was nice to me when nobody else was! I keep thinking about how I’m here living in this nice, big house with all these nice things, and she’s back there in Talma, just her and her Mummy, living in their little apartment and just barely getting by.”

Bastian looked at his brother, feeling his sadness, and put his arms around him. “You should have said something! I don’t blame you for missing your friend, stupid.”

“I just didn’t want any of you to think it was about you.”

“What?” Sebastian said, looking at his brother in shock. “Why would we think that? All you had to do was tell us!”

“I’m sorry. I just didn’t know what to do.”

They heard the door open behind them, and saw Alex walk slowly into the room. “Boys, what’s going on? Noah?”

The boy looked up at his dad with wavering eyes and hesitated.

Alex crouched down, his hand resting on Noah’s shoulder. “Now, you know I hate to see you upset. You can tell me anything, but I can’t fix it until you do. What’s wrong?”

“Tell him,” Bastian said.

“I miss Lucy,” Noah said with a little shrug.

“Your friend from Talma.” Alex paused as his son nodded. “I’m sorry you miss her, buddy, but what brought this on?”

“This picture,” Noah said as he reached for his computer.

Alex looked at the screen. “What about this reminds you of Lucy?”

“It reminds me of the neighborhood I used to live in, and I’m sure she’s still there. I wonder what’s happened to her since I moved here. I just hope she’s all right.”

The elder prince stared at the image on the screen for a long moment. He hugged his little boy tightly, and Noah buried his face in his shoulder. “You poor thing! You’re worried about her.” Alex looked at him, brushing a tear off his little cheek. “And you care so much about people. Well, I’ll tell you what: why don’t we go and find out what’s happened to Lucy?”

Noah’s face lit up as he gasped, “Do you mean we could we go and see her, Daddy?”

Alex smiled and nodded. “Of course we can! I can see how much she means to you.”

“Really?! Thank you!” The little boy threw his arms around his dad’s neck. Then, pulling back, his eyes wide, he said, “When?”

Sobering from a gentle laugh, Alex replied, “After I deal with Blackholm.”

“Did you decide what to do?” Bastian asked.

“As a matter of fact, I did just now. That’s why I came to see you guys tonight. I thought you might help me figure it out. And you did!”

“We did?” Noah said with a surprised expression. “How?”

“By being your kind, caring selves and being concerned about other people.”

“So, what are you going to do, Daddy?”

“Come on, I’ll tell you all about it while I get you guys changed. It’s time for bed now.”

The news crews were already there when Alex stepped out of his car behind the stage that had been set up overnight. He turned to his assistant Filip and said, “Get Prime Minister Morlund on the phone.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Filip said as he took out his phone and hit the number on speed dial with a wry smile. He didn’t know what the prince was going to do, but he knew that look on his boss’s face, and he had a feeling the PM was in for a rough time. “Prince Alexander for the Prime Minister. No, it’s urgent. Thank you.” He handed the phone to Alex and waited.

After a couple of minutes, Morlund’s voice came over the phone, “Good morning, Your Highness. How are you?”

Alex replied, “Good morning, Mr. Prime Minister. I feel rather good, considering the circumstances. How are you?”

“Fine. Have you made a decision?” Morlund asked in his low, gruff voice.

“Yes, I have. I’m standing at this moment only a few blocks from the flooding in Blackholm and only a few meters from a crowd of news crews waiting to hear me speak. I’m here to give you a choice similar to the one you gave me yesterday. You can either make the necessary call and release the relief funds for this area at once, and I’ll go out there and tell them that you are enacting plans that you and I made yesterday to help the people here. Or you can continue to stall and withhold those funds, and I will end this call, walk onto that stage, and tell the entire world that you have intentionally held out that aid as leverage for a political favor.”

“You wouldn’t dare! You’re not allowed to interfere with the democratic process!”

“I would dare, and I will dare. It’s true that I’m not allowed to interfere in politics, but that’s exactly what you have tried to get me to do, and I’ll reveal that to our people unless you end this game and do your job. As you said yesterday, the people trust me. They’ll know it’s the truth. What will happen to your chances of reelection then?” There was a long silence as Morlund considered this. Alex pressed him further, saying, “So, Minister, which would you like me to do?”

There was a bitter, grating chuckle. “What, may I ask, brought about this new attitude, Your Highness?”

“I spoke to my kids last night, and they reminded me of the importance of compassion and helping others when we’re able.”

“Your clueless, spoiled, idealistic intrusive little nuisances. Of course.”

“Be careful, Lars, or you’ll miss your chance to save your campaign, and I’ll take care of all of these people myself.”

“I think you mean it.” Morlund sighed, then said in an irritated tone, “Very well, I’ll make the call.”

“Right now. Use another phone, and put it on speaker so I can hear the conversation.”

“Fine.” Then, to someone else on the other end of the call, the PM said, “Hand me your phone.” Alex heard buttons being pressed, then ringing as Morlund waited for an answer. After a moment, a female voice picked up and the Minister said almost in a growl, “Release the relief funds and workers for Blackholm. Yes, whatever is needed.” The woman said, “Yes, sir,” and the call ended. “There,” Morlund said to Alex. “I don’t suppose now I’ve cooperated that you’ll give me that endorsement.”

“Correct. I won’t. Goodbye, Mr. Morlund,” Alex said before ending the call abruptly.

“It worked! It worked!” the twins shouted when Alex got home a while later.

“Now, those people will get the help they need, and you won’t have to give Morbid your endorsement!” Noah said.

“That’s right. We won!” Alex said with a broad smile as he looked down at the kids.

“Can we go see Lucy now?”

“We sure can, buddy. Of course, you know we’ll need some time to prepare for the trip, so you’ll need to be patient. But as soon as the details are all worked out, we’ll be on our way to Talma.”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 8, 2018 at 5:26 PM
Content: Chapter Four
Party Planning
Alex and Ellie usually insisted that the family have dinner together, and that night, when they were all excited about the victory over Minister Morlund, was no exception. Everybody disliked unnecessary formality in their own, so it was rare that anyone dressed up, and they preferred the smaller, cozier dining room on the second floor to the grand room, which was generally only used for guests, on the first. The head chef Anton had prepared the usual four courses: salad, a creamy chicken soup flavored with mushrooms and onions, sole baked with herbs and seasonings, and a fluffy chocolate cake drizzled with caramel and covered with almond slices for dessert.

“Well, I just wish you could do that with Parliament, Dad. It’s shameful how they waste hours and hours arguing and debating rather than solving the country’s issues,” Ava said. Ever since the riot a few months back, the twins’ eighteen-year-old sister had become more interested in politics. It had shocked and frightened her, leading her to conduct her own research into the riot’s causes. She’d been appalled to discover the various indignities done to many of the employees of Emistat, her family’s company, and she had become more open to different opinions and empathetic to the plight of the working class.

Feigning a look of shock and hurt, Alex replied, “What have I ever done to you that you would wish something as terrible as dealing with Parliament on me?”

“Well, somebody has to deal with them,” she countered.

“That’s Lars Morlund’s job,” said Ellie.

“And if anyone ever deserved that kind of torture, I’d say it was him, though I’d like to know what he’s being punished for,” quipped Lukas, the twins’ sixteen-year-old brother. “As a matter of fact, I was talking to a producer about that the other day. He wants to make a documentary exploring Morlund’s campaign, and he was wondering if I’d like to help.”

Alex looked at him for a beat before saying, “No, Lukas. You can’t have any public involvement in something like that. If a prince were to be part of a film criticizing the PM, it would be seen as an attack on the office of the PM by the royal family. I’m sorry, but it wouldn’t be appropriate for any of us to have anything to do with something like that.”

Looking disappointed, Lukas said, “Well, could I at least consult on it? Help finance it?”

“No, son! And before you ask, not even if you did it off the record. Things like that can be researched, investigated. If it was discovered that we’d financed it, it would look like we paid the filmmakers to smear his reputation.”

“Like he needs us to smear his reputation!” Lukas retorted.

“Exactly! Let him embarrass himself!” Ellie said. “God knows he’s capable of it.”

“Fine,” the teenage prince said with a little sigh. “May I still talk to the producer about it?”

It was Alex’s turn to sigh. “As long as you make it clear that everything you say is off the record and he is not to use anything you say in his film. Remind him that if he does, our media guns are bigger than his media guns.”

Sensing a lull in the conversation and an opportunity, Noah piped up, “What about the trip to Talma? When can we go?”

“We’re not sure yet, but it will probably be in about a week. Dominik still has a lot of details to work out,” Alex said, referring to their head of security.

“Oh,” the little one said, a little crestfallen.

Picking up on his brother’s disappointment, Lukas said cheerfully, “Hey, a week isn’t that long to wait! It’ll pass before you know it, and then you’ll be off to see Lucy!”

“I’m glad you’re going to see her,” Ava said. “I know how you miss her.”

“I really do,” he replied. “I can’t wait to go.”

“Well, there’s no sense sitting around the house and moping about it! Why don’t we invite some of your friends over in the meantime? Why, we could have a slumber party!” Ellie suggested.

Noah’s head bobbed up in surprise, and he knit his brow as he considered it, then seemed to deflate. “I don’t know.”

“Why not?”

Realizing what his brother was thinking, Bastian spoke up, “What happens if they all find out we wear diapers?” They had, of course, managed to keep this fact largely hidden, but it would be more difficult to do so if they had guests staying overnight.

“You know, everybody has embarrassing things happen sometimes,” Ava said. “I think if they find out, the best thing to do is acknowledge that it’s embarrassing but treat it like a nuisance. Make a joke of it and laugh at it like you do with us sometimes.”

Ellie said, “I think most of your friends have probably been taught better manners than to say anything about someone’s medical condition. But if it would make you feel better, we could speak to their parents and ask them to make sure their kids understand the situation.”

“No!” said Noah.

Alex spoke up at this point. “All right, look at it this way. Pretend for a second that you have no wetting problem to hide. In that case, would you want to have the sleepover or not?”

“I want to have a sleepover, like normal kids, but if my friends found out I wear diapers, they may not be my friends anymore.” Noah replied sadly.

Nobody said anything for a bit as they realized how alone he felt at that moment.

Ellie was the first to speak. “Baby, we’ve told you not to worry about being ‘normal.’ You’re simply who you are, and you’re a wonderful, sweet, thoughtful little boy. Having to wear diapers doesn’t change who you are.”

“I just want to be like other kids and do the things they do!” he said in frustration.

“And this is one of those things you can do!” said Alex. “There will always be something that people could judge you on. You can’t let that stop you from living your life. Especially over a medical problem. If you let it keep you from doing the things you want to do, you’re letting your incontinence control you and run your life.”

“Boys, don’t some of your friends already know, anyway?” Ellie asked.

“Yes, but not all of them.”

“But the ones who know are still your friends, right?” The twins nodded at her. “Then we can invite them, and if anyone else finds out, I bet the ones who already know will show them how to act and help them stay polite.”

The twins looked at her for a moment as they turned this idea over in their minds. “You think so?” Bastian asked.

“Sure! People take cues from the groups they’re in. If they see that others in the group behave a certain way, they’re more likely to behave that same way. So, if anyone finds out and sees that others already know and aren’t being mean to you, they’ll be less likely to be mean themselves.” The boys still looked uncertain, but Ellie saw how badly they both wanted to do something that other kids their age did, and she wanted this for them, so she went on. “And remember, it isn’t as if you’ll be all by yourselves. Your nanny will be around if you need her, and she’ll make sure everybody behaves, and we won’t be far either. All you’d have to do is call us.”

“I’ll tell you what, guys,” Lukas said. “If you like, I can be there too. If anyone is mean to you, I’ll make them leave! You know I’d never let anyone treat you like that. What do you say?”

Brightening, Noah said, “Yes, that would be awesome!”

Bastian agreed. “Would you, Lukas? It would be more fun if you did, and we would both feel a lot better!”

“You got it, little bro! It’s gonna be way fun!”

“Well, I’m glad to finally get that settled,” Ellie said.

“They’re tough negotiators! Lars Morlund took less convincing than that!” Alex said with a chuckle.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 9, 2018 at 5:44 PM
Content: Chapter Five
The Slumber Party
Over the next few days, the cleverness of Ellie’s suggestion became clear when she let Noah help plan the party, which helped distract him from the impending trip to Marganta. Any event at the palace requires a certain amount of consideration. The guest list must be made and vetted by security, and the house must be secured, cleaned, and decorated as the invitations go out. A team of staff members must be assigned, and food must be gathered and prepared. Fortunately for all involved, this was a small event, especially by Vaskerton’s standards. As a slumber party, it was an informal function, and there were only ten guests, who were all kids, so they were able to do without many of the usual formalities. The fact that one of the kids was the twins’ cousin Ethan also helped.

The names of their other guests, who were a mixture of old and new friends, were Magnus, Emil, Oliver, Matias, Jonas, Hugo, Elias, Wulf, and Nils. The latter was, of course, their newest friend, who the twins both liked well enough to invite. “I bet Isabelle’s crazy-jealous,” Bastian grinned. He and Noah were both very glad in this case that their parents thought it would be inappropriate to invite any girls.

Ilsa, one of the twins’ nannies, helped Ellie plan the party, and they settled on a Star Wars theme. A suite of rooms on the second floor with a large central room was chosen for the boys to sleep in. It was draped with black cloth and decorated with paper stars, planets, and spaceships. They even managed to hang up plastic replicas of X-Wings, TIE fighters, the Millennium Falcon, and the Death Star. A few games were brought in for the kids to play, and an entertainment center was set up with a large TV and blu-ray player. Since all of the boys’ parents discouraged too much time on computers and video games, there were no gaming systems, and nobody would be allowed a cell phone. A large sheet was laid down with blankets and pillows to form a sort of communal pallet. Spare bedrooms would be offered to anyone who didn’t want to sleep with the others, but it was expected that the kids would all simply nod off in front of a movie.

Ethan arrived by plane the day before the party as the preparations were being wrapped up to spend a little extra time with his cousins. Since they were from the same family and social class and all the same age, Ethan being only a few months older, they loved to hang out together and were close friends.

“Hey, thanks for inviting me!” he said as he walked up to the twins.

“Of course you were invited! We’re always glad to see you,” Noah replied.

“So, what should we do first?”

“It’s up to you, but I vote we go grab our bikes,” Bastian said.

Ethan agreed, and they all ran off to the storage space where their bicycles, including one for the twins’ cousin, were kept. As dictated by their parents and nannies, they all strapped on their helmets and took off, pedaling across the pavement and grass to a trail that wound through a flower garden and a few sparse trees. They raced along the trail, out and back again, turning and circling, firing imaginary guns and rockets at each other in a make-believe aerial dogfight. They rode for quite some time all over the palace grounds before going back inside, and they spent the rest of the day playing together, and Ethan joined the entire family for dinner that night.

“So, who else is coming to the party?” he asked as they sat around the table.

“Well, let’s see, you know Oliver, Magnus, and Elias, right? Yeah, they’ll be here. I don’t think you’ve met the others. We’re having nine over, ten including you,” Bastian replied.

“Sounds like fun. Oliver and Elias are cool, and Magnus is all right. I guess we’ll see about those other guys.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll have fun,” Bastian assured him.

Meanwhile, the three of them made the most of their time together, playing little games in remote parts of the palace where no grown-ups could bother them and going for a late swim. Irina, a nanny who shared a rotation with Sigrid and Ilsa in caring for the young twins, had the unpleasant task of trudging all the way to the pool and coaxing the three boys out of the water to shower and get their pajamas on. Once they were all clean and dressed, they piled into the large bed in the room Bastian and Noah liked to share. But they were so excited about the party the next night that they didn’t find it easy to go to sleep, and they laid awake for quite some time, talking and giggling. After perhaps an hour, the conversation died down, and the boys gradually nodded off amid happy thoughts of more fun the next day.

The party started late in the afternoon when a car pulled up to the side of the main house and deposited Jonas. The boys stayed in a sitting room on the first floor,telling stories and jokes as they waited for the other guests. They didn’t wait long before Magnus showed up, followed soon thereafter by Emil and so on until over the course of an hour or so, all ten guests (and Lukas) were assembled in the parlor. Their bags were all carried upstairs, and Sigrid, as the youngest and most energetic nanny, stood before the group and prepared to wade into the difficult task of directing and corralling twelve energetic young boys.

She welcomed them to the palace, promising them a fun evening and laying out a few rules, namely no running in the house, no wandering off, and no bullying or fighting. She then presented them with some Nerf guns and let them outside to play for a while, watching as the boys fired foam missiles at each other as they ran across the springy grass. She called them back inside when dinner was ready, having them leave their guns on a table as they walked back inside, and escorted them to a small dining room on the second floor. Anton had prepared pizza, chicken baked with mild seasonings, salmon, and vegan lasagna, and the boys sat at several round tables, chattering and laughing as they ate.

After dinner, they went on a treasure hunt over most of the second floor of the palace. Sigrid had hidden several party favors about the house, and she showed pictures of them to the boys, giving them a clue to the location of each. She and Lukas laughed as the kids fanned out in a rush to be the first to find and claim each item. The hunt lasted for about an hour and filled the house with giggling and excited chattering. That much noise was usually discouraged at Vaskerton, but Alex and Ellie agreed to allow it this once and were unable to resist showing up to see the source of the commotion for themselves.

“Sigrid was right,” Alex said as he watched the kids dash this way and that in their search for the hidden treasure. “This is the perfect way to keep them occupied for a while.

“If you don’t mind the noise,” Ellie replied with a grin.

“If you don’t mind the noise,” he agreed. “And I don’t. At least, I can tolerate it for a while if it keeps them out of any other trouble.”

The game finally ended when Hugo found the last item, a small silver figurine of a Caspinarian soldier in a historic uniform. The boys were then herded into the suite of rooms that had been prepared for them, and Sigrid asked them which movie they wanted to watch first. After some debate, they settled on Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, so she got it ready while some of the boys went to change into their pajamas. After several minutes, they all settled in on the pallet under their blankets with their heads propped up on soft, fluffy pillows to watch the movie. The young nanny gave them some snacks and said that she would be in a bedroom just off the central room if anyone needed her, then left the room.

Lukas, however, stuck around when the movie started. He’d never seen any of the Harry Potter movies, but his little brothers liked them, and they had watched plenty of horror movies with him, so he figured he owed them. He sat through the entire thing and never saw any trouble from any of the boys, so he felt confident at this point that the twins didn’t need him to chaperone. He was still able to make himself useful, though, when it came time for them to get ready for bed.

“Lukas, can we see you for a minute?” Bastian asked, gesturing to Noah.

“Sure, come on,” he nodded knowingly.

“Excuse us, guys. We’re going to go get ready for bed, and we’ll be back in a few minutes,” Bastian said. “You can start the next movie if you like.”

The three princes then went into one of the side rooms and closed the door behind them.

“What’s that about? Why does it take all three of them to get ready for bed?” Hugo asked.

“Lukas is probably going to change their diapers,” said Oliver with a little smirk.

“Shut up, Oliver!” Ethan said. “It’s not funny!”

“Sorry,” Oliver shrugged. “I didn’t mean anything. It’s just kinda, you know, weird.”

“No, it’s not! They can’t help it! And they don’t want everybody to know about it!”

“Well, I am sorry about that!” Oliver said. “It just kinda slipped out when he asked why they all went in there.”

“I guess that’s not all that slipped out,” Wulf said with a grin.

A few of the other kids laughed, and Ethan, clearly irritated now, shushed them. “They’ll hear you! How would you guys feel if you had a medical problem and people made jokes and laughed at you?”

“Yeah!” Magnus said. “Maybe you guys don’t mean to be– well, mean, but that’s what they’d think if they heard you. Besides, who here has never had an accident before?” Nobody said anything, so he continued. “Right! And how would you like it if you had them all the time and then people made fun of you and laughed at you for it?”

“Exactly! And I know how they feel,” Ethan said, his cheeks reddening a bit. “I have accidents at night, and I have to wear Drynites to bed. It sucks!”

“Oh. Wow, I didn’t know. I’m really sorry I said anything,” Oliver said.

“Me too,” added Wulf.

The room got quiet after that, none of the boys quite knowing what to say. Ethan broke the silence, saying, “Well, what should we watch next?”

“Force Awakens!” said Matias. “We can’t have a Star Wars party without a Star Wars movie!”

The others agreed, and Ethan loaded the disc into the player, starting the movie just as Noah returned wearing red and gray Star Wars pajamas.

“Wow, you guys are really going all out with this theme, aren’t you?” asked Wulf when he saw what his friend was wearing.

“It just seemed right to wear these tonight,” Noah said with a smile and a shrug.

Bastian came back wearing something similar a few minutes later, and Lukas appeared, announcing that he was going to bed. “You guys have fun. Sigrid’s in her room if you need her. Good night!”

The kids turned to the movie and, as predicted, one by one fell asleep staring up at the screen.

The Blu-ray player had reverted to the movie menu, and that was all that was showing when the kids awoke to urgent shouts. They blinked sleepily as they sat up to see what the noise was all about. It was obvious to all of them when they saw Nils kicking and thrashing, losing his blanket in the process, his eyes still shut tightly.

“Nils! Wake up! You’re having a bad dream!” Noah said as he moved over and shook his friend’s shoulder.

Nils opened his eyes and looked around to see eleven boys staring at him. As most kids in that situation would do, he immediately burst into tears.

“Hey, it’s all right, it was just a dream,” Noah said.

“It must have been a really bad one! You were kicking around like someone was after you!” said Jonas, who was sitting next to him.

“Someone was!” Nils sobbed.

“Well, they’re not after you anymore. You’re safe here,” said Noah.

“Yeah,” agreed Bastian. “Did you see that wall out there around the grounds? The guards? Nobody can get you here!”

“Someone got you,” Oliver blurted.

The twins shot him a look, and Bastian retorted, “That was a long time ago, and Daddy and Dominik, our head of security, made a bunch of changes to make sure that would never happen again!”

“Who was after you?” Noah asked Nils.

“I don’t know his name. When I was little, he tried to kidnap me when I was at the market with my mummy. There was a policeman who saw what was going on, and he tackled the man. But the kidnapper fought back and got away. So, he’s still out there somewhere.”

“Well, he’s not in here, and he won’t get in here!”

“You guys don’t know what it’s like, though. I barely remember it, but Mummy and Daddy are always scared he’ll get me again. They’re always so careful about where I go and what I do. I was surprised they let me come over here! They make me remember what happened. That’s why I have nightmares!”

Noah looked at him for a moment. “I know how you feel,” he said. Nils looked at him in disbelief, but he went on as if he hadn’t noticed. “I was kidnapped when I was a baby. It took them eight years to get me back, and that was just by coincidence. But before they did, the man I lived with was really mean to me. He used to beat me whenever I made him mad, and he got mad a lot. After they found me and I came to live here, I used to have a lot of nightmares.”

“He sure did!” put in Bastian.

“You did too after Gustav got in here!” Noah fired back.

“How did he get in?” Nils asked.

“He killed a maintenance worker and stole his uniform.” Nils eyes widened a bit, and Noah hastily added, “But Dominik put in a new computer system to check people’s identities, and Gustav went to prison. It won’t happen again. We’re safe here.”

“Yeah, all these guards around? Nothing’s going to happen to you here,” Bastian added.

Sniffling a bit, Nils said, “I’m sorry I woke you guys up. I haven’t had a dream that bad in a while.”

“It’s not your fault. You had a nightmare, and you got scared. Everyone gets scared,” Oliver said. The other boys agreed.

“You must have been really scared when that guy grabbed you!” Wulf said. “What’d you do?”

“I don’t remember. I was only, like, three at the time. You guys are awfully nice! I woke you up screaming, I cried, and you didn’t even laugh at me!”

Wulf looked at him and said, “No, we wouldn’t do that. That wouldn’t be cool at all.” He was blushing slightly, and none of the other guests doubted that he was remembering how he’d joked about Bastian and Noah earlier. Nils calmed down after a few minutes, and the boys all settled back in, soon returning to sleep.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 10, 2018 at 11:02 PM
Content: Chapter Six
Back to Marganta
The slumber party had served its purpose as a distraction so that the week seemed to pass quickly for Noah, and as soon as he had recovered from the excitement of the sleepover, he found himself on their plane headed to the country he once called home. It was only then that he was reminded how much work actually went into making the arrangements for a visit to another nation.

“It must be nice to be able to simply hop on a plane and be flown about,” Ellie said, teasing him. “Even Daddy and I don’t have that luxury. We had to clear our visit with Prime Minister Gissel on top of helping with the planning.”

Even though the Vaskertons had nothing to do with Caspinar’s government, any visit they made to another country was still considered a state visit, and international law dictated that they acquired the local government’s permission before crossing the border. Fortunately, this was little more than a formality because Caspinar and Marganta had a good relationship, and Alex and Ellie were on especially good terms with Marganta’s current PM. After a short, simple conversation on the phone with Prime Minister Peter Gissel, they were clear to visit his country again.

One reason Ellie was teasing Noah was that she wanted to keep his mind off the news she had passed on from Dominik the day before they left. Early in his research for the trip, the security head learned that Lucy’s mother Signe had moved them from their apartment and hadn’t left a forwarding address. Nobody Dominik spoke to knew where to find them. There was at first talk of canceling the trip, but everybody knew the news would only make Noah worry even more about his friend, so it was decided to proceed with the hope that they would be able to find her and her mum once they were there. In fact, they thought the little prince, who knew Lucy and who had lived in that neighborhood, might offer a great deal of help and in so doing feel useful.

After a few hours in the air, their plane touched down at Charles Rennet Airport, which was named for a Margantan hero who was born in Talma. A large car was waiting on the tarmac for them, and the twins, their parents, Lukas, and their entourage climbed in and set out in a motorcade for their hotel. Ava had wanted to join them, but everybody felt that someone should stay behind and keep an eye on Morlund in case he caused any more trouble. Still angry about his attempt to extort a political favor out of her dad, she was rather eager to confront the PM herself, but Alex and Ellie had forbidden her from doing so, telling her to contact them if anything happened. Meanwhile, the rest of the family arrived and checked into their hotel suite. Noah, more eager than ever to find his friend, wanted to start right away.

“It’s a little late in the day,” Alex said. “But I suppose we could at least go out and ride through your old neighborhood as soon as we’ve had a bite to eat.”

They had some food brought up, and Noah did his best to hurry them through dinner. When they were finally finished, they all piled back into their nondescript SUV with bulletproof glass and headed out again.

“I’m kind of surprised you came with us, but I’m glad you’re here,” Noah said to his big brother.

“Are you kidding? I’m looking forward to meeting Lucy! I don’t want to miss the reunion!” While this was true, Lukas didn’t say that he also wanted to see a lower-class neighborhood and catch a glimpse of a different world, one that he rarely got to see up close from his sheltered place of privilege. He knew he would never understand it, but he found it intriguing, and it often seemed more real than his own because it was so much bigger and involved many more people. He just didn’t know how to say all this without making it sound like he looked at this world and its inhabitants as some sort of freakshow.

It took quite a while for their vehicle to reach the neighborhood where Noah had lived as Oskar because, of course, their hotel was in a nice part of town, far away from the places where people struggled to survive. And it was clear that the people living in the small, run-down homes lining the streets were struggling. A few tiny houses with sagging roofs were scattered among short, gray apartment buildings whose walls were covered with grime, soot, and graffiti. They could see cracked windows here and there as they looked about them. Shabby, tired-looking people milled about on the sidewalks, and the streets were crowded with beat-up cars and buses. Lukas stared at the people walking by as if he hoped to gain some understanding of their lives that way, and then he remembered Noah and glanced over to see the younger boy looking out the window with a blank expression.

“Just like you remember it?” Lukas asked with concern in his voice.

“Yeah, nothing’s changed. Nothing ever changes here,” came the reply.

“Hey, don’t worry. We’ll find her.”

“I hope so. But even if we do, all these other people will still be stuck here.”

Seeing how the sights were affecting him, Ellie reached over and pulled Noah onto her lap, hugging him to her. “My sweet angel, always thinking of others.” She stroked his long hair and said, “We’ve never seen your old apartment. Why don’t you take us there?”

He glanced up and nodded, giving directions to their driver. Within minutes, they were in front of a little three-story apartment building that looked much like all the others. He pointed to three windows on the second floor and said, “That’s it.”

Ellie looked up and saw cracked brick, chipped plaster, and old blinds with slats that were missing pieces or absent altogether. Her heart sank when she saw where her son had been forced to live, and then it sank some more when she realized that other people’s children were still forced to live in such places. Not knowing what to say, she craned her neck and kissed the top of his head, but she wasn’t sure if she was trying to comfort him or herself.

They drove around a bit longer, following Noah’s directions as he pointed out places familiar to him. They were saddened to see the world he used to live in, and each of them felt guilty that they had whisked him away to a life of luxury and left so many behind in such a hard existence, ignoring the plight of the people who had been his neighbors. They had only returned now to look for one of these people only because he wanted to see her again, and this realization made them feel selfish and thoughtless. It was something that weighed heavily on them as they drove away from the sights of poverty and back to their posh, comfortable hotel suite.

“We’ll start looking for Lucy tomorrow,” Ellie said as she and her husband tucked the twins in for the night a while later. “Have you thought about what you’re going to say to her once you find her?”

Noah looked confused and shrugged. “Just that I miss her, I guess.”

Alex smiled and said, “That’s a good start, and that’s really all you need. Things will go on naturally from there.”

“Do you think she’ll be happy to see me?”

“I’m sure of it, darling,” Ellie said.

“Have you talked to Ava?” he asked wide-eyed with a gasp, suddenly remembering what was happening back home. “Are the people in Blackholm getting Morbid’s help?”

“I talked to her,” Alex said. “Things are starting to get better.”

Noah gave a little sigh of relief and sank back onto his pillow. “Good!”

His mum and dad chuckled at how dramatic he seemed, and Ellie gave each of the boys a kiss before they left the room, closing the door behind them.

“It’s a miracle he turned out to be such a good kid after what he went through,” she said.

“Maybe he was born a good kid.”

“Right. It’s all because of your wonderful genes,” she replied sarcastically.

“Why not? They’re all good kids. We did something right, even with one of them missing for years.”

“You’re forgetting how much work he was when he first came home.”

Alex sighed. “No, I’m not. He was worth it, though.”

“Yes, he was. He’s worth all this too. That little boy deserves to be happy. He deserves to find his friend.”

He nodded. “It may not be easy, and we may not even find her, but we’ll do everything we can.”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 11, 2018 at 1:06 PM
Content: Chapter Seven
The Search Begins
“Let’s go over what we have so far.” Dominik sat across from the Alex, Ellie, and their sons. A fit middle-aged man with salt-and-pepper hair and a family of his own at home, he exuded a quiet confidence and dignity that made him perfect for his job. As the head of security, he spent a great deal of time coordinating the agents under him and informing himself of possible threats, evaluating each one to determine veracity and severity and determining the appropriate response. This part of his job required investigative skills that made him well-suited to locate someone, and he had indeed done so many times before, so he had left the palace in charge of his lieutenant and joined the trip to look for the prince’s old friend. Indicating Noah, he said, “According to his little highness here, Signe Petersson, Lucy’s mum, often spoke to Matilda Jansson in the apartment next door and Maria Holmgren in the next building. There’s also a gentleman, likely a love interest, named Johan who seems to live nearby and a sister named Helga who lives in Folberg a couple of hours away. Additionally, there were three friends of Lucy’s near their building: Caroline Nyman, Clara Wallin, and a little girl named Josephine, whose second name we don’t know. Now, we do know where to look for Ms. Nyman, Ms. Wallin, Ms. Holmgren, and Ms. Jansson. Our best course of action is to speak to these people and see if any of them know where the Peterssons have gone. Or they may lead us to Johan or Helga, who can lead us to Signe and so to Lucy. I suggest we start in the building where Signe and Lucy used to live and work our way out, speaking to Mrs. Petersson’s friends since they’re likely to have more to tell us.”

Everybody agreed, so the Vaskertons, Dominik, and Bull loaded into a large SUV and drove back across town to the weathered neighborhood they’d seen the day before. Noah directed them to his friend’s old building, and the driver, whose name was David, parked. The guards got out first, opening the doors for the princes and princess once they felt it was safe.

“All right, Noah,” Ellie said taking his hand. “Take us to Lucy’s apartment.”

“It’s this way.” Excited to finally be there again, he set off towards the building, retracing steps he’d taken many times before.

“What a crowd we are! Not conspicuous at all, right, Dom?” Lukas quipped as they stepped along the pavement.

“You were welcome to stay at the hotel, sir,” the guard replied.

“And just as welcome to come along, right? I want to be here. I just think we must be quite a sight, especially in this neighborhood. We’re all dressed down, but even without the suits, anyone can see you and Bull are security!”

“Maybe so, but there are families in Marganta who require security.”

“Yes, and our hope is that a family will look less threatening and that this will make people more cooperative,” Ellie said.

After walking across cracked sidewalks and up a flight of stairs, the group finally reached the worn wood of a narrow front door. Dominik stepped up to the entrance and knocked, blocking the family from the doorway.

After a moment, they heard footsteps from inside and a woman’s voice called out, “Who is it?”

Dominik glanced down at Noah. “Is that Mrs. Petersson?”

“I’m not sure,” the little boy said, squinting up. “I can’t remember what she sounds like.”

The woman called again, “Who’s there?”

“Visitors from Caspinar. My name is Dominik Eklund, and we’re looking for Signe and Lucy Petersson. Are you Mrs. Petersson?”

“Are you the guy that called me on the phone? I told you then I don’t know that woman or where she went! I just live in her old apartment. Now, get away from my door and leave me alone!” Then, as if reconsidering her tone, she added, “Good luck, though.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” the bodyguard said as they turned away. “Let’s try Mrs. Jansson since her place is next door.”

Alex nodded, and they walked over to the other door, Dominik stepping up to do the honors again. They waited a bit before they heard the same question. “Who’s there?”

The guard identified himself and said, “My companions and I are from Caspinar, and we’re looking for Signe Petersson and her daughter. Are you Matilda Jansson?” There was a pause before the door opened to reveal a fat, old woman with red cheeks and a chaotic mass of tiny curls on her head.

“Yeah, that’s me.” She looked them up and down, scowling slightly in confusion at the sight of these people on her doorstep. “Why are you lookin’ for Signe?”

“Well, we’re actually looking for her daughter, Lucy. We have someone here who wants to see her,” Dominik said, indicating Noah.

Matilda looked, then started and looked again, eyes widening as everything added up and she realized what it all meant. “So it’s true, then! Little Oskar, the foreign prince!” There was a note of bitter surprise and mockery in her voice. “Figured it was just a rumor or some kind of put-on!”

“Prince Noah,” Dominik said with emphasis, “would like to see his friend Lucy, but we haven’t been able to locate her. Do you have any idea where we could find Mrs. Petersson, a friend of hers name Johan, or her aunt Helga?”

“Oh, so the little prince misses his little girlfriend, and everybody jumps to find her for him!” She turned her sneer towards Noah and said, “You’re still as spoiled as ever, I see! I remember all the trouble you used to give Gustav! It must have been such a relief for him when they took you away, and now you‘re their burden!”

Noah, frightened by the old woman’s animosity, inched closer to Bull, who put his arm around the boy.

“His highness is a delight and a blessing to his family, the palace, and all of Caspinar!” Dominik said, showing his irritation. “If you’re able to help us, will you do so or not?”

“‘His highness!’ That little brat? If I could help you, I’d make you pay through the nose for it, but stupid little love-struck Signe ran off with that lazy, no-good Johan and didn’t tell me where they were going. That dirty bum can’t provide for her and that girl, but she don’t care ‘cause he makes her feel good! No, I can’t help you, so why don’t you all leave me alone and go waste your own time?” She retreated into her apartment, slamming the door behind her.

“These people aren’t very friendly, are they?” Ellie asked.

“She’s always been like that,” Noah said quietly. “Why are some people like that?”

“Sometimes they’re angry and bitter about their lives and they take it out on other people,” Ellie replied. “You know not to pay any attention to what she said, don’t you? Nothing she said about you was true.”

“I know.”

“Good. Well, shall we try Maria Holmgren in the next building?”

“Oh, Ms. Holmgren was always nice! Let’s go see her!” Noah said.

“I guess that settles it, then.”

They walked back down the stairs and turned left, walking into a kind of courtyard between buildings. There was a small playground there, and two boys who looked to be about the twins’ age were there on a jungle gym, one sitting on the bars and the other hanging upside down. The two boys looked at them and started talking to each other, clearly about the people who had just stepped into the courtyard. Noah knew them immediately. Their names were August and Dante, two boys who lived nearby and had gone to his school. He was sure they had already recognized him, and this made him worry because they had always been mean to him, teasing him for his accidents and even pushing and shoving him from time to time. Of course, Dom and Bull would never let them approach him even if they dared to do so, but they could still say mean things to him. Mostly, though, they made him uncomfortable because they conjured up unpleasant memories of an unpleasant time in his life.

Dominik noticed them as well, and he leaned down and, without looking at the boys, whispered to Noah, “Do you know them?”

“Yes,” Noah whispered back. “They used to tease me a lot.”

“Well, don’t worry about them. Teasing you is all they can do now. We’ll pass them by and never see them again.”

Overhearing what was being said, Bastian butted in, saying, “If they do tease you, they’ll regret it!”

“All right, everybody calm down,” Alex said. “We don’t have to like them, but we’re not here to cause any trouble. If they say anything rude, just ignore them.”

They all fell silent, and the two boys kept looking at their old classmate, his twin, and their family as they got closer, glancing at each other and talking rather conspiratorially. Noah’s heart sped up as he wondered what, if anything, they would say to him. He tried to be cool and not let his nervousness show because he knew it would invite trouble from the two bullies, but he was sure he wasn’t doing well at all. When they were just a few meters away, he could hear them whispering, but he couldn’t make out any words.

Finally, when they were even with the two boys, August looked at Noah and said, “Hey. You’re Oskar, aren’t you? Or you used to be?”

“I used to be, yeah.”

“His name is Noah!” interjected Bastian. “Prince Noah.”

“That’s enough, Bastian,” said Alex in a steady voice, standing tall and looking straight ahead.

“That’s what we heard,” August said. “It must be really cool to be a prince.”

Noah stopped and looked at them. For the first time, he saw their nervousness at what he and his family might do to them. Something about their faces reminded him of the face he used to see in the mirror, and at that moment, he stopped feeling anxious or afraid. He wasn’t even angry at them. When he saw amazement in their expressions and fear of retaliation for all the horrible things they did to him in the past, he felt sorry for them. “It can be,” he said with a sober but not unfriendly look on his face, “but it also comes with a lot of responsibilities.”

“Come on, Noah. Let’s go,” Ellie said, putting her hand on his shoulder.

“It’s good to see you guys again,” he said before turning around and walking onward.

They could hear the boys‘ feet on the ground as they jumped down and ran away, no doubt to tell whoever would listen who they had just seen on the playground.

“Noah,” Alex said, glancing down at him with a smile. “I’m very proud of you right now.”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 13, 2018 at 12:14 AM
Content: Chapter Eight
Foggy Hill
Leaving the courtyard behind, they walked up to an apartment building that looked exactly like the one they’d just left, and Noah directed them to Maria Holmgren’s apartment. Again, Dominik knocked on the door, identified himself, and said that visitors from Caspinar were looking for Signe and Lucy Petersson.

A young, somewhat chubby woman pulled the door open and said, “You’re looking for Signe and Lucy? Why?” Like Matilda Jansson, Ms. Holmgren eyed the group with confusion and perhaps a little suspicion, but unlike Matilda, she didn’t look angry.

Before Dominik could answer, Alex spoke up with a smile and a pleasant tone, “My son is a friend of Lucy’s, but he has lost touch with her. He just wants to see his friend again.”

“Hello, Ms. Holmgren!” Noah said, stepping up.

“Hello!” she said automatically, smiling down at him. Then she gasped, recognizing him. “Why, it’s Oskar!” Then, looking beside him, she added, “Two Oskars!”

“It’s good to see you again. My name is actually Noah, and I’m really from Caspinar. This is my brother Sebastian.”

“I heard about that!” Maria exclaimed. “I wasn’t sure what to believe, though, the way people talk. Yes, I remember how you and Lucy used to pal around. Quite the little pair you two were!”

Noah smiled rather bashfully and said, “Thank you, but do you know where we can find her?”

“Oh, sure! Signe moved them off to Foggy Hill to live with her Johan!”

“Johan?” Dominik asked. “Do you know him?”

“Only what Signe told me. She said he lives in Foggy Hill and works at a winery there. That’s all I know. I never even got his full name.”

“Well, that’s all right. You may have helped us quite a bit. Thank you, Ms. Holmgren.”

“Just a minute! If you find her, will you give her my number and tell her to call me?”

“So, you do have a phone!” Dominik said.

“Of course I do! Why wouldn’t I have a phone?” Maria seemed rather offended by the question.

Dom laughed apologetically. “It’s just that I couldn’t find a number for you.”

“Yes, well, I suppose that’s my fault. I have my number listed under my mum’s name. But Signe’s my friend, and if you’re looking for her, I’ll let you have it so you can give it to her. Will you?”

“I would be glad to, Ms. Holmgren,” the bodyguard said as she scrawled her number on a slip of paper and handed it to him. “Thank you for your help.”

“Well, your highnesses,” the guard said as they walked away. “Shall we go to Foggy Hill?”

“Can we?” Noah asked. “I heard all about it when I lived here, but I’ve never been there myself.”

“There’s a winery,” Ellie said to her husband with a grin. “It sounds like fun to me.”

“Let’s go to Foggy Hill, then,” Alex replied. “I’ll update Mr. Gissel.”

They chose to fly to Foggy Hill rather than make the three-hour drive from Talma, but it still took them some time to get there because of the necessary preparations for a flight. On the way, they learned that there were four wineries in and around the little town, which was situated at the bottom of a small mountain range where the weather was perfect for vineyards. As with other countries in Europe, Johan was a popular name in Marganta, so they weren’t surprised to find after a few calls that three of the wineries in the area employed at least one man named Johan. Everyone was too busy to answer their questions over the phone, so in order to find the man they were looking for, as well as the woman and therefore the girl, they would have to visit each business and make their inquiries in person. This didn’t bother any of them, though, because they were all getting into the spirit of the adventure and beginning to enjoy playing detective.

Still, Noah was well aware of the lengths they were going to for his benefit. “Thank you for doing this for me, guys. I have the best family in the world!”

“You’re welcome, baby,” Ellie said, planting a little kiss on his forehead.

It was too late to proceed with the search by the time they got to Foggy Hill, so they checked into their hotel and settled in for the night. Noah had trouble sleeping because he couldn’t stop thinking that somewhere out there in the very city he was in, Lucy was waiting to be found. He felt like he had almost reached his goal, and he hated to stop looking for the night for fear that something would go wrong in the meantime and he would never reach her. But he finally fell asleep, and they set off again in the morning after a nice breakfast of pastries, fresh fruit, and smoked salmon.

They didn’t find the Johan they were looking for at the first place they visited, so they set out for the next winery on their list. This one was a bit larger than the first and better organized and maintained. They walked into a rectangular building among the vineyards and into a small lobby.

“Hello! May I help you?” asked a rather casually-dressed receptionist.

“Good morning. My name is Dominik Eklund, and we’re looking for a man who may work here. Do you know your co-workers well enough to answer a few questions, or is there someone else we should speak to?”

“I might be able to help you. I know a few people around here.”

“Right. We’re looking for a woman named Signe Petersson and her daughter Lucy. We were told that Mrs. Petersson had moved from Talma to live with a man named Johan who works at a winery here. We know from a phone call earlier that you have a Johan here; do you know if he’s the one we’re looking for?”

The receptionist smiled and said, “I’m actually the one you spoke to on the phone. I don’t know this Johan, but our manager, Mr. Henriksen, is here today. I’ll call him and ask him to come up.” She picked up the phone, dialed a number, and spoke quietly into the handset. After several seconds, she hung up and said, “He’ll be here in just a few minutes. Make yourselves comfortable in the meantime.”

There were a few seats in the lobby, and nobody else was in there, so they all walked over, and Ellie and the twins sat down while the others stood and chatted, the guards on either side of the group. The receptionist looked at them, especially at Dom and Bull, and her eyes widened a bit as she seemed to realize for the first time that these visitors were of some importance, and she began to look at the Vaskertons in an attempt to figure out who they were. Although they were naturally well-known in Caspinar and somewhat well-known in the neighboring country, there were quite a few people in Marganta who didn’t know them. Still, even these people were aware that there was a relatively large royal family across the border, and it was likely that the receptionist was wondering if her visitors were members of it. She picked up the phone again and whispered something into it, and a minute later, a tall, thin, middle-aged man wearing jeans, boots, and a jacket and tie walked into the room.

“Your highnesses, what an honor it is to have you here!” he said. “My name is Andreas Henriksen, and I’d be happy to help you in any way I can.” Then, turning to the receptionist, “Ida, don’t you watch the news? Our guests are Prince Alexander and Princess Eleanor and their sons from Caspinar!”

Alex laughed gently. “That’s all right, Mr. Henriksen. We’re not here today as celebrities but as detectives.”

“Ha! Yes, Ida said that you’re looking for someone who might work here. What was the name, sir?”

“The only name we have for him is Johan, but we’re really looking for Signe Petersson and her daughter Lucy. We were told that Signe moved to Foggy Hill to live with a man named Johan who works at a winery. Can you tell us if that might be one of your workers?”

“As a matter of fact, I was talking to a man in our cellar who mentioned those names just the other day!” said Mr. Henriksen.

“Is he here now?”

“Unfortunately, no, sir, but we have his address, of course. Ida, look up Johan Natvig, and give the number and address to our guests.”

Ida ticked away at her computer and wrote what she found on a slip of paper, handing it to Dominik.

Alex thanked them both for their help, and he and his family left. “It’s still rather early. I know what Noah will say, but are the rest of you all right with going over there now?”

“Sure, let’s go,” Ellie said. Lukas and Bastian nodded, so they agreed to go immediately.

After they were all settled, Dom said to the driver, “338 Satermorden,” and off they went.

They had been driving for several minutes when Dom’s phone rang and he put it to his ear, listening with his unreadable poker face, which was usually bad news. Putting the phone back in his pocket, he looked at Alex and Ellie, saying in an even tone, “Your highnesses, we need to get you all back to the hotel immediately.”

“What’s wrong, Dominik?” Alex asked.

The guard glanced at the twins and said, “There’s a security risk.”

Nodding, Alex said to the driver, “Take us back to the hotel, David.”

Noah, wide-eyed, protested, “No, Daddy, we’re almost there!”

“Dom knows something we don’t, and he thinks we may be in danger. We need to listen to him,” Alex replied.
The little boy turned to the security man. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Dominik looked at Alex and Ellie, and she said, “I’d like to know too. If you explain it diplomatically, I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Alex agreed.

“All right. There is a criminal in Foggy Hill who has been operating for some time. Nearly a dozen children have gone missing. The absence of a little boy was discovered this morning.”

Shocked, Ellie asked, “How is it that you weren’t aware of this before now?”

“I’m sorry about that, your highness. Apparently, the crimes haven’t gotten much attention from the police or the media because all of the victims were from poor and destitute families who wouldn’t draw much attention.”

“How awful!”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Did he kill them?” Noah asked, wide-eyed. Dominik said nothing, so Noah said more urgently, “He killed them, didn’t he?”

“Yes, sir, I’m afraid so.”

His eyes even wider, he asked, “What about Lucy?”

Ellie, hoping to put him at ease, said, “We have the number. Call Mr. Natvig. Maybe we can at least speak with him or Signe.”

Dominik dialed the number from the slip Ida had given him, and the atmosphere grew tense as they all sat, watching and listening. After a long moment, he hung up and said, “No answer.”

Noah begged, “Mummy, Daddy, please, let’s keep going! I have to know if she’s all right!”

“No,” Alex said firmly. “I’m sorry, buddy, but we have no idea who this . . . person is, who we can trust, or where the threat may be. Dominik’s right, we need to get you and Bastian to safety right now.”

“But he’s not going after kids like us, rich kids, only poor kids like Lucy! We’ll be safe!”

“We don’t know that, and we can’t take that chance,” Ellie said patiently.

“But what about Lucy? Nobody else cares about her and those other kids! Dominik said so!”

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” she replied. “You two are our responsibility. Maybe we can go see her once we know what this is all about.”

“It might be too late then!” Noah was frantic. He was so close to his goal, to his friend, and she could be in serious danger. Nobody cared. His family didn’t care. The police didn’t even care! He was the only one who did. He was the only one who could help her. He looked out the window at the street and the buildings lining that side of it as the car came to a stop for a traffic light. In an instant, he made up his mind, and in one swift motion, he unbuckled his safety belt, lunged for the door, yanked it open, and jumped out onto the pavement at a run. Behind him, he heard footsteps and Alex shouting his name as he gave chase. Noah made it to the end of the block and rounded the corner, running as fast as he could and ditching the tracking pin on his shirt. He turned into an alley, then another, coming out at the far end and soon could no longer hear the running and shouting behind him. 338 Satermorden. He was practically raised on the streets, streets similar to these, so he was sure he knew how to handle himself. All he had to do was find someone who knew how to get there, and he would find Lucy on his own.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 13, 2018 at 1:40 PM
Content:

Kalis said:

Wow. I really like the character development through the series. You do good work. ��

[End of quote]

Thank you! It feels so good to know people appreciate my work.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 13, 2018 at 3:50 PM
Content: Chapter Nine
Runaway Noah
Noah didn’t know how far he ran before he stopped to catch his breath. It was only then that he actually realized what he’d done: he’d run away. It had been an impulsive action, something he did without really thinking about it, but of course, he had no intention of staying gone. He only wanted to find Lucy and make sure she was safe, and then he would go back to his family. Now that he was out of the car and on his own, he started to feel a little nervous, but he decided that he might as well continue on. Of course, it was dangerous, but he knew the risks and had learned a bit from his security detail about how to keep himself safe if he were ever separated from them. The first thing they had taught him was “safety in numbers,” the idea that the more people he had around him, the more secure he would be since it would be unlikely for someone to try to hurt him for fear of being seen and identified. So, his plan was to stay out on the street among as many people as possible and avoid approaching anyone without others around. It was probably more than Lucy knew, so he reasoned she was in more danger than he was. He was sure his family must be upset, angry, sad, but he couldn’t help that. He seemed to be the only one who cared about his friend, so what if he was the only one who could help her? Whatever the risks, he had to go. It was all up to him.

At the moment, he didn’t know where this Satermorden street was or even which direction he’d been running in. After the riot in Majura a while back, the twins were often issued cell phones to use in case they got separated from their family or their detail. But he hadn’t been given one on this occasion, so he had no GPS and would have to ask someone for directions. Fortunately, there was a thin crowd of people on the sidewalk, which meant he was relatively safe and increased his chances of finding someone who knew the way. He scanned the pedestrians for the right person to approach, something else security had trained him to do. They taught him to seek out people who were old or weak because even if they were violent, he would have a better chance of getting away. They had also advised him that women are generally less violent than men, so he looked for an old woman. After a few seconds, he saw one several meters away moving away from him. Her gray hair was cut short and curled slightly, and she was moving more slowly than the people around her, so he decided she was be the easiest to catch up to.

Noah started wading through the mass of people toward the old woman, quickly weaving through them and ducking the occasional elbow. “Excuse me, pardon me,” he called as he slipped past them, some of them glancing down as he rushed through. After a bit of a struggle, he finally reached her, coming up right behind her. “Excuse me, ma’am,” he called, raising his voice.

The woman turned around slowly, unsure if he was talking to her, and looked down into his face. “Yes?”

“Do you know how to get to Satermorden from here?”

“What? Satermorden?”

“Yes, the street.”

“I’ve never heard of it,” she said, showing irritation. “Where are your parents?”

He thought he managed to control his expression as his heart sped up. He didn’t want anyone to know where — or who — his parents were or that he had run away from them. If someone found out, they could turn him in or worse. Refusing to answer her, he spun around and slipped through the moving people and out of her sight. He heard her say, “Little boy, wait!” He didn’t know what she wanted with him, but he wasn’t going to take the risk to find out.

“Did you say Satermorden?” called a voice from behind him as he walked.

Noah turned and found a young-looking man with floppy light-brown hair looking down at him. “Yes, sir. Do you know how to get there?”

“Yeah, it’s that way,” the man said, pointing off to the right. “It’s kind of a long walk from here, though.”

“I don’t mind,” Noah said resolutely.

“Right. Well, make a right at the corner, then go — let’s see –” The man stopped and squinted slightly for a minute as he figured the distance. “four blocks. Then, you’ll make another right and keep walking until you hit it. Can you read the street signs?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Just watch them as you go and you can’t miss it.”

“Okay, thanks, mister!”

Noah spun in place and waded through the people to the corner and stopped to wait for traffic. When he could move on, he turned right as he’d been directed and started counting the blocks. It was the first time he’d been out on his own in months, longer than he could remember, and it felt good. Without his detail, he felt free, able to go wherever he wanted, and it was only at that moment that he realized how much he missed going off alone like that. He had always enjoyed doing so when he lived with Gustav because it was one of the times he could escape for a while. His life had changed very drastically since then. He was loved, well-fed, well-dressed, and safe. But walking the streets alone as he was just then nevertheless brought back rather pleasant memories and feelings, and it was exciting to be off on an adventure.

He turned right again and picked up the pace as he realized that he was one step closer. The street he was on seemed very long, stretching for many blocks, and he knew time was of the essence. After all, there was a murderer on the loose! Did Lucy and her mum know? Did they have any idea? Probably not. Dominik said the media hadn’t reported what had been happening. Noah had to get to her, make sure she was safe, warn her and Mrs. Petersson of the danger so she wouldn’t go out alone where she would be vulnerable.

He then realized with a shock that, in his concern for his friend, he had put himself into the exact situation he was worried about her being in. He was alone in a strange place, free but unprotected. It was true that the murderer was targeting poor kids, but he was dressed down to look inconspicuous. Anyone looking at him at that moment wouldn’t think he was a wealthy prince and just might think he was one of those poor kids whose disappearance wouldn’t be noticed. Beginning to feel scared, he glanced around him to see if anyone was looking at him. The people on the sidewalk seemed to pass without paying much attention to him at all, but that could be a bad thing because it could present an opportunity for someone to grab him and take him away before anyone could stop him or her.

Feeling small, alone, and afraid now, he kept moving, more cautiously than before, looking side to side as he walked. He regretted running away from the safety of the car, the guards, his family. He would have given anything for any of them to be there right then to protect him. What if something happened and he never saw them again? What would they do? Would they ever even find out what had become of him? Suddenly, his heart leapt into his throat and he jumped as he felt a hand on his shoulder. A loud male voice behind him said, “All right, that’s far enough!”

Noah, terrified, screamed automatically, “Help! Help me! He’s got me!”

He tried to break free, but the man held him by the shoulder in an iron grip. The man stepped in front of him, and in the midst of his screaming, he somehow got the idea that the stranger was saying his name. Confused, he stopped struggling long enough to look at his assailant in an attempt to understand what was happening and saw a face he recognized.

“Bull!” he said in a huge sigh of relief as he threw his arms around the bodyguard.

The large man hugged the little boy to him and picked him up. The passersby who had stopped to see what the commotion was about saw that Noah knew this man and that he wasn’t in danger, after all, so they went about their business. “It’s all right. The car’s just over there, and everyone’s in it. I’ll–”

“Noah!”

He lifted his head to see another familiar face running towards him. “Mummy!” She ran up, and Bull handed him to her. She kissed his cheek, and he buried his face in her neck. “I’m sorry I ran off, Mummy,” he said as he started to cry. “I was going to be brave and go myself, but I got scared just before you guys got here.”

“It’s going to be all right, baby. We’ll talk about it later. Let’s just get back to the hotel.”

“That was incredibly dangerous! Don’t ever run from us again!” Alex said angrily once they were back in the car. “If anything had happened– If anyone had–” He broke off, looking very upset. “We’ll talk about this later, after we’ve all had a chance to calm down.”

Nobody said anything else to Noah for the rest of the ride back to the hotel, even Bastian. He turned his head and stared out the window, refusing to look at his brother.

“Why did you do that?” Alex demanded. He and Ellie were sitting across from him in the living room of their suite, and while he spoke calmly, they still seemed upset to Noah.

“I was worried about Lucy. I just wanted to make sure she was all right.”

“We know you were, and that’s very thoughtful of you. But you put yourself in danger, and you made us worry about you. That’s not thoughtful, and it’s not good. You ran away from us, and you knew that was bad. You knew that would upset us.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you worry. All I could think about was making sure she was safe.”

“It’s good for you to be concerned about her but not for that to be all you think of,” Alex said. “You have to think of other things. You need to think of your own safety, and you need to think of us and your brothers. Lucy is your friend, and we get that. But she’s not your responsibility. It’s not your job to keep her safe. It is our job to keep you safe, and we can’t do that if you run away and we don’t know where you are. That man could have gotten you out there today, and we wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it until it was too late!”

“We lost you once, Noah, and it almost killed us,” Ellie said as tears ran down her cheeks. “Now that we’ve gotten to know you and love you even more, we can’t imagine losing you again. But that’s exactly what went through our minds when you jumped out of the car.”

“Your mother was frantic,” said Alex. “Fortunately, we figured you’d heard Dominik say the address and were headed for Johan’s house, so we were driving that way to head you off when we saw you on the sidewalk. But in the meantime, we were all panicked.”

“I’m sorry, Daddy,” Noah said as he started to cry too, sensitive as he still was to any sort of reprimand. “I won’t ever do it again. I wish I hadn’t done it today! I realized I did the wrong thing and he could have gotten me just before you found me. I know it was the wrong thing to do, and I wish I’d never done it!”

Alex reached over and put his hand behind Noah’s head, gently pulling him to them and they wrapped their arms around him. “All right. You made a big mistake, and we were very upset, but we still love you,” Alex said, rubbing his back. “What’s important is that you’re safe and that you learn from this and never do it again.”

“I won’t!”

“Noah, you have to trust us and listen to us. We know what’s best for you, and whatever we do is for your own good. We want you to be happy and safe, and whatever decision we make is to make sure that you are,” Ellie said. “If we don’t let you do something, you need to listen to us and trust that it’s the right decision.” She took a deep breath before adding, “Dominik told us something else after we got back here, something about these kidnappings.”

He looked up at her curiously, wiping tears from his eyes.

“Whoever did those horrible things to those kids, that’s not all they did.”

“What else did they do?” Noah asked with a confused look on his face.

She sighed and shook her head, showing a flash of anger. “Things no one should ever do to a child,” she said. Another deep breath, and she went on, “You know how we’ve talked about letting us know if anyone ever touches you in a private place or takes pictures of you that you’re not comfortable with?”

“He did that to those kids?” Noah gasped.

Ellie nodded sadly.

Noah looked at his dad, who was clearly angry. “You’re mad. Are you still mad at me, Daddy?”

“No. No, kiddo, it’s not you,” Alex said, his expression softening. “I’m mad at the man, who did these things. The monster who preys on children! I’ve heard and read stories from people who were abused like that when they were little, and they have a very bad time dealing with it. It makes them sad, angry, confused. Sometimes they even feel guilty even though they didn’t do anything wrong. It makes me very angry to think of someone putting a kid through all that! And the thought of someone doing that to you or anyone else I love–” He broke off, his voice suddenly choked and his watering eyes overflowing.

“We don’t want to scare you, baby,” Ellie said, squeezing her husband’s hand. “But you need to understand that there are people out there who do things like that, and we’re trying to protect you from them. We don’t want anyone to ever go through it, just like we don’t want anyone to go through what you went through, but we especially don’t want it to happen to you. You’re our responsibility because you’re our son, and it’s our job to keep you safe. So, when we don’t let you go somewhere you want to go, you need to listen to us because it’s what we think is best for you.”

“I understand,” Noah said quietly. “Why do people do things like that?”

They both looked at him sadly. “I don’t know,” Alex replied. “Some people are crazy. Not that being crazy makes it all right. But I’ll never really understand what would drive anyone to want to . . . do dirty things with kids or to even look at a kid that way.”

“And what about Lucy? What if he gets her?”

“All we can do is pray that he doesn’t, and as soon as we know more about this situation, we can see if it would be safe for you to go visit her. We called the number again, but we still didn’t get an answer. For now, we don’t want you around anyone we don’t know without someone we trust being present. We’re not even letting the hotel staff in here right now. Our staff will deal with them because we don’t know if we can trust them. We want you and Bastian to just sit tight here until we see what this is all about.”

“Right now, you have two brothers I think you need to go talk to,” Ellie said. “Your Dad and I talked about it, and we decided that, even though you did something bad and very dangerous, we don’t feel right about punishing you for caring about someone, so we’re not going to do that. But we want you to take some time and think about what you did, the danger you put yourself in, and how you upset all of us. And we can see that you regret it, that you feel remorse, and that does mean a lot.”

“I’m really sorry, Mummy,” he said, then looked at Alex and added, “and Daddy.”

“It’s going to be all right, buddy,” Alex replied. “We still love you, and we always will, no matter what. Got it?”

Noah nodded. “I love you guys too,” he said in a wavering voice.

They gave him one last hug, and Ellie said, “Now, go talk to your brothers.”

“And good luck,” Alex added. “They’re likely to be tougher on you than we were!”

Lukas was in his bedroom, lying on the bed and watching a football match when Noah walked in haltingly. “Lukas?” he said, unsure of himself.

“Hey, kid.” He turned off the TV and sat up. “Are you all right?”

Noah nodded. “Are you?”

The older boy laughed a little. “Yeah, I am now.” Then, sobering, he added, “But you scared the hell out of me. All of us! That wasn’t cool, not at all.”

“I know. I’m sorry I did that.”

Lukas looked at him for a moment. “You know this is all for you, right? This whole trip is for you. We’re all here for you, and we’re glad to be here. But what you did was very selfish, making us worry. Poor Mum was almost screaming.”

“I really am sorry. I wish I could just undo it, but I can’t.” Fresh tears ran down his cheeks.

Lukas sighed. “Come here, bro.”

Noah walked over, and Lukas pulled him onto his lap, hugging him. “Don’t worry, I forgive you. I just want you to know what you put us through.”

“Do you think Bastian will forgive me?”

“Of course he will.”

Noah found him in their room playing a game on his laptop. “Hey,” he said as he walked in. Bastian didn’t answer or even look up from the screen. “I just want to say I’m sorry for what I did.” Still no answer. “I know I scared everyone. I didn’t mean to; I just wasn’t thinking.” Nothing. “And I know I was really selfish. I didn’t mean to be like that either.” Bastian just stared at the screen. “I wish I’d known how much trouble it was going to cause. I wouldn’t have done it. Everyone’s mad at me, and I can’t stand it!”

“How would you feel if I did that?” Bastian asked, breaking his silence.

Noah wrinkled his brow. “I don’t know. Scared. Hurt, I guess.”

“Exactly!”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel like that.”

“Well, you did! Don’t you know you’re my best friend? You have been ever since we recovered you! When I saw you run away, it felt like you were running away from me, from all of us! I was afraid I’d lose you and never see you again! And all for this girl. I know she’s your friend, and that’s great, but I was afraid you’d go find her and stay there and never come back!”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Bastian said quietly. “You’ve known her all your life. I’ve only gotten to know you now, in the last few months.”

“You were afraid I’d choose her over you?”

“It looked like you did.”

“You were jealous of Lucy?” Noah asked in surprise.

Bastian, embarrassed now, said nothing.

“I don’t know what to say. I wasn’t going to stay away; I always planned to come back! I’d never leave you guys for good. You’re my family! And besides, you’re my best friend too. You’re the best friend I ever had!”

“Then promise me something.”

“What?”

“If you ever run away like that again, at least take me with you!”

Noah smiled. “I won’t. But if I did, I would.”

They spent a good while just sitting there and talking until Ellie came in to check on them and found that everything was right between them again. They looked so sweet sitting side by side that she took a picture, wishing moments like that could last forever.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 14, 2018 at 3:21 PM
Content: Chapter Ten
The Search Ends
“Good morning, my darlings! Come on, it’s time to get up!”

Noah’s eyes fluttered open, and he saw Ellie smiling sweetly down at him. He yawned, “G’morning, Mummy.”

Bastian stirred beside him and asked, “Why are you waking us up? Where’s Irina?”

“I told her I’d take care of you guys this morning so I could tell you the news.”

“What news?” the boys asked in unison.

“The police caught the horrible man who’s been taking those kids last night! They found the boy he kidnapped, and he’s back home with his family, unharmed!”

Suddenly wide awake, Noah shot up in bed, his eyes wide. “They got him? It’s safe now, right? Can we go now?”

Giggling, she replied, “Of course, baby, but not until this afternoon when Lucy’s home from school, and before anything else, you two need a change.”

Excited, Noah flung himself back down onto the bed, his arms raised over his head. “All right, we’re finally going! I can’t wait!” He gasped and looked at his brother. “Are you going too? Do you want to?”

“Duh! Didn’t I tell you I wanted to meet your friend? Of course I’m going!” Bastian playfully patted Noah’s head as if he were a puppy.

The morning passed excruciatingly slow. There was little that could distract Noah from what was to happen later in the day. He might watch TV or play a game for a while, but he kept a constant eye on the time. They had a large lunch of soup, salad, and steak, and soon after were sitting in the security SUV as it drove across the city once again. Noah kept glancing through the windscreen anxiously.

Bastian noticed and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“That’s just it: I’m afraid something will go wrong. It has every time I’ve gotten close.”

“Not this time,” Alex grinned. “We finally got an answer on Johan’s phone. They hesitated to answer a call from an unfamiliar number and weren’t aware their voicemail wasn’t working. But they’re home, and you’ll be seeing Lucy shortly.”

Noah’s little heart soared. The wait was almost over! All they had to do was get there. Knowing this, he stared through the glass more intently than ever. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the car began to slow in front of a small row house, and he knew they had arrived. He moved toward the door, but Alex stopped him.

“Let Dom check it out first.”

Noah nodded, trying very hard to be patient, and watched as the guard stepped out of the SUV, walked up to the front door of the little house, and knocked. A moment later, the door opened to reveal a tall man with a thin beard and short blond hair. Noah immediately recognized the lady beside him as Mrs. Petersson, but he couldn’t see Lucy. Dominik shook hands with the other man, who was obviously Johan, and showed them both his identification, then pointed back at the security vehicle. The couple looked at the car, and Mrs. Petersson gave a little wave, even though she couldn’t see through the tinted glass. After they spoke for a little bit, Dom jogged back to them and opened the door. “Right, your highnesses. Everything’s fine. We’re ready now.”

They all let Noah out first, and he hopped in place as he stood beside the security head, smiling ear to ear as he looked over and waved enthusiastically at Mrs. Petersson. Just as the others stepped out and the guards closed the doors behind them, he saw a little body step out between Johan and Signe. With her dark brown hair that was only a few inches longer than his own and her big, bright green eyes, she hadn’t changed a bit. “Lucy!” he yelled and took off at a run before anyone could stop him as she gasped, “Oskar!” But this time, nobody tried to stop him. He ran right up as she stepped out from mum and Johan, and they threw their arms around each other.

After a few seconds, she started and looked at him, “Oh! I’m sorry, I forgot your real name is Noah!”

“It’s all right. It took me a while to remember it at first too,” he laughed just as his family walked up behind him. He looked at Lucy’s parents and shook their hands in turn. “Hello, Mrs. Petersson. It’s good to see you again. And you must be Mr. Natvig. It’s good to meet you.”

“It’s good to see you too, Os– uh, Noah,” Signe said. “My, how you’ve grown since I last saw you!”

“I have?” He looked down at himself, then at Lucy and back to Signe as if trying to measure himself. “I don’t think I’m that much taller.”

She laughed. “You are a little taller, but that’s not quite what I meant. You just seem so different now. It’s a good change, though.”

“It’s very nice to meet such a pleasant young man, your highness,” fumbled Johan, who wasn’t used to such protocol and formality.

The grown-ups then shook hands while Noah introduced Lucy to Bastian. “It’s amazing!” she exclaimed. “I can’t see a difference between you at all!”

“Everybody says that, but we’re not exactly the same. I’m the good twin, you know,” grinned Bastian, shaking her hand. “It’s good to meet you, though. Noah told me what good friends you two are and how you used to stand up for him. I’m very grateful to you.”

“Yes, we all are,” Ellie interjected. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to know that someone was being kind to my baby while he was away from me.”

“I can imagine, but that’s my Lucy, such a big heart,” Signe said. “Would you all like to come in and sit down?”

Their home was small and humble, but it looked very welcoming and had the faint citrus smell of a house that had recently been cleaned. But in contrast to the tidy, largely bare space the royals were used to, it was packed with old furniture, books, and decorations. The seats they were offered, though weathered, were surprisingly comfortable, and the hosts insisted that the guards join them, scrambling around until they’d found enough chairs for everybody.

After a few minutes of conversation, Signe realized that the kids might want some time to themselves, so she said, “Lucy, why don’t you show Noah your room? And Bastian too.”

“Yeah! Come on, let’s go,” she said to the twins.

They looked at their mum and dad, who nodded their approval, and she led the way to a small room filled with dolls and games at the back of the house.

“It doesn’t look anything like your room in Talma,” Noah said as he walked in and looked around. “It’s very pretty, though.”

“Thank you!”

“Do you miss it? Talma?”

“I miss Caroline and the rest of my friends,” she replied. “I don’t have many friends here. There aren’t many kids to play with. But it’s all right. Johan’s really nice to Mummy and me. They might get married, but they’re not sure they want to yet.” She fell silent, and nobody said anything for a moment. “What about you? Do you miss Talma?”

“A little. I miss some of the houses and some of the people. I don’t miss Gustav, of course. I can’t believe I ever thought he was my daddy!”

“I know. I remember how mean he was to you.”

“Daddy — my real Daddy, I mean — is nothing like that. He’s never hit me, or any of the rest of us!”

Bastian nodded.

“Of course, I miss you most of all,” Noah added.

“Aww, I miss you too!” she replied.

“You were almost the only kid who was ever nice to me.”

“I know. Those other kids just had problems. Mummy says they must not have felt very good about themselves.” Then, brightening, she said, “But look what happened! You turned out to be a prince, and now you have a whole new family! And you must have so many new friends!”

“I have a few, but you’d be surprised how hard it is to make friends as a prince,” he said.

“Really?”

“Yeah, we don’t get to go out much. We spend most of our days at home, and we can never go out without a detail.”

“What’s a detail?”

“Bodyguards.”

“Oh! Well, those two seem nice, at least” she replied.

“They’re all nice. To us, anyway. It’s not that they’re not nice. It just sucks that we have to have them everywhere we go. But I’m not complaining. Like you said, I have a whole new family now, a family that loves me, and I’m a lot happier.”

“I can see that. You’re so different from how you used to be! You used to be shy and sad, and you got scared a lot. What happened to make you change?”

Noah had told her some of his story in the letter he’d sent her, but there was a lot she didn’t know, so he began to fill her in. He told her about the nightmares, about Dr. Lune and all the therapy he’d had, and about Gustav’s invasion of the palace. He told her about the anger problem he had for a while and the riot in Majura and how they had escaped.

“How awful! You must have been really scared!”

“We both were,” Bastian said. “But we survived.”

She looked at him, then at Noah and said, “It must be great having brothers.”

“And a sister! Ava couldn’t come with us because of some trouble back home.”

“Is she all right?” Lucy asked, her bright eyes widening.

“What? Oh, yeah, she’s not in any trouble. It’s our prime minister. He’s been making trouble.”

“Noah!” Bastian said. “We shouldn’t talk about things like that!”

“Oh, right! Sorry. But Lucy won’t tell anyone.”

“No, of course not!” she agreed. “Anyway, I was just saying that it must be great to have two brothers, and you have a sister too! I wish I had brothers and sisters. Mummy says that she and Johan might have a baby one day, and if they do, I could help look after it. But I’d still like to have someone closer to my age to keep me company.”

“I know what you mean,” Bastian said. “I was so happy when I found out I had a twin, and we’ve had a lot of fun ever since.”

“We’re hardly ever apart!” Noah added.

The visit lasted quite some time, the kids talking and playing games, before Bull appeared in the doorway, “Excuse me, sirs. Your mum and dad say it’s time to go. They sent me to fetch you.”

“Awww!” groaned three disappointed voices.

“Will you come visit again?” Lucy asked.

“I will if I can,” Noah replied.

“We will if we can,” corrected Bastian.

“Well, did you kids have fun?” Signe asked as they walked back into the living room.

“Yes, ma’am,” Noah replied. “It was really good to see you. Thank you for having us over.”

“You’re welcome. We were glad to have you, and you’re all welcome back any time.”

“That’s very nice of you,” Alex said. “Any time you want to visit us, just give us a call. We’d be happy to make all the travel arrangements, of course, if you’d like. Anything for such a good friend of Noah’s. And,” he crouched to look Lucy in the eye with a smile, “such a lovely young lady! Lucy, it’s been an honor meeting you and your family, and we’re grateful for all your kindness.”

“Um, thank you, your highness,” she stammered, feeling suddenly bashful. “And you’re welcome.”

“I don’t think ‘your highness’ will be necessary if we’re to be friends, and I hope we will be. But we’ve taken enough of your time, so we’ll be on our way now.”

“Goodbye, Noah,” Lucy said, hugging him one more time. “And now that you have our number, you will call and stay in touch, won’t you?”

“Of course! And you too!” he replied.

Once they were back in the SUV and on their way back to the hotel, Alex told the twins, “Grandpa called while you two were playing with Lucy. There’s trouble back home.”

“What’s happened, Daddy? Is it Blackholm again?” Bastian asked.

“Not exactly. It’s Morlund. He’s pushing for a referendum to abolish the monarchy.”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 16, 2018 at 5:46 PM
Content: Chapter Eleven
The Trouble at Home
“A referendum? What does that mean?” Noah asked.

“A referendum is a question or issue that the people vote on.”

“Can he do that? Make a referendum to get rid of the monarchy?”

“I’m afraid so, buddy,” Alex said.

“So we wouldn’t be royal anymore?”

“That’s correct.”

“What would happen to us? To our staff?”

“We would lose our titles, so we would no longer have any diplomatic or ceremonial powers or responsibilities, and that’s really the only way we’d be affected. We wouldn’t lose our money or our businesses. Most of our income is from Emistat, and we wouldn’t lose that. The workers there would still have their jobs, and so would our staff. Grandpa, Nana, and Uncle Fred and his family would have to move out of Menroud Palace since it’s owned by the people, but they would be all right financially as well. We all have holdings and business ventures that would provide for us.”

“Really? That doesn’t sound so bad,” Noah replied. “We wouldn’t have to go to all those meetings and lectures and ceremonies anymore. Why don’t we just go along with it?”

Alex and Ellie chuckled at his innocent, childish response that revealed a concern only for having fun versus duty. “We wouldn’t just lose our responsibilities. We would also lose our ability to lead and help the people, to serve our country as our family has for hundreds of years,” Alex said. Noah looked confused, or at least surprised, so he went on to say, “There are reasons we have the duties we have. We have resources, connections, and influence that allow us to do things no one else can do.”

“Like help Blackholm?”

“Exactly. And Blackholm is what this is all about. This is Morlund retaliating against me for the way I shut him down, and he’s using it against me, telling Parliament that I used my influence to hold up the flood relief in a grab for political power.”

“But that’s a lie! He did that!” exclaimed the twins simultaneously.

“Yes, and that’s why we’re going to fight this. If the people of Caspinar want to get rid of us, that’s fine. It’s their right. But we won’t allow him to slander us and use us, and we won’t let him remove us from our positions, especially for his own purposes. We’re flying home tonight to help Grandpa deal with this crisis. Mr. Morlund is going to regret picking this fight.”

Russell Taylor put his phone back in his pocket and put on his serious business face because he knew what was ahead would certainly be tough. The senior adviser to Prime Minister Lars Morlund, Taylor had come from America, where he had helped a small-town politician win a bid for the senate by teaching him how to spin the news, manipulate the public, and work the system to his advantage. After noticing how the senator’s career took off, Morlund hired Taylor to do the same for him. Taylor accepted the Caspinarian politician’s lucrative offer and quickly saw that even the highest office in the nation wouldn’t be enough to satisfy his new boss as he began to jockey for even more influence. That was fine with Taylor because the only power he cared about was the power to buy things and secure a good life for himself and his wife and two kids. Although he was never comfortable around such cold-hearted, power-hungry people as Morlund, his success in Caspinar had already made him a lot of money and would be another high point in his career, another accomplishment for his resume that could lead to further opportunities that could be even more profitable. Naturally, he had known what Morlund was getting into when he made his move against the Caspinarian royal family, but he wasn’t afraid because they didn’t know how to play the political game like he did. But the Prime Minister needed to be prepared, and the news needed to be delivered in person. Taylor brushed past the secretary’s desk and barged into his boss’s office, finding him typing out an email.

“I just got a call from a contact in Parliament. Talk of the referendum has gotten around, and Alex and Eleanor have cut their trip short. They’re on their way back now, and word is they’re ready to fight.”

Morlund looked up and sat back in his chair, the corners of his mouth curling into a hint of a smile. “Let them come. More and more, Parliament is siding with me.”

Taylor nodded. “I told you: just keep talking up their causes, and they’ll fall in line.”

“What about the public?”

“That’s the next step. Now that we have support in Parliament, it’s time to win over the voters. And, as you know, that’ll be the toughest part because we both know how much the people here love their king and his family. But as long as you listen to me and do exactly as I say, we’ll change all that and turn the voters against their monarch.”

The PM smiled wickedly. “The last of the Vaskerton dynasty! And the beginning of the Morlund dynasty! Like the powerful American families who led the masses by the nose, living above the law. I’ve always said I like your country’s politics. By the time the people here realize what’s happened to their system, it will be too late for them to do anything about it!”

“I’m sorry, Dad,” Ava said. The travelers had just gotten home, and the whole family was now assembled in a sitting room on the second floor of the palace. “I should have known what Morlund was up to.”

“Nonsense, darling,” Alex replied. “He’s much more well-connected than you and good at keeping his secrets. Fortunately, Grandpa is also well-connected, so it’s only natural he’d find out before you would.”

“But you trusted me to keep an eye on things while you were gone.”

“And you did that. You kept the palace running, and you being here probably forced Morlund to be more cautious, which likely bought us some time. The important thing is that now we know what he’s doing and how he’s doing it.”

“So, what do we do?” she asked.

“Fortunately, Morlund hasn’t gone public yet, so we only have to worry about Parliament. I’ll speak to them, tell them the truth about Blackholm, that Morlund was the one withholding the relief. I’ll see how many of them I can win over or win back over. It shouldn’t be too difficult.”

“Your highness!” exclaimed Filip as he strode into the room. “You have to see this!” He grabbed a nearby remote and flipped on the TV, turning to a news channel.

Everyone turned and looked at the screen and saw the Prime Minister standing at a podium in front of a crowd of people. Nobody spoke. They knew what this was, and they all knew what it meant.

“Good afternoon,” Morlund said to the crowd. “My fellow Caspinarians, I am here today to talk about a grave problem facing our nation. We are, unfortunately, all very familiar with the disaster that has lately affected the city of Blackholm, the terrible flooding that has taken so many lives and destroyed many more homes. This tragedy, with its terrible effects on the people of Blackholm, has weighed very heavily on me, but there is an even greater problem plaguing us that I have been reluctant to reveal because it’s likely to have a devastating effect on our morale and national pride. Now that the flooding is finally being managed appropriately and the survivors are being rescued and fed and are beginning the long journey to put their lives back together, I have seen how resilient a people we really are and how much you all deserve to know the truth, so I am no longer able to keep it from you. When I first learned of what was happening in Blackholm, I declared it a disaster area and gave orders for funds and manpower to rescue the people of the city.” He paused, sipping a glass of water and visibly drawing a deep breath, as if bearing a great weight. “It was some time before I found out that the rescue measures were not dispatched as I’d ordered, and I was shocked and devastated to learn the cause. Prince Alexander had spoken directly to my lieutenants and representatives, exerting pressure on them, even threatening some of them, interfering with the rescue efforts and our government system to prevent my orders from being followed.” He paused again as the crowd erupted with gasps and chatter. After several seconds, he held up his hand, quieting the crowd, and continued. “This seemed unbelievable and illogical as well as contrary to everything I knew of the prince. But upon investigation, I gathered that he had come to view me and the office I hold as a threat to his own power and position, and he intended to undermine and weaken my authority to strengthen his own and that of his family. He claimed he was organizing some rescue effort of his own, and he stubbornly insisted that he should be the one to relieve the people. The prince has developed some sort of messiah complex, believing himself to be the sole hero of his country, and he sees anyone else who makes an effort to benefit ‘his’ people as a threat to his supposedly heroic status. When I finally managed to get past his stalling, he immediately called a press conference and claimed partial credit for the rescue just to save face!” Once more, he paused for dramatic effect. “In his selfish attempt to polish his image and preserve this messianic complex of his, Prince Alexander stalled effective and much-needed rescue efforts, resulting in the loss of dozens of lives. He willingly sacrificed innocent lives, callously letting people die in a self-serving grab for power! My friends, we must not and cannot tolerate this practically murderous self-serving behavior! It has therefore become clear to me that he and the family who failed to restrain him have become a threat not only to our country but to the lives of our people, our democracy, and our very way of life. This is a grave threat that we cannot abide, and so the time has come for Caspinar to abolish this outdated relic of failed government built upon aristocratic privilege and supposedly divine right to rule that we call the monarchy. I have spoken to Parliament and have found many of its members who agree with me and who have stated that they are ready and willing to vote to abolish the monarchy, but this is not a decision that any of us would ever dare to make alone even if we had the sole authority to do so. Therefore, I am hereby calling for a federal referendum, a formal vote by the people of Caspinar to decide the fate of this crumbling system. However, as your duly-elected leader, I think and care only for the well-being of our country, and I strongly urge you all to vote to abolish the monarchy and remove this obstacle to progress and the threat it poses to our security. Thank you, and God bless Caspinar!”

Alex shook his head with barely-controlled rage as he stared at the screen. “Such incredible nerve to tell such lies! Filip, send for Juni,” he said, referring to his press secretary. “We should have been ready for this, and now we’ll need to find the best way to respond.”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 18, 2018 at 12:43 AM
Content: Chapter Twelve
A Gathering at Menroud
Several blocks from downtown Margale, the capital of Caspinar, stood the proud home where the country’s royal family had lived for the past three hundred years. Menroud Palace, named for the district it occupied, was built in the style of a castle with tall walls forming two courtyards, a smaller one inside a larger one, connected to a rectangular building of varying heights. Its exterior was made of a strong, white brick with reinforcing materials inside the walls and broken up by regular intervals of red brick. On each exterior corner was a tower two stories taller than the rest of the structure, which was covered entirely by intricate, ornate molding and accents. It had a very solemn, stately appearance and an imposing atmosphere meant to convey the strength of Caspinar as well as its prosperity.

Much of the palace, all of which belonged to the nation and its people, was built and reserved for state and diplomatic functions. There were many large rooms, some of them rather cavernous, meant to play host to crowds of visitors. There were auditoriums, ballrooms, conference rooms, dining halls, drawing rooms, galleries, a library, a chapel, and, of course, the throne room. They were connected by long, wide corridors with red carpeting covering fine wood flooring and immaculate white paneled walls decorated with fine paintings and tall mirrors framed in gold. The ballroom walls were red and covered in an elegant, intricate design, and the paneled ceiling was hung with large, low-hanging crystal chandeliers. The dining room had one long table with rounded ends and two smaller oval-shaped tables nearby surrounded by cream-colored walls with a faint abstract pattern of intermittent darker colors and framed by gold molding near the ceiling and a paneled chair railing. The auditoriums, conference rooms, galleries, library, and chapel were all done in soft, muted whites and beiges with golden fixtures. Everything was decorated richly and lit brightly by golden chandeliers and wall sconces.

The residential section of the palace, where the King and Queen lived and where their family and guests stayed when visiting, was less austere and more comfortable, warm, and inviting, though no less dignified or attractive. Thick, soft carpets covered the polished hardwood floors, the decor was more casual, and the colors were less sedate but still eye-pleasing. There were more than two hundred bedrooms, most of which were for the many staff members who lived there, and there were more than a dozen suites for the royal family and their guests. Prince Frederick, Prince Alexander, and their wives and children all had apartments of their own waiting for them whenever they visited. They weren’t as big or as comfortable as their apartments at Vaskerton and Greensea, but they were naturally elegant and still very posh. King Harold and Queen Mary’s apartment, complete with separate bedrooms and offices for each of them, took up a sizable portion of the second floor and had a private balcony and a spectacular view of the palace lawn and gardens in the back of the building. The king and queen had a separate vacation residence amidst the forests of Galariel, but they spent most of their time at Menroud, often surrounded by friends, family, and visiting dignitaries.

The entire family had gathered at the palace to deal with the threat of Prime Minister Morlund and the referendum he’d proposed. Alex and Grandpa had already issued separate statements denying Morlund’s claims, and everyone was waiting to see how the public would respond.

“I wonder what will happen to this place if we’re voted out,” Ethan said. He was in the twins’ apartment, and the three of them were hanging out, playing games. Thinking the boys must be worried about what was happening, their parents were being more permissive, and the boys had taken advantage by having a tray of sweets sent up for them to share.

“They’ll probably turn it into a museum and a place for tourists. I heard that’s what they do when a country gets rid of their monarchy,” Bastian replied.

Both of them sounded sad, and Noah said what they were all thinking. “I hope they don’t. I would miss this house.” Then, in an effort to find a bright side and cheer up his brother and cousin, he added, “But then maybe we would get to see Grandpa and Nana more. We could go and visit them at Galariel or wherever they ended up living, and we’d have them all to ourselves!”

“That would be wonderful,” said Grandpa, who had just walked in and was standing at the door. “In fact, if it weren’t for Morlund and his lies, the thought of seeing more of you lads would make giving up the throne a rather tempting notion.”

“Grandpa!” Noah exclaimed in surprise. “What did Marton say?” The boys all knew the king’s assistant had just delivered a report on the family’s standing among voters.

“Well,” said Grandpa, as he sat down on the sofa. “That’s why I came to see you three. According to Marton, there’s a great deal of skepticism about what’s been said, and many people aren’t quite sure what (or who) to believe. But others are trusting Morlund because they elected him, and they think he’s working for them and their interests. Right now, about forty-eight percent of them are in favor of the referendum, and thirty-nine percent are in favor of abolition. Those aren’t the worst odds, but they aren’t the best either. It’s beginning to look as if the referendum will go through, and we may have to hope that we can defeat it.”

“Can we defeat it, Grandpa?” Ethan asked.

“Certainly we can. Whether or not we will remains to be seen, of course. But there’s one thing I wanted to ask you boys. How would you feel if the referendum passed?”

The young princes were quiet for a moment. Bastian was the first to speak. “I would hate it.”

“Why?”

“It’s really cool to think that my Grandpa is the king of our country, that you lead and support everybody. I know you don’t run the government, but you still lead them in other ways. And you’re a good king. You don’t deserve to lose the throne!”

Grandpa chuckled. “So, you’re proud of me. Is that what you’re saying?”

“Yes, sir.”

Harold smiled down at him contentedly. Turning to the other two boys, he said, “What about you two?”

“It would be great to see you and Nana more, and even Mummy and Daddy because they stay so busy the way things are now.” Ethan said. “But it wouldn’t be fair for you all to lose your status, especially after Daddy and Caroline have trained all their lives to take the throne some day,” he said, referring to his sister and the eventual heir to the throne. “And our family has been on the throne for centuries! It would really suck for that to end just because of some lies some man told about us, even if the liar is the prime minister!”

Grandpa nodded. “Yes, I feel the same way. Our ancestors built a fine legacy for us to live up to, and Morlund has no right to meddle with it.” He looked over at his other grandson, who was sitting with a blank, sad expression on his face as he stared at nothing. “What about you, Noah?”

Snapping back to attention, the little boy sighed and said, “I like being a prince. It makes me feel special. And safe. It’s annoying sometimes when I can’t go where I want or do some things, but it’s a lot of fun too. We get to live in nice houses and eat nice food.”

The king knitted his brow ever so slightly as thoughts of worry and disapproval began to fill his mind.

But Noah continued. “And I know most people don’t get to live like this. A lot of them don’t have enough food or they don’t have any place, especially a nice one like this, to live. Some of them live in bad, dangerous places or with dangerous people. And that’s the best part of being what we are, what makes it okay for us to live like this. We get to do something about all that, like when we helped those people in Blackholm and when Daddy made Morlund help them. We can make sure people are treated fairly when the government doesn’t, and we can show the government how it should treat people.”

All signs of worry gone from Grandpa’s face, he bent over and pulled the little boy onto his lap, kissing the top of his head. “However you feel about it is all right, but those are all good answers and good reasons to keep fighting this thing. Even at your young ages, you understand what it means to be noble, and you’re worthy of our family’s heritage. I think any one of you would make a fine king if the throne ever fell to you. But more importantly, I’m happy to call you my grandsons, and I’m very proud of all of you.”

The next morning, an interview with Member of Parliament Axel Frisk was broadcast on the major Caspinarian news networks.

“We had a lengthy discussion and debate last night,” said Frisk, “and just over five hundred MPs, not quite seventy percent, support the referendum. Almost four hundred of our eight-hundred-member body support abolition. Obviously, there is some confusion as to exactly who is responsible for the trouble with Blackholm, and Prince Alexander’s account of events may well be true. However, this confusion would not exist if we did not have a royal family in the first place, and it’s possible that the trouble was caused very simply by confusion with two parties with apparently conflicting interests, the prime minister’s office and the royal family, involved. I for one believe it is high time our country joined the twenty-first century and got rid of this archaic medieval relic that is causing this confusion and that has become more of a hindrance to us than anything else. But that is a decision that should be left to the people of Caspinar, and I trust it in their hands once the referendum is put to a national ballot.”

The screen cut to the reporter, Agatha Olander, who said, “As news of the abolition referendum and the details surrounding it continue to spread, we look to our fellow Caspinarians to see where they stand on this issue.”

Another cut, and Olander was shown standing next to another woman dressed in comfortable clothing. “It’s tyranny, this business of Prince Alex mucking about in government affairs for his own benefit!” she said to the reporter.

“So, you believe the prime minister’s account?” Olander asked.

“Why shouldn’t I? If Alex’s story was true, why didn’t he come out with it in the first place, before Minister Morlund? Why hide it? The public has a right to know these things! He didn’t say anything until after the PM made his announcement, did he? He reacted to the prime minister’s statement, and that says he only wanted to debunk it and can’t be trusted! I voted for Mister Morlund because I trusted him, and I still do. I’m for this vote, and I’m for abolishing!”

The screen then showed Olander with an elderly man who said, “I’m not certain about any of this. We’ve all been told a great deal, but we haven’t seen or heard anything to prove anything. The Blackholm rescue was a total debacle, and we should know who was responsible, absolutely! But I don’t think it’s wise to make any decisions until we know more, especially when it comes to something that’s been part of our country for hundreds of years. We don’t want to rush a decision like this.”

Finally, another, younger man, said, “You have to figure it’s just like one of those royals to butt into government matters and try to take over the country again. They miss the days when it was just them running things, no Parliament or voting at all; whatever the king says goes! Everybody knows that. Just look at your history: when was having a constitution and a parliament ever a king’s idea? Or a prince’s? Those things always happen by force — you know, revolution. Now, Alex wants to undo the revolution, and not long after the riots caused by mismanagement of his company! All right, that wasn’t directly his fault, but he should be more responsible with something that has such a large impact on our economy. How much more of his behavior are we going to put up with?” He pointed into the camera and added, “Protect your rights! Vote ‘abolish!’”

The camera cut back to Olander, who said, “Support for the referendum has grown now to fifty-eight percent, and support for abolishing the monarchy is at forty-one percent. Protests against the monarchy and demonstrations in support of abolition have sprung up overnight and have so far been peaceful. Let’s hope they stay that way as counter-protests are mounted in the face of hints that the end of our centuries-old monarchy could very well be close at hand.”

Bastian looked at Noah and saw how worried he looked. “What’s wrong?”

“The people hate us just because of what we are.”

“No, they hate us because of what Morbid said about us.”

“It doesn’t matter. They hate us, and they’re going to vote against us. And then what? Bastian, they’re calling us tyrants!”

“Yeah, that sucks, but people always talk.”

“When was the last time they talked like that?”

Bastian shrugged.

Noah went on. “Did you see how angry they were? Do you remember what Professor Cornell told us about the last Tsar of Russia and his family?”

“Yeah, but he really was a tyrant, and the Russian people were starving. We’re not like that, and things are different here.”

“They were mad enough to riot a while back, and nobody thought they’d do that!” Noah countered.

Bastian replied, “Daddy fixed that, and people calmed down. Everything will be all right no matter what happens. If they vote us out, we just won’t be royal anymore. We’ll be fine.”

“I hope you’re right, but look at what Morbid has already done with just a few lies! What if he told a few more and talked the people into something else?”

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 19, 2018 at 3:06 AM
Content: Chapter Thirteen
Worry and Unrest
Marta Holst knocked firmly on the door, waited a moment, and turned the handle. She knew the royal family was supposed to be at Menroud, but the way they jetted around, they sometimes showed up somewhere before anyone knew they were coming, so protocol was to knock before entering even if she thought nobody was home. “Of course,” she thought as she walked into the apartment, “the twins wouldn’t mind if I made a mistake and walked in on them, especially not little Noah. The poor kid!” She hadn’t seen him since all this abolition business started, but she knew he must be worried and upset, and she felt bad for him.

She set her basket down and got to work, beginning by dusting the furniture. Ordinarily, she enjoyed her job, as tedious and unpleasant as it was to spend all day cleaning. For one thing, the royal family paid her much more than she could ever earn doing the same job anywhere else, even more than at other European palaces, and she was very grateful. The job also simply made her feel good, as if she was serving her country in a small way, and she was very proud to think that she lived and worked in Vaskerton Palace. Not many women of any occupation or background could say they lived in a palace, could they? But more than that, she knew she was helping to take care of good people. The royal family was kind and gracious to their staff, rarely impatient and never abusive.

She felt especially privileged to take care of the twins’ apartment as part of her regular rounds. She knew the family must trust her a great deal to allow her around the kids, and she wanted to be worthy of their trust. Marta loved children, anyway, and the princes themselves brought a lot of joy into her life. They could be careless and untidy like any other kid, but their rooms were usually not as messy as most kids’ because most of their toys were in their playroom and the nannies did a fair amount of picking up. Aside from Bastian’s occasional pranks, they were both well-behaved and appreciative of her, and she liked them both. But almost every time she saw Noah, it was the high point of her day. He talked to her with respect, concern, and familiarity. He was genuinely interested in her as a person, often inviting her to sit with him and talk. Sometimes she did, putting her work off for a bit, telling him stories about her family and things that happened when she was a little girl as he listened attentively. On one such occasion, she told him a story about her dad doing silly things while sleepwalking, and as he giggled and laughed, she found herself wishing once again for the little boy she’d always wanted to have, this time hoping that he would be just like Noah.

Prince Alex had assured all of the staff that they would still have their jobs even if the monarchy was dissolved, but things just wouldn’t be the same. She would no longer be taking care of the royal family. The kids would probably stay the same, but that was what was really bugging her about all of this. They’d all been through so much, especially Noah, and she hated the thought of an entire country, their country, rejecting them like that. If only people knew them like she did, knew them for who they really were, they would stop all this nonsense and be thankful for what they had. Marta finished up and carried her basket, now full of dirty laundry, out of the room. She gave it one more look just before she closed the door, hoping everything would be all right and nothing would change.

Nils pulled on his jacket and sat down in front of the TV as he waited on his mum and sister. His dad was at a meeting downtown, and they were going to meet him for dinner. He was flipping through the channels when he caught a glimpse of the words “Monarchy Abolition Referendum” and stopped. He’d been watching the updates attentively to see what was going to happen to his new friends who lived in the palace on the other side of the city. He couldn’t believe what was happening, that people were actually thinking of getting rid of the monarchy because of Prince Alex. They had all been so nice to him that he knew what Prime Minister Morlund was saying couldn’t be true. Besides, Noah had blurted out a little bit about Blackholm before Bastian shut him up during the sleepover, so he already knew some of the story, and it didn’t match up with what the PM had told everybody.

But the reporter was saying that support for the vote and for getting rid of the monarchy had grown even more. It was starting to look like it might really happen, and it wasn’t fair. Why should bad things happen to such good people?

“Sixty-seven percent of adult Caspinarians now support the referendum, and forty-four percent favor doing away with the monarchy,” said the reporter. “The measure only needs a little more support to go to ballot, and if it does, it looks like the royal family will have a very tough fight ahead of them.”

“Turn that off, and let’s go.”

He turned to see his mum and Izzie standing in the doorway, and, shaking his head sadly, he turned off the TV and followed them as they walked towards the front door. “Mummy,” he said as they stepped outside. “The news said more people want to abolish.”

“Yes, I heard that,” she replied.

“Will that mean they won’t live in their nice palace anymore?” Izzie asked.

“I don’t know, darling.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Nils replied. “They own it, so nobody can make them move out, even if the vote is against them.”

“I certainly am impressed by how you’ve kept up with the news about all this, Nils. It’s good to see you take an interest in politics and current events,” Mrs. Wickert said.

“Bastian and Noah are nice. I like them,” he shrugged.

“I know, and I’m glad you’ve made some new friends. I hope things work out for them,” she said as she ducked into the car and the driver closed her door. They all settled in, and she said, “Your dad texted and said the meeting was almost over, so he shouldn’t be long.”

“What was the meeting about, Mummy?” Izzie asked.

“Daddy wants to interview a Member of Parliament, and that can be a tricky thing to negotiate, even when he knows the MP like he knows this one.”

Perking up at this, Nils said, “Mummy, does Daddy know a lot of MPs?”

“I’m not sure how many he knows, but I suppose there are several.”

“Do you think he could get them to help Bastian and Noah’s family?”

Mrs. Wickert looked at him. She had seen over the last few weeks how good his new friends had been for him as he’d started to come out of his shell a bit. She knew they had made a special effort to be nice to him, inviting him to their sleepover when they barely knew him. She could see that he wanted to repay their kindness. “I don’t know, darling. Maybe he can. I’ll ask him about it later tonight.”

Russell Taylor leaned back in his chair with his feet on his desk as he watched the news in his office. Things were going well for his boss and for him, and he was imagining what would sort of opportunities would come to him after a successful campaign to do away with a centuries-old European monarchy. This was way beyond getting a politician elected to an office; it was getting an entire governmental system reworked. What could he do with that? How many doors could he open by introducing himself to potential clients as the man who ended the Caspinarian monarchy? The possibilities were endless! This could be a new service he offered, a new specialty as he traveled all over the world, making a fortune by reorganizing other governments. He could–

The ringing of the phone broke his reverie. Smiling wistfully, he brushed his fantasies aside and got back to dealing with the business at hand. “Taylor,” he answered with a cheery confidence. “Yes.” The confident smile began to fade. “Are they–” He was cut off as the question was answered before he could finish it. “Where?” He reached for his keys as he listened to the answer and said, “I’m on my way.” He grabbed his jacket and slipped into it as he dashed out of his office. “Anyone calls, take a message,” he said to his secretary as he rushed off.

The entire family had just finished dinner and were sitting in a drawing room talking about something other than the possible end of the monarcy for a change, trying to get their minds off of what was going on. Alex and Freddie were telling stories about things they did when they were kids, and everyone was laughing and enjoying each other’s company. Grandpa, still chuckling, glanced up to find a butler standing and waiting patiently to be noticed. “Yes?” the king asked pleasantly.

“Your majesty, Prime Minister Morlund would like to speak with you and Prince Alex,” said the butler.

Grandpa immediately stopped smiling and heaved a heavy sigh. “Tell Mr. Morlund we’ll call him back.”

“Uh, I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t– The prime minister is here.”

King Harold looked at the butler with a look of shock on his face. “Here? Now?”

“Yes, sir.”

“You mean he came to the palace uninvited and unannounced, expecting us to drop whatever we’re doing to see him?”

“It appears so, sir,” replied the butler in a calm tone.

A flash of anger washed over Grandpa’s face. “The audacity of this man knows no bounds! Send him away!”

The butler bowed and started to walk away, but Alex stopped him, “Dad, wait! That’s what he expects. This is a trap, and you’re about to fall into it! If you turn him away, he’ll spin that to the media, telling them that he came here to make peace, and you refused to see him.”

The king looked at his son for a long moment, realizing that this was true and weighing his options. Finally, he said, “Offer the prime minister a drink and tell him we’ll be with him in a moment.” The butler withdrew, and Harold said, “I don’t like it, but I think you’re right. I’m sure no good will come of this, but let’s see what he wants.” He and Alex got up and left the room.

They returned several minutes later, and the queen asked, “What did he want?”

“To gloat. He encouraged me to abdicate, saying he could work out a deal that would allow us to continue living here as long as we pay rent!”

“Rent!” exclaimed Mary. “What did you say?”

Cutting his eyes to the kids, he replied, “Suffice to say I answered him in the negative.”

She smiled slightly, then asked, “Why did he want Alex?”

“Morlund had another offer for him. He said he could kill the referendum by talking to the MPs who support him and releasing a new press statement that would calm everyone down and convince them to keep us on if Alex would throw himself onto the fire and take the blame for Blackholm, corroborating the minister’s lie.”

“We both refused that offer in similar terms,” said Alex.

“Yes, and he grinned at us and said that after we were kicked out of here, he would convince Parliament to let him make it his home! To think of that horrible man living here where so many honorable, honest men lived and protected our people! It makes me furious!” Turning to leave, King Harold said, “I need to be alone for a while!”

“With the polls, petitions, and number of calls and letters to Members of the Caspinarian Parliament, there is now enough support for the abolition referendum to take place. Prime Minister Morlund said the vote will be held in two weeks, and he looks forward to seeing how the country will vote. The number of people saying they intend to vote to abolish has risen almost to fifty percent. With two weeks to go until the question is settled, it remains to be seen if the people of Caspinar will vote to keep their monarchy or dismantle it.”

Signe Petersson turned off the TV as the report ended. She’d been following the news from across the border about the effort to eliminate the monarchy very closely. She had thought about Noah and his family quite a bit since their visit as they had left quite an impression on her. They had been so friendly and unpretentious, but of course, she realized people like that are probably trained to affect whatever image or personality was necessary for any given situation. What meant more to her was what she had found out after they were gone. They had obviously gone to some lengths to keep it quiet, but people talk, of course. And people had talked, and she didn’t doubt it for a second because it rang true, and it made perfect sense. Signe stared at the dead, blank screen and shook her head slightly. It wasn’t right, and it wouldn’t do, wouldn’t be proper to keep this a secret. Not now with so much at stake. People had to know the truth so they could make an informed decision, the right decision. She had to get the news out there, had to tell the truth. She went to her computer and looked up the local TV station. She had been watching and waiting long enough. It was time she got involved and spoke up because that vote could go either way, and she may be the only person in the world who could ensure it went the right way.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 20, 2018 at 12:51 AM
Content: Chapter Fourteen
Eleanor's Secret
Taylor’s car raced across the city, but his mind was racing even faster. A car wreck. The doctor on the phone said they were alive, but Katrina was unconscious and in critical condition.His memories were all so fresh and vivid that it seemed like she was born just yesterday, they took her home from the hospital yesterday, her first day of school was yesterday. But no, that was years ago. In that time, he had brought them all to Europe, to Caspinar, a foreign country, and they’d had a car wreck and his little girl was badly hurt. She might even– He had to be there, had to get there NOW. Fortunately, there wasn’t much traffic to contend with, and the car moved quickly through the streets, but every moment was an eternity of agony, worry, and doubt for him.

For some reason, maybe because his subconscious was looking for a distraction, he thought about his job, his boss and pulled his phone out of his pocket, hitting speed-dial. In some detached part of his mind, he realized the first number, the one he dialed most often, was his boss’s phone.

The deep voice, cheerier than usual yet somehow still empty and emotionless, sounded in his ear. “Russell.” It wasn’t a greeting, more like an acknowledgment or an observation, a statement of fact.

“Lars, I got a call. My family was in a car wreck crossing a bridge. They’re all at the hospital, and my daughter’s not in good shape. I’m on my way over there now, and I don’t know how long I’ll be.”

“Sorry to hear that, Russell,” Morlund said in a flat tone that didn’t convey any feeling at all. “Don’t worry, we’re winning: take all the time you need. I’ll call if anything changes. I hope your family is all right soon.” There was a click as the call was disconnected.

At the hospital, he asked for directions and found his way to Katrina’s room, and Stephanie practically fell into his arms when she saw him. She whispered, “Russ, it was so scary! I didn’t even know what was happening. I felt something hit the car, and I heard grinding noises and then splashing. We were in the river, and I didn’t understand how we got there!”

“Someone hit you from behind,” he nodded and furtively glanced at the two beds in the room where Jack and Katrina were sleeping. “How are they? Are you hurt?”

“Jack and I were a little banged up and rattled. They’re keeping him for observation, and he just fell asleep a while ago. But Katrina.” Stephanie’s eyes overflowed as she continued, “She hasn’t woken up. They said the . . . coma could last a few hours or a few days. They had to do CPR after they pulled her out of the water. She almost drowned! She has a concussion from the wreck, but they don’t see anything to worry about from the scans. It’s just that she hasn’t woken up! I’m scared, Russ! What if she never–”

“Don’t. Don’t talk like that, don’t think it. I know it’s scary, but if the doctors and the scans say everything’s fine, that’s how we need to think.” He sounded confident, but his mind was full of the same doubts and fears, the same “what ifs” as hers. He knew as well as she did that doctors made mistakes and scans didn’t always show everything. They were both just trying not to think about the possibilities. He let his wife go and walked over to Katrina’s bed, gazing down and brushing her hair away from her peaceful, angelic little face. His world suddenly felt very small and uncertain.

Two days later, Taylor sat alone in the room next to his daughter. Jack had been released the next day and was in school, and Stephanie had gone home to take a shower and get some rest while he took over watching Katrina. He had turned the TV on to try to distract himself from his loneliness and finally turned to the news just in time to catch the end of an interview with Member of Parliament Ludvig Stromberg.

“. . . more than a few of us who think it’s wise to have leadership outside of our elected government to balance the scales of power. We don’t think one person should ever have that much trust placed in him or her, even someone elected by the voters because elected officials can sometimes be deceitful.”

“Do you believe the prime minister is being deceitful now?”

Though he didn’t flinch, Stromberg took a moment before responding. “I believe we should not rush to judgment of the prince or to irrevocable changes to our system based solely on the word of a politician.”

The same reporter was next shown talking to a man with thinning blond hair. “Mr. Ek, you and your family were in Svelgram when the flooding started. What was it like?”

“The water was everywhere and rising. Several people had already drowned. One of them was my neighbor’s. We were trapped the water was already so high. A few people had boats, and everywhere they went, people were calling for help, trying to get them to pick them up. Some of them did; others just kept going. But nobody could pick everyone up.”

“What about you and your family? Who rescued you?”

“There were two men in a big, sturdy boat. They came through once with a full load and couldn’t get us, so they came back for us on their next trip.”

“Were they some of your neighbors?”

“No, they were wearing uniforms.”

“And when was this?”

“About two days before Prince Alex announced the effort he’d organized with Minister Morlund.”

“Before the rescue effort? Are you sure?” the reporter asked.

“Yes, I remember it because I remember seeing it on the news and thinking it was about time our PM did his job because our mayor and our MP, Mr. Bjelland, hadn’t been able to do much by themselves. When they dropped us off near the shelter, I asked who had sent them, and they said it was Prince Alex.”

“Were there a lot of men sent by the prince?”

“Not nearly enough, but before the announcement of Morlund’s order, they were all we had. I asked why the prince was sending rescuers instead of the PM, and all anyone would tell me was that Alex was very concerned about what was going on but could only do so much. I certainly can’t criticize him because I don’t know if my family and I would be here if it weren’t for him.”

“Is it safe to assume, then, that you’re opposed to abolishing the monarchy?”

“Of course! The prince cared about us and helped us when nobody else did! No telling how many lives he saved! Why would anyone want to get rid of someone so willing and able to cut through red tape and get things done when it’s needed?”

“Thank you, sir.” Turning to the camera, the reporter said, “We’ve heard many stories such as the one told by this man that contradict Mr. Morlund’s statements, painting a picture of a prince reluctantly doing the job of a prime minister. When asked for comment, a spokesman for the PM said, ‘Regrettably, people in a life-threatening crisis such as a natural disaster often experience confusion about what they went through, particularly when someone in a position of authority as Prince Alexander is attempting to spin those details to his advantage.”

“Thank you, Otto,” said the anchorwoman. “Now, for a different story about the prince and Princess Eleanor, we sent our own Mira Gundervan to the city of Foggy Hill in the Margantan province of Solf Fellet to speak to a woman who’s suddenly found herself at the center of quite a bit of local media attention there.”

The camera cut to Gundervan, the young blond Taylor recognized from other news reports, who was standing by a woman about his age with long, dark brown hair outside a small, modest house.

“I’m at the home of Signe Petersson, who says she and her family recently had a visit from Prince Alex and his family,” said the reporter before asking the woman, “Mrs. Petersson, why did the royal family come to visit you?”

“Their Noah was friends with my Lucy when he lived here in Marganta, before he was, uh, recovered. He and the couple who were raising him were neighbors to my daughter and I in Talma after my husband died.”

“So, they came all this way for the little prince to see his friend?”

“That’s right.”

“And I understand there was a situation while they were here.”

“Yes, there was a man who had been kidnapping and, um, abusing children and killing them. We hadn’t even heard about it because the news didn’t report it until he’d been caught. It seems that all the victims were poor and beneath their notice as well as the police’s.”

“And you say you discovered something after the prince and princess left Marganta?” the reporter asked.

“Yes, once word got around who had been to see us, a friend of mine whose husband works on the police force said that Princess Eleanor had personally spoken to the chief and asked why more effort wasn’t being made to find the man responsible for these abductions. From what I heard, she was very insistent that they work harder to catch him. She asked the chief to put more officers on the case before any other children were hurt. I heard she got rather angry with him, which I find hard to imagine after meeting her. But she was apparently very concerned about the kids around here.”

“What was the response by the police?”

“They listened to her, of course. More inspectors were immediately sent after the monster, who had just gotten another little boy. They followed up some lead they had, and in no time, he was caught. Apparently, he’d gotten overly confident and careless after seeing they weren’t really trying to catch him.”

“So, Princess Eleanor is partly responsible for helping to catch a predator of children and bring him to justice! Why wasn’t this made known at the time it happened?” Gundervan asked.

“The princess asked that it be kept quiet.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. I suspect she was simply being modest, or maybe she didn’t want to cause an international incident or whatever.”

“And the police were happy to oblige.”

“Certainly! It doesn’t make them look very good, does it? A foreign princess comes to town and makes them do their job, leading to the end of a nightmare that had been going on for months.”

“So you came forward with this information? Could you tell us about that?”

“Yes, I saw the news about this referendum against the royal family in Caspinar and what the prime minister there has said about them. I knew it wasn’t true, and I felt other people should know it too. I’ve seen interviews of people talking about Alex and his family, people who have never met them, saying they’re self-serving and power-hungry, and I know from talking to them personally and from what they did while they were here that they’re not like that. They’re good, kind people who care about others, so much so that Eleanor stepped in to help protect our kids here! She related to the parents here because of how Noah was abducted. Someone like that should be rewarded and held up as an example to others, not punished! I couldn’t let this vote go through without telling what I knew, so I contacted the TV station here in Foggy Hill, and after that first interview, reporters just started showing up here.”

Taylor’s phone rang, and he pulled it from his pocket, seeing that the call was from Morlund. He answered and put the phone to his ear.

“There’s a new story coming out of Marganta,” said the gravelly voice.

“I know. I’m watching it right now,” Taylor replied.

“What is our response?”

“Our response?”

“To this story. We need to counter it and crush it before it does us any serious damage.”

“Lars, I’m with my family!”

“Yes. How are they?” Morlund asked.

“My wife and son are a little banged-up but fine otherwise. But my daughter’s in a coma, and we don’t know when she’ll wake up.”

“Is she stable?”

Taylor hesitated, sensing where the conversation was going. “Yes, but she needs me here. My family needs me.”

“Your family is where they need to be. They’re safe. I need you now. This is a critical moment. The vote is a little more than a week away now. We can’t afford to risk not responding.”

“Lars, I can’t afford to risk missing anything here. My little girl–”

“Look, I’m not asking you to leave the hospital. You can work from there. Just look at this story and find a way for us to counter it. I’m sure you could do with something to keep you busy, anyway, right?”

Taylor sighed. “Fine. I’ll see what I can do.”

“Good. Let me know when you have something.” The line went silent as the call was ended abruptly.

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 20, 2018 at 1:46 PM
Content:

Dan09 said:

It's brilliant! Nothing makes a story come to life more than a character(s) that are realistic and relatable. Keep up the amazing work!

[End of quote]

<3 Thank you! I love these characters dearly, and I always wanted these stories to be character-driven and about characters who wore diapers rather than simple diaper stories (not that there's anything wrong with those). There's only one more chapter of this one, and I'll post it in a little while. After that, I need to get back to writing the new one!

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Author: Caspinarian
Timestamp: Jul 21, 2018 at 1:09 AM
Content: Chapter Fifteen
The Vote and What Came of It
“Ladies and gentlemen, people of Caspinar, my name is Russell Taylor. As some of you may know, I work as the head consultant and adviser for Prime Minister Lars Morlund.” Cameras flashed among the crowd of reporters as they waited for the latest development in the drama that had engulfed the nation. “I helped get Mr. Morlund elected as your prime minister, and I have helped him run his administration. I am here today to tell you that your prime minister has been lying to you.”

The room erupted with noise as the crowd gasped in shock and shouted questions to him, all of them struggling to be heard above everyone else. Taylor stood at the podium and raised his hand, palm out to try to silence them, but it took several seconds to do so. Once they were finally quiet again, they stayed remarkably so, and the room was completely soundless except for the occasional cough. Everyone waited breathlessly to hear what he would say next.

“You have all heard two opposing accounts of the response to the flooding in Blackholm: the prime minister’s account blaming Prince Alexander for the delay in emergency aid and the prince’s account blaming the PM. As a man who has worked very closely with Mr. Morlund over the last few years, I can assure you that everything Prince Alex has said is true. Mr. Morlund did, in fact, visit the prince and refuse to send any relief to the province unless his highness endorsed the PM for reelection next year. Prince Alex refused to cooperate and ultimately threatened to disclose this extortion to the public, finally forcing Mr. Morlund to do his job and help the people of Blackholm. In retaliation, the PM took the necessary steps to initiate a vote to abolish the monarchy, lying to you, his people, and manipulating you and your parliament to remove King Harold from the throne and gather more power for himself.”

There was more chattering and shouting as Taylor paused to catch his breath. Again, he raised his hand to quiet the crowd and continued. “I have until very recently been a willing participant in Mr. Morlund’s plans and actions, and I realize this makes me partially responsible for everything that has happened during his term, including the lives lost in the Blackholm flood to the Minister’s inaction. I accept my role in this and will fully cooperate with any investigation that follows this announcement.”

“I had a change of heart recently when my family was involved in a car accident that sent my wife, my son, and my daughter over a bridge and into the river. Although my wife and son were unharmed except for some bruising, my daughter almost drowned and is still in a comatose state. As I sat with my daughter, my little Katrina, I saw news coverage of people from Blackholm saying that they and their families were rescued by workers sent by Prince Alex himself. When I looked at Katrina, I realized that the same thing that happened to dozens of people, including children, in the flooded areas had happened to her. Having felt those people’s pain, I could no longer be a part of the lie about what contributed to their pain and made a terrible disaster even more so. I came before you today to renounce my loyalty to Minister Morlund, submit my immediate resignation, and hopefully begin to atone for my part in this travesty by ending the deceit and attempting to prevent a further miscarriage of justice. I owe Caspinar, its citizens, and its royal family a sincere apology for my involvement, and I am terribly, profoundly sorry for the trouble I caused and especially for the lives I put at risk. My loyalty was to my employer, but it was misplaced, and my priorities were out of order. I would reverse what was done if I could, but at this point, all I can do is try and prevent any further harm from being done. The vote for the fate of the monarchy is next week. When you go to cast your vote, I urge you all to do the right thing and reject Lars Morlund and his lies and vote to keep and maintain the monarchy to preserve the balance of power and your freedoms and liberties.”

As he left the stage, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He took it out and glanced at the screen: “Lars.” He pressed IGNORE and put it back in its place as he walked to meet the police officers who stood waiting to take him into custody.

Having eaten a quick lunch, Stephanie walked back into her daughter’s room to find that nothing had changed: Russell sat watching TV while Katrina slept, still unmoving and unconscious. She hadn’t expected anything to change, of course, but the relentless monotony was getting to her at the moment. The doctors had told them encouraging things in the last few days, that Katrina’s brain activity was strong and getting stronger, but it had been more than two weeks since the accident, and there was no improvement in her condition that they could see. Still, they hadn’t given up hope.

“Are you going to eat?” she asked.

“I’m not hungry right now.”

Stephanie nodded and moved to the bed, bent and kissed her daughter’s forehead. “I’m back, sweetie.” The doctors said it might encourage her to wake up if they talked to her as if she were awake. “Anything good on?” she asked, turning back to Russell.

“Not really. I watched some of a movie, even a little news.”

“Oh, yeah?” She knew he hadn’t been able to watch it since the press conference, so this was a good sign. “What did they say?”

“Not much. Everybody seems to have moved on. Everybody but us, anyway. I feel like we’re stuck in limbo, like we’re being punished for what I did.” He glanced at the bed and said, “That’d be fine it was just me, but you and the kids? You guys didn’t do anything.”

Stephanie looked at him for a long moment and replied, “It was all his idea. You went along with it, but you spoke out to make things right.”

“Not sure it matters.”

“It does. It does to me, and it does to a lot of them,” she said, nodding her head towards the world outside the window.

He started to say something else but was interrupted by a knock on the door. They both turned to look, and when it didn’t open, Stephanie called, “Come in.”

The door swung inward just enough for a tall, fit man in a suit to step inside, closing it behind him again. “Good afternoon. Prince Alexander and Princess Eleanor would like to visit with you. Will you receive them?”

The couple looked at each other in surprise. “Uh, yeah, sure,” Russell said.

The man bowed his head to them and opened the door wide, holding it for the royal couple. They walked into the room dressed in business casual attire along with another bodyguard and their young twins. “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. It’s good to meet you,” said Prince Alex with a smile as he held out his hand. Russell shook it, and the prince introduced his wife, then the kids, adding, “When they heard we were coming here, they insisted on coming with us.” The twins also shook his hand in turn, then stood with the guards against the wall.

“It’s very nice of you all to come, uh, your highnesses,” Russell replied. “Especially after . . . everything.”

“Well, that’s actually one reason we wanted to come,” Prince Alex said.

“Oh! Please, sit down,” Russell said, offering the princess his chair and gesturing to the other one for her husband.

Eleanor thanked him and sat, but Alex, ever the gentleman, responded, “I appreciate the gesture, Mr. Taylor, but I’m sure your wife would be more comfortable there.” Feeling awkward, Stephanie smiled at him and took the seat.

“There, now that’s settled, let’s clear the air, shall we?” the prince said with a smile.

Russell nodded and said, “Yes, sir, by all means.”

“First, you can put yourselves at ease: we’re here to make peace, not war. I understand that you played a part in a lot of what happened and that you were partly responsible for it. We waited until now to visit you to give you and ourselves a chance to cool off so that we could all speak calmly. We accept your gracious apology, and we forgive you for what you did.”

“Thank you, sir,” Russell said.

The prince nodded before continuing, “I know you played your part willingly, but I also realize that you were doing your job, which put you in somewhat of an awkward position, especially considering who you were working for. Make no mistake, we reserve most of the blame for Morlund. The fact that you ultimately had a change of heart, turned against him, and publicly admitted the truth means quite a bit, but the reason you did so is what’s really important.” He turned and looked down at Katrina. “How is she?”

“A little better, they say. Her brain activity is strong, but she still hasn’t woken up, your highness.”

“Don’t give up,” Princess Eleanor said, looking at him earnestly. “I’ve had your daughter’s case sent to our own doctors to examine, and they said that a coma could end at any time, especially if the brain is still active like hers is.” Stephanie started crying, and the princess reached over to take her hand, saying, “Sometimes, everything can change when you least expect it.”

Stephanie looked at her and was surprised to see tears in her eyes as well. She gasped as she remembered something she’d heard about the royal family. “Your son!”

“That’s right,” the princess replied. “We lost Noah once, for eight years. Then one day, out of the blue, Sebastian saw him on a street in Marganta. His detail saw how much alike they looked and brought Noah home to us. So, we know what you’ve been going through, how worried you’ve been, and we know that this nightmare could end at any time for you. Just don’t give up.”

“Yes, we can definitely relate to your situation,” Alex said. “Even your involvement with such an unscrupulous man as Morlund. In running my company Emistat, there have been times I’ve dealt with people I thought were of less than noble character, but I found it better for my company and those who depend on me to deal with them, anyway. We sometimes find — or put — ourselves in bad situations or in bad company in the pursuit of the well-being of the people we care about. Any of us would do anything for our kids, and in that effort, the wrong thing may look like the right thing until we see things from someone else’s perspective. That’s what happened to you, Mr. Taylor. I think you Americans call it ‘getting in with a bad crowd.’ Once the police told us they’d confirmed that the extortion was Morlund’s idea and that you had kept it quiet only as part of your employment, we asked the police to let you go and not pursue any charges or any further questioning.”

“Wow! I really appreciate that!” Russell said.

“You’re welcome, but of course, they couldn’t find anything to charge you with. You were part of a conspiracy, but all you did was plan to deceive the public, and that’s not a crime. As you know, unlike some other countries, we haven’t prohibited slandering the monarchy. We think it’s important for the people to be able to say whatever they want, even if it’s against us. As for Blackholm, the courts have determined that no crime was actually committed even there. People died, but killing them wasn’t the intention, so they can’t call it murder, and there wasn’t even enough for an extortion charge because what I was being extorted with wasn’t legally my concern. They had nothing for which to prosecute you or Morlund. But I’m sure you’ve been told all this.”

Russell nodded. “I’m very grateful for your understanding, your highness. It does ease my conscience a little. I can see why they voted to keep you and your family around! And congratulations on the referendum, by the way. Do you know how many politicians would love to get ninety-two percent of the vote?”

Prince Alex laughed. “Actually, I do have some idea. I’ve been dealing with politicians all my life.”

“Still, it must feel good to win and be able to stay a prince.”

“It feels very good to know that the people here believe in me, in us, and it feels good to know that we’ll get to continue to represent and serve them. Morlund isn’t the only person out there willing to abuse his power for his own benefit, and it’s an honor to be able to protect my country from them.”

“Yeah, but for what it’s worth, I always felt like Nordin was a good guy when he was Deputy PM. I think he’ll be good in the big job.”

“So do I.”

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, they heard another voice speak up. “Your daughter’s very pretty,” said one of the twins, who had wandered over to Katrina’s bed. “I’m sorry she’s sick, and I hope she gets better soon.”

Surprised, they all turned, and Russell said, “Thank you, your highness. It’s very kind of you to come and see her.”

“Noah’s a very compassionate little boy. He’s taught us all a lot,” said the princess.

“Kids do that,” Russell agreed.

“Well, we should get going and let you all relax for a bit,” Prince Alex said. “We just wanted to stop in and put all that nastiness behind us. Do you think you’ll stay in Caspinar?”

“Probably not. We don’t exactly feel comfortable after everything.”

“Give the people a chance, Mr. Taylor. They’re rather understanding and forgiving. But whatever you decide to do, we wish you all the best, and if there’s anything we can ever do for you, let us know. We owe you a debt after what you did.”

“No, your highness, I don’t think you do.”

“All the same.”

They shook hands, and Russell said, “So that’s it, then? Everything just goes back to the way it was?”

“Not exactly,” the prince said with a smile. “Dad’s been talking to Parliament. He’ll be making a speech within the next few days. It was nice meeting all of you. Have a good day, and I hope your Katrina is better soon.”

One of the guards opened the door for them, and they were gone.

Grandpa Harold, recently reaffirmed in a landslide vote as Caspinar’s king, stood before the assembled crowd and jubilantly raised his arms in a welcoming gesture. Everybody was cheering, not least of all the twins and their entire family as they stood watching from backstage. Grandpa waved enthusiastically at the sea of hands lifted to him as he thanked them repeatedly, practically glowing with joy and energy. There was a special kind of connection in that moment between him and his people as they celebrated their victory over a would-be tyrant who had tried to manipulate and harm all of them. They had won, all of them, and they were all celebrating together.

Still smiling, Granpda’s lips started to move, but a few seconds passed before anyone could begin to make out what he was saying. “My friends . . . my friends . . .” The roaring cheers began to soften, but not enough for him to talk, so, laughing, he tried again, “My friends . . . my fellow Caspinarians.” Finally, the cheering gradually subsided, and he started his speech.

“My friends, I stand here today as a very grateful man humbled by the sudden shifting of fortune, the cunning of a man who nearly defeated me and my family, and the loyalty, trust, and forgiveness of you and all the people in our great nation.” The crowd erupted into cheers again, eliciting another laugh from their king, and it took him another few seconds to convince them to be quiet again. “I thank you all very sincerely for the literal vote of confidence last week and for this tremendous greeting today. I will admit that things looked rather dark for a while, but I’m overwhelmed by your support and by the hope and optimism that have been restored to us. I am reminded that we can truly accomplish anything together.”

There was a round of applause, and Grandpa was forced to wait another few seconds before he continued. “The strength that comes from our unity and our cooperation makes it vital for us to maintain this unity and stay together as one nation of many groups and individuals and interests. We must stay vigilant against threats from outside our borders and from within them, and the machinations of Lars Morlund and his conspirators have made it clear that, for us to keep this relationship strong, for the throne, the monarchy, and myself to retain the trust of our people, some changes must be made. I am here today to prove to all of you that my family and I are worthy of the trust and support you’ve shown us.” The crowd was suddenly utterly silent as it held its collective breath, anxious to hear what the king was going to say.

He continued, “Through several lengthy meetings with Parliament and with our new prime minister Mr. Nordin, we have devised a change to our system, a new law that will protect all of Caspinar from any further abuses of power such as that committed by Mr. Morlund. This new law makes it a felony for any elected official to withhold emergency aid from any Caspinarian city, town, village, or community during a disaster for any reason as long as resources and the infrastructure necessary for their delivery are available.” Grandpa had to pause again for another round of applause and cheers, patiently waiting for it to pass before he continued. “Any such official who is caught or against whom sufficient evidence for an arrest is discovered will be suspended from duty and fairly tried for the crime. If convicted, this person will be immediately and permanently relieved from their elected position. Furthermore, any member of the royal family who is discovered to participate in such a crime will have all titles and diplomatic immunity suspended, and they will be given a trial and sentenced appropriately if found guilty.”

There was thunderous applause at this announcement. Everybody instantly knew what their king had done for them. Even though there had been no abuse of royal privilege in this case, Grandpa was giving the people a way to protect themselves from any future such instances of abuse, even if he or one of his sons ever did such a thing. In that moment, everybody who had voted to keep the monarchy knew they had made the right decision.

“This law went into effect this afternoon when Prime Minister Nordin gladly signed the bill to protect our country, our union from any further abuses of government or royal authority. In doing this, we believe we have preserved the balance of power and safeguarded our prosperity and our future. This is my gift to all of you here today and all of you who have shown such generous faith in me and my sons. Thank you, God bless you, and God bless Caspinar!”

Alex was sitting on the balcony overlooking the palace lawn, the bright sun burning overhead. On the ground below, the twins were running through the lush, green grass with the Wickert kids. It hadn’t taken him long to find out what their dad Albert had done, how he had helped get the truth out by sending reporters to interview Signe and people who had been rescued from the Blackholm floods. When he’d called Albert to thank him, Alex didn’t have to ask why he’d done it.

“My son has been afraid of other people ever since he was a little boy and someone almost kidnapped him,” Albert had said. “It took us a long time, but Helen and I finally realized it was our fault he was like that. We were so scared of something like that happening again, we sheltered him too much. We were overprotective, and it made him too wary of other people. It must have been fate that we met you and Eleanor when we did because that was right after we’d decided to try and correct our mistake by encouraging Nils to meet some new people and make some new friends. And ever since he started spending time with your boys, he seems a bit happier and more confident, and he keeps to himself less. And after that sleepover you guys invited him to, he has a handful of new friends. He just thinks the world of Bastian and Noah, and when he asked me if I could do anything to help and I saw the concern in his eyes, I couldn’t do anything but agree to do everything I could. You understand, we’re all very grateful to your family for the kindness.”

“Albert, I’m really quite blown away,” Alex replied. “I suppose we’re very lucky to have such good friends.”

“No, your highness, luck has nothing to do with it. Good friendship simply has a way of coming back around.”

It had been several days since that conversation, but Alex couldn’t get Albert’s words out of his mind as he looked down at the kids playing so carelessly and happily on the ground below. He was amazed at how everything had seemed to come together so perfectly to wrap up the whole ugly thing, their conflict with Morlund and what came of it. If it was all because of good things they’d done, the way they’d treated other people, they must have done more good than he realized. Whatever the case was, he still felt very fortunate to have so many people looking out for him and his family. He knew it was rare and special to find friendships like that, and he wanted to do everything he could to preserve them. He heard giggling on the grass and smiled as he realized that he and Ellie had set out to find new friends for their kids and wound up finding some of their own.

“Good news and bad news. Which do you want first?” Ellie said as she walked up behind him.

“The bad. Get it out of the way first.”

“All right. This arrived today.” She handed him a card that looked like a formal invitation with a message printed on it.

“Congratulations on your victory,” it said. “It must have taken considerable effort and resources, but you managed to preserve the monarchy and your own privileged place in it. Enjoy it while it lasts because, although it may be small at the moment, a movement of people who passionately believe kings, queens, and princes are relics of the past has arisen to LMN8 the monarchy in Caspinar. Our time will come!”

“Well, this does look like bad news!” Alex said. “What’s this at the bottom? ‘LMN8?’ Ah, ‘eliminate!’ But why is it spelled that way?”

“Think about it,” she said with a rueful grin. “L M.”

“Lars Morlund.”

“Right. He’s letting us know we haven’t seen the last of him.”

“If he was smart, he would make sure we had. He won’t have the PM’s office to hide behind next time! So, what’s the good news?”

“Katrina Taylor is awake, sitting up in bed, and talking up a storm. It’s a full recovery!”

“Wonderful!” Alex said, breaking into a wide smile. “We should send them a gift.”

“Taken care of, darling,” Ellie replied, patting his head.

“What would I do without you?” He stood up and kissed her. “Oh! I have some good news too.”

“What’s that?”

“Johan Natvig called wanting to cash in the favor we owed Signe.”

“He said that?”

“Oh, no, of course not! He was actually rather embarrassed to ask at all, but he’d been thinking it over ever since we called to thank Signe for what she did.”

“Well, what did he want?” Ellie asked.

“A job. He said they didn’t feel safe in Foggy Hill after that ordeal with that awful man and the police who let it go for so long.”

“That’s understandable. Obviously, you offered him a job.”

“And a home. He said they wouldn’t be comfortable living here with us, which is also understandable. So, I told him our own little wine-making operation had grown recently and could use a manager, as could the country house that comes with the job. Of course, I insisted that they at least come and stay with us while the house is prepared for them.”

“Oh, it’ll be so good to see them again! And Noah will be thrilled to know Lucy’s coming to see him, and then she’ll be so close that they can see each other practically any time they want!”

“Yes, but let’s wait a while to tell him. They’re all having a good time right now,” Alex said, nodding to the giggling cluster below them.

“I got you, you’re out!” Nils yelled.

“Let’s play again!” Noah said.

“Why don’t we take a break?” Izzie asked. “I’m thirsty.

“There’s some lemonade over there on that table. We can go sit down for a few minutes,” Bastian replied.

“And some limeade for me! Have you guys ever tried it?” Noah asked his guests.

They both said they had, but they wanted lemonade, anyway. The four of them walked across the lawn to a few chairs around a table and plopped down, still panting after their game. They each grabbed a glass and started sipping their drinks, shaded by a large umbrella from the hot summer sun. They sat in contented silence, enjoying the warm air, the cool drinks, and each other’s company.

Noah glanced at Izzie and thought that she wasn’t so bad, after all, not as annoying as he’d thought she was when he first met her. He remembered what Daddy had said about the way people acted around royalty, and he wondered if she had just been star-struck then and trying in her own way to impress him and Bastian. Or maybe it was because of Nils, who suddenly seemed more talkative and likely to speak out. Whatever made the difference in her, he was glad she was acting differently.

He leaned his head back, resting it on his chair, looked up at the blue sky with the bright white clouds drifting lazily across it, and thought about what a wonderful life he had. He lived in a big, comfortable house with a family who loved and looked after him. He had a staff of nannies to take care of him and guards to protect him. He had friends all over the palace who were always happy to see him and tell him all sorts of stories about all sorts of interesting people. There was a whole country of people who had just shown their faith in his family, and his little heart soared to think that there was a whole country of people who believed in Mummy and Daddy, Grandpa and Nana, Uncle Freddie and Aunt Margo. It was inspiring to think he was a part of that, this wonderful purpose and calling to lead and serve.

And now, he had friends his own age, other kids who liked him and wanted to spend time with him. He knew what Nils and Mr. Wickert had done for them, and it made him happy to think that Nils cared so much about him and Bastian. It was funny how they had reached out to him, looked out for him, and he had turned right around and looked out for them. Lucy had been glad and relieved for him when he talked to her after the vote. She said she would love to meet his new friends one day, and they both said they hoped she would get to visit him soon. He smiled at the thought of his old friend meeting his new ones. He raised his head again and took another sip of his limeade, perfectly relaxed and contented and grateful for everything he had.

The End
For Now