"The secret wasn't what I expected."
❅❅❅❅❅❅
It takes Brother Xander a week to get everything we need, but that week felt longer to me. I was itching to move, but I had to wait.
'I've got them!' He says with a grin one morning.
'Really?' I ask, my eyes lighting up.
'Look.'
He shows me the identification gems that would allow us through the palace gates.
'Yay!' I squeal. 'And you have enough?'
'Sure do. I have around 10.'
'That should be enough… right?'
'…Dunno. Hopefully.'
'Should we split them now? Or use them together?'
'We should split them. We should have some on us in case one of us sees him going, but the other isn't there.'
I nod thoughtfully.
'True. We need to make sure that we grasp every opportunity… Speaking of watching, who's watching Brother Brutus right now?'
'Grandpa Roberts is watching him. If Brother Brutus moves, Grandpa will let us know.'
'How long has he been watching Brother Brutus?' I ask, feeling a little concerned for the old butler.
'Not that long…' Brother Xander mumbles.
'How long?' I ask more forcefully, my hands on hips as I glare at him.
'…5 hours…'
'5 hours!? Has he had a break?'
'Not yet…' he mumbles.
'That's way too long! Relieve him of his duty right now, Brother Xander! I can't believe you let an old man loiter around for 5 hours!'
'He's fine,' he protests.
'That doesn't matter! You should know better than that!' I scold.
Brother Xander looks sheepish, glancing my way before looking away again.
'Relieve him now,' I order.
He sighs a few minutes later.
'Alright. I'll call him now.'
He pulls out the communication crystal and focuses on Butler Roberts with his mind. The crystal connects.
'Yes, Your Highness?' Butler Roberts' voice rings strongly from the communication crystal.
'Come back, Grandpa Roberts. We'll take over watching Brother Brutus.'
'Actually, Your Highnesses, I was just about to call you myself. Sixth Prince Brutus is on the move.'
'On the move?' We cry, startled.
'Yes. He's heading for the North Wing right now.'
We grab the identification gems, scrambling to make sure we have everything we need.
'We'll see you at the North Wing soon, Grandpa Roberts,' Brother Xander says hurriedly.
'Of course, Your Highness. See you soon.'
With no noise from the communication crystal, our movements quickened. In under five minutes, we were sprinting towards the North Wing.
'We're not going to make it,' I pant.
'Yes, we will,' he gasps.
'How can y-you be so s-sure?'
'Because w-we were quick.'
It still took us nearly ten minutes to reach the North Wing. Gasping for air, we stare at Grandpa Roberts who simply smiles.
'I-is he g-gone yet?' Brother Xander pants.
'About five minutes ago, Your Highness.'
'Where?' I ask.
'Straight down this road.'
I look at Brother Xander, only to see him staring at me.
'Go?' He asks.
'Go,' I confirm.
In unison, we head out of the North Wing, an identification gem in our hands.
'See you later, Grandpa Roberts!' I call out.
'You don't have to wait up, Grandpa Roberts,' Brother Xander adds.
'I will wait for you, Your Highness.' Grandpa Roberts bows to us.
Brother Xander just flashes a grin as a pang of jealousy hits me. That's something I no longer have in this palace.
When we reach the exit, a guard stops us.
'Identification, please,' he says.
We both hand over our identification gems. He takes the red gems, pushing them through a scanner. When it comes out the other side, it's a clear blue.
'Please return with it,' he says as he gives them back to us.
We nod as we leave.
'So, how do we follow him?' I ask once we exit the palace.
'Don't worry,' Brother Xander says with a smirk. 'I have a car.'
'You can drive?' I ask incredulously.
'Yep. Grandpa Roberts taught me.'
'Are you allowed to drive?'
'As royals, we can do anything.'
'Alright,' I say, not convinced.
Someone parks a car in front of us, opens the driver side door, and steps out. In a flash, something is thrown to Brother Xander and he catches it.
Looking a second time, I notice it's the key to the car.
'Let's go,' he says, nodding to the car.
Shrugging, I hop in.
'So, we go straight down the main road?' I ask.
'I think so… That's what Grandpa Roberts said…'
'Let's just see how things go.'
Brother Xander starts the car, and I hold on for dear life, terrified since I didn't know his skill level.
'Go slow, okay?'
'Why? We might not catch up if we do… What car was he driving again?'
'…I don't think Grandpa Roberts mentioned it…'
Suddenly, a communication crystal rings, making us both jump. Feeling around, I realise it's Brother Xander's.
'Yes?' He answers.
'Your Highness, it's Butler Roberts Ink.'
'Is something wrong, Grandpa Roberts?'
'I just forgot to let you know that the car you're looking for is blue. A sky blue car.'
'Sky blue? That's unusual.'
'Yes. It's an unusual colour, indeed, so it should be easy to spot. Have you left yet?'
'No,' we chorus.
'Well, you'd better get a move on if you want to catch up. I'll hang up now.'
The communication crystal goes dead.
'Sky blue, huh?' I ask.
'Yeah. Isn't he too conspicuous?'
'Well, it's not like everyone would think he has something to hide… right?'
'Maybe he's just become more… complacent?'
Relaxed from Grandpa Roberts' call, I forget about Brother Xander's driving skills until he speeds off.
'Slow down!' I squeal, grabbing onto anything I can.
'We need to catch up, don't we?'
'That doesn't mean we drive so fast we might end up in a crash!'
'It's not that fast. I can go faster.'
'Don't!'
'Why not?'
'We can't be conspicuous either! What do you think Brother Brutus will think if he notices us speeding until we're behind him?'
'He's being chased?'
'Exactly!'
'But we won't be able to catch up with him if we don't. We're already sevenish minutes late.'
'I know, but we still need to be careful. What if he turned onto a different road and we missed it? You never know.'
'…True…. Okay. How about this? We drive fast, but slow enough to check the exits off this road.'
'Will you be able to keep that speed?'
Brother Xander actually looks offended.
'Who do you think I am?'
'…A fourteen-year-old child?'
He grimaces.
'I'm not just a fourteen-year-old child. I'm the greatest fourteen-year-old!'
'Greatest my foot,' I mutter, turning my head to look out the window.
Nearly ten minutes later on the A23, we reach a major street exit, and I spot in the corner of my eye a sky blue car.
'A sky blue car!' I cry out, pointing out my window.
'Where?' Brother Xander asks, looking at me.
'Left! On this street!'
'Alright! Hold on tight!'
With a tight turn, Brother Xander jerks the car so that we turn on MacArthur Avenue while I grip my seatbelt so hard, my knuckles turn white. He spots the car at the Mantra Hotel.
'He's at a hotel?' He asks, confused.
'I know, right? Why would Brother Brutus go to a hotel?'
'Not sure.'
Brother Xander slowly turns into the hotel. We loiter for around five minutes before the car's owner shows up.
'It's not Brother Brutus…' I say quietly.
'Keep going?'
'Yeah. Let's keep going.'
Returning to the A23, we drive a few more minutes before reaching a crossroads.
'Which way do you think?' Brother Xander asks.
'How about turning left onto the A25?'
'Nah. I think continuing on the A23 is the right direction.'
'Why?' I ask.
Since I don't leave the palace much, I don't know a lot about the city I live in.
'Because… well, I don't know. Why do you want to go onto the A25?'
'Just a gut feeling,' I shrug. 'I don't get out a lot.'
'True… Neither do I…'
We sit in silence, thinking about our options.
'Why don't we go as far as we can on the A25 and turn back around before we reach the border to New South Wales?' I suggest.
'Fine. Then we follow the A23?'
'Then we return to the A23.'
Brother Xander turns left onto the A25.
'Do you think he's out here?' I ask as I watch the scenery pass.
'Dunno. I hope he is, though. It would be hella annoying if he wasn't, and the trip was pointless.'
'I guess…but we're also able to spend a little bit of time outside the palace, so it isn't that pointless.'
'Maybe, but I'd rather spend the time going through my homework for the week.'
'What do you learn?'
'I'm not allowed to say.'
'Why not?'
'We're forbidden from telling others what happens in our Kingship studies.'
'Why?'
'We learn a lot of things, some of it not very nice.'
'Oh…'
I wonder what he meant by that. Was he talking about the suppression of women? Or that women have magic? I don't want to second-guess him, but Uncle Nox and Mamma's advice keeps popping up in my head, the advice not to trust Brother Xander, or anyone in the palace. I don't want to see everyone as a potential betrayer, not when I feel so lonely in the palace with no one to lean on. How long can I live like that?
Eventually, we reach a more rural area. Looking around, I frown.
'It's so…empty here…'
'I know. But it's beautiful.'
'Yeah. But lonely, too.'
'Very lonely. I can't imagine living out here all alone.'
Looking out Brother Xander's window, I spot something blue in the distance.
'Brother Xander! Look over there!' I point.
Brother Xander looks where I point. Parked there is a sky blue car, getting bigger as we approach.
'Where are we?' I ask.
'Not sure. Do you think that's Brutus?'
'Don't know. Maybe? We just need to wait and find out.'
Brother Xander parks the car on the side of the road, pulling out some binoculars from the centre console.
'Creepy,' I say as I pull away from him, making a face at the same time.
'No, I'm not!' He protests.
'Then why do you have binoculars in the car?'
'Because I like watching people interact!'
'Like I said, creepy.'
'I'm not creepy, Adi! You're so mean!'
'So you say.'
'I enjoy learning how others interact with each other.'
'Yeah, yeah,' I say, rolling my eyes.
Brother Xander puffs up his cheeks, pouting slightly. I gesture to the car.
'Start watching, Peeping Tom.'
Huffing, Brother Xander places the binoculars in front of his eyes, fine-tuning it to see the house clearer.
It doesn't take long before the front door opens. Walking out is Brother Brutus, his bright red hair shining under the harsh sun. He turns around to face the person at the door, but his huge build dwarfs whoever it is, leaving us unable to see.
'Can you see?' I ask.
'No… Brother Brutus is too big…'
'Let me try.'
'No! I can do it. You probably don't even know how to use binoculars!'
'It can't be that hard,' I sigh, exasperated. 'You just bring it to your eyes and look out.'
'It's not that simple,' he argues.
'Give it!'
'Hey! I'm older than you. You should be listening to me!'
Rolling my eyes, I give him a death stare. He shifts a little in his seat before giving me the binoculars.
'I'm just being nice to you since you've probably never used them before,' he mutters.
I snort as I look through them. As I watch, Brother Brutus moves away to show a small red-haired girl.
'It's a little girl,' I comment.
'His girlfriend?'
'No. She's way too young to be a girlfriend.'
'Too young?' Brother Xander asks, confused.
'Yeah. She looks younger than me. She's tiny!'
'Younger than you? Who is she?'
'Dunno. Hang on. They're coming closer.'
Brother Xander turns to look out the window, squinting.
'Can this thing make them look bigger?'
'It can zoom a bit more. Just turn the dial in the middle there.'
I try it, and soon, they look like they're getting closer.'
'She-'
'She what?' Brother Xander asks, turning to look at me.
I look at him, the shock fully visible on my face.
'She has our eyes.'
Shock forms on his face too.
'She has midnight blue eyes?'
I nod slowly.
'She's royalty too?' He asks again, incredulously.
'That's the only explanation.'
'So… she's our sister?'
'We have a younger sister?'