Chapter Eight

 

 

 

Shane

 

How to Lose Track of a Live Human Being Three Times within Forty-Eight Hours, an autobiography, by Shane Kagae. If I were to convey the past two days in writing, this is what I would have to go with for the title. Apparently the only thing I am good at is being terrible at my job—staying with the princess at all times. Unfortunately, Laura, who likes to be alone, makes that extremely difficult when she wanders off in the middle of the night, or during a battle, or after a traumatic life event.

I can’t say I blame her this time, though. The look on her face when her father announced that Alicia was to be interrogated for two days then executed was one of pure sorrow and regret. If I’d just delivered my own sister to the gallows, I’d want to be alone too.

When we’d arrived at the palace, Laura had snuck away as fast as she could. Being the nice, sensitive guy that I am, I’d decided to give her an hour’s head start before I began our next round of hide and go seek. Now, the hour’s up, and I’ve got to go find Laura before we get caught. Security is extra tight in the palace now that Alicia’s being held in the basement dungeon, and Emperor Peter is roaming the halls with a giddy grin on his face that practically says, ‘Yay, I’ve captured my elder daughter, and in two days she’s going to die!’ If he sees me without Laura—or Laura without me—she’ll be in trouble, and I’ll be dead.

I find her fast enough this time. She’s in the weapons training room throwing knives again. She goes there a lot, particularly when she’s feeling stressed or nervous.

“Sorry, Laura. I’ve gotta get back to babysitting duty,” I say from the open doorway, startling her a bit. She doesn’t miss a beat, though—the knife hits the dead center, like it always does.

“I know. It’s okay. My arm is tired anyway,” she says, going to retrieve the knives that she’s thrown toward the red and purple targets. Everything in the palace is in Karkonian colors, and I mean literally everything. Targets, wallpaper, toilet seats, you name it, and we’ve got it in red, purple, black or gold. It’s kind of ridiculous.

“I mean, if you want, we can continue to throw knives, although I’m actually pretty terrible at it.”

“I’ll save you the embarrassment. We can just sit on the couches. No talent necessary.”

“But that’s the only thing I’m actually good at.”

“You’re good at falling out of trees,” she suggests, lying down on one of the red couches at the other side of the room. I sit on the arm of the couch closest to her head.

“I don’t think that counts.”

“Sorry. I tried.” She sighs, laying her head in her arms. I know she’s still feeling the weight of Alicia’s capture, and I wish I could come up with something to say that would ease her pain, but I can’t. It isn’t something that she can escape. It’s something that she will have to face head on, every day, until she comes to terms with it. Pain doesn’t just go away. I know that from experience.

But there can be comfort in the midst of it all, so I put my hand on her shoulder, letting it rest there, showing her that she isn’t alone. She doesn’t respond, so I leave it there for a while until she finally sits up and speaks.

“I already regret it,” she says, scooting over on the couch so that I have room to sit next to her. “If she thinks Father is a monster, I can only imagine what she thinks of me now.”

I put my arm around her shoulder. “Laura, you gave her a chance. She lied to you. You followed your dad’s instructions because she lied to you. The rebels killed people, lots of people. Don’t regret saving lives, because that’s what you did.”

“But I don’t know how I can let her just die. That’s gonna destroy Eight, and I don’t know how I’m supposed to live with myself because it’s my fault. And… And I won’t have a sister anymore,” she says, tears filling her eyes. Her hands form into fists and she slams them into her thighs, frustrated. “Gosh, I hate this! I hate crying and feeling weak. I hate that I don’t know what to do. I hate myself for becoming so heartless.”

“Laura, you’re far from heartless,” I say.

“Oh, don’t say that. I just led my sister to the slaughter. Don’t deny it. I won’t.”

“I will, Laura, because you aren’t heartless. You put up this wall so people can’t see the good in you. You try to hide it from everyone, but you can’t. You’re a good person, and even if you can’t see that, I can. Your sister betrayed you twice, but you still love her. You never put yourself first. You don’t have it in you to be heartless, Laura, no matter how hard you try,” I say. Tears are falling down her cheeks now, and I gently brush one away.

“I don’t know what to do, Shane,” she whispers.

“Well, now that we’ve established that you have a heart, why don’t you follow it?” I suggest with a soft smile. She wipes her eyes and stands.

“I need some time to think about all of this. Alone. I’m going to ask Ryan if you can have a day off,” she says, heading for the doorway. Before she leaves, she pauses and turns to look at me. “Thank you, Shane, for everything,” she says, and with that, she vanishes.

 

* * * *

 

The man in charge, Ryan, gave Laura the okay to send me on my way, provided that I stop by his office and tell him where I’m going should I leave the palace. That’s what I’m doing now—walking down the endless corridors of the Karkonian palace in search of the head of the Royal Guard. Even though I was there once, I’m still not used to navigating the extravagantly large palace, so it takes a while before I finally stumble upon his office, and quickly knock on the door.

“Come in,” he says, as I push open the door and stand in front of Ryan’s desk.

“Hello,” I say awkwardly. With some people, like Laura and Eight, I instantly connect, but the majority of the time, it takes me a long time to get used to new people. I’m a pretty awkward guy, despite my charm and good looks.

“Hello, Shane. What brings you by?” Ryan says, always proper.

“Um, well, Laura says that you want me to tell you where I’m going if I leave, and I’m leaving, so here I am,” I say, still a little confused as to why I’m here. On days I have to myself, Ryan told me that I was free to go where I pleased, so I’m not sure why he wants to know where I’m off to today.

“Okay, that’s fine. Where are you headed? I just want to keep track of all my guards, given the fact that Alicia is being held here. Rebels are likely going to be swarming the nearby city in search of Alicia, and I just want you all to stay safe. Your job does involve risks, but I’d rather none of my soldiers died, especially during their free time,” he says. He has this habit of giving an entire speech where a sentence will do. I’ve never met anyone who talks so much, except maybe me.

“Um, I just wanted to visit my mom’s grave. I like to talk to her sometimes, get stuff off my chest.”

“I see. Well, that’s fine. Take some sort of communication device with you.”

“I’ve got my phone,” I say, holding up a small black cell phone. The Emperor doesn’t like the Royal Guard members to carry around the distracting devices when they’re on duty, so I usually just leave it lying around in Laura’s room. When we go out, however, we’re expected to have them in case we’re needed back at the palace, so I put mine in my pocket before I left.

“Good. Don’t hesitate to call if you need anything,” he says.

“I won’t. Thanks,” I say, turning to leave, but Ryan stops me.

“Shane, I want to ask you something before you go,” he says.

“Sure. Shoot.”

“When I first brought you here, I told you that I wanted the good in Laura to resurface. Has it?”

Ah, so this is the real reason Ryan called me here. I nod. “Laura’s kinder than people expect. She’s certainly kinder than I expected, anyway. She has a good heart behind all those walls.”

Ryan smiles. “Maybe Karkonia’s future is bright after all.”

“I think it is,” I say, closing the door behind me as I leave. Laura will be a good empress someday. I hope I’m alive to see it.

Instead of taking one of Laura’s more complicated routes to exit the palace, I walk right through the front doors like I did last time, not stopping until I’ve reached the tall black palace gates.

Fernando lurks in their shadow yet again, waiting to pounce on another victim that dares exit the palace grounds like a normal human being. I’m beginning to understand why Laura climbs trees to get over the wall. I’d almost do it myself, just to avoid this guy.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Fernando begins.

“I’m not in the mood for this today, Fernandork.” I sigh, walking past him. He follows behind me, as persistent as a mosquito thirsty for blood.

“Oh, are your poor little feelings hurt? Is that why you need to leave?” Fernando mocks.

“Actually, I’m going to visit my mother’s grave, so if you’d shut up, I’ll be on my way,” I snap.

With that, Fernando backs off. “Sorry, Shane. Go on.”

Maybe he does have a soul.

Nah, probably not.

Karkay is where I was born and raised, so it isn’t a far walk to the cemetery where my mother is buried. At least the rebels did well by her in death. Her grave is close to the place where she fell, beneath a white dogwood tree, her favorite, with a beautifully engraved marble tomb marker that reads, Mariah Kagae, a kindhearted spirit and a beloved mother. They couldn’t have chosen truer words. Kindhearted she was and beloved by many, most of all me and Lainey.

When I arrive at the site, I find a bouquet of yellow roses, her favorite flower, sitting on the ground near her tomb-marker. As far as I know, I’m the only person who even comes here anymore, so I’ve no idea who they could’ve come from. I didn’t even bring any flowers today. I just wanted to feel near her. I could really use her help right about now.

“Hey, Mom,” I say, taking a seat against the back of the dogwood tree. “It’s been a rough few days. I’m a member of the Royal Guard now, keeping an eye on things for some of your friends. By the way, no offense, but your friends really suck.

“Well, anyway, I’m the bodyguard of this girl, Laura. She’s got a reputation for being psychotic and evil, but actually, she’s really nice. She’s having a hard time too. This is only the third day I’ve known her, but we’ve already been through a lot together. She has to make some really tough choices, choices that will affect our ‘friends’, and I honestly don’t know what to do anymore. I mean, I know I have to keep Lainey safe, no matter what, and I will. I just wish I could help Laura. I hate to see her hurting, you know? I guess I got that from you. You always were empathetic. But yeah, some of your motherly advice would be good right now. I’m kind of lost.”

“Maybe I can help,” a voice says, coming seemingly from nowhere and scaring me half to death. Suddenly, Taeler, a rebel and one of my closest friends, emerges from behind a nearby bush, my younger sister in tow.

“Taeler! Lainey!” I practically shout, immediately jumping to my feet and running to them. My sister squeals with excitement when she sees me, and I scoop her up in my arms, holding her close. “What are you guys doing here?”

“Well, I needed to talk to you, and Lainey here was really missing you, so I brought her along,” Taeler says, pushing her blonde hair out of her pale, freckled face.

She’s dressed in her normal attire—a white T-shirt and a pair of skinny jeans with holes in them, a pair of red fabric tennis shoes on her feet, and there’s a glimmer of excitement in her brown eyes. That can’t be good. Taeler has been one of my best friends for a long time, and whenever she’s excited about something, it can only mean something bad is about to happen. Always the adrenaline junkie, Taeler is only having fun if we’re doing something that involves risk of serious injury or death. Kind of like Laura. All of the women in my life are psycho.

“How’d you know I’d even be here?” I smile, petting some of Lainey’s light brown hair as she buries her face into my shoulder, arms tight around my neck, not saying a word. She’s always been really quiet, only speaking when she wants to tell you something she believes is really important, which can range anywhere from talking dinosaurs to how she really, really loves you.

“Stopped by the palace, but Fernando told me you were here.”

“You took my baby sister to the palace!”

“Uh, yeah, what else did you want me to do with her? Leave her home alone? I already have to find a babysitter to cover for tomorrow night’s mission that we’ve been assigned.”

“What?”

“Oh yeah, forgot to tell you. We’ve got a mission.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“If you’ll stop being so sassy,” Taeler says, crossing her arms.

“Sassy Shane.” Lainey giggles. Cute, but not a good time for cute. I’m in the middle of an angry rant and can’t afford to be distracted.

“Well, that isn’t going to happen, but you’d better elaborate anyway,” I say, glaring at Taeler.

“I don’t know what I ever saw in you,” she huffs, raising her arms in the air in exasperation.

“Taeler, our relationship lasted for literally thirty-six hours. You didn’t even have time to see anything in me,” I say, sighing.

I thought we’d gotten past this nonsense three years ago, when she decided that it was best for us to just be friends. I moped for two days, then I got over it. I’m glad it didn’t work out. Taeler, with her random fits of anger and constant need for an adrenaline fix, would be impossible to date.

“Thirty-six hours of my life I’ll never get back! Wasted! Gone forever!” she shouts.

See what I mean?

“The whole thing was your idea in the first place. Give it a rest already and tell me what our mission is!” I say, beginning to get frustrated.

“Okay, fine. Tomorrow at midnight, you and I are breaking Alicia out of the palace,” she says. “Fernando’s gonna let us in and disable the security system around the dungeon. We’ll disguise her as a guard, then get her out of there.”

“Have the rebels gone insane? I could blow my cover, and for you, it’s a suicide mission. No. I’m not agreeing to this,” I say.

Taeler looks at me and nods toward Lainey, who’s still sitting contently in my arms. “They aren’t giving you a choice, Shane. I’m sorry.”

So they’re going to threaten me with Lainey again. Every time I attempt to refuse a mission, the rebels hold my sister over my head. If I don’t comply with their wishes, I’ll never see her again.

I sigh, looking at the ground. “This is stupid. My assignment now is the only one I’ve ever even liked, and they’re just going to take that away from me too?”

“You’re only gonna lose it if you get caught, which you won’t. Why does it matter so much to you, Shane?”

“It… It just does,” I say. I can’t tell her that I actually enjoy my life at the palace. Yeah, I miss my sister, but I’m happy with Laura and Eight. If I could just take Lainey back with me, I know they’d keep her safe. I could have a new life. Rebel free.

“You like her, don’t you?”

“Who?”

“The girl you’re guarding. You’ve got feelings for her,” Taeler says, smirking.

“Wha— No! I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say quickly, my face already growing red. Taeler knows me too well.

Taeler throws her head back and laughs. “Oh, this is great. I mean, really, this is great. You do know you’re insane, right?”

“I’m not insane, and I don’t have a crush on her. Look, I need to go back to the palace—”

“To be with your girlfriend.” She laughs in a sing-song voice. I swear, if I wasn’t morally opposed to hitting girls, I’d give her a good punch right about now.

“No, because I have a job and I have to be back soon,” I say, giving Lainey a quick hug before I hand her back over to Taeler. “I’ll miss you, kid,” I say, patting her head.

Tears well up in her green eyes. “Can’t I go with you?”

“I really wish you could, but right now, it’s just too dangerous. One day, though, okay, Lainey?”

“Okay,” she says, laying her head on Taeler’s shoulder.

“Take care of her,” I say. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Until then,” Taeler says, disappearing with Lainey into the nearby forest.

No matter what I do, I’m never going to earn Lainey and me our freedom back. At least I know that now. But I can take it back. I will take it back. And if I’m going to do that, I need to do it fast, before I’m forced to do something that will get me killed and leave my sister trapped in a lifetime of servitude to the people I’ve worked so hard to protect her from.