Mina opened the jar of sand and exhaled.
“All I can say is no matter what you were, I would have been perfect at loving you. I would have given you the world, even if it killed me.”
She tipped the jar over and they all watched as the sand blew in the wind. It rose up in a way that seemed as if the spirit of the child was that sand, on its way to Heaven.
Mina wiped her tears and looked at her friends. “Thanks guys.”
Christina threw her arm around Mina’s shoulder. “No problem, Babe.” She glanced at Louie. “Good idea.”
Mina gazed at Louie, completely amazed at the kind gesture he had given her. He had a given her a way to say goodbye, and for that, she would always be grateful to him.
“Now, I say we get drunk,” Bartleby suggested.
“Sure. My father is out of town, so let’s say we run wild in the castle?” Louie shrugged his brow and flashed a mischievous grin.
“Hell yeah!” Mina agreed.
And they did. Louie wasted no time, once he sent one of the servants to fetch every type of liquor in the store room. They blasted music through the castle and ran around, dancing and laughing. Mina hadn’t laughed that much since before Sedgwick had left and for a moment for all of them, the Crown Prince wasn’t missed. Mina herself didn’t even flinch when she entered his room, chasing Bartleby. Reality didn’t set in until the moment her cell phone buzzed in her back pocket. She pulled it out and saw the name she had waited weeks to appear on her screen. She glanced around at her friends who were there for her in the moment then back at the name of the man she loved so much that had abandoned her. It wasn’t out of anger or sadness that she didn’t answer. It wasn’t spite either; she was just tired, tired of his power over her. She was just tired of hurting and she decided to choose herself again. She sat the cell on the kitchen table and went to find her friends. She noticed Bartleby and Christina still chasing each other. Christina called for her, but something caused her to walk the other way. She just followed her inner feeling into the King’s office and saw Louie sitting in front of the fireplace. She crept up and discovered he was smoking a joint.
He looked up at her and she laughed, sitting next to him and putting her hand out. Louie passed it to her. He watched as she wrapped her lips around it, inhaling the substance. He couldn’t help but to be turned on by the way she gently puckered her lips and exhaled the smoke.
“If you were King, would you make weed legal?” she asked him curiously.
“Absolutely,” Louie answered without hesitation.
Mina laughed and smiled, happy that she found her laugh and her strength again. She looked at Louie, realizing he was the one that helped her get those things back today.
“I can’t believe you did that for me. I mean I always thought you didn’t like me.”
Louie looked back at her, in a sincere way and was sorry that she felt that way. “I’m just a dick…. Call it a case of the son becoming the father.”
“No,” Mina stopped him and placed her hand on his forearm. “You are nothing like him… Yeah, you can be a complete asshole.”
Louie chuckled before she could finish.
“But you are nothing like Caius… you’re more like your mom.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Because you proved it today… I can tell that maybe deep down… your heart is probably as big as hers was. No cruel person easily does the things that you did for me today.”
Louie looked at Mina with grace and the words she said to him gave him an overwhelming feeling that he hadn’t felt in a while. A consuming feeling that he had shut out long ago.
“So, I guess we’re friends now, huh?” Louie asked her.
Mina smiled at him.
“Yeah, I guess so. I dare say Prince Louie, a shift has occurred between us.”
“A shift indeed.”
Chapter 8
Slow Burning
“Your Higness.” Sedgwick peeked his head up to see his royal advisor and assistant, Harris, staring at him with confusion. “We need a decision on the RGEN Fund. Would you like me to contact the King to get input?”
“No,” Sedgwick quickly said. “I dont want to bother him. We will borrow funding from the Vine fund.”
“But Sir, that fund is in debt. The deficit is crucial, along with others.”
Sedgwick rubbed his brow in frustration. “Well what doesn’t, Harris? Do we have any money or not? This doesn’t make seanse. Our country is the largest producer of oil and natural gas. Third largest in trading. For twelve years, we have been in an 8.4 decline.”
“Well, truthfully, the royal treasury is the only thing that is intact and consistent.”
Sedgwick continued reading the reports from the past five years on Serenity’s economy. Each report showed slow but significant amounts of money being taken out of them and placed into the royal treasury. Serenity had not see an economic downspill since the the war fifty years ago.
“That’s why we need Magna’s resources.”
Sedgwick looked at Harris. “But with this, we would need more than fifteen percent of Magna’s resources.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Sedgwick eyed Harris, who seemed nervous. Sedgwick’s eyes slowly widened as he realized the truth. “Gibbeth, another country in debt, wants a war with Magna. My father is thinking of war, isn’t he?”
“That is for you to discuss with him, Your Highness.”
Sedgwick picked up his office phone and instantly dialed his father, placing it on speaker. After three rings, his father’s assistant answered. Once she heard Sedgwick’s voice, she transferred him to the King’s line.
“Hello, Sedgwick,” the King greeted him happily.
“Hi, Dad.”
“How is Loren City treating its Crown Prince?”
“It’s going well, except... Dad, we need to talk about these reports on Serenity’s debt.”
“It is only a minor roadblock, Sedgwick. Life does not exist without a few rough patches.”
“Well, Dad this is a very big rough patch. And also... are you thinking of going to war with Gibbeth against Magna?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“Sedgwick, a war would bring the country great debt. I would not put the country at risk, unless I had to. From the reports, what do you think I should do?”
“You want me to decide?”
“Yes, you will be King, won’t you?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Well, tell me as a King, what do you think we should do?”
Sedgwick glanced at the report again and started sweating as he thought of all the consequences that could come from going to war with Magna, a country they had been at peace with for years, a country whose army was known for their expert armed forces. “I think we should wait, see what happenes in a year. Maybe we can hold back a little. Charge more for taxes on international goods.”
“Okay, we will wait and see then.”
“Are you happy with my decision?”
“I am happy, Son. I will see you soon.”
“Okay, see you soon.” As Sedgwick ended the call, his secretary walked in. “Who are you?” He asked, not recognizing the brunette whose pinstripe skirt and tight black cardigan showed off her curves.
She smiled slowly and curtsied, bowing her head. “I am Riley, one of your new secretaries, Your Highness.”
Sedgwick quickly stood up, flustered by the way Riley gazed at him. “Hello.”
“Do you need anything?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Well, if you do. Let me know.” Sedgwick watched as Riley walked out and he quickly sat back into his seat and immediately, out of guilt, thought of Mina. He glanced at his celll phone, wanting to call her again. She hadn’t answered his phone call when he did reach out to her after the baby died. He knew it was wrong for him to be angry at her for not answering his call, but he was. He was angry with her for not answering his call or reaching out to him.
Sedgwick did not understand his sudden selfishness and anger. Maybe it was stress? he thought. It had to be. For his sake, he hoped it was.
While Sedgwick hoped for better days, Caius hoped for a change of pace. He needed Sedgwick to become fearless, as he called it. He needed him to become strong.
“I take it Your Majesty, that His Highness did not agree with the treaty with Gibbeth,” Bryan said as he sat in front of the King’s desk.
“No, he didn’t. But he will.”
Of course he will, Sire.”
“He just needs time,” Caius said, standing up from his chair and gazing outside the capitol tower in downtown Serenity. “This war will bring more everything. Money, gold, land, soldiers.”
“Power, Sir. It will be yours,” Bryan smiled.
“Yes, mine and Gibbeth’s... but only for a while. We will expand Serenity through the South and East Magna while Gibbeth expands to the North and West. Then by the time Sedgwick has children of his own, we will strike down Gibbeth.”
+
“Louie, I don’t know how to do this,” Mina fussed as she tried to situate the bow and arrow.
“Yes, you can. It’s easy.”
“Okay, Hunger Games.”
Louie laughed to himself and situated himself behind Mina. He placed one hand on her elbow and the other on her hand that was on the black compound bow. Louie had brought her to the stables to clear her mind. While waiting on his stable crew to ready the horses, he decided to give her a lesson in the bow and arrow.
“Louie, this is stupid. There is no way, I am hitting that target,” She said, referring to the red bull’s-eye that was attached to the padded wall for archery practice outside the stables.
“You know, you’re stubborn as hell.”
“You know you’re a pain in the ass.”
“It’s a nice ass, by the way,” Louie spoke before he could stop himself. What the hell was he thinking? He had never flirted with Mina before so openely or on purpose. But their sudden friendship and the tan riding pants she was wearing made it hard for him not to. “I mean it’s pretty cute for a flat ass.”
Mina quickly elbowed him in the stomach and refused to turn around due to the shocking blush on her face. She was thankful that Louie only meant it as a joke and not actual flirting, or so she thought. She also felt a liitle uncomfortable blushing at a flirtatious comment by Louie. She figured it was probably since Sedgwick left, she hadn’t been hit on, except when she drunk with frat boys the night Louie saved her, but on a regular basis, she stayed to herself. No matter how much Christina suggested, she was not even close to being ready to date or flirt with another man.
“Okay, just focus, okay?” Louie situated himself behind her again. He quietly spoke into Mina’s ear. “Just picture the target as a drug of some sort. It could be a person or thing. Imagine that the arrow is the only way to get a hold of that. That if you dont hit directly in the red center, that your life has been a waste, the only way to even feel your life has a purpose, is that red center. You want it, you need it, and right now you have a chance to take it. There is no stopping you. Nothing standing in between you and what you want. Breathe slowly.”
Every word Louie said glued itself into Mina’s head and she slowly inhaled and exhaled, narrowing her vision to the red center and imagined it to be the one thing she wanted more than anything in that moment.
“Now take it.”
She released the arrow on Louie’s soft command that sent shivers through her along with adrenaline from the moment the arrow hit the bull’s-eye. He watched as a big smile lit up her face. It made him feel alive.
“I did it!” She looked up at him. “Holy shit, Louie, I did it!”
He laughed and she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly. Louie stood still, he wasn’t use to hugging Mina, let alone making her smile and laugh, but he did. He slowly placed his arms around her upper back, patting her. She grabbed his shoulders and stepped back, causing his hands to lay on her waist. “I can’t believe I did it.”
“I knew you could. It just took concentration.”
“No.” She shook her head. “It took you.”
“Your Highness?” Louie and Mina turned and saw one of the stable workers in his blue dickie uniform. “The horse is ready.”
“Thank you, Patrick.” Patrick brought Louie and Mina to the brown, beautiful thoroughbred, that was familiar with Mina.
“Hey, Wildflower.” Mina brushed the hair of the horse Sedgwick had given her on her seventeenth birthday. “It’s been a while since I rode you, I know. I’m sorry.” Mina brushed Wildflower’s side and Louie envied the horse. He envied anything or person that got a portion of Mina’s affection.
Get a grip, man, Louie said in his head.
“You’re not riding?” Mina asked him.
“No, I can’t ride a horse.”
“Oh.” Mina quickly hopped on Wildflower and signaled him to start moving. Louie watched as Wildflower stormed through the green field with Mina on his back. He watched as her hair blew in the wind and the smile that spreaded across her face brought indecribable pleasure to his world. Even if you didnt understand the attraction, it didnt matter to Louie. No one would ever understand the great joy he felt from Mina, not even himself. After half an hour of riding Wildflower, Mina was so filled with joy that nothing could bring her down.
“How come you don’t ride?” she asked him as she brushed Wildflower in the stables.
“I was never really into horses. I don’t really like relying on others, animal or human to get where I need to go or I guess keep me safe. No offense to Wesley and the other guards.”
“Prince Louie, a man who trusts no one.”
“I think I am more prone to mistrust kindness than something that is obviously bad.”
“Why?”
“Well, Mina, kindness is not easily distributed to me from others.”
“You mean the King?”
“Yes, he is the leader of the I hate Louie fan club. You were the Vice President.”
Mina laughed. “I didn’t hate you, Louie.”
“You sure about that? I quote, ‘I hate you Louie. I guarantee you that if Satan needed a replacement, it would be you’.”
“We were like thirteen and you were being malicious, making fun of my aunt and her drinking and informing me she was one of your father’s many conquests.”
The laughter stopped as Louie remembered all the harsh things he did to Mina out of his own way of loving. He needed her to hate him at the time to tare out the feeling in his heart, but now he had finally came to the realization that it never left, it had only grown. Mina felt bad for reminding Louie of how he used to treat her when she saw Louie’s face.
“It’s okay, Louie.”
“No. It’s not.” He stood next to her watching her hand with the brush glide through Wildflower. “It’s not okay. I’m really sorry, Mina. More than you know.”
“Well, it’s the past. We are in the now and right now you are not that person. You are not a person who needs to be in fear of someone when they are nice to you. Besides, Louie, regardless of what your father does, you do have people that love you. Jezebel, Bartleby, Sedgwick, your mom.”
“My mom,” Louie repeated to himself.
“I know you miss her and you should.”
“Yeah, well, that’s life. You live, then you die.”
“Yeah, but it’s about what you do with that life.” Mina faced him. “Life is a slow burning trial that is unbalanced and at risk. Anything could ruin it, but it’s about what you do with that ruin. It’s like hair. You can cut it, but it will grow back and it is possible that it won’t grow back the same way it was before, but it doesn’t matter as long as it still grows. So don’t dwell on the ruin, Louie. Make something out of it.”
“When did you get so poetic?” he grinned at her.
“Please, I have always been a bad ass philosopher. Besides talk about poetic, look at you. Tortured Prince full of angst, mystery, an
d inner demons hidden behind his handsome exterior.”
“So, you think I’m handsome?” he smirked.
Mina arched her brow. “Don’t get cocky.”
Louie laughed as Patrick came and took Wildflower away. They walked towards the jet black mini golf cart where one of the help, Fred, waited to drive them back to their homes.
“We are going to drop off Mina, first, okay Fred?” Louie informed him.
Fred nodded his head. “Yes, Your Highness.” Louie and Mina hopped in the backseat of the cart and Fred drove off.
“Thank you, Louie.” Mina looked at him and smiled. “Especially for the archery lesson.”
“You’re welcome.” Mina noticed he was in deep thought.
“What?” She asked him.
“What did you picture the bull’s-eye as? Your goal, your want?”
Mina faintly smile. “The ability to not be in love with your brother anymore.” She laughed to herself. “You would think after everything that has happened, I would be over him, but he is still what I think about along with the child I was supposed to have. I thought because I didnt answer when he finally called that I was through.”
“Come on Mina. You’re not naive.” Mina’s brow scrunched and Louie sighed, wanting to let her know what he meant. “You and Sedgwick were in love. Together and in love for years. From your first kiss to the moments you would just look at eachother, signaling emotions all over the room. No one can fall out of love so fast. It can take from months to years, that’s just how it is because when you devote so much to a person it becomes a regular routine for you to just love that person. You can’t just forget about it. You just can’t change your daily routine so easily. It takes time.”
“Time,” Mina said to herself. “Well hopefully time goes by quickly.”
Chapter 9
Time
Time did pass quickly, at least for Mina and Louie. For the past seven months, their friendship seemed to be more powerful than their connections with others. Mina never thought that the boy she had despised would become a man she respected. From the day the ice melted to the day the summer rose and heated everything in its path, Mina and Louie never went a day without seeing each other. The trust Mina had in Louie was what really made her care for him. She trusted him with her secrets, her feelings for Sedgwick, and her dreams, which is why he was the person she turned to when she decided what to do with her life.
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