Three Lies, All True || ONC2021 Longlister

Chapter 2: How to Not Hide a Dead Body

Even though there was snow all around her, Petra still felt cold sweat trickling down her forehead. It was almost like her layers of clothes and coats finally decided to wrap themselves around her body and make her feel the heat instead of the cold.

This wasn't the first time she saw a dead body, but she still felt uneasy at the sight of it.

Her gaze never left the body lying down on the snowy grounds. The expression on the person's face made her stomach slightly twist. Their eyes and mouth were open, making their face twist in permanent horror, and their hands were on their neck. She didn't know what frightened her more--their slightly purplish face, or the blood that poured from the side of their mouth.

Or maybe the insignia on their chest should have scared her to death. Two golden unicorns with their horns crossed against each other and a chamomile flower below. It was the insignia of Nuryyn.

The person in front of her was a Nuryynian soldier, lying dead in the snowy gardens of Royisa's Castle.

"Petra!"

Petra turned around, watching as Peter caught up to her. Just like what she expected, her twin stopped in his tracks with wide eyes. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, only for stutters to leave his lips.

"Is- is he..."

It was a dumb question, but she understood why he was asking that. He must have seen the insignia, too.

Even though she was certain they were dead, she still pushed her legs to walk forward and kneel down in front of the soldier. Their purple-tinted face should have been a good enough sign that they were gone, but she still placed two fingers on their neck. She held her breath, as if she was expecting them to come back to life and breathe.

Unsurprisingly, there was no response.

"They don't have a pulse." She stood up and dusted the snow out of her clothes. "I told you, they're dead."

"I... I figured that they were, but..." Peter reached for his bolo tie and fiddled with the gem before stopping next to her. "I was hoping that they were just... in a coma or something from the cold."

Petra's chest slightly ached from her heart beating too much, but she pushed her nervousness aside and shook her head. "Yeah, 'sleep'. Because with that face and blood, they sure would have a nice nap in dreamland and think about magical wonders and fantasies!"

Her brother shot her a glare and scoffed. "Petra, this is serious. They're from Nuryyn, and- and--why is there a dead body in the royal gardens?! Are you not concerned about that?"

She scoffed and brushed her brother away, turning her gaze back to the soldier below them. "Do you think you can detect what killed them? By the looks of it, I'm assuming they were either poisoned or strangled to death."

"I'm not touching it, I don't want to be accidentally accused or anything." Her brother crossed his arms and mumbled to himself again. Then, his eyes lit up as a smile curled on his face. "Hey, what if you do your star magic thingy and see what it tells us to do?"

"Star mag--what are you talking about?" It was her turn to scoff, though it slowly turned into laughter. "You think that trusting what the stars say is better than reporting the body to the higher ups and becoming less suspicious? I thought you said that this was serious! Why are you suddenly--"

Something tugged Petra's chest, making her purse her lips and lower her head. She placed a hand on her face before turning to the body in front of them.

Of course, her star map. How could she forget about that? If they would report the body, they might be even more suspicious, and maybe the blame would be put on them. But if she would just say that they trusted what the stars told her, then people would think it was the best choice because it was what fate foretold.