Let Me Tell You a Secret

Chapter Sixteen

The boy was restrained by the three guards, a number of other men approaching them as they cried in excitement.
 
"We got him! We got him!"
 
They crowded round the boy pinned to the floor peering at his face and cheering. The brunette only scowled as he was pulled to his feet. A guard grinned down at him.
 
"You're coming with us."
 
The boy was clueless.
 
He had no idea why the guards were so excited to capture him, assuming they had mistaken him for someone else. Well, they would find out soon enough, he thought to himself.
 
The boy was reluctantly dragged away, wincing every time a guard was called over to stare into his face. They all seemed to unanimously agree that he was the boy they were looking for, commenting that he looked just like the painting.
 
Painting? What painting?
 
This fiasco occurred the entire journey to the castle.
 
The brunette's jaw slacked when he realised he was being taken to the Royal castle and he panicked. Why would they take a beggar child to the castle? Surely if they assumed he was a wanted outlaw they would take him to the nearest prison cell to be interrogated and locked up until he could prove his innocence. But the castle… only the most wanted criminals were taken there for an audience with the King. For the Royal family to pass their judgement.
 
And, in the past twelve months of living in the city's streets, the boy had learnt that punishment was usually death.
 
Petrified, the young boy's muscles froze and he could no longer fight back, being dragged through the castle halls, leaving muddy footprints behind him as they went.
 
They eventually came to a small, elegant room. The boy was pushed inside and a number of maids surrounded him.
 
"Make him look good. The king will want to see him as soon as possible."
 
Upon spotting the boy's golden eyes and brown, scraggly hair tied back with a golden ribbon, the maids didn't need telling twice. They rushed around the room, stripping the boy bare, much to his refusal. Washing him down, they cleaned the brunette up, dressing him in sophisticated wear, brushing out his hair and tying it back up with that same gold ribbon, now freshly washed.
 
When the boy was pushed in front of a mirror, he could barely recognise himself.
 
His face looked like a hollow shell, and his figure so scrawny and slim, an obvious outcome of living on the streets. And now he was dressed in finer clothes than he had ever seen.
 
It was all so peculiar.
 
If they had brought him to the castle for the king to pass his final judgement, why would they go through so much effort of cleaning him up and providing such expensive clothing.
 
He wasn't left time to think however, as the maids quickly pushed the young boy from the room, guiding him down the large, echoing corridors of the castle.
 
They finally came to a large set of wooden doors, decorated with ornate carvings. A guard outside of the room opened the doors and announced their arrival. 
 
The boy was pushed and pulled down a royal red carpet, approaching an imposing figure sitting arrogantly atop a regal throne.
 
Just a few feet away from the throne, one of the maids hissed at the astounded boy to kneel before they all dispersed, leaving only the brunette, kneeling before the king on the red carpet.
 
The brunette looked away from the intense gaze of the blonde on the throne. Having lowered himself to one knee, the boy averted his eyes and stared at the floor. He gulped as he heard rustling movement ahead and heavy footsteps getting closer to him.
 
A pair of beautifully decorated black boots stopped right in front of him. The brunette's gaze latched on and refused to move. 
 
The entire room held their breath as the king knelt on the floor before the boy, lifting a hand and gently gripping the boy's chin to tilt his face up.
 
No one dared say a word.
 
How often had they gone through this and yet the king had never reacted this way with any of the previous brunettes presented to him.
 
The boy's chin was lifted and he swallowed nervously as his gaze met that of the King's. Intense yellow eyes stared at him, a firm hostility set into the man's features.
 
Then his face suddenly relaxed.
 
His gaze, soft and gentle.
 
He raised his other hand and caressed the boy's face, whispering under his breath.
 
"You look just like her…"
 
The words resonated with the brunette, his eyes wide open and fully focused on the man still staring at him.
 
"You look just like your mother."
 
The brunette's eyes glistened and, forgetting his place, the words slipped from his tongue.
 
"You… you know my mama?"
 
The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
 
The king finally smiled at the boy, a sad, wistful twist of his lips.
 
"Arlene… yes, I knew her well."
 
"Then… you know where she is now?"
 
His eyes shining so brightly, full of excitement and expectation, somehow hoping that his belief of the past twelve months had been wrong, that his mother was still alive and well. 
 
The king let his hands drop, his face twisting in displeasure and hatred, he turned away from the boy.
 
"I do."
 
A short, curt answer and he turned away from the child, returning to his throne.
 
"Where is she?"
 
"...I'm sorry…"
 
The pain in the King's voice, the hurt in his eyes, told the brunette everything he needed to know.
 
Gone.
 
She was gone.
 
"Wh-what happened?"
 
The boy gulped when he asked, scared to hear the answer.
 
"Do you really want to know?"
 
The way the king asked definitely made the boy feel nervous, yet he still nodded, he needed to know.
 
"It seems she was being chased. She was running through the forest, she came to a cliff edge and lost her footing. Someone reported hearing a scream that night so we sent some guards to look into it. We found her body at the bottom of the cliff."
 
His tone dripped with anger as he spat out some of the words, clearly trying to hide his emotion.
 
The boy swallowed his explanation, his world crashing down around him, he didn't even think to question this man who so clearly seemed to hold some sort of affection for and relationship with his mother.
 
And, to be fair, what the king had offered was mostly the truth.
 
It was never meant to end that way.
 
And if he had been involved, it certainly wouldn't have.
 
But King Edahn had decided to get involved. He had the information from his son and assumed he would be able to capture the mother and son, offering them to his fellow King in return for a healthy reward, so he kept the information to himself.
 
However, he hadn't expected Arlene to fall from a cliff in the forest as his guards chased her down.
 
They even lost track of the boy.
 
And so, tail between his legs, King Edahn had to crawl on his knees and beg for forgiveness in front of King Jahad. Or, well, his guards had to as King Edahn would never stoop so low.
 
Needless to say, he didn't get his reward and even managed to sour his relationship with King Jahad in the process.
 
The young boy processed the information regarding his mother's death. Yes, it hurt and destroyed everything he had been holding on to, yet there was still hope.
 
"Then, what about my papa? Do you know him? Do you know where he is?"
 
A flash of something crossed the King's face before he steeled his jaw and gaze, staring down at the child once more.
 
"I do, and I know where he is."
 
"Please, tell me."
 
The tone of the King's voice already hinted at the boy's assumption as to his father's condition.
 
"He's no longer with us either. "
 
The words lingered in the hall, and the boy gaped at the king. He wanted to scream and cry, yet no tears would form.
 
Only a heavy loneliness.
 
"How… how did he…"
 
"It's best that you don't know."
 
Cutting off the child's question, he let the boy's imagination run wild. Because, of course, why would he tell the son of Arlene that he had tortured his father to death all in the hopes of discovering Arlene's location?
 
Letting the information sink in to the child, the King waited for a response.
 
"Oh…"
 
It was all the brunette could muster.
 
His family, gone.
 
A pained sigh, as if the boy had expected this news all along. His feelings numbed and he couldn't even bring himself to react to the news of his parents passing anymore.
 
His thoughts went to the bluenette, the boy that had stayed with them, the child that had become his whole world outside of his parents existence.
 
He considered asking about the bluenette but knew it would be useless to ask about him, he had likely joined the family after his mother and the King knew each other, based on the fact Arlene hadn't left the forest in years.
 
If only the brunette had mentioned it, then King Jahad would have discovered where King Edahn gained his valuable information.
 
After a few moments of silence, the king spoke again.
 
"I would like to take care of you here."
 
"What?"
 
Broken out of his moments of grief, the brunette stared up at the King on his throne in surprise.
 
King Jahad fondly looked back, that expression all too familiar to him. One that he loved far too much and thought he would never see again if not for some useful information from King Edahns guards and a merchant that had entered his city, reporting a suspicious female travelling with a brunette child with golden eyes.
 
"I want you to become my son."
 
He reconfirmed his intention to the child who only looked back, bewildered. King Jahad smiled sadly at the boy again and explained his reasoning.
 
"I am an unmarried King. I had a son with a concubine but he recently passed away. Now I am without an heir to the throne and no queen to birth another son for me. There is no guarantee a concubine would give me a son. So why don't you take his place?"
 
The boy blinked, only half understanding. It was then explained to him that when a royal child is born, only their birth is announced. Their name, their looks, all other personal detail is held under lock and key until the child turns sixteen years old. 
 
The kingdom didn't even know the child had passed away yet.
 
So it would be an easy matter for the brunette to swoop in and take his place, a lucky coincidence that the two children happened to be the same age. 
 
Everyone within the castle would also be sure to keep the secret, though the boy guessed this was because of trust rather than fear. 
 
The boy considered the offer briefly.
 
This man, the king, would offer him a home, guarantee of comfort, of food, of water.
 
Comparing that to life on the streets where he wouldn't be able to guess where or when he would get his next meal…
 
His answer should have been obvious.
 
King Jahad also seemed to be friendly with his parents, holding a deep care for his mother in particular, surely there would be no harm in staying.
 
"Okay… yes. I will stay."
 
His answer firm, the boy still knelt before the throne.
 
The King smirked down at him, happy with his response.
 
Even if the boy had said no, there was no way the child would ever be leaving the castle.
 
"Good, the maids will now take you to your suite and you will join me later for a meal. Tonight, we celebrate your homecoming."
 
The boy stared up at the king, the man he currently considered his saviour, and a small, coy smile tugged at his lips, wanting to thank this gracious King for helping him in his time of need.
 
And that smile went straight to King Jahads heart. 
 
Arlene.
 
Arlene.
 
Arlene .
 
It was as if she was still here.
 
At the wave of the King's hand, the maids collected the boy and escorted him from the room. 
 
The rest of the servants soon followed after them having been dismissed by the King.
 
Only King Jahad's most trusted right hand man remained.
 
He approached the throne and knelt before it, bowing his head in respect.
 
"What do you want?"
 
The King glared down at him, he hadn't asked for this person to remain behind, it seemed he had something to say to the King.
 
"My Lord, about your son…"
 
A small smile quirked at King Jahad's lips as he thought about the boy, the spitting image of Arlene. No trace of the boy's father in his features and the King could easily pretend that the child was his.
 
But his wonderful fantasy shattered into pieces as the man spoke.
 
"Your son is still alive…"
 
The king scowled, glaring at his right hand man for ruining his good mood.
 
Of course there was no happy coincidence that his son had passed away recently.
 
It was all lies.
 
He tilted his head back and scoffed at the man.
 
"Then you should know what to do."
 
"...Of course, my Lord."
 
An emotionless reply and the man briskly bowed and exited the room, leaving the King to return to his insane fantasy of his and Arlene's child.
 
That night a mother and son were erased from the castle.