New Rome

68. Secret Messages

Arly sat at what had once been Talindra's dressing table. With a slow hand, she traced the swirls of a painted design and wondered if Talindra had drawn them. What had happened to the emperor's mistress? Why was she no longer mentioned at court? Even the emperor seemed to have forgotten her. But, what did that mean?

She remembered how Talindra and the Emperor had been together, always playful, always close. He'd seemed blissfully content to feed Talindra sugary fruits and sweets, his gaze seeming to marvel at Talindra's existence in his life. Arly shook her head. That couldn't have been a lie. It was impossible.

Safe in the knowledge that she was alone, Arly started pulling out the drawers in the dressing table and rooting around in them. Somewhere in this room, there had to be a clue for what had happened. Where was Talindra? And why had she disappeared? Arly ran her finger across the varnished wood, searching for secret compartments. She found nothing but, not giving up. She scoured the room.

At last, lying on her stomach so as to look in the crack between wardrobe and floor – she finally found something. Arly's stomach fluttered with excitement. But it took her several minutes to work out how to retrieve the slender object. She had to use a ruler and an eyebrow pencil to nudge it within reach. When she did, she was able to grasp a very dusty-looking Self device.

Arly frowned, examining the Self. These weren't used in Amen, they were New Rome technology. Looking at the unfashionable model, Arly guessed that it was over five years old. She wondered if it still had charge. Switching the device on, Arly had to wait patiently for the device to load in the home screen. When it did,  Arly gasped - taken aback.

The background wallpaper was of a human male. One that Arly recognised very well. It was a picture of Guy. Arly stared at her brother's face. She remembered dimly, her first meeting with Talindra...

"So, my sweetling." The emperor had playfully addressed his mistress. "You wanted to meet the little princess so badly and now you have."

Talindra had smiled apologetically at Arly.

"I was curious to know if you were similar to your brother." She'd admitted.

"You knew Guy?"

Arly stared at the devices' screen, at her brother's smiling face. How close had Guy and Talindra been?

With unsteady fingers, Arly found the exchanged messages. This phone only had one contact and, as Arly read through the numerous messages, she deduced that they were all between Talindra and Guy. Arly's heart stuttered. Why had Talindra had a secret device to communicate with Guy?

Arly's mind was racing as she read through the pair's conversation, spanning months. She was startled when her own name cropped up.

From Guy:

...and Arly has sent me a gift...

From Guy:

I know you would like my little sister. She would be so excited to meet you. She loves all things Amen. It's her dream to one day visit...