Bluebirds Without Wings | Julie and the Phantoms

Something of Mine

Luke had caught a boat ride with a few people he recognized before his abrupt departure. None of them knew where he was, and they presumed him dead which did startle a couple of people for a moment. Until they got used to his presence, they stared at him as if he was a ghost.

"The day Em and Mitch were gone," one of the woman said, "we were already making plans of who was gonna take you meals when and so on. We didn't know they were going to take you, too." Luke had grown up with the woman's son in the boat, and he seemed the most spooked.

He said to Luke, "We really thought you were dead. We were like, they wouldn't keep him in prison for too long. And then months went by, and we'd go check up on your guy's apartment and plants every once in a while, to see if maybe you were back. Nothing changed. After a year, we were, no way Luke is still alive."

"It was either a do what I tell you or I'll kill your parents type of situation," Luke said to them. "I figured someone was taking care of the old place. Thank you."

"Anything for your guy's family," the woman said. "I heard that someone who had just come from the castle gave the information of the lack of security. Was that you?" Luke nodded.

"Just came from there a few hours ago. I haven't slept in a while. I just need my parents back. Caleb isn't going to win the war, and I won't let him take it out on them."

"He won't get the chance to," her son said. "Got messages saying a lot of the loyal kingdom soldiers have been disarmed and taken down already."

"Any word on the prisoners?" Luke asked. "I know they're out of the basement."

"They set up first aid places for them already," he said. "Your parents should be fine there." Luke let out a sigh of relief. He was antsy to get to them, the see them, to hold them without bars in between.

They boat pulled up to the shore near others and Luke thanked the family before speeding off past the sides of the castle. It was noisy, like a fully waged war going on as he saw the huge crowd up front. Luke could distinguish gunshots and took cover behind a couple of failed kingdom barricades. He looked around, wondering where they could set up a first aid area. Nowhere near gunshots for sure, but close enough they could carry the wounded without risking them bleeding out.

Luke remembered about the year King Caleb commission a garden maze on another corner of the castle and headed there. There were a couple of more purposeful gunshots blasted out that run in his ears hard and from the sounds the crowd made, only one of them had hit a rebel. They were winning, and he didn't have time to celebrate.

Luke found the entrance to the hedge maze in a far corner of the castle's front courtyard, and the moment he walked through the entrance, there were beds and beds filled with people. He ran through, looking for his parents in one direction before running back in another.

"Luke?" he heard his mom say. He turned around and saw her standing there with glimmering eyes and her arms open. Luke ran to her, almost tackling her over as he began to cry into her shoulder. His dad who was nearby joined the hug, and they three of them fell on the grass together, people in the area smiling at them.

"We can go home now," he told them as his mom wiped his eyes with her hands.

"Let's go," she whispered, smiling.

-

Luke and his mom were sitting out in front of the lake front at sunset a few days after the castle was overtaken. Emily spent most of her days outside in the sun and like a baby duck, Luke followed her everywhere like if she was going to get taken away again.

King Caleb was found dead by the time the Nation of Kingdoms came in to enforce peace and since he had no heirs, there was going to be a process to install a prime minister. There was currently a hearing against King Caleb's actions to pardon all the organizers and protesters. Luke had given a testimony in front of every kingdom ruler, including King Raymundo. Luke left out his relationship with Julie as much as he could. Even before he fell for her, he never wanted to be apart of the process. A part of a stupid plan that was bound to blow into uncollectable shrapnel.