The Royal Dream

Chapter 1

James Gordon was worried. His father was losing time and still he couldn't find anything about the Boyce family. He was truly determined to find out the truth, the truth which had been buried in the mud of lies a long time ago.

He was sitting in the balcony, thinking hard. The early morning sunlight was soft on his pale skin. The green, fresh plants in the balcony were also basking in the sun rays. Birds were chirping and the flowers were blooming. It looked like every element of nature was enjoying the morning except for James.

He sighed loudly as he stood up and entered the huge master bedroom which he shared with his wife.

"Is everything okay?" Mary asked her husband in a concerned voice.

"Yes. I am just thinking about Dad. He doesn't have enough time left and we still don't have much on the Boyce family. It is really sad. I can't leave here, and I don't trust anyone for this important task."

"Why don't you ask Joseph? I am sure he wouldn't say no." She suggested.

"Yes but we haven't told him anything about those things. His curiosity won't allow him to do this without having answers to all the questions"

"Then why don't you tell him?"

"I don't want any kind of bias to destroy the ultimate motive of this job. It will only be possible if he doesn't know anything about the past."

"That's true. Just talk to him. Maybe you will succeed in convincing him to do this."

"You're right. Let me talk to him today."

Joseph was his only son. He was the only heir to their entire business empire. James was the last king before he abdicated his powers. Now the family owned a chain of businesses in Glenesk, Scotland. The wealth they had was so profound that their three generations could live comfortably without any other source of income.

However, there was one thing that James wanted to accomplish. He wanted to fulfill his father's last wish. His father Jason was eighty nine years old. Only recently was he diagnosed with cancer. Due to his age, the doctors were against any harsh chemical treatment and without any medication he did not have much time. Thus, it was important that he entrusted this task to a reliable and trustworthy person. Who could be more reliable than his own son?

After taking a nice bath, he dressed up in his regular suit and went downstairs for the family breakfast. It was a meal which all members of the family were able to join. Due to work, he ate lunch at the office. However, sometimes business meetings and parties caused him to dine out instead of a family dinner at the house. It wasn't a house technically, it was a castle.

The living room was huge, with a high ceiling. The ceiling had a beautiful pattern, filled with circles, flowers, mirrors, miniature drawings and what not. Due to the high ceiling, there were at least six white and golden pillars visible in the huge drawing room (not a room, but kind of a hall instead). There was an expensive carpet in the middle of the hall, with a glass top table on it. An expensive vase laid there on the table and its flowers were changed everyday.

After descending the stairs, one could see that there was another hall ahead of the living room. It was the dining area and on the left of it was a lavish and huge kitchen. The dining table was filled with variety of choices for breakfast. There was bacon, eggs, bread, toast and even fruits along with other dishes. Of course, the food didn't go waste because after the family ate, the rest was served to a number of servants in the castle.

As James walked towards the dining area, he noticed that everyone was already seated and waiting for him. He took his seat and the servants came forward to serve the meal. They updated each other with any new developments during the meal. There were only four of them on the table, including James. His mother, Jason's wife, had passed away a year ago.

As soon as they were done, James said to Joseph, "I need to talk to you. Come with me."

He led his son towards the study room. The study room looked like some huge posh library. There were books all around. In the middle of the huge room, there was a beautiful light green sofa set. He motioned Joseph to take a seat.

"Is everything okay dad?" Joseph asked as he took a seat diagonal to his father.

"Yeah. All's well. I have a really important task for you son. The task is not easy, and I want someone trustworthy to do it."

"Dad, you know I will do anything to help you out. Tell me, what is it?"

"I want you to go to Saint-Émilion, a small town in Bordeaux, France. I want you to go there as Joseph Martin, a vineyard worker and not as Joseph Gordon, a prince from a royal family. You have to live with a family, Boyces, they are looking for a helper for their vineyard and they will accommodate you in their house. At least that's what their advertisement says. If they don't agree, convince them somehow. But I want you to live with them."

"Oh-kay, but why?"Joseph sounded nothing but confused and curious.

"Because I want you to provide me with a judgement of that family. Are they greedy or humble? Are they generous or harsh? Are they money minded or sage-like? Can they do anything for money or money is just another means of survival for them? I trust your judgement of people son. And remember, don't tell them about your royal status."

"But why do you want to know what kind of people are they? Is this for some business deal for our empire?"

"No, this is personal and very important, son. Just remember you have only a month or two for this at max. This is important for your grandfather and thus it is important for me as well as you. I am at no liberty to tell you any more than this son, the less you know the better. So please don't ask any questions about it."

"Okay, but I don't know anything about working at vineyards. How will I manage to become a worker without arising any suspicion?"

"Read the basics and spend one day at a vineyard. You can tell them that you are ready to learn and are relatively new at this. How difficult can it be? I will ask Jeff to prepare our private plane to take you to Paris, you can plan your journey from there. You will be leaving tomorrow."

"Okay dad. I better be going then." He got up to leave.

"Thanks son. Just remember, this is really important and I want you to use the best of your judgement." He reiterated as they were about to leave the room, while standing at the door.

"Yes dad, I won't let you down." He turned and went towards the staircase to his room upstairs.

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Hello lovely readers! I hope you're doing well! Thank you so much for choosing this story, I will keep updating it regularly. Don't forget to Vote, Share and Comment if you loved it.

Oh and what do you think is the mystery of this Boyce family? Let me know in the comments!