The Sultans Heirs

{Suspicions}

Malik

I sat on the stone railing of the large balcony in my room. Just staring out onto the moonlit night.

It was calm. Cackling fire can be heard from the oil lamps stationed on the walls, and I can also hear the far-away waves crashing onto the shore.

An owl was hooting, and light chatter was coming from a few guards portraying the castle grounds.

I should have been asleep by this time, but I couldn't. My brain can not wrap around what had happened.

I knew what good of a fighter my brother was. A mere mountain lion cannot be able to kill him.

When we were younger, he'd killed a mountain lion with just a sword on his own. Also, how could my uncle and the rest of the soldiers not hear screaming or anything? It's not possible they were that far away.

On top of all that, being unable to find a trace of his body makes this even more confusing. There has to be something left behind.

It just didn't make sense. The more I thought about this, the more suspicious I got.

I feel my uncle and those soldiers weren't telling the truth. They're hiding something, but there is only one way to find out.

I have to go and see for myself. I won't believe my brother is dead unless I see it with my own eyes.

I quickly changed into my riding gear and ensured I wore nothing symbolizing the royal family. I wouldn't want to be caught.

I grabbed my sword, the only thing with the royal crest on it, and made my way to the door, but I stopped when I caught a glimpse of Adam's sword on my bed.

Without another thought, I grabbed it and left the room. After adjusting Adam's sword next to mine on my waist, I unsuspectingly made my way outside the palace without being spotted.

Once I made it to the horse stables, I expected the stable workers to be inside like usual, but they were knocked out on a haystack. While only one remained awake, he was occupied with one of the maids behind the stables.

I quietly strapped myself onto my horse and sped off towards the back fields of the palace. Soldiers remained outside, but it was too dark to spot me unless they got close enough for their fire torches to expose me.

The large field was open without a single tree in sight, so if the clouds above moved and allowed the moonlight to shine down, then I could be easily spotted by anyone in the palace who happened to be looking out a window or balcony.

I kept looking behind me every few minutes to make sure I wasn't spotted, and once I could make it into the forest, I slowed down and lit the torch I had brought.

I kept my eyes very sharp and open. Trying to spot anything that could lead me to my brother while my horse strutted through the giant trees. I was sure this was the route they had taken.

Once I was deep enough into the forest, I made sure to slow down at a slow pace. I was looking for large animal footprints or bloody trails, but there was nothing.

Without even realizing it, hours had passed while I had been searching. The sun was slowly rising, but I couldn't find a single lead. On top of that, my torch fire ran out.

My horse was getting tired and thirsty, so I got off and tied him to a tree to allow him to rest for a bit while I decided to climb a nearby tree.

Getting onto higher ground would benefit my search.