The Inside Story

Chapter One

  As I walked through the double doors of the newsroom, the smell of coffee and ink hit me like a wall. I waved to Charlie, the intern, and Sarah, the secretary.

  "You're late, idiot," Ari said as she walked up to me. She handed me a Starbucks cup and I took a sip.

  "White Chocolate Mocha?" I asked her. She smiled at me. "How'd you know?"

  "Your aura says White Chocolate Mocha, plus I've been to Starbucks with you a bazillion times and this is what you get 94% of the time," Ari said. I laughed.

  "Ari, you're a gem," I said, wrapping my arm around her.

  "Anything for you, Charlotte Stella," Ari said as she wrapped her arm around me. Suddenly I felt another arm wrap around me. 

  "I can't believe you two are having a best friend moment without me," Holden said. Ari handed him a Starbucks cup. 

  "I don't know what we were thinking," Ari said. We all walked to our desks, which were right beside each other, and logged into our computers. 

  "What are you doing for the holidays, Stella?" Ari asked. I shrugged my shoulders. 

  "Don't really want to go home, so I'll probably just go and by a turkey and Doritos from Walmart," I said, grabbing my stress ball. "What are you guys doing?"

  "Going home," they said in unison.  I shook my head. I turned back to my computer and began to go to the website, when Ari gasped. 

  "Ari, is Forever 21 having a sale again?" Holden asked. 

  "No, this is something much better. Stella look at this," she said, turning her computer so I could see. 

Trouble within the Royal Family?

  The Royal Family of Roquefort seems to be having a lot of trouble at the time. King Joseph and Queen Margaret are almost ready to step down, which means it is almost time for the new king to be crowned. The heir to the throne is Prince Alexander, who is 34, and behind him is Prince Henry, age 29. An inside source says that Prince Alexander does not wish to be king, but Joseph and Margaret are forcing him. As one of the continents most influential families, this could heavily impact the government of Roquefort.

 "This is fabulous!" I exclaimed. 

  "How is some family problems of a royal family in some tiny European country a big deal?" Holden asked. 

  "Holden, I have tracked this family since the beginning of my journalist career! They're evil. They get taxes and use it for their own selfish purposes and don't even care about the people in their own country," I said.

  "Plus Prince Alexander is very attractive," Ari said. I shook my head.

  "So what are you going to do about it?" Holden asked, putting his pen between his teeth.

  "I'm going to go to Roquefort and get the inside story on this whole matter so I can prove what horrible people they are," I said, standing up. Ari and Holden looked at each other, then stood up with me. 

  "How do you plan on doing that?" Holden asked. 

  "I'll just have to figure out to get inside the palace. Maybe pose as a potential wife for Prince Alexander," I said, thoughts rushing through my head.

  "You really think he'd be that oblivious?" Holden questioned. 

  "Totally. He's a complete idiot. Probably," I said. 

  "He's even more attractive in real life. Probably," Ari thought out loud.  I stared at her. 

  "So you're really going to do this?" Holden asked. I turned around and looked at my two best friends. 

  "Yeah, I am."