The Prince and The Thief

Twelve

Note: In the last chapter, the name of the character "Aim" was actually supposed to be "Dae" and he has nothing to do with bodyguard Aim. I messed it up. Sorry 🙏 😬 Please read it as Dae from this chapter onwards.

Dae pressed the "Publish" button and buried his face into his palms. He then took his phone and read the name "Prem" again on the missed calls list. He prayed, wishing his friend to be back safe and sound.

"This b*stard was following me," Prem heard someone say as soon as he was awake, making him suddenly alert. He didn't know where he was and slightly opened his eyes to see that he was sitting on a corner of a big room that was almost dark except for the sunlight coming in through the tinted window and the opened door. He could feel his hands tied up at the back. Seeing two people in front of him, Prem chose to keep his eyes closed and listen further. "Prem, the fiery journalist, the rebel who is scared of none, my foot," another voice said. Prem tried his best not to move until he heard footsteps recede. By the time he opened his eyes, Prem grimaced in pain. His left eye was swollen to the point of not able to see anything and the bruises on his face hurt. "Good morning," Prem flinched hearing the voice. The man, who looked like he was in his early 30s, in front of Prem smirked before grabbing him by his jaw, gritting his teeth in anger. Prem was taken aback for a moment and on seeing the man he was looking for in front of him, he smirked, confusing the latter. "Good to see you alive, bodyguard San," Prem said and the next moment, the man's smile faded. He moved back from where he stood before landing a blow on Prem's face. "So are you the only one alive or is the crown prince alive too?" Prem asked, his mouth tasting blood. The man in front of him clenched his fists and raised his hand to land another blow, but the next question from Prem stopped him. "You think I didn't know? About you and the crown prince? The love birds who would sneakingly meet each other in the middle of the night?" Prem smirked. "Stop, just stop," San screamed to which Prem laughed out loud. "So the king only killed his own son and left you to live?" Prem asked to which San moved forward and grabbed him by the collar. "Shut up you b*stard," he screamed, but left Prem the next moment, hearing the door knob click.
"Tch..tch..tch..the famous reporter is now lying in a puddle of blood! What a great sight!" a voice from the door said. Prem scrunched his eyes, trying to see the face of the tall man, whose silhouette was visible to him. As the man moved forward, Prem's eyes widened in recognition. "Sir," a voice from behind stopped the man in his tracks.  The person who just came in whispered something to him causing the tall man to take a look at Prem and then walk out in hasty steps. "So, it was him all the while? And not the king?" Prem asked. San looked at Prem,without saying aword and then turned before closing the door and walking out.

Kongpop couldn't help, but laugh at the way Arthit was keenly paying attention to what Tew was saying as he explained how to cut wood. He got up from the easy chair he was sitting on and walked towards them. "P'Tew he might hurt himself. Let's do this ourselves," Kongpop said to which Arthit looked at him annoyed. "No, I want to learn," Arthit said. Their conversation was interrupted by Tew's friend. "Kong, help him out. I'll be back in a while," Tew said before walking away,  leaving Kongpop and Arthit alone. "Do you really want to learn this? You'll get hurt," Kongpop explained. "Nobody cares if I get hurt. Even people in the palace want me dead, this is nothing," Arthit said, his eyes fixed on the axe in his hand. Kongpop suddenly remembered the night when he overheard someone talking about killing Arthit. "Why did they try to poison you that night?" Kongpop asked. Arthit looked at him surprised. "Were you the one who put that note on my window?" he asked to which Kongpop nodded his head in agreement. Suddenly Kongpop's phone in his trouser pocket rang. It was Bright. "Hello P'," Kong said. Arthit could see Kongpop's expression turn serious all of a sudden, and he was looking at Arthit in between while continuing to speak to Bright. "what happened?" Arthit asked. "Come with me," Kongpop said before entering Tew's home and switching on the TV.

Reporter Prem, famous for working independently through his online channel '24x7 news' has once again come up with some exclusive content that has left the whole country shaken. This time his target is the royal family. Few weeks earlier, Prem's question at the palace press conference had led to mixed opinions among the citizens. His latest post seems like the answer to the question he had asked that day. This photograph was said to be taken two days before the crown prince was declared dead by the royal palace. Here you can see the prince in good health and happy. Also, according to reporter Prem, the bodyguard in the photograph went missing after the crown prince's death and the palace maid was found shot dead at her home. Another shocking content is the audio clip, which he claims to be the statement of the doctor at the royal hospital who had conducted the autopsy of the deceased queen five years ago. Back then, it was said that the queen was suffering from a rare form of cancer, which was the cause of her death. But here, the doctor says that the real reason was arsenic poisoning. This doctor had committed suicide last year. The report suggests that it is very clear from the audio that the queen's death was planned. From what we know, after posting the scandalous report, Prem has gone into hiding. There are many questions in everyone's mind that people have been asking through various platforms. Is this report true? If it is, how did the reporter get the photograph and the audio clip? The royal palace is yet to respond.

Kongpop, who stood shocked at the news, was startled at the sudden noise from his right. He turned to see Arthit holding on to the wall for support. Arthit's body shook before he broke into tears and dropped to the floor. "Mae," he called as he grabbed his knees closer to his chest, fists clenched. Kongpop sat next to him, not knowing what to say. "I saw her dying in front of me and I couldn't even protect her," Arthit said between his sobs. Kongpop chose to ignore that the person crying next to him is a prince. He took a deep breath before putting his arm around Arthit and pulled him closer, letting him drown his tears on his shoulders. He silently listened to Arthit's sobs, caressing his head to comfort him. After about half an hour, the sobs died down. "I'm tired," Arthit mumbled, grabbing Kongpop's attention. Arthit still had his face buried on Kongpop's shoulder and his right hand grabbed the latter's T-shirt. "Do you want to sleep?" Kongpop asked softly to which Arthit shook his head in denial. "I thought my father really loved my mother. How could he think of killing her?" Arthit said, in a quivering voice, as he sat up. Kongpop wiped away the tears that were smeared on Arthit's now red face and  fixed his hair that was now messy. "I don't know why but I don't think it was your father. That night I had overheard someone talk about killing you and the reason they said was the king was feeling sorry for you after your mother passed away. Also, if it was the king, why would he keep you alive after announcing to the world that you were dead? He might have said that fearing for his position if anyone knew about you liking boys. But I don't think he meant to harm you," Kongpop said. Arthit shook his head still wondering about the possibility of his father being innocent in his mother's death. "Guys, let's have dinner," Tew, who was back from his friend's interrupted, showing the plates of food from the door. Arthit and Kongpop got up and followed him to the dining table. Kongpop could see that Arthit was lost in thoughts through the dinner. "I'm going to bed," Arthit said as Kongpop sat taking to Tew and walked away. He had so much to think after all.

When Kongpop entered the room, Arthit was lying awake on the bed. "Haven't you slept yet?" Kongpop asked,  taking out the blanket and pillow from the cupboard. "Will you sleep next to me, please?" Arthit asked. Kongpop looked at him surpried and then nodded his head before switching off the lights and climbing on the bed. "I want to go back," Arthit said after a few minutes, causing Kongpop to turn to face Arthit. "But, do you think they'll spare you after you go back?" Kongpop asked. He suddenly felt scared of the thought of Arthit being harmed. He couldn't even be around Arthit once he goes back. "I don't know. But if my father is innocent like you said, they would harm him too. I want to do something before anything bad happens," he said to which Kongpop nodded his head in understanding. "Okay, I'll talk to P'Bright tomorrow, sleep now," Kongpop assured, but heard no reply. "Can I hug you?" Arthit asked after few minutes to which Kongpop sighed. As soon as he muttered a barely audible "okay," he felt Arthit's hand wrap around his waist. Kongpop closed his eyes, hoping Arthit won't hear his raging heartbeats. He tried to move Arthit's hand as soon as soft snores could be heard from the side, but in vain. Kongpop realised that he was going to have another sleepless night as soon he felt Arthit move closer, his forehead touching Kongpop's chest, that only caused his heartbeats to grow louder.