5 CHAPTER FIVE:TOWN

The next morning came by in a blur and l found myself seated in a matte black jeep, that had brown leather seats and tinted windows. To my surprise, Rose was the one driving the car. We sped down the rocky country side road with nothing but the radio drowning the silence that consumed the car. I was waiting on Rose to start the conversation that she had abruptly ended yesterday and l didn't know how to go about starting it.

"tell me more about this 'kingdom'" l said after mastering the courage to break the silence.

"200 years ago, a group of settlers stumbled upon this land and decided to settle here. They believed in a hierarchical system where they are ruled by a King. That's when the monarchy came about. The lineage of Royal blood was carried down from generation to generation and here we are today " she said. Short and straight to the point.

" okay, although l believe there is more to the story, are there any other kingdoms around or is this the only one? " l asked, curiosity getting the best of me.

" there are other kingdoms around, but we aren't really on friendly terms with any of them" she replied with a grave expression on her face.

We arrived in town and l was at a loss for words. It was buzzing with human life, people of all ages loitering the streets, restaurants packed to the brim. It was a sight to see. We parked in front of what seemed like a market

"since today is a Saturday, the market is open. That's where we get all the fresh produce" she says opening her door and walking towards the different stalls. We got all the different types of vegetables ranging from avocado's to brinjal's.

" Queen Manila?" an old man said bowing in from of me. As if sensing my confusion he explained himself. "my apologies miss, l just couldn't help but notice how you look like a carbon copy of our late queen. Excuse me" and with that he was off. I looked at his retreating figure and just as l was about to call out to him, he was gone. Strange. Looking back l could see a startled looking Rose. Clicking my finger in front her, l could see her snapping out of her daze.

"why is he calling you Queen and bowing before you?" asked Rose with uncertainty.

" your guess is as good as mine. I do not know who or what that man is talking about" l answered her honestly. I could tell she was not convinced as she just nodded her head and made her way to the car.

We drove to another store and bought groceries in bulk, it seemed to be a wholesaler of some sort. People kept on giving me strange looks, some looked at me with disgust and others with curiosity. It baffled me because l had never seen nor spoken to any them. Ignoring them, l carried on helping Rose with the things she needed. Once we had everything that Rose had come to buy, we drove to a clothing store. she parked the car in front of the store and made her way towards the entrance. The bell above the door dinged as we made our way inside the store and a young preppy girl came to our aid.

"hi, how may l help you?" she asked with a smile on her face looking at Rose. She clearly hadn't seen me or she just chose to ignore my presence all together. Rose pointed in my direction and the girl slowly turned to face me. Her face scrunched up in disgust and the friendly smile was wiped off of her face. She looked at Rose then back to me and scoffed.

"what was that about?" l asked Rose as soon as the girl was out of our sight . " l sent your measurements two days ago and asked her to put together different outfits for you" said Rose clearly avoiding the question l asked as the young girl made her way back to us caring a huge back of what l assume are the outfits. She threw the bag at me and l was a little taken back by her attitude. Deciding to be the bigger person, l thanked her and we made our way back to the car and through the buzzing town.

"Rose, do you have any idea as to why that man would call me a queen?" l answered with curiosity evident in my tone.

"I dont know, but what l do know is that queen Manila was hunted down 21 years ago when she gave birth to her first child and hasn't been heard from since then. Many assumed she was dead." she answered turning slightly to look in my direction. Letting the information sink only led to more confusion on my part.

" why was she being hunted? " l asked as nothing was making sense to me

" Rumours can make or destroy a person. Apparently she had some sort of powers but nothing was ever confirmed. The people thought she was a witch or something along those lines and were terrified of her " she said.

" A witch? How is that possible. How did she become the wife of a King? " l asked

" The king, her husband was said to be traveling the world building alliances with other Kingdoms, stumbled upon her and fell in love" she replied.

" so l am guessing the king is still alive?" l asked

"yes, but he hasn't been the same since that fateful night 21 years ago" she said.

" where is his kingdom and why would people assume the late queen was a witch" l asked the question that was burning to be asked

"well for starters she was the first and before you came along, the only person in history to be of a bronze skin tone. Many could not believe their eyes when they saw her and refused to be ruled by her in the kingdom of Metusa" she said. As she said this, l could now understand why people were looking at me strangely when we were walking around the town. They all thought l was a witch too.