Chapter 5: Dancers to Celebrate

Richard turned in the direction of the sound and spotted Raven sitting on a bench in the shade of a tree.

“What are you upset about now? I thought that the sports car was the biggest thing on your mind and it should be arriving any time now, I’m sure,” Richard commented as he took a seat next to Raven.

“Never mind that,” Raven spat out, punching his fist into the palm of his other hand. “There’s something which you and Raylene don’t know about yet,” he declared with a deep frown between his brows.

“What’s bothering you so much and what is it that we don’t we know?” Richard asked looking at his wristwatch because it would soon be dinner time. He wanted everything to be good between himself and his uncle so he did not want to upset him. He really needed an investment for his robot building launch project.

“Listen, sit closer so I don’t have to lean towards your ear. They'll think we're gossiping, but I can’t talk loudly about this,” Raven requested.

Richard quickly did as he was asked. He was eager to hear whatever news his brother was about to share. Any news was better than boredom according to Richard.

“It’s not just the three of us did you know that?” Raven began in a soft tone of voice.

“What do you mean? You’re confusing me,” Richard asked. “Are you saying that we are not only three siblings?” he asked, frowning intensely.

“Yes, we have another brother whom I assumed was dead, but now it seems as if he might still be alive,” Raven declared without looking at Richard.

“A sibling?” Richard asked in shock.

“I don’t understand. Why didn’t Raylene and I know about this?” Richard asked frowning even more fiercely. “Did our parents really only tell you about this mystery?” Richard asked, shaking his head in disbelief. Raven was not making sense.

“They told me when I turned eighteen. You are not eighteen years old yet,” Raven explained.

“It’s something that requires a person to be a certain age before it can be revealed?” Richard asked. He could not understand what Raven was trying to say.

“Yes, because it carries a lot of responsibility,” Raven replied. “It’s actually a whole mess,” he continued with a furious look on his face.

“It’s sounds far-fetched, yes,” Richard agreed even though he was somewhat afraid of what Raven might say next. It felt as if he was dreaming. He shook his shoulders quickly. “Am I sleepwalking?” he asked.

“No, but we do have a brother who is also turning twenty one years of age,” Raven declared.

“How’s that possible if you are also turning twenty one?” Richard asked with an even more confused look in his eyes. “Wait a minute. Unless he’s only our half-brother. That would let everything else make sense,” he declared, staring down at the grass intensely.

“A half-brother you say?” Raven asked.

“Yes?” Richard responded with his eyebrows raised hopefully.

“That would make everything so much simpler, wouldn’t it? It would mean that I don’t have to do the ruling of the kingdom with him,” Raven replied as he pensively stared at the grass below him.

“So, he isn’t our half-brother? But then how can anyone know that he’s really related to us? What makes them so sure about this?” Richard asked, shaking his head.

“Listen carefully now. Calm down,” Raven began. “He’s our real brother because he’s my twin. We were identical, so we might still look the same at this stage. If he’s still alive,” he added in a steady tone of voice, trying to be calm.

“Your twin? And you mean he could be dead? But why?” Richard asked.

They heard faint sounds coming from the gate area, way at the entrance to the palace.

“I suppose that’s the vehicle dealership. They must have brought the car,” Raven declared. “And I still wanted to hire some dancers for its arrival. I wanted to record some girls dancing around the vehicle when it arrives so that I could show my friends who wanted to see the car arrive,” Raven continued. He stood up immediately and checked his cell phone for any incoming messages.

“Yes, it’s here!” he exclaimed and punched the air in excitement. He rose from the bench and began to walk away.

“Why did you assume that this brother of ours would be dead? Did you hear something?” Richard asked with an urgent look in his eyes.

“No, I heard the opposite instead,” Raven responded as he began to make his way towards the side gate and then the main palace gates.

“If that’s the car then I can just as well surprise him by letting some dancers come and welcome the vehicle,” Richard declared to the silence around himself.

He then heard the dining room bell ring from inside.

“What now?” Richard asked himself as he rubbed his fingers through his hair. “Okay, first the dancers. Uncle George will understand that I did it for the sake of family peace,” he said as he tried to think about what to do next.

“How does a person do this? Who knows about stuff like this?” he asked as if speaking to the trees around him.

Richard then sat down on the garden bench again and cupped his hands around his head to think. The bench was hidden from view, so none of the servants would be able to spot him in the gathering dusk.

“Aha! Salicia should know how to hire dancers! Let me ask her,” he said as he grabbed his cell phone out of his pocket hastily.