ROYAL BLOOD

A dreary and wet day. Lore looked up at the sky. He was impelled to stay that way. With mouth covered and hands tied, he kept thinking of a way to get out, and get help. He closed his eyes and looked back at how it had all started. Hoping to pick up a clue or hint he had missed. February 28, 2019 Lore looked at his watch 20 minutes had passed and Leo his 18-year-old brother had not returned from school yet. They were going to host a surprise party for their parent's anniversary and Leo was supposed to bring the important items. Lore called him but he didn't answer. "Darn it" Lore muttered throwing the phone on his bed. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a car honk. Hoping it to be of Leo's and not their parents, he sprinted towards the main door and opened it. He saw a tall guy with blue eyes, sharp face structures, and well-trimmed short brown hair; his brother Leo getting out of the car. Lore's features were somewhat similar to Leo except Lore was shorter. He rushed towards him and exclaimed, "Where were you this whole time? Do you even realize how crucial time is? Especially today. What would you do if they had arrived earlier? How can you be so careless? You-" "Shut up, loser" Leo interrupted while stretching his arms, "The coach asked me to show my basketball tricks to a bunch of 16-year-old idiots. So, I got late. Couldn't refuse him." Lore helped him take the party items out of the car and said," What do you mean by a bunch of idiots? They're my friends." "Exactly," Leo replied while shutting the car door. "I'll go freshen up until then you start decorating their room." Lore groaned and moved upstairs to his parent's room. The room smelled fresh like lavender and was neat. He looked outside the window; the sky was covered with black clouds. "Strange" Lore thought. It was sunny just a while ago and now it was going to rain. No sooner had he thought of that, the rain was splashing against the window. He loved it when it rained. He always felt overwhelmed and energetic by the sound and the smell of rain. As always, he stood admiring the dark clouds and listening to the sound of the rain. All of a sudden, he saw someone absurd cross the front porch of his house. Lore got confused and thought that he must be an intruder so, he opened the window and looked here and there but saw no one. "Maybe it's just a normal person," Lore thought and got to work. It was nearly time for his parents to arrive but there was no sign of them. After finishing his job, he went downstairs and heard the doorbell ring. "Leo! LEO! "He shouted "What?" Leo came running down from his room. "It's them! And look you haven't prepared anything over here. This party going to ruin and it'll be your fault." Lore replied. "I told you to start decorating. You just didn't pick up your pace." Leo said. "Really?" Lore said "first you come late and take hours to get yourself ready. I'm not a machine to rush and do everything myself. I've got two hands!" The doorbell started ringing again. "Okay, I got this," Leo said. He looked through the peephole and was taken aback. He turned towards Lore and said, "It's a police officer." "What?" Lore exclaimed. "Just open it." Leo opened the door. A middle-aged man in an officer's uniform stood before them. "Officer Regan Jones." The man spoke showing his Identity card. Lore started sensing fear for, he had never faced a police officer in his life before. He was nervous because officers at his house could only mean something bad. "Is this the residence of Mr. Sam Augustin and Mrs. Diana Augustin?" Regan asked them. Leo looked at Lore and gulped. Lore could sense fear and confusion within Leo. "Yes" Leo replied. "What is your relation with them?" Regan asked again. "We're their children." Leo replied again. "I'm afraid I have bad news for you. Your parents were killed in a car crash just 20 minutes ago." Regan said. This made Leo take a step back. Lore fell down on the ground. It was as if the whole world had come apart. A young woman in her twenties, came running past the officers and hugged Leo and Lore. She was their aunt, Patricia. "Oh boys " Patricia cried and hugged them. As soon as they got into Patricia's arms, Lore broke down and started crying. Tears rolled down Leo's cheeks too but he kept it quiet. "I will take a leave now." Regan said. He tapped Patricia on her back and continued "Before we go, you'll have to take care of certain formalities. We'll need you for a few hours." "Yes, officer." Patricia said wiping her tears. "I'll be back. Take care." She told the brothers and left with the officers. Leo and Lore got back to their feet and none of them spoke anything. Leo sat down on the couch feeling the world around him constrict. Lore's heart was pounding in his chest. He kept thinking of all those happy moments and memories he had shared with his parents. He kept wanting to go back in time and fix the small fights he had with them. The brothers didn't realize the time go by until Patricia came back. "The funeral will take place tomorrow itself." Her voice was grim. "Do you feel like eating anything now?" "No" Lore replied and went back to his room. Patricia went towards Leo and said," I will be staying with you now. I know you are strong. We have no other option than to try and move on. Your brother is sensitive. Take care of him, okay? " Leo nodded and went back to his room. Lore sat on his bed and looked outside the window. The window faced the backyard of the house. A forest lied just behind the backyard. The sky had turned dark and Lore was looking at the trees. The leaves were moving along the movement of the wind. Suddenly, he saw a man jump out of the forest and climb his backyard. The man stood there with a knife and looked at the house. Lore was terrified. It was the same man whom he had seen earlier in his porch. The man looked up at Lore and smiled showing his broken and hideous teeth. The man was wearing shabby clothes and was kind of old. Lore jumped and rushed downstairs. "LEO! PATRICIA! "He shouted. Patricia was in the kitchen and she ran towards Lore followed by Leo who came rushing down the stairs. "What's wrong, Lore?! Why are you so scared?" Patricia asked. Lore panicked and said, "I-I saw a man A man He- he had a knife- he- is in our backyard." Leo grabbed a baseball bat lying nearby and said," Both of you stay behind me. I'll check" "Let's call the police instead." Lore cried. Leo didn't pay attention to him and went out. He checked everywhere all around the house but didn't see anyone. He got back inside the house furious. "THERE'S NO ONE." Leo cried. "B-But I-" Lore stammered. "No buts. Do you think it's funny to prank us like this in this situation? Are you nuts? If you don't care about what just came over us a few hours ago, then seal you mouth and lock yourself in your room." Leo threw the bat on the floor and went up. Lore gulped and looked at Patricia. "Patricia I-" "Shush" Patricia said and hugged him "It's okay. Don't worry. You must be hallucinating." But Lore knew he wasn't hallucinating. Patricia escorted him to his room. She smiled at him, a flicker of concern on her face and left. Lore laid down on his bed and closed his eyes. Sleep wasn't going to come easy.