His Fairy Tale Ending

Chapter 2-2

Tristan had a wonderful time at the Museum of Technology at Fingo. He was aware that he appeared out of place among the other visitors, who were better dressed. His clothes were shabby, but they were clean and neatly pressed. Besides, he was saving up for rainy days. He couldn’t afford to spend money on new clothes. Most of the time, he lived in Kaiserbourg anyway, which was a much smaller city compared to Fingo. People dressed much more casually there most of the time.

After the museum trip, he had lunch at a nice diner. He even got himself a dessert at the end of the meal. However, he was beginning to regret his decision because he was feeling too stuffed. Fortunately, the next part of his itinerary would be a visit to the palace. He could at least walk around the perimeter of the palace grounds. He could even visit the nearby park. Staying active would help with digestion. He hoped he wouldn’t feel as bloated afterward.

He thought he was prepared for the size of the palace, but he had seriously misjudged the massive building. He had seen the palace once on the television and caught glimpses of it in pictures online. However, now that he was standing at the edge of the walkway on one corner of the palace grounds, he found he couldn’t breathe as he took in the enormity of the building. He felt like a minute ant peering up and down at an elephant. The palace was so huge that he couldn’t even be certain where the other end of the building was located at. Judging by the height, it appeared to be at least eight levels high, but he knew for a fact there were only five floors in the palace. The Internet was very informative in that regards.

“Holy s**t,” he muttered under his breath. “This place looks incredible.”

He began to take several photographs of the building as he walked right next to the high fences surrounding the palace grounds. He wasn’t the only person doing that, so he didn’t feel self-conscious at all. Plenty of tourists were there with him. Once in a while, he would aim his mobile phone camera at himself, so he could have a few pictures of himself together with the palace, ignoring the various guards who were positioned all over the grounds. He even made weird faces while taking the photographs. Those would be fabulous reminders of his amazing trip. He was so awed by the majestic building that he didn’t realize how long he had been there. Hence, he was shocked to note much later that he had spent almost ninety minutes traveling one round of the palace grounds. He was now back at the spot where he started.

He glanced at the palace one last time before crossing the road toward the park and sat at a shaded spot on the grass right under a huge tree. He rummaged in his bag for the three chicken sandwiches and a small bottle of water he had purchased at the diner earlier. He planned to have them for dinner, but he was starting to feel hungry again. He figured he could grab something at the diner where he worked later. After all, the meals were free. He was about to bite into the first sandwich when two children, a boy and a girl, approached him. He had noticed them staring at the swans and ducks in the lake right before he sat on the grass, but he paid them no mind. Now that they moved closer to him, he could tell they had beautiful green eyes and shiny black hair.

He beamed at them. “Hello.”

The children were quiet for a moment. He understood their reluctance. After all, he was a stranger. He had no evil intention whatsoever, but the children wouldn’t know that. He smiled wider when the little girl grinned at him before pointing at herself and the boy next to her.

“My name is Jacqueline. This is my twin brother, Alexander.”

“Hello again. I’m Tristan. You can sit on the grass next to me. It’s a bit cooler than where you are at the moment. I promise I don’t bite.” He winked at them to reassure them that he was harmless. He waited for them to be seated, but he was surprised when they only stared at the ground. “What is it?”

“My pants will be dirty,” Alexander answered while looking at him as if he was stupid.

He laughed in amusement. “A little dirt doesn’t hurt anyone.”

Jacqueline shook her head. “Helen will be mad at us.”

He scrunched up his eyebrows in confusion. “Helen?”

Alexander sighed at him. “She’s our nanny.”

“Oh.” He thought about how to respond before shrugging. “Don’t worry. I’ll explain everything to her later. I’m sure she will understand.”

The children hesitated for a few seconds longer before taking the spots on either side of him. He offered them his sandwiches, which they accepted.

“This is delicious,” Jacqueline spoke up.

He was amazed at how prim and proper the children were behaving. They ate as if they were adults trapped in small bodies. He didn’t give that any further thought, though. He figured children from wealthy families were all quirky in their own ways. Instead, he shrugged at them before continuing with the conversation. “Eh, it’s all right. I can make better sandwiches.”

Alexander’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Uh-huh. I can also bake cupcakes, pies, cookies, and some other pastries. I’ve been working at a diner for more than seven years now, so I’ve been able to learn some skills in the kitchen.”

Jacqueline seemed excited. “Chocolate cupcakes?”

He bit his lower lip to suppress his amusement. “That, and many others.”

“That’s great.”

Jacqueline was still grinning, but Tristan noticed she appeared less enthusiastic all of a sudden. “Jacqueline, what is it?”

“I wish you could teach me how to make chocolate cupcakes.”

“I can. Not that you need me to. I’m sure your parents will be more than delighted to help you in the kitchen.”

Alexander shook his head. “Our mom is far away in America.”

Tristan noted the miserable tone in the boy’s voice. He yearned to inquire further, but it wasn’t his place to do so. Besides, he didn’t want them to wallow further in misery. “Well, if your father is okay with it, I can spare a little time in the future to bake chocolate cupcakes with both of you.”

Jacqueline heaved out a sigh. “You can’t.”

“Of course, I can. Let me talk to Helen. I’ll—”

He was taken aback when he and the children were surrounded by several men out of the blue. He wrapped his arms around the children, wanting to protect them from those strangers. He didn’t know if he could win in a fight against all those men. They were all wearing dark clothes from head to toe. It was obvious they were muscular and powerful. He might end up injured, but he was determined to defend the children. He wouldn’t allow them to come to any harm. He had to think fast. He figured he could tell them to run while he did his best to hold the men back.

He was about to push the children away when the men in front of him parted, allowing two men to enter the circle. They seemed kind of familiar to him, but he didn’t recognize them. He was more worried about the children. Nevertheless, he couldn’t look away from the two men. The first things he noticed were their amber eyes and black hair. After that, he realized he might be in over his head. The previous men might be frightening, but the two newcomers had an intimidating presence to them. One of them was about two inches taller than him while the second one probably had four inches over his own six-foot height. Moreover, their large, muscled bodies gave him the feeling he wouldn’t stand any chance even in a fair fight against either one of them.

“Give me the children,” the shorter of the two men commanded. Tristan tightened his grips on the children. “Now.”

“Over my dead body,” Tristan snapped. He was terrified for himself, but he was more concerned about the children, who were now struggling against him. “I don’t care who you are, but I won’t let you harm these children. If you want them, you have to go through me first.”

Abruptly, the taller of the two men burst out laughing while the other one’s eyes flickered in astonishment. He tugged the children closer to him and glanced around at the men surrounding them. He would have to punch one or two of them, so the children could escape. He was about to carry out the plan that he had in mind when the children got onto their feet and rushed away from him.

“Dad!”

He stared at Jacqueline and Alexander for a moment before turning toward the two men inside the circle with them. He was flabbergasted when he made the connections. He understood why the two men were familiar to him. They were Crown Prince Leonardo and Prince Isaac in the flesh. Then he noticed the groups of people outside the circle and the flashes of lights from the cameras. He was so astounded that he only caught the tail end of Prince Leonardo’s words.

“…should talk inside the palace.”

“Wha…what?”

Neither of the princes responded to him. Instead, one of the men in black hauled him up to his feet before dragging him across the road for the second time that afternoon. As they made their way toward the entrance of the palace, his heart sank. He had no idea what punishment awaited him for talking to the Crown Prince of Gefrington the way he did earlier, but he had a strong feeling it wasn’t going to be light. His heart pounded hard as he stepped inside the palace compound. He was about to find out.