The Luna Choosing Game

Chapter 0612

"Why would they want us to know they stole the princess?" I asked.

"It's the location that matters," Veronica explained.

"If it was the rebels who kidnapped her," Julian added, "It was likely they intended to start a war, even then." He looked back to the list. "I wonder how my parents were able to smooth tensions over back then, and why they can't use the same tactics now."

*This has been festering for over twenty years," Veronica told him. "Whatever tactics they used might be wearing thin."

Julian hummed in acknowledgement.All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

I walked closer to peer down at the list from over his shoulder. The princess was named by title only, but was marked to be escorted by an older couple. A ruse, most likely. A kindly elder couple would be less likely to arouse suspicion of wrongdoing. They were marked as servants of the bear crown.

It's the line after the couples' names that gives me pause. A second infant marked only as 'Baby' crossed the border at the same time. The next person listed didn't cross until a full five-minutes later.

*Julian," I said.

He spotted this discrepancy at the same time as me. "I see it."

"Why would they bring two babies?" I asked.

*Two babies?" Tiffany gasped. She stepped closer to Julian on the other side to look at the list too. "Holy guacamole. Two babies."

"A double perhaps?" Veronica offered. "To help protect the true princess?"

Julian's brow lowered and he appeared lost in thought. "If they were caught, this would allow them to make a switch. Likely the true princess wasn't the one labeled as such but this unnamed infant instead. I'm not certain, and I'm not sure we'll know for sure until we have other answers."

He looked at Veronica, and his softened. "Good job, Veronica."

Her lip twitched in return, an almost smile, and she curtly nodded.

"What we have now is a lead," Julian said. "It's been twenty years, but we can hopefully track down this couple. Even if time has been unkind and they have passed, we should be able to follow their course and find someone who knows them."

He waved the paper around. "We need more leads like this. In these old documents, we might find what we are looking for."

We all agreed and separated to begin our work.

For two full hours, we silently searched through the allotted paperwork. My stack was mostly old phone records. I kept an eye out for the couples' name and anything that looked like it could be coming in or out of the palace.

In the end, I just didn't have enough information to make anything of what I'd been given.

Frustration began to set in. I hated that I couldn't find enough information to crack the case.

The entire war could be avoided if we found the information that we needed. And if the war could be avoided, then my choice would be unnecessary.

I sighed, too loudly I supposed, because Julian noticed and came over to me. He sat on the edge of my desk. *Take five?" he asked.

God knew I needed a break. I nodded and stood.

*The servants set out fresh coffee over here," he said and escorted me to a small table near the entrance of the room, where a pot of coffee set among some teacups.

Julian righted one of the cups and poured me some coffee. He handed it to me.

"Do you want to talk about what's really bothering you?" he asked.

*This is important work," I said and took a sip. The coffee was bitter, but I continued to drink it. I needed the caffeine boost to help keep my mind sharp.

"It is," Julian said. He tilted his head. "But it's not the only thing bothering you."

Curse him and his peak observational skills.