Andrei
1790 Words
Cassielle
Cassielle exited her office and went in search of food. Her stomach began sending out complaints of her neglect. The upper rooms had been converted into a large nursery for the younger children with activities to include the older ones. She could hear children running and playing. In the only kitchen located in the west wing of the palace, Cassielle found Kelly reading a tablet.
“You don’t want to play with the other children?” Cassielle asked crossing to a cooler.
“No. I found something to read,” Kelly said without looking up. “Plus, I’m not a child.”
“You must have figured out how to change the translation,” Cassielle commented.
“It wasn’t that hard,” Kelly said nonchalantly.
Cassielle smiled and kept quiet. She refused to admit it took her two whole days to figure out how to change the translation on the tablet books. Kelly figured it out in less than three hours.
“What is it?” Cassielle asked.
She pulled out a whole Jaba Berry and lowered it into the sink where mechanical arms took over with the pealing and slicing.
“It’s called ‘The Last King.’ I like it so far,” Kelly said. “Why didn’t we have anything from Trident to read on the ship?”
“Kevin told me that you only had literature from Earth to read on the way here. I’m not sure why though. I thought ‘The Last King’ was good, a little old for you though,” Cassielle mused. “How old are you?”
“16.”
Cassielle was dumbfounded. She had no idea her niece was that old. Kelly barely looked over fourteen. Cassielle ate a few slices of the fruit in silence.
“Ma’am.” An attendant came to Cassielle, bowing slighly.
“Yes,” she said enjoying the warm flavor of the berry.
“He is interested in meeting everyone.”
Cassielle dropped her plate. She knew he was here, but she did not expect him to want to see everyone right away. The plate shattered against the floor and fruit went everywhere. Kelly looked up from her book. Cassielle looked down to where the plate had fallen.
“I’m sorry,” the attendant said cleaning the broken glass. “I- I didn’t know this would happen.”
“It’s ok.” Cassielle cleared her throat. “You caught me off guard. Where is he?”
“He’s in the front drawing room.”
“I’ll see to him personally. Did he express an interest in who he wanted to see first?”
“I believe he said Rose,” was the response.
“Thank you.”
Cassielle walked out of the kitchen and eventually came to a closed door. Usually, he liked to stay on the top floor of the palace, but he must have seen the shuttle arrive and moved to the drawing room. She knocked on the door and an attendant opened it, bowing as she entered. Cassielle saw him by the front window watching Nate and Xander playing on the front lawn. He had a slight smile. Silver flecked his dark brown hair and his steel blue eyes reminded her of Xander’s.
“I’ve been told you want to see the rest of the family,” she said approaching him.
“I figured if they’re here, they should be notified that their oldest child still lives,” Andrei said turning his chair to face her.
Her twin Andrei had been born 10 minutes before her and constantly reminded her of that fact.
“They are still unaware I’m here, aren’t they?”
Cassielle nodded. “I haven’t found the time to tell them about you.”
“You had the time. You just refused to tell them. You can’t keep me a secret. You know that right?”
“I’m insulted you would insinuate that. I just didn’t think you wanted to see them right away. I don’t want to see you hurt by their reactions.”
Andrei raised a deeply scarred hand and studied it for a moment. Any exposed skin bore chemical scars from his time with the human poachers. What they had done to him was unthinkable, but he somehow survived. What surprised Cassielle even more had to be Andrei’s refusal of a regeneration unit. He now looked old enough to be her uncle or even father.
“I obviously can’t keep my own injuries a secret like you can. When do you plan on telling them about yours?” he asked looking back to her.
Cassielle subconsciously pulled at her sleeves. The dress code she adhered too made it easier to hide the injuries she sustained at the hands of the human poachers. The only visible portion of those scars extended down the back of her left hand.
“Kevin knows, but I see no need in telling anyone else.”
Andrei rolled his eyes. “What else does Kevin know?”
“Enough.”
“So, I take it he doesn’t know about-,”
“You want me to get mom, or what?” Cassielle asked irritated.
Andrei studied his sister for a few moments before a small smile crossed his lips. “When you get mom, warn her.”
Cassielle found her parents in a sitting room talking with Kevin about a recent development in his company on Earth. He sounded excited but their conversation ceased when Cassielle entered. He coughed a few times into a handkerchief.
They sat in large, overstuffed couches that were embroidered with the Trident Sun. The couches were arranged across from one another with a small table in between them. On one end of the table sat an armchair with a loveseat at the other end. The patterned floor rug covered the rare and expensive durable maple hard wood flooring imported from Earth.
The walls of the sitting room were covered in portraits and landscapes. Nestled in each corner sat a full bookshelf. Cassielle had read everything in this room within the first ten years she lived on Trident. While she stopped reading books from this room, she made sure they were cycled out to the library in her apartment at the High Rise.
“Mom,” Cassielle said, approaching quietly.
Rose jumped.
“Cassie,” Rose said rising from her seat. Hank stood up too.
Both Hank and Rose had changed from what they wore upon arrival to a more comfortable, less formal set of clothes. Rose wore a loose black top with a small amount of tailoring to accentuate her features. Instead of leggings, which Cassielle was sure Rose did not like, she wore slacks. Again, they had been tailored to fit her snuggly but with the fabric around her ankles loose. Instead of calf boots, Rose wore flats. Unfortunately, the black outfit did not look good on her, washing out her features.
All Hank had changed was his top. Instead of the shirt and vest he arrived in, he now wore a black button up shirt. Unlike his wife, the black made him look elegant, almost regal. Instead of tucking his pants into his calf boots, as was the custom on Trident, he wore them under the pants. Cassielle noticed most of the men of the family wore their boots this way, except for Nate and Kevin, who both had been specifically instructed on how their outfits should be worn.
“I have a… surprise for you,” Cassielle said slowly, twisting one of her sleeves with her opposite hand. “This isn’t my idea so don’t give me grief or credit for it.”
“What?” Rose asked.
Cassielle bit her lip and tried to think of the right words to say. Several kids came running through the room and Nate entered, following them. He stopped when he saw the other adults.
“What’s going on?” he asked standing near his dad.
“Cassie, just say what you need to say,” Rose urged.
“Andrei is alive,” Cassielle blurted out.
Hank and Rose exchanged shocked looks.
“How do you know. He went missing-,” Rose began.
“The same time I did,” Cassielle finished. “He wants to see you.”
The room remained silent as she waited for their answer.
“Take us to him,” Hank demanded.
“He only wants to see mom at this time. He…,” she couldn’t find the right words.
“He what?” Rose demanded.
More adults had entered the little sitting room and Cassielle began to grow more nervous.
“He’s not in a position to see everyone at once. He has trouble being in crowds. It was from when he…”
“He was tortured,” Nate said.
Everyone turned to him.
“When you guys were taken. Isn’t that right?” he asked.
Cassielle gave a slight nod.
“He’s not the same as you remember,” she warned.
“I still want to see him,” Rose demanded.
“Follow me.”
Cassielle led her mother from the sitting room. Behind her, she could hear Hank filling in the others what they had missed. Never in all her life had she been so terrified. She stared death in the face multiple times and shrugged it off. Why did this scare her so much?
“I need to warn you. Andrei has many injuries, and his physical appearance might shock or frighten you,” Cassielle warned.
“What happened to him?” Rose asked.
“He was tortured, mom. Like what Nate said. He doesn’t like talking about it because it causes him pain. Please don’t ask unless he is willing to tell you.”
They reached the door to the drawing room and the same attendant opened it. Andrei still sat by the window. He looked up and smiled as the two women entered. Rose stopped and surveyed her oldest child as the impact of his condition hit her. Her cheeks began to turn red and eyes glossy. Andrei sat in a wheelchair and every inch of exposed skin showed chemical burn scars. She slowly approached him.
“May I… hug you?” she asked. He nodded slightly and Rose gave him a rather awkward hug. She sat in a chair and examined her son.
“I’ve missed you,” he said. “I’ve missed Earth and baseball.”
Rose smiled and let out a snort while she wiped her eyes, a tear already escaping down one cheek. Andrei had been a Red Sox superfan when he lived on Earth.
“There has been a breach in security at The Kalli’s Seat,” Jacobee said in Cassielle’s com.
- Writer
