Sins Among Royals

News of Grace’s death spread quickly as the sun rose on another day. Indie had long finished her ice cream and had returned to the room she and Noah shared the one night she had stayed in the castle.

There was a sense of disbelief hanging over many of those present in the castle as silence rang through the halls.

Grace was a socially active woman so there was always something happening in the castle but this day Indie heard nothing but the birds chirp at the rising sun and the hustle and bustle of normal, daily life. Something she was sure no one had seen in years.

Climbing into the covers she soon slept as the weariness and drowsiness taking over her body completely. It was a troubled sleep as she tossed and turned and cried silently in her sleep. A strange habit she had had for many years.

Near midday she was woken by a creaking sound and when she sat upright a mop of blond hair was all she saw, “Poppy is that you.....” She asked still half asleep.

Before long she found herself tackled to the bad in a tight hug. Something she had not been expecting at all with Poppy’s erratic moods.

“What are you doing?” Indie couldn’t help but question as she wrapped her arms around her friend and rolled to the side. When her eyes fell upon Poppy’s face it was stained with tears. Immediately Indie sat up and thought the worst, “what..What’s happened?!”

Poppy sobbed loudly, “I’m sorry for everything,” she wailed loudly. “I’ve been such an asshole lately and I don’t know why,” she broke out wailing again as Indie pulled her on for a hug.

“Oh Poppy shush! You’ve been a bit temperamental, that’s all,” Indie tried reassuring her gently.

“But I haven’t been there for you for anything and now Grace is dead and you’re going to be queen.” As soon as her words registered with her brain the tears stopped and Poppy jumped from the bed and began bouncing around the room, “you’re going to be queen! Oh Indie this is so exciting! I can’t wait, please can I come to your coronation!? Oh please?” Poppy pleaded as she got down on her knees begging.

“You’ll probably have to come anyway,” she pushed herself up and off of the bed. Rubbing her eyes gently she still felt groggy but this time she put it down to the ice cream and not the lack of sleep. “You are the Betas mate so you have no choice than to be present.”

Indie knew Poppy had dreamed of one day being queen and she was more than tempted to offer Poppy the spot so that she and Noah could have a month or a year to themselves without hassle or drama.

Though she was settling into her new life she knew everything was about to get a whole lot more complicated with Grace’s death.

“Yay!” Poppy squealed loudly. “I can’t wait. I am so excited! I’ll see if Leo will give me shopping money,” she placed her finger to her lip and ran for the door.

“Noah can pay for it,” Indie muttered quickly as Poppy turned back towards her with a questioning look on her face. “He has enough money so he can buy it for you.”

Poppy squealed with delight and ran back to embrace her friend.

“Where have you been anyway? I haven’t seen you around the castle lately.” Indie asked as Poppy released her and stepped back.

With a shrug she noticed Poppy grow red in the face. At first she thought her friend would say something about sex but what she was told felt like sharp nails on a chalkboard.

“Well...I’m not royal so I’m not allowed in the castle. I’m only here now cause Noah said I could visit.” Poppy was saddened by the fact but she had come to accept it.

“So where are you staying?” She couldn’t hide the anger from her voice or the annoyance from her face. “Leo is the third in command she should be in the castle.” She didn’t understand.

“Well....we stay on the far side of the grounds,” Indie hadn’t even seen the far side of the expansive grounds but knew that it wasn’t a short distance. “There are rows of these shitty little cabins. I mean I’m not complaining,” Indie gave Poppy a serious look at that, “Okay maybe I’m complaining a little, but, I mean compared to the castle the rest of us may as well be homeless.”

The words left a sour taste in Indies mouth as she looked down at what she wore and shrugged. It was still clean. She began thinking of ways to fix the problem. It seemed ridiculous that Noah would give anyone a shitty little house, “Can you show me?” Indie asked quickly.

With an enthusiastic nod from Poppy the girls set off. Heading downstairs and outside Indie spotted a buggy parked roughly on the stone patio, “your parking hasn’t changed has it?” She teased Poppy as they climbed in and headed off.

At first they drove carefully through the manicured grounds of the castle but when they reached the far end there seemed to be a clear divide between the castle grounds and the rest of the world. While the front of the property was kept Immaculate it was clear that the same consideration was not given to the back of the castle.

Lush green lawn gave way to a muddy, unpaved road and rows of trees, some looked as old as the castle itself. Poppy’s driving became erratic as they slipped and slid through the stinky brown mud. Eventually the road was lined with houses on either side. Tall trees surrounding them seemed to mask the fact they were there, hiding them from view.

Poppy pulled up to one of the houses near the end of the row and climbed out. “Welcome to my humble abode!” She announced loudly. None of the homes had fences, none had gardens and for some the mud ended at the bottom of the steps that lead up to a small patio. The houses were long and narrow and looked as though they had seen better days.

Opening the front door Poppy entered the house and grinned, “it’s not much but it’s home.”

Casting her glance around Indie noted it was one large room with a walled off bedroom and bathroom. The kitchen was small and outdated and there was barely enough space for a separate living and dining room. The floors were lined with mustard yellow carpet that looked as though it has seen many years of use. Indie felt a cringe run the length of her back. How were they allowed to live that way?

“This is disgusting,” Indie shrieked. She couldn’t go and bug Noah about it as he had much to deal with but as she stood there Indie had a quick thought. “Want to go exploring the castle?” A cheeky grin pressed itself against her lips. “How many of these shitty boxes have people living in them?” She added on quickly as Poppy frowned and thought for a minute.

“I think there are thirteen occupied...so twenty six or so guards.” Her mate had never been that great but counting wasn’t too bad. “Why?” She asked somewhat suspiciously.

“Well,” Indie gave a brilliant smile. “Noah brought a building in town and it’s not filled with empty apartments that are way bigger than these ones!” Indie was having trouble coming to terms with it all. How was it that Noah could buy her a building when the guard houses were in such poor condition. “The other top floor apartments are empty and if I keep mine for when my parents visit then I doubt the rest of the three floors will ever get used. Why keep it empty when I see a need?” She grinned mischievously as she found a piece of paper and a pen, “Amber, Wade and Fletcher should all be there somewhere. They can let everyone in.”

“What are you going to do?” Poppy couldn’t help but ask curiously.

“We’re going to find accommodation for you and Leo deaf ears!” Indie couldn’t help but shake her head. Poppy was extraordinarily clueless sometimes. With a laugh the girls headed back towards the castle happy and dirty.