It was a stormy night on Quadiman Island. The Palm trees were furious, swaying here and there. The royal blue of the ocean turned a dark gray, and the waves were tearing apart the sandy beaches. Tropical flowers held for dear life to the ground they resided on. My mom, my two brothers, and I were vacationing on this island while my dad, the king, was off doing his kingly duties.
“Mommy, Why is the sky mad?” Yenjen, the eldest of my younger brothers, asked in a scared and hushed voice.
“He is mad because the moon did not visit him.” My mom replied. “The Sky and Moon are close friends, you know.” The Moon in fact did not appear in the sky last night or tonight.
“But why didn’t the moon visit the sky, mommy?” asked Yenjen.
“I don’t know, Yenjen. I don’t know.”
Suddenly we heard a banging at the door. “It’s me, Mirian,” a voice behind the door said desperately.
“Be right back, children,” my mom said as she went to the door.
My mom opened the door. There Cody, our Nanny, stood drenched with water. My mom said, “Cody! What are you doing out in this weather?”
“Miriam,” Cody said in a desperate, hushed voice, “you and your family must leave!
“What? What do you mean?” my mom replied.
“Miriam. Trenton has killed the king, your Husband. I am so sorry.”
A tear ran down my mother’s face. Trenton had wanted my father’s power for a long time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. My mom said with a shaky voice, “Come on in and help. There is a lot to pack and only a moment to do it.”
The entered the room where my brothers and I were currently located. I could tell by the expression worn by my mother that something terrible had happened. And that the word terrible would not begin to describe what information had just been passed to my mother. “Mother, what-” I began to say but my mother cut me off.
“I’ll tell you later, Aiko. But right now you need to pack your things and Harlis’s things. I will pack Yenjen’s things.” My mother said.
“No, Miriam. You need to pack your own things. I will pack Yenjen’s,” Cody insisted.
“C’mon Harlis,” I said as I picked him up and carried him into his room to pack his things. Harlis is the youngest of my younger brothers. And third in line for the throne, with Yenjen being first and me being second.
In only fifteen minutes we were all packed and waiting to board the carriage. “Mommy,” Harlis asked, “Where are we going?”
“We are going to grandmas, honey,” My mother replied. With the storm still at its climax, we boarded the carriage. Little Yenjen, in his pj’s and stuffed dragon, boarded first; followed by Harlis carrying his blanket in one hand and the thumb of the other in his mouth. I boarded next with my suitcase and the locket my dad gave to me. My brothers were soon fast asleep.
“Mother,” I said, “where are we really going?”
“Out of the Kingdom,” she replied.
“Are we really going to grandmas?”
“No,” my mom said with a tear rolling down her face.
“Then where exactly?”
“Right now I don’t know. Aiko, I Just don’t Know.” My Mother said with a shaky voice.
A few hours later we arrived in Nicorite, a neighboring country. “Mom, why are we leaving the country?” I asked. Mother hesitated. “I want the truth,” I told her. “Not some childish explanation that you give Yenjen and Harlis.”
“My dear little Aiko,” my mom said. “Before you were born, when your dad was little, Trenton was the King’s Advisor. Trenton wanted the king’s power for himself and plotted against your grandfather. Your grandfather found out and he banished Trenton from the palace. Trenton swore that he would come back to take over and that he would kill the Zenopian blood line. And last night, Trenton returned and killed your father, the king. Trenton’s next target is us.”
Tears started to run down my face as well as my mom’s face. I clenched the locket that hung around my neck and that had been given to me by my dad knowing I would never see him again. I knew that from this moment and on into the future, that my life, and the life of the family I had left, would forever be changed.