"Reunited..." - Chapter Sixty-Two

Reunited...

Chapter Sixty-Two

By Douglas E. Gogerty

The peninsula had changed greatly since Prince William had been there last. It had only been a few weeks, but unrest can change things quickly. It seemed to him that there were riots and lots of looting. The cities he drove through were in great disarray. However, he could go nowhere else in Morica, so he had to find a place to stay.

Although the Prince thought the place was chaotic when he was last here, it seemed that it was much worse now. The governor's assassination appeared to turn the people into a raving mob. The Prince wondered who was behind it and why. He thought in passing that it was his chance for a kingdom. He tried to suppress that thought.

He headed for the capitol. He thought he would stay in the same room he had when he was working on his father's release from prison. The people who ran the place knew him, so they may be willing to rent him a room. Otherwise, he would have to find some other place, and that could be risky.

After spending another night camping, he was ready to sleep in a bed. He would easily make it to the capitol in his suncar as long as the roads were clear. The thought of being in the capitol in the midst of all of the intrigue brought the thought of kingdom back into his head. Nonetheless, he had to be cautious. He was a stranger in this land. The roadblock warned him of the dangers within the borders.

It was late morning when he arrived in the capitol. It had definitely been a war zone. The destruction was massive. The road was still passable, but there was debris everywhere. The Prince continued to drive cautiously. Winding his way around the wreckage on the road, he made it to the capitol building. It was demolished. The prison that held his father, was a pile of rubble. That filled him with dread.

He drove the short distance to the hotel that he had stayed. Remarkably, it was still standing. He drove up to it and parked. He cautiously entered the hotel. There was no one there. He looked around and called out, but there was no answer. He waited around for a few minutes, but no one came. He continued to look around for a brief time, but the hotel did not appear to be staffed.

There were options. He could try somewhere else. He could camp out again. However, since he was there, the Prince decided to try his old room. He walked up the stairs. He tried the elevator, but he noticed there was no power in the building. He walked down the hall the room he stayed in for several weeks. He recognized the hallway and walked cautiously along in semi-darkness. He found his door and knocked.

There was no reply so he tried the door -- it was unlocked. He thought what harm could it do? Therefore, he walked in and locked the door behind him. He felt that the bed being made was a good sign the room was empty. However, it was just a guess. After all, they had a housekeeping service when he stayed there. They made the bed when he was away.

He plopped on the bed and gave out a heavy sigh. Gunfire outside awoke him from his revelry. He was not as far from the violence as he thought. Several other thoughts raced through his head. However, he felt somewhat safe in his room. It was locked, it was a few floors up, and no one knew he was there. It was a feeling he had not had for several months. He was not a cog in the turnings of this state.

He listened for more gunfire, but he heard nothing. As he listened, he fell asleep. It was a fitful and restful sleep. It was another thing he had not felt for quite some time. He felt refreshed when he awoke from his short nap. It was time to find some food. It was around lunch time. He thought about dipping into his supplies, but then he thought he would have a look around. Thus, he would wander around and look for someplace to eat. He could also discover what was happening around the capitol.

He messed up the bed as a sort of signal to himself. If it was as he left it, then he would feel better about it being empty. If it were made, then he would worry about the situation a bit more.

He left the room and began spiraling away from the hotel. He left his car where he parked it, and simply walked around getting farther and farther from the hotel. Eventually, he ended up at the only open place he could find. It was a bar a few blocks away from both the hotel and the capitol building.

He asked the bartender if they served food.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"I am just a bit hungry," replied the Prince. "If you offered some sort of sandwich or something...."

"If you got money -- we got food," she replied with as surly a voice as she could muster.

"What kind of money do you accept?"

"What kind do you have?"

"I do not have any local currency, but I have some Lakeland coins."

"The local currency -- as you call it -- is worthless. How much Lakeland money do you have?"

"I have enough for a sandwich and a drink."

"We probably could get a ham and cheese back there..."

"A what?"

"Ham and cheese..."

"What is ham?"

"You have never had ham? Well, mister sit back there...

"William."

"Well -- William -- You are in for a treat."

"Very well."

"What would you like to wash that down?"

"What do you recommend?"

"Well -- seeing as you have never had ham -- how about a beer?"

"A beer would be good."

"You have heard of beer -- but not ham?"

"I am not from around here."

"Really? I would have never guessed. How did you get passed the boarder guards?"

"My natural charm..."

"Hah! We'll get right on that sandwich."

The bartender poured the Prince a beer. It was a dark bitter drink. It was not like the week watery stuff that was brewed at the castle. However, he enjoyed it. He loosened up a bit more and flirted more intently with the bartender. After several minutes she brought him his sandwich. It was just like the bacon sandwich he had back home. He wondered what other differences there were in the language.