Things I Almost Remember: A Selection Story

Three's a Crowd

Kate stood out in the living room of the Abernathy apartment for what felt like a century. It was actually a tiny space that functioned as a living room, dining room, kitchen, and whatever else Johnny and Connor needed. It was a sparsely decorated apartment. An old yellowed map that hung on one wall was the only decoration in the room aside from a photograph in a simple wooden frame that stood on old-fashioned desk along the wall. At one point while she was waiting for the brothers, Kate looked at the photograph. There were two small boys and a beautiful young woman in the frame standing in a of a beautiful garden. Kate thought the garden looked familiar but quickly shook the thought away. 

Aside from the desk, photograph, and map, there was a couch in a corner of the room that had some fabric torn and patched in certain places. A small table with two mismatched chairs were pushed against another wall, and along a fourth wall was a kitchen area with a sink, oven, and a few cabinets. Kate had not realized how thirsty she was until she heard small drops of water slowly dripping from the faucet into the sink. 

She walked over to the kitchen area and began checking in the cabinets for a cup to pour herself a glass of water, but just as she opened the third cabinet, the door to the bedroom flung open revealing Connor with Johnny following closely behind him.

"So, Kate, if you're going to be a thief and steal from us, that is fine, believe me I have no room to judge, but let me give you some advice, be a bit less obvious in the act of stealing or else you're going to get caught," said Connor smirking as he walked over to the couch and plopped himself down.

"I was just looking for a glass of water," Kate said quietly. She could feel her cheeks beginning to blush. She had also wanted to say she was no thief, but that wasn't really true. She had stolen food and clothing many time out of desperation to survive.  

"Here, the cups are in this cabinet," Johnny said, reaching into a cabinet for a cup and filling it with water from the tap. He handed it to Kate, and she drank it eagerly.

"So Kate, my brother tells me that he thinks you look like someone we both used to know when we were young," Connor started, resting his head on his hands.

"I really have no idea who I am," Kate said nervously. "I don't know what Princess Kerttu looks like, but I guess Johnny thinks I look like her so maybe I do, I don't know."

Whereas something about Johnny made her feel comfortable and at ease, Kate felt nothing but nervousness and trepidation around his brother. They looked a lot alike with chocolate brown eyes and dark messy brown hair, but Johnny's eyes had a friendliness and warmth to them. Connor's were intense and burning.

"Show him the locket," Johnny said. "Connor you have to see this."

Kate unclasped the locket from around her neck and walked over to hold it out for Connor to see.

Connor's brown eyes grew wide as he took in the inscription.

"That is just like her locket," Connor said breathlessly as his eyes darted from Kate's face to the locket. His demeanor began to soften a bit. Connor looked at Kate as though he was reevaluating her and seeing something there that he hadn't before.

"See now?" Johnny asked. "See what I mean?"

"Yes, but it is just impossible if it is true," Connor said, finally turning his eyes away from Kate.

"Can I just say something?" Kate asked, finally finding her voice. "I know you guys think I look like this lost princess or whatever, but I also am still a person with her own thoughts and ideas, not just some pawn or way for you guys to remember a person who may or may not be dead. I gladly will accept your help, but only on the condition that I will be listened too and treated as important because I am Kate, not supposedly Princess Kerttu."

Johnny and Connor both stared at her, and it was Johnny who finally spoke first.

"Kate, like I told you, I want to help you find where you belong, not just if you are Princess Kerttu, but you have to believe me when I say that I think trying to find out what happened to Kerttu and maybe even having you meet her family and other people she knew might help you find out where you belong," Johnny said, trying not to let her hear the nervousness in his voice.

Johnny wanted to be completely honest with Kate, but he also was nervous to tell her about the part of the plan he and Connor had been discussing that involved trying to pass her off as the princess even if she turned out not to be the princess. Kate was so earnest and honest that he felt she may leave if he brought up that part of the plan.

He didn't know what to say next, but, as usual, his brother came straight to his rescue.

"We thought that maybe if we start going over things with you Kerttu would have known like protocol and facts about the Royal Family of Illéa that, well, maybe memories would start to kind of come back to you if you are Kerttu," Connor said slowly. "Also, while we do that, I can begin looking into getting the three of us passports that could get us to France, and once we actually get there, we can figure out what to do next."

Kate looked at both of them as she processed this in her head. She didn't like the idea of learning random things about the Royal Family, but she knew this might be the only way she could get to France. She still had a few more questions.

"When we get to France, what will happen? And where do I stay until we go there?" she asked.

"When we get to France, we will see how we are going to get to speak to the French Royal Family. Connor and I have some connections there that will help us get into the palace," Johnny said.  "And while we are preparing, you will of course stay with us."

"Three's a crowd," Connor said, letting out a small snort. "You can sleep on the royal couch and have this room all to yourself, and Johnny and I will sleep over there in the servant's quarters."

Kate rolled her eyes. This had to be the craziest thing she had ever done, and she couldn't remember half her life. But, finding her family was a crazy endeavor, and she knew that, at the end of the day, it may take crazy means to find them.