Chapter 2: Honest and Honorable

At two in the afternoon our house was empty. Aunt Clara didn't come to make lunch for another half hour.

That gave Peck time to count our loot. Without a word I left my brother to it.

"Hey!" Peck exclaimed, stopping me. "You deserve a reward, candy store on me tomorrow?"

"Sounds good," I mumbled.

My trash overflowed with uneaten sweets. Food in general didn't agree with me lately while cookies and candies turned my stomach.

Aunt Clara came right on time. Her perky voice travelled down the hall. Soon she was calling for me.

Clara smothered me in a hug, gushing about how handsome I was getting. Just like my Father.

An honest, content man. Someone who wore flannel more often than not and had only one suit for his work. Yet, he worked in the cutthroat world of real-estate in one of the more ruthless firms. Those superiors had pretended he just didn't meet their sales standards when he was really fired for not being sly, for not edging his clients towards anything less than their dream home.

Then he had gotten sick. All of those savings that could have kept the family comfortable was sucked into treatments. Still, Dan Wicket had raised two honest, straight-laced men. that's what mattered.

So what would he say if he found out about our business?

"Done," I said, interrupting Peck and Aunt Clara's lively conversation. Probably about some movie.

"You haven't touched your spinach," Clara noticed.

True. All I had managed were a few rabbit bites before feeling nauseous.

"It's just-- I filled up on ice cream," I lied.

My Aunt turned on my brother.

Peck was stammering for an answer. I took the chance to leave but not before putting my plate in the fridge.

Alone in my room my phone pinged. J.J Singer. My girl crazy best friend and celeb encyclopedia.

'Major news. There's a true blue Princess in town!' the text read. With it was two photos; one of a redhead in jeans and a light blue blouse and the other of an ebony haired girl in a poofy, periwinkle dress.

'Got me. Which is which?' I replied. Still I felt like I had seen Miss Poofy Gown.

'Both!' J.J followed with at least eight grinning emojis.

'Oh yeah a princess is chewing on a chili dog and I'm a Duke.'

'Really it's Livianna,' J.J insisted.

Having a name to the face it came together. Just to be sure I checked my favorite video.

Princess Livianna addressed a crowd of ten thousand in her overblown periwinkle gown. Not the best outfit for a TED Talk.

Her topic was gender equality. She had a clear passion about the subject focusing on what she had dubbed; "The Princess Fallacy."

Except the Princess devolved into bashing TV princesses and in a more posh, sly way calling men in general pigs. Still I admired her. Livianna did have a way with words that could stir a frenzy in an audience and more fire than I could ever dream of. More cash too.