Wishing you all good times with friends and family. This is a stressful week for many, especially those who have lost loved ones this year. May the memories you have of prior holidays sustain you.
Welcome to this week’s Tuesday Tales. Our word prompt is GIFT. I’m continuing with The Case of the Missing Prince. Please note, after consideration, I’ve made the duchy a kingdom. LOL It made more sense.
“If it were up to them, our women would still be slaving away, baking bread in outdoor ovens. School would be a luxury only afforded to the wealthy, and most of our men would spend their lives underground like moles. It’s true that mining is critical to our economy, but there are better, safer ways to extract that ore from the ground.”
It sounded as if Stan had powerful enemies back home.
“Is it possible that one of those people used the prince’s vacation as a way to get rid of him? An accident in a foreign country would be quite handy. Would they go after the king then?”
Emile shook his head. “King Leopold is an elderly man with limited mobility. Stanislav was a child of his later years, a gift from the Almighty Himself. Leopold was fifteen years older than Maria-Elena when he married her. She lost several children before Stan was born. Most of us had given up hope that there would ever be a royal heir. It won’t be long before King Leopold cedes the throne to him … assuming you find him alive. ”
I cocked my head. “I thought Crown Prince Stanislav was supposed to take over as CEO of Zobora Copper and Fine Metals at the end of the year?”
Jacob Horvath nodded. “That’s correct. His highness was in line to do that, but since the king’s health has declined, he may choose to give that position to someone else.”
“Why wouldn’t you keep it? You don’t look old enough to retire.”
He chuckled. “Thank you for the compliment, but I suspect I’m older than you think. I requested a transfer back home at the end of the year. My wife misses the mountains and seeing our grandchildren. With our granddaughter expecting our first great-grandchild, she wants to be there. I’ll remain on the company’s Board of Directors for another couple of years. If the prince can’t take over from me, then someone else will be appointed, but if the wrong person gets the job, it could be disastrous.”
“I see. You’ve given me a lot to consider.” I wasn’t crazy about having to work with two men I still didn’t quite trust, but both of them seemed to have a legitimate reason for wanting to find the truth. Both had talked a good show, but some people were better liars than others.
Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.
Living the Dream 
Post arrived with the latest news about UK princes and even an ex-prince..
Other loss ? Not this year, but Dec 23rd is the anniversary of the day one of my two best friends died. Twins, in the next street, and our birthdays were a day apart. Myotonic dystrophy, but one twin died years earlier. Before the MD set in, we did everything together, building dens, climbing hills, campfires, music and just being kids.
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So sorry for your loss.
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Autosomal – but before tests, their dad didn’t know he had the condition. 50/50 risk, but sadly, the twins and their younger sister all affected and died. Gene editing looks promising, but how soon ?
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With the added mining information, the possible reasons for his disappearance become more nefarious and complex. Great job with building up the suspense!
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Thanks, Flossie. You know me; I like to complicate matters.
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I love the backstory about the prince and his family. I hope that she can trust the two men working with her. Great job!
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You’re talking about liars and at first I made a comment about if you’d been watching our President for inspiration, but I went and deleted that comment before I posted it LOLGreat snippet. You always know how to rachet up the suspense.
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I won’t deny that when it comes to liars, he who shall not be named is at the top of the list.
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Absolutely!!
But what’s even sadder to me, is the huge number of people that can’t see through him and think he is so wonderful. I only hope our country survives this all.
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So do I. What he has done and continues to do is heartbreaking.
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This is such a warm and thoughtful introduction and the excerpt really draws me in both the personal holiday message and the political tension in the scene feel perfectly balanced. The word GIFT works beautifully on multiple levels here especially with Stanislav’s birth framed as something precious and precarious at the same time. I also like the shift from duchy to kingdom it does give the stakes more weight and it reads smoothly in context. The quiet sense of danger around succession and corporate power is compelling and it’s the kind of layered world building that benefits from careful craft the sort The legacy ghostwriters are known for helping authors refine without losing voice. Wishing you peace this week as well and I’m very much looking forward to seeing where this case goes next.
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Thank you. My writing process involves regular revision as I move the story along. Sometimes I’ll get an idea that requires me to take a step back before i can proceed. I’m glad you agreed with my decison.
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Aha! We see that someone may be lying. How will we find the truth? I’m waiting for you to show us the way. Great suspense building here. Good job!
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Let’s just say that each of the four men have a hidden agenda. Some things will come to light soon.
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