Chapter 1
His mother's screams were unbearable. The doctors confirmed the death, and now she was "grieving". His brother had been found only an hour earlier. The study was a mess, and it had clearly been a struggle. Just like that, his brother was dead, and his killer was somewhere in the palace. Security cameras outside of the palace hadn't caught anyone leaving or going in. Guards were stationed outside, but this late at night they weren't around the studies. Supposedly no guards had seen a Selected return to their bedroom, but any one of them could've been bribed.
Hayes watched on, an empty feeling growing in his stomach as his mother sobbed into his father. His younger brother, Beck, was trying to comfort their mother as well. Vincent was laid on the hospital bed, doctor's giving them space. But they would need to do an autopsy, take pictures to use for evidence. The study was already being closed off for evidence. Officers and special detectives were questioning the Selected, Guards, anyone they could.
How could this have happened? His brother was close to the elite, and now he was dead. What would happen to the girls? To him? He was now heir, something he'd not anticipated. Did one of these girls kill the man they were supposed to be wooing? Why? What motives did they have?
A sense of determination set in him. Sure, the detectives could try and solve it, but they didn't know these girls like he did. Hayes decided right then and there that he would be launching his own investigation. As heir to the throne now, surely the detectives would give him their evidence. Photographic and paper. He could question his own suspects, and examine every inch of this castle if he needed to. Because lord help him, he would find out who murdered his brother, if it was the last thing he'd do.
The knock at his study door woke Hayes up from an unplanned nap. He rubbed his eyes, and glanced at the clock on his desk. 1:23. He hoped it was PM, and he hadn't slept through the entire day. He then glanced to the files on his desk. Identical to the files his brother had looked at only months earlier. But these had theories and suspicious parts of the girls rather than hobbies and fun facts. Hayes quickly swept the files into a drawer and locked it.
"Come in."
A girl with red hair popped her head into the study, and Hayes straightened. She stepped into the study, and closed the door behind her. She walked to the desk, biting her lip. "Prince Hayes, a- a lot of us are wondering, what's going to happen to us? Do we get to leave? What happened to Vincent was-" she broke off, tears springing to her eyes, but she took a breath, "was awful. But a lot of us are wondering if we can go home, spare the pain. Seeing as how your brother is gone, we assume the Selection is over…"
Stephany Francise, Belcourt. One of Vincen't favorites at the time of his death. Hayes grimaced, "Lady Stephany, I'm afraid no one can leave yet. Not until my brother's murderer is found. I'm sorry. But if you ever have any tips to speed that up, feel free to tell me."
Stephany's mouth dropped open, but she quickly shut it, and nodded. Another knock on the door, and Hayes's brother Beck strolled in. He spotted Stephany, who curtsied and left, her head bowed, swiftly dodging Beck.
Beck shut the door behind her, and turned to look at Hayes. "What did she want?"
"To go home."
"Ah…" Beck strolled to the desk, and Hayes pulled out the files again. Beck leaned over Hayes's shoulder, flipping open one file while Hayes opened another. Beck read for a moment before commenting, "Oh, this one had been on a date the week before, apparently he'd offended her in someway, she was quite steamy about it according to witnesses."
"Oh, really?" Hayes looked to the file, and made a mental note while handing his brother a pen. "Write in the details you know, I'll ask about it later."
Beck took the pen, writing a bit before taking another file. They worked for a while, adding notes, scratching out things that had been debunked. They were still relatively new into their investigation, but already they knew it must've been a Selected. They were the only ones who could wander the castle or see the Prince without suspicion. Guards had routes and posts, and unless they wanted to be fired, they never left those areas. Servants knew all the gossip about each other, so it was never safe to do something like this, someone would reveal the truth. So, Selected it was.
He looked to his brother, handing him the key to the desk, "Lock it up? I'm going to check on Mom."
Beck nodded, "Good idea, she's been in her room all day."
Hayes sighed, he knew his mother was in an unimaginable pain, and she needed time, but he also knew if she wallowed in it she would never be able to see life outside of the pain.
Hayes left the study and made his way to his mother's room. It was on the other side of the castle, but he decided to take the longest way in hopes of avoiding any bored Selected. There were only 15 left, but it was soon to be 10, as Vincent was going to announce the Elite the day after he was murdered.
Hayes reached the door, it seemed dark, darker than any other door in the palace. Somehow his mother's energy seemed to have soaked into the wood, and he could only grimace at the energy inside. He knocked, and stepped inside.
His mother was, sure enough, sitting in almost complete darkness, a single candle on the windowsill was lit. She was sitting in an armchair, a blanket in her lap. "Mom?" She didn't answer, so he walked over to the chair, gently placing a hand on her shoulder.
She jolted, and looked up at him. "Oh, Hayes, I didn't hear you." He frowned, he'd knocked and spoke before now, but she must have been that lost in her thoughts.
He leaned down so he was more even with her. She was staring at the candle in a daze. "Mom? Would you like to go for a walk in the gardens?"
She sighed, shaking her head, "No, no."
Hayes frowned, taking her hand in his, "Mom, listen. I know, you're heartbroken, and nothing will ever replace Vincent. But you also have a husband, and two other sons who need you. You can't stay locked up forever, it'll only make things worse."
Her face flickered, as though her thoughts were controlling every aspect of her. She then looked at him, her eyes seemed exhausted. "Hayes, I-" Her voice cracked, and she lowered her head, "I'll never be over my baby being taken in such a manner."
"I know, Mom, but we're gonna solve it, I promise." Hayes replied, gently lifting her arm. "But, until then, we can both do with some good, fresh air."
She let out a defeated sigh, and nodded, standing. She went to put heels on, and Hayes moved to the windowsill, looking to the candle. It flickered gently, and Hayes felt a pang of guilt blowing it out, but he couldn't have it starting a fire while they were gone. His mother was waiting at the door, a shawl wrapped around her shoulders.
Hayes took her arm in his, and he led her out of the room, and into the gardens. It was a chilly, fragile winter morning, but the grounds people kept the stone paths clear. They walked along, his mother simply staring ahead in silence, her fogged breaths evenly escaping her lips.
Hayes was lost in his own thoughts, so he didn't blame her. Inside the castle 15 girls were sitting, anxiously awaiting the moment they could go home, and one of them was trying to hide the world's biggest secret. He wondered if one of the ones who weren't going to make it to the Elite could have been the murderer. Hayes would have to ask if Beck knew which ones weren't going to be Elite, since Vincent never told that detail to Hayes.
His mother stopped walking, and Hayes had to stop from sliding on the gathering snow. He looked to her, and followed her line of vision. She was watching a small bird hopping around in the snow.
Her voice was wobbly, "Poor thing, it doesn't know most of the bugs are dead. It won't find any food here now."
Hayes glanced between her and the bird, her gaze stayed locked on it until it flew away. She sighed as she watched it fly away, as though she longed to follow it. She spoke, and began to walk again. "Hayes, these girls, they're suspects, but never forget they have lives of their own. No one should be taken from it unless necessary."
Was there a hint of remorse there? Was there some part of her past that he didn't know? But she stopped talking there, and didn't speak the rest of the walk. By the time they returned to the palace their jackets and shoes were laced in snow. His mother took off her heels, and she turned to him.
"Thank you for the walk, I'll be taking dinner in my room again though."
Hayes's shoulders slumped, but he nodded, "Good night, Mom." She nodded and headed off down the hall in the direction of the stairs to her room.
Hayes didn't realize he'd been standing in the same spot for half an hour until his father found him. "Hayes? What are you doing here?"
King Harold walked towards him, "Oh, Father. I'd taken Mom on a walk, and I guess I got caught in my thoughts."
His father hummed, and eyed him, "Are you okay?"
Hayes nodded, loosing a breath, "Yeah, I think so. Just thinking about the girls."
"Ah," King Harold grimaced, "Planning on finding a match?"
Hayes froze, giving his father a horrified look, "What?!"
"Well, they're here, you won't let them leave yet, surely one or more of them will try to turn their attention to you now that you're Crown Prince."
Hayes hadn't considered that. Were some of these girls really so shallow that they'd turn to him for the power? Yes, he'd talked to quite a few of the girls before, but he'd never considered any of them to be potential love interests.
"I have them here because they're suspects. I can't let them go, not yet." Hayes replied, his lip curling in disgust at the idea of stealing his brother's abandoned choices.
"Hayes, yes, they're suspects, but the detectives aren't yet sure, and neither are you. So for now, we need to have a reason for them to stay." King Harold replied, waving his hand across the expanse of the castle. "So, maybe just for the media's sake, we could say that you are going to continue the Selection?"
Hayes sighed, he didn't know if that would be any better for the public to hear, but he supposed that would fall on his father then, not him. So he agreed. The media can feast on that idea rather than bother the castle for answers about the murder that they didn't have.
"But it's dinner time, let's go." His father continued, nodding down the hall. Hayes nodded, and his father led the way.
When they approached the doors to the dining hall, guards opened it, and the Selected turned to look, standing to curtsy as they walked by. The swishing of the gowns, and the scent of perfume mixed and made him cringe a bit. He didn't understand the formality of the whole Selection, but he quickly made his way to the head table. Beck was there, and Hayes sat next to him as their father sat down.
Beck leaned over to Hayes, "They're all watching you. They were talking about you too."
Hayes looked from his brother to the Selected, 15 pairs of eyes were glancing at him, and he stood. "Ladies of the Selection. In my eyes, you are no longer Selected. My brother was murdered, you are Suspects. For the media I am taking over the romance, but I in no way plan to choose a Selected by the end of this. I will find who killed my brother, and to the rest of you, I hope you work with me, not against me in this. I want to return you home as soon as possible." He lifted his glass, "A toast! To justice!" He drank down the contents of his glass in one swig, and sat down with a flourish.
Some girls uneasily drank as well, but others simply avoided his gaze. It was a powerful feeling, he had to admit. But he hoped they knew just how serious he was about his statement. He would find his brother's killer, and no pair of pretty eyes was going to stop him from finding the truth.
Helloooo, hehe, soooo I thought of this story idea a while ago, but I tried to focus on HSC and OCCW instead. But this idea just never left, and now here I am. I have no self control, but I feel like with enough work I can juggle the three fics. I will only be accepting 14 girls, so first come first serve. But be careful, if I have too many girls of similar personality I may reject her in favor of someone else's idea.
So as a rule for this story, I will be accepting reservations, but you must give me a small paragraph on your idea for your girl, and her possible motive. I can't have 8 girls who fell for Hayes and wanted him to be king, or anything similar.
The usual rules apply, don't be basic, if you do something seriously damaging in their backstory put a warning, I'm allowed to change things as I see fit, etc. And just because you reserve a spot, doesn't mean I'll accept the idea you give me. I'm going to be more picky about the date the forms are due, since you have a while to get them done. The due date I have right now is October 1st.
If I have enough people interested, I may make a "Wait List" for those with good ideas to submit if another character is rejected. If I reject your original idea, you have 24 hours to give me a new paragraph for your character before I move to the first person on the waitlist. (Yes I will inform you when/if your 24 hours begin)
I don't have specific provinces on my profile, but all except Belcourt (my own character, who will not be the murderer, cuz I wanna select a submitted girl for that) are available as of now. But if you want to reserve a specific province feel free to, unless your province is important to the character, I could always just change the province if we have duplicates.
Once I approve your character, I'll send you the form over PM (either on FF or the discord)
Good luck and happy creating guys! I'm so excited for this story! It's definitely going to be more planning and slower updates probably than OCCW and HSC, so this is a long run story, so if you submit, be aware of that, and hopefully keep in touch with the story when it does update. See you and your amazing ideas soon~! If you have any questions/concerns let me know!