Author's Note
Firstly, please accept my apologies for the long delay in getting this chapter posted. Finding time to write can be difficult sometimes
I would like to thank all of you who have emailed me, voted, and/or posted public comments on this story so far. Your kind words have actually inspired me to find time to do this earlier than I expected . Oh, and thanks for your patience too! I appreciate the supportive words, even while begging me to post Chapter 5 haha
New and existing readers, please vote (fives are appreciated!) and comment. I love hearing your feedback
VentureV
***
Sebastian stared out of the car window, not really seeing the harsh brown landscape slipping by as they sped towards Adelaide. He was lost in thought, consumed with worry, and a tinge of guilt. That morning, he had been forced to face the harsh reality of his actions, and he was unsure what the future now held for him and his twin sister, Sasha.
Awaking to find Nicky had gone out; the twins had tentatively continued their exploration of each other's young bodies. In each youngster's mind, they had convinced themselves that Nicky was out arranging to pick up the car, and would probably be gone for some time. The confidence and urgency of the previous night was gone though, in the harsh light of day, so they had proceeded by 'accidentally' touching each other while pretending to be asleep. Finally, they were openly staring into each other's eyes and caressing one another's bodies with increasing urgency.
Sebastian winced anew as he recalled eventually scooting down the bed to softly lap at Sasha's moist folds, only to hear the loud gasp of shock behind him just as his tongue made the first intimate contact. He had sat bolt upright in alarm, his heart almost exploding at the terror of being caught, and saw Nicky disappearing back through the door she had just entered. The door had slammed behind her, so loudly that it probably woke half of the motel's other guests.
Neither he, nor Sasha, had spoken as they hurriedly washed and dressed, then stuffed their scattered belongings into their suitcases. Nicky eventually returned, but not a word was exchanged as the three siblings quietly packed their suitcases into the Land Cruiser which was now waiting out the front of their motel room. They all avoided eye contact with each other completely.
It was now nearly two hours since they'd left the small town of Keith behind, and the continued silence made the air in the car more stifling that the oppressive heat outside.
Sebastian struggled to suppress the rising anxiety in his chest as he wondered what his older sister was thinking. He wondered if she had phoned their mum after catching her twin brother and sister in an intimate embrace. His heart sank further at the thought. Surely she wouldn't have called, he tried to convince himself. Surely not while Mum was still grieving from the death of their grandmother.
Sebastian and Sasha jumped in unison as Nicky eventually spoke. Sasha's head made a loud thump as she connected with the window beside her.
"Do you guys...?" Nicky started, and then glanced over her sister in concern. "Are you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm alright." Sasha muttered, rubbing her head.
"Um, ok." Nicky answered, her eyes flicking between the road ahead and her sister's subdued face. "I was going to ask if either of you minded if we stop at Hahndorf for a late breakfast. I read about it and I want to see what it's like."
"Fine with me." Sebastian mumbled, while his twin simply nodded in acquiescence.
"Ok, well it's only about 10 minutes away." Nicky added, shooting quick glances at them both. Neither twin responded and soon they were exiting the freeway.
All three siblings stared in amazement as they drove slowly down the street of a tiny town amid green leafy trees. A pair of white horses in full harness pulled a small carriage down the street, cars patiently following at a crawl, and a man stood on the footpath in traditional German attire with a piano accordion in hand. Two "frauleins", also in traditional dresses, danced around him as he played.
"Wow..." Nicky murmured. "This looks nice."
Nicky slowly pulled into a spare parking space along the main street, directly opposite a large building called "The Hahndorf Inn". Diners filled the large tables out the front, clearly enjoying a hearty breakfast, and the street bustled with all many of people.
"Shall we?" she asked.
"Sure." Sebastian answered, climbing out of the car. He was a little confused by the sudden conversation, after hours of complete silence. The fact that Nicky was talking almost normally was equally confusing. He wondered if she was going to do the same as Sasha had at first, and completely ignore the problem.
They crossed the road and, eyes wide to absorb the unusual sights, entered the restaurant. It was more than just a restaurant though. A long bar filled the front room and snooker tables stood in the clear area to their left. The entire right hand side of the establishment was filled with tables, many of them occupied. The interior of the inn featured heavy, dark timber beams and solid timber tables. Traditional German artifacts and trinkets adorned the shelves and were even nailed to the heavy beams and columns of the bar. German folk music played through a hidden sound system, and the babble of voices was quite loud.
A young man approached and guided them to an empty table where he took their breakfast orders, before disappearing to prepare their drinks.
Sebastian watched both of his sisters as they took in the unusual sights and sounds of the place. He was still nervous because of this morning's events, but a part of his mind continued to admire the girl's beauty.
Sasha stood up, smoothing her skirt around her legs.
"I'm just going to the ladies." she said, and walked toward the back of the restaurant where a sign pointed toward the restrooms.
"Me too." Nicky said, as Sasha disappeared around the corner, "Be right back."
Sebastian watched as his older sister disappeared around the same corner, and then sighed. He didn't think he could cope with much more of this tension between them. Resigning himself to accepting the consequences of his actions though, he watched the happy faces of the other patrons and eyed their meals with increasing hunger.
After a long wait, a pretty girl approached dressed in the same uniform as the other staff Sebastian had seen. She deposited three plates piled with bacon, eggs, mushrooms and fried tomatoes on the table and smiled as Sebastian as she worked.
"Hi." Sebastian said with a smile, "Thanks for that."
"You're welcome!" The girl said cheerfully. "Are you just visiting, or do you live around here?"
Sebastian eyed her name tag which read 'Anne', and met her eyes. Anne's smile widened and he laughed.
"No, we're just passing through from Melbourne. I think we might be staying overnight in Adelaide, but then we're heading for Perth." Sebastian told her. He briefly wondered where Nicky and Sasha had disappeared to. They had been gone for ages.
"Ohhhh" Anne said, pursing her lips thoughtfully. "Well, if you
are
planning on overnighting in Adelaide, let me know before you go ok?"
"What?" Sebastian asked, feeling a little dumb.
"Oh!" Anne chuckled softly. "No, it's just that there's a huge, international cycling thing going on in the city and you'll be extremely lucky if you can find a hotel with rooms available. I just thought if you're staying overnight, then you should probably stay somewhere up here in the Hills instead."
"Oh, I see." Sebastian told her gratefully, "Thanks, I'll definitely find out before we go."
Anne grinned and turned away, shifting sideways to let Sasha and Nicky through first. The girls seated themselves at the table and Sebastian eyed them both closely. Sasha seemed a lot more relaxed and Nicky beamed a radiant smile at him.
"Already on the prowl for girls hey?" Nicky asked him, her eyes flickering toward the departing waitress. Sasha giggled on Sebastian's other side.
"No." Sebastian answered, smiling tentatively. "She was telling me about some bike race in Adelaide. Apparently there's no chance of getting a hotel room in Adelaide because of some big international bike race. Were we even planning on staying in Adelaide now?"
"I don't know." Nicky mused. "I might give Mum a call now that the car's all sorted."
As Nicky pulled out her phone and scrolled through her address book, Sebastian glanced at his twin in worry. Sasha met his eyes calmly, smiled and nodded. He wondered suddenly whether they had talked about this morning during their long toilet break.
"Hi Mum!" Nicky said into the phone. "We're in Adelaide and I just wanted to touch base to let you know about something. There's no problem though, so don't worry!"
She paused, listening, before continuing.
"Well, we had a problem with the car but it's fixed now so there's nothing to worry about."
Sebastian listened to Nicky's half of the conversation as he ate. She gave an accurate description of the problem and seemed to be deflecting Tracy's gratitude. Probably her gratitude for dealing with the problem without worrying her.
"Oh ok." Nicky said, with a hint of surprise in her voice. "Ok, well that makes things easier then." She listened. "No Mum, I'll let you go so you're not late. Don't worry, we're fine."
"You didn't tell her how much it cost." Sasha said after Nicky had disconnected the call.
"No, she was running late for a meeting with Grandma's lawyer." Nicky answered, putting her phone away.
"So?" Sebastian asked her, his eyebrows rising questioningly.
"The funeral won't be happening until Saturday at 11.00am, so we've got plenty of time to get there." Nicky said, sipping at her coffee. "I'm actually pretty keen to stop here today, especially after last night."
Sebastian and Sasha exchanged glances, but Nicky didn't appear to notice as she put her cup down to finish breakfast. Sebastian suddenly registered what she meant and drew a relieved breath.
"Are you feeling really hung over?" He asked with a touch of concern.
"No, not really. Maybe a bit." Nicky answered.
"Ok, so if we stay overnight, we can't go down to the city so maybe we should ask that waitress where would be good to stay."
"Sure, ok." Nicky agreed.
