Prime Deception by Carys Jones

‘good’ and the other as ‘bad.’ In this case, Laurie was evidently the evil twin and in no small measure. But then Charles wondered if she had once been just like Lorna, but the death of her twin had changed her and twisted her in to a darker version of herself. He would never know.
    ‘I cared for your sister,’ Charles admitted simply.
    ‘Really? I didn’t see you at the funeral.’ The darkness behind Laurie’s eyes intensified, threatening to spill out into the room.
    ‘I … I wanted to come, but it wouldn’t have been appropriate.’
    ‘What? You had to come as her seedy older lover? You couldn’t have just come as her employer? Jesus Christ are you that short-sighted?’
    Since assuming the role of Deputy Prime Minister, people rarely spoke to Charles in a rude manner. Occasionally members of the public lashed out at events, angered over certain policies, but his security quickly intervened. Yet here Laurie was, being rude to him and not caring who he was, or what he did. To her, he was a man who had wronged her sister and he respected her ability to focus on that. He realised that there was something they shared; they had both loved Lorna dearly.
    ‘I know that I should have been there. I just didn’t want to turn Lorna’s funeral into a media circus,’ Charles admitted sadly.
    Laurie was quiet, appearing to contemplate what he had said whilst interlocking her hands over and over as they sat in her lap.
    ‘I miss her,’ the young girl said and suddenly her hardened exterior melted away and she was vulnerable and soft. She was Lorna.
    ‘As do I.’
    ‘My Mom can’t even look at me anymore, and my Dad tries to hide it but I see it in his eyes as I see it in yours. She and I were one and the same and now she’s gone but I’m still here.’
    ‘I can’t imagine what that must be like.’
    ‘Yes you can. People look at you and see the man you are on television, but underneath you are just a normal guy. On the outside I’m Lorna, but inside I’m Laurie.’
    Laurie had no idea why she was suddenly opening up to Charles. Perhaps it was the fatigue, as she was weary from travelling down to the capital city the previous day. Or maybe it was because she knew that she needed him to be on her side if she was ever to accomplish what she had come there to do.
    ‘Were you and Lorna very alike?’
    ‘No,’ Laurie scoffed. ‘Growing up, Lorna played with dolls whilst I’d spend days up in our treehouse, reading. We each lost ourselves in different dreams and fantasies. She wanted to be you –powerful and leading a nation. I wanted to be the ghost writer who would bring people like you down.’
    ‘I see.’ Charles felt himself warming to Laurie despite her hostile reception. He found her honesty, whilst cutting, refreshing.
    ‘I hate the city; all the fumes and people and pollution. But Lorna loved it. She would call me up raving about this show or that restaurant. Whereas I love to be in the country, enjoying as much solitude as possible.’ Laurie was rambling now but it was a long time since anyone had allowed her to speak openly about her twin. Most people in her life found the subject too painful to broach, which meant that she had been forced to keep the majority of her feelings locked deep inside her.
    ‘So, why are you here?’ Charles broached the question which had been on his mind since Laurie had first introduced herself.
    ‘Basically,’ Laurie inhaled, ‘I need your help.’
    ‘My help?’ Charles echoed, confused.
    ‘Yes … I,’ Laurie tried to find the words but couldn’t and dropped her head into her hands in frustration.
    ‘It’s okay.’ Charles leant forward to comfort her but then held back. Aesthetically she was still Lorna, and to touch her and feel her warmth would awaken too many conflicting feelings within him – feelings he was already struggling to deal with without adding a catalyst to the situation.
    ‘I need you to help me find out what happened to