“I have nothing to hide,” she told him, and then with a smirk she added, “unlike you.”
“Me?”
She nodded slyly. “I have eyes, you know. I’ve seen how you look at Dix sometimes. I should be the one asking you what’s going on.”
His startled expression was all the confirmation she needed.
“I knew it!” she cried, sitting up excitedly. “How long have you liked her?”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Alex.”
“Aw, come on, Jordan,” she begged. “You know I won’t tell her anything.”
He ran his hands through his hair and dropped down onto the edge of her bed.
“Look, it’s not like anything will ever come of it,” he said wearily. “She’s… well, you know who she is.”
A princess. That was problematic. But still, not impossible.
“You’re not exactly a beggar on the street, Jordan,” Alex pointed out. “As much as you wish it wasn’t the case, you do come from a high-society family. And even if you didn’t, Dix is hardly the kind of girl who’d place conditions on her heart. You know that.”
He looked at her. “It’s complicated, Alex.”
“Yeah, well, so is life,” she said bluntly.
He rolled his eyes and said, “Don’t you have a bedtime schedule to keep?”
“But we haven’t finished talking,” she said with a Skyla-like pout.
“I’ll make you a deal,” he said, standing up and re-tucking her blankets. “You tell me about Kaiden, and I’ll tell you about Dix. Fair’s fair.”
She frowned at him. “There’s nothing to say about Kaiden.”
“Then this conversation’s over until there is something to say,” he said as he headed to the door. “I doubt we’ll have to wait long, judging by the starry-eyed expression on your face whenever his name is mentioned. Sweet dreams, Alex.”
She remained scowling at the door long after it closed behind him.
“Stupid, arrogant, thinks-he’s-always-right best friend,” Alex muttered to herself. “He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
Yeah. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, her thoughts reiterated, as she drifted off to sleep.
? 1D;
Twenty
Something woke Alex in the middle of the night. At first she wondered if D.C. was still having her recurring nightmares, but there was no noise to indicate any distress. In fact, when Alex lifted her head, she could easily see Dix was sleeping peacefully in her bed. So, what had woken Alex from her deep slumber?
When a shadow moved across her field of vision, Alex’s heart skipped a beat. She sat up, squinting into the darkness. The shadow moved again and Alex froze.
“Easy, little human. It’s just me.”
Her eyes widened when she recognised the voice and saw its owner step into the moonlight.
“Zain? What are you doing here?” she asked, gaping at the huge Meyarin. “And how did you get past the bio-sensor on the door?”
“Forgive the intrusion, young mortal, but Prince Roka needs to speak with you urgently,” Zain said, only answering part of her question. “He’s sent me to escort you to Meya.”
Alex stared at the intimidating guard who seemed much too large for her dorm room. “Uh, sure.” Then her brain replayed his words and she clarified, “Wait, do you mean right now?”
He chuckled. “Yes, Alex. Right now.”
She wasn’t thrilled about sacrificing her much-needed sleep—Fletcher would kill her if he found out—but she grudgingly dragged her tired body from her bed.
“Just give me a second to change,” she said, grabbing a fresh outfit from her wardrobe and retreating to the bathroom. She quickly peeled off the tattered gown and replaced it with a pair of jeans, T-shirt and a light jacket.
“Okay, I’m good to go,” she said, re-entering the room. “Just let me wake Dix.”
Alex walked over to her roommate’s bed but before she could reach out for D.C., Zain laid a hand on her arm.
“Prince Roka has requested you come alone.”
Alex frowned at him. “But—”
“I believe he’s already told you why,” Zain interrupted pointedly.
“It’s Dix,” she argued. “She’s a princess! Whatever Roka wants to say to me, she can hear. It’s practically her job to keep secrets!”
“Even so,” Zain said, “I have my orders. Sorry, little human.”
“Stop calling me that,” she grumbled.
Zain laughed quietly as he used his hand on her arm to guide her to the window.
She looked at him in confusion and pointed to the other side of the room. “Um, the door’s that way. We kind of need to use it to get to the Library.”
“To the Library, yes,” Zain agreed. “But not to Meya. Hold on, little human.”
“I told you not to call me—”
Alex clamped her mouth down on a scream when the ground took off from underneath them. Only Zain’s firm grasp around her elbow kept her from being propelled back into the transparent barrier of the Valispath as it flew them through the wall of her dorm building and up into the night sky.
“No way!” she gasped, as the scenery blurred past them at an alarming speed. When she’d travelled by the Eternal Path in Meya, it hadn’t moved anywhere near as fast. They sailed over treetops and rivers, skirted around and above glowing villages and larger towns, and cut straight through the middle of a mountain. And all within seconds.
“This is insane,” she whispered, taking in their journey with wide eyes.
The Valispath seemed to increase in speed until the scenery blurred into unidentifiable shadows. After a minute of what seemed like faster-than-light travel, their transport began to slow, and Alex saw they were soaring through an ethereal—and familiar—forest.
“We’ve just entered the Silverwood,” Zain said.
When the trees turned golden—and their radiance was breathtaking even at night—Alex knew they were almost at the city. The Valispath continued to slow to the speed she’d experienced during her first time in Meya—still ridiculously fast, but much less heart-stoppingly terrifying.
When they breached the Golden Cliffs, Alex was again mesmerised by the sight before her.
Meya was a place of dreams during the day, but that was nothing compared to what it was like at night, when moonbeams bounced off the Myrox in diamond-like streams around the entire city. The palace was surrounded by wisps of moving colour that flowed across the valley, to the point where the waterfalls glowed with a pearlescent sheen. Its beauty and majesty were beyond anything Alex could have ever imagined.
“Am I dreaming?” she whispered.
Zain turned his head to smile at her. “No, little human. Behold, the glory that is Meya.”
She was too overcome for words, so she nodded dumbly as they flew through the city. Much like the first time, it didn’t take long to reach the magnificent palace, but this time the Valispath transported them straight through the outer walls and continued until they reached their destination somewhere in the middle of the impressive building.
“I don’t understand,” she said to Zain when they came to a halt in front of an intricately decorated doorway. “I had no idea the Valispath could go beyond Meya—and I guess its surrounding forests, too. But since it clearly can, why doesn’t Aven just access it to get back here?”
“The Valispath can only be controlled by a Meyarin,” Zain answered. “Aven may be one of our race, but the authority of his blood was invalidated with his disinheritance. He lost his rights as a denizen of our city the moment he was stripped of his title and banished. The Eternal Path is one of the many privileges Aven forfeited with his rebellion.”
“The Library too, right?” Alex asked. “That’s why he needs me?”
Zain nodded.
“What would it take for him to regain those privileges?” Alex asked. “To be able to use the Valispath and everything else again?”
“That’s never going to happe
n, Alex.”
“But, if it did?” she pressed. “What would it take? Hypothetically
“For Aven to regain his inheritance, his father and brother would have to be dead,” Zain told her bluntly. “If King Astophe and Prince Roka were eliminated, Aven would automatically regain his birthright.”
“What about his mother? Couldn’t she take the throne?”
“Traditionally, only a king can rule Meya,” Zain said. “Queen Niida wouldn’t be allowed to hold the position indefinitely so long as she still had a living heir—regardless of his state of banishment. Our laws would defend the right of rulership as belonging to Aven, and we would have no choice but to pledge our allegiance to him or become traitors to the crown.”
Alex wasn’t sure what her expression must have shown, but Zain squeezed her arm and sent her a comforting smile.
“Don’t worry, little human. Like I said, that will never happen.” With those confident words, he stepped up to the door.
“One last thing,” Alex said. “Could I use the Valispath? You know, because I apparently have Meyarin blood in my veins?”
She hated the idea, but if there was the potential perk of using the Eternal Path anytime she wanted, then admittedly that would be pretty awesome.
Zain laughed at the eager look on her face. “I’m afraid not, as it’s Aven’s blood you possess. His disinheritance technically means your disinheritance.”
The Meyarin was clearly amused by her disappointed pout, but he was also intent on keeping them moving. After knocking and waiting for a response too quiet for Alex to hear with her human ears, Zain opened the door and beckoned for her to step through first.
“I was wondering when you two would stop chatting,” Roka said, rising from behind his desk and walking over to them.
He was just as intimidatingly beautiful as the first time Alex had seen him—more so, perhaps, since he was wearing some kind of dark outfit with gold trimming that brought out the unique colour of his eyes. He also wore a swirling black and gold cape, which added to his impressive—not to mention, princely— appearance. But the grin on his face was warm and welcoming, and Alex found herself smiling back at him in response.
“It’s good to see you again, Alex,” Roka said, reaching out to place his hands on her shoulders. “I hope you’ve been well?” Before she could answer, he frowned slightly and added, “You’re frozen stiff. Zain, please tell me you shielded the Valispath?”
Alex hadn’t noticed how cold she was until he’d pointed it out. Her body was shivering to fight off the stinging bite of the wind from their journey.
“Forgive me, little human,” Zain said, seeing her trembling. “I didn’t realise you were uncomfortable.”
“Don’t worry about it,” she said through her chattering teeth. “I was too distracted by the scenery to notice the cold, anyway.”
“Be that as it may, we can’t have you freezing to death,” Roka said, and he unclasped his cape and placed it around her shoulders. It was way too big on her, but warmth immediately began to flow through her body, and she smiled gratefully at him.
“Thank you, Prince Roka.”
“I’m not a fan of formalities, Alex,” he said. “Just call me Roka.”
She furrowed her brow and looked from him to Zain and back again. “But Zain calls you by your title.”
“Zain is one of my closest friends,” Roka said, “but he also happens to be one of the most respected warriors in Meya’s elite guard. Because of that, he often has to maintain a semblance of formality around me, but he doesn’t usually call me ‘Prince’ unless it’s for official business, with witnesses present.”
“Like when he’s picking up a mortal and escorting her to Meya in the dead of the night?” Alex asked dryly.
“A perfect example,” Roka said, his lips twitching with humour as he turned to his guard. “For future reference, Zain, you can be at ease around Alex.”
“You can also stop calling me ‘little human’,” she told the guard, for what felt like the hundredth time.
“What would be the fun in that?” Zain asked with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
Alex huffed at him but decided to let it go—for the moment, anyway. She followed the two Meyarins over to a set of plush gold couches on the far side of the room and collapsed onto the super-soft material.
“Is this your office, Roka?” she asked, eyeing the opulent furniture complete with a massive wooden desk piled high with all sorts of interesting objects, most of which Alex couldn’t begin to identify.
“One of them,” he answered, leaving it at that. “Can I offer you something to eat or drink?”
Alex couldn’t deny that she was curious about Meyarin cuisine, but it was the middle of the night and she could feel her bed calling her from miles away. She decided not to prolong their discussion for longer than necessary.
“I’m good, thanks,” she said. “Why don’t we fast forward to where you explain why you needed to speak with me so urgently?”
“I’m truly sorry for disrupting your sleep, Alex,” Roka said, and he did look like he meant it, “but I just received news of your encounter with my brother earlier tonight. For so long we’ve heard nothing of Aven and his dealings—although we do keep tabs on him from time to time—and then to suddenly have you come out of nowhere with your story… Well, I’m sure you can understand our surprise.”
“I definitely can,” Alex said. “But I’m still not sure why I’m here?”
Roka looked away and ran a hand through his dark hair before he turned his piercing golden eyes back to her. “Alex, I’ve spent the majority of this past week trying to convince our ruling council—and my father—not to insist you remain in Meya indefinitely.”
“What?” she squeaked.
“You’re considered to be our most significant threat right now,” Roka said. “With your access to the Library, you’re the only one of your kind who can help Aven return to our city. The council members are hesitant to trust the word of a mortal girl whose allegiances they believe could be swayed with the right incentive.”
“Aven nearly killed me,” Alex reminded him. “He also tried to kill my best friend, using me as his puppet! If he’d had his way tonight, he would have killed or Claimed a whole group of people I care about. I would never help him, no matter the incentive!”
“Perhaps not willingly,” Roka said, “but Aven is a skilled manipulator. And you’re young, even for your own kind.”
“I’m not an idiot, Roka,” Alex said, jutting her chin out. “I know the difference between good and evil.”
“Knowing is important,” the prince acknowledged. “But there’s a great difference between knowing what’s right and being able to hold onto it in the face of adversity.”
Alex massaged her temples, feeling her earlier exhaustion returning.
“Let me get this straight,” she said. “You’re telling me that the Meyarin council wants to lock me up? That’s a bit extreme, don’t you think?”
“I agree,” Roka said. “And I’ve spent many hours arguing on your behalf.”
“Why?” she asked. At his questioning look, she clarified, “Why defend me?”
He shrugged his shoulders and sent her a warm smile. “I don’t know you very well, Alex, but from what I’ve seen with my own eyes, I don’t believe you would ever willingly betray us.”
Alex felt humbled by his kind words and his unexpected offer of trust.
“Thanks, Roka. That means a lot,” she said quietly. “But did it do any good? Or should I expect some of your buddies to storm though the door any minute and bind me with Moxyreel?”
Seeing the apprehension in her expression, Roka chuckled. “No, Alex, you’re safe here. I’m at a stalemate with the council, but they’re willing to stand down for the time being. It helps that my father eventually took your side as well. As King, he holds the most sway with the council. And he seemed to appreciate your… What was the word, Zain?”
“Spunk,?
?? Zain said with a crooked grin. “He definitely used the word ‘spunk’.”
Roka laughed. “That’s right. Apparently he was impressed when you snapped at him and told him to use your actual name instead of, uh… other titles.”
“If the king can learn from that, why can’t you, Zain?” Alex asked the guard.
“Someone has to keep you in line, little human.”
She made a face at him and turned back to Roka. “If I’m not here to be kidnapped, then why am I here?”
“I was told you crossed blades with Aven,” the prince said. “My informants weren’t able to say more than that, so I called you here to make sure you were okay and to find out what happened.”
“That’s it?” Alex asked, not sure if she was relieved or annoyed. “How is that classified as ‘urgent’?”
“I wasn’t sure when I’d next have the chance to meet with you, since I didn’t want to intrude upon your studies,” Roka said. “Education is important.”
Alex actually snorted. “So is sleep. And coincidentally, your brother said the exact same thing to me once, just with slightly more condescension.”
“As fascinating as that is,” Roka said, and she wasn’t sure if he was being sarcastic or not, “I’d rather hear about how you ended up fighting him.”
Shifting into a more comfortable position, Alex opened her mouth to begin her story, but was interrupted when a knock sounded at the door, followed by Kyia walking into the room.
“Alex, it’s good to see you again,” said the beautiful Meyarin with a smile so bright it was nearly blinding.
“Hey, Kyia,” Alex replied. “Shot anyone lately?”
Roka and Zain both laughed and Kyia’s smile widened.
“I’m waiting for your friends to come back so I can get in some target practice.”
“I’ll remember that for the next time they annoy me,” Alex said. “As long as you lend me a bow, too.”
“Deal,” Kyia agreed, taking a seat and turning to Roka. “Have I missed anything?”
“Your timing is perfect,” he said. “Alex is about to tell us what happened tonight with Aven.”
Alex looked at Roka, hoping he’d be able to read her hesitant expression.