The days immediately following the collapse of Dol’s Merlain went by as a blur to Katherine’s memory. She remembered taking Lillian back to the command center to restart her strengthening treatments. Lillian’s waxy skin somehow still glowed, not with light, but with relief that the fight was over. Katherine remembered the embrace Evan gave her…
Commander Voss entered Katherine’s interrogation room, which filled her with dread. Force that inspires loyalty radiated from him. Katherine, not sure whether to rise, bow, or recoil, sat frozen in her seat. Voss gave her the slightest of smiles before Katherine was distracted by Lillian’s entrance into the room. The princess’ color was back, and…
When the Coellum soldiers encountered Princess Lillian maneuvering the Merlain streets with thre strangers, she was quickly separated and protected from them. Her skin was a pale yellow and her hair was a frizz. Had it not been for the strong resemblance her eyes, cheeks, and jawline had with her father, she might have been…
It did not take long for Drex to orient himself to their location. He looked at the sun’s position turned his back to it and immediately the whole group saw the smoke coming from the plaza. “That way. Shouldn’t take us too much longer.” He looked at Lillian. “How are you doing?” “I’ve been better,”…
Several harrowing seconds later, Katherine landed in chest-high water. She quickly found her footing and scrambled to her feet. Drex’s light found Lillian quickly, and pulled her up, too. Katherine heard Evan’s slide approaching the tunnel’s mouth and stepped away just before he landed hard on his backside. They had made it, soaked to the…
Katherine revived to the sensation of Evan’s hand on her cheek, his arm around her shoulder and the warmth of his body pressed against her side. She opened her eyes and saw that she was sitting on the floor next to her husband. The room where she sat looked like her greatest decorating fears: cabinetry…
The transport glided through the empty streets. Out of the back, Katherine saw the progress they had made toward the plaza run in reverse. She watched as facade after facade drifted further and further away. Daring a glance at the two soldiers positioned at the exit, she saw their machine-like focus and found it difficult…
Several blocks later, and the Merlian sun was blaring down in the escapees. The weight of Lillian was increasing and Katherine urged them to stop. She’d requested to stop several other times, but the sounds of the approaching military had spurred them on. But they had to stop. The princess would not last the distance…
The air in the safe house had grown stale, and Drex refused to open the windows. Two days had passed since he and Evan had first ventured out into the neighborhoods to see what the ground conflict might look like and how, if at all, the four of them might get Lillian to the Coellum…
“They’ve gone?” Adrenaline surged through Katherine as she whipped her head around to find Lillian, pale and gaunt, leaning against a doorpost. Katherine closed her eyes and calmed her breathing before speaking to the Princess. “What are you doing out of bed?” she asked, leaning against a counter to keep from passing out from fright….
