A/N: I am so sorry about the long delay! I was out of town for several weeks traveling, then school started again and I've been up to my ears in writing assignments for school. I haven't forgotten about you all, I swear! To make up for it, I've got this mega chapter for you (the largest one I have yet to post for this story), over 6k words!

Thanks to all my fantastic reviewers,

'Kaylee00', 'Beachchick3', 'Kei-Kugody', 'Crazy Redwood' 'Jess', 'The Swan Queen', 'Dixon', 'NicoleAE', 'PinkMuffins', and my four guest reviewers! I was reading all your reviews and I knew I had to get my butt in gear and start writing this again.

Without further ado, here it is. Chapter 26.

Chapter 26: Hope

Four months since Sapphire's Capture

I was jolted awake by an urgent rapping at the front door.

I immediately closed my eyes tighter and shied away from the sound. Behind me, Graves shifted and pulled me closer against him, apparently as intent on ignoring the sound as I was. Tonight I slept with him, in the King's chambers. This was becoming an occurrence almost every night, now. As my pregnancy had progressed, so had Graves' affection for me, and thusly our relationship.

Graves lay in silence for several more minutes before the knock came again, louder now.

"Piss off!" Came Graves' voice behind me. I smirked just slightly as he said the words. As much as I might dislike his brutish personality, his bluntness often amused me. Graves said aloud the things I only thought in my head.

When the sound continued, I felt Graves move from behind me, out of the bed. I made a sound of protest in response and reached for him, and he let his hand liger in mine for just a moment before he sauntered across the room towards the front door. I listened intently to the sound of Graves walking, and as soon as I heard him begin his descent down the long hallway that connected our room to the rest of the suite I sprang into action. I made no noise as my bare feet padded along the cold stone carefully. I crept into the hall and then down it, just to the edge by the living room. I lingered in the dark corner beside the archway and focused entirely on the living room. I heard the sound of the door opening, and men with heavy shoes entering the room.

"It's four in the fucking morning. I hope you have a good reason for waking me up."' Graves' voice was familiar to me now. I recognized the sound of it instantaneously.

"Do you really think I would have come straight from the field if it weren't important?" I recognized this voice as well. His name was James Doyle, one of Graves' top lieutenants.

"Spit it out then."

"We've found the rest of the family."

Immediately my heart stopped at his words. The family? I knew there was only one family he could be referring to. Mine.

"Lower your voice." Graves hissed back at him. "She's asleep in the room."

There was a long pause, and I imagined the look of disdain on Doyle's face at Graves' words. Doyle was not my biggest fan by any means. He continued regardless, this time in a lower tone. "We've found them." Doyle's voice was so low the words were barely discernable. I inched closer to the doorframe, my ears straining for his whispers. "The remaining daughters, the mother, and the two deathlords that led their escape. They're at the Citadel, just like you predicted."

I almost shrieked with the glee that coursed through my body. My family was alive. Max was alive. Max was alive. The father of my child was alive.

"You're certain of this?" Graves asked.

"Of course I'm fucking certain." Doyle snapped back. "Do you really think that I would come here at this hour if I wasn't?"

I waited impatiently to hear Graves' response to Doyle's words, but there was only silence. Instead, I heard Doyle's voice again, increasingly impatient. "Well? Should I lead the assault or would you prefer a quiet assassination?"

I covered my mouth in shock at Doyle's words and felt a sickness rise up in my stomach. A full assault? Assassination? There had to be a way to warn them. I couldn't just let them attack the Citadel! There must be some way, something I hadn't thought of-

Graves' growling voice cut into my thoughts.

"Leave them be." He stated. Surprise reverberated through me at his words. Leave them be? Did he mean leave them completely alone?

Doyle was completely silent for several moments, and I had a feeling he was as shocked as I was. When he finally spoke he repeated the order back slowly, tasting the strangeness of the command with every word. "You want me to leave them alone?"

"Are you fucking deaf? That's what I said, isn't it?"

I heard a sudden and aggressive switch in Doyle's voice. He spoke quickly now, and firmly. "Once the gates are reopened and they realize she is here- once Max realizes she's here- there'll be no stopping him. We thought we killed him in the assault on this place. Hell, we didn't just think it. I would've bet my life the man was dead after the fall that he took. And yet he came back and rescued her entire family with just one other man. He'll come for her again. You know he will. And this time the only way he'll leave without her is if he's dead."

"Are you questioning me, Doyle?"

There was another long pause, and I could practically hear Doyle gritting his teeth before he spoke. "I was merely suggesting we handle this problem before it becomes a problem. Which is inevitable as long as you insist on keeping your… pet."

Graves didn't skip a beat in his response. "Tell me, Doyle. Is the gate open?"

An irritated sigh. "No."

"Has anyone left the city since we took over?"

"No. None other than our men."

"Well then." Graves finished. "It would seem that we are in no imminent danger from any Deathlords tonight. So if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to the sleep that you interrupted. We can discuss this issue again in the morning."

There was a long pause before Doyle answered, and I could almost picture the infuriated face he must be making. When he spoke again, his voice was full of contempt. "I get it. She's a great piece of pussy. The odds of you finding a girl that looks like that now a days are practically nonexistent. But you're letting this girl get to you. She's in your head."

There was silence after Doyle's statement, as though he expected some sort of response from Graves. Graves remained silent, and I imagined his signature look of condescension on his face. When Graves still didn't speak, Doyle pressed onward, clearly irritated by the lack of response. "You killed her family. As far as she knows, her entire family. If she were to suddenly discover that her husband is still alive, what do you think she would do? Do you really believe she would stay loyal to the man that murdered her family over the man that saved what was left of-"

Doyle was suddenly cut off, and I immediately heard the sounds of a struggle. I heard the sound of flesh slamming against flesh, and the pained grunts of a fight. The struggle continued loudly for a few moments, before it became subdued. I chanced a peak around the corner of the doorframe, and I saw Doyle pinned chest-down on the floor by Graves, Graves' knee pressing Doyle's face against the stone. Doyle struggled to escape, but the movements were barely noticed by Graves. When Graves spoke now, there was no patience left in his voice. His voice came out as a low, straightforward, growl.

"You're a good man, Doyle. Loyal. Effective. I would certainly grieve if your skills were suddenly lost to me-

Doyle grunted furiously and interrupted. "Get the hell off of me!"

Graves didn't react, just continued. "-however if you ever talk to me like that again, I will kill you. Do you understand?"

Doyle didn't speak, but instead gave an affirmative grunt. Graves stood, and extended a hand to Doyle to help him. I ducked back into hiding as they stood.

"Was that necessary?" Doyle snapped at Graves.

"Your ego is larger than your ability. So, yes. It was necessary."

"My point still stands. Keeping her here while her family is alive puts us all at risk. And that's on you."

"And my point still stands. The gates are shut, they don't know she's here. We are in a position where waiting till morning to decide is not a drastic notion."

Doyle made a sound of begrudging affirmation, and I took that as my cue that I should return to bed. I snuck back down the hall as quickly as I could, and climbed into the bed quietly. When Graves returned a short time after, I was pretending to be asleep. He climbed into his bed and immediately returned to his place behind me. My back pressed against his chest as he moved next to me, and I felt his fingertips gently trace down my shoulder and arm. If he was still angry from his altercation with Doyle he gave no indication of it now. If I hadn't witnessed the fight myself, I would have never known it had occurred.

I felt him shift behind me before his lips pressed against my shoulder. His beard tickled against my skin, and I shivered and pretended to wake before I spoke to him.

"What did they want?" I asked him, trying to keep my voice muted as though I was stirring from sleep.

"Nothing important." He muttered back, his beard tickling my shoulder as he did.

I ducked my head in an attempt to escape his beard before I rolled over to face him. He had become as familiar to me as Max had once been. Even in this dim light I could place all of Graves' features. I lifted my hand and traced my fingertips over his face. I found the scar that started above his eye and ran down his face and into his beard. I traced along it with my fingers, and then moved my fingertips to his cheek and traced along the hollow space there. His fingers found mine, and he brought my fingertips to his lips and kissed them gently.

Moments like this were what made my life here most difficult. When Graves was cruel or aggressive it was easy to hate him. But the moments like this- The moments when he was gentle and even kind to me- That was what made this difficult. What I had just witnessed in the living room wasn't helping me sort through my mixed feelings for this man. I found that the initial burning hatred I had felt toward him had dimmed over time. I wasn't sure if it was due to me rationalizing my fate, some sort of Stockholm syndrome, or if becoming his Queen had revealed a dimension to Graves' character that I hadn't realized existed. Whatever the reason, the hatred for him that I had initially felt so strongly had slowly dimmed. I hadn't forgotten what he had done, I just consciously pushed those memories to the back of my mind and focused only on how he had treated me since I had become his Queen. Keeping those feelings of aggression at bay helped me significantly with my act. Some days my affection towards him didn't even feel like an act.

I wasn't sure what I had just witnessed in the living room. On one hand, Graves' aggression could be looked at as only a show of power. However, I was more keen on the subject matter that had brought him to anger. Me. More importantly, Doyle's slandering of me. Graves had essentially defended me. I was having a hard time dismissing that fact.

As he kissed my fingertips I gave him a genuine smile. The smile was due to a mixture of things. His actions in my defense, and the information I had just learned about my family. The fact that he had lied to me about their true fate was of little consequence to me. I was used to Graves lying to me. Given the circumstances around our relationship, he had much to keep from me. But I was learning to combat his lying by finding out the truth my own way. The closer I became with him and the better I played my part, the easier it became to find out the truth. He trusted me enough to let me stay the night with him now, and on occasion even stay alone in his room. Since he had begun to allow that, it had become much easier for me to learn what was really going on. I had many tricks to discern the truth, one of which was my careful hallway eavesdropping. But I had also learned to keep my eyes open. Graves' letters, maps, and papers were always strewn about his quarters, and I often let my eyes wander casually over his reports when I was here.

I was so elated about my family being alive, and that Graves had seemingly detracted a possible attempt on their lives, that I decided to reward him somehow for his inadvertent good behavior. It was important that when he behaved how I wanted, that I returned the favor by doing the same. I moved toward him in the dark and kissed him, gently at first, but slowly more passionately. He kissed me back, of course. Surprised somewhat, but not altogether shocked. This behavior from me was no longer unusual. I had gotten better over time, better at my mask. I had learned to channel my emotions to my advantage. Right now I was channeling my happiness at the discovery of my family into my interaction with him. He could only feel the emotion from me, after all, not the source of it.

"What was that for?" He asked as I pulled away from him.

I just smiled as innocently as possible. "I missed you."

He chuckled. Even his laugh sounded dark. "I was only gone a few minutes."

"The bed got cold without you."

"Is that all?"

I nodded and he kissed me, and I felt his fingers brush gently against my thigh and push up the nightgown I was wearing. Soon he was hovering over me, and his hands worked quickly to remove the piece of clothing altogether. "I think I know a way to fix that." He told me quietly. I sat up on my elbows to kiss him again, and he returned my kiss eagerly.

I had expected him to lessen his advances on me once he learned I was pregnant. After all, I assumed he only had me so often to make me pregnant. I realized shortly after I told him of my condition that he had a deep attraction to me that was not going to be halted or sated by my pregnancy. I was his Queen, his property, and he planned to continue to exercise his marital rights to my body. I'd finally come to terms with the fact that he wasn't going to stop wanting me. If anything the idea that I now carried his child made him want me more than before. I didn't look at this as a bad thing. If anything, it was a good sign. A great sign, actually. Whatever I was doing was working. Graves still wanted me, and not just for the child that I carried. My use to him had expanded, and as long as I was useful I would be kept alive.

When I woke up the next morning, Graves was not with me. I yawned and stretched before I got out of bed. I found my nightgown on the floor, where it had been discarded the night before, and slipped it onto my body. I paused to examine myself in a mirror before I went to look for Graves. I could see my baby bump beginning to form, although just barely. I was very tiny already, and as a result the bump on me was also little. I ran my hands over my stomach and smiled just slightly. Max was alive. My baby's father was alive. Doyle was right to be afraid. Everything he'd said was true. As soon as Max knew I was here, he would come for me.

I went into the bathroom and quickly found a brush and began my work taming my hair. I saw that there was already a gown waiting for me in the bathroom as well, and I assumed a servant had fetched one from my room for me. I put the dress on quickly, and Graves' sapphire necklace after that. When I emerged from the bathroom I imagined that I looked every bit as regal as any pre-apocalypse Queen. It didn't take me long to find Graves. He was in the main area of the house, standing beside the dining room table. He was wearing a pair of pants, an unbuttoned shirt, and a disconcerted expression. His eyes were downcast, focused only on the papers on the table in front of him. I had developed a firm respect for the way Graves ran his operation. He was organized, calculating, and kept incredibly detailed notes and maps. I had never asked him myself, but I was almost certain that he had to have been involved in some sort of military operation before this. I noticed also that James Doyle was already with him. Doyle was leaning against the wall, his eyes trained on Graves as my husband examined the papers. Doyle was a tall man (though not nearly as tall as Graves), with broad shoulders and short cut brown hair. He had a hard face and even harder eyes, with a stern jawline and nearly constant look of disapproval. If there was any animosity still existing between Graves and Doyle from their disagreement the night before, I could not tell now.

Doyle noticed me first, and his grey eyes immediately flicked upward and trained on me. I saw several emotions there. Irritation. Suspicion. Disapproval. He didn't trust me worth a damn, and blatantly disagreed with how close Graves and I were becoming. However, I could see in him an immense amount of animosity. He respected Graves, that wasn't the issue. He just had very different views on how they should be running this operation. Doyle didn't think that Graves was wrong for wanting me, but that Graves was wrong for letting me be this close to him. Doyle wasn't necessarily incorrect. Graves' death was never far from my mind. However, I doubted that even Doyle suspected that I might become a murderess. No one here thought me capable of such a thing. But he certainly didn't think that Graves should have ever made me Queen. In fact I believed that if Doyle were the one in charge he would've probably raped and killed me in the same night.

I met Doyle's eyes evenly as I walked into the room. His eyes flicked over my body with mild interest before he looked back at me, head cocked to the side and eyebrow raised. I didn't know what to think of his expression. Condescending? Mocking? Amused? I was certain he was doing it to make me uncomfortable, but other than that I wasn't sure what to make of it. I wasn't entirely sure that I really wanted to know what he was actually thinking. I had thought for a long time that Graves was the worst kind of man. I realized now there were worse men even than Graves. James Doyle was one of those men.

I maintained Doyle's gaze with a deliberately even expression, and eventually the man sniggered at my passive-aggressiveness. Graves looked up as Doyle made a sound, and he immediately caught the staredown between us. Graves extended his arm toward me, beckoning me toward him, and as soon as he did I broke my gaze with Doyle and walked into the safety of his arms. The irony of this was not entirely lost on me, but there was little else I could do. Graves was my captor, but he was also my most fierce protector in this place. He wrapped his arms around me as I walked into his chest, and I felt him press his lips against my hair before he spoke.

"I've some things to discuss with Doyle." He told me quietly. "I'll send for you later."

I knew that the reports sitting before him were most likely about the Citadel, and the remaining members of my family. As tempting as it was to glance down and attempt to read them, I knew that doing so in front of Doyle would be a mistake. I didn't want to fuel his suspicions of me.

I nodded to Graves, and when I did I felt him smile. He pressed his lips against my head again. "Good girl. Off you go."

I walked away from Graves and toward the front door. Doyle opened the door for me with exaggerated care. "Your majesty." He drawled at me as I passed him. I didn't give him the satisfaction of a response or a glance, and quickly brushed past him.

Outside Graves' door, two guards were waiting. They immediately fell into step behind me as I walked along the hall. I was allowed to roam the palace freely now. Well, somewhat freely. I was free to go wherever I wanted, as long as I had a guard with me. I eventually made my way to my room, and as I entered the room my guards waited outside of my door. May was already inside my room when I shut the door behind me.

We both knew what to do. We walked simultaneously toward my bedroom, and I shut and locked the door behind me immediately.

"Sapphire." May began immediately, her voice practically glowing from excitement as she spoke. "I have tremendous news for you."

"And I for you." I replied quickly, my own excitement at my news bubbling over. "You first." I told her, certain her news couldn't possibly trump my own.

"We have found a way out!" She immediately exclaimed.

My eyes flew wide open in shock. "What?" I asked, completely baffled by what she had said. A way out? It sounded like she meant there was a way out of the city, but that couldn't possibly be right.

"We have found a way out of the city." She repeated to me again.

"I don't understand." I stuttered back, overwhelmed by this news. "How is this possible?"

"A smuggler." She shot back. "There is a man who has been smuggling goods in and out of the city through the sewer system for months, we've just found him. He says he has a gyrocopter hidden in the mountains."

"I can't believe this." I muttered out.

"I know. I could hardly believe it myself." May replied.

"Is he trustworthy?" I asked her.

"Jax seems to believe so." She replied.

Even as she told me there was a way out, I knew that I would not be leaving this city. We had realized long ago that any escape attempt I made would be futile. As long as Graves was alive, and as long as he believed me to be pregnant with his child, he would never let me go. Even with a gyrocopter speeding me away, Graves would not rest until I was found. I would be bringing an insurmountable amount of danger with me wherever I fled. And when I was inevitably captured by Graves, any progress I had made toward him trusting me would be completely shattered. I would no longer be his Queen. I would become a slave.

Despite this realization, we'd still been searching for a way out. A way out meant a way to communicate, to send messages. A message to Max, for example, telling him that I was still alive. And if there was a way out to bring out a message to Max, then that meant there was also a way to bring Max back in. And if there was a way for Max to get back in, there was a way for Graves to be killed.

That was the only way I would ever truly be free. The day that Axel Graves ceased to be alive would be the day that I became free. Our plan had become entirely centralized on that singular idea. Finding Max, telling him I was still alive, and hoping to God that he was furious enough to come back and kill Graves.

For months now we had been working carefully. Jax had been recruiting in the shadows, slowly joining people to our cause. Our numbers had swelled to just over two-hundred. Two-hundred able-bodied individuals that believed Graves deserved death, and that were willing to deliver it to him. Certainly no army. But as an insurgent force already present inside of the city, it was pretty powerful. It was our hope that in the confusion after Graves' death, this small number would be enough to open the gates and give the townsfolk a chance to leave the city unopposed if they wished it.

Our plan hinged on Graves' death. And that would happen, one way or another. Once we'd found the way out, we intended to search for Max. If we couldn't find him, our backup plan was that I would kill Graves myself. I was the one closest to him, it would be easiest for me to accomplish. But I had hoped that it would never come to that.

I hated Graves. I hated him for what he did to my family, my city. I hated him for killing so many with so little regard for their lives. But despite all of this hatred, Graves had slowly grown on me. He was kind to me, and to the child he believed to be his. He treated me well as his Queen, he kept me safe. Through growing close to him, I was finally learning the truth about this world. Morality was not black and white, but rather a fluid and ever-changing entity. There was no such thing as 'good' people and 'bad' people. There was only a million shades of gray in-between. I had learned that Graves was certainly not the worst kind of man that existed in this world, and though he may be on the darker end of my 'good and evil' spectrum, he was certainly no psychopath. Graves killed to further his goals, and found no pleasure in what he did. His cruelty was out of a desire to hold power. Anything he did, anyone he killed, was to ensure that he gained or maintained his power.

At first I had thought that his ability to kill so easily was what made him evil. But I realized now that what Graves did was not truly evil. He didn't kill because he enjoyed it, but rather because he recognized killing as a means to an end. This didn't make him a good person in my eyes, not by any means. I still found him cruel, still believed that the bloodshed he caused was unnecessary But I was now able to understand what drove him, and what drove him was not an intent to cause pain, but to gain power. Graves' demeanor was a side-effect of this world. Like Max, Graves had also learned over time to rationalize the mass amount of death in this world into his own favor. They'd both learned that killing was the only way to survive in this world. The difference between them was only in their choices on who and why they killed, and how it affected them after. Graves killed for power. He killed to express his power over others, to gain power, or to defend his power. Killing was the method he chose to enforce his power, but not something he did entirely without conscience. Max, on the other hand, killed to keep himself and the people he cared about safe. As long as he killed within this requirement, he felt no remorse for their death. It was the reason he was able to kill the man that threatened me at the Outpost. It was the reason he was able to kill attackers of the city without it keeping him up at night. Max only felt remorse for undo deaths. Murders from his past, committed out of vengeance rather than need. Deaths of people he hadn't been strong enough to save. These were what kept him up at night. And so, while Max was also a killer I knew that did not make him innately evil.

If anything, my new understanding of Graves was only because I had seen a true sociopath now in James Doyle. I had initially mistaken Graves' aggression as bloodthirst, but I realized now what I was really witnessing was a thirst for power, and the consequences of what he did to realize his power. Doyle, on the other hand, was an entirely different story. I'd seen the people he brought in as prisoners, what he'd done to them. I'd sat in the throne room beside Graves as Doyle had proudly brought forth his interrogation victims, people mutilated and barely clinging to life. In my time here, I'd learned that Doyle had been responsible for the crucifixion of our Deathlords and officers. He was the one that had carried out the interrogations of these men. I hadn't realized during the attack, but through Doyle's interrogations Graves had learned everything he ever needed to know to take our city. The layout of the city, the palace, even the structure of our gates. It was why they had gotten in so quickly, how they had manipulated our own city against us in the battle.

Before Doyle, I'd thought that Graves was truly evil, that there was nothing worse than him. James Doyle had proved me utterly and entirely wrong. For Doyle, killing wasn't just something through which a higher goal was achieved. Killing was the goal for Doyle. He truly enjoyed watching people die. He enjoyed the process of killing them, of studying their pain, and how the reality of an imminent and painful death affected people. He was truly without conscience. His only goal was to kill. It was what (in my mind) made him impossible as a leader, and ensured he would always be underneath of Graves. He lacked direction in his violence, lacked a goal beyond the death right before him. But his psychopathic nature made him ideal as one of Graves' top lieutenants. He would never question why he needed to kill, and never feel remorse upon completing the murder. He was a truly evil person. Graves was just smart enough to use someone like that in his own favor.

I didn't want to have to kill Graves. The red-hot anger that I had once felt had now cooled inside of me. I still wanted him to die, still thought he deserved death. But I did not want to be the person that delivered it to him. He needed to pay for what he had done to my family, and to this city. But I could no longer find it within myself to commit the deed. He had been kind to me since he had taken me prisoner, kinder than he needed to be and kinder than any of his men would have been. This kindness was blurring my feelings toward him. It was making me see a man where I had only seen a monster. I was sure I hated what he had done. To me, to my family, and to this city. But the man himself? I wasn't so sure anymore. Being this close to him was forcing me to accept a depth to his character that I didn't want to believe was there. His cruelty to the world around him was disturbing to say the least. But inside of his room, alone with me, I could hardly believe it was the same man that had put my father and brothers to death.

Ultimately, if it really came down to it, I would kill Graves myself. He had done too much, gone too far, to ever receive true forgiveness from me, and I owed it to the people of the city to free them from his tyrannical rule. But, if Max could do it instead, I would prefer that. I was sure Max would, too.

I was jerked back to May and I's present conversation when she spoke again.

"We can look for him now. For Max, for your family. We can at least find out if they are alive."

"There's no need to search." I told her. "That's my news."

"You mean to tell me…?"

"Yes. They're alive. I overheard a conversation between Doyle and Graves last night. They are at the Citadel, alive and safe. For now at least."

"Does Graves mean to attack?" May pressed.

I paused, pondering my words before I said them. "I'm not entirely sure… Doyle, of course, was ready to kill them as soon as possible. But Graves wouldn't give the command."

"What do you mean he wouldn't give the command?"

"Just that." I replied. "He told Doyle to leave them be. For now, at least. When I left this morning, I'm certain they were discussing it further. Doyle was… displeased with Graves' decision to say the least."

May made a face as I spoke. "Well I imagine so. If it doesn't involve killing, Doyle disapproves."

"We need to be careful." I told May. "Very careful. Doyle has never been my biggest fan, and something tells me he grows more suspicious of me by the day. I wouldn't be surprised if he began snooping into my affairs more closely. The more freedom Graves gives me, the more closely Doyle watches."

"He may be a twisted bastard but he's quick as a whip, I'll give him that. He doesn't miss a thing."

"Exactly. That's what's got me worried. They fought last night, too… Doyle and Graves."

May's face darkened with concern. "Do you think Doyle intends mutiny?"

I thought for a moment before I answered. "No. Or, not yet at least. Graves still has the popularity with his men. And I think they still respect each other, or at least Doyle respects Graves' strength. But the fact that they fought at all is concerning. If Graves were to get hurt, or if he lost his popularity… I can't say what would happen. Doyle might try to kill him and take his place." I didn't want to think about what would happen if Graves was killed and Doyle took over. I would certainly be killed. And then it wouldn't matter that we had found a way out, or found Max.

"Don't think like that." May immediately scolded me. "Graves is in charge. He'll protect you from Doyle as long as he's alive.

I nodded hesitantly, and May reached forward and joined arms with me. We walked out of my room, and onto the balcony overlooking the city. The city still sounded as it always had. The fans churned, water poured out of the walls, and braziers still crackled down below. It was a humbling moment. No matter what happened to us, the city still lived on. It sounded the same as any time I had ever stepped outside before Graves' arrival. As I stepped onto the balcony, I was flooded with a memory. I remembered sitting out here with my mother, when it was still her room. I remembered our fear as we spoke of Graves, about whether or not he planned to attack our city. I remembered being called into the throne room for our audience with Graves. I hadn't known it then, but I had just met the man that would destroy every semblance of my previous life.

When we finally stopped at the edge of the balcony, May spoke once more.

"We'll need to take time to plan the trip, take extra care to make sure our smuggler knows very little. It's been decided Jax will go with him, he will deliver the message. Your mother knows him. He's strong enough to make the trip, unlike me, and his absence won't be noted like Doctor Stones would. We don't want anything getting back to Graves. If he catches wind of our destination he will know what we are after. Also, our smuggler has said he expects to be paid handsomely for all of this.

I sighed. Of course he would need to be paid extremely well, especially if we wanted him to keep quiet about all of this. "I'll find something to reimburse him for his troubles."

"We have time. We'll figure it out." May assured me.

I nodded again. When I didn't speak, May filled the silence with her voice instead.

"You know, if someone had told me a year ago that I would be friend ti Queen Sapphire and plotting to overthrow the King, I would've told them that the radiation must have gone to their head."

I laughed dryly at that. "I'm sure you're wishing I had never overheard you begging for your son's medicine."

May shook her head. "No, no, I would never wish that… That medicine saved his life. You saved my child's life, I'm going to save your child's life too. Although, I will admit my life was much simpler before all of this political intrigue."

"I'm starting to think that being royalty is highly overrated."

May laughed. "It's always been highly overrated, dear."

A/N: Thanks! R&R!