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Chapter

10

Richmond was a large place. Much larger than the little town Gregor's family lived in now. That said, it was a village of lean-to's compared to New York City. Gregor peered over to the driver's seat. His father's expression was set and sad, like he was about to walk down Death Row.

"You know you don't have to come with me, Dad…" Gregor said.

"Yes I do. No way in hell am I going to let you go back there alone." His voice was scary. Gregor decided to let the issue drop there.

This was a strange situation. His father had the weekend off, and it was late Friday. But he had to be back by Sunday. Gregor would not be in the Underland for such a short time, he knew that. They both did. His father had tried to get a substitute for the class, but they were all booked up. He would just have to leave Gregor behind. They could not risk his father's job.

Hence their set-up. His father had a ticket to return in two days' time, whereas Gregor had gotten a one-way. They simply had to trust that the Museum in Regalia had enough to ensure a return flight. If not, there would be a problem.

Gregor did not bother himself with the details. He only knew one thing for sure; someone was in serious danger, and they needed him. With a message like that, he would let nothing stop him, even if he had to tear the ground apart to get there.

Still, his father's tone bugged him.

"I'm sorry, Dad. For dragging you back into this mess."

"I have friends there too, son."

Gregor was somewhat blindsided. He had been so engrossed in his own mind that he had not thought of what the others had felt about the news.

"Oh, uh, I'm sor-," he began.

"Don't you dare apologize for asking for my help with this. This is my problem as much as it is yours. Now call Cormaci and ask her if she's ready for us."

Gregor flinched at his father's intensity. Without another word, he pulled out his battered cell phone. Scrolling through the contacts, he found the number of Mrs. Cormaci. He had talked to her two days ago, asking her to place a note in the grate in the apartment building. He had also asked her, per his father's request, to procure something else. The thought made Gregor's stomach turn, but he pushed it aside as he hit the Call button.

One ring…

The two…

Three…

Click!

"Hello, dear." Cormaci's voice erupted from the phone.

"Hey, Mrs. Cormaci." Gregor said.

"Oh, enough with the formality, will you? Janice is fine by now, surely." She chided.

"Well, which is it," Gregor asked with a smirk, "Janice or Shirley?" His father shot him a sideways glance, but shared in the smirk.

"Oh, good heavens. Whichever you like. Everything is ready on my end." She said, flustered.

"Good. We'll be there in a few hours. See you then."

"You too. And Gregor?" Her voice was quiet, unusual for her. "Just… be calm, yes?"

I paused a moment. "Yeah. No worries. I know exactly where to put my energy."

He peered around uneasily. It was like all the people on this plane knew where they were going and what they were doing. He had to breathe through the panic. Why was he going back? This was a terrible idea. He did not know what he was doing… did he?

Then Haul looked over at his son in the window seat. He was doing this for that boy. Regardless of what he was feeling right now, he had to bite it all back and focus on what was important.

His fear did not matter. His anger did not matter. All that mattered was protecting his son. He remembered something his mother's father had told him long ago: "Byth yn rhoi'r gorau." "Never give up."

Well, maybe that wasn't so relevant in this particular situation, but it still gave him courage.

Haul still did not feel right leaving his son behind in the Underland just so he could come back and keep his job. But everyone, especially Gregor, had told him it was best. Whoever had sent that note had intended it for Gregor alone. Gregor had said that this was something he would have to do on his own. Even so, Haul would accompany his son there at the very least. He knew Gregor could take care of himself. The kid would not be sitting next to Haul now if he could not, but Haul wanted to make sure his son was capable of this. It would not be pretty if he broke down in the middle of his journey.

So here he was, on a two-way flight right down the mouth of hell. And he was okay with that.

Stellovet turned her nose up at the smell as she pulled the door of her cousin's cell open. She peered in to see the vile Queen in her usual position, strapped to a raised plank of stone at the far end of the room.

Why had Solovet put her on food duty? Was it because the old wench was jealous of her beauty? That seemed to be the most reasonable explanation. Oh well, it did not matter. Luxa was close to breaking, she could tell. Ever since they had told her that her precious Overland Warrior was returning, her resolve had weakened considerably day by day.

Stellovet avoided looking at the pile of refuse at the end of the plank. Tomorrow was wash day, when some poor servant of Solovet's would have to come in and wash away all of the unsightliness from the room. At least food duty was not as vile as that.

"Open wide, Your Highness," Stellovet cooed, voice dripping with loathing.

Luxa's expression of stony defeat shifted not as her jaw slowly slid open.

Stellovet felt a hot embarrassment creep to her cheeks as she fed the girl on the table. Almost as if empathically sorry for her. She shook it away, fighting back the pink hue taking over her white skin. This reminded her of her time feeding Chim back home. She felt a tinge of sadness at having been estranged so horribly. Then anger at the unfairness of it all. Her whirlwind emotions raged for a time before she realized that she was more hitting Luxa in the face with her food than feeding her.

Something happened then that Stellovet had not planned for. Luxa's stern countenance devolved into one of clutching despair. As she moved her head side to side to avoid the deluge of slop prepared for her, her expression pulled back and she began to sob quietly. It was as though this unintentional torment from Stellovet had finally broken her. Tears ran down her face and little whimpers escaped her clenched teeth.

Stellovet froze, struggling to identify her current emotions. Did she feel triumphant? No… Eager? No… Remorseful?

A lump formed in Stellovet's throat. She bit back the feeling and wheeled around, half-jogging out of the room. She slammed the door to the cell and leaned against the wall. Slowly sliding down the cool stone to a sit, she felt tears run down her own face. Where had everything gone wrong? Her life had not been horrible when Luxa was a princess, or even when she had been crowned. Why did she covet the throne so much? To be the center of attention, like her Cousins had been? Is that all she wanted? Was she really so petty? Look at what had happened because of her!

She used to secretly admire Luxa's strength and grace. She used to love her cousin for it. So why did Stellovet hate her so much now?

Stellovet sat there for a long while, letting the tears flow. Eventually, she fought back her sadness. It was too late to undo her mistakes now. She would just have to—

"Having second thoughts?" A dark voice rang out. Stellovet snapped to attention. She could not see the speaker, but recognized his voice immediately.

"Minos!" Stellovet squeaked. "No, of course not. I'm just…" She wiped the tears away, unsure how to continue.

"You need not feel guilt for your actions. You are higher than that. You are to be the next Queen, yes? And I will be bonded to royalty, Yes?"

Stellovet raised her chin, a smirk to her lips. "Yes, of course. You know I would do nothing to ruin this for us. But you also know the plan."

"I do," he said shortly. There was an odd giddiness to his tone, rare for any flier.

"Before we can ascend to the throne," Stellovet began, remorse giving way to excitement, "we must put an end to my grandmother. Solovet must die."

If I could apologize enough, I would. But I can't. So I won't.

Incidentally, this is the end of Part 2. 'Nother 5 chapters left. Excite.

Also, 10 points to anyone who can figure out why Gregor's Dad's name is Haul.

Have fun.

Oh yeah, I also realized that the formatting isn't holding up on 's end. Gonna have to futz with my style a tad. Hope it works.