The night of the ball

'Thank you for coming on short notice Nick' I smiled at him

'It's okay' He smiled back, 'Though I am confused as to why Hale isn't your date'

'These are people that are…' I paused, struggling to find a word 'Seen' I said at last, Nick furrowed his brows 'They want to know everyone's business, if I go in with Hale-'

'Someone is bound to recognise him?'

'Exactly' I exhaled 'I need to be able to blend into the background so when I do get near the necklace, not everyone will be looking at me'

'Are you sure about this Kat?' Nick squeezed my hand as we walked through the gates

'No' I admitted 'But it has to be done. Are you ready?' I asked

'No' He smirked 'But I've followed you blindly before, so I guess I'll do it again' I laughed as we got near the door. Butterflies swarmed around my stomach

'Oh happy days' I muttered as the doors pulled open.

Dozens of people were scattered around the ballroom. From above I could see many Lords, Ladies, Dukes and Duchesses from across the world, come were in little groups, others were dancing, some were drinking, others eating, but the biggest crowd surrounded one woman wearing the infamous Ali Van Peor necklace. We descended down the stairs, I kept my eyes trained on the wearer. As if by magic, when I got to the bottom, my grandmother looked over to me and signaled me to come over.

'Ready?' I whispered to Nick

'I guess I have to be now'

'Ah Katherine' My grandmother pulled me into a semi hug when she released me I glanced to the side to see Nick trying to control his laughter. I glared at him. 'I'm so pleased that you could make it'

'Thank you grandma' I smiled back

'And who is this lovely gentleman?'

'This is Nicholas, I met him whilst travelling abroad' I made sure to exaggerate the last part, I looked past my grandmother to see all her friends listening in

'It's a pleasure to meet you' Nick bowed. I tried to contain my eye-roll when Elizabeth began to blush. She loved the attention.

'The pleasure is all mine' She smiled then turned to me 'Katherine, why don't you go and see some of your friends, I informed them that you were coming. They are most excited to have you here'

'Thank you grandma' I nodded swiftly and grabbed Nick's hand. I steered him off to one of the sides. When we were alone, Nick couldn't contain himself

'Katherine?' He raised one eyebrow. I rolled my eyes

'It's Katarina but she thinks it's too Russian. My grandfather loved my name but she…' I looked over at my grandmother 'She saw me as a reflection on herself' I turned back to Nick 'So I'm Katarina to Eddie and my Dad. Kat to my family, friends and strangers, Kitty to my friends and-'

'Katie'

I turned around to the deep voice. Instead of Jamie standing there, it was someone very similar to him. Same smile, same eyes, same build, almost identical apart from a small scar above his right eye.

'Ben' I whispered with a smile on my face

'Your Grandmother said you were here and I couldn't believe it' He engulfed me into a hug, lifting me off the ground slightly.

'I can't believe you're here!' I squealed 'I haven't seen you since the funeral' Both our smiled faltered and we stepped nervously apart.

'I wish we stayed in touch more' He muttered. I nodded back. We stood there in silence for a moment until Nick cleared his throat.

'Sorry' I bumbled 'Nick, this is Ben, Jamie's brother. Ben, this is one of my best friends, Nick'

'Nice to meet you' Both said at the same time

'What's all the buzz around Jamie?' Nick asked.

'He's a shit' Ben said quickly. We looked at him and he shrugged

'He used you Kat' He stated, taking a flute of champagne from a waiter passing

'Used her how?' Nick asked. Ben took a sip of his drink and looked at me.

'We both had feelings for you, but you were hard to get through to. So we had an agreement, whoever you fell in love with, the other one would back down. But Jamie…' He ran his hand through his hair 'Jamie saw you as a price, and he just wanted to win, no matter if you got hurt or not' I took a deep breath and swallowed, absorbing the information given to me. Nick placed his hand on my back, a warm comfort from the chill that had come over me.

'I never wanted you to get hurt Kat' He added

'But I did Ben. My mom died and he left'

'I would have stayed, but I had duties'

'That's bullshit' Nick added.

'It's not' I said in defense, I glanced back at Ben and gave a sad smile 'We both have duties'

'Wait' Nick stood between us 'What am I missing?'

'When my grandmother dies, I will become Lady Katarina Bishop of Geneva' I stated

'So what am I missing with you' He directed to Ben.

'I am Lord Benjamin Sarin of Lausanne' Ben gave a small bow.

'So the funeral wasn't your mother's?' Nick asked me

'No' Ben shook his head 'Kat came to my father's funeral 2 years ago'

'Two years...was that during-'

'Yes' I answered immediately

'Ohh, is Katie still in the business' He playfully punched me, I rolled my eyes. 'Your grandmother mentioned the Henley; did you…' He let the sentence hand in the air. I looked at Nick, winked but didn't say anything. Ben gave an impressed nod before finishing off his drink. 'Nice work' He added

'Jamie's back' I stated

'I heard' Ben said bluntly

'He's working for the magicians as well'

'Kat' Nick hissed

'Don't worry' I reassured 'Ben knows'

'So he knows and we don't?' Gabby's voice drifted towards us. She glanced at Nick, then glared at me and then looked to the final person 'Good to see you Benny'

'You too Gabrielle'

'Why are you here Gab?' I snapped

'I thought this tall drink of water' She gestured to Ben 'was Jamie'

'I'm touched that you remember me so well' Ben answered dramatically

'We need to get out of here' Gabby grabbed my arm

'I'm not going anywhere' I tugged back

'Hamish told me about the call'

'I'm okay'

'No you aren't Kat' I spun on my heels to see Hale striding towards me 'Your father is worried'

'That's not now' I snapped

'YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND' He shouted

'Who do you think you are?' Ben asked stepping between me and Hale. Gabby, Nick and myself didn't have time to stop Hale, but he'd clearly had at least a few drinks, and if you remember what happened last time, Hale and drinks don't mix well. So he punched Ben. Right across the jaw.