i have a long chapter for you guys today! yay!

"Anything's possible if you've got enough nerve." - JK Rowling

I turned to Aspen to inquire as to how much he had heard when a gunshot echoed through the quiet night. Aspen grabbed me by the shoulders and threw me to the ground as I only had one thought: Where's Maxon? "It wasn't in the gardens," Aspen said as we crouched behind a bush. "I still need you to wait a couple minutes though before you go inside."

He stood and ran over to another guard who started talking to him. They walked off to the entrance back into the palace so I took the opportunity to go back up to the entrance to the Great Room. I went inside and looked around the room, seeing many confused and scared people but no sign of my husband.

My heart was beating in my throat when I finally found Marlee. "Marlee, where's Maxon?" I demanded, holding her shoulders.

"He's fine, he's out front…" She didn't even finish before I took off in the direction of the driveway.

He was standing in the middle of the driveway surrounded by guards and a few frightened advisers. As I crossed over the threshold for the front door he saw me coming and he met me halfway in a hug. "I'm okay, it's okay," he whispered into my hair.

"I heard the gunshot…" I said, tears leaking from my eyes uncontrollably, drenching the front of Maxon's coat. He just held me and stroked my hair and back.

"I told you to stay put!" I heard Aspen say angrily behind me.

"Aspen. Not now," Maxon snapped and just from the sound of his voice I could see the fire in his eyes. "It was just Kellan firing a warning shot from the car. It didn't hit anything from what we can tell. Guards saw it happen. Either way, I think our guests should leave."

I nodded in agreement, wiping my eyes and moving away from him just a little bit. "God, I can't stop crying," I said bitterly as more tears came out.

Maxon smiled sadly and rubbed my shoulders. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yup," I told him, still trying to stop the crying. I looped my arm through his and we walked back inside to find most of our guests gathered in the foyer watching the drama unfold outside.

Maxon mounted the staircase halfway and clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "I am deeply sorry for this turn in events. But really, what's Halloween without a little horror?" Nobody laughed at his joke so he chuckled awkwardly and clapped his hands again. "Right, so in any case, we want to keep all of you as safe as possible and unfortunately I feel the best way to do that is for everyone to return to their respective embassies and countries as soon as possible to prevent any tragedies from occurring. I thank you all for your cooperation and hope you had a wonderful night otherwise."

He met me down at the bottom of the steps as people filed past us. "First the rebels and now this? When is your palace ever going to be safe?" the Dutch king snapped at Maxon.

Maxon gripped my hand tight, clearly not appreciating the slight but deciding not to say anything. Through the crowd Elise approached us, looking frightened but nonetheless relaxed. She hugged Maxon and me before turning and looking at me. "Are you ready?" I asked her.

She nodded. "As ready as I'll ever be."

"Ready for what?" Maxon asked as Elise and I turned to go upstairs.

"For phase two," she answered vaguely, smiling at me conspiratorially.

Maxon got to bed before me that night, surprising me by going to sleep in my bed instead of his. I snuck under the covers and pressed myself up close against his body. "Dara took the bait," I whispered, still not believing that she had done it. She had actually told me how she was motivating Oyun.

The covers hissed as Maxon turned over onto his other side to face me. "I'm proud of you," he told me. "I know that this is far from over but things are at least looking up and I have you to thank. You're the one who's made this plan."

"I've learned from the best though," I told him, not wanting to take all of the credit. "Nobody is taking this country from us. Not without going through me first."

"And in order to do that they'll have to go through me." He saw me open my mouth to protest but he put a finger to my lips to stop me. "America, listen to me. You can tell me all you want that I'm indispensable but in all reality, I have what, twenty years before I give up the crown? After that I'll just be a king of the past. And I will lay down my life to protect you. I've done it before and I'll do it again without blinking."

I sighed. "That's what worries me. You're a wonderful king. We're making history, abolishing the castes. I know I can't do all of this without you. As wonderful as it is knowing that you love me so much, I love you too much to let you do any such thing. Like you said, when you tried to save me from the rebels, you almost ruined both our lives." I paused and for a second I thought he was asleep but instead he looked thoughtful. "Can I ask you something?"

He looked back up to me, torn out of his reverie. "Anything."

"What would've happened if you had died?"

He frowned. "When the rebels attacked? Why do you want to know?"

I shrugged. "Just curious."

"Well," he sighed, "you would have been queen." I gasped, not knowing that so he went on. "While you were in Carolina, I made up my mind that I was going to marry you. You know that. But what you don't know is that I told the advisers who my choice was. Remember I told you that there're a lot of formalities in becoming the One? Well, I took care of them for you while you were still gone. Like I told you on Halloween a few years ago, I wanted to make it as easy as breathing for you to say yes. So I signed all of the paperwork saying that you were going to be the next queen of Illea."

"But, Kriss…"

He shook his head. "I wouldn't have married Kriss. I've told you that. Had the rebel attack not happened and had the evening carried on as it was supposed to, I would have gotten down on one knee in front of her and looked into her eyes and signed my life away to years of misery and disappointment. Or, as I like to imagine it, I would have just realized how much of a foolish ass I had been and propose to you."

I played with his fingers between us. "It was my fault though."

"I'm not going to lie about that. You were to blame but I think I may have overreacted a bit as well." He put his arm under my head and pulled me close. "Now, why did you really want to know?"

I shook my head. "I don't know. I was just trying to imagine where my life would be now if you had died. Honestly, I can't imagine being happy. Or anywhere close to as happy as I am now." I looked up at him. "You are my everything, Maxon Schreave, and I am eternally grateful for you. I'm not America without you which scares me because I don't know what the future holds but I know that I don't want to lose you."

"You won't. You'll never lose me and I'll never lose you. Now you will always have a very real piece of me with you," he spoke softly, putting his hand on my belly. "And in several months, I'll have a very real piece of you."

"Pieces," I emphasized. "Plural."

He smiled. "Pieces. Would it upset you if I said that I still can't believe we're having twins?" he asked me, stroking my hip.

"I can't believe how fat and hideous I'm about to get," I joked.

He pressed his lips to my forehead. "Impossible. You will always be the most beautiful creature on this planet."

I sighed. "Well, this creature needs some sleep." He kissed my forehead as I curled into him. "Good night," I whispered, breathing in the warm smell of his cologne that still lingered on his skin.

"Good night, my love."

My first plan for the day was to go to visit Oyun. Since the party, Maxon decided that it was in our best interests to keep her but only if she was kept under heavy guard. I figured she had suffered enough with her husband being killed that I was able to convince Maxon not to throw her in the jail cells near the guards' quarters but I could tell the decision still made him uneasy.

As luck would have it, Aspen was talking to the guards outside her room. "You shouldn't be here," he said point-blank when he saw me walk up to the door.

"That's a shame because I am here and you're not going to keep away. I have important business to discuss with Her Majesty," I told him, lifting my chin in defiance. Aspen still didn't look convinced. "Maxon knows I'm here," I added.

"Well he can be an idiot at times," Aspen snapped. "Remember the time he agreed for both of you to sneak out of the palace and you got shot?"

I narrowed my eyes. "If I remember correctly, he didn't want me to go anymore than you did."

Aspen nodded. "Right. Now I feel even better about you going in there." He stared at me for a few moments before finally relenting. "Fine, but leave the door open."

"Absolutely not," I refused. "This needs to be a private conversation. Don't you have other things to do besides worry about me? Where's Lucy? Aren't you two moving in couple days? And your BFF Carter just got back from his trip; why don't you go catch up?"

"Carter's trip was classified. You and Maxon are the only one allowed to know what he was doing. And Lucy would prefer that I work so we can pay off our house."

I nodded. "That's right, I do all about Carter's trip. And Maxon paid for your house. Anyway, if you excuse me, I have some business to attend to." I pushed past him to the door and opened it, closing it before he could argue.

Queen Oyun was standing by the windows and didn't acknowledge my presence when I entered the room. "I have to say that I am surprised you didn't throw me in a padded cell. I am even more surprised that you trust me enough to come in here alone when I could hurt you at any moment."

I clasped my hands in front of me and walked to the middle of the room. "If you were going to hurt me, you would've done it days ago. Besides, you don't want to hurt me, do you?"

Oyun turned to face me finally, crossing her arms. "What do you want?"

"I want to get your country back in proper hands," I told her simply.

She rolled her eyes. "Good luck."

I wanted to tell her all about Elise being here and ready to take control of New Asia but I knew better than to show her all of my cards at once. With this in mind, I lifted the pamphlet of papers that had been tucked beneath my arm the whole time. "I seem to have the means right here in my hand."

Oyun's eyes widened and she took a few steps in front of me. "How'd you get those?"

"You should know by now to not underestimate me." I held the papers in front of me, only recognizing some of the words on them. Maxon was the one that spoke all of the Asian languages while I handled all of the European languages. "Dara said that children provide a lot of leverage. Well, I figured that there's one thing stronger than protecting your child's safety and it's protecting his inheritance. Obviously with Kellan in charge your son will never be king. Tell me, how does that make you feel?"

She stared me down. "What are you trying to accomplish?"

"I'm willing to bet that you would do just about anything to protect his right to the throne." I pulled the lighter out of my blazer's pocket and walked to the fireplace, flipping open the lighter and holding the corner of the pages to the flame.

"No!" Oyun yelled in horror as I lit up the papers and watched the flames curl around the paper before tossing it into the fireplace. "You have no idea what you've just done!"

I smiled at her pleasantly. "Actually, I do. You think I'm stupid enough to bluff in front of you now? Those weren't the real documents; the real ones are tucked away safe and sound in an extremely secret location. However, if you don't do what you say, they'll meet the same end as those fake papers did." I turned and walked to the door. "Here's what will happen if you agree that you want your son to be king: you will not be queen. I'm sure you understand why we wouldn't want that to happen. A regent will serve in your place until your son is of age. You help us accomplish this, the peace treaty stays in place, my children are left untouched, and your son gets to be king."

"This sounds more beneficial for you than for me," Oyun observed.

I raised my eyebrows. "Really? Tell me, Oyun, what do you think Kellan and Dara are planning to do with your son? For the timebeing, he is exactly what they say: perfect leverage. However, they are asking for one of my children. I'm sure you can do the math." She was quiet so I went on to explain. "If Maxon and I do what they say and terminate the peace treaty, they'll have no use for your son anymore. They will kill him. This deal I'm offering not only protects his right to the throne but it protects his life."

"I'd be a fool to not agree to it," Oyun concluded.

I nodded. "Probably but I'm not forcing you into anything. If you help us, our countries can part peacefully."

Oyun considered my words and then asked, "What will become of Kellan and Dara?"

"They'll meet the end they deserve," I told her, not trying to embellish one bit.

"That'll piss off a lot of people."

I shrugged. "Maybe. But they're nothing more than tyrants. Maxon and I have far more supporters than enemies. Our allied countries support us in the plan to find a way to end Kellan and Dara."

"If could just answer one question for me. Why does Kellan hate Illea so much?" she asked as I turned to leave.

I smiled sadly. "Kellan is Clarkson's older half-brother. He was the rightful heir until his mother married Clarkson's father. He and Clarkson may have grown up best friends but Kellan only stayed close with the hope of becoming king. Kellan was the leader of the Southern rebels. He's a tyrant in every way, always looking for a way to be in complete power."

"Et tu, Brute," Oyun whispered.

"Exactly." I smiled at her grimly. "Think over my offer. It's not like you have anything else to do here besides try to undermine me and bring about your son's death." With that said, I closed the door behind me and found Aspen still outside in the hallway. "Did you hear any of that?"

He shook his head. "It's all confidential. Like Carter's trip," he said. That was enough for me to know that he had heard and he understood everything. He had always been too smart for his own good.

I nodded. "Then you understand that none of this is to spoken about again."

"Of course, Your Majesty," he said as he bowed.

I practically ran back to our study to find Maxon. "It worked," I reported to him, trying to contain my excitement. If Oyun didn't agree to our deal then we would have to completely regroup. There was very little doubt in my mind that she would refuse.

Maxon sighed and walked around his desk to hug me. "Thank god," he breathed into my hair. "I just want all of this over so we can properly prepare for the arrival of our children."

"Don't worry. I'm sure Oyun will agree in no time. I expect Kellan to be on our doorstep within days," I told him.

"You know, I've been thinking about that," Maxon told me. "If Kellan is coming here, I don't think I want you around." I started to refute but he put a finger to my mouth to silence me. "He wants our children, America. I don't want to risk that by you being here. Maybe you could go stay with your family for the week."

"What? A week?"

He held up a hand to stop me from freaking out. "Look, I know it sounds overprotective but I'm not willing to take any chances. One week, I promise. I'll come visit one night to have dinner; it's been a while since we had a family dinner. We haven't told them about the twins yet anyway."

With the promise of his visiting, it was hard for me to refuse. Getting out of the palace for some relaxation sounded so appealing. "But I have work…"

He held my face in his hands, forcing me to look right at him. "A little break couldn't hurt. I want you to take some time away and relax. Heck, maybe once Kellan comes and he is sorted out we both can take a break."

"Really?" I asked, looking up at him. Maxon had such a strong work ethic. Only on his birthday and major holidays did he take breaks (major holidays including our anniversary, of course). There would be weekly trips out on his horses to go hunting on the palace grounds but those small afternoon outings hardly counted as taking a break. We hadn't been on a proper trip since our honeymoon.

"Really. You name the place and we'll go. I think Aspen, Carter and James can handle things here pretty well without us for a few days."

I smiled. "That sounds wonderful. Even if it is a bribe." I kissed him softly, wanting it to turn into something more but I knew we would have to wait until later that night. There was too much to do for the time being. I walked over to my desk and sat down as Maxon did the same at his and across the room we shared a conspiratorial smile.

"My mother is thrilled at the prospect of my visit," I said to Maxon, rubbing lotion on my hands as we got ready for bed that night.

He smiled and set his toothbrush down in his glass by the sink. "I'm glad. That smells good," he observed, picking up the bottle of lotion.

"I know, right? Kenna sent it over. Supposedly it'll help prevent stretch marks but with twins I don't think there's much use trying to stop it." I lifted up my shirt to rub the lotion on my stomach and looked at my reflection in the mirror curiously. I turned from side to side and eventually Maxon picked up on my silence as he washed his face.

"What?" he asked, drying his face.

I frowned and touched my stomach just below my navel. "Do I look…bigger to you?" I asked, turning around again so he would have a better angle to see.

His eyes narrowed. "Is this a trick question?"

I kept staring at my reflection and let myself smile a little bit. "I have a bump," I said incredulously. "I mean, you can actually see it. There's really something in there."

Maxon's face broke into a huge smile, the biggest smile I had seen in days. "Well look at that." We met each other's eyes and started laughing and crying and yelling a little bit. "So amazing," he exclaimed as he pulled me close. "Just like that, overnight."

"Yeah, I know. I mean, I was expecting it but…I don't know. I didn't think it was really going to happen. Oh my gosh," I put my hands on my cheeks as I just kept staring at myself. "We're going to be parents. We need to start preparing! We only have six months!"

"America, America," Maxon said, trying to get me to calm down. "We have plenty of time and remember the mountain of wedding gifts we got? It'll be no different once we tell everyone that we're having twins."

I nodded. "You're right. Sorry, I'm just so excited." Maxon chuckled and took me by the elbow, leading me to his bed.

He started rubbing the lotion on my stomach, kissing intermittently. "You're beautiful," he whispered. Then his hands moved upward to put the lotion on my breasts. Then my thighs and inner thighs. I tingled with anticipation for where this was leading and after when I would dream of the peaceful days to come where I could lay on the beach beside my husband.

I was already awake later that night when thunder shook the palace. Thanks to pregnancy insomnia I could not stay asleep at night. Maxon rolled over in his sleep and buried his face in his pillow. Lightning flashed through the windows and I heard rain start to patter against the doors to his balcony.

Another clap of thunder pounded above our heads. Maxon groaned. "There goes a good night's sleep," he mumbled into his pillow. I learned very quickly, before we were even married, to not disturb this man and his sleep. I guess after not getting much sleep before he was slept with me turned him into someone who really valued it.

"At least the drought is over," I said, bringing my knees up to my chest.

"We basically live in the desert; its not supposed to rain," he grumbled as he sat up next to me, rubbing his eyes. "Still not sleeping?" I shook my head. "Maybe I need to tire you out more before bed then."

I shook my head. "You are trouble."

He laughed lightly and laid back down, bringing me down with him. "Maybe if I read to you it would help you sleep."

"Okay," I agreed, not passing up a chance of listening to him read. "What book?"

"Maybe we can pick one out," he suggested. "Put some clothes on, it's time for a field trip."

I laughed. "I love field trips." He disappeared in his closet for a few moments and then came back out fully dressed.

"Come on," he urged, holding the door open for me as I pulled on my robe. I followed him down the hallway, both of us laughing and whispering as we pretended to sneak around the palace even though we knew that it was impossible for our location to not be known.

Maxon led me up the stairway to the vault where all of our books and diaries are kept. He stepped away to let me put in the code, something he liked to do just to show how much he trusted me. We got in the room and Maxon went right to the shelves containing our favorite banned books.

"Take your pick: old or new," he told me.

"Old."

"Okay." I heard books moving around on the shelf as I knelt down in front my personal safe. "Allende, Hemingway, or…hmm, Disney?"

I laughed. "Really? Disney?" I shook my head as I started putting in my code.

"What're you doing down there?"

"Just checking it's still here," I told him, shaking my head as I put the code in wrong and had to start over again.

He sighed. "They're still there. We're the only ones with the code to get in here. Hemingway it is. Oh, or maybe Cass? I'm personally not a fan but I know you are. Wait, got it, Rowling. It's just a matter of which Harry Potter book. Go ahead, pick your poison." His words faded away as I stared at the safe in front of me, my hands ripping everything out of it in my hunt. He noticed that I had gone quiet. "What're you doing?" he asked, turning around on the ladder to look at me.

"Maxon, they're not here," I told him, my voice rising in panic. "They're not here! They're gone!"

Maxon slid down the ladder and knelt down next to me, looking through everything I had tossed out. "Surely they're here somewhere. Don't freak out. Where would they have gone?"

"Looking for something?" a voice said from behind us.

We looked up at the door and saw Kellan standing there, papers in hand. "Funny, I thought you two were the only ones with the code to get in here?" He raised his eyebrows as we sat on the floor, speechless. "Oh, right, the Southern rebels had it and the king of Illea apparently never changes his locks."

Maxon shot up to his feet, leaving me to scramble to stand up without giving myself a head rush. "Those don't belong to you!"

"They don't belong to you either. And last I checked, it was one of your men who stole them from my palace so they belong to me more than they will ever belong to you," he pointed out. "You think we don't know about your lackey you sent on a top-secret mission to pick these up?"

"What do you want?" Maxon asked, stepping in front of me.

"You know what we want."

Maxon shook his head. "We're not giving you either of those. Pick something else."

Kellan nodded, taking his time to think about it. "Okay. How about your queen?"

"What?" I shouted.

In a move so fast I barely saw it, Maxon moved to completely block me, a gun pointed directly at Kellan. He started laughing and held his hands up. "Careful King Maxon. Consider what you're about to do."

"Oh, I've been considering it for a long time now," Maxon growled. I didn't even know Maxon had a gun on him. And what if Kellan was armed? No one would hear us yell from up here and there were no cameras in here for guards to know what was happening. How were we supposed to send for help?

Then Kellan drew his gun and aimed it at the safe in the bookshelf next to him. The safe containing all of the important documents for Illea's rights and inheritance. "Really? Have you considered all of your options? Take one step and I'll shoot you and your wife. Just like I did with your parents. That's right, I killed your parents. It was cute how your mother tried to save your father. But we both know that she wouldn't have lived much more than a year anyway with how sick she was."

"I will kill you," Maxon threatened.

"Then do it," Kellan taunted.

Maxon's finger shook over the trigger of his gun. C'mon Maxon, just end this madness, I urged silently. "I will," Maxon told him.

Kellan laughed. "You won't. You're nothing more than a coward. You always have been. But I wouldn't expect anything more from Clarkson's son. He was always a coward too. Probably why he felt the need to beat his son…"

The shot rang through the room before I could even draw in a gasp. I blinked and where Kellan had just been standing was Aspen, looking at the dead man on the ground. "I just came to check…" Aspen began but he clearly didn't know how to finish.

Maxon dropped his gun to the floor and turned to me, his eyes wide and full of surprise. "Oh my god," he breathed out, pulling me to his body roughly. I started crying into his chest. "It's over. It's okay, I promise no one will ever touch you." I couldn't catch my breath and I soon felt myself get lifted into Maxon's arms. "Don't look," he said as he stepped over Kellan's body to get us out of the room. "For Christ's sake, get someone to clean this up," he snapped at Aspen.

My husband carried me all the way back to my room where he gently laid me on the bed. He continued to hold me. "Is it really over?" I eventually asked.

"Well, not completely. We still need to deal with Dara but she'll be quite agreeable now…"

"Now that we've killed her husband," I finished for him.

"Hey," Maxon said, pulling me closer if that was even possible. "It was me. Don't you dare take responsibility for something I did. Okay?"

I sniffed and nodded. "Max, our children are safe," I told him, the truth suddenly hitting me with what happened when Maxon killed Kellan.

Maxon was quiet for a moment and then nodded. "I know." He kissed my forehead and held me until I fell asleep.

i understand if your head is spinning right now. a lot happened in this chapter! who likes this evil and devious America? it is fun to write about her this way! who else is super bummer that Penn State lost this past Saturday? it's okay though because i was in the front row of the student section. if you watched it on TV you more than likely saw me! how weird is that to think about? anyway, thanks for the reviews for last chapter!

Mac: i just want everyone to feel that they can do whatever they want. don't let other people stop you. there will never be a time on this earth where every single person loves you but the people who do love you are the ones you need to keep around. there will always be haters but Ellen Degeneres once said "haters are my motivators."

Weatherbug02: i just want to know what the Heir is about! i really hope its not about the twins' selection. i mean, i know with Kiera Cass it'll be amazing but still...another selection? ugh. i feel tired just thinking about it. but with her telling us all about the twins being a boy and a girl and the girl being older by seven minutes, i feel like the story won't about America actually being pregnant with them. oh wait...maybe it'll be about who the heir is if the girl is older. that's probably it.

Someone the World Forgot: yeah there were many days in high school where i didn't take notes in math or chem because i was too busy writing anything. fun fact: i wrote the eighth chapter of As the One in chemistry and that was the first chapter for that fic that i wrote.

AcademicGirl: wow, i'm THE Ellie Parker? haha. there's actually a lot more ellies on Fanfiction than you think. i made the mistake of trying to just search my first name for authors and there were like, 400 results or something.

radflutakin: i'm a bit less stressed this week because i've for the most finished my research paper and that's what was stressing me out last week. i submitted my rough draft to my professor so really all that's left is a little bit of research i was too lazy to do in the first place and some editing. thanks for the happy thoughts though! :)

Theoneforever: words cannot describe how excited i am for the Heir to come out!

thanks again for the reviews!