Another update! Woot woot!

"Fire burns brighter in the dark." - Suzanne Collins

When I entered the conference room, I felt every eye in the room focus on me with varying degrees of shock. I shook it off and took my seat next to Maxon's as he followed me in and sat down. The advisers seemed to be unable to avert their eyes, even as Maxon started the roll call.

"Okay," he sighed, shuffling his papers in front of him to straighten them out. "Carter, give us the status report on the unrest within the castes," Maxon said in a strong voice.

I peered over at him and saw his fingers tapping against the mahogany table impatiently. He had developed this anxious tick over the last few weeks between his recovery and caring for three children, one of which being a newborn baby. The people who had shot him were found and still in custody in a maximum security prison in another part of Angeles. Aspen was planning on using them for information in what the castes wanted from us but his mother's health started to decline more rapidly so Carter had to pick up where he left off.

"Well, the men who are responsible for the shooting are both Twos. They both have spotless criminal records and are actually well-known humanitarians. They have done a lot to help the lower castes which makes it strange that they would target you both just for being upset about losing their caste," Carter reported. "So we did some digging."

"And we found something rather interesting," August cut in. "They both have old ties to the Southern Rebels." A collective gasp echoed throughout the room. The Southern Rebels. The old taboo. It seemed like we could never get rid of them. "The criminals are both friends but they have family members that have since died or been executed who were affiliated with the Southern Rebels. We believe that is how they got the weapons."

Maxon nodded, taking this information in stride. "So this means what, exactly?" he asked, folding his hands in front of him. His ankle hooked around mine under the table. Some advisers had complained about us merely holding hands during meetings so we had to resort to playing footsie.

"Well, since discovering the connection, we have done more research and found that the main instigators for this unrest is coming from old Southern Rebel sympathizers," Carter concluded.

"Which completely changes our strategy for how we deal with this," Maxon resigned. Carter and August both nodded with grim faces. Maxon rubbed his face with one hand and tapped his pen against the table with his other. "Any word that they'll start attacking the palace?" he asked, looking to Tanner who was filling in for Aspen during his absence.

"Not yet, Sir," Tanner answered.

With a sigh, Maxon ordered, "Bring in the extra guards we had at the Kent vacation home; the French said they are not going to vacation there at all in the next year so it'll be safe to leave largely unattended. Extend the guards shifts by an hour with financial compensation, of course. Double the guards patrol on this floor as well. There may be no confirmed threat but we can't take any chances."

Advisers were scribbling notes down on their notepads and I watched them, starting to think that I needed to say something. But what? What could I possibly contribute? This was not my field of expertise but it felt all too similar to my time in the Selection when the Southerners threatened to kill people by caste. "Why are we not retaliating?" I asked, the question bubbling to my lips before I could stop it.

Again, all of the advisers looked at me. "I'm sorry?" one of them asked, blinking at me.

"We're doing it again," I told them all simply. "We're hiding. I'm sorry gentlemen, but don't you care at all that your sovereigns were shot at just three weeks ago? Am I the only one who's angry about this?"

The advisers all sat there, staring at me, stunned. It was like they hadn't expected me to speak at all. Like the expected me to sit there silently like a good little queen. That wasn't the queen I wanted to be though. And executing the people responsible for nearly ending Maxon's life wasn't enough for me. We had to put this all to rest, once and for all.

"We are building ourselves up to be a strong country but what good is that reputation if we cower inside our mansions, terrified of our own people?" I asked them all. From the corner of my eye I could see Maxon wiping a hand over his mouth, disguising what I knew to be a proud smile. "I propose we move forward with abolishing the castes as scheduled." The advisers all shifted nervously and I saw few open their mouths to no doubt argue with me but I held up a hand to stop them. "There will be protests, we know. But at those protests we arrest who we can and have them tried and persecuted. If it is indeed the Southern Rebels responsible, good riddance."

James shifted uncomfortably in his chair and then said, "Look, America, we can't just arrest and try innocent people. I understand what you're saying, we all do but there's no easy way to quell a rebellion."

"The Southern Rebels want to take control of the throne. If that is still their motive, Maxon and I need to move on like we were unfazed by all of this. Increase security but not to the point of making us look scared," I said.

"No. We're increasing security to the highest level," Maxon argued.

Tanner nodded in agreement. "Yes, Queen America, His Majesty is right. With your family and several of our own families living under this roof, we all would appreciate to have security running on all cylinders. Just for the time being."

"Maybe she should have stayed in the nursery with the baby and let us handle this," one of the advisers grumbled. I almost didn't hear him but he was sitting directly across from me so his voice carried in my direction. Maxon stiffened at my side, dropping his hand from his face.

"What did you just say?" I asked quietly through my frown.

The adviser shrugged nonchalantly. "I was just saying that maybe it would be best for you to care for the children while we handle the logistics of security," he answered honestly.

Maxon jumped to his feet, sending his chair tumbling backward with a loud band. The adviser shrank down in his seat as Maxon growled, "Owen, you will treat my wife as an equal to myself. She may be a mother but she is also your queen and will be treated as such. We rule equally and commandeer this country as a team. If you do not like her ideas, I suggest you keep your ideas to yourself or you'll be looking for another place of employment."

Owen nodded vigorously as Maxon seated himself again, adjusting his tie and proceeding with the discussion of ramping up security and retaliation. But my argument was deflated. I knew part of it was the hormones that were still raging through my body but Owen was absolutely right. How many meetings had I missed in the last few weeks because I had to care for Win or the twins? Had I really crossed over from being a fearsome queen to being a weakling mother?

Shortly after the debacle, a maid came in to inform me that it was time for Win to be fed. I had kept a conscious eye on the time but I was reluctant to leave in the middle of an important discussion and just prove the advisers right in Owen's opinion of me. Maxon patted my knee and told me that he would fill me in later that night.

I still didn't feel any better though when I got to the nursery and started feeding my precious girl. She had grown in leaps and bounds in the last three weeks and Dr. Ashlar was no longer anymore concerned over her than she would be over any other newborn baby. The first few days were hard since I basically had to care for a premature baby and toddler twins with a recovering husband on the side but my heart now swelled whenever I saw the ruddy complexion on her cheeks and her bloated belly.

Win went to sleep quickly after she was burped so I took advantage of her down time and went to my bedroom, setting her down on my bed while I took the napping twins and brought them in as well. I was hoping to get work done while I rested with them in bed but my eyes soon became heavy and I found myself being woken up an hour or so later by Maxon. I looked out the windows and saw that the sun had set, suggesting that it was much later than I originally thought.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep," I mumbled as Maxon sat down with Win in his arms.

He shook his head and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. "It's fine. You need your rest."

"Not you too," I moaned, throwing an arm over my eyes. Shay and Amber had disappeared but I knew it was way past their usual naptime and that they were probably in their playroom with Parrah.

"What?" he asked, bewildered.

I sighed and sat up, resting my feet in Maxon's lap. "Did you not notice those advisers? They were all acting like the only thing I'm good for anymore is feeding babies and changing diapers. I have only missed a few meetings and only during that first week after Win was born. I can still be queen. I can still rule."

Maxon raised his eyebrows. "I know, I told them that."

"But come on Max, they didn't believe it. You saw the looks on their faces. They were scared of you but they didn't listen." I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes and I pulled my knees up to my chest to hold myself since Maxon's arms were already full.

Still, he shifted Win to the crook of his elbow and rubbed his free hand up and down my back in circles. "Look at me America," he told me in a soft voice. I sniffed and rested my cheek on one of my knees as I met his beautiful brown eyes. "This is natural to go through, okay? I don't think anything less of you since you've become a mother. If anything, I think you're even stronger and more beautiful now. We just need to find a way to prove that to other people." He ran his hand through my hair and pulled it away from my face so it was dangling between my shoulder blades.

"Sounds familiar," I mumbled. "I vaguely remember you saying the same thing during the Selection."

"And look how well that turned out! I didn't even have to help you; you just went ahead and acted like yourself and the people loved you."

I shook my head. "Okay, so can I do that again? Max, it isn't the country I'm worrying about here. It's the people who work for us."

He smiled and continued to stroke my hair. "They'll be convinced. Just you wait and see."

I woke up early the next morning and quietly left our bed to go feed Win and get the twins up for the day. Maxon usually was early to rise but since the shooting he had been sleeping extra late. It was advice from the doctor that he would typically ignore but he could not deny how recovered he was feeling after three weeks of getting a full night's sleep every night. I still wasn't sleeping a whole night; Win was waking up every few hours demanding to be fed but as long as Maxon was healthy I didn't mind picking up the slack. It's not like he could feed her anyway.

From the nursery though I could hear someone knock loudly on the door to my bedroom. I sighed and held Win in my arms as I walked back to my room to answer the door, Maxon just starting to stir in bed at the sound. Aspen was in the hallway, looking shaken up. "Aspen, what's wrong?" I demanded when I saw the grim expression on his face.

Maxon sat up quickly, wincing when he felt the pain in his torso from the sudden movement. Aspen walked into the room and started pacing and pulling at his hair. "One of the advisers is dead," he reported suddenly.

"What?" I yelled as Maxon asked calmly, "Which one?"

"Owen," he said, looking at Maxon with a weighted stare.

Maxon's face paled as he shook his head. "Aspen, I didn't kill him," he immediately said.

"What? Why would anyone think you killed him?" I asked. Both boys were quiet so I went on. "What happened in that meeting after I left?"

My husband ran a hand through his messy hair, his fingers getting stuck on the tangled ends. "I didn't threaten him. At least, I didn't threaten him with anything worse than what you heard. But he was still on my case after you left. Finally I snapped and dismissed him from the meeting."

I gasped. I had never seen Maxon get mad enough to dismiss an adviser from a meeting before. Very quickly though the severity of this problem was dawning on me. "How'd he die?" I asked Aspen.

"Clean slice to the throat. Looks to be from a sword," Aspen answered. "You only have one and it's in your room so I figured that it would be pretty easy to negate any suspicions that you're the one who did it."

Maxon was shaking his head before Aspen even finished though. "My sword is missing. I noticed that it was gone last night but I figured you had taken it for something. You or Carter or August."

"We didn't take it. We have our own."

"Wait, you mean people will actually think that Maxon did this?" I asked them both, sitting down next to Maxon on my bed.

Aspen sighed and shrugged. "I don't know yet. The evidence is pretty incriminating to your husband though. Whenever things like this happen, the king is the first one to be suspected. And Maxon did threaten Owen in a meeting yesterday."

"But Maxon was here all night!" I argued. "I woke up three different times and he was there every time!"

"There's more," Aspen warned. "We were just checking Owen's records and it shows some embezzlement."

I frowned. "Embezzlement? For what?"

"Into the king's personal accounts."

Maxon was shaking his head again. "I wouldn't…I didn't…how did he fake those reports?" he immediately demanded.

"I don't know but you should be aware that the witch hunters are gathering. They're demanding that you get put in jail until all of this is straightened out," Aspen informed us.

I shook my head. "No, he can't go to jail. He's the king. Can't you pay bail or something?"

"There's a law against it," Maxon told me calmly but I could see the fear running wild in his head. "Ones aren't allowed to pay bail. Otherwise we would just run around and do whatever we please."

"Well it certainly looks like you have the money stored up in your personal account now to use in case you could pay bail. That combined with your insistence to push forward for abolishing the castes – which would leave that law obsolete – make this look pretty premeditative," Aspen explained. "You better have a good alibi for what you were doing last night. Besides your wife because she can't speak for you in court."

Maxon got up out of bed and walked to the windows. "I can't go to court. This can't go public at all. A scandal like this will just upset what little support we both have."

"But we can prove everyone wrong and then it will be okay again, right?" I asked, walking over to him and grabbing his elbow.

He shook it out of my grasp. "No. Once there is just the smallest reason to doubt me it's nearly impossible for me to regain the people's trust. And the evidence would have to incontrovertible. Not to mention the fact that we would have to share everything with the public then."

Aspen jumped in. "Which would only open the public's eyes to more stuff that would upset them later on down the road."

"So that's it then?" I asked them both. "We're just shit out of luck?"

"Not us, I am," Maxon corrected, looking at me. "The public has no reason to question your actions."

"You never got in trouble for killing Kellan."

Maxon shook his head. "That's different. He was a tyrant. People knew him well enough to want him dead. No one knows Owen enough to know that he was an ass." He turned to Aspen. "I need to meet with you and Carter this morning before the advisers can meet and throw me in jail."

Aspen nodded in understanding, still looking quite upset. "I'll call him in as well as James and August. Anyone else you need to speak with, Your Majesty?"

"No. The less people who know about this the better." Aspen bowed and walked out, off to do his job. I followed Maxon into his closet, lingering in the doorway as he rushed into a pair of dress pants and a button-down.

"You'll feel better if you shower," I told him softly. Win was still sound asleep in my arms, unaware of the deep trouble that her parents were in.

Maxon grimaced as he buttoned his shirt. "I don't have time. I need to make arrangements for having everything transferred over to you. That's just out of formality; Aspen and Carter will obviously do most of the work for me so that you can keep taking care of Winifred." His voice was hard and his face was completely shut off from me.

"Maxon, don't do this. Please. Don't isolate yourself. If I'm going to help clear your name I need you to cooperate with me."

"You're not going to do help clear my name!" he exploded. "America, please, for once be an obedient wife and stay out of this. Maybe if you are kept far enough away from this you can still rule confidently. But please don't get involved. That will only make things worse."

I frowned and watched him struggle to tie his tie with shaking fingers. "And what am I supposed to do? Sit and watch you get tried and convicted of a crime you didn't commit?" He was silent and I couldn't help but ask, "You didn't kill him right?"

"Of course not," he scoffed as if the idea was ridiculous.

"Sorry. I mean, you've killed people before."

He turned on me with a frown etched on his face. "Not in cold blood though. Not knowing that they have their own family to take care of. I wouldn't kill someone like that." He paused and ran a hand down his face. "Really, Ames, I'm begging you. Just take care of the kids and leave any sort of investigation to Aspen and Carter."

"Aspen and Carter who will already be running the country for you?" I asked. "Maxon, please, I need to do something to help you."

He walked up to me and put his hands on my shoulders. "If you want to help me, then you'll do as I say. You'll watch the kids and do your job as mother and queen and stay far away from all of this. My reputation may be forever tarnished but if Shay can grow up innocent and become king when he's eighteen then this all may be worth it."

"You really don't see a way out of this?" I asked. "You don't even know the full story!"

"Neither do the advisers but that won't stop them from accusing me first." He stopped and thought for a moment before speaking again. "This is going to be difficult for you. They'll accuse you of being a co-conspirator but you can't let them get to you. You're completely innocent in this. Just be strong and remain in control."

I shook my head. "You saw them yesterday though. They won't listen to me without you."

He sighed. "Then you're going to have to be the one to put me in jail." I opened my mouth to protest but he held up a hand to stop me. "Yes, you have to do that. If you play by their rules they'll trust you. We cannot afford to lose them now. Listen to what they say and let all of the work be done behind the scenes."

Tears started pulling in my eyes and I felt one drip down my chin and land on Win. "I can't do that Maxon. I can't be the one to throw you in jail…not when you're facing execution for this."

"Take it as a testament to my trust in you and Aspen. They'll get me out of this before anything can happen to me."

I shook my head, starting to cry in earnest. "Max, I need you. Amber and Shay need you. Please, don't make me…" My sentence was cut off by my sobs. He pulled me into his arms, Win crushed between us. He let me cry into his chest for a few minutes before pushing me back gently as if he was already forcing me to stand on my own.

"Do you trust me?" he asked me. I could only nod. "Then let me put my faith in you."

The advisers were in an uproar when we entered the room and as if I needed a reminder as to how the tides were turning some of them were already seated before Maxon assumed his spot at the head of the table. They looked down their noses at us and I felt like the sound of them talking was Maxon's death march.

"Gentlemen, please, take your seats," Maxon called out to the room. Thankfully they all quieted down and sat, some of them refusing to make eye contact with him as he continued. "Thank you for meeting with me on such short notice in light of recent events. Aspen Leger has the full report of what happened last night."

Aspen nodded and held his papers out in front of him as he read. "Last night, at approximately 12:30 am, Owen Harris was found dead in the eastern fourth floor corridor near his personal quarters. The fatal wound appears to be a slice to the throat, apparently made by a sword or another weapon of the sort. An investigation is still pending and no suspects have been named yet," he completed, taking his seat again.

"Well I think we all can agree on who did this," Adler said, looking sharply at Maxon.

Pretending to be none the wiser, Maxon leaned back in his seat but from the corner of my eye I saw his jaw clench. "What are you insinuating, sir?" he asked calmly.

"We all heard you threaten Owen yesterday to take away his job. Was killing him just the easiest way of making that happen?" another adviser asked Maxon.

"I can tell you that I would not take that approach with any of my advisers. I value all of you and would never dream of harming any of you," Maxon argued.

Adler leaned forward in his seat with his hands folded in front of him. "Tell me, Your Majesty, if we were to look at your sword that you keep in your room, will we find evidence of it being recently used?"

Maxon was quiet. He had no argument for that because he knew the fatal blow was coming. Finally, he admitted, "I do not know the current whereabouts of my sword."

"You mean to say that your sword has disappeared without a trace?" Adler clarified.

Another adviser laughed loudly. "How convenient!"

There was no mention of the embezzling yet but I knew that this was not the appropriate time for it to come up. The only people who knew about it in this room would never dare to bring it up because they knew that would just damn Maxon further.

"So can we all agree that King Maxon is our first suspect?" Adler asked the room. With varying nods and murmurs, it seemed to be the consensus that Maxon was responsible. "What should our next move be?"

"As a citizen of Illea," I began, my voice wavering only slightly, "King Maxon should be held to the traditional order of investigation and conviction as any other citizen would be held to in this situation."

The advisers all sat, stunned, as if they forgot I was able to talk. Under the table, I reached for Maxon's hand. Before this meeting he had spent a good hour with the kids and I, just soaking up every minute he could have with them before this inevitable moment. "Is that our next move? Can we agree to incarcerate His Majesty in the southeast dungeons?" Adler asked the room.

The agreement was slower to come this time but it did. I couldn't look at him as I ordered the guards to take him away. I couldn't look at him as they stood him up and handcuffed him. We all sat in a stunned silence as he was led out. I wanted desperately to reach for him and just hold him one last time and promise him that everything would be okay.

Right now though, it seemed that everything was far from okay. I turned back from the door to look at the men now sitting in front of me. Three children were relying on me to care for them. My husband was relying on his closest friends and I to get him out of this mess. And I had a country to rule. I was now an independent queen. The paperwork had been signed and the country was completely mine now.

And, as my first act of power, I spoke. "The date for the trial of King Maxon Schreave of Angeles will be next Thursday, August tenth at two o'clock in the afternoon. All advisers are expected to be present as we make the decision of whether or not to convict His Majesty in the death of Owen Harris and order his execution."

So how was that? i've been debating taking this story line for a while but i wasn't sure just because i didn't know if y'all would like it or not. Hope you enjoyed it!

prnamber3909: i know. i read your review and i was like, she has no idea what's coming!

AirBalloon: okay, i'm going to do my best to answer you in Portuguese. I'm using Google Translate so please don't hate me! Obrigado por sue comentario! Eu falo espanhol então eu entendido mais do que você me surpreende que as pessoas de Brasil ler meus livros! eu sou tão grato que eu era capaz de alcançá-lo e entretê novamente pela leitura! P.S. do you speak spanish? it'd be easier for me to answer in spanish if you do!

Weatherbug02: i'll let you go since you've been talking to me on Tumblr! i at least knew you weren't dead!

Someone the World Forgot: it felt weird going back to Maxon and America, pre-wedding, pre-kids, pre-everything else. but it was also kind of refreshing not having to deal with kids and a dog in that chapter!

lilythemermaid: i kind of felt bad for giving y'all such a morbid update during New Year's but it was all i had to give you. and yes, can't wait to see what happens in 2015!

Alexis: that's so funny! i know exactly how you feel because one of the Fics that i'm obsessed with was updated on my birthday this past week! it was really the best thing to ever wake up to on my birthday (besides a boyfriend. that may have been the only thing to top that.) *wink, wink*

keegs 16: thank you! i've been working hard but it's difficult because my mom can't seem to understand how high-maintenance it is. i'll get in the groove and suddenly she's asking me to do something and i'm like, really Mom? this is kind of my job, you know. but yeah, hopefully i'll have it finished by summer! i started it two months ago so it should be done by then!

Abbie: i try to update once every one to two weeks. if it's any longer it's because i'm super-duper busy. i would never abandon a story though! if i have to, i'm either dead or i'd give it up for adoption to one of my sacred reviewers.

Guest: i haven't published any yet but y'all will be the first to know when they hit the shelves! (I'm even considering using a pen name which would be Ellie Parker so if i do ever publish my novels, you could try looking for that name.)

The Selection Fangirl: I've already done one for New Year's! i try to limit myself to only doing one chapter for each holiday because after writing about two Christmases it can get to be kind of monotonous. Look it up. it's chapter 19 i believe!

SJWrites2014: just out of curiosity, are you going to change your name to SJWrites2015? and, well, i can't tell you exactly what's next but i think this plot line will be resolved in the next chapters. after that i'm moving on to some fillers and maybe making a big jump in time? i don't know. i'm kind of winging it now.

WisdomandtheNight13: i know, i wish i could have made it longer but it was the holiday season and i wanted to spend some time with my family and such. this once was nice and long though!

Karenvdakker: i feel like i may not have answered your review on the last chapter so i'll do it now. i don't have anything planned yet with either of them being sick or hurt. and it's totally logical. i know i always like more angst like that. but for right now they're staying as healthy as can be!

thank you again for all of the lovely reviews!