An Unroyal Alliance

The trees rushed at her face as she sped through the dark forest, nothing but muscle memory leading her down the green path. She could hear the men behind her shouting in their local dialect that a thief was on the loose. She knew they would be on her soon enough if she did not lose the weight of the money and gold at her hips, but she could not. She needed everything in the bag so letting go was not an option. Her eyes fell on the light from afar. Then she saw it. The light as it hit the end of the sea. Her escape, her way out. Her feet moved faster, and she picked up her pace towards the cliff. Seventy steps after she passed the ancient oak tree, she would be free. The more she ran, her chest ached, and her muscles burned, but she smelled it, the ocean and her freedom. She reached the edge of the cliff and jumped, but life was anything but sweet. It had a way of taking perfection and slapping it into a paste of pain. Her shoulder burned as she trashed in the air; a bullet tore thr

Dimitri steered the car into the driveway of the apartment complex. It was still early in the evening. After a whole day had passed, he made some time to drive out and return Ayesha's bag to her. He had looked into it to find a way to identify her and was lucky enough to find her ID. Dimitri was sure it would make finding her easier. He parked in a decent spot. He got down from the car, holding her bag at his side. “Good evening.” He greeted the man at the desk. “I am looking for someone who lives in this building. Ayesha Hansley. Average height, shoulder-length dark hair, tanned, has an accent. I believe she shares the apartment with someone.” He searched for the details on his computer. “Yes, she is a resident here. Are you family?” “No. We met sometime back, but she left some personal items with me. I want to return them to her.” “Can I see some ID, please?” Dimitri reached into his pocket to dig out his wallet. He handed over his driver's license. “Alright. I’ll call and see

The party started winding down around one, and by two, it was over. Guests trickled out of the house in small numbers, saying their goodbyes and complimenting his mother on the party. Dimitri left his sisters and Sofia conversing by the fire and went to look for his mother. He found her speaking with the staff they hired and stood by the door, watching until she was done. One by one, the workers began to leave, returning inside to finish the work that was left. Dimitri stepped aside to let them pass and walked over to the counter. “The party was lovely, mother.” She basked in the praise, smiling at him. “I am glad you liked it. As soon as this place is cleared, we can all get some sleep. I can’t believe it went on for as long as it did.”“You underestimate the power of gossip and alcohol. It’s typically what people go to parties for. At least, I think it is.”“It most certainly is not.His younger sister walked into the kitchen, waving her phone in the air. “Mom, I am taking Holla

After three hours of working, Ayesha still found herself smiling. Into the industrial trawler, she sorted out the next batch of towels and sheets she had as part of her quota for the day. She had her headphones over her ears, listening to music while she worked.Her mind travelled once in a while to the conversation she had with Dimitri earlier in the morning. In truth, it left her flustered as well as anxious. There was no doubt that she liked being around him. Three times they had met, and each time left her giddy and dosed with excitement. This time she wondered if he thought or felt the same about her. Worse, today when he asked to take her out for a drink.A drink!The simple invitation to go out for drinks brought about many facts. Ayesha barely knew anything about the man apart from his name. Wt did she know about his life, that she was allowing herself to sink deeper and deeper into a hole of unknown depth? She had never considered herself a hopeless romantic. All her former r

Dimitri drove her back to the apartment building after their night out ended. He walked her to the door, and they stood outside for a few minutes talking until he had to leave. This time, tucking away any awkwardness she felt, Ayesha perked up and asked for his number. With little hesitation, Dimitri typed it into her phone and made her call so she could see it ring, and he saved her name on his phone. They said goodbye, and he returned to his car. Ayesha remained outside, waved goodbye and only went in after his car took the turn and disappeared. Ayesha breezed past through the hall, not paying attention to anyone as she got into the elevator. Though they had not made plans to go out some other time, she was content with how the night went. No, it had not been a date. Yes, she was developing a bit of a crush on someone she had only met a handful of times. One of those times was when he ran her over, but she didn't think much about those things. Dimitri was an easy person to like.