Nolan swept me back into the safety of the tank. A dozen Gamma warriors piled in quickly behind us and we started our way back down the mountain. At the base of the mountain, Nolan and I had the good fortune of changing into a new ride. A limousine was waiting for us. Once the door slammed shut behind us, I finally felt like I could begin to relax. Neither of us spoke for several minutes. It was not awkward silence. More like comfortable quiet. We were both still reeling from the intensity of the past few hours. Outside, the storm raged on. But the closer we got to the palace, the smaller and more distant it seemed.   I cracked open a bottle of water, took a few sips and then offered it to Nolan. He chugged the rest. “What now?” I asked idly. I scooted my body close to his. “I can’t believe this is finally over.” He stared straight ahead at the closed driver’s cab partition. “It’s not over,” he muttered, frowning. T

Nolan kept hold of my hand as we passed from the car to the front of the building. A moving wall of Gamma warriors surrounded us on every side as we walked, helpfully blocking my view of the crowd and the cameras. And then we were there. Nolan pulled me along, coming to a stop right behind the podium, and I had to look right out at the biggest sea of people I had ever seen in my life. The reporters were all shouting out questions already. The crowd of civilians thundered with deafening applause when they saw us.  My stately husband, unfazed by all of this, nodded seriously to the crowd in acknowledgement. After a few more seconds, he held up an open palm to the crowd, and the world began to quiet down under his command.  “There have been many news reports already about the events of the past two days,” Nolan began. “I am here today first and foremost to officially confirm some facts about these events, and to formally announce that my hal

The three of us escaped quietly to my studio. “Oh, my goodness,” Cindy breathed as we walked in. I did a lap around the room, turning all the lights on. “This place is incredible.” “Isn’t it? Oh, Yena, I missed this place! We had a lot of fun times in here.” “Sit down,” I told my guests. “Wherever’s comfortable.” I grabbed a notebook and pen from my desk then met them over at the couches in the fitting area. “So what’s up Yena?” Lucy asked, dying with curiosity. “What’s this thing you wanted to talk to us about?” “Well, I need both of your help with something,” I started. “But I wanted to actually ask Cindy a couple questions first.” “Sure,” Cindy said. “Fire away.” Rafaela’s head appeared, popping through the doorway. I guess she had seen the studio door open. I waved her over. “My apologies for interrupting your party here, Miss Yena, but I wonder if I could bring any refreshments over for you and you

YENA Lucy watched her reflection carefully in the trifold mirror while moving around the layers of the skirt I was fitting on her. “I don’t remember how I had it,” she said. “Was it like this?” “Yes. That’s perfect.” I hurried over and knelt beside the pedestal, pinning the fabric into place at the most flattering angle over Lucy’s hip. “So Cindy couldn’t make it today, huh?” “Yeah, she was too busy.” I finished pinning the skirt into place and took a couple steps back to look at it from a distance again. “I knew it wouldn’t be easy to get her away from the orphanage. She said she’ll try again tomorrow.” “I had fun with her last night. She’s super nice.” “Yeah, I’m glad Nolan invited her to the dinner party. That was a fun surprise.” “He is super sweet, too, Yena.” Lucy met my eyes in the mirror. “It was really nice to finally get to hang out with the two of you together. I can’t believe I thought…” She darted her eyes away as her voice trailed off. “You thought what? I’m don

“This has been quite the experience already, Yena.” Cindy was looking in the trifold mirror, watching in amazement as Lucy and I adjusted her dress and pinned it into place. “I’m nervous for tomorrow though. I can’t believe I let you talk me into doing this.” Lucy smiled. “Oh, it’s going to be so fun. Just wait.” “Yeah, you’ll be great!” I took a step back to look at our work, and made eye contact with Cindy. “I’ve seen you command a room many times at the orphanage. You’re a total boss.” “Those are kids, though. They only listen to half of what you say. I’ve never stood up in front of a crowd of adults before – ever. And especially not with the focus on my clothes and body.” “Well,” Lucy said, admiring Cindy’s reflection. “You’ve probably never worn something this awesome before. Yena’s clothes are like magic. Zip yourself in and up goes the confidence.” I had to laugh at this. “That would make a good ad slogan.” “You’re joking,