Tension hung in the air, thick enough to choke on. This was a live broadcast and the moment Stacey had made herself known, the cameras were on her too. It was a spectacle for the world to see, this seemingly scorned woman, fighting against Nicolas’ guards just to get her hands on the ring that supposedly belonged to her. There was, however, no doubt in my mind that the ring belonged to her. It was extravagant enough, and dainty enough to embody everything Stacey seemed to exude.Aura held her hands up and quickly directed the production crew to cut their cameras. She was threatening enough to make them adhere to her commands almost instantly.“How dare you show yourself here. Did my brother not pay you enough yesterday?” Aura yelled, with her arms folded in front of her chest and an angered look on her face.So that was where Nicholas was off to yesterday… and that was where he retrieved the ring from. The thought unsettled me and made me sick to the stomach.Stacey finally shook hers

His resemblance to Dante was still as uncanny as ever. He was dressed in a black suit which seemed slightly too big for him. His brown eyes were widened, and his lips were pulled into a nervous smile as he gazed at Kiyan who held the knife to his throat. “I thought you were dead!” Kiyan said, his eyes widening too as he gazed at Daniel in shock and confusion. “This is not Dante, it’s his twin brother, Daniel!” I shouted, grabbing the blade from Kiyan’s hand. Kiyan turned towards me in disbelief and then set his eyes back on Daniel. “Twin?” he questioned. Daniel nodded and smiled. “And you two are? I remember seeing you at the King’s home,” he said gazing at me. I nodded. “I’m Ariya. I was a friend of your brother’s. This is a friend of ours named Parker and the man who so enthusiastically put a knife to your throat is my brother, Kiyan.” Daniel gave a bright, friendly smile. I began to notice that he was a little bubblier than Dante was. But his polite bubbliness seemed

The air was bitterly cold against my skin, and it had an acrid, almost death-like scent to it. I used one of my hands to cover my nose and another to rub my goosebump-covered arms to generate some warmth. I’d been walking through this darkness for a while, afraid and completely alone. I called out a few times, first for Kiyan, then Ophelia, and even for Nicholas. But I was greeted by nothing but the deafening sound of silence. Not even my footsteps seemed to make a sound. The darkness seemed to be endless, and I had no idea in which direction I was walking nor which destination I was supposed to be making my way towards. Then suddenly, flickering in the far distance I saw a tiny shimmering white light. It felt as though the light was calling out to me, inviting me towards it. At first, I was a little cautious, slowing my pace a little just to make sure I was not seeing things. I rubbed my eyes a little and prayed that when I opened them, the light would still be there. And it was. Tha

It had been weeks since the engagement and the funeral. And although the entire world knew that I was engaged to Nicholas thanks to the announcement he’d made, in reality, I did not feel engaged to him at all. We hardly got the chance to see one another with him off with Theo and Ophelia, trying to make good on the promises that were given− freedom to the children. They were constantly in meetings and a lot of the time they were away from home. I suppose somewhere in my mind I assumed that I’d be going along with them wherever they went, like a well-running team. But they were so worried about my safety and sanity that they instead kept me locked away. Melissa and the rest of my friends had been dismissed from the house, though they were still paid each and every week. The only people I’d been left with were the guards who stood outside and Kiyan. He’d begun to come and visit the house more often, making my loneliness his excuse. But I suspected there was another reason… “For someone

Silence ensued and the both of us just stared at each other cautiously. I didn’t know what to say or what to think. I was in a state of disbelief, unable to comprehend that he could have killed his friend whom he loved. Perhaps, I thought to myself, it had been an accident, just like with me. But that didn’t make it any less eery. At least with me, Nicholas hadn’t actually killed me. My body had been in a state of in-between, drawn to death, but able to come back to life. And so, I wondered if Theo could still bring someone back if they’d completely crossed over. If they’d already been kissed by death and embraced it openly. Was that what had happened to Portia Knight, or was it something else, something more sinister… “Say something, please…” Nicholas said softly, breaking the silence between us. There was a sense of desperation in his voice and his eyes were ashamed and seemed to be eagerly searching my face. But I couldn’t find my words. “I… I−” Suddenly, there was a loud, despe