Thia glanced around the dark tunnel trying the locate the source of the voice. Then, right in front of them, Daeva and Jen appeared.

Thia snarled. "What are you doing here?"

Daeva laughed. "What? Am I not allowed to come to my own secret hideout?"

"So, you admit that this is your hideout?"

She laughed again. "Did I say that?"

Rikan interrupted Thia before she could say anything. "She isn't worth our time. She's just trying to mess with your mind. Besides..." He nodded his head in the direction of the wall. It took Thia a second to notice the red hoodie on the ground and the glint of metal coming from the shadowy wall. She nodded subtly in recognition.

"Besides what?" Daeva snapped. "What's with all the secret looks? Jen? Do you know what this is about."

"No idea, Sister," Jen said dryly. He looked straight ahead and did not meet anyone's gaze.

"Well, what is it?" Daeva was almost shouting.

"She has serious mental instability," Thia mumbled.

"What is it?" she screeched.

Rikan smiled. "You'll find out right... now!"

Like lightning, Ruby jumped out from the shadows with a dagger in her hand. Daeva turned around, eyes wide in fear, but she was too late. The dagger flew from Ruby's hand and plunged itself right below her neck. Daeva doubled over in pain as the blood started rushing from her wound. She yanked the dagger out and screamed shrilly.

Ruby started crying. "I didn't mean to leave her alive. I was aiming for her neck. I thought I could kill her."

"It's okay, Ruby," Thia whispered. "You did great."

Then, as if they were summoned, Iko, Cinder, and Scarlet came rushing into the corridor. In a flash, Iko had Jen leaned over with a knife to his throat.

"Put down your weapons," Iko hissed.

Thia cocked her head as Jen dropped a dagger. She hadn't noticed any weapons.

"Mommy!" Ruby ran to embrace Scarlet.

"Thia? Rikan? Is that you?" Cinder stepped closer. Thia could tell that her cybernetic eyes were helping to identify them.

"It's us, Mom," Rikan said.

"Are- are you guys, okay? What happened?"

"We're fine, Mom," Thia said, rolling her eyes at her mother's worrying. She used to do dangerous things too.

"Well, get over here. Let me check you up."

Thia and Rikan walked over to their mother for a thorough checkup to see if they were okay.

"Who are they?" their mother asked, pointing to Jen and Daeva.

"Bad guys," Rikan answered.

"Well," Thia said thoughtfully. "Jen isn't really- he's kinda- I mean- he- I don't know." She shook her head in confusion. Rikan raised an eyebrow that she ignored.

"Okay then," Cinder replied. "Iko, would you take the girl and get her to the medics?"

"What about the boy?" Iko wondered.

"I've got him," Thia volunteered.

"No, I'll take him," her mother said.

"I can control him in a way that he won't be able to escape from," she protested. As a demonstration, she used her glamour and made Jen slap his own face. He wrinkled his nose at her, but she didn't allow him to speak.

All three women gaped at her.

"You just controlled him," Cinder choked out.

Thia rolled her eyes at their ignorance. "Yes. I used my glamour. Rikan and Ruby can do it too." She became sad. "They all could too except for Garry."

Scarlet frowned. "Where are the others?"

"They were taken," Rikan answered soberly. "And we suspect that Jen and Daeva have something to do with it."

"Well maybe not Jen." Thia came to his defense only to receive raised eyebrows from her twin and Jen.

"I assume Daeva and Jen are those two." Iko pointed in their general direction.

Thia nodded. "So, I'll take Jen and Aunt Iko can take Daeva. Make sure she doesn't die. She may know something useful."

Her mother frowned. "When did you get so bossy? You're only thirteen years old."

"When I was kidnapped. And I'm almost fourteen."

Her mother's frown deepened but she said nothing as Thia took Jen and followed Iko with Daeva slung over her shoulder out of the tunnel.

---

"I'm going to see the prisoner," Thia announced, standing up. After sending Daeva to the doctors and Jen to the prison, they had all met in one of the many rooms so of the palace to discuss next steps in regard to Daeva and Jen and their situation. The antidote had already been delivered and there had been no deaths, so all that was left was to track down whoever planted the blue fever.

"Why?" Kai wondered.

"Because I feel like it," she snapped and walked out of the room. In the tunnels, she had wanted her parents so badly but now that she was with them, she found herself constantly trying to escape them. They treated her like a baby even though she was almost fourteen. Didn't they understand the horrors she had been through? Stars above, she had seen a man get beheaded and watched a ten-year-old almost kill a psychopath and murderer!

She schooled her features into that of nonchalance as she entered Jen's cell.

It was a simple place containing only a cot, sink, and toilet. The walls were shiny white just like the rest of the palace and reflected a lot of light giving the small area a faint glow. Jen was leaning against the wall as she locked the door, almost as if he knew she was going to come.

He sat down next to her as she sat on the cold floor.

"What's up?" he asked.

She didn't respond.

"I assume you didn't come here for idle chatter."

She stayed silent.

He placed a hand on her knee. "Why did you come here?"

Thia sighed and shook her head. "I honestly don't know. I just needed to get away from my parents. They treat me like I'm some reckless five-year-old who needs to be on a leash!"

"Trust me, I get it," Jen muttered. She felt that there was more meaning to his words. "You didn't really answer my question. Why here? Why me?"

She sighed again. "I really don't know, Jen. I guess I thought that I would be more alone here than any other place in the palace."

"I get it," he repeated. "How's Daeva?"

Any sense of comfort she had felt instantly evaporated at the mention of his sister. "She's fine," Thia answered curtly. "The doctors stitched her up, though she's going to have one nasty scar."

Jen's lips turned up into a half smile. "Don't worry. She likes scars. Especially the nasty ones."

"I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not."

He smiled for real. "Does it really matter?"

"No, not really."

"How is she your sister?" Thia wondered. "From what I can tell, you guys are nothing alike."

"You're right," he replied. "And honestly, I sometimes wonder about that myself. She's more like Aimery while I'm more like... not Aimery."

She laughed for no reason and suddenly became painfully aware that Jen's hand was still on her knee and that their knees were almost touching. Her heart sped up and her breath quickened.

"Thia," Jen murmured. "I didn't kiss you back there for no reason."

"Oh?" She licked her lips.

He leaned closer. "You're really beautiful, you know that?"

"Hmm." Thia wanted to smack herself at her word choice, but she found it very hard to concentrate while staring into Jen's dark blue eyes. Her heartbeat sped up even more as he leaned closer.

Then his lips were pressed against hers.

She felt her breath hitch but didn't pull away. They just stayed like that for several more moments before Jen finally pulled away.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean to overstep your boundaries."

"No, Jen, that was..." Thia trailed off not knowing how to describe her feelings. It was great. Amazing. Wonderful. Incredible. Unlike anything that had ever happened to her before.

Instead of saying something, she leaned in for another kiss as the door to the prison cell opened.

"Thia?"

A/N:

Oh my stars!! Eeeeeek!! That was so intense [even for me]!! (What's with the double exclamation marks?)

How did you guys like it? I felt like I needed to add some more Jia (that's what I've decided to call Thia+Jen for right now). I started writing Chapter 13 yesterday and because it was Valentine's Day, I just had to add this last part. This is one of the longest chapters so far, so I hope you guys enjoyed it!

I don't really have anything else to say... so yeah.

Have a good day/night!!!

~Bookworm 😜