**Adeline Above**

ALEKSANDER's POV:

"Yeah," Caddie agreed with a tight smile on her face. "Tell everyone. This will be an interesting story."

Her lack of faith in me was amusing. I was just doing what was best for all of us. Caddie was horrible liar. If by some chance I did come up with a spectacular lie that put all the rumors to rest, she'd never be able to keep up with it. If confronted, she'd probably avoid answering any questions- leaving the backdoor open for all kinds of gossip. I couldn't have that.

Roberto, or Prince Roberto, as he so humbly stated, stared at me with a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. His coal black eyes were crinkled with amusement. It was all an act, though. Roberto was not amused by my declaration. He wasn't angered either. The guy was numb, void of all emotions. The world was a colorless prison, nothing ever seemed important or worth care to him. I idly wondered what that be like, to not care. No matter how hard I tried, every stupid, insignificant detail in the world affected me. It was annoying but perhaps not as annoying as never being able to feel annoyed. Empathy has it's downfalls but being understand how everyone felt was extremely helpful in some situations.

"We're distant cousins, twice removed I believe," I said matter of factly, "My friends and I were orphans. Only recently when the HeadMinister stumbled upon us and did some research did I learn about my royal relatives."

The royals swallowed the truth easily. Some of them, had reservations it was clear on their faces. Adeline was one of the few who found my impeccable lie difficult to believe. She was a natural lie detector. I had anticipated her skepticism; so I kept my charming smile in place and turned my attention to her.

"It's nice to finally meet you. I wish I could have spoken to you in a more intimate setting though," I said.

She stared at my eyes, slightly shocked at the uncanny similarity. After an unsettling moment of silence Adeline let out an unflattering squeal of delight and flitted over to my side. Grabbing her waiting hand, I placed a chaste kiss over her gloved knuckles. The Royal sitting in the chair beside me, scrambled out of his seat and offered it to Adeline. The guy nearly fainted when Adeline turned her dimpled smile upon him.

So weak, I held back a chuckle.

"You must tell me everything about you. I've always wanted a brother, I am an only sibling," Adeline solemnly informed me.

A burning hunger to have a familial connection raged within Adeline. Being raised in a family where duty and honor always outrank warm hugs and kisses, left an everlasting impression on a child. I would know. Looking at Adeline, I could see myself in her sparkling blue eyes and soft brown hair. A young lady, like her, was raised to be the epitome of sophistication and elegance. She didn't have time to play with dolls or draw pretty pictures to show to her parents. I can't imagine she made many friends while memorizing every spell and Latin word to ever be created.

"There isn't much to tell. I'm an orphan, my parents are gone. I had a twin but he died. As a child, I studied a lot, which did not lead to me having many friends. Caddie here," I gestured to my glowering girlfriend, "Was one of my first and only true friends."

Caddie's anger spiked. Her hands gripped the sides of her chair, tightly. I tried numbing her anger but her rage knew no bounds. I didn't even know why she was so bent out of shape. Our secret wasn't revealed. Nobody was suspicious, we could still slide under the radar and gather the information needed to stop Roberto.

"Are you alright?" Adeline asked, concerned.

"Oh, she's fine," I laughed awkwardly before Caddie could open her mouth.

Fine was definitely not the word to describe Caddie's mood. Explosive Atomic bomb, would have fit much better.

"She just misses my brother terribly. He was like family to her as well," I quickly threw together a lame excuse.

Adeline nodded. She patted my hand comfortingly and said, "I am so sorry for your loss. It must have been so tragic to not only lose your parents but then your brother as well."

A lump formed in my throat. The truth of those words hit me hard. It was tragic to lose someone you loved. He was one the few people I needed, our relationship was important like breathing air and just like air, I took him for granted. I stifled my tears, knowing I couldn't cry in a room filled with people. I wasn't weak.

"Everything is fine now," I lied again using that damn word.

"So it appears," Roberto interjected, pulling the spotlight back on him.

Circling his jeweled finger around the rim of gold goblet, he leaned back in his chair and stared intently at Caddie. The look in his eyes was borderline predatory. The urge to kill him had never been stronger. I never had a problem with guys looking at Caddie, besides Cam, everyone had been too afraid of her. But in 1816 no one knew of the power she held. Most of the guys probably saw her as a pretty girl, in a tight laced gown. That was the equivalent of a hot chick in a bikini from my time!

"And whose bloodline do you belong to, my dear?" Roberto almost purred.

"Yours," Caddie replied sharply.

She removed her hands from the sides of her chairs, revealing to large gaping holes in the wood. I shifted myself closer to her chair, trying to cover the damage before anyone else saw it. She needed to control her anger. If anyone, especially Roberto, noticed her magical capabilities she would be killed.

"Really?" Roberto asked and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.

Roberto tried to look for any similar physical attributes between him and Caddie but there were none- they were polar opposites. He raised a brow and pursed his lips. His fingers drummed across the tabletop as he continued to scrutinize her every detail. Caddie was staring back at him too but in a hateful, 'I want to set you on fire', way. They continued with their little staring contest for a moment before, Roberto leaned back in his chair again.

"You do not look a thing like me," Roberto stated.

"Lucky me."

A normal person would have been phased by Caddie's rude comment but Roberto didn't bat an eye. His incapability to feel emotions kept him from feelings embarrassed. But he did process that what Caddie said was an insult. He tilted his head to the side, still trying to figure her out. She was a complexity, I thought to myself, like a puzzle missing a few pieces.

"She's got quite the temper," Adeline whispered to me.

I bit my tongue and nodded.

"Well God does work in the strangest of ways," Roberto finally relented.

Caddie didn't spare him another glance. Grabbing my hand, she stood up from her seat and pulled me along with her. I started protest but she spoke, cutting me off.

"I hate to leave so abruptly but we promised not to abandon our other friends today."

Standing beside the steps to the platform were Alix, Jaxon and Moria. Alix and Jaxon looked just as murderous as Caddie. Perhaps, I should have taken into consideration how the others would feel about being stranded in a completely new world with no support- but more important things were happening. Caddie and I now had an 'in' with the heirs. Adeline was practically bursting at the seam with curiosity and her emotions were influencing Roberto's actions. If Caddie is able to bond with him, we could learn about his plans for the Dark Ones. My plan had flaws, I admit, but at least it was a plan. Nobody else had one yet.

"I hope we'll see each other again," I managed to tell Adeline before Caddie pulled away from the table.

"What were you thinking," she hissed as we walked down the steps.

"I was thinking about meeting my only relative."

Caddie scrunched her face in confusion. She probably thought I lost a few brain cells. I didn't- in fact I was being smarter than her. There was a good chance the Mind Manipulator was reading our thought- I didn't need him to be suspicious. It's much harder to manipulate my thoughts than my feelings.

"We'll talk later," I added under my breath.

"Oh trust me we'll all be having a nice long chat later about why you're a dumbass," Alix looped her arm through Caddie's. Dropping my hand, Caddie me to stand awkwardly to the side as Alix and Jaxon crowded around her.

"We have something more important to discuss right now," Jaxon reminded Alix.

Alix shook her head as if to refocus her thoughts, "Jax is right. I had a vision, a very disturbing one. There was a group of people, they sounded like they were in a lot of pain. The place they were at was really dark and cold, I couldn't see much except dirt and metal bars. I think these people might be Roberto's Dark Ones, but I can't tell where they are."

Caddie's eyes enlarged, "I know exactly where they are! The dungeon!"

That made perfect sense. The dungeons were used to contain Dark Ones. It'd be perfectly easy for a certain deranged heir to slip under the radar and colonize an army of psychotic soldiers. Alix, Caddie and I smirked at each other, knowing exactly where the next destination of our tour should be.

"Wait," Jaxon said, completely bewildered. "Nox Haven has a dungeon? How did I never know about that?"

He turned to his sister, "How did you know? And why didn't you tell me I was sleeping above hordes of Dark Ones!"

Alix patted his shoulder. Her emerald eyes twinkled with mischief. "Now is not the time brother. We have dungeons to visit and people to kill."

**Hey guys, I'm sorry for the short update but this is kinda a filler chapter. The next one should be shorter. Side Note: please do not take offense to when Aleksander thought that crying was weak, I do not feel that way that's just his character. How do you guys feel about these Aleksander POVs? Do you like hearing his point of view? I know some of you didn't like him before so does hearing the story from him change your prospective? I, for one, didn't really like him before but after delving into the character's mind I've found that he's grown on me. He also has a way with people that is extremely useful for undercover detective work. I mean, after a few short conversations he was able to charm all of the heirs. And in a few short words Caddie was able to scare everyone off. On other news, Alix got her sight back. Let's hope nothing goes wrong with her visions- the others seem to rely heavily on her psychic ability.

Thank you all for reading! Please comment and vote if you like the back so far!!
XOXO,
Ro.**