Abigail turned away, swallowing hard. Phoenix continued to stare intently at her, willing her to answer. For a long moment, silence pulsed around them.

"I haven't seen Eric in two years. Not since he left Osha on his mission to inspect every single town and city in search of the heir." 

Phoenix pursed her lips. "And so you moved on."

"Do you know what he said to me the last time I saw him?" Abigail asked, still not meeting Phoenix's gaze. "He said he would never see me again, and that if I didn't forget him, I'd die for it." 

"You almost did," Phoenix said. "You were sent to execution. Reed didn't save you from that."

"No one knew about Reed. If they had - if Narissa had known - I'm sure I wouldn't have been taken. Eric has returned to Osha, and that is why I was taken. I'm certain of it. She wanted me gone before he returned."

"Why keep your relationship with Reed a secret?" Phoenix asked, jaw clenching and unclenching. "Why not be public?"

"I didn't want word to spread."

"You didn't want Eric to find out." 

Abigail paled, but nodded. "It's true. I didn't want word sent back to him." Neither of them said anything for another long moment. "I would like for you to meet him, please - before you judge me so harshly."

"Judge you?" Phoenix reared back. "I take it now you can share my emotions from all the way over there?"

"No," Abigail snapped. "I can see it on your face."

"Go to sleep. You'll need rest." Phoenix turned her back on the other woman. They didn't speak again for several hours.

The week ride to Osha was tense and quiet, with neither Phoenix nor Abigail saying much at all. Trey, not being the chattiest child, didn't seem to notice or mind. 

Abigail slowed her horse hours into the ride. "There, do you see?" 

Phoenix didn't need to be asked. An ominous, shining black castle stretched toward the sky in the distance, buildings and houses dotting around it in a massive, widespread city. 

"Welcome to Osha."

#

"My family's estate is this way," Abigail said as they passed through the city gate, turning her horse to the left. "We have stables - we can keep the horses well fed until you leave."

Phoenix thought about what Castor had told her. "If I leave, you mean." 

No one seemed to pay them any mind as they rode through the streets, paved with cobblestones and filled with the bustling of carriages and horses in every direction.  Abigail kept her hood up, and Phoenix and Trey followed suit. 

It occurred to Phoenix that Osha itself must be larger than she thought originally, as they rode for twenty minutes before reaching a well established, old neighborhood. Mouth falling open, Phoenix stared around in awe at the massive homes - one and a half times larger than Aundreya and Noelle's had been back in Treywick. 

"One of these is yours?" she asked aloud, causing a twinge in her neck as she swiveled her head from side to side. 

"Uh, yes. That one." 

Phoenix looked the direction of Abigail's outstretched finger and choked on air. 

A house - if it could be called that - stood at the top of the cobblestone hill, taking up almost as much land as the castle in the very center of the city. It stretched high above the others, dominating them with its magnanimous beauty. 

"You live in a mini castle?" Trey asked, staring up at the dwelling.

Abigail chuckled. "Um, kind of." 

She led them to the stables where they left the horses with four very ecstatic stablehands who couldn't help but rejoice at Abigail's return. Then she led them up through the front door and into a foyer that rivaled the Militia castle's grandeur with its immense warmth.

"For a place this size, it seems so homey," Phoenix said, spinning around just inside the door. Wooden panels lined the walls, creating an aura of golden light. Pictures hung on the walls and expensive rugs lined the stone floor. 

"Who dares to just walk right into this - " a stern looking old woman turned into the foyer with a furrowed brow, but stopped at the sight of Abigail. "Oh stars above. Oh my heavens. MR. TRUSO! MRS. TRUSO! COME QUICK!"

Her shriek sent a thundering through the house in two opposite directions. After a few seconds, a large man with a red mustache came hurtling through a side door. Barely a moment later, a frail blonde woman appeared at the balcony atop the steps.

The shock on Abigail's faces lasted only a beat. The sobbing, hugging, and exclamations of joy, however, lasted nearly half an hour. When Abigail finally extricated herself from her parents' embrace, she looked far more disheveled than when Phoenix first met her on the day of her execution.

"Penny, go and get Reed at once," Mrs. Truso said, ushering the housekeeper away. "He mustn't wait a moment more." 

Phoenix's heart skipped a beat, but Abigail continued as if nothing had happened. "Mother, Father - there are two people I'd like you to meet." She reached out and pulled Trey a bit closer. He seemed wary of being hugged. "This is Trey - an orphan in danger who needs our help."

Abigail's mother put a hand to her heart as her husband gruffed something about "sanctuary" and "always welcome." 

"And this is the woman who saved us both from execution - Phoenix Knight." Abigail moved to stand by Phoenix. "Without her, I wouldn't be standing here. Please remember that as I say this next part."

Phoenix wasn't alone in frowning at Abigail in confusion. Both of her parents seemed perplexed by the disclaimer. 

Without warning, Abigail reached up and unclasped Phoenix's cloak, pulling it off her to reveal her bare arms. Both the Trusos gasped, but Mr. Truso's face turned a mottled red as his wife paled. 

"Phoenix is Eric Lee's younger sister - a Guardian. Just like him." 

"I will not allow one of them in my home," Mr. Truso said in a low rumble. "Get her out. Get her out now." 

"You have something against Guardians?" Phoenix asked, shocked. She grabbed Trey and pulled him back closer to her, away from Abigail's parents.

"No," Abigail said in a huff, her mouth downturning. "Not exactly."

"I will have no sister of Eric Lee's in my house! You are not welcome - get out! Get out I say!"

"Father!" Abigail's voice boomed through the foyer, her anger matching his own. "Phoenix is my friend and my savior. She brought me back to you! She's family!"

"She's no family of ours!" Her father shot back.

"She's family mine!" Abigail countered. Despite the tension, Phoenix noticed the housekeeper returning, but didn't see anyone in her wake. 

"You can't honestly - "

"She's my friend. Eric's sister. And Reed's aunt!" Abigail shouted over him, cutting him off.

Despite the yelling, the housekeeper, Penny, marched straight for Abigail with a grin on her face, a toddler in her arms. 

"There she is! There's mommy!"

A boy no older than a year and a half let out a shriek of glee, his chubby little hands reaching out for Abigail.

"Reed!" Abigail scooped him into her arms. "Oh my darling - I've missed you." 

The world around Phoenix seemed to tilt as the words sank in. Mommy. Aunt. Reed. Beside her, Trey cocked his head.

"Huh," he said. "I did not see that coming."

She didn't have a chance to laugh before she hit the floor in a dead faint.

#

Phoenix awoke on a sofa in a plush and brightly lit sitting room. Trey sat in front of a coffee table next to her, eating a teacake with great enthusiasm. Abigail sat across from her, her brows furrowed as she chewed on her lower lip.

"You're very heavy, you know," she said as Phoenix groaned. "Like solid rock. My father had to have two servant boys help to move you here." 

"Reed is your son," Phoenix said, staring up at the ceiling - which of course had been painted with murals of Adonai and the Stars above. 

"He is." Abigail beckoned someone forward, and Phoenix saw a maid bring Reed to Abigail from the corner of her eye. "I didn't think you'd appreciate seeing him first thing when you woke up - just in case you'd forgotten."

Phoenix pushed herself into a sitting position, focusing on the child in Abigail's lap. His hair was almost silver - no, not almost. His hair was silver, and his eyes - too dark to tell the color - watched her with interest as he shoved his hand into his mouth to chew on.

The faintest markings could already be seen on those hands - not like hers and Eric's, but something else. 

"They're rings," Abigail said, noticing Phoenix's focus. "He has two around each wrist. I don't know what they mean. From all I've been able to gather, he shouldn't be marked, since he's not the child of an Ancient. But I suppose you and Eric come with your own set of rules, being who you are." 

"You're sure he's Eric's?" Phoenix asked, feeling stupid the moment she said it. Abigail rolled her eyes.

"Of course I'm sure. Reed? This is Auntie Phoenix. Wave hello. Wave hello." She bobbled the hand that wasn't occupied, waving it at Phoenix, who thought she might black out again.

"That's why you didn't want him to know. That's why your parents are so angry with him."

Abigail nodded. "When Eric left, I was already a few months along. When my parents found out, they kept me inside the estate, out of the sight of the public eye. After Reed was born, we all figured it would be best if Narissa didn't know."

"But you said if Narissa knew about Reed you wouldn't have been taken."

"No." Abigail shook her head. "I don't think I would have. Narissa is a lot of things, but I doubt she'd kill the mother of her grandchild."

Phoenix bristled. "Narissa isn't Eric's mother."

"No, but she sees herself that way. She's a strange woman. I don't know what she'd do with you if she found out who you were."

"Kill me?" Phoenix suggested. Again, Abigail shook her head.

"You'd be surprised how a mother - even one who isn't a real mother - will act in regards to her child."

"You're crazy," Phoenix said, still unable to take her eyes off of Reed. "Do you know what he can do yet?"

"Do?" Abigail asked.

Instead of answering verbally, Phoenix conjured a ball of fire and jerked her head toward Trey, who had taken more teacakes from the main plate.

"Ah, no. I don't. I wonder if he'll be able to do anything." She frowned. "After all, he's not a Guardian - just the son of one."

"The entire royal line are descendants from Guardians," Phoenix countered. "And you've seen what some of them can do."

Before Abigail could respond, a soft knock at the door drew their attention away. Abigail's mother walked in, a frightened look on her face.

"Forgive me for interrupting. Phoenix, are you feeling all right? Good. I'm Beatrice, by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you. Please excuse my husband. We've been through a lot, recently."

"Mom? What's wrong?" Abigail straightened, shifting Reed a little closer.

"Nothing! Well, nothing really. It's just - you're back in time for the celebration. As much as your father and I would love to stay and eat with you..."

"You can't be missed." Abigail nodded. "If you're gone from the feasts, they might suspect disloyalty."

"Yes, dear, but it's more than that."

Abigail glanced at Phoenix, who felt the hair on her arms stand up on end. "What?"

"It's Eric, dear. Abigail, I didn't want you to find out this way, but tonight's feast is a bit different."

"How so?" Abigail's breath quickened, and even Trey stopped eating to take in Beatrice's words.

"Tonight is a celebration - a bigger celebration than most. You see, they've made an announcement. In fact, the parade for the commoners is about to start."

"Parade?" Phoenix asked, confused.

"Mother, just tell me what it is."

"Well, honey. It's just that..." Beatrice closed her eyes. "Eric's engaged to a woman named Aundreya Leyera." 

Bombs dropped ALL OVER THE PLACE! 

Now you know who Reed is AND now Phoenix and Abigail know about Eric and Aundreya.

Think they're going to stay home and hide out while this parade and feast are going on? Or do you think we're about to get into the thick of it ;) 

Also, we HAVE to know what's going on back at the Militia...because let me tell you...someone there is not our friend and might be putting our buddies in danger.

Dun dun duuuuun.

Also YOU GUYS I GOT IMMUNITY IN THE HERCULEAN CHALLENGE BECAUSE OF YOU! Thank you so much! The next round will be tough, but hey - if I end up winning this thing maybe I'll just give you guys bonus chapters for being so awesome!