“I’m so glad we’re going back to Hallon tomorrow,” he said, stealing a sip of my coffee. “I know King Ryu thinks that we’re staying until things are good, but I want to leave immediately.”
“Why?” Natira asked, suddenly concerned.
“Natira,” Modric spoke firmly. “It’s not our duty to help Hallon rebuild. I know that things have changed, and King Ryu is no longer our enemy, but He isn’t our best friend or a family member. He’s still an opposite race. I would not expect him to stay and help rebuild Athim if the tables were turned.”
Natira got up from the table abruptly.
“You told him that you would help,” she said, walking towards the door. “Now you’re going against your word. What, are you just going to open the doors and kick him off?”
She left the room before Modric could follow up.
“What is her deal?” he asked, grabbing a croissant from the table.
“I have no idea,” I said. “She has been acting a bit off since this all happened. Maybe she has some sort of form of PTSD from the other night. I don’t know.”
He shrugged as he continued to eat the croissant.
“Are you going to make some time for me today?” I asked. He shook his head as he finished his food.
“I wish I could, babe,” he said. I jolted at the endearment. The first he’d ever used. “Please don’t think I don’t want to. I definitely want to pick up where we left off before the attack, but there’s been so much going on that unfortunately, sex is the last thing on my mind.”
I understood. Despite the passionate lovemaking we had before, I hadn’t been craving sex, either. I did crave Modric, though. Just having him around made me feel less lonely and more comforted.
“Dinner tonight,” he said, noticing the sad look on my face. “Just you and me.”
I perked up and flashed him a smile.
“That sounds great,” I said. He kissed me goodbye and left the room. I cleaned up my dishes. I was headed back to my room when Natira stopped me in the hallway.
“I need to talk to you,” Natira said, taking my arm. She led me down to her chambers and closed the door behind her. This must have been serious. I’d never been invited to Natira’s chambers before.
“I have something to tell you,” she said. “I’ve not told Modric yet, and you can’t, either. Please promise me you won’t tell him before I do, Freya.”
I searched her face for answers. What was she talking about, and why couldn’t Modric find out?
“What’s wrong?” I asked, suddenly very concerned. Was she OK? Had she found out intel from the Hallon aliens?
“I’m going to stay on Hallon,” she announced. I was stunned.
“What?” I wasn’t sure I’d heard her correctly. Stay on Hallon? The enemy planet? I knew she’d been obsessed with it as a child, but I thought that with everything we went through, she wouldn’t want to stay there.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time planning with King Ryu. We’ve discussed it and we feel like they need a strong Athim figure to rebuild, to promote the sense of an alliance. Modric needs to go back to Athim, so he’s out of it. I volunteered.”
“Wow,” I spoke slowly. “Wow… but, why? There has to be more than meets the eye about that.” And hadn’t she been protesting about Ryu earlier?
Speaking of eyes, she wouldn’t look me in mine. Suddenly, everything was beginning to make sense. Her bringing up the need for King Ryu to take a new Queen, her glow at the table this morning.
“Natira,” I said, grabbing her hand. “You’re smitten with King Ryu, aren’t you?”
She shrugged her shoulders and smiled.
“I thought you liked girls!” I said.
“True,” she said. “Girls do it for me. But I do really like King Ryu. I know he just lost his wife, but he’s a man. He has needs, too.”
“You guys had sex already, didn’t you?” I asked. She grinned.
“We did,” she confessed. “Seriously, Freya, I know you think I’m crazy, but I’ve never felt this way before. I think I’m in love.”
I didn't see this coming. But there was one thing that I knew. Modric would not like this. As much as Natira annoyed him, she was his little sister.
“Please don’t tell him,” she said. “I’ll tell him when it’s time.”
“If you’re happy, Natira, I’m happy,” I said, hugging her. While I was genuinely happy for her, I would also miss her immensely. She had become my best friend.
“We can visit each other whenever,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll get sick of Modric after a while. Obviously, his idea to overtake Hallon is on the back burner now. You can come vacation on Hallon.”
“Deal,” I said, extending my hand. I couldn’t believe what had transpired, but if I learned one thing on this journey, it was that things were always changing.
Chapter 19
Somehow, I managed to make it through dinner without spilling Natira’s secret. I desperately wanted to discuss it with Modric, but respected my sister-in-law’s wishes.
“I’ll be so glad when this mission is finally over,” Modric spoke after sipping his wine. “I’ve always liked being away from Athim, but now that I have you, I want to stay there for a while.”
“I would very much like that,” I said. I was curious to see what life on Athim would be like.
We spent the rest of the dinner talking about Athim life. After a little too much wine, we headed back to the bedroom. But between the wine and the events that had happened, we were both far too tired to do anything physical.
Our group met the next morning to discuss the plans for the day. We were going to land back on Hallon.
“My new advisor informed me that there will be a special ceremony for all of you,” King Ryu said. “My people are very grateful that you saved my life and took care of me for the past several days. To show their affection, they want to give you some of our most sacred awards. Please promise me that you will stay long enough for that.”
I knew Modric would want to protest, so I stepped in before he could.
“That sounds absolutely wonderful, King Ryu,” I said, embracing him in a big hug. “Of course we will stay. We’ll stay as long as you need us to.”
Modric shot me a dirty look, but I ignored him. I had a feeling once he found out that Natira would be staying on Hallon that he wouldn’t be so eager to leave. I wondered when she was going to tell him.
“Girls, let’s go get ready,” Natira said. The six of us left the command room and headed towards the girls’ bedroom chambers.
“When are you telling him?” I asked Natira. The other girls were far ahead of us, too far ahead to hear our conversation.
“I’m scared!” she admitted. “Modric isn’t going to want me to stay here. I mean, my father is going to kill me. But I need to stay here, Freya. It’s time for me to be my own person. Not Juri’s daughter or Modric’s sister. I’m ready to be Queen Natira of Hallon.”
I had to admit, Queen Natira of Hallon did have a nice to ring to it. I had no doubt that Natira would be a strong queen to the Hallons. She was brilliant, gorgeous, and brave. Not to mention the whole dragon shifting thing. King Ryu would be lucky to take her as a bride.
“So, when are you getting married?” I asked. Natira smirked.
“Today,” she said. “I really want you and Modric to be there. I want my brother to give me away.”
I would have normally been shocked, but so many crazy things had transpired lately that I wasn’t.
“Well, let’s get you ready for your wedding day,” I said, interlocking her arms with mine.
Soon after, the six of us met back up with the men in the command room. Modric turned to look at us. His eyes specifically lingered on his sister. She looked the best that I had ever seen her before. While she was naturally beautiful, the way she did her makeup and hair really made her breathtakingly gorgeous, like a movie star.
“Why are you so dressed up?” Modric asked her.
“I’
m not,” she replied. “I just decided to do something different with my hair today.” She failed to make eye contact with him. He rolled his eyes.
“Whatever,” he said. He turned his attention to me. “Freya, you look absolutely lovely, as usual.”
I smiled, walking into his open arms. He kissed me passionately on the lips before Natira spoke.
“That’s enough,” she said. “Let’s get this party started.”
We lined up in order of how we would leave the ship. An Athim guard first, followed by the four girls. After them was Natira, then me, Modric, and King Ryu. Some of our crew would follow after King Ryu, and some would stay on the ship to stand guard.
I watched as the girls headed down the stairs.
“You’ll miss them, won’t you?” Modric asked me. I nodded. While I would miss all of the girls, I was specifically sad about Natira. Of course, he still had no idea.
“Modric,” King Ryu suddenly spoke. His voice sounded different, and it took me a moment to realize why. He was going to tell Modric about him and Natira’s relationship. He was scared. Modric turned to look at King Ryu.
“Are you OK?” he asked him. Oh shit, this was going to happen right now. I couldn’t help but think for all their secrecy, they really should have just said it before. Were they hoping that the public eye would moderate his reaction?
“Can we talk?” King Ryu asked nervously. Modric looked at him, down to the crowd, and back again.
“Right now?” He shook his head. “No. We need to go do this right now. Let’s talk after this.”
Modric grabbed my hand. When we appeared at the doorway, the crowd erupted in loud applause. People were holding signs of thanks above their heads. Athim and Hallon flags popped out in the sea of people.
“Thank you, Modric and Freya!” One sign read in wobbly English. Another declared their love for the Athim forces.
This was all so surreal. I couldn’t believe all the love and support that was being projected at us. Arriving back to Hallon was far different from how we had left it. The sun was scorching hot as it shone down on my face. It reminded of Earth on a hot August day. As we proceeded down the stairs, the cheers grew louder.
“Thank you! Thank you!” they chanted. Modric turned to me and smiled. As we reached the bottom of the staircase, we parted ways. Modric walked to the podium with King Ryu. I took a seat with Natira and the others.
“Did King Ryu tell him?” Natira whispered as I sat down next to her.
“No,” I told her. “He tried, but Modric wouldn’t let him speak. He said they could talk after this.”
I watched as the color drained from Natira’s face.
“Shit,” she said. “King Ryu was supposed to tell him before the speech. He’s going to tell his people about it right now.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t have chosen to wait on this…” I folded my arms. “This is entirely your fault, you realize.”
“My people,” King Ryu began to speak, hushing the crowd, with Natira translating what he said, since he addressed the crowd with their native language. “It has been a long few days for our planet. We have lost our beautiful and mighty Queen Arima. We were stabbed in the back by some of our own, including my own brother, Prince Kyan. But today, we stand strong. Today we overcome the challenges and work on rebuilding our planet. Today, and every day going forward, we’re united with the Athim people!”
The crowd clapped in agreement as King Ryu continued his speech, Natira following word for word.
“During my darkest hour, Prince Modric of Athim and his wife, Princess Freya, graciously opened their ship to myself and some other Hallon soldiers. For days, they made sure we were well taken care of. They fed us. They gave us warm beds to sleep in. They have shown us their true colors. They are no longer our enemies. They are our friends. They are our family.”
I caught him looking at Natira when he mentioned the word “family”. King Ryu motioned for Modric to come to the stage. I admired how Modric always looked so calm and stoic, even in front of hundreds of people. He played the part of a prince very well.
“Thank you, thank you,” Modric spoke, again with Natira translating. “Although it wasn’t under ideal conditions, I’m honored that I was able to help King Ryu and the Hallon people in this situation. As King Ryu said, going forward, we will be allies. There will be no more war between the Hallons and the Athims. After I leave Hallon, I will be returning to my home planet to personally inform all my people of this turn of events. I also need to introduce them to my gorgeous new bride, Freya.”
This made the crowd go wild.
“We love Princess Freya!” they shouted. I felt my cheeks blush. I had never been admired like this before. It was flattering and overwhelming at the same time. I waved to the crowd and it was at that moment that I finally felt like a real princess.
Shortly after, Modric wrapped up his speech, and King Ryu returned to the stage.
“Our Athim friends will join us for a fantastic feast tonight before they travel back home,” he announced. “I do have one surprise, though. Modric’s sister, Princess Natira, will be staying on Hallon to help us rebuild. Over the past few days, I have seen Natira’s strengths, and have determined that she will be a perfect fit for our community. Natira and I will work closely together as she takes over some of Queen Amira’s duties.”
Natira stood and waved at the crowd. I had incorrectly assumed it would take a while for the people to warm up to Natira. Instead, they showered her with the same affection as Modric and me.
“In addition,” King Ryu continued. “I will be taking Princess Natira as my wife. I want everyone to know that Queen Amira will always be in my heart, but for our planet to rebuild and move on from this tragedy, we must have a strong, healthy queen leading us. We will be married shortly in a private ceremony, but you can be sure that we will be celebrating our new queen publicly very, very soon.”
I watched Modric’s face for a reaction, but there was none. He kept a straight face throughout the rest of King Ryu’s speech. We walked off the stage and into the castle, where Modric erupted in fury.
“What in the fuck?” Modric’s voice boomed throughout the castle halls.
“Modric,” King Ryu tried to quiet him. “I tried to tell…”
Modric interrupted him.
“I opened my ship up to you, King Ryu!” His voice was still raised. “I trusted you, and you’re stealing my sister!”
Natira stepped forward.
“He’s not stealing me, Modric,” she said. “I’m willingly going with him. King Ryu doesn’t have to trade for companionship.”
She was talking specifically about mine and Modric’s relationship.
“This is fucking bullshit,” Modric said. “Why, Natira? Why do you want to stay here? We were enemies just days ago! Don’t you remember? He led an attack that almost killed us all!”
“Modric,” I said, trying to calm him down. “We were enemies. King Ryu has shown that he’s good person with a big heart. He will not hurt Natira.”
Modric ignored me and continued to speak to Natira.
“This is crazy. You’re acting crazy, Natira. We need you on the ship. You’re a crucial part of the ship.”
Natira stroked her brother’s shoulder.
“You don’t need me on the ship anymore, Mod,” she said softly. “You have Freya now. Plus, the other girls are going to be on Hallon. You don’t need me to train anyone. It’s time for me to do my own thing. I want to be here. I want to stay with King Ryu. I want to help him and the others rebuild.”
Modric was quiet for a while, but finally spoke.
“I still don’t understand where you’re coming from,” he said. His voice had returned to a normal tone. “I didn’t see this coming. Were you two sneaking around the ship behind my back? I barely saw you two together while we were on the ship. Are you two secretly in love or something?”
King Ryu and Natira chuckled.
“We’re not in love, Modric,�
� King Ryu said. “Not yet. I’ll admit, I do see a lot of potential in your sister, and am very attracted to her. Natira offered to help me and I gladly took her up on the offer. I would like her to stay and see if this situation works out for both of us. Do I have your blessing?”
King Ryu extended his hand to Modric. Modric looked at me, Natira, and then back to King Ryu. After some hesitation, Modric shook King Ryu’s hand.
“Yes, you have my blessing, King Ryu,” he said. “But she’s my only sister. She’s my only sibling. I still have people on this planet. If you hurt her, I will find out and I will return.”
King Ryu gulped. I assumed he was thinking of the time that he saw Modric transform into a humongous, deadly dragon. I would have been petrified by the threat as well.
“Understood,” he said, wrapping his arm around Natira’s small waist. “I will treat your sister with the utmost respect, Modric.”
Modric turned to me next.
“What about you?” he questioned. “Why aren’t you upset about this?”
“I was,” I said. The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could catch them. I had just admitted to knowing about this tryst. I was in big trouble.
“You knew about this?” A flash of anger appeared across Modric’s face.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized.
“I told her not to tell you,” Natira piped in. “It’s not her fault. It’s mine.”
“You can’t ask my wife to keep your secrets!” He threw his hands in the air. “Fuck, I need something to drink. Can we sit down please?”
King Ryu nodded and led us into the royal hall.
“We will talk about this later,” Modric said to me as he pulled out my chair.
Dinner was a bit awkward, to say the least. The sexual chemistry between King Ryu and Natira was now very apparent, making Modric visibly uneasy. Since Natira and Modric’s secret was out, they no longer tried to hide anything. They were practically attached at the hip. I had never seen Natira glow like she was. Her skin almost sparkled.
“I don’t like this,” Modric whispered to me during the meal, motioning to Natira and Ryu. “And I really don’t like that you kept a secret from me.”
Sold To The Athim Prince Page 13