“The Rite of Freedom cannot be done outside of Starlight City because of the land. So why is it here?” I demand. “Why did the Gods write that?”

  “It cannot be done outside the Starlight City. But there’s one case where someone was put on trial here, and he asked for the Rite of Freedom to avoid death. The Gods agreed on it with a mark, just like they did with you, and when it came to it, portals opened all over the city to the amphitheatre. The very one that you’ve done the Rite in previously,” she explains. “We presume that will happen one more time for you.”

  “And who was that man who survived?” I demand. “I did the Rite to be free in Starlight, but now it’s gone. What is the point?” I ask, making my way to sit next to Annie.

  My aunt taps her fingers on her upper arm. “History can be warped and create many lies depending on who tells the tale. We have many stories of the survivor, but I am not sure what is true. Only that he lived through all five rites, and he was given a gift, along with his freedom. I do not know what this gift is. No one does.”

  “Does Severi know you’re here?” I turn my eyes to the Vian prince.

  “My brother and I haven’t spoken in a while. Though I heard you saved him. That I am thankful for.” His voice is as deep as I’d expect. From the corner of my eye, I see Annie tense. “He knows nothing of this city and its peace between Nexus and Vian. I came here to serve the alpha in their desire to make a safe haven where both races can live in peace. I found an alpha female who is to be respected, and she has done that. I am only a few months younger than my brother; it was a race for which one of us would be born first and be heir. I am glad my brother won that title, as he garnered my father’s attention. The moment I was old enough, I brought my mother here, and I have stayed since.”

  I don’t know what to say.

  Onyx clears his throat. “You want us to believe that this is some kind of city of peace between two races that have been at war for a long time? How did no one else know? When my father spoke of this city, he said it was a city of creative fools who were better left alone.”

  My aunt stands, facing Onyx, and rests her hands on her hips as she answers, alpha to alpha. “We want to show the world that it is possible for our races to live in peace, to love and have families. I don’t believe the ancient wars should affect everyone’s fate any longer, and we do not need to fight. This city is proof that it is possible.” My aunt looks around the room. “We’ve always hidden away for our safety, refusing everyone who applied to the city. We never let any people in or out for a reason, and now you know it. The truth here is special, peaceful, and I thought protecting it would keep us safe. It won’t.” She smiles softly at me. “Being what you are, you’ll fit right in, Gwen. Half Vian and half Nexus. To the outside world, we call the Vian enemies. Inside our own borders is a different story entirely. It’s where your mother met your biological father, did you know that?”

  I can barely move.

  “I was the wife to the previous alpha male.” She changes the subject so swiftly. “He died of something foolish, not worth speaking of, but he’s gone, and I petitioned for the title. I was very lucky to be given it, and with it came responsibilities, obviously, but also privileges. When your mother came to tell me she was pregnant from a sort of one-night stand she’d had with your father, who disappeared on her, I didn’t know what to say at first. Eventually I told her to stop crying in bed and go tell her mate at the academy. It was the last time I saw my sister with light in her eyes.”

  “We assumed she cheated on her mate based on the timing.” Aleksander fills the silence.

  I look down, and my aunt continues. “They didn’t always get along, and not all mate bonds are made equal. He’d gone off to be a ranger at the academy and barely spoke to her for months sometimes, and she was bored. Coming to visit me was her only way of having any kind of life. When I first saw her friendship with your biological father, I did not see a sexual relationship between them. I don’t know what happened, but your mother was changed after that point. Her emotions changed. She told me she was going to go on the run when you were a child and that there wasn’t another way to do it, and it was all planned. I asked her not to. I asked her to bring you here, to bring both of you, but she did not listen. She was obsessed with this new plan, and she wouldn’t even tell me where she planned to send the other baby.”

  My eyes snap to hers. “You know about my twin sister?”

  My aunt’s face softens as she sits gently across from me. “I know all about it, much to my own shame. I wish I fought your mother on it more, demanded that she listen, but your mother refused. She gave birth to you both somewhere that she never told me where. The next thing I know, she had only one baby and was living in a Nexus town, pretending to be normal. Yet, my sister was so broken, and it was almost like she had been drained of life. Your stepfather tried to bring her back, to help her depression, but it was pointless.” Her voice breaks. “I tried to help too. I gave them money, an extreme amount of money over the years, so they had security. I made safe houses for them. I always asked them to bring you here, but they refused. I saw you a few times over the years, but they were adamant about training you, that this is the way it had to be because of something she’d been told.”

  “That’s where all the money came from,” I whisper. I clear my throat. “I remember you fixed the cooker in France, and you made the best pancakes. I remember you were kind.”

  She smiles back fondly. “I hoped you remembered some of the better visits, as I enjoyed them too. I’m afraid pancakes are the limit of my cooking skills. I only learnt them to make them for you. There were little ways that I could help. Other than that, she would not let me. Now, I’ll answer more of your questions if you wish. Tell you the history of this very place. Somewhere you’ve been drawn to, I imagine. But please know that I swear on my own Nexus that I am no threat to you. That you are safe here for as long as I breathe. I don’t have other family. I have never had children. You are my heir. If I fall, you’ll be the alpha female of Morriganis City after me, with your mate the alpha of what is left of Starlight. That puts you in a very powerful position for the war ahead.” She rises. “One day, will you tell me of my sister’s last moments? Even apart as we were at the end, I felt her death like a knife in my chest.”

  I can only nod. What if she hates me when I tell her what happened? “I will. I have one more question.” She nods for me to continue. “Do you have an army? An army big enough to stand against them?”

  “No.” Her answer injects pure fear through my chest. My mates are silent on the other side of the room, but I know they heard. “My army is not half of what the king has, from my spies’ information.” She looks between us all. “But I believe the Gods have sent something more, if only you finally figure it out. Enjoy the evening. You’re free to go anywhere in the city. I’d like it to become your home, so explore and enjoy.”

  “Last place I called home…it didn’t end well,” I mutter, more to myself than to her.

  She looks over her shoulder at me as she moves towards the doors. “I intend for that not to be repeated. I knew when you came back to Starlight City, and I have watched you since then. I have waited for our paths to cross, and now that they have, it must be for a reason. Rest well, niece.”

  Finnegan drops onto the sofa next to me. “So basically, we’re fucked.”

  No one disagrees with him.

  Chapter

  Ten

  “The city is pretty at night,” I whisper as Alek walks into the large open room. Tonight, we had three different flavoured pizzas ordered in, and two whole cheesecakes. It’s all gone, but my stomach is full and content. It was all absolutely delicious, so at least they have good takeout in the city. I should be sleeping now, but I can’t, even though everyone else has gone to bed. I think back to my dreams, half whispers in my mind of Severi, of Rhodes. Both of them are in some kind of danger that my mind has no doubt made up, because Finnegan has contacted his sister. Severi is recovered but still locked up, and everyone is fine, right down to Nibbles.

  The city doesn’t get less beautiful the longer I stare, but truthfully, it has nothing on Starlight City. It’s pretty, but Starlight commanded the night like the city itself was a star.

  “It is.” I turn to see Aleksander standing next to me. “We are going into the city. I know you want to, and it’s why you can’t sleep.”

  He has a point. It’s hard to be somewhere new and kind of safe and not explore. “We shouldn’t.”

  “We should,” he counters, stepping closer and offering me his hand. “This is a massive city, and we will easily disappear for a night. I want you alone.” I shiver at his tone. I don’t need to be convinced when it comes to Aleksander, and I wonder if he knows the sheer need I feel when he is near. I take his hand, which is warm against mine. “But what are we going to do?”

  “Go shopping first, because we can’t go anywhere I want dressed in these enticing grey clothes they’ve given us.” He grins and I match it.

  I glance at his grey sweatpants, which match my own, and his loose black shirt. I have a grey cropped top on, but everything in my wardrobe is the same. It’s equally matching and plain. The only thing that was slightly different was a pink fairy-like dress that would be more fitting in a Barbie world than it would be for me to wear. I’m certainly not wearing or touching it. “It’s not fair as you can pull off any clothes, Alek.”

  “So can you. I think I’ll prefer you without the clothes though.” He winks, and I can’t help but blush. We go down the elevator hand in hand and in comfortable silence until we get to the bottom. The entrance hall is empty, but there are guards outside, who don’t even so much as blink as we walk out into the cold air, which smells like the flowerbeds dotted around. They really like their flowers here.

  “We haven’t had a chance to talk much, not since…” I pause mid-sentence. “I’m sorry. I know you don’t have any family left in the city, but you must have known someone.”

  “The reason we haven’t spoken about it is because I can sense how guilty you feel.” He nudges my shoulder. “And I want you to come with me to speak about processing those emotions when you’re ready, but not tonight. Tonight is just us having some time to be normal, and for the record, I see that dark day as our mistake for not protecting you as we should. That’s the king’s spilled blood. I do not blame my dagger for the deaths I take; it is on me. You are not to blame.”

  He’s right. I blink, feeling the weight almost come off my chest as his words sink into my chest. I was the weapon, not the one who chose to wield it, and if I could have stopped myself, I would have. Maybe I am only guilty of not coming to terms with my Nexus before it got to that point. I should have trusted her, trusted myself, and it’s a lesson that came with a heavy price. I know that time will help fix how I feel about it all, but Aleksander’s words will linger. I was the weapon, not the wielder.

  “Thank you for always being there for me and so…accepting.” I lean my head on his thick arm. “I always feel like I’m failing at sorting out messy bonds, and then you’re just here, not pushing or demanding. Just there for me, turning up and fighting. I think I love you for it.”

  He kisses the top of my head. “Nothing could part us, my mate, not the stars, not the Gods, not the world or any force within it. It’s never been an ‘I think’ for me.”

  It hasn’t been for me either, not for a long time. I knew when he held me on the roof that I was completely in love with him and that would never change.

  We see the city for the first time at night as we walk for what feels like an hour, both of us happy to just take it all in. People just walking about the parks, both Nexus and Vian, and children join them all. It’s so strange to see it and to think of how divided we have all been, yet it can work, like this city. This is proof. I know showing the Vian king this city wouldn’t suddenly change his mind on the war, but it has to mean something.

  We walk towards the main part of the city and find a shopping centre. I frown at Alek as I realise we don’t have any money or a way to get it. “How are we paying for stuff? I guess that’s out… We can just keep walking around.”

  “I sorted that out already.” He holds up a black bank card from his pocket with his name on it. “I asked one of the rangers for it. I wired money onto it from my accounts and got it sent to the door earlier. I know your aunt left cards for us to use, but I want to have some independence.”

  I shake my head. “So organised.”

  He flicks my nose, and I laugh. “Says the girl who carries giant bags of millions and does dodgy trades in the black market.”

  “Fair enough.” I shake my head at him. We head inside a boutique that is crammed with clothes. The men’s are on one side, the women’s on the other.

  Alek nudges me. “Go and choose something, get into it in the changing rooms, and I’ll pay for it. We can leave our things here, and I’ll get someone to gather them in the morning.”

  Wow, he’s definitely talking my language now. “Telling me to go shopping alone is dangerous, just so you know. Dangerous for that card, I mean.”

  I grin at him before he can back out, and rush to the women’s section. I look at all the dresses for a while, admiring the many different brands and styles, before my hand stops on one of them. It’s a shimmering dark purple colour, and it’s my size. Stars are woven into the material effortlessly, beautifully, and it looks tight, almost like a bodycon dress. I want to make Aleksander look at me tonight, and this is the dress for that. I want him to look at me, snap, and break the tension that hovers between us.

  I take it into the changing rooms and try it on, running my hand through my hair when I’m done before looking in the mirror. The dress wraps tightly around my breasts and just comes up to the middle of my thighs. It’s very revealing, but I actually really like it. I like the tiny stars, how you can’t really see them unless I’m moving in the light. I find a pair of high-heeled boots, black, that go up to my mid-calf and put them on before taking the labels off them both and grabbing my pile of clothes and boots.

  Alek is already at the counter, and my mouth dries when I see him. A crisp, ironed black silk shirt, with several buttons undone, clings to his tight and toned body. His hair’s still curly and wavy in that almost perfect way, and the shirt’s tucked into tight trousers that I really, really like. Especially around his ass. He turns to look at me, and his expression tells me everything. He likes what I’m wearing too. Aleksander actually stutters. “Gwenieve.”

  The cheeks of the woman behind the counter are bright red, and she looks down as I answer. “Aleksander.”

  He clears his throat and drags his eyes away. “We’ll pay for it all.” I place my clothes next to his on the counter. “Can we leave these here? Someone will claim them tomorrow.”

  “Of course.” She takes the card from him. “Any nice plans for the evening?”

  His eyes are on me still, still absorbing my outfit from head to toe, but he manages to answer her. “Tell you the truth, we are new to the city. Where would be the best club to go dancing and drink until we can’t feel our feet?”

  “Oh, down the road, there’s one called the Dazzler. It’s, well, with stars on your dress, you’ll definitely like it,” she suggests.

  Aleksander touches my arm, and I shiver. “We’ll do that, then.”

  “I can call you a taxi to take you straight there if you wish. I’ll put it on the card too?” she offers. Aleksander leaves her a very decent tip before we head outside, and the cold air is only just enough to chill the heat burning in my veins. After a few minutes, we get in the car and it takes us ten minutes down the road, to just outside a nightclub that looks busy, people moving in and out, bodyguards standing at the door, and a heavy thump of the music comes through the floorboards. Alek thanks the driver before getting out and taking my hand.

  I’m glad he doesn’t let go. “Don’t tell anyone, but I really do like coming to clubs like this, to lose myself in the music and forget the world.”

  “You like music?” I softly ask.

  “Always have,” he admits. “I often write my own. I haven’t in a long time, but I hope when it’s quiet, I can write something for you.”

  “I’d love to hear anything you write,” I gently reply. “Truthfully, I’ve never had the opportunity to come to many clubs like this. When I was on the run, this would have been risky. Too many people and cameras, and the risk of Vian or Nexus being there.”

  “It can be your first time I’m bringing you to a club and showing you how to dance with your mate. Our first date.” We walk up the steps.

  I can’t help the joke. “I thought the black market was our first date. This is our second.” He laughs. “Wait, you dance?”

  “Look at us getting to know each other,” he teases, and I shake my head at him.

  We walk into the club together; the bouncer barely even looks our way before we are inside. We go down a thin corridor and up one set of stairs to a big, thick black door with two silver stars on each of them. Alek holds the door open for me, and the heat and the noise of the music slam into me as I step in. My eyes widen.

  It’s a massive club, and it’s full of people. There are bars all over the top floors, with stools filled with Nexus and Vian overlooking the dance floor. A thousand starlights hang from the ceiling, and the floor itself is one giant silver star where people dance, the floor shimmering as it reacts to their movements.

  Alek links our fingers. “Dancing or drinks first?”

  “Drink,” I shout over the music to him. It doesn’t take long to find a few empty seats at one of the many bars, and Aleksander orders whatever’s the most popular for me, and a beer for him. It turns out the most popular is the Starfall drink, which is a deep purple swirling drink with black stars dotting up and down it. I don’t know what it is, but it’s good and strong. Alek downs his entire bottle of beer within a few minutes as I sip on my cocktail, and he orders a second one.