Hailey Majestic lay in her bed, away from her precious father.

She hadn't found Theo Majestic. She couldn't tell him she loved him. Vera believed he had abandoned her and Hailey, but he hadn't. Freeman warriors had captured him. What had happened to Hero Shame's father had happened to Hailey's. He hadn't been home in years, like his wife.

A long time ago, Lilly Majestic had left Hailey, taking her only son with her. Nick was eighteen. When he turned that age, he had become a legal adult. He had been born years before Hailey had. Unlike her, he had met all of his sisters.

Hailey had never spoken with her older sister, Nova. Lena preferred calling her Reese, but Hailey would never forget the name her parents had given that precious High. Hailey had another sister she loved. Eleven years ago, Anne had been born on December first. Summer Locket had kidnapped her. But someday Hailey would be in a room with Anne again, and Hailey would hear her younger sister say Hailey.

Did Anne call Summer Mother?

Zoey considered her kidnapper to be her mother. Misty had raised Zoey, but Misty was also her abuser. As far as Hailey knew, Summer had never hurt Anne. Summer had kidnapped her, though. And maybe she called Summer Mother. A person could love their abductor. Zoey had proved that. Her real mother was Holly Endman, who used to hold Hailey while visiting the Soynite royal palace.

When Holly's mother-in-law, Virginia, still had brown hair, she had given birth to Archer. That had happened an extremely long time ago. Like his parents, Archer was immortal. Maybe Zoey would reunite with him, Holly, and her grandmother Virginia.

Hailey's paternal grandmother was Queen Nella Marine. After marrying King Holy, she hadn't changed her last name to Majestic, because no Soynite queen had been allowed to take her ruling husband's last name. Anyone who married a ruling king or a ruling queen wasn't supposed to adopt the ruler's surname. Hailey's father used to be a king, but he had gotten rid of Soy's hereditary monarchy. Now six children led that planet's people. Hailey had found one of them. She would help Lena become a better person.

Hailey left the bed. Dressed in a sleeping gown, her bare feet touched the floor. She walked away from the bed, found the light switch, then flipped it. Light came.

A Soynite pendant rested on the nightstand next to the bed. When Hailey's mother was pregnant with her, she and Hailey's father had gotten the pendant for her. She had been wearing it when she met Lena. Hailey would wear it again.

She removed her sleeping gown before placing it on the bed. Wearing a bra and panties, she stood. One day she, her parents, and her siblings would stand in the same home, the space station she had lived in for years.

Hailey walked toward the wooden dresser in the room. She retrieved a shirt, pants, and socks from it before putting them on. Soon she wore her pendant. Misty had stolen Zoey's, and kept it hidden from her. But she would don the pendant, and Archer and Holly would see her wearing it. They would learn Zoey was their missing daughter.

Hailey headed toward the closed door. After opening it, she moved into the hall outside her room. Lena's was beside Betty's. Hailey's parents used to share their bedroom with Anne. Freemans had destroyed it. They had done the same to the rest of the Soynite royal palace, the best home Hailey had ever lived in.

Lena and Zoey entered the hall, linking arms. Lena didn't hold her white cane, but she wore her sunglasses. Behind them were eyes that had been pale gray for ten years. When Lena was six, she had gone blind and lost her Saves. If she became worthy, her vision and her powers would return. The Soy Maker could cure her condition as well. But Hailey's father hadn't told her where he had hidden it. She knew it was inside their space station, though.

Zoey wore makeup, something Hailey hoped she would be wearing when she reunited with her father. She hadn't lost the photograph of him she had brought with her. Today she would take a picture of Zoey, who looked more beautiful than she had yesterday. Lena wanted a picture of her sister, and Lena would get her wish.

Zoey went closer to Hailey, still linking arms with Lena. "Hailey is in front of you, my High."

Hailey looked at Lena. "Hello, my High. I will always serve you. And I can't wait to kneel for your co-rulers. They're my Highs, too. Lock Tannis wants to kill all of you, but I'm not him."

"No, you're not. You're better than Lock. Even your foolish father is better than him."

"You still think my father is a fool."

"Of course I do," Lena said. "But I'm glad you're a better person than he is. You even saved my life yesterday. Because of you, I was able to wake up this morning. You're a good friend."

Hailey smiled. "Thank you, Lena. Can I give you a kiss?"

"Yes."

Hailey pressed her lips against Lena's pale cheek, kissing it.

"By the way, where's your cane?" Hailey asked.

"Zoey wanted to be my guide, so I let her," Lena said. "Also, she's wearing makeup because you're going to take a picture of her today. That's what I want you to do. Remember?"

"Yes, my High."

A photograph of Boone Windsore was taped to Lena's bedroom wall. During the Invasion, he had seen Nova. Hailey hadn't looked at her that night. Nova had left Soy with their mother's younger brother, Ken Herman, and Hailey had gone to her space station with her parents, Nick, and Vera. Less than a week after that, Hailey had been unable to see any of the other Majestics.

Hailey focused on Zoey. "You look beautiful, Zoey."

"Thanks, Hailey," Zoey said.

"You're welcome. And I wish your parents could see you now. It's too bad that you don't have your pendant. Your parents have to see you wearing it, so they will know that you're their daughter. You're Alice Endman, and your parents need to know that."

Lena nodded. "Archer and Holly are your real parents. Obviously, you love that horrible stepmother of mine, but you really shouldn't. Father married a bad person. If you and Father didn't love her, I would kill her. Be grateful that I don't want you or Father to hate me. You're the only sister I have, and our father is the only parent I have. I will never want either of you to hate me."

"We will never hate you, Lena," Zoey said. She held Lena's hand. "Just like I will never hate my mother. Yes, she abused me, and I wish she hadn't. But I love her anyway. I always will. She did bad things to me, but she also protected me. She kept me alive, and she also gave me so many hugs. My mother loves me. I can't hate her. I'm sorry, my High."

Zoey stopped holding Lena's hand.

She shook her head. "You shouldn't love your kidnapper, Zoey. I really wish you didn't. You don't deserve to be slapped. You deserve to be hugged, and not by Misty either. If Holly was here, she would be able to give you what you need. I wish you had a good mother in your life. You need to reunite with Holly. I know you're not ready to, and I know you want to stay here for a while. But you're going to have to see your mother one day. You will have to see your birth father, too. Archer might still be alive."

Lena had never met Archer or Holly, but Hailey had. While Freeman warriors attacked the Soynite royal palace, Hailey hadn't seen Archer or Holly. If Freemans had killed those two, Hailey didn't know it. She hoped Archer and Holly were alive. Like she hoped she would speak with her parents again.

Today Hailey's father might have heard Freemans speaking. More than once, he had heard their leader's voice. When Lock preferred being called Reed, he had taken a trip to Free. A Freeman man there had hated Soynites. Lock had murdered him.

Lock and Reed Pisces were the same person. Most of the Soynites who had survived the Invasion might not know that. Thanks to Hailey, Lena and Betty were aware Lock had never been a Freeman. He had lost his High status, but he hadn't lost his authority over the Freemans. He had made his pale warriors destroy Soy. Because of Lock, Hailey's first home was gone, and many great Soynites were dead. If Lock were in this hall with Hailey, and if she had Freeman Killer, she would have challenged Lock to a sword fight.

Princess Nerra Majestic had used Freeman Killer to murder the first Freeman, Zero Spike. When Hailey was born, the sword had belonged to her father. He had let her have it before his disappearance. Hailey had never used Freeman Killer to take a life, but she might. Hailey had left it at the other space station. Maybe Vera was still there, waiting for the girl she had raised for years to return home.

"I hope your parents are still alive," Lena told Zoey. "If they are, they definitely miss you. You were taken from them a long time ago, but I'm pretty sure they think about you every day. It's horrible that you've been separated from them for so long. Misty kept you away from them for sixteen years. Because of her, you've only spent a month living with your parents. Misty kidnapped you, and she hurt you. Plus, she hid your pendant from you. You're going to need that. If you ever reunite with your parents, you need to be wearing your pendant, so they will know that you're Alice Endman."

Hailey touched her pendant. She had owned it for thirteen years. Zoey hadn't been wearing hers when she met Hailey for the first time, and Zoey didn't wear it now. She couldn't see it. Neither could she touch it. Years ago, Archer and Holly had chosen that pendant to be their future daughter's. Misty hadn't.

"People can lie about who they are, Zoey," Hailey said. "But if Archer and Holly see you wearing your pendant, they won't be able to deny that you're their daughter."

Hailey was the daughter of Soy's last king. Her father had been born a prince, and he had become a king when Hailey's grandfather Holy died. Now Soy didn't have a king. Highs led that planet's people. Someday one of those six rulers would be the Supreme High.

"I'm going to get my pendant back," Zoey said. "My mother has it, and she might give it to me. Or maybe I'll take it from her. Either way, I'm going to wear that pendant again, and I'm also going to reunite with Archer and Holly. They deserve to have their daughter back. Thanks to Hero, I know the truth. I'm Archer and Holly's daughter."

"You can say that you're Alice Endman," Lena said. "It's okay."

Zoey bowed her head. "I don't want to call myself Alice. I'm sorry, my High."

"That's fine. But it isn't okay that you prefer being called Zoey. Your kidnapper gave you that name. I had to change my name to Lena, but at least I got to choose it. I hope you will call yourself Alice one day."

"And I hope you will get back your vision and your Saves."

Planet Still had taken away Lena's sight and her powers. The Children of Still worshiped that planet. Any Soynite could join the cult, including a Majestic.

"I really need to," Lena said. "I've been blind and Saveless for ten years. I can't see my beautiful face. I can't fly or heal wounds. I used to be able to do all of those things. Me and Betty never should have taken that trip to Still. We should have just stayed here. We should have stayed home, but we didn't. Instead of doing that, we went to Still. And then Betty ruined my life."

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Betty entered the hall. On Still, Lena had lost her Saves, but Betty had gained hers. Betty hadn't had any Saves when she lived with Nova and Ken. He had turned twenty years ago. He would never know what it was like to fire lasers from his palms, see through walls, or kill Freemans without touching them. Ken didn't have Saves. Yet he had succeeded in helping Nova survive the Invasion. If Hailey found them, she would help them stay alive.

"Betty is coming," she said.

"Me and Zoey talked to her earlier," Lena said.

Soon Betty stood close to the three girls. "Hello, Hailey. How are you?"

"I'm fine," Hailey said.

Betty smiled. "Good. And I'm sure you would feel even better if your father was here. It's too bad that he isn't. I've seen him before, and I will hopefully see him again. Also, if he really was captured by Freemans, you should expect him to look older than he used to be."

"I know," Hailey said. "If my father is being held prisoner by the Freemans, that means he's around strife. He probably hasn't used any of his powers in years. And he needs those powers. If strife didn't exist, he would have ended this war a long time ago. Lock and his Freemans are fortunate that they have strife on their side. One day I want to see Freemans running away from my father. I want them to know how stupid it is to be Theo Majestic's enemy. His worst one is out there. Someone is going to kill Lock. I don't know when that will happen, but someone is going to kill him."

"That someone is going to be me," Lena said. "I deserve to be the leader of the Freemans. And I deserve to sit on the Red Throne. Lock earned it by killing Vice Reaper, but that doesn't mean he deserves to be the Great Leader."

Vice had ruled Free and its people before Lock had. Vice's death had given Lock royal authority over the Freemans, and he had made his warriors participate in the Invasion. Hailey, her parents, Nick, and Nova had survived that awful attack on Soy. But Hailey didn't know if Anne had lived through the Invasion. Hailey couldn't see her and confirm she was alive.

Summer had shot Hailey's father before kidnapping Anne, but the wound hadn't killed him. Summer hadn't slain him. Neither had Boris.

Had someone killed him, or had he committed suicide?

Maybe remorse for helping Lock had driven Boris to kill himself. Maybe Lock had murdered him. His granddaughter remained alive. Zoey had left her kidnapper, the woman she called Mother. Zoey's friend Hero had realized she was Alice. She had learned the truth. She had discovered who she was.

On the day Hailey's father and Nova reunited, he might tell her who she was.

"I'm going to enjoy leading the Freemans," Lena said. "But I do wish that my mother could see me sitting on the Red Throne one day. My mother was a lot better than yours, Hailey. She isn't gone because she abandoned me. She's gone because she was murdered. I miss her, and I know my father does too. He fell in love with your kidnapper, Zoey, but I'm glad he met you. Our father is a good man. He never hurt you, and he never will. He isn't like his horrible wife. I hate that she's my stepmother."

Misty had hurt Zoey many times before. More than once, Lena had hurt Hailey. But Lena acted as if apologizing to someone might make it permanently impossible for her to become the next Freeman leader.

"I hope Misty will apologize to you, Zoey," Hailey said. "She needs to do that, and she also has to make amends."

Zoey placed a hand on her cheek. How many times had Misty slapped it?

"You're right," Zoey said.

"Misty better make amends," Lena said. "She hurt you. You're my sister, and I wasn't able to protect you from my stepmother. But I can make sure she will never hurt you again. You're under High Lena's protection. I'm the best High, and I'm not going to let Misty slap you ever again. I will keep you safe. And I'll do that by using Betty. I won't have Misty killed, but I won't let her abuse you either. Your friend Hero did a good thing when he realized that you're Alice Endman. And if he hadn't gotten Misty to confess, you might still be with her. And I prefer for you to be with me than her."

Zoey rubbed her arms. "She's going to find me. She is going to use Crammer to track me down. I know she will. It's only a matter of time, Lena. But I'm not ready to see her. Or Crammer. I'm not even ready to see my birth parents."

"You will be."

Zoey would see Archer and Holly again. So would Hailey. Unlike her, Archer and Holly had brown hair and brown eyes. Misty did, too. But she had never been Zoey's mother. The woman Hailey called Mother had been pregnant four times. A baby had never lived inside Misty's body. The girl who had come out of Holly sixteen years ago wasn't Misty's daughter. Misty would never be Zoey's mother. She would always be the person who had taken Zoey from her real mother, who had never slapped her.

"I have to see Archer and Holly one day," Zoey said. "And I will. My birth parents are out there, and they miss me. They want me to be with them. I wonder if they know that Boris is dead. They probably don't even know that he betrayed our people. If Archer doesn't know that his father joined Lock, he's going to find out about it. And if I don't tell him, someone else will. I wish someone would tell me how Boris died. Did someone kill him, or did he kill himself?"

When Hailey's father fought Boris after the Invasion, he had been alive. Now he wasn't.

"I want to know how he died, too," Hailey said. "Me and your grandfather used to live together. I loved him, and he loved me. We were like family to each other. Before the Invasion happened, I didn't expect Boris would want me dead one day. He even tried to kill my father, but Boris ended their duel, so Lock could get the chance to kill my father. Boris shouldn't have betrayed our people. He shouldn't have joined Lock. If Boris had decided to stay friends with my father, he would have been a great ally."

Zoey placed a hand on Hailey's arm. "You don't have Boris as an ally, but you have his granddaughter as one. I'm here, Hailey. I'm with you. And I'm going to help you and your family. For years I couldn't do that, but now I can. Right now, I can help your family by helping you."

Hailey would help her father. If she were in trouble, and if her father found out about it, he would have tried getting her out of it. Trouble must have found him, the kind involving Freemans. Yesterday some of them had infiltrated this home, and Hailey had defended herself and Lena against them. The Freemans hadn't gone extinct a few days ago. Their race was still a threat. And if they had imprisoned Hailey's father, she would help him get back to the place where he belonged.

"I only like one member of the Majestic family," Lena said. "And that person is you, Hailey. If I could command you to stop respecting those horrible parents of yours, I would. They're the reason why your family is split up. Your mother left with Nick. And after that, it didn't take long for your father to abandon you too. Both of your parents decided to let Summer keep Anne. And before all of that, your parents gave Reese up for adoption. Why do you respect those people so much? And I don't just mean your parents. I also mean Reese. You've never even met her."

"I'm going to," Hailey said. "And my parents have made mistakes, but they're going to make amends. And my family will be together one day. I can't wait for that to happen. Nova only lived with our parents and our brother for a few days, but she's going to live with them for longer than that. She's with our uncle, Ken. But she needs to be with the rest of her family too. So does Ken."

"I agree, Hailey," Betty said. "I lived with Ken and Reese for a few months. He loves her, and he also loves the rest of his family. I want all of you to be in the same place. And when I was living with Reese, I didn't know that she was Theo's daughter. She still is, of course. She always will be. Ken knew the truth, but he didn't tell me who Reese was. He even knew that Theo had children. But I know that Ken had to keep those secrets."

"He really did," Hailey said. "And I told you that Nova is Theo's daughter, but there's a chance she still doesn't know that she is. My father has to tell her the truth. That's what he wants to happen."

"For years I wasn't aware that he was a father," Betty said. "But you came here yesterday and told me the truth."

"I had to do it. You needed to know who I am."

Betty had learned Theo and Lilly were parents. Their children had been separated from each other for too long. For years, Hailey had lived in one of her father's space stations, away from her parents and her siblings. The only Majestic she could look at was herself.

Hailey sat on the hard floor. "I need my father to be alive, and the rest of my family needs to be, too. You and Lena used to live with Nova and Ken. When all of you were inside that spaceship, you were safe. I'm glad I know that you and Lena aren't dead, but I wish I could see Nova and Ken. I wish I could see them alive. I definitely need to believe that they are."

The man who had flown Nova and Ken to Earth was Copper Storm. He had piloted the spaceship the Highs and their Watchers had lived in for a few months. Vera had taught Hailey how to fly a spaceship. She couldn't tell her father she knew how to do that now. And he didn't know she had gained the power to heal wounds.

Yesterday Lena had killed an armless Freeman before Hailey could heal him. If Lena hadn't slain him, he would have tried murdering her and Hailey. Unlike that Freeman, Hailey had a beating heart. She could still reunite with her father someday. He might be in a prison cell Freemans had built, distant from the other Majestics. Nova and Anne hadn't seen him since they were babies. Maybe Anne didn't know Theo was her father. She and Nova might not love him, but Hailey and Nick did.

Zoey looked at Hailey. "I hope they're still alive, Hailey. You deserve to have your sister and your uncle in your life."

"Nova might be the Supreme High one day," Hailey said. "She might become what our father used to—"

"Be quiet!" Lena shouted. "I'm going to become the Supreme High one day, not Reese."

Hailey stood.

"Kneel, Hailey!" Lena said, sounding as if someone had told her they hoped she would be blind and Saveless forever. "Kneel for your High. All of you, kneel."

Hailey kneeled before bowing her head. Zoey and Betty did the same.

"We're kneeling, my High," Betty said.

"Hailey," Lena said. "No one will ever kneel for you. You need to remember that. No Soynite will ever kneel for you, and no Freeman will ever kneel for you. No one ever will. Your foolish father used to be a king, but he isn't one anymore. You're not a princess. You were never a princess. You're not special, but I am. And I'm going to be leader of every Soynite one day, because my fellow Highs will elect me as their leader."

High Lena wanted to speak, so Hailey didn't speak. Neither did Zoey or Betty. Everyone in the space station preferred to speak Soynite, but they knew other languages. Before the Invasion, the average Soynite child would learn foreign languages at his or her school, like Freeman, English, and Spanish. Many Soynites had wanted to become fluent in multiple languages so he or she could communicate with people who weren't Soynites. Schools on Free taught Freeman children the Soynite language, including other ones.

Hailey had never attended school. Vera had taught her the foreign languages she knew. Hailey had abandoned Vera. She couldn't teach Hailey anything now.

"Rise," Lena commanded. "All of you, rise."

Hailey, Zoey, and Betty rose.

Lena's fists trembled. "I hate what you said, Hailey. If you weren't my friend, I would hurt you. Apologize!"

"I'm sorry, my High," Hailey said.

"You better be. Betty, there's something I want you to do for me. Later, I want you to make me a throne. I will pick the chair that I want to be my throne. I've had my royal authority insulted too many times. I need a new symbol of my power. It's time for me to have a throne."

"Okay, my High," Betty said. "You're going to get the throne that you deserve."

Lena grinned before hugging Betty. She hugged her back.

"I love you, Betty," Lena said. The hug ended. "You are such a great Watcher. Give me a kiss."

Betty pressed her lips against Lena's, then kissed her forehead. "I love you, too. You're going to have a throne soon. And one day you're going to have a crown."

How many seconds had it been since Hailey's mother had kissed her forehead for the last time?

Her mother hadn't learned she had met Lena, who didn't have a crown. Hailey used to look at the ones inside her father's bedroom at their space station, the crowns he and the other former Highs used to wear, including Lock's. The former Highs hadn't been born wearing crowns. They had earned them. When Hailey met Lena, a crown hadn't been touching her hair. That didn't mean one never would.

Lena turned her head. "Where are you, Zoey?"

Zoey stood near Hailey. "I'm right here."

"Come to me."

Betty moved away from Lena. Zoey approached her.

"I'm here," Zoey said.

Lena tapped her lips twice. "Kiss me."

With her red lipstick-covered lips, Zoey kissed Lena. Afterward, she put her hands on Zoey's shoulders. More than once, Misty had used her hands to hurt Zoey. Lena never had. She wouldn't hurt a member of her family or her friends.

"I can't wait to have a picture of you," Lena told Zoey. "It's going to go on my wall. I don't have a mother anymore, but I do have a sister. And she's a good one. I'm glad you survived the Invasion, Zoey. If you hadn't, I wouldn't be able to talk to you right now. Do you want to have breakfast with me in the cafeteria? You don't have to if you don't want to."

Zoey shook her head. "No. I'm okay."

"Okay. Betty, walk me to the cafeteria. We're going to have breakfast together."

After Lena and Betty linked arms, they left the hall. They would go into the cafeteria and have breakfast there. Hailey used to sit across from Vera in their space station's cafeteria, enjoying delicious food. Vera had never tried killing Hailey inside of it. Vera never would.

Lena wouldn't murder Hailey, either. Yet Lena had scolded Hailey today. Afterward, Lena hadn't given her a hug, as if she were as terrible as that armless Freeman had been. Hailey frowned.

Zoey stayed in the hall. "Hailey, Lena keeps upsetting you. It's not too late for you to go back to your other home."

"You know who might be waiting for me there," Hailey said. "I can't go back to her, Zoey. Not right now. And if I'm fortunate, she won't track me down. I love her, but I can't be with her."

"Just like you, I can't go back to the woman who spent years taking care of me. Your situation is the same as mine."

"It is."

"You're going to see Vera again," Zoey said. "She might even lead you to your father one day. I have two of those, and I've been away from both of them for too long. We won't be separated from our fathers forever. Yours is going to be with you again, and he will also kneel for Lena. I know that she said no one will ever kneel for you. But she's wrong."

Zoey walked to the spot in front of Hailey. Zoey kneeled before bowing her head, as if Hailey were a High. Lena didn't kneel for her. But her precious friend did. If Hailey could, she would have made Zoey into a High.

Hailey smiled. "Thank you, Zoey."