After two days of flying, Tristan, myself, and our team of bodyguards and attorneys finally touched down on the runway of the royal airfield two hours outside of St. Petersburg. It appeared that we were landing on a large airstrip in the middle of nowhere between several hangars surrounded by forests.

Disembarking our private plane, we were met with several large black SUVs with royal emblems that would ferry us to the royal palace. Said palace was supposed to be a mere fifteen minutes away from the airfield, but as I searched the hills behind the forests, I could make out no buildings of any kind amongst the landscape.

Our luggage and bodies were all loaded into the cars. Tristan and I took up the backseat of the first SUV in the line of vehicles and settled back in the comfortable leather seats. Tristan rested his hand on my thigh and squeezed gently, smiling down at me encouragingly.

I smiled back up at him and placed my hand over his and he flipped his hand to lace our fingers together.

Turning to look out of the windows as we drove, I could see nothing but road, hills and trees. I was curious as to when the palace would appear and kept pondering this mystery until at once a blue shimmer passed through the car and I recognized this energy as a magic barrier similar to the one the witch Amelia had placed around our home during the war.

The SUVs passed through the shield without incident, and we were suddenly on a large road driving through a bustling city. In the distance I could make out the faint outline of an enormous palace up on a hill through the trees. A gentle fog settled over the palace towers even as the sun shone behind it.

As our motorcade made its way through the city, other cars in the streets pulled over to the side of the road to allow us to pass without interference.

“The royal vehicles are given the right of way always, regardless of who they are carrying,” Tristan explained.

I had so many questions, but decided to ask the one Tristan was most likely to know the answer to.

“Does the barrier make the royal city invisible to the outside world?” I wondered.

The driver answered in a light Russian accent, “Yes, the city can only be seen by those who know where and what it is. The royal vehicles have a free pass through the barrier, but any other persons or vehicles must stop outside of the barrier to gain clearance.”

It seemed we were receiving the VIP treatment, but I wouldn’t complain. It made me feel a little better about being somewhere we were obviously welcome.

A few minutes later we were passing through an open ornate gate and winding up a long drive until we came to a stop under an elaborate portico that led to the entrance of the palace. Men in navy and gold uniforms were standing near the columns that supported the portico roof. They stepped forward to open the vehicle doors for us to exit.

Tristan walked around the rear of the vehicle to my side then reached out his hand to help me step down from the high carriage of the SUV. He squeezed my hand firmly and smiled at me one last time before he led me through the open front doors of the palace.

The warmth of his hand around mine gave me a measure of calm and I was glad for the support.

When we entered a grand foyer that seemed entirely constructed of gold and was the size of a small ballroom, a formally dressed gentleman wolf bowed his head before greeting us, “Alpha Tristan Martin, Luna Jane Martin, welcome to the Royal Palace. Their Majesties are waiting to greet you in the throne room. Please follow me.”

Tristan mind-linked me, “He’s the butler.” And then out-loud said, “Thank you, Mr. Madison. It’s nice to see you again.”

Mr. Madison turned his head to the side as we followed him out of the foyer and down a marble hallway that was just as grand and replied, “Likewise, Alpha Tristan. It is a privilege to host your stay in the capital.”

Every wall was covered in ornate designs, every ceiling molded with gold.

When we reached an ostentatious set of double doors that were bright white with deep gold carvings decorating the surface of the wood, I suddenly felt as if I were in a fairytale castle. The large handles on the enormous doors seemed to be made of solid gold and still shone brightly after probably decades, if not centuries, of daily use.

There were two guards standing outside of the doors and stepped forward to swing the throne room doors inward and then held them for us to pass through.

Mr. Madison proceeded us into the room and then paused just inside calling out in a firm, but not overly loud voice, “Alpha Tristan Martin and Luna Jane Martin of First Montana Pack.”

When he finished his announcement, he sidestepped and turned to bow to us as Tristan passed him, my hand in his, and lead me to approach the two thrones only raised from the main floor by one large 18” step onto the dais. As lycans were often taller than wolves they didn’t need to be raised much in order to see out over a crowd.

I kept my eyes lowered to the floor as we approached, and Tristan brought me to a stop several feet away from the platform. I could sense his head was also bowed and he remained silent.

A deep, warm and friendly voice greeted us, “At ease, Alpha, Luna. Welcome to my home.”

Tristan raised his head and I ventured to do the same, bringing my gaze up to scan the King and Queen seated on their thrones, careful not to make eye contact.

They were large and beautiful creatures, both well over six feet tall. Everything said about lycans must be true. They appeared youthful well into their fourth and fifth centuries and had flawless skin and shining hair in their human forms. Their royal highnesses were in their mid-forties even though they were both over four hundred years old.

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I carefully took in the fine details of their courtly clothing and fit physiques and was glad I had worn a nice dress to the first meeting.

“We are grateful for your kind invitation, Your Majesty,” Tristan replied with a smile.

King Avalore stood and took the hand of his Queen and together they stepped down from the platform to come to a stop before us.

The King reached out his hand to shake Tristan’s as the Queen stood before me.

As Tristan and King Avalore shook hands, the Queen stepped closer and placed a manicured finger under my chin and raised my face to hers. I might have been terrified except that I felt nothing but warmth and good intentions radiating from her mind.

“Jane, you are free to look me in the eye and call me Alexandra. I have been eager to see you for many months,” her rich friendly voice carried her sincerity.

I looked up to meet her eyes and smiled shyly as I admired the blazing green of her irises and her long, black lashes.

“You’ve wanted to see me, your highness?” I asked quietly.

She frowned at me, and I corrected myself, “Excuse me, I meant Alexandra.”

She smiled at me then and probed further, “Does Kasia have anything to say, my dear?”

Kasia giggled into my mind and then unlocked a memory centering around those unforgettable green eyes.

My own brown eyes widened in surprise and then a joyous smile broke out on my face.

I met Alexandra’s eyes again as full understanding dawned on me, “You are much older than your rumored four hundred years…Aunt Alex.”

Alexandra pulled me into a firm but gentle hug and sighed happily then said, “Let’s just keep that little piece of information between the four of us, shall we?”

I smiled into her shoulder and returned the hug until she released me and stepped back again.

Tristan smiled down at me and teased, “Kasia is quite good at keeping secrets, isn’t she?”

“That’s the understatement of the century,” I replied seriously.

King Avalore chuckled and then gestured towards the door, “Please allow us to show you to your rooms. I’m sure you’re both tired after your long journey and would like to get settled in.”

Tristan bowed his head to the King and the two of them lead the way out of the throne room and down the hall.

Alexandra and I followed behind chatting happily. She asked me about First Montana Pack and wanted to know about how it was growing and what we had built. She seemed genuinely interested in all the fine details and asked intelligent and probing questions.

I found myself enjoying the conversation immensely as we walked for several minutes through the enormous palace down several hallways until we reached another grand set of doors.

The King produced a key card from his pocket and handed it to Tristan stating, “Your luggage will have already been placed in your suite. Please rest as long as you like and join us tomorrow evening in our apartment for a quiet dinner.”

“I look forward to that,” Tristan replied with a bow of his head.

The Queen smiled at both of us and then looked me in the eyes again, “Rest well, my dear. We can continue our conversation tomorrow evening.”

“I can’t wait,” I replied, returning the smile.

They turned and walked away, hand in hand, down the long bright hallway chatting pleasantly with one another.

I stared after them for a few moments until I heard Tristan slide the key card in the door. It beeped and clicked open, granting us entrance to our temporary home.

We stepped inside a small entryway that opened up into a large suite containing a living room with big bright windows looking out into the forest. To the right was a small hallway leading to a fairly large guest room with a king-sized bed and an enormous bathroom the likes of which I’d never seen in my life.

The golden theme carried into the guest quarters and accented all of the trims and fixtures in the place.

To the left of the entry was a lovely medium sized kitchen open to the living space with a long island that had eight comfortably plush bar stools with high backs pushed under it. Everything was on a larger scale than normal to the point that I felt like a child next to the high kitchen countertops and twenty-foot ceilings.

“Everything is lycan sized,” I laughed.

“I kind of like this. I don’t have to bend over to use the countertops. Maybe I should get our kitchen remodeled like this in our apartment back home,” he teased.

“Don’t even joke about it. I’d need a step ladder just to make a snack,” I laughed.

Tristan helped me up onto one of the tall bar stools and I laughed some more. It was pretty comfortable, and I didn’t mind Tristan lifting me up anytime, anyplace. Maybe I would consider a remodel if he was going to help me up onto the stools every time.

He got me a bottle of water from the fridge and opened it before passing it to me.

I drank the cool refreshing water greedily. I didn’t realize how thirsty I had been, but he must have felt it.

After I finished drinking, he asked, “Do you want to talk about your link to the Queen?”

I smiled softly reveling in the new memories Kasia had opened up to me.

“There isn’t much to it, she’s Gwendolyn’s and therefore my aunt. Onan never knew her because she disappeared a year before he and Kasia met. But I’m surprised that Gabriel didn’t mention it.”

“He once told me that of his two daughters, one was my mother, and the other stayed single her entire life and pursued studies until the end. But that daughter was Alexandra. She didn’t die.”

“I know Gabriel must know she is the Queen. I’m sure he’s been here before. And how is she a lycan when Gabriel’s daughters were human? This makes no sense to me although I know I’m not mistaken.”

Tristan replied thoughtfully, “The most likely explanation is that King Avalore is also much older than his rumored 400 years.”

“When a Lycan finds his mate, no matter what species she is, his mark will force his mate to become lycan. This is for the lycan’s own survival. When a regular wolf loses a mate, it is extremely painful, but when a lycan loses a mate, it can drive him mad or even kill him.”

“So in a sense, Alexandra the human did die. She was simply reborn lycan.”

He thought for a moment and then continued, “It’s very plausible that this is a secret that Gabriel didn’t feel was his to share. It’s obvious that, for some reason, the royal family doesn’t wish for people to know how old they actually are. And it’s possible that the entire reason Gabriel became a vampire was to stay alive with his family. He is grandfather to the royal princes and princesses, after all.”

“The only people that would be aware of any of this information are those that are old enough to know, which means maybe a handful of vampires and any other lycans of similar age. That can’t be many people.”

“I guess that all makes me a cousin of those princes and princesses,” I grinned.

“I suppose it does,” Tristan chuckled.

“Just when I think I’ve discovered all of the family secrets, more reveal themselves to me,” I shook my head in amazement.

“I guess you aren’t nervous anymore?” He asked jokingly.

“How could I be? Aunt Alex! She may be beautiful and perfectly graceful, but girl knows how to play. The hijinks she would get up to with her favorite niece were legendary back in the day,” I revealed.

“I can’t wait to hear all about it some time, but for now I think we should sleep,” he stated as I let out a monstrous yawn.

He picked me up princess style and carried me down the hall to the bedroom where he stripped me of my clothes down to my panties. He left me standing there for a short moment while he pulled one of his softest t-shirts from our luggage and pulled it on over my head.

Afterwards he stripped down to his boxers and carried me to bed, climbing in next to me and pulling my back against him. I wiggled my butt across his belly, and he growled low.

“Sleep, Jane. You and the baby need rest. I’ll play with you in the morning,” he promised, and I sighed happily in response before quickly drifting off to dreamland.