Three days had passed since Frek woke up and was crowned. Things had been crazy, emotional and sometimes distressing, but through it all, Frek had been a pillar of strength and shown everyone exactly what kind of king he was going to be—strong, patient and fair.
There had been no royal announcement yet about the king being dead and Frek taking over. There was something Frek wanted to do first—which was why we were in a vehicle on our way towards the outskirts of the city with a full complement of palace guards.
Alek sat between us in the rear seat of the small vehicle, one of the guards controlling it from up front. My nephew had arrived the day before to spend the last few remaining days he was here with Frek and learn about the planet he might one day choose to make his home.
Frek refused to tell either of us where we were going, not even a hint. He just winked and said it was a surprise. While Alek and Frek chatted about the new aunty he’d met and the really awesome toys she’d given him to welcome him to the family, I looked out the window at the passing city.
It was so different from Borakoy, but in some ways, the same as well. The city still had wealthy areas and industrial areas, retail sectors and of course areas where those less fortunate made their homes, just like my home city had. But here, the buildings were mostly made out of a white stone, and none were less than three or four stories high.
For a civilisation as old as the Allorians were, their city was surprisingly modern. I didn’t see any buildings that looked historic. Everything was shiny and new, the architecture sleek and minimalist. Even the gardens of the houses we passed were designed with simple clean lines and almost rigid shapes.
It said a lot about the Allorian people. Their city was orderly and neat, the streets all running in a square grid pattern, each house sitting on its little square block of land. It was a little disturbing.
“Frek,” I said when I couldn’t stand the strangeness of it any longer. “Your city is... a little odd.”
He chuckled and reached over Alek to caress my shoulder. “It’s not odd, baby. It’s downright strange. You can thank my great-great grandfather for it. He hated old buildings and things that weren’t neat and tidy. He was a little obsessive about structure and orderliness. He ordered the city planners to rebuild the city. It took them almost fifty years to do it, and this is the result. The only area that wasn’t remade into this emotionless, boring monstrosity was where the upper class have their homes. They threatened to dethrone him if he made them tear down their homes.”
I stared back at him, shocked to my core that a monarch would do such a thing. He’d taken all the character and life out of the city and left it a boring sterile husk. I looked out the window and decided if there was one thing I was going to do while I was Frek’s queen, it was to bring life back to the capital city of Alloria.
The remainder of the trip was mostly silent, with Alek only asking the occasional question. We must have travelled for almost two hours by the time the guard pulled the vehicle onto a driveway that cut between a row of thick trees. The house on the other side was a complete surprise.
It was nothing like the houses we had passed on our way here. This house had character, with its little covered entry way and arched windows, and its garden was a riot of colourful blooms down either side of the drive. We pulled up just in front of the house, and a guard was there to help me out of the vehicle.
Who lived here? Compared to the buildings we’d been passing, this house was tiny. It was only two stories and was small enough to fit in one of the suites in the palace.
Frek came around and ushered Alek and me up to the front door before knocking. He smoothed his long hair, which he’d not only had stripped back to his natural colour, but had left loose, something he never did. Was he nervous? I glanced at his face to find him worrying at his lower lip with his bright white teeth.
Unsure exactly what was happening and why we were here, I reached over and took his hand, slipping my fingers around the warm strength of his palm. Frek’s fingers flexed around my hand, then he squeezed so tight it almost hurt.
Before I had a chance to say anything, the beautiful pale amber timber door opened and I stared at the female in the doorway.
“Aayani,” Frek said, and I was stunned by the emotion in his voice.
Mother. This female was Frek’s mother.
“Frek?” she whispered in return as tears welled and ran down her smooth cheeks.
Frek looked so much like her it was uncanny. He was just more masculine and marked by a hard life as a pirate, and she was stunningly beautiful. She was taller than I would have expected, taller than Alita, and she had the same beautiful rainbow hair as Frek, which she wore long and flowing down her back. Her eyes were striking, the same rainbow as her hair but brighter.
Watching Frek step forward and enfold his mother in his arms was one of the most beautiful things I’d ever seen. It was obvious they loved each other, and from his mother’s sobs it was obvious she had missed him too.
“Aayani, I brought some people for you to meet,” Frek said with his cheek pressed to his mother’s hair.
Frek’s mother said something in Hrenkie, a language I didn’t understand, and Frek chuckled.
“No, Aayani, I’m not going to run away again. Father is dead and I’m now the king. I want you to move back to the palace where you belong.”
“Laco is dead?”
“Yes, I’m sorry, Aayani, I wasn’t in time to save him.”
“It was not your responsibility to save your King, Frek. That is what he had guards for. Where were his guards? Why did they not save him?”
Frek made a sound in the back of his throat and replied, “It was one of his guards that killed him.”
It was then Frek’s mother seemed to realise they weren’t alone in the entry way. She drew back from Frek and looked at Alek and me. Her eyes widened so much when she looked at Alek, I was surprised they didn’t pop out of her head. Then her gaze moved to me and something dangerous moved through her eyes, shifting the colour to a bright orange when she saw my scar.
Frek turned with her still in his arms and smiled at me, a big beautiful smile filled with love. “Aayani, I’d like you to meet my mate and soon to be queen, Princess Alexia Sarnektor of Borakoy, and my son, Alek Podnortac.”
“Frek, he looks just like you did when you were an olin. Oh, he’s so beautiful! And your mate is exquisite, so much strength in such a delicate package,” Frek’s mother breathed, and then she seemed to realise where we were. “Please come in, and we’ll have tea and you can tell me everything. I want to know everything.”
She held the door open for us and we slipped into the cool interior of her house. I might be on a strange planet with no family and no friends, but I had a feeling between Princess Reni and Frek’s mother I was going to have all the family I would need.
And I’d have Frek beside me every day. The male I’d craved for so long was finally mine. Mine to hold, mine to love and mine to keep.
Crave me forever.
He had no idea how true those words were.