When Juliana first managed to pry her eyes open, all she wanted was to shut them again. Her legs were neatly folded with her knees touching her chest, and her back had been freshly bandaged. Every part of her, from her eyelids to her toes, felt impossibly heavy. Something felt wrong about it all, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it and she wasn't sure if she even wanted to. She was so tired... it would be so easy to just go back to sleep. Just before she could drift back into a dreamless slumber, alarm bells sounded in her head and she jolted upright into a sitting position, realizing what was wrong. She distinctly remembered being in the front of a carcopter, and now she was in the back of one. 

As her Order training kicked in, she immediately assumed the worst case scenario. She was in the back of a carcopter with absolutely no recollection of how she had gotten there. Had someone used the Power to tamper with her memories? Had she been Jacked? 

I'm alone. She silently took note of the carcopter's empty front seats. I'm not supposed to be alone. The events of the past day flooded into her head, filling her with momentary relief. She hadn't been Jacked- just drugged. Yet, a knot of worry began to form in her stomach. Where was Chase? Where was she? 

At this altitude with the sky as dark as it was, looking out the window at a landscape evenly divided into swaths of green and brown could do little to answer her questions. She leaned forward to look at the carcopter's console, noticing that it was on autopilot. Tapping on the world map that showed the carcopter's trajectory, she came to the realization that she had been out for much longer than she thought. 

She wasn't in Arcana anymore. She wasn't even in Europe. For some inconceivable reason, Lord Hewkin had sent her to America. She was currently flying over the east coast, and according to the carcopter, she was only half an hour away from her destination: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

"What's in Pittsburgh?" she muttered to herself, thinking. The answer struck her almost as soon as she asked the question. Thornton Tech headquarters! But why was Lord Hewkin sending her there instead of to one of the Order's many international outposts? As she scooted back in her seat, she felt her boot bump against something. Reaching down, she found her purse nestled between her feet. 

Placing it in her lap, she opened it, fishing past an array of breath mints, hairties, and makeup products until her hands closed around her phone. But it wasn't her phone. The generic rose gold iPhone had no case, and she found that she could unlock it without a password. Lord Hewkin must've given her a new phone for security reasons. 

The phone still had a basic patterned background, and its home screen was only populated by the default apps. Wondering if there was anything on it that could answer her questions, she opened first the Notes app then Calendar, Mail, and Voice Memos, finding all of them completely empty. Checking the camera roll, she was surprised to see a video. Propping the phone up on her purse, Juliana pressed play. 

"Juliana, I'm so sorry," Lord Hewkin shook his head gravely. He sat at his desk in what Juliana recognized as his office at Order headquarters, but there was muffled shouting outside the door and the room was in an uncharacteristic state of disarray. As he spoke, his eyes occasionally darted toward the door behind him as if to make nobody was watching him. 

"As you know, Arcanese law states that the Prime Minister can circumvent the monarch's wishes if those wishes pose a direct threat to the monarch's life. Yet, even though I was not technically wrong to have you sent to America, I wanted to let you know that my actions weigh heavily on me. I suspect you are angry at me. You have the right to be. But I prefer your wrath to your death, and I am sure my son would agree." 

At the mention of Chase, Lord Hewkin's eyes turned once again to the door and his brow furrowed with worry. "He just drove off to Hewkin Manor. Said very little to me other than that he needed some time alone. Whatever it is, I am certain it will pass." 

Juliana understood his confidence. A few days ago, she would've been certain, too. But she'd hidden a part of herself from Chase and it had come back to bite her in a way that neither of them could ever have predicted. 

She wasn't so certain anymore. 

"Lord Hewkin! You're needed in the boardroom." A quick knock followed by a muffled voice came through the Prime Minister's door. 

"Right, then, let's get down to business. I don't have much time," Lord Hewkin brought his hands together. "You've probably noticed that you're headed to Pittsburgh. Mr. Max Thornton has graciously agreed to shelter you at Thornton Tech headquarters. It's the most secure non-government facility in the US- you'll be as safe as can be. You'll find that the phone I gave you doesn't have a data plan- unfortunately, I can't allow you to have any kind of contact with Arcana. A few senior Order members and I are drafting a deal with Nelson- we give him provisional control in exchange for being able to keep your location a secret. I have a feeling he'll agree... but that won't stop him from trying to find you himself. That's why you have to lay low." 

Lord Hewkin leaned forward, his eyes widening beseechingly. "Everything is set up. Now, I know you're furious and hurt but please, please, for the love of God, Juliana, don't do anything stu-" 

Before he could finish his sentence, Juliana slammed the phone down on her knee, tears of both sadness and rage welling up in her eyes. She'd just traded her dignity for her life. No, Lord Hewkin had done that. He'd made a decision he had no right to make without her! The Order of Chance- the most powerful organization in the world- had folded like jelly in the face of an aspiring autocrat and his two human flamethrowers. 

Yet, as much as she wanted to hate Chase and his father, she knew deep down that they were looking out for her. They'd made a decision for her that she couldn't have made on her own, and maybe, just maybe, it was the right one. Letting out a long sigh, she reached into her purse to put the phone away. As she was doing so, her fingers brushed against the decorated edges of a small photo frame. Despite her best judgement telling her to leave it where it was, she pulled it out of the purse and set it on her lap. 

It was a simple wooden frame engraved with a design of vines and flowers. Inside it was the most unflattering photo of her that had ever been taken. Her cotton-candy filled mouth was wide open, and her long dark hair was messily tossed to the side. The angle made it clear that she didn't know she was being photographed, but it also exposed the twinkle in her eyes that made it obvious how much fun she was secretly having. 

Juliana didn't have to flip the photo to see what was written on the back of it. She'd looked down at those words thousands of times- before important speeches, crucial Order missions, and before she climbed into bed. She'd memorized every messy pencil scratch that formed the message that had changed the way she saw herself forever. Her breath catching in anticipation, she turned the photo frame over to reveal a transparent glass back through which the writing was clearly visible. 

My favorite superhero, with AND without the suit. 
<3 Chase

Up to that point, she'd managed to stay relatively composed, but seeing the picture broke her. She clutched it to her chest and sobbed, wondering if she'd ever again feel what she felt that fateful day four years ago. The day she realized she was in love with Chase Hewkin. She cried for her lost kingdom, for Max Thornton's greed, and for Alan Nelson's deceit. She cried for Hayley's innocence, for Astrid's diplomacy, for Lord Hewkin's practicality and courage. She cried until there was nothing left to cry for- until the carcopter's wheels hit the road leading up to Thornton Tech and she was left curled up in its back seat, numb and alone. 

Juliana barely noticed the soft knock on the window until she looked up to see Max Thornton in a nondescript black windbreaker. Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes with her fists, wondering how it had gotten so dark all of a sudden. As she unlocked the door and stepped out of the carcopter, she realized that it had driven underground into a large, low-ceilinged room. 

"Juliana! Are you okay?" Max exclaimed. "I mean... I know you're not okay, but...here, let me get the lights." He clapped his hands twice and the space was instantly illuminated. Juliana looked around to see several other carcopters parked throughout what she now realized was a garage. Yet, they were different- a little smaller than her carcopter, and less heavily armored. They were probably the civilian version... perhaps he was planning to release them to the public soon. 

The thought of business reminded Juliana of her very legitimate reason to be angry at Max Thornton. "No! I'm not okay!" she yelled, her voice resounding through the garage. Max stepped back in shock. "Because your client, Alan Nelson, used your weapons to take over my country! Don't think that sheltering me now will erase what you did!" 

"When someone gets murdered, you blame the guy who fired the gun, not the one who made it,
 Max said defensively. 

"Yes, but the guy who sold it also arguably carries some of the blame, especially if he sold it to someone who obviously had no business owning a gun. I understand this is a major point of debate in your country."

"Juliana, please," Max shook his head. "Of course, I didn't know this when I sold him the weapons, but that man has my wife. I hate him as much as you do."

"Oh, I know you hate him. But your pocketbook doesn't," Juliana scowled, crossing her arms. Her eyes were red and puffy and they throbbed with every breath she took. Max looked at her with a combination of concern and fear. 

"Come on," he chuckled. "Don't tell me you've never done anything that went against your beliefs for money." 

"I haven't," Juliana shrugged. "I'm not a hypocrite and I can't be bought. It's really that simple." 

"See, that's the difference between us," Max smiled. "We're both rich and famous, but the difference is, I focus on the rich and you focus on the famous. Maybe you haven't done anything regrettable for money, but to protect your reputation..." 

"How the hell do you know about that!?" Juliana's eyes flew open as she stormed toward Max. 

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I don't know about anything!" Max threw his arms in the air. "I was just making a general point, I swear! Listen, you're probably jet lagged, you've just been in a battle against my best weapons, and you're under an impossible amount of stress. Let me show you your room- you really should rest." 

"Don't dismiss me like that- I'm perfectly rational!" No, you're not. She didn't like it, but even her own conscience agreed with Max. She'd just been through immense physical and emotional trauma- she was strong, but she wasn't invincible. Whatever she said now wouldn't be her best words. Despite this knowledge, her overwhelming anger threatened to get the best of her and she continued to stare menacingly at Max through bloodshot eyes. 

"Juliana VanderSchee," Max said slowly and commandingly as he took note of her appearance. "You need to go to bed. Now."