(Part 1)

Calina
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Pitch-black. As in I couldn't tell if my eyes were opened or closed.
Why did I do this to myself? Apparently, dark confined spaces rattled my nerves. This was a new revelation about myself. Had I known, I would not have put myself in this situation.

But, I was fine. I was totally fine.

All my ideas couldn't be winners. And this was definitely an all around bad idea.
Only because this part was totally impulsive. Why did my brain think that willingly climbing into a poor unsuspecting man's trunk was a good idea? I would ponder over this idiocy for months to come.

My hands were clammy as I blindly rummaged through my backpack. My heart gave a victorious prattle in my chest when my fingers brushed against the flashlight.

The sound of a car door slamming shut caused my shoulders to tense even more.
Please don't open the trunk. This carefully laid out plan would be in ruins if the guard opened his trunk.

Well, carefully laid out until the point that I had this lightbulb moment and crawled in his trunk.

Two consecutive clicks and the faint glow from the pencil thin torch sliced through the darkness.
"Alright, Calina, you've made it this far without a hitch. No need to back out now. I can do this."
My whisper seemed too loud, only adding to my nerves as I searched the inside of the confined space for a latch that would open the trunk.

Found it.

I waited five whole minutes after the car door slammed. It was now or never. I pushed the button and the trunk opened. Biting back a grin at my luck, I quickly scanned the area to ensure no one was around as I made my daring escape. I raced away from the scene of my crime. The queen was going to be livid when she discovered that I was no longer in the castle. Instead, I was roaming free in Greecia without a single guard with me.

Sweet independence.

After jogging for about five miles, I found refuge in the public bathrooms close to a nearby park. Taking a moment to ensure the coast was clear, I tapped the lock on the door, engaging the deadbolt for extra security.

Snatching the red short haired wig off my head and stripping out of my clothes, I crammed everything in the trash.

I washed my sweaty face, then grabbed my replacement gear out of my backpack. Blonde wig. Hazel eye contacts. Makeup applied with a heavy hand to hide my freckles. Crop top, jeans with holes in the legs and my black combat boots. Looking at my transformed reflection in the mirror, I barely recognized myself. Since no one knew that the Greecian Princess had returned yet, I could roam the city undetected.

Okay, I knew how this looked.

"...like I'm self sabotaging. I'm not. I had a point to prove and my point was falling on deaf ears," I whispered to myself, reaffirming my reasoning with a nod at my reflection. Deep down, I knew how furious and worried the queen would be, thinking I had abandoned her.
Guilt washed over me intensely, threatening to consume my resolve. But I forcefully pushed it aside, locking it away in a corner of my mind. I stepped out of the bathroom, my decision made. I was determined to enjoy my adventure, no matter the consequences.

Yesterday, after I had called Raine and she didn't answer. It stirred up residual feelings of missing Freedom. I needed to talk to her in person. There for I was returning home.

In truth, I had been laying the groundwork for this plan ever since I woke up against my will in the castle. I had always intended on going back to say goodbye to my home. Visit my parents graves one more time. I just wasn't sure when I'd put my plan to action. I kept procrastinating. I had been discreetly observing the guards, studying their day-to-day routines, just in case I couldn't find a way to escape marrying Henry. I even hung out with Emilio at the guards tower and observed every hidden camera location in the palace.

I had also tried to talk Knox into removing his guards from my detail. Of course he didn't listen.

"Why do you have two of your Ghost Elite following me around?" I inquired, while drawing a lazy trail along the toned muscles of Knox's abs.

"You noticed them?"

"Well, only once. On one of my morning runs. I asked Ira to check it out, he confirmed the guy was one of yours and I have two extra shadows."

"He was wearing StealthEclipse gear. I'm not following how you saw him."

"Those cloaking devices create a faint almost unnoticeable distortion around them. The one I noticed happened to be standing near a tree I was focused on while catching my breath. Anyway, the reason I bring it up is that I don't want your men following me around. I have my own. Which is more than enough."

"The queen's guard, have a few vulnerabilities in their detailing. My elite are there to cover those gaps and keep you safe."

"I knew it. I told my grandmother that if I wanted to, I could slip past her guards. She refused to hear me out. So you tell her."
A soft chuckle escaped Knox's lips "Uh...no. I'll pass on that. Criticizing her guards might not go over well. We can collaborate on this once you're the queen. We can retrain your security then."

"Or I could prove my point by slipping past her men myself. With the engagement off, the Romarvian radicals might redirect their frustrations towards me instead of their king and prince. While the queen has faith in her military's ability to safeguard the castle, in truth, the radicals wouldn't need an army-just a handful of infiltrators."

"If the radicals decide to strike, I'll handle it. But please don't complicate matters by evading your security detail. The two men I've assigned are practically impenetrable. No one could get past them, so you don't need to worry about the Romarvians."

"Want to bet?" I grinned mischievously causing him to chuckle.

That conversation took place about a month ago, and I'm certain he never truly believed I could succeed.

I even had another conversation with the queen, attempting to persuade her to allow Knox's guards to collaborate with hers and undergo retraining. Unfortunately, she wasn't interested, too excited about the upcoming announcement party. After I left her office, she alerted the guards, and they upped their man power. Weeks of nothing on my end made them get lazy. They fell back into habitual patterns.

The queen had left for a conference. Knox went back home to address matters in Elysium. With merely three days remaining until my grandmother's planned announcement of my debut, a sense of urgency gripped me. This marked my final opportunity to indulge in recklessness, relish a taste of independence, and disappear from the world's recognition.

I strolled along a winding stone path that seemed to stretch endlessly. After a ten-minute climb up a narrow staircase, I finally reached the top. A sign greeted me: "Welcome to Dyme."
I knew that car ride in the trunk felt really long. Which was probably why my panic had set in.

The guard drove four hours away from the Athena castle. This was all playing out in my favor. Dyme was exactly where I needed to be if I wanted to get to Freedom. This city was not for the faint of heart.

I had learned a lot simply by hanging out at the Hideaway Lounge, a favorite spot for many of the guards. Once they started drinking and relaxing, they became a chatty bunch, joking around and sharing more than they probably should. I knew it was an unspoken rule that royals weren't allowed, but I had managed to convince them that I wasn't officially anyone yet. So, this was where I would hang out with Emilio and Alice, and while they were distracted with each other, I gathered intel.

From what I learned, Dyme was full of criminal activities. You could get anything you wanted for a price-stolen goods, drugs, sex, you name it. This city could provide it for you. What I wanted was to return to the Free Kingdom untraced.

The view before me was nothing short of spectacular. Clusters of whitewashed buildings hugged the hillside, offering tantalizing glimpses of the crystal-clear ocean through their carefully placed openings. Amid the sea of white, occasional blue-domed roofs dotted the landscape like scattered sapphires.

After about an hour of speaking with various people and following cryptic directions, I finally found myself at a place called Twilight Terrace. From the outside, it appeared to be an unassuming hole-in-the-wall internet cafe with dim lighting and the scent of coffee wafting through the air. I continued through the cafe and down a narrow staircase to the basement. The air grew cooler and carried an undertone of dampness. At the bottom of the stairs, a heavy metal door loomed before me, marked with a simple sign: "Authorized Personnel Only."

Summoning my courage, I banged my fist against the door. Several heartbeats later, the door creaked open, revealing a man with a scarred face and bulging muscles. He looked like he belonged on the set of a horror film more than in an underground travel operation.

"What do you want?" he grumbled in Greek. His gravelly voice echoed too loudly in the small space.

"I'm looking for a way to Freedom," I replied, trying to steady my breathing.

He eyed me suspiciously, his gaze raking over my clothes and the determination in my eyes. "It's not cheap. Five thousand credits."

I swallowed hard. The price was far steeper than I had anticipated. "That's too much. How about three thousand?" I countered.

He let out a low chuckle, shaking his head. "Three thousand? You must be joking." He stepped back and slammed the door in my face.

Fuck.

"Hey!" I yelled in English, banging on the metal door. "We're not done talking. I will not stop banging on this door until you help me!"

The door swung open again. He wore a mask of boredom, but curiosity lingered in his gaze. "You're a Rogue?" he asked in Greek

"Yes. I need to return to Freedom. Five thousand credits is too much. Please."

"Four thousand, and that's my final offer."

I hesitated, knowing I didn't have much room to negotiate but needing to push for a better deal. "Four thousand, and you throw in safe passage back here to United Greecia."

His loud laugh echoed off the cement walls. "No, Rogue. You go back to Roguelands and you stay there," he said gruffly in English.

In Dyme, secrets held more power than gold. Secrets could be weaponized. "Four thousand, a safe passage back here, and a secret that could bring you a fortune," I proposed.

He narrowed his eyes, and after a tense moment, he nodded slowly. "Fine. Four thousand and safe passage. But if this secret is shit, I'm taking your credits for wasting my time and kicking you out of my cafe."

"Okay," I said, using my old phone from Freedom to transfer him the money. "This will be easier to show you. Is there a bathroom in here?"

He stepped to the side, pointing to a door in the corner of the office.

"You cannot tell a soul of this secret for another ten hours, okay?"

"Fine. Whatever, girl. I'm growing bored." He leaned against the door frame of his office, crossing his arms and glaring at me. It was meant to intimidate me, but I wasn't afraid. While he was a large man, he wasn't bigger than Knox and I had almost beat him. I liked my odds against this scarred, tattooed stranger.

I locked myself into the bathroom, scrubbing my face clean, and removing the wig and colored contacts. I took a deep breath and walked back out, his eyes went comically round as he recognized who I was.

"My name is Calina Ariti, I am the crowned princess of United Greecia that went missing almost twenty one years ago."
He dropped to his knees, and head bowed. "You are the Cardinal Heir?" he muttered, the surprise evident in his voice.

"Now you see why I need to return," I said, standing tall despite the fear gnawing at my insides. " but first I need to handle something personal in Freedom and I need your help to do it."

"Yes, of course, Princess. I will be honored to help you. I will ensure your safe return and your secret is safe with me."

He motioned for me to follow him. We walked through a labyrinth of narrow corridors until we reached a small room containing a travel pod only large enough for one. It was sleek and metallic, with a transparent dome and numerous blinking lights.

"Get in," he instructed. Once I climbed in, he secured me into the harness seat and placed two stickers to my temples.

"This will take you to the other side of the world in five minutes. Simply visualize the city you want to land in and the neuro stickers will communicate with the pod. It will land to the nearest hyperloop station. Do you have any questions?"

"No."

"Keep your eyes closed. It will help you not get so nauseated. Good luck, Princess," the stranger said as the dome closed over me. Excitement filled my chest as the pod hummed to life, vibrations coursing through my body as it prepared for departure. I took a deep breath, my thoughts racing. Despite the intimidating encounter, I had successfully bargained for my passage. Now, all I had to do was hold on and trust the pod to take me where I needed to go.