"Look at it!" Kate squealed, three days later. Hannah and Nora peered between Aaron and Kate as they caught their first glimpse of Jarrow.

"Just a little bigger than Hillsdale," Aaron said, his eyes almost as wide as the girls.

Nate and I laughed as we continued on. "Are we heading to the compound or the castle? Or are we setting these four up at one of the inns?" Nate asked.

I glanced from the four back to Nate. "The castle. Chloe will kill us if we don't bring them straight to her," I grinned. "After that we will figure out lodging for your stay," I said, turning back to talk to the four.

"We get to go to the castle?" Nora asked.

"Will we see fancy dresses?" Hannah asked.

"Yes to both. We are going to the castle where Chloe works and lots of the women we will see, will be in very fancy dresses," Nate explained, causing squeals from all three girls.

As we walked into the castle Aaron grabbed the twins hand so they wouldn't run off. Kate walked beside me with her jaw dropped and eyes huge.

"Dominic," I called, seeing one of the castle guards that had become a friend.

He walked over smiling at us. "Hey, good to see you two made it home. Although from what I hear Nate may not make it long," he chuckled looking at Nate. "And who might these four be?" he asked.

"These are four of my friends from Hillsdale. We met for the first time since the Hillsdale massacre while in Backington. We're here to see Chloe. Do you know where she is?" I asked.

Dominic said a quick hello before turning back to me. "Last I saw she and the Princess were at the King's Fountain," he said, nodding towards the garden that held the fountain of the Mountain Lion and Wolf representing King Philip and my father, King Antonio.

"Thank you," I said laughing, as the girls squealed at seeing not only Chloe, but a princess as well. "Come on, we have a Chloe to see and a princess to meet!" I said, grabbing Kate's hand and leading the way through the halls.

We were a few turns from the garden when I heard footsteps coming behind us. "Samantha!" I heard my name called. Turning back, I saw Nikolai at the end of the hallway. Letting go of Kate's hand, I started walking to meet him. Caught off guard, a small gasp escaped my mouth as Nikolai swept me into his arms and heldheld me close.

"I was so worried!" Nikolai said, with a sigh of relief as he released me, but not before placing a kiss on my forehead.

"Worried? Nate and I just went to see Andrew and his family," I said, raising an eyebrow.

Nikolai shook his head. "First I hear that a mercenary attacks you, then Nate and you disappear, soon after the mercenary escapes most likely coming after you! Am I not supposed to be worried about any of that?" he asked.

"Oh," I responded. "Yeah, I can see why all of that together might be of worry. I promise I'm okay though," I said, holding up my hands to show I was fine. Only for my sleeves to fall showing the new wounds.

"Sam," Nikolai said, taking hold of my arms.

"Okay, so Nate and I faced some bandits. All's fine," I say with a grin. I hear Nate clear his throat and turn to see Aaron and the girls all standing frozen. A strange look across Aaron's face. "Oh! Nikolai, you have to meet my friends," I said, grabbing his hand and pulling him the rest of the distance to where the four siblings and Nate were standing. "Nikolai, this is Aaron. We've been best friends since we were one. Then these are his sisters Kate, Nora, and Hannah," I said pointing to the four. "And this is Nikolai," I said, smiling up at him.

Nikolai's eyes widened when he realized who they were. "It's a pleasure to meet you. It's great to see that Sam and Chloe aren't the only ones from Hillsdale. I'm sure it's been good to learn of their survival as well," he said smiling at them. "You all will be attending the ball at the end of the week, correct?" he asked, laughing at the girl's squeals and nods. "I'm glad to hear that. I hope you enjoy your time in Jarrow. I'd love to stay and get to know you, but my duties call," he said. Then turned to me. "I'm glad you're home. If I don't see you before then I'll pick you up from Isabella's chambers before the ball begins," he said, placing a kiss on my cheek and walking into one of the many halls.

Turning back to others, the grins on the girl's face still held strong, Aaron's face was blank, and Nate had an empathetic look, although I wasn't sure why. I made a mental note to figure out what was going on but for right now we had a Chloe to find. I walked forward taking the twins' hands. "Come on girls, it's time to see Chloe," I said with a grin.

As we entered the garden the girls gasped at the sight. "It's a maze!" the twins called together, looking at all the different paths.

"It is. Lucky for us I know the way," I smiled leading them through a winding path. Soon we could hear Isabella and Chloe talking at the fountain. After rounding the final corner I let go of the twins' hands. "Go get her," I said.

The girls nodded, taking off at a run with Kate not that far behind. "Chloe!" they called together.

Chloe and Isabella turned at the girl's call. I looked to see Aaron take Nora's place on my left and Nate take Hannah's place on my right.

"Oh my word," I heard Chloe gasp. Turning my attention back to the girls, I saw that the twins had made it to Chloe and both had their arms around her. Kate standing beside with a grin on her face. Chloe quickly pulled Kate into the embrace. She then looked up, her eyes growing as she saw Aaron beside me. "You're all here!" she said, standing up.

Aaron nodded walking over and gave her a quick hug. "Yeah, we are," he smiled. "Sam came into the inn where we live and work over in Backington," he explained.

Chloe smiled at Aaron for a moment before her attention came to land on me. "We'll be having a conversation about your unannounced trip later," she said.

"Uh, no. We will have that conversation now," Isabella said, speaking up for the first time. "I will get to know you four in a moment. Right now I have a Dragon to beat," Isabella said, walking towards me. She stood with arms crossed. "Do you know how worried we all were when you disappeared?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Did you even think about us? No! You just ran off with Nate. Who by the way is way too old for you and you're already taken!" she said, smacking my head.

I smirked, rubbing where she hit. "You were worried?" I asked, ducking as she tried to hit me again. "We didn't just disappear. Orion knew that we left. I'm sorry that you all were worried," I said, glancing at Chloe then back to Isabella. "A lot has happened and I needed room to breathe. Nate is also facing new situations and needed a break as well. We provided that for each other. We are back now and we are ready to move forward," I said.

Isabella held my stare for a moment before nodding. "You're forgiven, just don't do it again," she said. Then with a swish of her dress she turned back to Aaron and the girls. "You all must be friends from Hillsdale! I'm Isabella," she said with a smile.

"You're the princess!" Kate said in awe.

Isabella laughed. "Yes, I guess some do call me that. However, my friends call me Isabella and if you are friends of these two ladies you are friends of mine," she said.

Isabella quickly connected to the three girls, engaging them in conversation; while Chloe turned to talk with Aaron and I. Nate stood as a silent observer.

After a little while we heard Nate clear his throat. "I hate to be the one to disturb the good times, but we should really be heading to the compound to prove that I kept Sam alive and we also need to find an inn for these four," he said.

"Nonsense!" Isabella said, waving a hand. "Well, I mean you probably should go check in before your brothers have all the Dragons searching for you, but no need to find an inn," she said, pulling Nora onto her lap. "We have plenty of guest accommodations right here. That way the girls can experience castle life and it will be much easier to get ready for the ball together!" she said.

"Are you sure? We really don't want to be a bother," Aaron said, looking unsure.

Isabella nodded. "I am. If you want to go to the compound with Sam to see where she's been training you can, but I think these girls have had enough travel. Chloe and I will stay with them until your return," she said then turned to Nate. "Just bring him to the south guest quarters when you return," she instructed.