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her concerns, as they will now be germane to me as well.”
“ Good point, Hamilton,” Jessup said, looking back to me expectantly, as if the issue had been decided. “How can I be of service?”
I fumed. I wanted to say that he could kick Jackson out on his perfect butt, but I simply smiled a tight smile, all the while biting my tongue to keep it still. I’d talk to him about dealing with Jackson later.
“ It is my fear that a prisoner has escaped Atlas,” I said, getting straight to the point. “I would like you to raise my parents on the com so that I might speak with them.”
Jessup glanced uncomfortably at Jackson before he spoke.
“ Princess, I’m afraid that will be impossible at this time. I’d be happy—”
“ Commander Jessup,” I snapped, interrupting his placating. “I demand that you let me speak with my parents this instant.”
“ Princess—”
“ Commander, I will not accept no as an answer. If you will not raise my parents, I will see to it that my father replaces you with someone more willing to accommodate my very infrequent requests.”
“ Princess, I’m afraid I can’t—”
“ You can and you will,” I demanded.
“ But you don’t—”
“ Commander Jessup, I don’t care—”
“ Princess!”
It was Jackson’s thundering voice that startled my response right out of me.
“ Atlas is under lockdown,” he spat.
At his words, I felt the blood drain away from my face. There was only one reason Atlas would be on lockdown, a condition I’d never known to arise.
“ The Lore,” I whispered. It was true. The unthinkable had happened.
Jackson nodded sharply. Jessup seemed a little more sympathetic.
“ I’m sorry, Princess,” he said.
“ Do you know—” I started, but had to pause and swallow so that I could speak around the lump that was obstructing my throat. “What about my parents?”
I saw Commander Jessup slide a concerned glance to Jackson before he met my eyes and answered.
“ They’re being held captive.”
An invisible fist punched me in the gut and my knees wobbled. I felt a hand on both of my arms—Jersey and Aidan, they were on either side of me.
“ And Truly? What about her? Where is my sister?”
Once again, Jackson and Jessup shared a meaningful glance.
“ She’s being held as well. Away from your parents, as leverage.”
The lump inside my throat grew, restricting airflow to my tight lungs. My eyelids burned with unshed tears, tears that I’d die before I shed in front of Jackson.
“ Who? I mean, which one has escaped?”
“ There are at least eight that we know of, but there could be more.”
“ But how?” I asked, looking down at my bracelet. It was one of only four keys that could be used to access the containment area, as well as the only means through which Lore could be captured. “The bracelets…”
“ The one meant for your betrothed. It was stolen.”
I looked up and to my right at Aidan’s shocked face. It was plain to see that he was thinking the same thing I was.
“ Then there’s a traitor.”
“ Yes, Princess. We’ve been betrayed.”
I felt faint, but I fought the haze that I felt moving over me.
“ How can we free my parents?”
“ The Lore must be captured and returned to Atlas.”
“ But how?”
Just before everything went dim, I saw Jackson frown down into my face.
“ You, Princess. You’re their only hope.”
And then I was falling forward, right into his broad chest.

CHAPTER FIVE

I was adrift in a blissful sea of tranquility, kept in the pleasant company of all the human fairy tales, people that I knew so much about.
Cinderella, Rapunzel, Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty, they, along with hundreds of others, felt like my friends in a strange way. I’d heard stories about them all my life, stories about how the Lore had come against them. Like most influential people, there were always those who sought to destroy the family line, to cripple the bright futures of those destined to make a difference.
On dry land, among