The Hidden Princess: Kingdom's Fate (book three)

Chapter Four: We've Waited Long Enough

Benedict grabbed my shoulder pulling me back. I shoved him off and dropped to my knees beside Morgan. "Morgan, it's me Sam," I said, tears streaking my face.

Morgan looked at me with large eyes. Her head slowly shook. "No. It can't be," she whispered.

Nodding, I reached up and took her hands. "It is. It's me," I said.

Her body started to shake. She slowly reached out placing a hand on my cheek. "Sam," she said, falling off of her chair. The two of us held tight to one another as the tears poured. "I thought my family was alone," she whispered.

Pulling back slightly I nodded. "So did I. I thought I was the only one left. We aren't though. Aaron and his sisters are in Backington and Chloe is here in Jarrow," I said. A clearing of the throat brought us back to reality. Turning I saw not only were the Dragon's looking at us, but also those close by. Standing up, I pulled Morgan with me. Turning to Shepherd I gave him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, Shepherd, I didn't mean to interrupt your time. However, when I saw Morgan I couldn't contain myself. You see Morgan is from Hillsdale," I said.

"The Troublesome Trio lives on," Rowen said, making the connection to who Morgan was.

Laughing, I nodded. "Yeah, Morgan is the final part of that group," I said, turning back to her. Looking one more time to make sure she was really there. "Morgan, you've met Shepherd. He's actually one of my Dragon brothers. Then these are the three other apprentices, a few of our Dragon brothers, and our leader Erik," I said.

"Your her!" Morgan said, seeing my uniform for the first time. "You are the girl that became the apprentice. We heard about her in Merah. I thought of you, how that sounded like something you would do. Change the rules to become a Dragon and it was you," she said. She then gasped her hand flying to her mouth. "The female apprentice... she's the... she was crowned. Sam, you're the queen!" she said.

Looking around at the growing crowd, I started to become uncomfortable. Erik noticed and stepped forward. "If she has room why don't you spend the night with Morgan and her family. You two have a lot to catch up on," he said.

"Really?" I asked, thinking I was still going to be in trouble.

He nodded. "Yes, I won't stand in the way of this reunion. I'll let Chloe know and tell her that you will bring Morgan to see her tomorrow morning," he said. He then stepped closer. "Then you and I will have a conversation," he said so only I could hear.

I kept my eyes on his. "Yes, sir," I said.

He held my stare for a moment longer before smiling. "Now go, enjoy your time. I have other apprentices to discipline," he said, eyeing the three that were still being held by their brothers.

"I'm really sorry for ruining your dinner," I said, turning to Shepherd.

He smiled at me, shaking his head. "It wouldn't have taken long to figure out Morgan was from Hillsdale and we would have been running for the compound. This just saved us time," he said. "I look forward to getting to know you more, but for tonight I will leave the two of you," he said. With a slight bow of the head, he turned and followed the Dragon's back to the compound.

I turned to Morgan. "Shall we head back to your house?" I asked.

Morgan's eyes lit up. "My parents! They will be thrilled to see you!" she said, grabbing my hand and leading me through the streets to her home.

The following few hours were spent in the small living area with Morgan's parents, Tom and Diana. It wasn't until days after the attack when Morgan and her parents heard about it. They had quickly returned but nothing was left. Returning to Merah they lived with Diana's brother until Tom had gotten a job as a blacksmith in Jarrow just a few days ago. Then it was my turn to share about my journey from my fourteenth birthday until our reunion today. Sleep didn't come for many hours. Almost three years had gone by and there was much to catch up on.