Arise (Cruel and Beautiful World Book 3)

by L. Stoddard Hancock

  It was only a matter of time before the Guardians came knocking on his door.

  The rain was coming down pretty heavily and Bronson leaned against the wall to avoid it as best he could. Lightning shot across the sky. He closed his eyes and counted to five before the thunder followed. He thought of Deryn and her nights in the bathtub. It was sort of surprising how much he missed her. And Ruby.

  Bronson hadn’t had many people in his life he could trust, including his own family. Which was why the few friendships he had were so important. Sure, many people liked him because he’d been born with quite a nice face, but it was still hard to find genuine friends. Quigley was genuine. Deryn was genuine. Dammit, even Ruby was genuine. And Luka ...

  Bronson’s ears went on full alert. He could have sworn he heard a whimper that sounded just like -

  A pair of legs stretched out from the other side of the dumpster. Bronson would know those ridiculously shiny shoes anywhere.

  “Luka!” he called, walking into the rain and around the dumpster.

  Sure enough, Luka was sitting against the wall with his hood up. He was soaking wet and shivering, his arms wrapped tightly around himself as he struggled to keep warm.

  “Luka, what’s wrong?” asked Bronson, falling to his knees in front of him.

  “I don’t know why I’m here,” said Luka through blue, quivering lips.

  Bronson placed his hands on Luka’s arms, following them down until their fingertips grazed each other. “What happened?”

  Luka swallowed. “I just killed someone. Someone who didn’t do anything worth dying over.” He closed his eyes. “How many lives do I have to take before I’m past the point of no return?”

  Bronson sighed deeply. He lifted one hand and wiped Luka’s tears with his thumb. “I don’t know. But you’re not there yet. I promise -”

  Luka swatted his hand away. His eyes snapped open. “I just told you I killed someone. You should be repulsed by me. Why are you comforting me?”

  “Because you’re not bad.” Bronson touched his cheek again. “Despite what you might think, you’re a good person.”

  “No, I’m not!” Luka shouted, rising to his feet. “I’m bad! I’m evil! I’m a murderer! A thief! The son of a rapist! And I’m fucking selfish!”

  Bronson stood up with him and shouted, “No, you’re not!”

  “Yes, I am!” he cried. “I shouldn’t be here!”

  “Then why are you here?” asked Bronson, taking his hand.

  Luka stared down at their intertwined fingers. His eyes clenched again, causing several tears to drip down his cheeks, their heat blending with the cold rain. “Because I didn’t know where else to go.”

  Without another word, Luka leaned in and kissed Bronson. It was soft and brief. When it ended, he stayed close and breathed him in.

  “Tomorrow cameras will be placed in this alley. Within a week every corner of the city will be monitored, even the dark ones. This was my last chance to come here,” Luka whispered. “I’m sorry, but I can never see you again.”

  Luka ran.

  Before he got too far, Bronson caught his arm and pressed him against the wall.

  “Luka, please don’t go back there,” he begged, gripping the cheeks of the man he’d grown so fond of. It was his turn to start the kiss and he didn’t hold back.

  Luka relaxed as Bronson held him there, responding to his lips with a shaky but equal intensity. Bronson didn’t know what Luka remembered, but there was no denying that the electricity between them was real. Ever since the first night they met Bronson knew this was someone to be cherished.

  When the kiss ended, Bronson pulled away slowly, his breathing heavy as he stared into the dark and frightened eyes of Luka Voclain. A Guardian and his sworn enemy.

  Luka stared back at him, his chest heaving as he began to sob.

  “The person I killed was named Anan.”

  Bronson’s heart cracked. His grip on Luka’s cheeks loosened and Luka took that moment to pull away from him. The crack widened.

  When Luka took a step away, Bronson grabbed his hand. “You didn’t have a choice.”

  Luka yanked his hand free. “There’s always a choice. I chose my life over his. I told you. I’m selfish.”

  “No.”

  Luka turned and walked away.

  “Luka, please.”

  His steps quickened.

  “I love you!”

  Luka paused.

  “I love you and so does Ruby. I don’t care what lies they feed you, you know it’s true. We’ll all be together again. Please just hold on. For a little bit longer, just hold on.”

  Luka didn’t respond. He ran down the alley without looking back, his coat clinging to his body as the rain poured down harder.

  Bronson wanted to run after him, but the moment Luka turned the corner he knew he couldn’t. It was too risky. Spending even a moment in that dark alley together was risky. But, as he’d told Luka on their first official date, he was worth the risk.

  • • •

  By the time Soren arrived home, it was already well into the night. He planned to go straight to bed so he could dream about Deryn.

  His mind hadn’t stopped racing with visions of her since their encounter. He’d walked the entire way home so his thoughts wouldn’t be disrupted by Elvira. Sewick had offered him a lift on his hover-bike, which he was granted special access to ride between Outer, Middle and Inner Cities, but Soren had refused.

  “Don’t forget our deal,” Sewick had reminded him before riding off.

  What a silly request. Of courses Soren wouldn’t forget. Everything came at a price with men like Sewick Blum.

  But Deryn ...

  She had looked different somehow. Better. Happier.

  Her hair was shorter and had those unnatural red streaks, but it suited her.

  Soren had thought that seeing Deryn would help dissipate his feelings, but it hadn’t.

  She didn’t want him. She’d never wanted him. But he still found himself clinging to hope that someday she would change her mind.

  But that hatred in her eyes ...

  It was the same hatred in Talon’s eyes.

  Soren had barely shut his front door when his slave came running up to him, smiling eagerly and gazing at him with the eyes he’d always hoped Deryn would gaze at him with.

  Maybe she still could. He had to believe there was still hope.

  If not, what else was there?

  “Master, I’ve missed you,” his slave said obediently. She tried to approach him but he held out a hand to stop her.

  Granted, every now and then he partook in the services she had to offer.

  But not that night. Not with Deryn so freshly in his vision.

  He looked at his slave, only then realizing that he never really had before. He supposed he could see the appeal in her, but she still wasn’t what he wanted.

  Why would anyone choose a watered-down cocktail when they could have burning whiskey?

  Soren continued to look at her. Something was bothering him.

  It wasn’t that Talon had asked Soren to bring him his slave, the request made enough sense, but how had he known Soren had a slave in the first place? Yes, Deryn and Xander knew about her, but why would they mention it? Her presence in his home was hardly important.

  Then he remembered that his slave had once been in Xander’s apartment. She’d been sent to take care of him after his punishment on New Year’s.

  Before Soren could ask her about it, the sound of his wife’s hurried footsteps echoed down the hall. Elvira turned the corner, catching sight of him and marching forward, her hair disheveled and her cheeks pink. He had never seen her look so distressed before. Elvira never looked much of anything. It was part of why he despised her so much. She was impossible to read.

  “Where the hell have you been?” she demanded, her voice loud and desperate.

  “Out,” he answered simply.

  “I called you and called you. I know you notice
d.”

  Soren shrugged. “So?”

  Elvira stopped in front of him, her face taut. “Stop being so smug. I failed, Soren. My father might very well have me killed for this. He doesn’t need me anymore.”

  She had finally caught Soren’s attention. “What?”

  Elvira sniffled. There were no tears, but that one sniffle was the most human reaction he had ever seen from her before.

  “My mother,” she said. “He found my mother.”

  Soren knitted his brow. “You killed your mother five years ago. You told me -”

  “I lied,” she confessed. “It was a secret I couldn’t risk telling you. I cut off her hand and sent her outside. She ... she had a child, Soren. A boy. My father’s boy.”

  His breath hitched. “An heir.” And if he had an heir ... “He doesn’t need us anymore.”

  “Tell me the truth. Where the fuck have you been?” she screamed.

  Soren didn’t answer.

  “I checked your wristband. Your location vanished for several hours. I know you went outside.”

  He closed his mouth tighter.

  “Soren, if you know where they are -”

  Their front door opened.

  They both stood frozen as President Saevus walked in. Soren’s slave, who was still standing beside the door, backed up several steps.

  Elvira was shaking beside Soren. “Father, I -”

  Saevus raised a hand to silence her. “I am very disappointed in you, Elvira.”

  She swallowed.

  “I’d take your hand as punishment, like you took your mother’s, but it seems Xander beat me to it.”

  Elvira curved the metal fingers of her right hand. The same hand she had taken from her mother all those years ago.

  “I do hope you left your little brother in one piece.”

  “Of course,” she said, her voice showing no indication of that fear in her eyes.

  Saevus smiled. “Forgive me, Soren, but I’m afraid you missed quite the evening. Has Elvira caught you up to speed?”

  “She has,” said Soren, looking at his wife since he was too terrified to look at his father-in-law.

  “And did you know my daughter disobeyed a direct order I gave her to kill her mother?”

  “No, he did not,” Elvira answered for him. “I told him I killed her.”

  “Then there will only be punishment for one this evening.” Saevus took Elvira’s Element out of its holster. “Remove your coat and shirt.”

  The president walked into their living room.

  Elvira did as she was told, handing her things to their wave Fontaine, who had appeared from the shadows. She avoided looking at Soren and followed her father.

  “Darling, where is your wave? I believe I will need a glass of brandy for this,” said Saevus.

  Elvira looked at Fontaine and nodded. The wave disappeared.

  “On your knees.”

  She listened, kneeling in the center of the room while her father took his stance behind her.

  “I haven’t decided how many you’ll receive,” he said switching the setting on her Element.

  Soren watched closely as the gun responded to Saevus’s commands. He felt violated on his wife’s behalf. There were rules. Her father shouldn’t have been able to use it.

  “As many as I see fit,” continued Saevus. “If you end up dead at the end of it, that isn’t my problem.”

  Elvira lowered her head. “Yes, Father.”

  A streak of light shot out and slashed across her back. Her teeth clenched but she didn’t scream. The second slash was immediate.

  Before he could administer a third, Fontaine arrived with his glass of brandy.

  “Ah, thank you, my good man. Stay close. I will need more.”

  Fontaine nodded and stepped back against the wall.

  President Saevus took a small sip. Then he poured some over Elvira’s fresh wounds.

  She flinched but still did not scream.

  Another slash.

  And another.

  “I’m very disappointed in you, Elvira. You were the one person in this world I trusted, and you betrayed me.”

  She gulped. “Please forgive me, Fath -”

  Another slash, followed by a splash of brandy.

  “Will you be staying for the entire show?” Saevus asked Soren, eyeing his son-in-law while taking a sip from his nearly empty glass. Fontaine hurried forward, a bottle already in hand, and gave him a refill.

  Soren wasn’t aware he had a choice. He probably didn’t but, at that moment, all he could think about was how he didn’t want to watch Elvira crumble.

  “Forgive me, sir, but I actually have business to attend to. If you’ll excuse me.”

  Soren refused to look at Elvira as he walked toward his study, his slave following closely at his heels.

  As soon as they were both inside, he shut the door and pressed his back against it. He stared at his slave and asked, “When you stayed with Xander Ruby did you encounter Deryn Leon?”

  She blinked. “No, Master. If I had I would have told you.”

  “I believe that.”

  Soren eyed the collar around her neck. He’d never really studied one, though he knew it worked similarly to a wristband. Which meant it had slots for chips. He stepped forward.

  “What is it I did that caused you to break so easily?”

  The slave’s eyes widened in surprise. “You didn’t break me, Master. You fixed me.”

  “Ah. So you were already broken. That explains it.”

  She stood very still while he studied her collar, moving her hair as he searched it carefully.

  “You were normal once, I assume. Just an Outsider girl who would look at the slave in front of me now and scoff.”

  Her throat bobbed, the collar pressing tighter against her skin.

  “Who was it that broke you? Was it your owner before me? You only had one, if I recall. Barath Voclain. He is especially cruel to his slaves. Tell me, are you part of his odd fetish collection?”

  The slave’s nostrils flared. Soren smirked.

  “So the thought of him angers you but, somehow, I do not.”

  “You aren’t like him, Master,” she said. “You are kind -”

  “I beat you. Many times.”

  Her throat bobbed again. As he moved to the other side of her collar, he saw it. A small chip installed in one of the slots.

  “Only because of her,” she said with disdain. “You never touched me until she poisoned you. She’s not worthy.”

  “She poisoned me long before then. I love her.”

  The slave tensed.

  “I don’t love you and I never will. It will always be her. I don’t even know your name.”

  Soren pressed the chip and out it bounced.

  The slave collapsed to her knees, grasping the sides of her head as the chip’s removal took effect. She tried not to scream but failed and ended up panting on all fours.

  When she finally calmed, Soren kneeled down beside her.

  “Now, tell me. What did you see in Xander Ruby’s apartment when you were there?”

  She looked at him, sweat dripping down her forehead. After taking a deep breath, she said, “I saw Deryn Leon. She attacked me when I tried to follow your instructions and ...” She swallowed. “... please Xander.”

  “And what else?”

  A pause. Her eyes flashed to the floor before meeting his again. “They locked me in a bedroom and I didn’t see her again.”

  “And what happened before they locked you in the bedroom?”

  The slave looked at the floor again. “Nothing.”

  If she wasn’t such a terrible liar he might have let it go. Protecting Deryn was enough of a reason to install that chip. But the slave was hiding something.

  “If you love me, as you claim you do, you wouldn’t lie to me. Am I not the most important person in your life?”

  There was a moment of hesitation before she said, “Of course you are, Master.”

&n
bsp; That moment was all he needed. There was someone she was protecting. Not Deryn. Not Xander. But who?

  Soren was an excellent liar. While his confession that he would never love her would always stand true, there was something else he could give her.

  “Please.” Soren reached out and wiped the sweat from her brow. Then he leaned in and kissed the spot affectionately. “Fiona. Elvira can’t protect me any longer. But if you tell me, maybe you can protect me. As long as I’m alive you’re mine. But if I’m dead ...”

  He trailed off, staring deep into her eyes and pressing his forehead against hers. “Please. For our future.”

  Fiona whimpered. Soren took her hand and silently thanked whoever it was that originally broke this girl. Because of them, he just might live to see another day.

  Several minutes later, Soren dragged Fiona back out to the living room. Elvira had begun to scream, her back a bleeding and tattered mess of flesh as she struggled to stay upright. She’d already received a good twenty lashes and her father didn’t appear to be stopping anytime soon. In fact, he looked quite intoxicated and possibly oblivious to the damage he was causing.

  “Sir, I have two pieces of important information to share with you,” said Soren, tossing his slave on the floor in front of the president. “One piece I will share now in exchange for my and Elvira’s lives.”

  Saevus raised his eyebrows. “I have no true intention of killing Elvira. But, I must admit, now that I have my heir I wouldn’t mind seeing your head detached from your body.”

  “I have always had Utopia’s best interest at heart, my president. I, admittedly, have a weak spot for the Leon girl but you have one, as well.” He motioned toward Elvira, whose pale and sweaty face was staring up at him. “I still want Deryn alive.”

  “So you’re negotiating for three lives. Oh, this must be good.” Saevus took a sip from his glass before smiling down at Fiona.

  “Do we have a deal?” asked Soren.

  Saevus laughed and shrugged. “If the information is worth three lives, then so it shall be.”

  “The first piece of information my slave will share with you. The second piece I will hold on to until we have more time to negotiate.”

  “May I have a hint?” asked Saevus, pouring a splash more of his drink on Elvira’s wounds. She screamed and her elbows caved. But, within seconds, she was right back up.