The weight of my decision started to settle into the reality of the moment. I was a prisoner. I was locked in a cage and I had no idea what the three beasts had in store for me. I tried to calm myself even as the tears started to flow. I hoped my father would be okay. His body was weak with his blood pressure out of control, but the medicine would bring it back in balance. If he could make it home, and he would be able to take care of Cassandra and Bethany. His company wouldn’t have to be sold. I took a step back and sank down against the concrete, feeling the bars on my back.
“Your name is Anabelle?” The beast’s words broke the silence.
“Yes.” I nodded in confirmation.
“My name is Gill. That was quite a sacrifice.” He stepped towards my cell. “Yet you cry because you made it?”
“I would make it a thousand times over if it would save my father’s life.” I stared at him through the haze of my tears.
“I see.” He nodded and tilted his head. “Even though you’ll never leave this place?”
“You may be underestimating my father...” I narrowed my eyes and blinked away my tears.
“He’ll never walk through our door again.” The beast shook his head. “This castle is cursed, just like all of us that reside inside of it. It can only be found if we allow it.”
“How did my father find it then? How was I able to find it?” I felt my jaw clenching with anger building up inside me.
“Your father was weak and starving. He was alone in the snow for a couple of days and we took pity on him. We didn’t want to watch him die. We hoped we could feed him and send him on his way. That act of compassion will cost one of us our life.” Gill gritted his teeth. “That is the price one of us will pay as a final act of mercy.”
“Your life?” I blinked and raised my eyebrows. “How?”
“The roses are a symbol of our life. If one of them is plucked from the vine, it separates us from the curse. We only live as long as the rose has petals.” He shook his head and let out a sigh. “It was Alexander’s rose that was plucked.”
“Oh god...” My lips trembled as his words tumbled in my head. “I’m so sorry.”
“That doesn’t fix anything.” The beast stood. “Perhaps your suffering will ease the last days of his life. You would have never found the castle if he didn’t allow you to enter, so maybe he has special plans for you.”
Chapter 4: Gill
1926
“Are you going to call or are you going to fold?” The man across the table from me had a stare that hid his emotions.
“I’m...” I looked down at my cards and then looked up at him. “I’m going to raise you.”
“You’re a fool.” He chuckled, but I could sense nervousness in his laugh.
“I don’t think so. I think I’m going to walk out of here with all of your money.” I pushed the rest of my stack towards the center of the table.
“Fuck you, Gill.” The man folded his cards in his hand and tossed them towards the pile of money.
“Deal the cards, I’m on a streak!” I laughed and pulled my money towards me.
“No, I’m done.” He shook his head back and forth. “I’m tired of losing.”
“See you tomorrow.” I winked and started to stack up my winnings.
A deck of cards could keep money in my pockets and a few drinks could keep my bed warm at night. With the former burning a hole in my pocket, it was time for the latter to flow so I didn’t have to go home alone. The game had ran late, so most of the girls that weren’t looking for someone that would pay for their company had already found other arms to hold them. I made a few passes at women, but they were so drunk they didn’t need another drink, or instantly naming their price. As much as I hated paying for sex, it didn’t look like I had much of an option.
I put back one glass of whiskey and then asked for another, which the bartender was happy to provide. With prohibition ruining what was once a glorious nation of drunks, it wasn’t easy to get a good bottle of whiskey and I was okay with the higher price. As I sat there wallowing in what was soon to be a long night alone with my dick in my hand, I saw someone enter the speakeasy out of the corner of my eye. When I turned my head, I saw vivid emerald eyes that were so mesmerizing, I felt like I had been enchanted the second they met mine. She walked towards me and it felt like a dream when she took a seat on the barstool next to me.
“Are you buying?” Her eyelashes blinked as a smile formed on her ruby colored lips.
“Absolutely.” I nodded and motioned to the bartender.
“My name is Gwen.” She took her drink with it was brought over.
“I’m Gill.” I turned towards her.
“You remind me of someone...” She looked over at me and tilted her head.
“Hopefully I remind you of someone you want to go home with.” My lips spread to a devious smile.
It was love at first drink—or lust at first sight—perhaps it was a mixture of both. Gwen had an appetite that never seemed to be satiated. Her thirst for passion was as unquenchable as her need for one more drink. My desire for her was stronger than my desire for dominating people with a good hand of cards. The money in my pocket didn’t last long, and after a few days, I was broke. Gwen didn’t seem to mind. The instant I ran out of money, she started paying for everything.
I questioned where she got the money from, but she told me not to worry about it. There was something that didn’t feel quite right. When we were together, I didn’t feel like she was there with me. She seemed lost in a memory and I was just the warm embodiment of what she really craved. I tried to forget the feelings that messed with my head, but after several months together, I just couldn’t get it out of my mind. It haunted me even more than her emerald eyes. I waited until she was asleep one night and decided it was time to go. I took all of the money in her purse and disappeared into the night. I tried to stay in the city, but it felt like her eyes were always haunting me—at every card table—at every speakeasy. I finally decided I would have to leave. Chicago would always be Gwen, so I decided to start over in New York.
“YOU’RE REALLY BLUFFING me when I’m holding a pair of aces?” The man across from me puffed on a long cigar and shook his head. “Fine, I raise you.”
“I call.” I pushed the money towards the middle of the table. “You’re the one that’s bluffing.”
“Sorry, son.” The man revealed two aces and laughed. “I don’t bluff.”
New York had been a tragedy. I couldn’t seem to win. Chicago had been my playground and I always walked away from the table as a winner, but the minute I got to New York, it seemed like my luck ran out. I barely had enough money left in my pocket for food and against my better judgment, I gambled that away as well. I walked back into the speakeasy with nothing in my pockets but lint. I couldn’t even buy a drink. I had been in New York for a couple of weeks and it had all been downhill. The second I stepped into the stench of burning cigarettes and liquor, I saw the same eyes I had seen in Chicago.
Gwen didn’t ask any questions. She walked towards me and took my hand. I felt the same enchantment I felt in Chicago. We went back to her hotel room and fucked like two passionate lovers that hadn’t seen each other in years. I was once again under her spell and no matter how much I wanted to escape, it was hard to resist her touch. I followed her around for nearly a year before I finally got the courage to try and escape again. I no longer felt like a man—I felt like I was a slave to her desires. I did the same thing to her that I had done in Chicago—I took her money in the middle of the night and I ran. I took a train to Boston and I swore that I would never fall into her embrace again.
“YOU SON OF A BITCH!” Gwen’s voice pierced the night and caused me to pause as I went balls deep in the ravishing young woman underneath me.
“Gwen?” I turned my head as she stepped into the hotel room.
“Who the fuck is this?” The young woman started to push me away. “You said you weren’t with anyone else!”
&nb
sp; “I’m not!” I stood to my feet and stared at Gwen. “In case you didn’t understand after I left you in Chicago—and again in New York—it’s over!”
“I gave you everything.” Gwen walked towards me and her body seemed to become engulfed in a green aura. “I would have loved you until the day you died.”
“It wasn’t love.” I reached for my pants and started sliding them off as the woman I was with darted out the door. “You never loved me. I don’t know who your heart belongs to, but it has never been mine.”
“You’re a fool.” Her aura got bigger and her eyes flashed with anger. “I could have given you the world.”
“I don’t want the world.” I shook my head back and forth. “I just wanted to be rid of you.”
“Then you’ll get your wish.” She laughed and held out her hand. “You’ll be rid of me—you won’t even know yourself anymore.”
AFTER DESCENDING INTO what felt like madness cut with darkness, I woke up in the middle of a snowstorm. My body was cold and sore. I had no idea where I was or why I was there. I focused on the last thing I could remember and found that the memories were twisted and distorted. It was like they had been turned into ruination in my mind. I managed to get myself to my feet, holding my hand out to try and block some of the swirling snow in front of my eyes that were almost frozen shut. I tried to put my thoughts together as I focused on a light in front of me. Every step I took hurt and the wind that swirled around me was stronger than anything I had ever felt in Chicago. Trying to walk against it was torment, but I managed to get my feet to keep pressing forward.
When I got closer, I was standing in front of a castle. I walked through the gates and pushed the front door open. I was greeted by two hulking figures that hugged the edge of the light. A long arm pointed towards a fireplace and I walked as fast as my frozen legs would take me. I quickly collapsed in front of it and held my hands out to try and thaw them.
“Welcome...” One of the figures stepped out of the light and I saw a tired, ragged looking face with a thick, curly beard. “My name is Alexander.”
“Gill...” I looked at the man who resembled nothing more than a beast. “Where am I?”
“The place she decided you should be.” The other figure stepped out of the shadows. “My name is Boone. We’re all here for the same reason—we pissed off the witch.”
“Gwen?” I blinked a couple of times. “Gwen is a witch?”
“She goes by many names.” Boone held his hand out towards the fire. “But regardless of what name she gave you, she’s nothing more than a demon in a beautiful dress.”
“Just let me warm up a little bit and I’ll be on my way.” I moved closer to the fire.
“You don’t get to leave.” Alexander pulled a chair over and took a seat. “Not unless you want to die.”
I found out that I wasn’t the first man doomed to spend eternity in the castle—nor would I be the last. Alexander and Boone were nice to me, but there was a sorrow behind their gaze. They had both been there for a long time and they told me about the roses at the gate. Mine was already in bloom. As long as the rose stayed on the vine, I could live in the castle which was nothing more than our own personal hell. There was no comfort for us, no arms to hold us, and the walls seemed to close in more and more with each passing day. Gwen had decided to punish me for what I had done and her punishment was unlike anything else I had felt from a woman scorned.
Alexander and Boone had their own tales of crossing the witch, and as we let our tales unfold, there was no doubt that the emerald eyed woman I ran from was the same one that imprisoned them. She was more than a witch—she was seemingly immortal. She had lived many lives and mine belonged to her unless I plucked my rose. As much as I hated the castle and wanted to be back with civilization, I couldn’t take my own life.
“IS IT FAIR FOR US TO treat her the way the witch has treated us?” I sat the table with Alexander, each of us eating what was left of our supper.
“My life is over because of her.” Alexander stared at the rose as another petal fell onto the table. “How can I have sympathy for her?”
“It isn’t because of her.” I picked up a piece of bread. “It was her father that tore your rose from the vine.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Alexander shook his head. “She chose to suffer for his sins. If you want to release her after I’m gone, that’s your choice, but as long as I’m dying, she will suffer.”
“I just don’t think it is fair...” My words were followed by a sigh. “It’s the witch that is to blame for all of our suffering.”
“How do we know she isn’t a witch?” Boone entered the room with a plate of food and sat down. “She could be the emerald devil in disguise for all we know.”
“She seems too innocent for that.” I stuffed a piece of bread into my mouth.
“Innocent or not, she is mine to do with as I please until I draw my last breath.” Alexander stood from his seat and walked towards the fireplace.
As bad as I felt for the young woman imprisoned in the cage upstairs, Alexander was right. She had chosen to pay for her father’s crime and we had created a system of rules to govern our life in purgatory, even if we had devolved to nothing more than beasts. Alexander was our leader because he had been there the longest. When he passed, the role would fall to Boone. We weren’t the only ones in the castle, but we had been there longer than the rest. Some had been unable to handle their damnation and they had chosen the easy way out when their rose was still a bud. Others kept to themselves. Randall, the beast responsible for our meals, was outside the castle tending to the greenhouse he had created. He was a bit of a loner, but he always made sure we had a delicious meal waiting when the day was over. I finished my food and took my plate into the kitchen. It was my turn to take care of the dishes, so I started washing them as I thought about the girl upstairs. I wished she had left her father to pay for his crimes. It would have been easier to live with the guilt if the one in the cage was the one responsible for Alexander’s demise.
Chapter 5: Anabelle
Two days of misery passed and I was wondering if my decision had been a bit hastier than I expected. The cage was cramped and while I could stretch out, I couldn’t actually stand. My muscles hurt from being forced to remain in one position for long periods of time. Even when I slept, my body was contorted in an uncomfortable spot on the concrete floor. Going to the bathroom meant dragging myself over a steel pot that was fastened to the side of the cage next to a tiny door so it could be removed without opening my cell. I was ignored most of the time, except when one of the beasts brought me my food or tended to my waste. All attempts at conversation were ignored.
It seemed that they meant to keep me locked up with nothing but the cold steel and the concrete floor to keep me company. I slept when I could, always waking up sore and confused. I missed my family. I definitely missed my father, but I even missed Cassandra and Bethany. I would have traded a lifetime of being insulted by them to end my suffering in the cage. It was practically heaven compared to the hell I was in.
“Food...” The beast that had been identified as Gill walked in and pushed a bowl of thin liquid through the bottom door of my cage.
“Thank you.” I pulled the bowl closer, just happy to have the warmth. “Is there any way I could get a book? It can be a boring book, I just need something to pass the time.”
There was no answer from Gill. He walked out the door without responding and slammed it so hard the concrete walls seemed to vibrate. I lifted the bowl and sipped the murky liquid. It seemed to be some sort of bone broth, but there was little taste. Once I got to the bottom, I found some fragments of meat that I quickly scooped up with my fingers. I didn’t care what kind of animal they were from, I just needed some form of nutrition to keep my body going. I finished the meal fairly quickly and pushed it back through the door at the bottom of my cage before leaning against the iron bars.
I felt terrible as I thought about Alexander, the beast t
hat my father had doomed to death with his errant action. Even though they didn’t necessarily feel that I was the one direction responsible, I couldn’t help the guilt. If it hadn’t been for me asking him for a rose, he would have left the castle and come home to me. I thought it was a gift that wouldn’t really require any effort and it was nothing compared to what my sisters asked for. It was my gift that created our damnation—and as much as I wanted to forget it, I couldn’t help but feel like my predicament was my own fault in a twisted way.
I FEEL ASLEEP WHEN the clouds turned to darkness and there was no more light in my room. In my dreams, I was confronted by a handsome man who stood in front of what appeared to be a legion of beasts. The faces in front were ones I recognized, but the ones that were in the shadows belonged to strangers. The handsome man was dressed in golden armor and held a sword in his hand that glowed with a faint indigo hue. He extended his hand to me and when I took it, all of the beasts snarled. They started to circle me and while I felt safe when the man in the golden armor took my hand, the beasts still incited fear.
I woke up to the harsh reality of the cell and groaned when I tried to lift myself up. It was colder at night and my clothes did little to protect me from the elements. I rubbed my eyes and shifted until I was in a seated position. A second later, there was a flash of light and I saw a small fire directly in front of me. The fire moved and then got brighter. When my eyes adjusted to the light, I saw a beast sitting in a chair near my cage lit up by a candle. He narrowed his eyes at me and leaned forward. I recognized him as the beast who was with Alexander and Gill, but I didn’t know his name. His hair was curly like Alexander’s, but darker and tangled into his beard.
Seven Beasts_Reverse Harem Romance Page 3
