by Brenda Trim
A necessary perk, if I was honest. Having magic put me in the crosshairs of some pretty nasty people. Without the ability to get over my wounds quickly, I would have lost this war before it even began.
It seemed like the Goddess Violet talked about, or one of the Gods Aislinn mentioned was evening out the odds. Until Vodor finally got his hands on me, that is. I had no concept of time in the pitch black of my cell.
All I heard was the pitter-patter of tiny claws of Fae rats all around me. I had gotten one brief glimpse of whatever creatures were down here with me, and they were hideous. Seriously, I would be haunted by their red beady eyes and sharp teeth for the rest of my life.
Of course, that was rivaled by the way the guards insisted on taunting me. They’d returned at least half a dozen times since that first encounter. Unfortunately, I never again felt the crackle of lightning on my fingertips. All I had to do down here was contemplate my doom and evaluate what had happened in search of a weakness and way out of here.
During my endless reflective moments, I concluded that the zap I managed was thanks to sheer terror. I couldn’t reproduce it no matter how hard I tried. And none of the subsequent taunts prodded me into action, either.
The guards had been crystal clear about their intentions that first visit. One of them had even unbuttoned his pants, proving how serious he was. There was no way in hell I was going to sit by and become a hapless victim.
Fighting, it seemed, was in my blood. And I will always fight with whatever means I have. It appeared that producing the meager sparks was enough to keep the hungry wolves at bay because they hadn’t approached like that again.
That now-familiar scurrying made another shiver run through me, rattling my back against the bars, only this time it wasn’t from the cold. The constant noise kept adrenalin dumping into my system and kept my energy focused on finding a way out of there.
The dungeon's sensory deprivation would have been more frightening if they got rid of the rats and kept the guards away. Without anything to focus on, the despair would seep into your bones, leaving you a sobbing mess.
The throbbing in my eye was yet another distraction from the mess around me. The bleeding had stopped, leaving behind an open wound at risk of infection. I needed to get the hell out of here and find my friends. I had to keep the faith.
Sebastian got to them in time and brought them to safety. Midurri and Finarr, too. I hope he found his brother. I couldn’t be sure what happened to him. He might have taken off to get help when he saw the soldiers. Not that it made much sense. Why would he leave us vulnerable and outnumbered?
He doesn’t like you, Fi. He likely can’t stand the thought of a woman saving his ass. Could he have set us up? My gut churned, and an objection immediately sprang to my mind. I couldn’t believe he would get rid of any asset in their fight against Vodor. He didn’t have to like me to see how I could help their cause.
My fingers ran under the cuffs for the hundredth time. My skin was raw, and I had scratched cuts into my skin. I tried not to create more injuries where I could possibly get an infection, but I couldn’t stop. Whatever the bands were, they cut me off from my magic, and that was my best chance of getting out of there.
The sound of footsteps preceded dim lighting by a couple seconds. Seemed like it was time to torment me again. I sighed and swiveled to face the oncoming. The group was far larger this time, and it made my heart skip a beat.
It hadn’t started racing yet. This was status quo for the guards, and the more they came, the less their taunting affected me. Not once had they carried a tray with food or a bottle with water. I kept hoping for it each time. I needed something to keep me going.
“To what do I owe the pleasure this time?” Not one of them had anything in their hands. I don’t know why I kept hoping they’d at least bring me water. They didn’t give a shit about me.
“The King wants to see you.” A guard at the front of the group was the one that had spoken. He had to be one of the leaders. Every time he was with the group, he led the discussions.
My head snapped up from where it was resting on my knees. “What did you say?”
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way.” He completely ignored my question.
Two of the guards approached the bars and waved a hand over one section. A blue light flashed before a click echoed in the room. I wondered how they unlocked the door since there was no deadbolt securing it. Of course, it was magic. What else would it be?
A third guard pulled the door open, and the leader, along with two others, entered. Instinct made me move away from them. I didn’t get very far. The leader grabbed a fist full of my hair and yanked hard enough that I swear he pulled out chunks of my scalp.
The other two guards grabbed under my arms and hauled me toward the door of the cell. “Where are you taking me? You don’t want to hurt the King’s prized possession, do you?”
The leader snarled at me and leaned down until his face was in mine. “You will keep your mouth shut and do as you’re told.”
My heart was beating frantically in my chest, and I couldn’t catch my breath. All I could think about was the fact that they were going to rape me, or worse. Immediately I started writhing and fighting their hold. The ones holding me stumbled a couple feet outside my cell.
I was right in front of the shelves, so I kicked out, trying to set them all off-kilter. The unit rocked, and several items crashed to the ground and shattered, but it didn’t fall over. The leader approached me as I bucked and fought—his fist connected with my injured cheek.
The only reason my eye didn’t explode instantly was that he hit several inches below the throbbing orbital socket. He did manage to stun me for several seconds, and it was all they needed to gain control and have two more grab my ankles.
I didn’t stop bucking and pulling at my limbs in an attempt to get free. They carried me down the narrow hall. I assumed it was the same way they brought me, but nothing looked familiar. When the tunnel started climbing, I thought maybe they took a turn, and I missed it. I was convinced we had gone a different way when they carried me through a door I hadn’t seen before.
We left the rough stone walls behind and entered a finished section of the palace. While I continued to fight, I cataloged my surroundings. Not that there was much to see—plain beige walls and ceiling. I couldn’t see the floor, and so far, we hadn’t encountered anything else.
“Put me down. You’ll regret it if you hurt me.” If Sebastian found them, he would rip them apart.
I might not have been ready to consider the relationship between us. But I knew without a doubt that he’d fallen in love with me and would do anything for me. With my death imminent, I realized I didn’t need to do some deep soul searching to know I felt the same way about him. What a fool I’d been.
“I can’t wait for the day when the King allows us to have our way with you,” the leader replied as he drove a fist into my side. We were in a much wider hall now, and he was able to keep pace at my side.
“I see you’re a coward. Hitting a woman when she can’t fight back. Pathetic.” I probably shouldn’t taunt him, but in my experience, men like him lowered their guard when they got pissed. I was hoping to get them to make a mistake.
Voices got louder and louder as we continued down the hall. I was panting and had stopped fighting while agony tore through my side. That fucker had a mean right hook. We passed by a door that seemed to be the source of the noise and continued.
We climbed one set of stairs to another level. Here the walls were pale green, and there were paintings of Vodor in various poses. My entourage stopped outside a room. I heard the panel open, and a feminine voice saying, “Put her in the bathroom.”
That made me stop fighting them. I could use a bath. The guards carried me through what looked like a bedroom. When I twisted my head, I saw a large bed covered with a blue blanket. There was a dresser of sorts with butterfly statues and a bust of Vodor. The walls were a darker shade o
f blue, and there were landscape paintings on the walls. I didn’t really get a good look at anything before they carried me through another door.
They stopped in a large room with grey walls, where soft female voices filled the space. I saw a counter with a bowl of water, and when they sat me down, I caught sight of a massive bathtub. It was more like an above-ground pool. Stairs led to the top, and at least five female elves waiting with various objects in their hands.
They didn’t look like much of a threat standing there with their heads lowered and the straps of their pale-yellow slip dress practically falling off their slender shoulders. I wanted to fight my way out of here but knew better. Just because these women looked broken didn’t mean they were. Now I was surrounded by a dozen or more of Vodor’s loyal subjects. I wasn’t taking a chance with my life.
Now that I was out of the dank dungeon, a weight lifted from my chest. I would find a way out of here and be reunited with my friends. All of them were alive and looking for a way to rescue me.
“Get her ready.” The leader turned on his heel and was walking out before anyone responded to him. Several of the guards lingered in the doorway.
To my horror, the women started in my direction. My tired heart had slowed when we entered the bathroom. It was now beating much faster. “I see being a nasty pervert is a cross-species thing. I guess I shouldn’t blame you, what with your lower intelligence.”
One of the guards growled and lifted a hand covered in flames. The leader stepped back inside and clapped him on the shoulder. “Get out of here if you know what’s good for you. The King gave explicit instructions she was not to be touched.”
Nausea churned in my gut, making me want to vomit. Given that they’d physically carried me out of the dungeon, I suspected what Vodor had been referring to. To my surprise, one of the women set the bowl she was holding down and crossed to the door, then shut it in the guards’ faces.
“Keli!” One of the other women hissed. “Don’t make them angry. You know how they get, especially Darnell.” That was interesting and perhaps something I could use.
“Can you guys help me get out of here? Please. I’m being held against my will, and I need to get back to my friends to make sure they’re okay.” For the millionth time, I tried to feel them through the connection we’d forged when I shared my power with them to dilute the signature.
Keli shook her head with a frown on her face. “I’m sorry. We can’t do that. There is no way we will make it past Darnell and the others. And I will never do anything to risk my family. If one of us goes against the King’s orders, he will kill our families while we watch before doing the same to us.”
My heart sank. It had been a long shot, but some small part of me had hoped I would be able to convince them. “Can you at least remove these cuffs? I think they cut me off from my magic, right? Without them, I can get myself out of here. I managed to kill Thelvienne. I can break out of the dungeon.”
All of the women gasped. “We’d heard rumors she was dead. You must be the hybrid of prophecy. I wish we could free you of these bindings. It would save us all. The King is the only one that can remove them. We don’t have much time. We need to get you ready. Take your clothes off, so we can wash you.”
I pondered what they said while removing the filthy gear. It wasn’t the first time I had heard about a prophecy. Regardless of any prediction, however long ago, I would do what I could to help free the Fae of their oppressive King. Besides, given my current predicament, I doubted it was about me. I was about to die at the hands of Vodor.
Keli led me up the stairs and into the water. The hot liquid immediately soothed me. The groan I let out came from the core of my being. I had been cold and shivering for days for all I knew, and I was covered in dirt and grime.
“Use this to wash your face. You’ll want to be careful of that eye. It looks dreadful.” Keli winced when she handed me what looked like a loofah. It was closer to the natural sponge than the synthetic ones.
“Do you have any herbs? I can create a paste to make sure it doesn’t get infected.”
Keli shook her head. “They’ve only given us soaps to clean you with. All you need to worry about is bathing so we can prepare you for the King.”
“Thank you.” I didn’t bother asking them for anything else. They wouldn’t give me anything, anyway. Every time they tried to wash me, I grabbed the soap or oil and did it myself. There was no way I was going to allow them to wash me. It was nearly orgasmic to dunk my head underwater and scrub my hair clean.
I felt like a new woman and was happy to find my determination pretty solid at the moment. Vodor had some awful mojo working to dismantle every ounce of hope I experienced. His choice to attack me mentally was brilliant. It was the only way he had any chance of debilitating me and getting me out of the way.
The towel was fluffy and warm when I stepped out of the tub. I had barely made it down the steps before the women descended on me. They primped and prodded and draped me in a silky red dress. The color always brought out the red in my hair.
While I loved the gown's feel and appreciated the stunning design, I wished they had placed me back in my battle gear. It provided some insulation and shielded me from the grimy dungeon.
The women were brushing my hair and pinning it up while I tried to move my mind away from the ominous message the dress sent. I wasn’t going to be returning to the dungeon. Vodor, it seemed, had plans for me.
There was no way to prepare except to reserve all of my energy to fight him. No way was he going to get his hands on me.
Keli opened the door and ushered me to the outer room. The guards stood at attention all around the space. Darnell grabbed my arm and tugged me to the hall. “Cooperate, and you can walk in of your own accord. Fight us, and we will carry you, exposing your body for everyone to see.”
I followed him like an obedient prisoner. The women had taken my underwear, and there were none to replace it. I was entirely too exposed already, as it was. My breasts were far bigger than the Fae women I’d seen this far, and gravity plus age plus children meant they resembled ski slopes. I usually didn’t care, but the dress was tight and made it obvious I had nothing on underneath it.
That alone kept me from trying to escape. I didn’t want my lady place, as my Grams called her vagina, to be shown to Vodor. No need to prompt him into action. The halls of the palace were busy with staff hustling about. It was impossible to determine what they were doing, and honestly, I didn’t care. They weren’t going to go out on a limb and help me.
My jaw dropped, and my heart leaped into my throat when Darnell ushered me into what I thought of as the great hall. I read as often as possible in my previous life, and I loved watching historical movies and anything supernatural or magical. Those stories all seemed to have a castle with a great hall.
It was exactly like I always pictured. Massive stained-glass windows lining the walls with tables set off to one side and a dance floor close to a band that was playing music. There were lots of flowers, twinkling lights and a bar with drinks.
There was also a long buffet filled with various foods. My stomach rumbled even while it was churning, and I fought nausea. The King is showing off to his court, she is laughed at, and food is thrown at her.
All eyes shifted my way. I brushed my hands down my gown and tried to stay in place when Darnell shoved me toward the King. I stumbled and fell forward. My hands flew out, and I caught myself on a guy that had been watching me. He pushed me away from him and sneered at me.
I was drug down the aisle to the pair of gold thrones on a dais at the end of the room. Both were gold and covered in engravings with a maroon velvet seat cushion. One of the chairs was smaller than the other and empty. Vodor sat in the bigger one with a bejeweled gold crown on his head.
“As promised, the entertainment for the evening has finally arrived. My eyes flew open, and I was breathing so hard I almost passed out.
“No,” I whispered.
Vodo
r got to his feet and glared down at me. “Shut your mouth and get on your knees.” He was pointing to the side of his throne, and before I made a move to comply or tell him off, the guards had thrown me down in roughly the spot he wanted.
My head was spinning, and I glanced around at the well-dressed men and women laughing. There had to be at least fifty people there, and they were all enjoying my humiliation.
Women looked down on me while men vacillated between leering and openly taunting me. “This has to be some mistake. She’s far too old to be capable of besting Thelvienne.” It was a feminine voice, but I couldn’t place who had said it. Old, my ass! I’d like to show her what the word meant.
Her comment spurned the party-goers into action. I was no longer seen as a threat. Men and women alike approached the dais to toss food at me. Before long, I was covered in stinky fruit, meat, and gravy. Something acidic hit my face, making the cut around my eye sting.
Vodor was laughing with a group of guys off to the side while delicious food was wasted. Not wanting them to know how much this was getting to me, I picked the meat off my body and popped it into my mouth. I needed the nourishment.
That didn’t last too long as Vodor ordered the guards to hold my arms while his closest friends talked about having a go with me when Vodor had gotten what he wanted from me.
Seemed I wasn’t so repulsive after all. I wasn’t sure I could survive what he had planned for me. That hope I had found again was withering, and he didn’t even need to return me to the dungeon.
Chapter 18
Goop dripped from one earlobe while the silk dress was plastered to my skin. The novelty of tossing food at me had worn off, and I was ignored in favor of dancing. I watched in horror as the party took a decisive turn.
Couples started kissing while they danced. Hands were roaming all over bodies without concern that they were being watched. I didn’t think I was a prude or anything, but watching people grope one another was not my idea of a good time.
