My eyes start to close but then he wrenches his hand off my throat and throws me to the ground. I roll on to my side, gasping for air, and tears build in my eyes from the pain. The warrior pulls my dress over my hips and shoves my legs apart. He grinds his fabric-covered cock against me as I try to focus my vision.
Just like so many others have done, this motherfucker underestimates me.
I might be just a girl—a slum dweller—but I’m also a fighter.
I pull my arm back and take the only shot available to me. I punch him clean in the throat, making sure the rebel insignia on my ring catches his jugular. His skin sears as my ring injects poison straight into his veins. He pushes off me and falls onto his ass, clutching at his neck as the poison restricts his airway. I have to act fast while the poison temporarily paralyzes him.
I scramble off the floor and press my stiletto heel into his chest. “I’m afraid we’ll have to cut this one short, sweetheart.”
I push him onto his back, yank the medallion from his neck, and turn toward the door. I try my best to fix my torn dress and smooth my disheveled hair, making sure that the golden streak is hidden from view. I doubt anyone will notice I entered the room as a blonde. They’re too busy fucking each other like dogs in heat.
I shakily shove the medallion into my purse. I risk a glance back at the warrior.
“Raincheck?” I taunt with a wink, and then I exit the room.
My heart thrashes against my ribs as I wade through the bustling club. I give the barman a passing nod and make my way to the exit. The security guard presses the button to call the elevator for me. I count sixty-three, heart-racing seconds, before the doors ping open, and I step into the elevator.
“Thank you,” I tell the guard. He shoots me a nod as the doors close, leaving me alone in the carriage.
On my own at last, I relax my shoulders, my hands shaking with adrenaline. I want to burst out laughing, but I’m mindful of the security camera attached to the ceiling, watching me with an unblinking eye. Keeping my gaze forward on the long ride topside, the seconds feel like hours during my ascent. When the doors finally open, I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding, and I exit through the club entrance. I thank the second bouncer, raise my head high, and step into the blinding sunlight.
I did it. I actually did it!
I smile as I bask in the warm rays, relieved that I don’t need a gas mask for once. It’s such a beautiful day to be alive, and I managed to steal a silver insignia. I turn around and step onto the sidewalk. Time to trade this bad boy and put decent food in our bellies for the first time in weeks.
An alarm shrills through my ears, stopping me dead in my tracks.
A wave of nausea crashes into my body.
The medallion must have triggered the club’s alarm.
Shit! Why didn’t I think about that?
Clenching my purse in my hands, I kick my heels off and run. My bare feet dig into the dirty concrete, and my eyes dart back and forth, frantically searching for a place to hide. This part of town consists of dingy alleyways and buildings sandwiched together in an attempt to house as many people as possible. I run down the street and slip into the nearest alleyway, hoping for a fire exit I can use to climb onto the rooftop.
Relief floods through me when I see the corroded stairs stacked against the side of the building. I hold the purse between my teeth and grab onto the bars. I nearly slip off as I pull myself to the top, my legs and hands trembling, but I keep going, never once looking back. Sweat trickles down my forehead and spine. The soles of my feet are cracked and bleeding as the tender skin lost its battle against the concrete. I wince at the pain, but I do not stop. I can’t stop or it’s all been for nothing.
After slipping on my bloody feet several times, I reach the top of the stairs, and I haul myself onto the rooftop. My chest heaves from the exertion, yet I can’t stop to catch my breath. Looking around, trying to find a place to hide, my eyes land on a small pigeon cote a few buildings down. It will have to do until I’m positive I’ve gotten away with robbing the noble.
Finding my resolve, I run as fast as I can and leap across the rooftop, crashing onto the one opposite. I roll as I land, further tearing my already abused dress and body. My lungs seize together, and for an instant I’m breathless, wheezing on my side. I force myself up and stumble toward the cote, desperate for refuge.
Jolts of red-hot pain shoot through my body as I scramble towards my hiding place. I think I’ve broken a few ribs, but that’s still better than imprisonment at the hands of the nobles. I would never have escaped them on the ground. They would’ve caught me in two minutes flat.
With the cote in sight, I feel a moment of triumph and hurry as quickly as I can. A chill breaks out across my skin when a shadow swells over me, eclipsing the afternoon sun.
What the hell is that?
I search the sky, shielding my gaze against the blinding light.
My blood freezes in my veins. Fuck, fuck, fuck. A gigantic, winged creature is soaring toward me, its long claws outstretched as if to capture its prey. It roars when our eyes meet, and my life flashes before my eyes, pulling a surprised scream from my dry lips. I try to run faster, past the cote, and I make one final leap across the last rooftop.
I brace myself for more pain, more broken ribs, but something catches my fall. A thick, ropey tail wraps around my chest and heaves me backward. I soar through the air, unable to scream or touch the earth. I hiss through clenched teeth as a sharp pain stabs me in the neck, and then there’s nothing except for darkness.
Get Saphyre here
Scarlett Snow lives in Scotland with her wolfdog and kitty. After reading a reverse harem novel, she was inspired to write her own but with her usual twist of darkness. Scarlett also writes under Katze Snow and has since combined these pseudonyms. When she’s not writing, she’s an advocate for Women’s Rights and struggles to keep up with her ever increasing housework.
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Scarlett’s Coven
Enslaved by the Kings—Dark Reverse Harem Fantasy
Saphyre: Book One—Expected Release March 2019
Bloodstream Trilogy—MM Vampire / Hunter Dark Romance
Sinister Hunger: Volume One
Sinister Games: Volume Two
Sinister War: Volume Three—Coming 2019
Conflicted: A Novel—Dark MM Thriller
This book was banned off Amazon for being too dark. You can buy the novel directly through my website and help support banned authors: www.katzesnow.com/bannedbooks
Demons and Wolves Trilogy—MM and MF Paranormal Romance
Alpha’s Bane: MF Standalone Prequel
Broken in Silence: Book One
Within These Depths: Book Two
Maritime Cozy Mystery Series
Murder for Two: Book One
Camera on Chaos: Book Two
The Queen's Protectors (A Throne of Blood Book 1) Page 17
