Page 31 of Barbi and the Villain

The servant leads me back to my suite, and I drop little crumbs of bread on the way from the main hallway to my room. Now I just have to hope there’s no nocturne cleaning going on at this castle. Otherwise, I’m screwed.

When I get back to my suite, PomPom is still out of it. Whatever they put in the food was too much for her small body. That sends a spark of anger through me.

How could they think to do this to a small, defenseless dog? I clench my fists in outrage, wishing I could retaliate against them in some way. But although I have yet to see evidence of their abilities, I’ve heard enough from the soldiers to know I am no match for them. The only recourse I have is to run away.

A few hours later, I fashion a carrier for PomPom out of a sheet and tie it across my torso. Opening the door to my room, I make my way out.

To my relief, the crumbs of bread are still on the floor, so I follow them to the main hallway. The castle is eerily quiet, not a soul in sight. Hope blossoms in my chest that I can, in fact, do this.

Now it’s just a matter of finding the right door that leads to the outside.

A couple of failed tries and I manage to find the right one.

The cold air of the night brushes against my face and I take a deep breath to fill my lungs. I’ll do this. I’ll find a way out.

I step into the night, and a shiver goes down my back from the low temperature. The pink gown does not provide any warmth, and this might cause me to catch a cold…

That’s the last thing I need to think about! This is about surviving and not being sacrificed to some pagan god, not catching a cold, which might I say, is not fatal.

I stealthily make my way across the main yard, but just as I think I’ve made it—that I’ve left the castle behind—I bump into the person I least wanted to see again.

“You…”

Ivan’s face contorts in anger as he sees me. Especially as his eyes scan my frame and he quickly deduces that I’m absconding in the middle of the night—which, he’s not wrong.

“I knew it! You’re a fucking impostor!” He grabs me by the arm and all but drags me back to the castle.

“Let go!” I scream. “They’re all murderers. You’ll get me killed,” I say, hoping I might strike some human chord in him—though I doubt it.

The noise only serves to awaken more soldiers, and soon, we have an entire audience in front of the castle. Ivan takes great pride in telling all of them that I was trying to run away because I’m a spy.

“She probably tried to seduce our King and he wouldn’t fall for it,” he says further. A chorus of boos resounds in the air.

My eyes widen in shock.

“Seduce the King? He’s a psycho murderer who wants to sacrifice me,” I cry out as I struggle to get out of his grasp. I manage to push him away for a second before he lodges his fingers in my scalp, pulling on my hair and keeping me by his side.

I cry in pain.

“Harlot.”

“Whore.”

Oh my, these people take their King’s virtue seriously. They don’t seem to realize he has an entire harem at his disposal already.

“Our Queen won’t stand for this,” someone calls from the crowd, further getting the others worked up. The words they’re spewing at me are not fit for any ears.

The windows of the castle light up. More people show up, curious about the commotion. At this point, instead of escaping silently, I’m doing the exact opposite.

And if I thought things couldn’t get worse, well…they just got so much fucking worse.

The King and Queen make their appearance in a regal fashion. They teleport themselves in the middle of the crowd, merely a few steps away from me.

Oh. Shit.

“Your Majesty. I caught her sneaking out of the castle,” Ivan speaks as he dangles me by the hair. “She must have been spying for the East.”

“What?” I squeak. “I’m not a spy. I just want to leave with my life intact, all right? They”—I point to the King and Queen—“are the culty leaders trying to sacrifice me for whatever pagan god they’re in cahoots with.”

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