Page 6 of The Death King

The guard standing pulled out his blade, several feet long and with a burnished tip from all the battles he’d won. He spun it around his wrist then gripped the hilt with both hands, prepared to stab the blade straight through my middle and pin me to the rug.

But then the Death King raised his palm—and everything stopped.

He walked over to us, his footsteps slow like he was in no real hurry, and stopped when he stood over me. With that same piercing gaze he’d shown my father, he looked down at me, eyes open and unblinking, his stare like the night sky. “Princess.” He cocked his head slightly, continuing to look at me.

“Shall I stab her through the belly or feed her to Khazmuda?”

I lay there stuck on the floor, tears still leaking from the corners of my eyes and streaking down my cheeks. I wanted to look death in the face and smile, but I’d never been so terrified, my father’s corpse just feet away from me. He was with my mother now—and I would be there soon.

He continued to stare, mesmerized by my shaking and my fear. “She’s suffered enough. Let her go.”

The guard looked at the Death King as if he’d misheard the order or wanted him to reconsider.

But the Death King kept his hard gaze glued to mine. “I’ve looked evil in the face, but I’ve never witnessed such cruelty. To take his own life and abandon his daughter to her fate… I thought I was the monster—but her father has me beat.” He finally pulled his gaze off me and looked at the guard who served him. “Sheathe your blade and let her go.”

The guard’s hesitation lasted less than a second. He withdrew his blade and returned it to the scabbard.

The guard I had stabbed continued to plant his palm against his neck, the blood dripping down his fingers and onto his lap.

The Death King stepped forward and extended his hand to me.

I climbed to my feet and toppled forward in my haste to take off. My knees hit the floor, but I pushed up again, my mind moving faster than my body could obey. When I was secure on my feet, I dashed out the door and took off at breakneck speed. The double doors to the castle were open, and the floor was littered with the dead soldiers who’d given their lives to stop the man who’d stormed the castle and our lives.

I fled into the night…with nowhere to go.

1

CALISTA

The Arid Sands

I lay in bed, wide awake, watching the light shift through the curtains. I’d become an expert at predicting the time just by the way the light changed in intensity. Right now, the light was so faint it was hardly noticeable, which told me sunrise was just thirty minutes away.

I lay there, my wrists chained together across my chest, my ankles secured together beneath the covers. It was hard to turn from side to side because the sheets got bunched against my body, so it was easier just to lie on my back all night. I used to be a side sleeper—but those days were over.

My eyes remained focused on the window, watching the light grow as the minutes passed, dreading the moment I had to get out of bed and get to work. The mornings were the best time of day in the desert, the air still cool and crisp, the sun low in intensity as it hung over the horizon. But as it approached high noon, it became unbearable, the sun scorching on my skin, the heat making my clothes sticky. There was never enough water, so headaches were an everyday occurrence.

General Titan stirred beside me, his mind rising with the morning sun. He was on his side but rolled onto his back, releasing a heavy sigh after a long night of comfortable sleep. His fingers dug the crust out of the corners of his eyes as he sighed again.

I kept my gaze locked on the window.

He grabbed the key off the nightstand and yanked the covers back to release the metal padlock around my ankles. He’d quickly learned that if I wasn’t fully restrained, I would find some way to attack him during the night. I’d tried to smother him to death with a pillow, tried to bash his skull with a water glass, had tried choking him with my bare hands. Anything I could think of, I’d tried.

As a result, I was fully secured.

Once my legs were free, the same fight we had every morning began. I tried to kick myself free, kicking him hard enough to leave a bruise, but with a hundred pounds on me, he always overpowered me. That victory was always accompanied by a gloating smile, and he gave a pleasured sigh once he was inside me.

He fucked me like a whore…and I just lay there.

I pulled the long-sleeved linen shirt over my head then popped the hood, letting it drop over my face to protect my skin from the ruthless sun. It was so powerful it still pierced the thin material, but it was better than no protection at all.

I pulled on my boots and laced them up tight, ignoring General Titan as he stood there and watched. His eyes were always on me, always obsessively watching me. He was in his armor and uniform, prepared to watch our work in the desert.

I ignored his existence like I always did—until he didn’t give me a chance.

“You know you don’t have to go out there.” His dark armor was black mixed with gray, with streaks of red in the hard material. It was impenetrable by my bare fists. Impenetrable by the sharp edge of broken glass. Every weapon I could find was useless against it. The only time he was unprotected was at night when we slept, while I was imprisoned by the metal restraints, there was nothing I could do.

Once my boots were secure, I stood upright and headed to the door.

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