Page 4 of Queen of Vengeance

And there was one thing that occupied my mind like nothing else. It was more scarring than the sanitation showers and more diabolical than their interrogations… My insatiable need for vengeance and the monster put me here.

My whole body burned with the rage that had been my closest companion these fifteen years in prison.

I turned away from the mint, not wanting to sully the scent with my anger.

Every day, it grew stronger.

If I ever escaped these damn walls, I would stop at nothing to make him pay.

That bastard, Jax Ransom…

My shoulder burned.

It was the sigil of the pact we made as kids, and it always burned me whenever I thought of him.

With any luck, it burned him, too. I hoped it kept him up at night.

The anger blazed through me until I couldn’t sit anymore.

I jumped to my feet and climbed onto the bars across my ceiling, where the stone stopped.

It was only a few feet of bars, but it was enough to train my body and keep me occupied. If not, I would have wasted away here.

I laced my legs through and hung there for a moment, leveling my breathing and focusing my energy on my core.

I always write potions better under pressure… That meant this place made me one of the best potion writers in the world. Unfortunately, I had limited resources, and it was against the rules to practice potion mixing within the prison walls. I could only write down recipes. Luckily, I had practiced so much in school that I could predict the effectiveness of a potion just based on its ingredients.

“Lea.” A familiar voice called out to me from the corner of the cell. She sounded frightened.

“Dineta, what is it?” I answered while unthreading my legs and lowering myself from the cell bars.

Dineta was my closest friend in this place.

My feet hit the stone and caused a shock of pain to spike up my calves.

“You know, without proper nutrition, you burn up more energy than you consume. You might end up doing serious damage to your body.” Dineta’s wisdom was well placed, but it was too early in the morning to be reprimanded. “Why don’t you wait until you eat, at least?”

“My other option is to go crazy and kill a cellmate.” I shot my gaze in her direction and winked.

“In that case, don’t let me stand in your way.” She flashed a smile and threw her hands up in defeat.

I managed to crack a smile, but it felt like a betrayal to my entire being.

It’s strange. I used to smile all the time, but I was a foolish child back then.

My chest ached, but I couldn’t let the weakness come through.

I had to be strong like these stone walls… No, strong like mint stems.

A guard called out my name, “Aleandra Nadir.”

Oh, my Lunaira! I don’t have the strength to deal with this today!

My feet shifted toward the guard’s voice at the opening cell door.

The stout guard’s torch flickered against the glistening black walls as he struggled to open the heavy door. His chubby fingers were no match for the rusted hinges.

It took everything in me not to laugh at him.

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