Page 22 of The Broken Queen

“Ah, well, I kind of wish you had some interaction with her so we could find out what she’s like. All this secrecy around her is a little weird. Even when it was announced that the Queen had given birth, no one was allowed to see any baby pictures.” He frowned. “I wonderwhythey keep her a secret.”

I shrugged. I had no idea why they kept her a secret from her own Kingdom. Better yet, I was originally supposed to be her friend, but the King took one look at me and labeled me as trouble, and ever since, he hasn’t looked in my direction once. Let alone let me see the princess for myself. I think that was one of many reasons my room was in the basement, on the other side of the dungeon.

I wonder if she even existed.

The Queen, on the other hand, was incredibly down to earth. If she had it her way, the Princess and I would be friends. To be honest, I had a feeling she had some plans of her own conjured up for the two of us, if we ever met, of course. Though, I didn’t particularly care to meet the Princess anyway. She was probably stuck up just like her father.

Slade at fourteen-years-old

I sat up with a start when my door opened and slammed shut. Wiping my eyes, I moved my legs over the side of the cot. Before I turned on the light, I asked, “Who are you?”

“The better question is, who are you?” The girl’s voice was breathy and uneven, and it only piqued my interest. The staff had children who were around my age, and while they were allowed to communicate with the princess, I was not.

So, apart from her, there wasn’t anyone I didn’t know at this estate.I wondered if it was her. The mystery girl.

I chuckled. “I asked you first.”

I leaned over and turned on the small lamp. Then I saw her. The most beautiful girl I had ever seen. My stomach did a little flip. I knew it was her, from the moment her violet eyes connected with mine, I knew she was the Princess.

The forbidden fruit I was unable to friend, touch or even be in the same room with. As my gaze roamed over her, I understood why the King had been so adamant about us not meeting.

Because in his messed up mind, he knew that once we met, the rest would be history, and it was.

Chapter Ten

Raven

Three months later...

My breaths quickened and my heels clicked against the stone steps as I made my way to the dungeon, the most dreaded part of the estate. Zeke had told me to go to the usual spot, but I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to bow down to him, but a part of me lost the battle the night I had that fight with Father.

My left heel landed on the final stair, and I sucked in a sharp breath. In the dungeon, at the very back, was a room that nobody knew about. Not even Father, the King of Amenida, knew of the small, forbidden room.

To the left of the dungeon was where the prisoners were kept along with the secret ‘torture’ rooms that no one was supposed to know about but everyone did. To the right, was storage and a few spare rooms. This was where all the goods that have been shipped were placed and stored.

There was a hidden door that could only be opened by a bookcase. Similar to Slade’s childhood room that led to a tunnel, this bookcase led to a small room. Fucking cliché as hell, but somehow Zeke discovered it and well, it became my own personaltortureroom.

I let out a harsh breath when my hand clasped the knob and turned. I closed the door behind me and locked it. I stopped to take a breath of air, and get the trembling in my body to stop. I couldn’t show him any weakness.I had to get through this.Walking over to the dusty bookcase, my fingers skimmed the books one by one until they landed on the lucky winner. My finger tilted it down and suddenly, the bookcase moved onits own, showing a sliver of a door hidden behind it. I stood up straight with my head held high, and opened the door and saw him standing behind it, in nothing but his underwear.

The man was easy on the eyes, sure, but he wasn't Slade and never would be. No one would ever own me the way he did, no matter how hard they tried.

Zeke looked up from the book he was reading and grinned. His smile wasn't an easy going smile, it was almost sinister. He was like a predator stalking his prey. Beneath his All-American facade, he was a serial killer waiting to torture his victims.

He developed a precise skill of luring in someone weaker than him, and trapping them in his own little web of deceit. He took a few steps toward me and I had to mentally prepare myself for what would happen next.

Zeke was the puppeteer and I was his puppet. I couldn't believe I’d let myself stoop so low, but then I was reminded of Zeke's dark promise he whispered in my ear only a month ago.

"What’s your endgame Zeke? And don't fucking tell me you want to find true love because you and I both know that's a load of bullshit."

He rushed me and placed a knife next to my throat. "Watch your mouth!" He pressed the tip deeper into my neck, pricking my skin. Any normal person would have felt something, but I didn't feel a damn thing. "You're going to do exactly what I tell you, or that sweet little princess of yours is going to suffer."

I stiffened. He could hurt me all he wanted, but no one touched my daughter. My eyes burned. "If you even think about touching her, you'll be sorry."

His narrow lips tilted at the corners. "Try me, bitch." He leaned in and sniffed my skin. Fucking creep. "I'm going to enjoy having you bend at my will, but you want to know a secret?"

I rolled my eyes. "Sure, go ahead and tell me while you hold me fucking captive."

He moved the blade deeper, and I knew tiny drops of blood were sliding down my neck. "I'm drawing him out so I can take my place on the throne."

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