Page 9 of The Broken Queen

I took in a heavy breath and turned to leave the room. My hand landed on the knob, but I stiffened when he spoke.

"Where are you going? We're not done here." Father’s voice boomed. He sure did a damn good job of intimidating me.Too bad I didn't give a fuck.

"To go check on your granddaughter. I have no urge to watch you torture someone for a game, Father," I said through clenched teeth. I had better things to do. Like running a kingdom he so desperately dropped in my lap at the age of seventeen. My hand turned and I was close.So close to leaving.

"Need I remind you of the responsibility you have to this kingdom?" I clamped my eyes shut when another scream ripped through the room.

"And need I remind you, Father, that as Queen, I can do whatever the fuck I want." I left without another glance. If he thought I could sit around and watch someone be tortured and take pleasure in that, he had another thing coming.

I closed the door behind me and regained my composure. I took in several deep breaths and tried to force the overbearing screams out of my head. I needed to be calm and collected for Julianna.

My heels clicked against the concrete floors, and memories of when I was a child plagued my thoughts as I made my way from the dungeon to the safest part of the estate, my bedroom. I shut the door and locked it as quickly as I opened it. My eyes glanced at the clock. It was two-thirty. Julianna would be arriving home around three. I had thirty minutes to process and collect myself.

The sun peeked through the crimson curtains as I made my way over to the window. I slowly lifted one to the side and pinned it up against the wall so I could see better. My gaze roamed over the snow covered tree-tops that disguised our estate. White and fluffy powder was spread everywhere, and it was almost deceiving. Any onlooker who had never set foot here would never guess the horrors that were buried beneath the walls.

The estate was a mansion that to a blind eye, would be considered beautiful. From its thick, gray stone walls, to the big and bright glass windows, to the lit pathway that led to the iron clad gates at the end of the drive, it was almost like a castle. A fairytale in the making. Except, it was more of a dark, fractured, nightmarish tale.

Just like every day, my eyes searched the grounds for something familiar, almost forbidden. I knew the obvious, but my stupid, traitorous heart refused to believe he would never return.

It wasn't impossible, and yet, it was. He ran away. Heleftus.Fucking bastard.

I sighed and turned away from the window. My eyes landed on the dagger that resided on the nightstand next to my bed. In a few swift steps, I grabbed hold of the handle, removed my sleeveand pricked my skin with the tip of the blade. Delicately, I traced the letters that had been branded into my skin.SK. The only thing that brought me comfort in this dark, and twisted world. The dagger clanked to the floor when it slipped from my fingers.

I leaned against the queen-size bed and took in heavy breaths as I watched the blood slide down my wrist and drop to the floor. My body sagged, releasing heavy amounts of stress. I was atwisted bitch.

My eyes found the clock once more. Two-fifty. Any moment she would be home. Taking a deep breath, I pulled the drawer out of the black stand and placed the rag over my wrist. I bent over and grabbed the dagger, wiping away any evidence that I had been up to no good. I quickly bandaged the wound and moved the sleeve back down to hide the monstrosity that was me.

Dropping the rag to the floor, I wiped up any blood that dripped, walked into the ensuite bathroom and plugged the sink. I turned on the water, dropped the dirty rag and splashed little specs of soap to let it soak. After being satisfied there was enough water, I turned it off and scanned myself in the mirror. My fingers wiped away the tears that leaked from my eyes unknowingly, and a sickly sweet smile graced my lips.

It was time to place myself back in the role of the doting mother. I left the bathroom and realized I had left the dagger sitting in plain sight,again.Pulling the key from my bra, I walked over to the stand, pulled out the drawer, and dropped the dagger inside. I quickly pushed the drawer back and used the key to lock it away. Satisfied, I placed the key back into my bra and headed towards the door.

Once again, my eyes glanced at the clock. Three on the dot. I straightened my posture, kept the smile on my face and opened the door. I was met with a sweet smell of cinnamon, and my daughter's cute and plump little face.

"Mommy!" Her little arms wrapped around my legs and just like that, the dark world drifted away and every emotion I had closed off slammed into my body. I kneeled down and took her in my arms, not caring that I was scuffing up a pair of five hundred dollar shoes and tights.

Her tiny arms wrapped around my neck and a lonely tear escaped. My princess was home and everything was right with the world.For now.

Chapter Three

Raven

“How was your day at school, sweetie?” I asked as I moved around the kitchen. We had a cook, Mrs. Helga, but I enjoyed cooking. Every so often, I would make Julianna’s meals because I wanted to spend that time alone with her. Cooking was also very therapeutic, and it calmed my anxiety. In this crazy world, Ineededthat therapy.

Julianna’s big, blue eyes were full of happiness and her short, brown hair that I had tied in a bun earlier was falling down her face in little tendrils. She never came home from school the way she arrived. She had a tendency to mess with her appearance because she was tired or unfocused.

She popped a grape into her mouth and smiled. “School was great! Oh, guess what?”

Markus, one of our security details, tilted his lips at the corners. Just as she had me, she had every single one of them wrapped around her little fingers.

“What’s that?” I grabbed a medium-sized pan and placed it on the stove. I walked over to the fridge and pulled out the vegetables and pie crust that I needed. Helga had already gone home for the day and of course, had her containers full of prepared meals already in the fridge for anyone who wanted them, but I ignored them and continued to prepare mine and Julianna’s meal.

“Tomorrow is a show and tell!” She was such a bubbly four-year-old, and I hoped to keep it that way for as long as I possibly could.

A smile graced my lips. “And what is it you would like to take?”

“I wanna take the bunny Daddy got me!” The knife fell to the casserole dish with a clatter, and I turned around so quick I could’ve gotten whiplash.

“What did you just say?” My voice came out harsher than expected.

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