Page 54 of The Queen
As the sun rises higher, casting shadows over Castle University, I feel the electric charge of impending conflict. I welcome it. With my Kings at my side, I’m ready to face whatever this shitstorm that is brewing in this little teacup.
“Game on,” I whisper. This is my world, my war, and I am the Queen of Castle, ruler of the chessboard, master of the game.
And I play to win.
Always.
25
OLIVER
“You ready for this?”
“Hell, yeah!” Eliza slams her fist into her palm. “Finally, some serious action.”
I snort. “Says you, who has had non-stop action since you arrived here.”
“Ugh, don’t remind me. But that’s all been annoying as fuck stuff.Thisis what I want to be doing.”
“The thrill of racketeering.”
“You said it.” She grins as we look up at the very impressive mansion a couple of towns over from CastleGate. “So who are they?”
“Does it matter?”
She catches my steady gaze, and her smile turns sinister. “Nope.”
“Then let’s go.”
We climb out of the Jeep parked just outside the gates, and Eliza strides up to the intercom. She reaches out to press the buzzer, but I grasp her wrist gently.
“We go over.”
She arches an eyebrow. “Over, hmm? I can do that. There’s no attack dogs ready to bite my ass, is there?”
“Would it stop you if there were?” My question is serious, and she knows it.
“Hell, no. Forewarned and all that.”
“Then no, no dogs, attack or otherwise. There is a cat who I think might be organising the uprising, but we’ll leave her to it. No way am I going up against an evil cat genius.”
Eliza lets out a loud laugh as she grips the iron bars of the gate and hauls herself up. “Don’t blame you,” she says and swings her lithe body over the top, missing the spikes and landing, ahem, like a cat, on her feet, knees bent into a crouch on the other side. I follow her and take her hand as we walk up to the front door. Rapping sharply, I smile at her, taking in her flushed cheeks. She is thoroughly enjoying herself being out on the streets. She is a get-your-hands-dirty kind of girl, and I fucking love that about her.
The door opens to reveal a rail-thin woman stroking the demon cat. “You,” she hisses. “You’re a day early.”
“Your husband was a day late with the pay last week. He knows the terms.”
Her eyes narrow as she takes in Eliza, who gives her a menacing smile back but remains silent.
“Wait here.” The woman slams the door in our faces, and it opens again a few seconds later to reveal her husband.
“Sterling.”
“Richards. Got my money?”
He gives Eliza a searching stare. “Who’s she?”
“My new security. You don’t want to mess with her.”
