Page 98 of Monsters Carve Thrones
Now.
I rolled onto my side, wincing as the cuff tugged against my tender skin. My fingers fumbled beneath the edge of the mattress, my heart pounding so hard it felt like it was echoing through the walls. Then, I felt the pen. A small sob nearly escaped me as I pulled it free. It was funny... how something so small and ordinary made me feel like I had a chance to escape from this hell.
I stared at it for a moment, the absurdity of it not lost on me. A pen against guns. But sometimes, that’s all it took. One second. One opening.One fucking breath.
The hallway creaked, and I snapped my body back against the pillow, the pen still hidden in my fist.
Then, a soft knock–three gentle raps, just like we’d agreed. The door opened, and Olesya stepped inside with an armful of clean towels. Her hair was pulled back into a tight bun, her eyes carefully cast downward, the perfect image of a compliant housekeeper.
But when her gaze flicked up and met mine, I saw something that made my chest tighten.
Readiness. Resolve. Fear, too. But beneath that, an inspiring determination. One that I hoped I also portrayed.
I gave her the smallest nod.
She set the towels down on the dresser and didn’t say a word. She didn’t have to. We were past words now. I watchedher slip back out into the hallway, nausea rapidly curling in my stomach.
“Excuse me,” I heard Olesya say softly, her voice trembling just enough to sound convincing. “Her cuff is biting into her wrist again. Waylon said not to damage her too much, remember?”
There was a pause, then footsteps. I tensed as the door opened to reveal my first victim of many. He was the tall one. The one with the mole under his eye and a lazy smirk he wore constantly. He strolled in like this was a chore, barely sparing me a glance.
“Princess is delicate today, huh?” he muttered as he knelt by the bed, reaching for the cuff.
I didn’t move. Not until he leaned in. His breath fanned across my face as his brown eyes focused on my leather cuff. Anxiety roared through my blood, and I wondered if he could hear my heart pounding.
Come on, Adela. Now or fucking never.
And then I struck.
The pen drove into his throat with a wet pop. His eyes bulged in shock, a strangled noise bursting in his throat as he reached for me. Quickly, I clamped a hand over his mouth, pushing my weight down as hard as I could.
His hands flailed. His blood spilled. Ah, fuck. It was warm and fast. He convulsed once, twice–then went still. I swallowed hard, fingers shaking as I fumbled for the key on his belt. My other wrist ached in its shackle, desperate for freedom.
Click.
The cuff fell open, and the silence that followed was deafening. I looked up to find Olesya in the doorway, her face bone-white, her hand pressed against her mouth. Horror danced behind her eyes–not at me, but at what we’d just done.
There was no going back now.I stood slowly, my bare feet slipping in the blood as I stepped over his body. I dropped the pen. I didn’t need it anymore.
I had the key and his weapons, now. There was a slick blade hooked onto his belt and a gun tucked into its holster. “Olesya,” I whispered, “go check the hallway.”
She didn’t move at first. Then she nodded, throat bobbing, and disappeared around the corner. I stood there for one long moment, my heart crashing against my ribs like a trapped bird, the scent of blood thick in the air. Funnily enough, that scent reminded me of Rafe. And my heart suddenly fluttered with the hope that I’d see him again after this.
Olesya came back, her lips pressed into a thin line, trembling just slightly. “One at a time?” she asked quietly.
I nodded, adrenaline coursing so violently I thought I might shake apart. “One at a time.”
There were four left. Four between me and Waylon. Four bodies that didn’t know their hearts were about to stop beating.
Olesya knocked on the den door just down the hall. “Sorry,” I heard her say, voice timid, like always. “Something’s wrong with the girl’s restraints. Can you secure her?”
A chair scraped back.
“Fine,” a voice muttered. “Boss was probably lazy again after he fucked her.”
I crouched behind the bedroom door, blood still drying on my arms, the key tucked into my waistband. I gripped the blade I’d taken from the last guard.
The guard stepped in, but I was already behind him. One slash across the throat. It was quick. He gurgled and dropped, wide-eyed and twitching. I caught his body as best I could and lowered him silently to the floor, the blade clenched so tight my knuckles ached.
