Page 21 of Reign
“Kitten, it's your call,” Dario whispers into my other.
“On my signal,” I whisper as Walker hangs up the phone, sliding it into his pocket.
“Now, where were we?” he asks.
“You wanting me to go with you and this will all end.” I smile, walking towards him.
“You’re willing to leave your men—your kingdom and children to come with me?” he asks, tilting his head.
“Yes, only if it ensures their safety and that this all goes away. A life for a life,” I answer, and he smiles.
“I knew I’d like you, Jade,” he says, and I laugh.
“Oh, one more thing,” I say, getting closer to him, using my body as a distraction while I drag my knife up his chest. He eyes me, licking his lips and leaning down towards me.
“The only liar here is you,” I whisper, and his eyes widen as I send my knife through the bottom of his chin so fast, then rip it out just as fast before he can push me away. Gunshots ring around me as I use him as a shield, whipping his gun around him to shoot the men on either side of Slash. Throwing him to the ground, I spin around as men come barreling in from the rooms down the hall. Taking my pistols out, I shoot left, right, left as Ryder rushes to his father, taking him down from the chains while Spade watches his back, shooting anyone that comes his way. I run over to the women huddled in the far corner, making sure none of them are hit while Dario and Jamie take down the others.
“Lucille, take the girls to the chapel. Lock the doors. Okay? You know the drill,” I tell her, and she nods. Lifting my gun as they run down the hall opposite the rooms, I clear the path for them, ensuring they get to safety without an issue. Once I see her shut the chapel doors, I turn back around to check the other side where the bedrooms are to make sure there are no children here tonight.
Kicking in the first door, I see two men raping a teenage girl. I don’t think before I shoot them one by one, right in the skull. Looking back down the hall, I see Spade and our eyes collide. “Take her down to the chapel. I’m going to check all the rooms. She might need to be looked at. Those fuckers were raping her,” I spit, and he nods, doing exactly what I asked.
Checking the next room, I see it’s clear, and I keep going, making sure no one else is hiding anywhere. I get to Ryker's old room and kick in the door, ducking as a barrel comes flying at my head, shooting behind me. Still with my knife in hand, I jab the man in the wrist, twisting it, making him drop his weapon, then drag the knife across his throat. He chokes, causing his blood to spray against my face more than usual. Stepping to the side, I let him fall face first and peek into the room, seeing more women crying, huddled in the corner.
“It’s okay, you guys. Spade is going to take you to the chapel where it's safe,” I assure them, and they nod, standing and following me out of the room. Spade comes back and takes them. “Hey, there’s D’mitri’s room and my father's left, then it's all clear,” I tell him, and he nods, walking away with the others in tow. I release my mags and put new ones in before walking further down the hall. D’mitri’s door is already open as I slowly point my pistol as I enter, but the room is clear. Exiting, I go to my father's room. I haven’t been in there since he died, so I take a deep breath and kick in the door, but it doesn't budge. I growl as Dario comes into view, rushing towards me.
“I can’t get it open,” I spit, and he laughs.
“Move it, toots,” he jokes, lifting his leg and kicking the wood. It splinters, and gunshots ring out at us. We both jump to opposite sides of the door and point our guns inside, but the cries of a baby stop us in our tracks.
“Fuck, we can’t shoot in there,” I say, and he nods.
“We can’t send a smoke bomb in there either,” he spits.
“Fuck, I guess we take our chances.” I smile, and he shakes his head.
“Jade, don’t!” he yells, but it’s too late. I run into the room, ducking down and falling to my right, sweeping my leg out to take down one man with a gun. He falls backwards as another grabs me from behind, wrapping his arm around my neck. I take my knife and slam it into his knee and twist, ripping it out, causing him to release me as Dario shoots the man on the ground right between the eyes, and I spin, dragging my knife across the other man's neck. Once again, blood splatters against my face as the man falls forward. Dario pulls me out of the way, letting the asshole fall onto the ground.
“You okay, baby?” he asks, and I nod. Looking around the room, I see a baby in a crib and a few toddlers with duct tape across their mouths in a cage.
“I’m so sick of these fucking men hurting kids,” I growl as I open the cage, letting Dario take them out one by one as I pick up the screaming baby from the crib. We leave the room and take them to the chapel, handing Lucille the baby and the other kids to the rest of the women. “I’m going to call the Doc in. I’ll let you know when it’s safe to come out. Alright?” I ask, and she nods, cupping my face.
“Your mother would be so proud of you, Fallon,” she says, and I sigh, nodding in response. We leave the room and head back to the bar. I sit down in a chair and take a deep breath.
“Everyone okay?” I ask, looking for all of my men.
“Where the fuck is Jamie?” I ask, and Dario looks at me with wide eyes. I stand looking around the room. “Where the fuck is Jamie?” I yell, but no one is answering me.
“He’s gone,” Dario says from behind me, and I spin.
“What the fuck do you mean he’s gone?” I panic as tears form in my eyes.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” he says as the room spins and everything goes black.
Jameson
I'm the Monster
I ran like the coward I am. That’s what I do when things get tough. I’m to blame for everything. All because of my father. He is the reason I’m like this. He’s the reason everything is happening. I’m just a puppet in his game. Always have been.
