Page 125 of Rising Queen (Blood Empire 1)

“Stupid bitch,” the guy growls, pulling me up by the shirt, getting in my face. “Can't believe I get to be the one to put down the one and only, all powerful Queenie,” he grins.

I struggle in his hold, unable to properly make sense of anything right now. He laughs and laughs as he tells me all the fucked-up things, he wants to do with me, but I can't do anything. My brain is betraying me. I'm useless right now.

Then, there's a bang. Warmth sprays across my face. My body sways back, no longer being held up. Using the wall to keep me from crashing to the ground, I look over to see Tracy standing there with a smoking gun, breathing hard.

She looks at me, then rushes over. “Harlow, thank fuck you're okay. I really thought he was about to kill you,” she cries. She helps me stand and brings me over to a chair to sit down.

“Never, Trace. Like fuck I'll go down that easy,” I laugh, trying to get the rattling feeling to leave my brain. “But between you and me, it was kind of a hit to my pride, having him get one up on me. But hey, I guess there's always a first time for everything.”

“Fuck, I’ve missed you,” she laughs, pulling me into a hug. I hold her tight as an overwhelming feeling of relief and happiness takes over, replacing the pain... for now.

“Iknewyou would come. I never let myself doubt it for a second.”

“From the moment you went missing, and the news reports started up, we did everything we could. But girl, they were good. I'm just sorry it took us this long.”

“Don't be. What matters is you found us in time. We’re all okay and alive,” she says.

“Alright, girl. You okay enough to help us get these girls back to our little village?” I grin.

“More than okay,” she smiles. She walks over to the guy who I dick filleted. Fucker is already dead from bleeding out. I'm just sad I didn't get to shove it down this throat.

She takes out a ring of keys and tosses them to me, then walks over to the guy she shot in the head and takes out another set. “I'll take the left side; you take the right?”

“Let's get this done and get these girls home.”

IT DOESN'T TAKE TOOlong to get everyone out. I made sure to check them over; some are scared, others are wearing brave faces. They’ve survived a lot, but I know some of them were not lucky enough to be left untouched. Some of them flinched away at first, and it broke my heart to see, reminding me of too many bad memories.

We gave them some bottles of water and granola bars that the guards had stashed down here. From the looks of these girls, and how they devoured their food, they were not being fed much.

Doing a headcount, I see that we have all ten women. “Alright, Tracy, are you ready to go? We can find the nearest manhole, get to the top, and call for help.”

“Wait, we're missing Sam,” Tracy says, slipping past me and heading down the line of cages, all the way to the back.Sam?

Following her, I see her disappear into the dark. “Tracy!” I hiss, wondering where the fuck she went.

“Over here,” she calls from the dark. Getting the flashlight from my pocket, I follow after her.

There in the dark, away from everyone, is another cage. Only this one doesn't have a girl in it. I shine my light on Tracy and find her squatting next to a man. A very gorgeous man with long, blonde hair and striking blue eyes.

He's huddled in the corner like a scared little mouse, and my heart breaks. His eyes dart between Tracy and me.

“Hey. It's okay. She’s here to help,” Tracy says in a calming voice. “You're okay now.”

Something tells me this man is far from okay.

The beast roars within me. She tells me that this man must be protected at all costs. The overwhelming need to kill every fucker who ever hurt him takes over, and I don't even know this man. I don't know his story or even his full name. But I do know, from just that one look, that this man has had it much worse than me, and that says a lot.

He's in nothing but a pair of gray sweatpants. Tattoos on display over his naked chest. He looks a little on the scrawny side, but he's still one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever laid eyes on.

“Tracy. Go back to the girls. I got this,” I tell her.

She looks a little unsure, but does what I ask.

When she's gone, I slowly make my way into the cage. “Hi,” I say, lowering my voice to a softer tone, giving him a sweet smile that probably comes off as sad. “My name is Harlow.”

He just blinks at me. I need him to trust me enough to come with me. I can't and won't leave him behind. My beast has to do this.Needs to.

I sit down on the other side of the cage, facing him.

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