Page 49 of The Demon Crown

For the first time in this ordeal, she felt fear.

“No,” Varya whispered. “Why would I tell you anything if you’re threatening me with that?”

“Because they can be kind or they can be rough.” He shrugged. “Either way you choose, I’m going to get the information I want. You’ll either tell me now, or you’ll tell me after they break you.”

“It sounds like they’ll break me no matter how I choose.”

He grinned, all teeth and gleaming dark eyes. “Probably. They’re not known for being kind.”

Her heart thudded hard in her chest as a cold sweat broke out over her body. She wouldn’t let them do this. Of all things, of all nightmares to be trapped in, she’d never expected this of the Horde.

They were terrible people, everyone knew that. They didn’t care about the state of the kingdom, only themselves. But that shouldn’t have led to... this.

She couldn’t even think the word in her mind. Couldn’t put a name to what they were threatening even though her stomach clenched and her thighs sealed together in a bid to keep herself safe.

What was she supposed to do with arms that were popped out of their sockets and lungs that now were wheezing?

He saw the thoughts flickering over her features as though she had spoken them aloud. “You know what is happening, yes? You know there is no more fight for you. You will tell me where the map is, and I will do my best to see you through the night still alive.”

“Is that even worth it?” she hissed. “Who wants to remain alive after that?”

He reached for her face, his fingers ghosting over the bruises on her cheeks. “You are strong. You’ll want to stay alive for as long as possible. Giving up now is just letting us win. You will fight, and we will battle, and in the end, I will win.”

She ground her teeth. “What makes you so sure you’ll win?”

She saw his fist draw back. The movement was so fast it was almost like a cobra striking at her. But she felt it connect with the socket of her eye and she felt the earth shattering pain of bone on bone.

Had he broken her skull? Had he done irreparable damage? What if she couldn’t see out of that eye anymore? How would she thieve?

But then she supposed that didn’t matter. Because he was wrong. She wasn’t that strong. She wasn’t a fighter who wanted to live with the memories of these horrible men who had laid her out in the sands and then took their time with her.

Already the one whose leg she’d backed into was working on his pants. He struggled with the tie. The dolt had knotted it so tightly that he’d need a knife to get out of it.

Varya didn’t feel like she was here. Her soul had whisked away from her body, leaving her to sit there on her own. Numb, icy cold, she muttered, “Why does he get to go first?”

“He doesn’t have to.” The Horde leader combed his fingers through her tangled hair, tugging too hard and ripping as he went. “You could tell me where the map is, and I’ll go first.”

That was supposed to be better?

This time, she spat in his face. Let him punch her again. Maybe she wouldn’t be awake for any of it. Maybe she’d pass out for hours and only wake with an ache between her legs. But that was equally terrible. This was all terrible.

The Horde leader lunged to his feet, cursing at her as he wiped her spit from his face. He kicked her hard in the ribs, spitting back at her as he kicked again and again.

Her ribs exploded. It felt like every bone in her body shattered, even though she knew she was made of harder stuff than that. When the booted feet stopped, she didn’t even care. Let them touch her. Let them do whatever they wanted but get it over quick because she just wanted to be alone.

The first man knelt behind her, apparently having won against the ties that bound him. She didn’t even flinch when his hands came to her ankle, cutting through the cords there and tugging her closer. It didn’t matter. She was numb. She wasn’t even here. She was shaking in fear, but that was natural… Wait… She wasn’t shaking.

The cave was.

The ground trembled underneath them, rocked with a movement that she’d never felt in her life. It was like the stones in the cave were rattling with the force of something deep beneath them.

A shout echoed through the cave, and then suddenly they were all moving. One of the Horde members grabbed onto her arm, her socket screaming yet again as he yanked her after him. The stones dug into her legs, but it didn’t matter. She was already a giant ball of pain.

The moment they hit the sands, however, the entire world exploded. Sand kicked up into her face and the Horde member who had held onto her arm vanished. She hit the ground hard on her face. Varya couldn’t see anything that was happening, but she could hear the yells. The screams.

The Horde leader was shouting for the men to get their mounts. “Run!” he shouted over and over again. “Move your asses and run!”

What were they running from, though?

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