Maisie

"You are expected to be compliant," she continued. "But I assume that will not be much of a problem once the flames are fed with the aphrodisiacs. After each knot, you will remain lying in position, on your back, for at least ten minutes. You are not allowed to stand until the seed is well inside you. And you will repeat the same action for the next knot."

I felt like garbage just listening to her speak.

And a conviction sat heavy in my heart. I was going to get out of here. The shit she was spewing was not about to become my future. I was not going to be some ejaculation dumpster because the Queen was a crazy bitch.

"Most of the men are taught to be gentle. But some will try to take their liberties tonight, because they’re well aware that you are a prisoner and not a noblewoman. In the event that that happens, a healing draught will be..."

I tuned her out, wondering if Regina and Jenny knew I had been taken. It almost seemed like an entire lifetime away when I spoke to both my best friends and Lyon this morning.

I felt hollow. Almost like a completely different person.

"But, I have received orders that you must be brought to the hall to watch the wedding proceedings from a suitable enough distance," Memah’s voice cut through my thoughts and my heart jolted with an even stronger tinge of hatred as she added, "It was Princess Tessa’s request to the Queen after informing her about you."

I didn’t know who I wanted to kill more. The four of them, or their stupid silver haired bride.

Funny, wasn’t it? That they pulled shit and got gifted a lavish wedding with the most beautiful bride, and it was me who suffered for it.

Every. Single. Time.

My heart. My head. And now, my body and my dignity. For men who couldn’t have been bothered to be truthful with me.

"In an hour, you will be dressed and brought up to the private viewing balcony. And you will be taken to the fire afterwards." She glanced at the maids. "The white shift should do. Brush out her hair and place the chains around her wrists instead. Bring her to the Grand Hall in an hour."

****

There’s a different way one fights when they know no one’s coming for them.

Dirty. Wicked. Desperate.

I knew it the second the chains were moved from my ankles to my wrists that this was the only chance I’d get to escape.

So, I bade my time.

When they placed the transparent, soft pink see-through silk shift on me, I let them. There was no underwear. Every inch of me could be seen merely by looking and all the shift did was place it in a teasing, yet obscene haze that would appeal to the male gaze.

I let them brush my hair over my shoulders. I even let them straighten out the frizz.

They applied some form of powder and blush to my cheeks that made me look softer. They left my lips as they were. They looked more plump and redder than usual tonight. When they were done, I looked pure. Innocent. Ready for all of their perversion and corruption.

I even let them file my nails. Douse me in more oils and scents.

When the door opened and I was led outside and handed over to the guards, I didn’t even flinch when one of them made lewd remarks about fucking me in the ass.

I stayed perfectly still, like the doll they wanted me to be, and I let them guide me to the balcony, counting how many left and right turns we took, and how far we were from the entrance.

I heard the music long before we ever came close to the hall. I heard the soft sounds of oohs and aahs coming from the distance. I heard the laughter of the students. And I felt nearly detached from the whole thing.

A few days ago, my biggest worries had been getting the perfect scores. Now, it was something I couldn’t even think of without wanting to puke.

"If you make another scene," a guard muttered against my ear. "We will gag you. And maybe we’ll have a piece of your sweet ass first before the full breds. No one would hear you scream."

"Leave her alone, Seb," I heard Drystan say, just as we turned the corner.

"Why? The full bred get all the good ones. Tell me you aren’t in the least curious."

Then, I pretended to stumble. It was believable, considering I was being yanked left and right, and still hadn’t had a bite all day.

I bet heavily on the fact that Seb was a disgusting prick and would use the opportunity to try touch what wasn’t his.

And it came as no shock when he reached out to steady me and placed his fingers obscenely close to my ass.

With every ounce of strength I had, I slammed my elbow into his left eye. He cried out but the third guard was already moving in.

It was Drystan.

It was with no small pleasure that I slammed my knee up into his crotch and when he doubled over, eyes bulging, I swung the length of the chain holding my wrists together, whipping it across his face like a lash. Upon contact, the metal burned against his cheek and he let out a girlish cry.

Then I turned on my heel and began running. Shouts rang out behind me. I felt a hand grab at mine and catch me around the waist.

I twisted like an animal, biting, clawing. And then I slammed my head backward into his nose with a sickening crunch. I felt the pain explode in the back of my head, but the pain was secondary as I succeeded in wrenching myself free for long enough to bolt.

The gown tangled around my legs like a death trap. I hiked it up with both hands and ran barefoot down the marble corridor, the cold stone biting into my feet.

Pounding footsteps thundered behind me.

I’d lost aim and direction, so I headed straight for the sound of the noise. It was my best bet. I would lose them in the crowd I knew was in there.

I burst through a side door and stumbled straight into... blinding lights.

I was in some kind of amphitheater. Holy shit, it was huge!

"There!" I heard a guard yell and my heart slammed into my ribs as I burst straight into the crowd.

"Hey!" someone yelled. Probably a first year. And the complaints rose and soared, disrupting the perfect, harmonious music flitting through the hall, until heads began to turn to find the reason for the ruckus.

I kept running.

I wasn’t sure when to stop. I wasn’t sure if I could stop.

Just a little farther, I told myself. Maybe if I found Regina or Jenny or Lyon... goddess, even Cole at this point would be helpful—

I had no idea where the crowd began or ended. Just that when I took my next step, I was suddenly at the center of the amphitheater with thousands of eyes on me.

And because I was running way too fast to stop myself, I didn’t realize the ceremony was already in progress.

Or that Tessa was gliding down the grand Eastern red carpet in a radiant gown of white and gold, heading toward the center where Soren was already walking to meet her.

And Tessa’s shocked scream was the last thing I heard before I collided into her at full speed, knocking us both into the ground.