The King part 23

DEE

I can feel him coming. The vibrations of his stomps on the brick floor make way to my heart and my cunt, both of which he had been driving crazy yesterday.

He must have found out about my deal with the ringleader. I want to sink to my knees in defeat. I can’t fucking do anything right. I could fix the transmitter, couldn’t connect with the entertainers, couldn’t keep my deal with the ringleader to secretly aid Vadnar.

He does everything to keep us alive, and I just keep failing.

The guards appear with him, and I gasp at his appearance. He’s beaten. Blood dripping down his nose, cuts scattered on his chest, and bruises beginning to form.

There are more guards than usual as they scramble to open the cell door. I keep my eyes on his, which look at me with so much anger I almost confuse it for the passion I had seen in them yesterday.

He enters, and I press my back against the wall, my fingers aching to do the opposite and tend to his wounds.

The cell doors close, and one guard undoes Vadnar’s restrains. His chest heaves and nostrils flare as he waits. It’s like he’s in the enraged mode. What got him here? The revelation that I was humiliated in front of hundreds?

He charges forward, and I gasp. All air escapes when he presses his chest against mine, pinning me to the cell wall.

“Vadnar,” Hull speaks from his cell. “Don’t hurt her.”

Vadnar doesn’t even acknowledge Hull as he sneers at me. “You lied to me?” His voice is so steely it could claw at the brick walls.

“I—“ I am speechless.

“After I gave you my word and my fucking cocks?”

I remember those words. The promise that he would take care of me. And how could I forget those cocks as they filled me with so much love and trust?

My eyes flicker to the guards, who still linger there.

“Tomorrow,” says Vadnar, his voice so low it’s nearly untraceable—just like the remnants of his seed inside me. “Tomorrow, I’m breaking us out of here.”

My eyes widen. He’s whispering this here, while the guards are feet away? It’s too soon for this; too risky. We have no plan.

“But…”

He leans in, touching the tip of his cold nose against my cheekbone, and I’m taken back to the day we met on the farm and he did the same thing.

“After what you’ve done, the risk you put yourself in, I’m left with no option.”  He pulls back, directing his scowl at the guards. “Get lost!” His punch to the bars sends them scrambling. Then he corners me again, looking like a different man. And I hate that I’ve done this to him.

I palm his cheek gently. “We can’t rush the plan, because this isn’t just about me. The other gladiators deserve freedom, too.“

“It’s all about you, human!” he booms. “I will always put you before those men. And I don’t care if that makes me the monster the slavers see in me.”

Feeling panicked, I blurt, “It was just one arena performance. I didn’t get hurt.”

“You announced your existence to hundreds of Zolanos. And now they all see the beauty I see in you. It’s only a matter of time before they set a price and try to buy you. No. We’re getting out of here.”

What the hell have I done?

“But the colosseum is crawling with guards.”

“I know,” he says, stepping back and pacing.

I reach for him, wanting to take care of his wounds. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I was trying to help.”

He stops when my hand touches his shoulder, and he finally looks at me with a fire that I’m familiar with: Passion.

In a hushed tone, he whispers, “I should fuck you until your legs are too weak to carry you to the arena.”

I snatch my hand away, surprised by his threat and the jolt low in my belly that wants him to follow through.

“You are not a laughingstock. You are not a puppet. Do not ever lower yourself again, especially for me,” he grits.

I don’t understand. He lowers himself every day as he battles in the arena. He withers from lack of sleep and stress. And although I’m a burden, he still caresses my skin gently with his bruised, calloused hands at night. He won’t let me do the same. I want to protest against his selflessness, but what good would that do? Vadnar is an anomaly of a man.

I dip my head, just to make him happy, but I’m not making any promises. To protect him, I would do the unthinkable. He looks wild and roughed up with his scars and bulging muscles; a primal man foaming for survival, but I see the vulnerability in his eyes. And although he barged in here with demands, all crude and aggressive, I think I fully fell in love with him.

He faces the bars. “You two,” he calls out to the other prisoners.

“What do you want?” grunts Hull as he sits on his bed.

“Tomorrow,” is all Vadnar says.

Hull looks surprised, understanding the message.

“How?”

“Just follow me.”

That’s the end of the conversation. We can’t say anything else with the guards right at the door.

“Guards!” Vadnar calls.

There’s some scuffling outside, probably as the guards decide which one will enter. Finally, when one appears, they grip their spear and stand away from the bars. “What do you want?”

Vadnar scowls. “Tell your leader that I will spar every gladiator tomorrow at the arena. Gather them all.”

That’s one way to gather all prisoners, but it’s not enough to free us. There will be hundreds of eyes on us, and tall walls blocking freedom.

The guard leaves, and right as the door closes, Hull speaks up. “Be wary of Ranrok.”

We don’t need to ask who Ranrok is. It’s him. The master I was locked in a cell with.

We’re left alone for hours with no water, food, or medicine for Vadnar. That’s his punishment for not fighting today.

I fall asleep to forget about my hunger and worry about Vadnar. When I awake, I find him in the same position: sitting on the edge of the bed with his arms crossed and his glare set on the ground. He’s in deep thought, likely plotting our escape.

“Vadnar,” I whisper, licking my lips as I sit up.

He doesn’t look up as his arms automatically reach for me. He remains deep in thought, even as he pulls me to his lap.

“There’s something I must do today. I don’t want to argue with you, but The Entertainers–”

“Those women have rejected you, Dee. I can’t let you face more humiliation.”

I shake my head. “I won’t be humiliated. Please, trust me one last time.”

He mutters something under his breath. “Say your goodbyes. I’m taking us home.”

“To the farm?” I whisper.

“No. To the castle on top of the hill.”

He’s serious about overtaking the royals, then. I’m not sure how far we’ll get, but I’ll be with him every step.

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A/N: TOMORROW, THERE’S  A JAILBREAK! Finally we’re getting the fuck outta here!