Into the Woods

“You are ours—from this day forward, until the end of time.”

Under different circumstances, those words would’ve been sweet, romantic.

But Loch and Hael weren’t interested in love…

They were talking about ~enslavement~.

Everything I thought I knew had turned upside down.

The Dobrzyckas had finally shown me their true nature, and it was disturbing to say the least.

“Don’t take it personally, Madeline. You must understand that we’re traditional creatures,” Hael said smoothly. “It’s in our blood to demand obedience from lower life forms.”

“Somehow that doesn’t make me feel any better,” I said, taking a step away from them.

So far, they hadn’t threatened violence or forced me to do anything, but I didn’t like where this was headed, and I needed to stay on guard.

If life as a thief had taught me anything, it was to always have an escape plan.

But I needed time, which meant I had to distract the brothers while I determined my escape route.

~Just keep them talking. They clearly love the sound of their own fucking voices.~

“Just what exactly does the mate of two Dragon Lords do?” I asked while glancing around the ballroom. People were staring at us, but the Dobrzyckas commanded too much power and influence for anyone to intervene on my behalf.

“What is my purpose?”

Loch’s eyes lit up, and I could practically see his depraved desires swimming in them.

“You spread your legs, little mouse. Without question. Without hesitation,” he said, licking his lips.

“That’s rape,” I whispered in disgust. It was barbaric, and I wasn’t going to stick around and allow that to happen to me.

I recalled the moments we were together before I arrived at Graceful Springs. While the brothers were never overly caring, they also weren’t cruel.

In fact, I’d started to develop a fondness for them. They gave me attention, shelter, even affection. And I knew I’d felt something for them. Some pull to be with them.

Was it all a lie?

“Was everything before just a facade?” I asked angrily. “Did you ever care about my feelings? Did you ever really want to get to know me?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Loch snarled. “We were softening you up, preparing you for your role as our mate.”

The look on Hael’s face told me this might not be entirely true, but it was hard to know what to believe.

Hael had always been the more level-headed, sensitive one, but even a sensitive monster is still a fucking monster.

“What if I don’t want this? What if I don’t comply?” I asked defiantly.

“Madeline, we already know that you ~want~ this. You feel it in your brand as our destined mate,” Hael replied drolly. “Your compliance is a different matter entirely, however. It’s not surprising that you’d be compelled to resist. But that’s something you can be trained to forget.”

~Trained?~

“I’m not your fucking pet,” I spat. “I’m not like Darren.”

“That’s exactly what you are,” Loch jeered. “And if you disobey, we’ll just keep training you until you learn to submit, like a good little mouse.”

There was no mention of love.

No mention of respect.

No concern for my own desires.

There was only talk of obedience.

Submission.

Slavery.

I refused to be anyone’s fucking slave.

This magical fairytale prom was just a front for an induction into sexual servitude, and I wasn’t going to play along, whether I was a destined mate or not.

I’d mapped out the entire room by this point and determined the best exit. There was a large velvet banner hanging from an open window, about ten feet off the ground.

I was a fast climber, and if I timed it right, I could reach the top and get through the window before they had time to react.

I wiggled my feet in my shoes, testing their fit. They were a little big, meaning I would be able to slip them off easily. I lifted my foot just slightly off of my heel…

“You may think that you have some kind of ownership over me because of this mark, but I can assure you that isn’t the case,” I said assertively, narrowing my eyes. “I’ll be keeping my freedom. I’ll never be your slave.”

In an instant, I kicked off my heels and made a mad dash for the banner, grabbing a lit candle out of its holder on my way.

I hoisted myself up the banner like it was nothing, and when I reached the top, I dropped the candle, lighting the banner on fire.

It was dramatic, but at least it caused a disturbance.

Screams echoed below as I disappeared through the window. I kept going, not looking back to see if Loch and Hael were following me.

I didn’t have time to look back. I couldn’t make a single mistake.

I wasn’t running from some thugs in the back alleys of Requiem City…

I was running from fucking dragons.

I shimmed along the outside windowsill until I was right above the curtain wall that surrounded the keep of the castle. The drop was dangerous, but no more dangerous than staying behind and becoming a slave to dragons.

I let out a breath before taking a chance and leaping onto the wall. My landing was rough, but I survived. I looked around, trying to figure out my next move.

From what I could tell, the castle was surrounded by a forest as far as the eye could see. Maybe I could lose them in there? At least there’d be plenty of cover.

But first I’d have to get off this damn castle.

After tonight, castles, ballrooms, and fancy dresses were officially ruined for me.

And speaking of fancy dresses…

~Rii-ii-ii-ppp.~

I tore a long slit up both sides of my dress so that I’d have better mobility. I couldn’t have cared less about ruining it, now that I knew who gave it to me.

I started running toward the nearest tower, tossing the jewelry over the side of the wall as I went.

When I reached the tower, I realized it was jutting out of the mountain, which was a good thing as there was no way I’d be able to climb down the wall itself.

I shimmed between two stone pillars and looked down. It was another drop, but not nearly as bad as the first.

Shouts sounded behind me, and I knew I couldn’t stay there any longer. I jumped, falling on the cold, hard side of the mountain.

I took a quick inventory of myself as I stood. I was scratched up, but nothing felt broken, so I started to run.

I didn’t know where I was going, just as far away as possible.

My bare feet started to sting as I attempted to get a foothold in the craggy mountainside.

The roaring waterfall just feet away was deafening, and it also made the rocks much more slippery than normal.

As I slowly and carefully made my descent, I prayed that the brothers hadn’t spotted me yet.

I wouldn’t have been surprised if they gave me a head start on purpose—anything to make the game more challenging.

Well, I wasn’t going to play their twisted games. I’d do whatever was necessary to keep myself out of their grasp.

~Thump~.

I looked back to see the tower wall shake as if something massive had just rammed into the castle.

I nearly lost my grip as I hugged the mountainside to avoid falling debris.

~Thump~.

The second time, I wasn’t so lucky…

A rock hit me in the jaw, and I lost my footing.

I fell fast, the rushing waterfall and the wind pounding in my ears. Within seconds, my body hit the lake at the bottom of the waterfall, and I was submerged.

Dazed, I let myself sink farther and farther, until there was almost no light.

My brand suddenly surged with pain, and I came to, struggling to breathe.

I frantically paddled my arms, swimming to the top, where I breached the surface and gasped for air.

Holy fuck, I’d almost drowned.

Coughing and sputtering, I swam to the edge and pulled myself onto dry land.

There was a thunderous flapping sound overhead, so powerful that the tops of the trees swayed back and forth.

It sounded like a helicopter, but slower. And larger.

Luckily, this forest was incredibly dense, so no one would be able to see me from above, but I had to keep moving. If I was incredibly lucky, I’d be able to find a cave to hide out in until I was sure the brothers gave up on me.

I returned to the water to take a drink. As I looked at my reflection in the water, I saw a worn and ragged girl looking back.

The beautiful dress I was wearing now looked like a tattered piece of muddy cloth.

I had come for a magical prom and ended up in a horror movie, running for my life.

I was sure it was just what the Dobrzycka brothers wanted.

I was practically their prisoner—or at least I would be if I was caught.

A captive of two Dragon Lords who would do with me as they pleased. They’d made that very clear.

Would they put me in chains? Throw me in a cage?

I wouldn’t put anything past that beastly duo at this point.

I turned from the lake and continued my trek through the forest, trying to stay in the thickest, most overgrown areas.

If it was a hunt they wanted, I wouldn’t make it easy for them.

I picked up things from the forest floor I thought could be useful if I needed to fight. Using a tie from my hair, which was now a tangled mess, I tied a sharp rock to a stick to use as a makeshift weapon.

Thea said we were going to slay tonight—she just didn’t realize it would be dragons that we were slaying.

“Come and get it, you leathery pricks.”

There was an old stone tower in the distance. A groundskeeper’s cottage, maybe?

It didn’t matter. I made my way toward it anyway.

It was perched precariously on a cliff overlooking a deep canyon. I busted open the rusty lock with my makeshift weapon and entered, climbing the spiral stone staircase to the top.

Pushing open a wooden hatch above me, I emerged on the top of the tower.

A powerful gust of wind nearly knocked me off balance as something flew over my head.

A shadow the size of a jumbo jet shaded the treetops, and my stomach clenched as I looked up.

~Oh my God~.

~It’s…it’s…~

~Magnificent~.

No matter how afraid I was, there was no denying the beauty of the massive winged creature flying overhead.

Its green scales sparkled in the moonlight like emeralds.

The dragon suddenly made a sharp turn and started diving—directly at me.

There was no time to retreat into the tower. The dragon’s jaw had unhinged, and a fireball was forming in its mouth.

~It’s now or never~.

I closed my eyes and leapt off the tower into the ravine.

I was only falling for a matter of seconds when—

~WHOOSH~.

I felt warm, sharp scales beneath me.

A second dragon had flown underneath, catching me midfall. This one was black as night and slightly larger.

I screamed at the top of my lungs as the dragon dove toward the ground. I held its rough scales for dear life.

Loch’s voice suddenly sounded in my head.

“~Keep it up, little mouse. My heart warms with every scream.~”