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Suddenly a shadow appeared on the wall before me—a figure draped in black with a menacing air about it. I opened my mouth to speak and felt something stop me from doing so—I realized I was bound, tightly restrained by the vines that dug deep into my flesh. But before I could do anything to resist them, I felt a sharp jab penetrate my side. A searing pain raced through me like an electric shock, and all the terror evaporated away as my entire body went limp. My head rolled to the side and there it was—a bony hand with talons like a predatory bird—something so familiar yet so far away that it didn’t even seem real.
“Long live the Bloody Queen,” the creature rasped.
“Long live the Bloody Queen.”
“Long live the Bloody Queen.”
“Long live…”
A creeping feeling of numbness surrounded me as everything faded away. Darkness shrouded my vision and stillness filled the air until eventually I succumbed to the confusion and drifted away.
“Christine! Baby, wake up.”
My eyes fluttered open and slick sweat dripped down my head. I blinked a couple of times, and vivid green eyes came into focus.
“Leo?” I whispered.
I looked around the cabin and saw that we were alone.
“You were having a nightmare.” He brushed a blonde strand of hair out of my eyes and placed his large hands on either side of my head. “Thank God you woke up.”
“What happened? Where are we?” I tried to sit up, but he held me down.
“We’re in the cabin. Augustus and Atticus went to meet a contact to get some money and supplies. We can’t stay here long. I’m trying to get you to sleep again, but you’re too restless.”
He was right. My muscles were tense, my scalp itched, and my legs ached from the long hours of running.
“I can’t sleep. I’m too tired to sleep.”
Leo looked at me with sympathetic eyes. He’d cleaned up since the last time I’d seen him. When we arrived, he fell asleep against the wall, and I used the hose outside to wash the blood from my skin. He must have done the same. I’d stayed up for a while, numb and disassociated from all the kills. Atticus and August tried to get me to talk, but I was too strung out to process everything. Our clothes were ruined, so both of us sat naked on the bed.
I nodded. “I’m exhausted, physically and mentally. How much longer will we stay here?”
“Couple of hours at most. They sent teams of guards looking for us.”
I sat up, but once again, Leo pushed me back down into the mattress. “Leo,” I breathed. “We have to get ready to move. Who is August and Atticus meeting with? I should have gone with them. It’s dangerous—”
“They’re fine. Atticus knows them. We’re going to get far away from here…”
“Leo. I don’t like that they left—”
“They didn’t want to wake you. You need to rest. Your feet are covered in blisters. Relax. They’ll be safe.”
“But they shouldn’t have—”
“Christine. Please stop worrying. You need to sleep. You’re exhausted.”
I bit my tongue and Leo’s eyes softened.
“It’s not my intention to control what you do or say, but I just want you to be safe. I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you. I’d—” He broke off and looked away. “I’d never forgive myself.”
My heart ached and I reached out to touch his cheek. “Leo, are you okay?”
He nodded. “You saved me and brought me here. You didn’t have to do that. You protected me in that damn place. If you hadn’t, I wouldn’t be alive.”
“Leo. Of course I would save you.”
“But who saves you, Christine?” he asked, his piercing eyes burning a hole right through my soul.
