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“That’s right, and if you refuse… Well, I suppose I’ll have to kill her right here, right now. I’m not kidding around this time.”
I grunt, knowing my tactic of not caring won’t work this time around. I look at Rory, the sight of her breaking my heart. Wishing her no further harm, I turn my gaze to Vippera as a tear falls down my cheeks.
“Okay, Vippera. I’ll do it. We’ll get married. Just please don’t harm Rory anymore.”
At least now Rory will be set free…
“Very good,” says Vippera. She snaps her thumbs as more guards emerge from behind me, unlocking Rory from her restraints. “Keep her out of sight from the others, and throw Zalith in the cells!”
“Wait, I thought you were letting her go!” I yell.
“I said I wouldn’t kill her, nothing about setting her free!” she cackles, reeling her head back in laughter.
“No!” I exclaim, squirming as Rory is grabbed and dragged out of the room by the hair.
“Get Zalith out of my sight!”
“Get off of me!” I scream, fighting out of the guard’s grip. I punch the nearest one and kick away the other. I’m ready to take on more but Vippera whips the flat side of her dagger against my temple, causing me to fall to the ground.
“Enough with your fighting, there’s no use in it! Save your energy for our wedding like a good boy.”
The guards grab me once more, my body limp as they lift me off the ground. They bring me into the holding area as Rory disappears out of sight. Vippera follows closely behind.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I call to her.
“All of this wouldn’t have happened had you just married me from the start,” she hisses.
“If I’d done that, I would have been dead by now!”
“It’s a shame you’re still alive, but I’ll get some use out of you yet!”
The guards hold me down as she steps forward, opening the cell door. Without warning, I’m tossed inside like a rag doll. My face lands with a hard impact on the concrete floor.
“You’re not going to get away with this!” I exclaim, grabbing the cell bars.
“What makes you think that? I’ve been two steps ahead of you this entire time.”
“My parents! The King and Queen will notice I’ve gone missing!”
“Ha! Not if they think that their human-loving son has run off with his human whore!”
I snarl, knowing that could be the conclusion my parents come to. They know I didn’t want to marry and could buy into that story, leaving me down here forgotten. I pull hopelessly at the cell door.
“I must be off then,” sighs Vippera. “This was fun. Don’t worry though my dear, I’ll be back soon.”
“Don’t harm Rory! Please, I beg of you!”
“Do not tell me what to do with my property. You better get ready. We’re to be wed when I get back, and then I’ll finally have the crown just as I was always meant to…”
I slump to my knees, the cackling of Vippera turning into an echo as she and her entourage leave me alone in the darkness of the prison area. All lights go out, and I can see nothing except for a faint glimmer of light from the nighttime sky, poking in through a hole in the wall.
“Why?” I moan. “It wasn’t supposed to end like this… Rory, I’m so sorry…”
I’m hit with a sense of deja vu, feeling as though we’re somehow back at the beginning. This time, I’m not going to be able to save her, and what could she do to save me? With hopelessness staring me down like never before, I break down into a sob, my tears filled with longing and rage.
It’s all over now.
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