by Queen Pen
Rebel & her Beast
Rebel & her Beast
An Urban Fairytale
Queen Pen
Book 4 of the Urban Fairytale Series
Copyright © 2019 by Queen Pen
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.
First Printing: 2019
Kingdom Lit Publications
Bloomington, MN
www.kingdomlitpublications.com
Dedication
To my best friend, Kayla. Thank you for always supporting me and encouraging me to follow my dreams. Rebel reminds me of you because of her love for reading. I love that we have books in common. I love you forever,
Queen Pen
Contents
Acknowledgements
Previously In Lil Red Ryder
Prologue
One
Two
three
four
five
six
seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Epilogue
Upcoming from queen pen
Upcoming from kingdom lit publications
Keep in touch with queen pen
Acknowledgements
First, I have to thank my readers. You guys keep me motivated. It is because of you that I am able to keep pushing, no matter how hard this writing game can be. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
I want to thank Iesha Bree for always creating custom book covers for me. They are always so beautiful and spot on! Not only have you been a business partner, you have become a friend. Thank you for always being there for me.
Huge shout out to my editor, Katrina Belton. You have been with me through thick and thin. From little girls, to business partners, you are now, and always have been amazing.
To my husband, Shawn. I am reminded every day on why I fell in love with you. Thank you for always being interested in my goals. Thank you for helping me to strive for the best. I love you forever.
Previously In Lil Red Ryder
Kobra was outside on the front lawn on his hands and knees. He was crying and yelling for someone to call 911. In front of him, Jakiah lay on her back with several bullet holes in her body. I stared at her, hard, looking for the rise and fall of her chest but there was none.
Prince and Briella were several feet away. Briella was screaming and trying to break free from Prince’s grasp. Tears were pouring down her face and I was certain that her anguished cries would stay with me until the day I died. Roscoe sprinted out of the house, yelling at Prince but I was too dazed to understand what he was saying.
Noella and Amir came running out of the house and Amir picked Noella up off her feet and sprinted to a nearby car and shoved her in. Roscoe got in the driver’s seat and Prince carried Briella, kicking and screaming, and forced her into the car as well.
Roscoe sped off and Prince went over to Kobra. I followed him, like a robot. As I neared, I heard Kobra’s cries and it brought me to my knees. I reached for his hand. His face was contorted in pain and he looked at me as if asking for his help. I stared back at him helplessly.
I wiped his tears and suppressed a sob of my own as I looked at Prince. “What’s happening? Who else is here?”
I could hear gunshots ringing through the house and fear gripped me as I thought about Hood and the rest of my friends and family.
“We were ambushed, Ry. Some niggas came up in here and started firing shots. It caught us completely by surprise we didn’t have time to react. They forced their way inside and Jakiah…she jumped in front of Kobra. I don’t know, man. It all happened so fast,” Prince looked like he was on the verge of tears himself.
I had heard enough, though. Tears clouding my vision, I got off the ground and ran into the house. My only thought was getting to Hood. Inside, the house was a complete disaster. I saw August, Doc, Uncle King and all of Noella’s brothers ducked behind various pieces of furniture, exchanging shots with some wild looking niggas. I had no idea who they were but there were only a couple of them left standing. They had no chance against my people who were firing wildly at them, trying to finish them off.
I took a quick inventory of the room and didn’t see Hood, so I proceeded up to the next level of the house with my gun drawn and aimed in front of me. I walked down the hall, listening carefully which was difficult with gunshots ringing out periodically.
The closer I got to my Granny’s room, the more I could have sworn I heard her singing, which confused the fuck out of me. I pushed her door open and aimed my gun straight ahead. Granny was lying in bed with her eyes closed. I dropped my gun and yelled out to her but when I got closer, I noticed the blood seeping from underneath the blanket.
“Granny! No! Granny, wake up!” I screamed as I shook her. She didn’t respond as I cried and pleaded for her to wake up. She had multiple stab wounds to her body and bruising on her face. I sat there and cried for a few minutes before I heard a voice on the other side of the room.
“I was wondering when you would get here.” I jumped at the sound of the voice and grabbed for my gun on my waistband, when I remembered I dropped it by the door. I looked up and almost passed the fuck out.
Standing in front of me, wearing one of my granny’s dresses and makeup all over his face was Lil Wolfe. He was humming tunelessly as he stared at me. I wiped the tears from my eyes, sure that they were clouding my vision.
Nope.
Still, as clear as day, Lil Wolfe stood in front of me with an erratic look on his face, staring at me. “H-how, what—"
“Crazy, huh?” He asked in a singsong voice. “You thought you’d seen the last of me when you shot me in the head four years ago, didn’t you?”
I didn’t say anything. I just stared at him, terrified to say or do anything. He had a bloody knife in one hand and a gun in the other. He twirled around dreamily and watched as Granny’s sundress flared out. Still, I stayed silent, taking in the sight of Lil Wolfe.
“Well, here I am!” Lil Wolfe bellowed. “Long story short…you shot me in the head and my dad doubled back for me and good thing he did because I was still alive, but barely. They say the bullet took a chunk out of my brain or something.” He looked around thoughtfully, “I’ve been in a psychiatric hospital. Imagine my surprise, when one of my father’s crew members came to visit me and told me my father had been killed. Not only that, but that you had done it.”
My jaw dropped in surprise. Lil Wolfe didn’t seem to notice as he continued, “oh, you’re wondering how I know? Easy. They had the cellar under surveillance. The wolves liked to re-watch their time down there, if you know what I mean.” He winked at me.
At that moment, the door flew open and Hood ran in. “Ryder there you—" but he was cut off. Time moved in slow motion and Lil Wolfe laughed in glee as Hood made eye contact with me before crumpling to the floor.
“Nooo!!! Hood! Baby, look at me!” I jumped off the bed and crawled to him on my hands and knees, shaking uncontrollably. Flashbacks of me slipping through Riley and Raquelle’s blood sifted through my mind as I felt Hood’s warm blood on my fingers. He was gasping for air as I covered the hole that was gaping in the spot where his heart was supposed to be.
“Baby hold on. I’ll get help,” I cried as I pulled my phone out of my
pocket.
“I-I l-love you, R-ryder.” Hood said before he gave one last rattling breathe.
I screamed at the top of my lungs and I was vaguely aware of Lil Wolfe mimicking my cries from behind me. It didn’t matter, though. Nothing mattered. My heart could no longer handle anymore. I laid down next to Hood and held onto him tightly as I cried. In a matter of seconds my future was snatched away from me. Everything was snatched away from me. For a split second, I thought about grabbing my gun from the floor and putting a bullet through my own head. Anything to not feel the pain I was feeling right now.
Before I could make a move for my own gun, Rebel came running through the door. Lil Wolfe was too busy laughing at me to notice. Rebel took in the scene and without hesitating, she shot him three times. Once in the shoulder, once in the stomach and the last one hit home and caught him in the head. He landed right next to Hood and me. I could see his blank eyes staring at me. He was actually dead this time, but I was in too much pain to care.
“Ryder, baby, come on! We have to get out of here honey.” Rebel was pulling at me, but I pushed her off.
“Ryder come one! We have to go! The cops are coming. You can’t be here when they come. King said he would stay back. He has pull in the police force, but we cannot be here when they come.”
I heard what she was saying but it was unreal to me that I had to say goodbye to my husband. This would be the last time I would feel his warm body. My head pounded as tears poured out of my eyes. I kissed Hood on his lips and whispered, “I love you Lionel. I love you so much. You have my heart forever baby.”
At those final words, I allowed Rebel to pull me up. I got one last glance at Granny and Hood as she led me out of the room, leaving my heart behind with the two people I loved most in the world.
Prologue
Ryder
Laughing. It always started with the high pitched, maniacal laughing. The loud BANG followed quickly and meshed with the laugh. Blood oozed from the walls and seeped up from the floor and clung to the carpet I was standing on.
I was frozen in terror and covered in blood. I was staring down at Hood’s blank eyes as Granny’s voice spoke loudly in my ear, “why didn’t you save us, Ryder?”
I called out for Granny. I couldn’t see her, yet her voice repeated the question over and over in my head. There was nothing I could do to stop the scene from unfolding. I was glued in place as I cried out for someone to help me.
I woke with a start as I heard another scream. One that wasn’t mine, but a scream I knew all too well. I sighed heavily as I let my heartrate slow from the nightmare. I looked to my left and my heart ached for the cool side of the bed. I wasn’t sure if the ache was for Hood…or Kobra. Both, probably.
I would never stop missing Hood, that much I knew. It had been eight months since he had died, and the pain was just as fresh as it had been yesterday. There wasn’t a day that went by where I didn’t get on my knees and pray for him. I prayed he had spent enough time with me, so that my love for God rubbed off on him. I prayed that he was in Heaven right now, watching over me. I prayed that he was okay with the company I kept.
I sighed again as I thought about Kobra. He had been the light in my life the past eight months. The connection was unexpected but welcomed. We fit naturally together as if God planned it to be this way. If you had asked me a year ago, or even fifteen years ago, I would have laughed my ass off at the thought of Kobra and I, simply because he had always been there, working my nerves, mostly.
He and I had always been close, but it was never on that level. He was my best friend and the nigga that I argued with all at the same time. He was the lil boy I grew up with and used to throw rocks at the back of his head when he wasn’t looking. He was the nigga that I never saw making his way into my heart.
The moment that Jakiah and Hood died, it was as if God altered the universe instantly, and made Kobra and I a possibility. A possibility I had never saw coming.
He came to visit me a few days after Jakiah and Hood’s funerals. There were no words spoken that day, but we did hug each other fiercely. From the moment that I tore my gaze from the window, and I saw him standing in my bedroom door, I ran to him and latched on. I didn’t let go for hours and he didn’t either. It was as if the broken part of my soul recognized the broken part of his and they came together to make a whole piece.
He visited every day after that and things got better, a fraction of an inch each day. Kobra was devastated over Jakiah’s death. She was his baby and he had a hard time handling his pain, but he dealt with it better than I did. As the months went on, he started to actively heal me, too. Not just by holding me, but by making me live my life. He coaxed me out of bed and taught me how to live my fucking life again. He breathed air into my lungs and jumpstarted my heart again.
Slowly, I started to wake up and see the new life that God had provided for me. I still had my bad days where I laid in bed and thought about all the people I’d lost. There was also nothing anyone, including Kobra, could do to stop the night terrors. They never failed to plague me every single night. When I awoke from them, trembling and screaming, it did help, when Kobra was there to rub my back and tell me everything would be okay. I was sad that tonight couldn’t be one of those nights since he was out of town, visiting Doc and Maddey on business.
There was another scream coming from down the hall, breaking me from my thoughts. I rolled out of bed and swallowed down the sickness that had taken over me the last few weeks. I had some kind of bug that I couldn’t seem to shake but I slipped my black silk robe on and opened the bedroom door, determined to go to my friend. I stopped at the last door on the left and pushed it open.
Rebel. My sweet, loving and innocent Rebel was thrashing around in bed, screaming out in agony. I wasn’t the only one that was plagued by bad dreams from that day. Rebel’s gentle soul couldn’t handle what she saw that day, or the fact that she had killed.
For me. She saved me. I reminded myself.
She had killed Lil Wolfe without hesitation for me and she was paying for it now, and probably for the rest of her life. That was why, no matter what, I made sure I comforted her every night and helped her battle her demons, because she had nobody else.
I crawled into bed with her and gently woke her up. “Bel, wake up.”
She gasped and her eyes flew open. She began to sob, just like she did every other night. I let fresh tears fall from my eyes as I listened to her cries. Before long, we both drifted off to sleep with the promise of morning bringing on a new start.
One
Rebel
“W
hen you gonna let me take you out, girl?” Cameron popped up from out of nowhere, sliding into the chair across from me.
I rolled my eyes as I closed the book I was reading. It was early Saturday morning and I was at the school library studying. I had actually been enjoying myself until Cameron Monsir made his grand entrance.
I rubbed my tired eyes and looked at him grinning at me from across the table. I hadn’t been sleeping well lately, so I did not have the energy to deal with his persistent flirting.
“I told you, Cameron, I can’t date anyone right now. I’m focused on school and nobody, including you, is going to mess that up for me.” I reopened my book hoping that he would get the hint and go away, with no such luck.
His massive hand lowered my book and peered at me over the top of it. “Why though? I know you find me attractive,” he waggled his eyebrows at me, “and I damn sure find yo lil ass sexy as hell.”
He licked his lips and continued to stare at me as I wriggled in my seat and avoided his eyes. I was extremely uncomfortable with his advances, especially lately. He only seemed to get more turned on by my rejections and it was tiring dealing with his constant flirting.
Don’t get me wrong, Cameron was a handsome man with dark chocolate skin, deep dark eyes and nice full lips. He was also tall with bulging muscles that made all the women in our class drool at the sight of him. As hands
ome as he was, he was wasting his time trying to get a date from me.
I wasn’t into men, and no, that didn’t mean I liked women either. I just didn’t care for the whole dating scene. I was sure it had something to do with the fact that I never had a boyfriend and that was because I spent most of my youth in a brothel. Six years being forced to take drugs and give your body away to various men would harm anyone’s views on dating.
I shook my head to dissipate the images that plagued my nightmares and focused back on Cameron who was staring intently at me.
“Cameron, it’s been over a year now. When will you give it up?” I asked bluntly, surprised at myself for speaking my mind for once.
Cameron looked taken aback, but he quickly rearranged his features back into his infamous smirk. “I’ll stop asking you to go on a date with me, when you give in.”
I sighed as I gathered my things, placing my books in my backpack and standing up, “it isn’t going to happen, Cameron. There are plenty of other women that are interested. Stop wasting your energy on me.”
Before he could respond, I rushed out of the library without looking back. I made it to my old beat up car out of breath as I unlocked the doors and threw my backpack in the back seat. I got into the driver’s side door and turned the key three times. It was a ritual for me and my old car, who I affectionately called Phillip. I had bought the old Cadillac a couple of years back after I was rescued from Madame’s brothel. I laughed as I remembered my father begging to let him buy me a better car, one that wasn’t a death trap, as he liked to call it, but I refused. We were on our way to a dealership when we passed Phillip. He had a for sale sign on him and I fell in love at first sight. He had character and I instantly made my mind up that I wanted that car. Daddy refused to buy it for me, so I drained my savings and bought him myself.