Tribulations

by KM Fortune

  As if conjuring The Duke’s men from thin air by thinking of them, Kit noticed a pair come into the street from a narrow alley which ran along the side of the fighting venue. Interesting, Kit thought sliding unnoticed through the hurrying crowd. I wonder what is behind this building. It seemed like a perfect time to find out. Waiting as nonchalantly as possible, Kit watched the two men out of the corner of her eye. The moment they started away from the opening, she slipped in behind them and stepped into the shadowy gap. Moving quickly but cautiously, Kit snuck between the two brick buildings. Nearing the other end, Kit heard voices and the sound of an engine starting up. More curious than ever now, the small woman crouched down and slowly, ever so carefully, peeked out.

  A couple workers, supervised by another of The Duke's henchmen, were transporting cases out of the basement door to the building beside the theater and into the back of a moving van. The driver's side door was open, and a burly man leaned out to yell toward the rear. "Are we about done here?" he said. "I'm already behind schedule and having to do this drive at night is no picnic." The Duke's man sauntered up to the front of the vehicle.

  "Hold your horses, Lou. Two minutes and you can roll out," he said. "Apparently somebody got their hand caught in the grinder, and it shut things down for a few hours." Kit saw Lou grin.

  “I bet that was a hell of a mess,” he said.

  The cowboy spit into the dirt. “You said it,” he said. Just then, one of the workers shuffled up to the two men. Without making eye contact, he shifted from foot to foot and waited. “What?” the cowboy snapped. “You done?” The worker flinched.

  “No more crates,” he answered. The cowboy nodded.

  "Okay, you two get out of here. Go see the fight," he said. "I'll check things in a second." Kit watched the now excited worker start to hustle back to his partner. The two men began to gather up their gear and Kit realized at any second the two would turn toward her and be headed to the alley to get back to the street. It left Kit with two options. Retreat now, or try and dive unnoticed into the back of the truck and look around. Kit smiled. The decision was easy and moving like a shadow, she took a running leap and slipped unnoticed among the many crates. Pulling her knives in case The Duke's man double-checked the back and found her, she waited. After a minute, she heard the truck's rear door sliding closed, and Kit was trapped in pitch black. For a fleeting moment, Kit wondered if her hasty choice was perhaps a mistake, but then the truck was moving, and she was going with it.

  THEY RODE IN THE GOLF cart, and the people on the street parted like a sea before them. When the residents of Reno saw who it was in the vehicle, they would stop, and some even bowed as The Duke and Raven drove past. This is what it must feel like to be royalty, Raven thought. It was odd to know she was with someone who was so adored yet in her mind seemed so dangerous. Or am I being fooled? she wondered. Is it only because he holds access to all the resources that they respect him? For now, there was no way to know for sure.

  As they approached the venue where the fighting took place, The Duke stopped the cart and jumped out to rush around to Raven’s side and lend her a hand. Knowing everyone was watching, Raven smiled sweetly and took his offering. She stepped out and for a surreal second, with neon lights all around her, she felt almost elegant in her beautiful dress. This is craziness, she thought. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” The Duke asked. Raven gave him a sidelong glance.

  "I do believe you said something like it," she answered. The tall cowboy laughed and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm as he led her to the main entrance of the building. As they walked by, the men took off their hats, and the women looked on with adoration or, in more than a few cases Raven noticed, lust. Well, I guess he would be a catch, Raven thought with a wry smile. Lucky me.

  They entered the building through the revolving door and stopped in the foyer. The Duke turned back to the crowd, which had come in behind them. He waved his hand to quiet the people, and the noise in the room dropped to almost nothing in an instant. "I want you all to know something," The Duke started. "Although I will be making a grander announcement once everyone is here and I am in the ring, I wanted to confirm the rumor that this beautiful woman and I are engaged to be married." A ripple of enthusiasm ran through the crowd. People began to murmur excitedly to each other. Raven looked at The Duke's face and saw him eating up the attention.

  Suddenly, someone in the crowd yelled out. "When is the wedding?" Raven felt a cold, sick feeling in her stomach. She was still hoping she could talk The Duke out of his crazy idea, yet here he was announcing it to the masses. He looked at her as if reading her thoughts and Raven knew again she was playing with fire. His eyes narrowed, and she could see his smile starting to fade, so she forced a broad one of her own to keep up the show.

  “I’ve always wanted a June wedding,” she said sweetly. At this, The Duke laughed heartily.

  "I don't know that I will wait until June," he said and then looked back at the crowd. "In fact, I thought we would get hitched under the next full moon." The people around them cheered at the news. Raven was afraid to ask the next question, knowing she would not like the answer, but did it anyway.

  “And when will that be?” she asked. The Duke grinned.

  “Three days, my dear,” he said. “Three days.”

  TO BE CONTINUED

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  NOW FOR A PEEK INTO THE NEXT EXCITING EPISODE OF THE

  DYSTOPIAN SERIES

  FOREVER WINTER

  BOOK X: ENDURANCE

  Raven Winter tries to reason with her captor and stall for time, while her friends face the many dangers of Area 51. Only through the use of their combined intelligence and skills will Matthew and Blaze and the others survive, let alone succeed in finding what they have come after. For Hector, the stakes have never been higher as his kingdom depends on his making sure everyone stays alive.

  BOOK X - CHAPTER 1

  Raven was exhausted. The fights had gone on and on. She had not realized how much she disliked watching people punch and kick each other, but now she was sure it was not her thing. If I never see another fight it will be too soon, she thought, which she realized was a bit of a problem, considering it was the favorite pastime in the city of Reno. Not to mention my fiancé‘s. The whole thing made her stomach ache but at least for now the fights were finally done, and The Duke was escorting her out through the masses. Through the windows of the lobby, she could see the first hint of daylight and realized it really has been an entire night. As they drew near to the front door, Raven saw a sign for a restroom pointing down a short hallway, and she realized she would enjoy a private moment to catch her breath. Hours of playing nice at The Duke's side was tedious. With a hand, she touched The Duke's arm and pulled him to a stop. He paused and looked down at her. "Yes, dear?" he asked.

  Raven nodded her head in the direction of the sign. “I need a moment. Do you mind?” she asked.

  “Wouldn’t you rather wait?” The Duke asked.

  “I’d rather go now,” Raven said.

  “Well, you can’t go down there on your own,” he said. With a wave of his hand, he called over one of his henchmen. “Escort her down to the ladies room.”

  Raven blanched. “He’s not coming in with me,” she said. The Duke paused with a frown on his face.

  "Fine," he said and looked at the man. "Don't go in with her. But clear the room. And if anything happens to her—" The Duke did not bother to finish. The henchmen nodded slowly, and Raven could read in his eyes he knew precisely what The Duke was threatening.

  “Thank you,” Raven said with a warm smile at The Duke and then crossed the lobby with her guard right behind her. Pe
ople already recognized her and stepped out of the way as she passed. The looks were mixed. Some people seemed almost hopeful, while others looked at her with distrust and even one or two with malice. What do they think of me? she wondered. Some stranger coming in here basically overnight and sweeping their leader off his feet. Raven almost laughed. It was all so crazy.

  The hall was longer than Raven expected and they turned a corner just as they passed the men's room. Seeing the women's bathroom straight ahead, Raven kept going when suddenly, she heard extra footsteps behind them. She stopped to look back. A different man, this one with a shaved head, was standing there. He paused and studied the ground near his feet. The Duke's man stopped and filled the hallway. "Hey," he said to the stranger. "You need to take a hike." The man did not seem to register the words, and to Raven, it almost appeared the stranger was mouthing a prayer. Then she noticed the dark angel wing tattoos crawling up his neck. Raven's guard became angrier and he stepped closer to the man. Sensing real danger, Raven started to speak up as her protector reached out and grabbed the stranger by the shoulder of his leather jacket. "Hey," the guard said. "Are you deaf or what?" In a flash, the tattooed man revealed a knife from under his coat and jammed it into the stomach of Raven's guard. There was a gurgle and Raven watched as the man slipped to his knees. The stranger tossed his victim aside and held the now bloody knife toward Raven. Raven took a deep breath and was about to scream when the stranger shook his head.

  “One sound and I will gut you like a fish,” he said in a whisper. Raven stopped herself.

  “What do you want? she asked.

  “For you to come with me,” he answered and moving quickly, he grabbed her arm and started to drag her back in the direction of the men’s bathroom. As they went through the door, Raven was alarmed to see the room was unoccupied. On the back wall was an open window. With a push, the stranger sent her stumbling toward it. “Climb out,” he ordered as he wiped the hand he had touched her with on his pants. Raven paused and turned to look into the man’s eyes. She lifted her chin.

  “The Duke will have you killed for what you’re doing,” she stated. “But if you stop now, I will see you are given mercy.”

  The man chuckled. “Already the serpent working her magic, I see,” he said. “Just as The Creator always preached to us.”

  Raven frowned. What is he talking about? she thought, and then it dawned on her. She felt fear start to crawl up her spine. "You're from the colony," she whispered in shock. "And you're taking me back there." The stranger nodded.

  “Good guesswork,” he snarled. “Now get through that window. It’s time I go home.”

  WILLOW SAT BESIDE GABRIEL in an uncomfortable position within the tiny crevice where the two of them had hidden. It was impossible not to be pressed up against Gabriel's side, and she could tell he was unhappy about it. Better than being dead, Willow thought.

  They had spent the night there with weapons at the ready. The voices of their pursuers had grown quite close at one point, but luckily, as it became darker with night falling, they went undetected. Now, as a hint of daylight started to creep into the opening of the cave, Willow felt relieved. The platoon leader and the others were momentarily gone. But for how long. “Will they come back?” Willow asked.

  “Yes. If I know the platoon leader as well as I think I do, they will most definitely continue his hunt,” Gabriel said. “We can only hope they went to the colony last night and did not camp nearby. It will give us a little time to escape.”

  Willow nodded her agreement. "So we get out of this hole, regroup, and then what do you think? Try another entrance?" she asked. Gabriel frowned. Willow did not find it reassuring. "That's all you got?" she asked.

  “Well,” Gabriel answered. “You didn’t exactly help the situation when you rushed in and started killing people.” Willow puffed out a frustrated breath. She knew he was right, but she had no regrets. Other than not having killed the platoon leader as well. At least the traitor Blue received his justice.

  “I won’t apologize,” Willow said. “Your people ruined my life, murdered my husband, and have been a horror to those most precious to me.” She saw Gabriel pause to look at her. A flicker of emotion crossed it. Was that a hint of regret? Willow was not sure how to feel about it. Gabriel was still the enemy, and someday soon, she intended to kill him. As if sensing her thoughts, Gabriel sighed.

  “I have an idea,” he said. “We need to go and find the woman who is responsible for all of this.”

  “Raven?” Willow asked.

  Gabriel nodded. “It is the one thing we can barter for the girl.” Willow did not like the sound of what he was proposing, but she was smart enough to know when to keep her mouth shut. She agreed with at least one thing he said. They needed to go and find Raven. What they did afterward would have to wait and see.

  “Do you know where she is?” Willow asked.

  “Yes,” Gabriel said. “She’s at the forbidden city. That is where we need to go.”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  KM Fortune writes unique women’s adventure stories set in challenging futuristic landscapes. Her current series, Forever Winter, star Raven Winter, a woman frozen in time from a freak accident, who is awakened over one hundred years in the future. The world has fallen through plague and nuclear war and she must learn to survive in a harsh winter dystopian landscape filled with peril. Using her own steadfast determination to persevere, and with the help of characters along the way, this ultimate women’s adventure emphasizes the message that if you believe in yourself good can prevail.

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