by KM Fortune
“Your queen?” she asked. “I never would have expected you to call me that, Hector. Are you feeling okay?”
Hector ran a paw over his face. “Sorry, I’m just going crazy in here. Still, you are the queen,” he said.
Queen Helen nodded. “True,” she said as she walked to the sideboard along the wall of the room and set down the tray. “But for now, I would rather just be Helen.” She uncapped the wine and poured two servings.
Hector frowned. "All right," he said. "But maybe this is a perfect time for you to explain exactly how you became queen." Helen turned to Hector and held out a goblet. Crossing the room, Hector took it but was not going to be dissuaded from pressing her for an answer. "Well?" he asked.
Helen lifted her drink toward him in a toast and out of formality, Hector touched his cup to hers. Then she drank deeply before sighing and meeting his eyes. "It seems obvious enough. I married your father. Not long after you left actually." Hector winced at the sharp pain he felt in his chest. Her blunt response stung, but he kept his face still.
"I see," he said. "How convenient." Now it was his turn to slug back his wine, and once he swallowed it, he went to the decanter and poured himself more. Holding it up, he motioned toward Helen. "Another?" he asked. She held out her goblet.
"Please," she said. "And it was far from convenient, but my choices were limited after you fled. The king was talking about marrying me off to Prince Edward to save face for the realm. And he was about to send a band of assassins to hunt you down." She drank, slower this time and then looked wistfully into the cup. "I was able to solve two problems at once by throwing myself at the king. I avoided a horrible fate as Prince Edward's bride, and I convinced your father not to kill you. All rather simple really."
Hector blinked at the revelation. She did it for me? he thought. Of course, she did. Hector realized he was an idiot and sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said softly. “I never would have guessed that would happen.” Helen waved him off, almost angrily, and walked to the window. She looked out at the city and kept her back to him.
"Of course you didn't. You were unbelievably selfish after your mother died. As if we were all to be punished for her death," she said. Hector could hear the hurt in her voice. Setting down his drink, he moved to her side. She turned to face him, and there were tears in her kind eyes. "I'm not sure I'll ever forgive you, Hector."
Hector nodded. “I understand,” he said and tried to push the growing hurt inside him back down. As if seeing his pain, Helen laid a gentle paw on his face.
"Do you?" she asked. They held eyes for a moment before Helen turned away to cross the room again. Seeing she was headed for the door, Hector lowered his head. Disappointment in himself laid heavy on his shoulders. He hated for her to go, but he did not blame her. Suddenly Hector heard the door lock, and he glanced up, surprised she had left so quickly. Instead, he saw her standing there, turned toward him. There was a look in her eyes he had never seen from her before. "Promise me you will never hurt me like that again," she said.
Hector nodded slowly and started to walk toward her. She moved away from the door and met him in the middle of the room. “I promise,” he said and lowered his head to kiss her.
Kit hurried across the dark landscape. Moving among the brush with nothing to see by but the moonlight was precarious, but she was in a hurry. The only thing holding her back was Raven. The other woman followed as best she could but struggled to keep up. Kit had tried to convince her friend to stay back and wait for her, but Raven refused. So once again, Kit paused in her tracks and waited while Raven caught up. As she did, Kit scanned the horizon yet again. There was no sign of any guards around the city, but she knew they could not be too careful. After witnessing what happened to Blaze and the others with him from where they watched on the hillside, it was evident the people who lived in the forbidden city did not have a friendly welcome for unexpected visitors.
All the more reason I need to find a way into this place and rescue them, she thought as Raven came huffing and puffing up beside her. "Wait one second," she said as she leaned over with her hands on her knees. "I can hardly breathe." Kit shook her head. This is not going to work. Using hand signals as best she could, she tried to explain to Raven how she wanted her to wait while Kit did a little reconnaissance on the fortifications of the city. Pointing to the ground near a large bush, Kit squatted down and waved Raven to join her. Raven did and eventually guessed what Kit wanted. The fact that Raven was exhausted helped Kit’s case. “Five minutes,” Raven made Kit promise. The small woman nodded and then raced into the darkness.
It did not take long for Kit to spot the first of many guard towers. Each held at least two men, and although she could not see for sure if they were armed, she had to believe they had some sort of weapons. Moving at a crouch, she slipped closer, hoping her black cloak would make her invisible in the darkness. It seemed to work, and she reached the base of one of the towers, only to find a high chain link fence baring her way. Can this possibly surround the entire city? she wondered and she started to follow it. She knew Raven would be beginning to worry by now, but there was nothing Kit could do about it at the moment. Finding a way in was her foremost concern. Once a gap was located, she would go back for Raven and lead her to the hidden entrance.
Moving with stealth, she followed along the perimeter. She had not gone far when she came to a place with a small opening. It appeared someone had cut the fence with some sort of tool and snuck in. Or more possibly out, she thought. Regardless, it would work for her needs. Now she had a decision to make. She could either risk being seen by the sentries in the towers as she ran back to fetch Raven or she could go through the fence. Biting her lip in indecision, Kit knew the question really came down to who was the most important to protect. Blaze or Raven? she thought.
In a moment, her mind was made up for her when she heard the barking of dogs. The sound was not far away, and Kit quickly realized the animals were coming toward her. Apparently, the beasts were used to guard inside the city, and one or more somehow sniffed her out at the opening. There would be no easy entry into the city. Frustrated, Kit turned to run back to Raven. Being careful of the towers, she took a long looping path and eventually reached the large bush. Coming in slowly to not startle Raven, Kit slipped up beside where the woman was supposed to be. There was no one there.
CHAPTER 11
Raven rode in the back of the old golf cart. They drove down the interstate, bumping along over the cracked and uneven asphalt. Raven held on to avoid being tossed out of her seat and kicked herself for being such easy prey. When Kit had left her behind, it did not take long for Raven to doze off literally from sheer exhaustion. Even the fear churning in her stomach over the danger to Blaze and whoever was with him was not enough to keep her tired eyes open. She was a sitting duck and when a group of armed men woke her up, flashlights blinding her with their beams, she was defenseless. I let Kit down, she thought and wondered what would happen next. At least she is still out there. If anyone can find a way to get to us, it will be her. The thought gave Raven some reassurance.
The cart slowed, and Raven looked around. A tall metal gate was ahead. It was manned by a sentry holding a machine gun at his waist who waited outside a guard shack. As they pulled up, the man stepped up beside the cart. "What? Another one?" he asked. "Busy night."
“No kidding. This one’s a woman though. The Duke should like that,” the driver said with a chuckle. Raven did not care for the sound of his tone. “Pretty little thing too considering,” he continued.
Having enough of being treated like an object, prisoner or not, Raven spoke up. "I'm sitting right here, and I know what you are saying about me," she said. The two men looked surprised as they turned to her. Apparently, not a lot of their captives were brave or stupid enough to be so vocal. After a moment, they both laughed.
“Oh yeah,” the driver said. “The Duke is going to like this one a lot. Radio ahead and tell them we are coming in.”
&
nbsp; "You got it," said the sentry, walking to the booth and pushing a button. The tall gate started to swing inward, and Raven was surprised to see a brightly lit up boulevard. Lights shone in an assortment of colors. Where in the world am I? Raven thought as she stared with awe. The cart started forward, and Raven looked from left to right and back again. She was surprised there were so many people out mingling in the street, dressed in an assortment of outfits. She would have sworn one woman in a leopard print jacket was a prostitute while another man was decked out as a Hell’s Angels biker. It wasn't until the cart made its way toward the heart of the many buildings that it all started to click. A giant sign which spanned over the street and lit the snowy ground with blood red neon confirmed her thinking. The cart driver pointed up at it. "Know what that says, missy?" he asked. Raven nodded.
“The biggest little city in the world,” she read.
The driver slapped his leg in delight. “Yepper. Welcome to Reno!” he laughed. “I think you're going to love it.” Somehow Raven doubted it.
.
.
Blaze fumed. He could not believe he had allowed his group to be captured so easily. The men from the city had arrived silently using battery powered golf carts and then surrounded his group. Blaze and the others had no choice but to toss down their weapons and surrender. Now they waited in some sort of room filled with strange white statues and gilded red velvet furniture. Cracked mirrors covered the walls from the floor to the towering ceiling overhead. It was all overly decorated and ornate to the point of excess. Blaze had never seen anything like it.
Looking around at the spectacle, he saw Matthew studying a lamp. It was decked out with hanging crystals and a lacy shade. Irritated at the situation, the last thing he needed was a scientist examining things. “What are you doing?” Blaze snapped at the man. Ignoring Blaze’s tone, Matthew finished looking at the bulb and then turned to Blaze.
“It’s electric,” he said. “They must have some sort of reliable power source. Impressive really.”
Blaze shook his head. “Seriously? We are facing who knows what sort of situation here and you’re impressed?” Blaze said.
“Well it is kind of cool,” Toby interjected.
“Yep. And did you see everything while we were brought in? There are colored lights all over the place,” Brody said.
“Neon,” Matthew said. “Pretty sure.” You have got to be kidding me, Blaze thought as his three partners began to have a conversation about the decorations they all noticed.
“Shut up!” Blaze yelled. “No, I didn’t notice. I was instead trying to see a way out of here. Or aren’t any of you concerned we are hostages in the forbidden city?”
Matthew, Toby, and Brody all looked at each other. “Well,” Toby finally said. “I figure if they were going to kill us, they would have by now.”
"And wasn't the point in coming here to talk to the head guy anyway?" Brody asked. Matthew started to open his mouth to comment too, but Blaze held up his hand to stop him.
"Don't," he said. "It's all I can stand to hear these two go back and forth. I don't need you tagging in." Matthew kept his mouth shut, but a smile played on his lips. Blaze gritted his teeth. He was about to start kicking all their butts if they did not get more serious about the situation. "Just start looking around for a way out of here. Got it?" Blaze growled.
"Don't waste your time," said a voice. Whirling around, Blaze tried to see the source, but no one else was in the room. A chuckle sounded, and Blaze followed it to see a strange box near the ceiling. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Matthew nod in understanding.
“A camera,” Matthew said. “They have been watching us.”
Samuel strode down the hallway. A smile played over his determined face. It was three o'clock in the morning, but the time did not matter. What mattered was the news he had just received from a special courier. The man had tapped on the door to Samuel's quarters and woken him. Getting out of bed, Samuel was ready to blast his unwelcome visitor, but when he saw the envelope in the soldier's stretched out hand, Samuel's outrage was forgotten. Could this be the news he was waiting for all this time? Was the female who escaped finally captured or dead? he thought. Taking the document from the soldier and sending him away, Samuel had closed his door and then ripped open the paper. Inside, the words he read filled him with a sinister delight. The woman was located. She was being held captive in the forbidden city to the north.
When the female specimen Matthew somehow saved escaped from Eden, Samuel had immediately sent a communication to his contact within the city of Reno. The man, a clone from the colony, worked as Samuel’s spy and kept him up-to-date with occasional transmissions about the goings on in the degenerate metropolis of sin. Rarely was the information useful and often did nothing but fill Samuel with renewed disgust toward the heathen masses who populated the wasteland beyond Eden’s secure walls. Samuel did not care about the actions of the arrogant and clearly insane man who called himself The Duke. This time was different.
After reading the letter over a few times, Samuel knew what he must do next, which was why he was moving quickly through the colony's corridors and heading straight to Gabriel's quarters. As he approached the door, he paused to relish the moment. Finally, he could send a group from the Patrols straight to where the female was located and have her brought back for termination. It was one procedure he looked forward to watching.
Gabriel heard the pounding on his door through the haze of a recently recurring nightmare. Hannah was in trouble, yet he could not find her. Somehow he knew he was her last hope and so his search was frantic as he ran up and down the hallways of Eden. Tangled in sweat-soaked sheets, the sound of someone hammering his door finally brought him around, and he opened his eyes. His heart still pounded from the adrenaline, and his mouth was dry from fear. The knocking sounded again, and with a shake of his head, Gabriel sat up, swinging his legs off the edge of the cot and resting his feet on the floor. "What?" Gabriel shouted as he checked his watch and saw it was not even four in the morning. "This better be important," he snarled and got up to go to the door. Ripping it open, he paused when he saw his visitor was Samuel. Hannah! he thought in a panic. Something happened to her. Before he could ask any questions, Samuel thrust an envelope at him. It crinkled where it struck Gabriel’s chest.
“I found her,” Samuel said. Gabriel looked down at the paper, not comprehending. Found who? he thought. Then it came to him. Samuel had somehow located the witch.
"How?" Gabriel asked as he took the envelope from Samuel and opened it to read what was inside. The message was short and precise. The female the colony was looking for was being held in the forbidden city. Gabriel could hardly believe it. He had been certain she was dead after all this time of not being able to find her.
"How does not matter," Samuel snapped. "What matters is you get a group together and go get her before she escapes again."
CHAPTER 12
As Raven was escorted through the lobby of what she guessed was once a high-end casino hotel, she tried to take in every detail of the room. Alone without Hector or Kit, she knew she had to use her own wits if she was to survive whatever was going to happen next. If her time on the wasteland had taught her anything, it was she needed to be cunning and prepared for the unexpected. It did not help that everything around her looked and felt like her old life, with electricity especially. She just had to remember it was anything but. Likely more dangerous than ever, she thought.
Reaching the far side of the space, Raven and her companion, apparently some henchman of this fellow called The Duke, came to a bank of elevators. The man pushed a button, and the doors slide open. Undeniably impressed but still hesitant to trust the old machinery, she looked at her guard. "Where are you taking me?" she asked.
The man grinned. "To see The Duke," he said. "For some reason, he wants to meet you immediately rather than wait until morning. You must be something special." Raven was not happy to hear of her special status, but it did
give her an idea. Maybe I can use this to my advantage, she thought.
"Very well," she said and stepped into the elevator. "Penthouse I assume?"
The man raised his eyebrows as he followed her inside. “Good guess. I’ve never met anyone who even knew what such a place was,” he said, pushing the button for the top floor.
Raven nodded. "Oh I know a lot of things," she said. "Does he play the big piano in his room? Or does someone do it for him?" It was a wild guess, based solely on what Raven had seen in the movies and on television regarding penthouse apartments in extravagant hotels. Apparently, her luck was holding because the man's jaw dropped at her prediction. Then he narrowed his eyes as the elevator rattled upward.
“How the hell did you know there was a piano?” he asked. Raven shrugged.
"Like I said, I know things," she replied. "In fact, you may want to radio ahead. Let The Duke know I'm not just some random wanderer you picked up. Tell him Lady Raven Winter from the City of Angels is about to join him. And I came here with a purpose."
The man hesitated, uncertain what to do with the new information. Finally, he pulled the handheld radio from his belt and called ahead. He had to repeat his message twice to the voice on the other end but eventually convinced the receiver he was serious. "This better not be bull crap," he warned as he put the radio back on his hip. Raven only smiled sweetly at him as the elevator stopped with a ding.
The doors slid open to reveal two armed men flanking white French doors. The more muscular of the two wore a radio on his hip. When he saw Raven and her escort he frowned. "I made your announcement," he said. "Gave The Duke a good laugh." He looked Raven up and down. "I was expecting someone a little more glamorous."