BEN'S POV!!!!
"Carrie, babe, is there any way you could have the sudden urge to not make us plummet to our deaths?"
Carrie looked back at Dante and rolled her eyes. "Don't be so dramatic."
The chocolatey haired beauty turned back to the narrow crumbly slab of rock that acted as a bridge over a huge, deep chasm. On the other side was a cave, looking dark and ominous.
"Are you sure about this Carrie?"
She turned to Rent and sighed,
"look, you don't have to come with me, I don't even know where I am going at this point. I'll be right back. You lot can stay here if you like."
My wolf growled viciously in my head. Like hell, she was going alone.
"Not a fucking chance." I snarled.
Her eyes snapped to mine for a split second, looking agonized and warm, then they flicked away.
"Come, don't come, I don't mind, we're ju
DANTE'S POV!!!It was nightfall, and still, the group had barely spoken. We set up camp in a clearing, the stone cup was nestled tightly in Rent's satchel. Some of us were prepping tents, others repacking backpacks, while the rest sat and watched the fire.My eyes trailedCarrie as she stood, "I'm going to get more firewood."It wasn't a bad excuse, almost everyone was either too busy bustling around, or too lost in thought to really notice. It had been a long day.She began walking away, her chocolate waves looking black in the darkness.Fifteen minutes later I followed, tracking her right to end of the woods, on the bank of a deep round pound. Lilly pads lay in the water, the shiny white Lilly flowers floated next to them, glowing in the moonlight.She stood silently her head tilted to the sky. Dry pine cracked
I hated the plan. It was unsettling and unstable, and if it went wrong, we were screwed.The satchel was in Rent's tent. Along with Rent, and his guards."We're so screwed," I whispered, walking back to camp, Bonolo by my side."It's going to be fine.""You realize we still have bombs in our necks right?"Bonolo nodded grimly. "I know.""What if we get caught?"She looked forward and shrugged."We won't get caught.""Oh, good." I nodded, "that's reassuring."I was dutifully ignored.We reached the camp and got into position. Minutes later Ben, who had run to the other side of the wood began to howl. Rent, Dante and the guards scrambled up out of the tents."It sounds like Ben."Yelled Rent over the howling."I'll stay with Carrie, go!" B
I was so fucking tired of being kidnapped. It was doing my bloody head in."Right. I'm not doing this.""Doing what miss?"I looked at the spindle and stood, stretching out my arms."I am so sick of this routine. I am not going to sit and wait in this stupid dungeon for them to come to get me and tell me what they want. Fuck that."Spindle looked confused, "But, but what are you going to do miss?"I looked about the cell, "I am going to figure out how to get the hell out of here."Spindle shook his big head and sat down stubbornly in the sludge."It's unpossible miss. Completely unpossible."I smiled, "you mean impossible Spindle."He shook his head, his bunny ears dropping. "There's no im about it a miss. It's totally and truly un."I shook my head at him, and began examining the cell,
"Carrie Stewart, I've wanted to meet you for a long time. And I am not disappointed."I stared back at the king, he sat in his slimy throne, looking back at us with huge pop-out eyes.Trolls, I decided were some of the ugliest creatures ever. They were covered in green leathery skin, which stran
I was helped into a deep draping purple dress. It had heavy folds and a corset with black strings that tightened the top of the dress. Black ribbons crisscrossed their way up my wrists, and a black lace choker was put around my neck. Gumbleberries had been crushed and used to stain my lips a dark purple. My hair was put up in a huge thick wedding style bun, dressed with dark purple pearls, and pieces of hair framing my face. I looked strange and dark, gothic."You look ever so pretty miss." Breathed one of the troll hand
"Don't!" I breathed desperately.The towering creature's dark eyes grabbed me, blood ran down his face, fur messy and bleeding from the fight.Fear was rising in my chest. My heart raced as I felt, the weight o
I woke up to the crackling of a fire. My head was pounding and my entire body was in pain. Ben's back was to me, his eyes trained on the fire."Hey, Carrie." He whispered.I sat up slowly, "what happened?" I asked, pressing my palm against my forehead.
BEN'S POV"It went everywhere!" She laughed, her long locks cascading down her back.I chuckled, my eyes warming as I took her in.
I sat on the edge of my bed, trying hard to focus my mind. While both boys were barely on speaking terms, they were both in firm agreement that they would find a way for me to back out of the tournament. I wasn't optimistic.My mind was still racing, it made no sense, what was the queen gaining with me as a competitor? I had a feeling, a gut feeling, this Tornment would end up being a lot more than just a competition. Something darker, deeper and far more important was going on. And I intended to find out what.
For the next half hour, we were too busy sorting through what's been happening, for Ben to yell at Dante and me for making contact. I knew it would come later though. Right now, both boys were furious at mefor keeping the recent attacks on me a secret.Ben called for a handmaiden, and under his orders she got off every scrap of makeup on my body, revealing dozens of nasty wounds, scrapes, and bruises.
I woke up in the bedroom Ben had offered me the day he put the crest on my palm."Bet you never thought you'd sleep in that bed."My eyes snap to my left, Ben is watching rain patter onto the balcony through the glass window in the french doors.
BEN'S POV!!!!!!"This is ridiculous.""I don't care.""Ben!"
I fell onto my bed, gripping my bleeding side. Goblins. They had attacked the house, and they weren't the first. Someone had leaked my location, all kinds of creatures were attacking throughout the week, trying to recapture the "Future Valderian Queen."Rent had called, he still hadn't gotten a confession from his guards. The mole on our team was still unknown.
The alpha gave me the prophecy, but I knew the others were waiting. So I stuffed it into my pocket, and stumbled out to the car, knowing my face was as white as a sheet. Everyone bustled, saying goodbye, and getting into the right cars. I came face to face with Rent, and immediately my eyes welled with tears."Oh Carrie," he breathed fondly, pulling me warmly into his arms, "
BEN'S POVEverything began to happen very quickly. It took us another night and another day before we reached the border.Carrie kept a space between us that was way too big to be natural. Her face was a constant flat stone plate. Her usually sparking eyes, dull and walled over. I'd never seen t
CARRIE'S POVI cried until pale light splattered across the dark sky. I knew Ben wasn't going to change his mind about this. It was over. My sister had lost her fiance, and it was my fault.Ben set out a breakfast of pheasant cooked for my benefit on a small fire. He said nothing, I didn't touch the food, he didn't push me to, and we ignored my red-rimmed eyes.
BEN'S POVTwo days. Two days of walking and camping. But I barely noticed. Time melted, waving around us like soft silk.Carrie's link was still open, her contentment warmed my body, her happiness swirling in my chest.Her chocolate hair was thrown up into a